I love my Mark V but....

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jonathanccwong

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So i have a mark V and I use it a lot. It's my primary rig that I use most often. I like the versatility of the 3 independent channels and the tone really is very good.

Yet recently I purchased a Vintage Mark I and subsequently a IIC+
And really those two amps (especially the IIC+) are the amps I play when I am at home.

It's not that the mark V doesn't sound awesome. But I feel like it should be my "go to" amp rather than just being a workhorse.

At times I thought about selling it, but I know I'll kick myself for losing the ability to have that 3 channel versitility on stage.


Anyone feels the same way about their Mark V?

TLDR: love the Mark V like a wife, not a mistress
 
We have all had equipment that looks good on paper, but just doesn't do it for us. Or maybe it did, but now it doesn't.

Move on. Play what you love. Life is short.
 
Hehe....

Sounds like you just have too much of a good thing going on!
Stop worrying about it and just grab whatever feels right
for the night and make it work.
 
So you have too many amps and can't decide which one you like the most.
Jesus, someone bring me a violin. :lol:

Maybe sometime I should type up my similar problems with my gun habit.
 
As much as I loved my Mark IV for practice, it lacked the something special I get from my Mark lll's when playing with a band. No regrets selling it, none. I've never owned a Mark l, they don't show up that often for sale and for my style, I'd rather have a C+. After saying that, I'm buying a Mark mini next month, but I will use that more for open mics, home practice and recording.
 
I can symphatize with Jonathan's description of how he feels about his V. In fact, I feel pretty much the same way. It gives me a selection of very usable tones, it gets the job done but...at the end of the day (or night), doesn't fill me with a feeling of "Wow, sounded good tonight!" like my other Mesas do.

I think it has to do with the intrinsic nature of the amp. It is a very high quality and professional sounding amp but its base sound is a good deal stiffer and colder than any other Mesa I own. Modern sounding in a bad way, if you will.

Not saying it's a bad amp - it's a great amp. It is reliable, consistent, and versatile. But for tone, I turn to my other Mesas.
Honeymoon over, definitely... :|

ADDENDUM: With the stock Mesa 6L6s, the problem (stiffness and coldness) was especially disturbing. Switching over to Svetlana =C= El-34s alleviated it somewhat and breathed some life to my V, but a Mark V is a Mark V, no matter what power tubes it has in it.
 
Lol I thought I was imagining it!
Maybe a round of retubing would help but that seems like a wild goose chase.

And really it would seem like this is adding to the whole IIC+ mode is not a real IIC+ thing
But sonically it does sound different (close but different).

But I do like Jb's idea: grab whatever feels right for the night
 
Feel the exact same way! I love this amp and what it is capable of but in the end, it just seems like the tones in Ch 2 & 3 aren't organic enough...very stiff and cold.

I'd like to try retubing but really don't want to void my warranty...after all, this is quite a complex amp and there are a lot of things that 'could' go wrong and Id rather not have to pay for that if possible! ...at least for a while...

I've been strongly considering selling it and taking a loss (seriously, over the last two days). I've had it for about 18 months and it does sound good in live situations but it has NEVER blown me away either. Since the amp can be meticulous to dial-in and the sound is constantly changing with the wind (same settings can sound different day-to-day, even hour-to-hour!), I find myself 'chasing' a whole lot and tweaking instead of just playing. Further, because of how stiff it is, I'm beginning to wonder if it's just the foundation of the amp is not to my liking.

Then at the same time I think to myself, ...'how the hell can't you find a silky, good vintage gain tone in that amp?'. In fact, none of the gain tones sound that organic to me...more like harsh and cold.

Really, really confused... :?: :|
 
Bluestoned1 said:
I'd like to try retubing but really don't want to void my warranty...|

I held this position for a while. I changed my mind. I didn't think it was worth it to shell out the cost of a Mesa and not be inspired to play. I figured that at the 5 year mark, all best are off so I would do it in a second. I say you spend a couple of bucks to retube it and take a chance on getting an amp you absolutely love. If something happens to it, and it has the tones you want, you will pay to have it fixed. It's what I did and I don't regret it a bit (mostly because I'm only 2 yrs in and my amp hasn't crapped out yet).

I say buy from a reputable dealer and let them know you have a mesa. They'll give you tubes rated for mesa and you'll be fine.
 
Wow…. Some here sound like they got married and they are now thinking they made a mistake. News flash, music is a mood and when it comes to amps and guitars you may be as sleazy as you like. I just did a job and took my trusty F-30. Yes it has great tone. I had a guy camped out on my side of the stage all night, talk talk talk about how great the guitar sounded. Apparently his experience level with guitars and amps was a bit low. He kept saying “I gota trade in my Strat and get a Telecaster.” I was playing my Hot-Rodded 52 reissue blond Telecaster. It does sing but we all know it’s the combination of many factors that allow a good tone to happen…. even your mood, lack of practice, crappy crowd, temperature or just about anything can make it sound wrong to the player.

Something I have been doing that gave me a new perspective on the Mark V. I set the master volume on about 9:30. Then I setup all the channels to sound how I wanted but with each channel volume very low with no clip from the master. The overall volume was a little louder than bedroom level. I then opened up the master volume to 12:00 and great tones were singing out of the speakers. Give it a try.

The deal is play what you feel playing and change it up. You don’t have to be monogamous to your Mark V. I can play all night with a one channel amp and have a ball. Amp tones are different so enjoy them. Selling your Mark V will only depress you later.
 
jonathanccwong said:
So i have a mark V and I use it a lot. It's my primary rig that I use most often. I like the versatility of the 3 independent channels and the tone really is very good.

Yet recently I purchased a Vintage Mark I and subsequently a IIC+
And really those two amps (especially the IIC+) are the amps I play when I am at home.

It's not that the mark V doesn't sound awesome. But I feel like it should be my "go to" amp rather than just being a workhorse.

At times I thought about selling it, but I know I'll kick myself for losing the ability to have that 3 channel versitility on stage.


Anyone feels the same way about their Mark V?

TLDR: love the Mark V like a wife, not a mistress

I tried to find a reason to love a Mark V years ago but it just didn't capture me. I'm not sure what it was but I just couldn't get a sound out of it I loved. Bought a Tremoverb head instead, then a Rectoverb 50 combo and finally recently a used RK2 combo. Not saying they are not great but for me the rectifier series had a flavor and sound that i resonated with. That being said, tubes make all the difference even if in the slightest terms. I pulled the chinese ecc83 from the RK and replaced with my extra old english mullards and also the 4 6l6 with old GEs. It was like a completely different amp all new and sexy. Question is what is your amp to you? If you dont love it, ditch it. There are other amps, even non mesa. Dont go all bitter christian with your amp! :eek:
 
All you guys not loving your Mark V ever try and set the amp without any eq ? I feel that the eq seems to push some frequencies which sounds unpleasant when playing without the whole band.. Just my observation, I don't have any exp with previous mark amps so my expectations are different. I just need that fluid lead tone and a great hi gain rhythm..
 
Interesting ...

I have said here many times that the MKV is the most rewarding & frustrating amp I have owned. Sell / don't sell has come and gone so many times I have stopped analysing it

It is outstanding at many things, and took me a long time to bond with it. And like anything, I fall in and out of love with this mistress depending on my mood. Which tells me it isn't the amp - it's me

I am lucky enough to have 3 other mistresses on hand to scratch the itch of the day. They are all different, and excel at what they do. Heaven, and no room for excuses on my part :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
 
All I know is that I've been playing over 25 years and well over 20 onstage and I can say that this amp does many things but nothing extremely well (for my tastes) other than a close to perfect clean.

The MV is better than so many amps and few can compete with the ground that it covers but the harsh and stiff nature of the amp leave me with nasally tone that is bewildering!

Could there be better tones in there that I'm not yet finding? ...sure. Could tube rolling be the answer? ****, I sure hope so because that seems to be the only other plausible answer!

If you're finding what you want and need out of it then Via con Dios! There could be others that just don't resonate with the bitter nature of the amp...Just another point of view!

One more thing, yes, this amp actually should pretty much do everything and the fact that I can't get a warm gain tone out of it is disappointing!
 
Bankim said:
ever try and set the amp without any eq ?

Never use the GEQ on channel 2. Channel 2 + EL-34s = perfect, as is.
On channel 3, it is pretty much mandatory, at least for me.
And since I switched to EL-34s, I'm using a slight touch of the preset EQ on channel 1 to bring back some of the lows to the mix and recapture some of that depth the 6L6s readily give you.

Let me clarify my stance.

When I got the amp, the clean channel won me over immediately, especially the Fat and the Tweed modes. No trouble getting great tones there.
Channel 2 was something of a problem. The modes sounded dull and lifeless. If I used the GEQ, it sounded better but also more similar to channel 3 where I really needed to use the GEQ. EL-34s turned out to be the answer. They turned all three modes on this channel into something immensely usable and actually the highlight of the amp.
Channel 3...where do I begin? I had such high hopes for this channel, and was initially awestruck by it. The Mark IV mode was my initial favorite. I could get great sounds at home...but with the band, I got those terrible ice-pick highs that pierced my ears. Like, WTF, man! That, and the general boxiness of the sound at band volume, inspired me to try EL-34s...and that solved both issues. But even after that, it took me four more years of tweaking before I accidentally stumbled upon Extreme mode settings that were close enough to what I wanted to hear.

Today, I finally have all 3 channels on my V dialed to my liking. I think part of a part of the problem is that the V gives you a world of sonic possibilities that you can dial and tweak - but quite a few of them are "Ummm...no!" sounds. Not so with my other Mesas. With them, I just turn a dial and find a great tone. Turn the dial again, and find another great tone.

The V takes a lot of effort and patience to dial in properly. Even then, it's difficult to get completely rid of its inherent cold and stiff nature. It seems to me that the lead channel (3) is finetuned to the ideals of progressive math-metal. (Not exactly my kind of music.)
 
I got the MV after playing a LSS and I stll think the LSS has more "magic" and is more relevant to what I naturally gravitate to as a player.
The MV is my workhorse and I see it and treat it as such. What it gives is good enough for the job and by focusing on that and the tones it does well, which luckily are the ones suited for what I do, I don't worry about about all its wasted potential.

What I expereinced gigging the V vs the LSS is that "mojo" and what feels 100% right in the ears and fingers is not necessarily right for a certain band, mix etc. eg, I prefer how the authoritative extreme or MkIV mode lead tones of the V sit in the mix to the old-school bluesy high gain leads of the LSS, although I also find the MkV leads to be a bit math metal and I'm not that kind of guy myself either.
A retube to 6CA7s is due as well..
 

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