Mesa Mark V:25 - 12au7 in V5? Or bad idea?

[McLeanAB]

Hey... got an extra 12au7 and wondered if putting it anywhere in the Mesa Mark V:25 would be a bad idea, or just stick to the 12ax7's...

V5? I threw it in the reverb slot (v4) and effectively the reverb just disappeared...

Just curious...

 

[Speeddemon]

I wouldn't do it, since half of V5 is the FX Loop Return, so you'd probably end up with a very soft return signal (12AU7 = 20% gain).

MAYBE....just maybe it would work in V2, but it would neuter the Crunch tone a bit...probably to the point you can do Bad Company tones with it, but no longer EVH.

On a slightly related note, WTF happened with US pricing on this head? I remember it was $1200/1300 and now it's $1999 at Sweetwater!

I'm lucky I have one for years and I bought it used...

 

[McLeanAB]

^^^^ Thanks for the info... I figured it wouldn't be the best option, but wanted to see if anyone had done anything similar... oh well!

Price: I think since Mesa sold to Gibson, all the pre-Gibson models went up in price... I know the used stuff did, yeesh! I traded a lovely guitar for my little Mark V:25 and couldn't be happier. And I love the high gain sounds the Crunch channel can unload (especially with the mid boost cranked).