Which Mesa Combo...?

Looking for a low-medium wattage Mesa Combo that has strong high gain.
I have an Express 5:50 that sounds GREAT with my Tele, but I am not bonding with my Superstrats and the high gain settings.
Any suggestions?

Mark V.

60W Mark IV. F50. Mark III. Mark IIC+.

Find a Simul-Class Mark series. Will switch down to 15 watts.

elvis said:

60W Mark IV. F50. Mark III. Mark IIC+.

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A used older Mark series is a tremendous bang for the buck. The MKV is only slices of these old amps, not like actually having one.

MKIII and MKIV are awesome amps.

My only real experience with the Mark series is a Mark IV. Yeah, I've spent a couple hours with the Mark V a couple times, but it's not the same as owning one.

I'd avoid the MkIV and go straight to the MkV. It's just an all-around better amp. No shared tone controls. Separate reverb per channel. Different wattage options per channel. A USEABLE MASTER VOLUME!

Those are just a few of the changes that came to my mind. Other will disagree with me, but this is my opinion.

The Mark V in combo form sounds pretty terrible IMHO. It's very boxy, hollow sounding. You'd be better off with the head and a 2x12. But when it comes to Mesa combos the best sounding one by far is the Electra Dyne. Just step on an OD pedal for high gain.