ENGL SE E670 vs Mesa Boogie Mark V:90

[Lumberjack]

I have trouble choosing between the ENGL special edition E670 with EL34 tubes and the Mesa Boogie Mark V 90 Watt version. Both amps have the same price tag, so money's not an issue. My main concerns are versatility and tone quality. The tones I want to cover range from Knopfler, Hendrix and Mayer up to Lukather, Vai and Petrucci. I'd also like to use my rack preamps in conjunction with the power amp section. Which amp would fit the bill better?

 

[Achilles]

Hi there,

The sounds you're describing are "warm". From fender cleans to petrucci distortion. I think the Mark V will serve you well. I don't know about Lukather and Vai sounds though, because there's always a problem with marks and the "marshally/in between sounds" you try to get out of them, but i think the 2nd channel with maybe som pedals will get you in the ballpark.

Built quality is also something that you don't have to worry about with a mesa amp.

I live in Europe and for me it's cheaper to get the Engl but I'm waiting for a used boogie mark V to come up and I am interested in the same sounds that you are

For me, the Engl amps excel in the distortion and crunchy sounds but that's pretty much it.

What preamps do you have?

 

[shredhead7]

I have a triaxis and the Engl and I would say that the triaxis (and Mesa Mark's in general) do the Fender sound better. The Engl is great for what it does and is very versatile in it's own right, but the Mesa is slightly warmer sounding.

 

[napalmdeath]

Why not a JP2C?
Or, on the flipside, an Engl Steve Morse? I think the SE is to aggressive for what you're looking for.

 

[shredhead7]

Why not a JP2C?
Or, on the flipside, an Engl Steve Morse? I think the SE is to aggressive for what you're looking for.

Having only owned the Powerball and the SE, how is the SM voiced? To me, the Engl does the 5150+Dual Rec sound at their core (thick and engulfing, but underlying angry bees). I love it for that mix perfect sound.

 

[Speeddemon]

Why not a JP2C?
Or, on the flipside, an Engl Steve Morse? I think the SE is to aggressive for what you're looking for.

Having only owned the Powerball and the SE, how is the SM voiced? To me, the Engl does the 5150+Dual Rec sound at their core (thick and engulfing, but underlying angry bees). I love it for that mix perfect sound.

It is my understanding that the Morse is basically a tweaked Invader, where they got rid of the too loose sounding 4th channel, in favor of a more versatile 3rd channel.

As an owner of the Invader, having it compared to the SE and Powerball I and II, I'd say the Invader (and probably the SM too) is a bit more vintage voiced and loose, especially in the Marshall-esque 2nd channel.
The 3rd channel gets plenty chugga-chugga, but not to Savage levels. Cleans are really good on the Invader, although Mesa Mark cleans are even better. For Knopfler-stuff, I would say the Mesa Mark has the edge.

I still need to give the SE with EL34's a fair chance, as my experience with the 6L6 version was ever so slightly so-so. Hard to dial in the sound I had in my head when it comes to that Engl grind.
I wouldn't be suprised if the Engls in general are too well-behaving for Hendrix-type of stuff; that needs a bit more rampant chaos in the sound...
If the Crunch Mode of the big Mark V is as good as on the Mark V:25 (although I've heard various people claim otherwise), then the Mark definitely has the edge.

 

[Achilles]

My main concerns are versatility and tone quality. The tones I want to cover range from Knopfler, Hendrix and Mayer up to Lukather, Vai and Petrucci

You might want to consider the new Mesa TC-50/100 series as well.

http://mesaboogie.com/amplifiers/electric/triple-crown-series/index.html

Here's a short sound description of the Mark V and TC-50 from another member on another forum. I think it's right on the spot :

"Marks are more common for prog since they have a lot of compression/sustain, are super articulate and cut like a knife. The Mark V is a swiss army knife of an amp with a lot of different sounds in it. I think it excels at really high gain and clean/pushed clean and it's weak point is that mid-gain Marshall kind of territory. It can do mid-gain fine, but it's such a tight/articulate amp that it doesn't have that forgiving feel that Marshalls have.

The TC-50 is a new amp for Mesa. I think it's a good choice here because it does a really good job with mid-gain. It has a couple of mid boost switches on it that can tighten it up for higher gain applications, or loosen it up for lower gain applications. It's lead channel has Mark levels of sustain and compression with a more natural, easier to dial in voice while it's crunch channel can sweep through Plexi/JCM800 era sounds depending upon where you set it. I think it's Mesa's best take on the Fender clean/Marshall crunch/Boogie lead thus far".

It comes in rack format as well, in case you want to implement your rack preamps