Mark V:25 vs Mark V:35

I'm in the market for one of these heads... 25 watt vs 35 watt... any opinions?

I used to play out frequently with my band but these days I'm more-so stuck playing in the house. That being said, full-band stuff MIGHT still happen again from time to time and I want to make sure my head can handle it. From what I've heard so far, it seems like the 25 and 35 should both be fine in that regard, correct?

I'm downgrading (in wattage, at least) from a Roadster head. How does the clean channel in Mark V:25 and 35 compare to the channel 1 clean of the Roadster?

Thanks in advance!

I don't own one, but have been GASsing for one for a while. After reading a ton about both, my choice would be the V:35. It has bigger transformers, therefore a fuller, richer, bottom end, which is what I am after.

Thanks for the input. I've been leaning toward 35 as well, but I haven't gotten to play through them yet. No dealers very close to me. I think myself and buddy are going to take a road trip in a week or two to a store that (currently) has them both in stock.

I've got a 25, and my best friend just picked up a 35, and we both have the big Mark V as well. If you can afford it, I'd go with the 35, as it just gives you more verstatility. It has more clean headroom available if you want it. With my 25, the cleans break up sooner. It is great for small gigs if I want very clean cleans; if it is a larger gig, I would use my big Mark V if I need clean cleans. Also, the 35 has dual channel solo boosts, also a nice extra addition. The 35 allows you to set it at 25 and 10 watts, just like the 25, but you get the extra two tubes for more robust output.

So, if you have your choice, go with the 35.

I actually sold a Mark25 to buy the Mark35. The main reason is that I wanted a small combo amp instead of the head/cab. At home I have the combo stacked on top of the Theile cab I was using with the head. The combo is light weight and easy to carry if I use it out.
The Mark25 sounds fabulous on both the clean and the crunch channels and likewise the Mark35 does as well. You do get the solo options on the M35. If cost is not an issue get the M35.
The tones coming out of the tiny size of the M25 is pretty cool tho 8)

Both have plenty of wattage. I just played a reasonably large venue and used cab clone directly into the mixing board. It was awesome. Used channel 1 at 25 watts and channel 2 at 10. Tons of headroom. Volumes never breached 9:00. The big difference for me is the versatility. For instance. when you go from fat to crunch, there is a volume jump. Thus, you can set your channel 1 solo for a louder fat volume. Four tubes are better than two.

Any difference in the reverb?

The difference in reverb is the Mark V:35 has a long tank reverb and the Mark V:25 has a short tank. I opted for the 35, the differences are easily worth the $200 (to me).

79sg said:

The difference in reverb is the Mark V:35 has a long tank reverb and the Mark V:25 has a short tank. I opted for the 35, the differences are easily worth the $200 (to me).

Click to expand...

I wondered if that would be an issue with the "lunchbox" style amp.

I purposedly got the 25 instead of the 35. It handles a loud rock band fine. The smaller footprint /weight/ footpedal all helped my decision. I don't need pristine cleans.
I'm not lugging larger gear to fill room with my tone when there are PAs for that.
The 25 can easily fill a smaller venue 50-75 people without PA support but its so easy to run the cab clone to the board. Why not lower your stage vol and fill the room via the PA.

scoden said:

The 25 can easily fill a smaller venue 50-75 people without PA support but its so easy to run the cab clone to the board. Why not lower your stage vol and fill the room via the PA.

Click to expand...

That's an excellent point. However, I feel like at 95% of the gigs in my area the PA is pretty sad and can barely handle vocals. (Not a big area for music, if you can't tell already.) It's so bad that we generally opt to lug along a couple of our own powered 15" PA speakers as a "backup plan" because often times what they have is more-or-less unusable. :roll:

So, with that said, maybe I'm better off with a 35, knowing that I'll probably need the head to do all the work. Plus, I do like my cleans to be very clean at times.

OR, maybe I'll keep the Roadster to use at larger venues (plus more options when recording) and just grab a 25 for practice and smaller venues... decisions, decisions...

I bought a 25 the day before MB announced the 35 so I was able to play the 25, send it back and get the 35 head. I like the additional headroom on the clean channel, and the 35 is a bit punchier. Both are incredible amps. I also have a 90 combo and running the two together is amazing. I use widebody 1x12 cabs (C90 and V30 with the 35, C90 with the combo). The 35 also sounds killer with my 1968 Marshall 4x12 w/Greenbacks. The one possible advantage to the 25 is you may be able to find one used and a good bit less expensive that way than the 35. Either way, you win!

I understand the appeal of the 25 - lower wattage, weight, etc. But where is the advantage of buying the 35, or why bother with one if you already have the 90? I may pick up a 25, I'm just not seeing the appeal of the 35, unless you wanted a combo.

If you want bigger transformers and more headroom, why not just get the 90 and run it on 45W? It's not much bigger than the 35, doesn't weigh tremendously more (less than 20 lbs different), and has a lot more options. Used prices are less than a new 35. Plus, you need special cables to run switching systems with it.

So while I understand the appeal of the 25 and may pick one up, I'm having a hard time understanding why to buy a 35 instead of a 90, or why you'd buy a 35 if you already had a 90?

This thread is relevant to my interests as I am currently debating whether to get the Mark V:25 or the Mark V:35.
While the solo-boost feature is nice to have I doubt I would really need it, and I do like the compact size and smaller eight of the 25. Like others mentioned, the 35 is very close to the full size Mark V in terms of dimensions and weight.
I am also not sure how big the difference in clean headroom will be between the 25 and the 35.
Right now I am more inclined towards the 25.

I just went through this debate with myself and elected to go with the V:25 for several reasons:

I already own the big MK V
Brand New V:25 saved me > $500 over the V:35
Super light weight, small foot print, Big Huge tone

That said if I didn't already have the full sized V, I'd have gone with the V:35

I went to get my MK 3 re-tubed at Mesa Store in Hollywood. As I dropped the MK3 off, I tested the V:25. It was amazing amp with many modes. What really hit me was the clean tone. I thought there was some mild chorus. When I returned to Mesa Store to pick-up my Mk3 following week, I brought in my PRS and tested V;35. I just fell in love with all the tones.

For the next 3-4 days I couldn't stop thinking about that amp. Then, I don't know what was but my MK3 sounded so bad. I was relying heavily on Pedals lately - and something was not right.

I went back to Mesa Store and picked up V:35..

jmontgomery said:

The main reason is that I wanted a small combo amp instead of the head/cab. At home I have the combo stacked on top of the Theile cab I was using with the head. The combo is light weight and easy to carry if I use it out.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I am thinking along those same lines; prefer the combo to head; stack it on top of an extension cab if needed. Which Thiele cabinet are you stacking the combo on?

I'm using a Mesa Thiele with a Fillmore speaker. I ordered it with the Fillmore and it sounds great on its own and mixed with the combos C90.

Im gonna buy one of these.So now,after some time has gone by since they've both been out,what can you all tell me about the
actual "tone" differences in the two heads preferrably? Or is it just a "feel" thing cause of the iron and tube count? No answer is wrong here.Did anybody a/b them with all settings the same into same cab?.All im really concerned about is which one has the best tones period....or....buy both? lol

PRS_Daddy said:

Both have plenty of wattage. I just played a reasonably large venue and used cab clone directly into the mixing board. It was awesome. Used channel 1 at 25 watts and channel 2 at 10. Tons of headroom. Volumes never breached 9:00. The big difference for me is the versatility. For instance. when you go from fat to crunch, there is a volume jump. Thus, you can set your channel 1 solo for a louder fat volume. Four tubes are better than two.

Click to expand...

Yes agree V 25 has enough clean headroom for most situations imo and if you mic amps an additional 10 watts doesn't make any difference.

There's also an easy work around on the V 25 for the volume jump you mention - engaging the EQ section with all levels raised equally works just as well as the solo switch on V 35.

V 35 is obviously the one if you want a combo.
I wanted a real lunchbox sized head - V 25 is smaller, lighter & cheaper if that's important to anyone :mrgreen: