Mark V Reverb delay

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Mycle

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Hi everybody ... New guy here. 8)

Just bought a new Boogie Mark V a week or so ago.
Love my amp in all ways except ... When I change channels there is a full 3 second delay until the reverb comes back to life. I purchased a new Mesa 12ax7 and rolled it into V4 (Reverb Send) and then V5 (Reverb return) to no avail. The reverb functions well in all other aspects.
My dealer agrees this isn't normal but he hasn't gotten back to me about what can be done about it.
Does anyone have any experience with an issue like this or idea's about where I can look next?

Next question ... When I change channels with the foot switch there is a noticeable pop in the audio. Again this doesn't sound like the kind of thing that you would expect from a NEW high dollar amp like this one. The dealer tried a new footswitch and had the same results. He also replaced the foot switch cord because I had the rapid channel switching issue. That issue has been cleared up though. I even had him order another new cord for me just because ...

If it only happens once in a million times ... I am always the once. Except when the lottery is involved.

Thanks in advance for any help, thoughts, idea's or comments.
 
Not sure about the reverb issue but regarding the pop when changing channels...
Are the respective channels in the same wattage mode? There is a note in the manual about switching between channels using different wattage settings. I think it specifically deals with the 10 W mode.
 
Oddly, I came to that realization about the power modes too.
Unbelievably, I did read the manual.
Unfortunately, it happens no matter how the power scaling is set. All in 10 watt, all in 45 watt, all in 90 watt, or any combination of settings ... The pop remains.
We replaced the cable to the foot pedal as that was a separate issue, we tried different footswitches ... We even tried it with nothing plugged into the amp.

The pop is only occasional and not really what is under my skin as much as the reverb delay.

Thank you for the reply, jaslan. Any help I can get is appreciated. The quest continues.
 
A full 3 seconds of reverb mute is excessive. If your dealer continues to drag their feet on this, give Mesa a call, they take issues like this very seriously, and will make sure the dealer takes care of it.

Dom
 
I did talk to my dealer today. At Length. He is offering to do whatever it takes to make me happy. And, so far I've been happy.

This deal with the Reverb just seems odd to me.

My dealer says he talked with the mother ship ... and they say that a delay of a second or two is natural because of where the Reverb is placed in the circuit. Channel changing over powers the reverb so they mute for "a second or two" in order to keep artifacts out of each of the individual reverb controls.

At higher volumes ... I do hear what sounds like a noise gate coming on as the reverb comes in. It just lags a little longer than I like.

Out in a larger hall, you'll never notice it but in my little studio or at jam night, it's there ... After changing a channel, you're first few notes come through just fine but with no reverb.

I'm more curious than anything else ... Does anybody else notice this in their Mark V's?
If this is the nature of the beast then ... OK, I'm in.
If this is something that can be adjusted or needs adjusting then ... OK, I need to get that done.
 
Depending on reverb & ch master setting I have noticed a slight bit of 'gating', but it's nowhere near 3 seconds, man, that's a couple of beats in a measure & seems extreme.

I've noticed the same behavior in my Roadster with extreme settings, but we're talking milliseconds.

Dom
 
(As an example) When I'm playing a Rhythm thang ... and then switch to lead, I usually have the first 3 or 4 notes come out dry. My dealer thought that was rather excessive too, so today he's busting out another Mark V to see if it reacts the same way. He says he has never encountered this issue before but also pointed out he was never looking for this issue before.

If this is a gated mute then there MAY be an L-pad on the circuit board to adjust how long the gate holds. Or at least one can hope.
 
Mycle said:
(As an example) When I'm playing a Rhythm thang ... and then switch to lead, I usually have the first 3 or 4 notes come out dry. My dealer thought that was rather excessive too, so today he's busting out another Mark V to see if it reacts the same way. He says he has never encountered this issue before but also pointed out he was never looking for this issue before.

If this is a gated mute then there MAY be an L-pad on the circuit board to adjust how long the gate holds. Or at least one can hope.
I believe it is a transistor based mute, but I know for certain that there are no trim pots on the PCB.

Dom
 
Mycle said:
My dealer agrees this isn't normal

It is completely normal. The reverb is programmed to cut out and then fade back in over a few seconds during channel switches. The Roadster does the same exact thing.
 
Karl Houseknecht said:
Mycle said:
My dealer agrees this isn't normal

It is completely normal. The reverb is programmed to cut out and then fade back in over a few seconds during channel switches. The Roadster does the same exact thing.
OP is complaining of a 3 second delay in the reverb, that is not normal.

As I've already mentioned, my MKV & Roadster have a slight 'lag' to the reverb, but it's less than a second.

Dom
 
I have not noticed any delay in reverb on the Mark V when switching channels. So, it should not be several seconds on a new amp, IMHO.

As far as the "pop", mine does do that. The problem seems to be getting worse. I sent in the amp to the mother ship for a different issue and I had a laundry list of other little things that do not seem right with the amp and the "pop" was one of them. I am curious what they will say about it (problem or not). I hope it can be corrected, I'd swear the amp used to switch channels without a "pop".

Enjoy your V!

Mace
 
The only two issues with my Mark V is the popping and the Reverb delay. In all other aspects this is a great amp.

I can understand the popping if the power scaling was set differently from channel to channel but when each channel is set the same and It still pops then I believe something is up. If it gets worse, then it's going to be a full blown issue because that sounds like a failing switch cap to me.
As it is ... it's just a minor irritant and somewhat unprofessional.

The reverb delay is prominent enough that it has been noticed by other pickers. Most have said "If I paid that much for a new amp and it did that, it would be going back." It's hard to time exactly but if it falls within the "Two Second" tolerance range, I would be surprised. However long it is ... it does create a noticeable hole in a performance. You're playing along ... sounding great ... then you switch channels and your amp falls on it's face for a few seconds.

My work around has been to hook up a T.C. Electronics G system using the 4 cable method. There is no lag time on the effects loop, However NOW the popping from channel changes are amplified by the reverb on the G system and it sounds like a firecracker in a church.

I think this reverb thang could have used a little bit more thought. It does no good to set up a reverb system with individual controls on each channel if you can't use it. I think eliminating the artifacts in the reverb would have been a better idea than putting a gated mute on it.
 
There should not be that long of a delay for the reverb. Mine is shy of a second and once in a while you hear the reverb wash (once in a great while).

The popping sound seems common with amps that use rectifier tubes. The roadster does the pop until you cycle the channels including the mute after power up or taking out of stand by. I have also notices similar occurrence with the Mark V but typically does not last pas the first cycle. Only time I hear pops is when I am switching voicings on the channel by the toggle, or power settings.
 
Mycle said:
I think this reverb thang could have used a little bit more thought. It does no good to set up a reverb system with individual controls on each channel if you can't use it. I think eliminating the artifacts in the reverb would have been a better idea than putting a gated mute on it.

The issue isn't so much artifacts in the reverb as it a volume issue when switching channels. If you switch from lead to clean you can get a volume swell in the reverb because the channels are a different gain/volume levels. It's a trade off.... if they didn't mute it the reverb would be near unusable due the volume swell, and if they do mute it there's a momentary drop out in reverb. They probably could've moved it to a different part of the circuit, but then it might not have produced the sound they were after.

That said, I probably had a one second delay on my reverb. You may not be able to hear the volume swell effect if your reverb is cutting out for a full 3 seconds.


As for the popping, Mesa uses mechanical relays, which can cause pops when channel switching but are tonally superior to various silent switching options. That said, I only ever got very slight pops that were only audible at very low volumes. At more reasonable volumes I never heard the pops over the sound of the guitar.
 
The pops are always there ... and at any volume ... BUT not too loud usually. Every once in a while it will pop pretty good but overall ... tolerable I guess.

The reverb issue is not. Whatever the reason for the muting ... the delay is way too long.
The first comment by everyone who has heard the amp is "What's wrong with the reverb?" or the now infamous "If I spent THAT much on an amplifier and it did that ... it would go back." The amp literally falls on it's face for a few seconds after changing channels. Sounds terrible.

In my opinion THIS reverb IS unusable because of the dead space between channel changes.

I know there are a lot of reasons for this but all of my other multi channel amps have reverb and they don't have a need to mute them during channel changes. My Fender amps have a great sounding reverb and they don't do this ... at a third the price or less.

When you spend $2540 on an amp head ... you don't expect the elaborate reverb to be out performed by a $500 pawn shop amp.
 
At this point my choices are ... This amp ... or ... another one (at the dealers) that does the same thing.

My dealer says he thinks this issue is odd ... "never heard of this before."
But the mother ship says an "Up to 2 second delay" is normal ... Mine is a tad bit longer than that.

Others who own the amp have told me everything from "this is normal for this amp, live with it" to "Mine doesn't do that ... get it replaced"

While your suggestion is painfully obvious ... the decision is not. If I had a dozen or so Mark V's laying around to try out then I could gather my own intel. But since I doubt that will happen any time soon ... I am relying on this board to share their experiences with me so that I can educate myself about Mesa's as this forum was intended. Thanks but "Don't like it, get it replaced." doesn't contribute much to my knowledge base.

Going through the process of exchanging the amp and getting another one that does the same thing seems a waste of time and shipping.
So my choices seem to be ... suck it up and keep the amp ... or ... Bring it back for a refund and move on from Mesa Boogie amps.

The dealer has been great. He's been a friend of mine for over 30 years. He will do anything I want him to do to make me happy. I was just trying to determine if anything productive can be done.

So THANK YOU to all who have contributed to my post. Your help and guidance is appreciated.
 
One suggestion that might help: Have you considered using an external reverb pedal? Reverb taste is so personal anyway that while both of my amps have it, I rarely use the onboard reverb anyway. You can completely get around the cut out / fade in behavior this way. Works great.
 
I typed a post and must of hit a wrong button,but will do it again.
I have a Mark V.
Yes there is a delay in reverb of maybe a second or two.
I treat the V as three separate amps,so will rarely switch channels in a song.
For me the reverb loss is basically inconsequential.
I also run an always on subtle delay so that also possibly helps me not notice the reverb dropout.
My amp also pops.
The pop is louder if running the amp with the loop engaged.
I run my amp with the loop hard bypassed and the pop is very,very faint.
At home playing softly I can hear it when changing channels,but live I don't hear hear any pops
with loop engaged or bypassed.
I love my V and have no plans to ever part with it.
When I crank it up,it makes me grin from ear to ear.
It works for my applications.
If the loss of reverb and popping won't work for your application,maybe you do need to look at another amp.
As one poster said,you could always run an external reverb pedal.
The Mesa reverb is good,but is not that good that I would dump my amp because of the lag in sound.
I would get a nice reverb and run it in the loop or in front of the amp.
You've laid down some big bucks,you should be thrilled.
If you're not and can't get past the reverb and popping,maybe you should return it.
The V is a beautiful amp.
Is it perfect?
No.
Can you live with the imperfections.
If not,then.......
 
screamingdaisy said:
If the performance of your amp is unacceptable then take it back and get an amp that is acceptable.

I agree with screamingdaisy here. If you don't like it, take it back. Even if you find out from everybody else here that a delay is normal, you're problem still exists. And if your amp is defective, take it back. Bottom line, you don't like it, take it back.

That said, I tested out my V tonight. And it seems like at least a 2 second delay for mine. Probably 2 seconds before I hear any reverb at all, and another second for the reverb to fully engage. Quite a while, I agree. Never noticed it before. But it doesn't cause me any issues.

Tube amps are an old technology. And a lot strange things happen with them. A lot of weird quarks and noises come with the territory. Some may think a few second delay in the reverb is completely unacceptable, but if you're going to nitpick that bad, you're going to find something wrong with any tube amp.
 
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