NAD Mesa Boogie Mark V

[Jdub]

Well now that Marshall and Bogner needs are covered in one swoop with the Helios I have had a hinkering for something different for a change.
its been all Marshall Bogner and Soldano for me for the last 15 years other than the odd ball here and there..some of those oddballs were awesome.
I felt like revisiting Boogies which is what I played back in the mid to late 90's. I played a Mark5 about 2 3 years ago and dug it. So much so that I reviewed it here because I was so surprised how much I liked it.

I just reread that review and acted on it. Scored a brand new one for a great deal. This amp is a lot of fun. So many tones it makes my head spin.. I am really digging it and it definitely has lots to offer outside of the Marshall camp.. It is a bit of a learning curve but I am already getting some kick ass tones across many different styles which has been inspiring..

Clips to follow. I do some a/ b with the Helios and see how close I can get the Mark to cop a Bogner/Marshall vibe..

 

[Jdub]

Also for anyone that is interested, the dealer I bought it from has one more new in box. Its a combo for several hundred (less than retail. If you want he name of the dealer, send me a PM.. I have no affilliation whatsoever but it is such a killer deal I thought I would pass on the info to someone if they want

 

[fusoid]

I love my Mark V and think the same way you do. I'm now looking to cover my Marshall needs. I'm looking at either the Helios or the BE100. I just can't pull the trigger yet because it's hard to decide between the two. I leave the Mark V in the Mark IV mode most of the time and just noodle my ass off, but it's loaded with good tones...congrats...

 

[Jdub]

I love my Mark V and think the same way you do. I'm now looking to cover my Marshall needs. I'm looking at either the Helios or the BE100. I just can't pull the trigger yet because it's hard to decide between the two. I leave the Mark V in the Mark IV mode most of the time and just noodle my ass off, but it's loaded with good tones...congrats...

Thanks. I have been spending lots of time dialling in various tones. I am really enjoying going for some different sounds that what I am used to playing which is basically Marshall fueled tones with various amounts of gain..

I have been having a blast on the tweed mode the Mark 1 mode. Also digging the the Mk2 and the MK 4 modes...

Helios versus Be well that is a tough one I suppose. Careful what you read. I have read some very misleading posts on the Helios saying it is congested and a lot like the blue channel on the XTC. Whoever said that ( on HRI)is either deaf or has never played a Helios.. That is so not true. The opposite it more accurate. The Helios is squarely situated in the Marshall camp. I had a 71 Superlead and 81 800 both were cherrypicked from about 15 other Marshalls I had and the Helios did everything those amps did only better plus a whole lot more.. I sold them both after having the Helios for about a month or so.. The Friedman has a bit more gain and saturation, so depending on what are after you may prefer that. For me the Helios is more true to a Marshall in terms of feel and tone. It can be dialled in to sound very stock Marshall of any era, or it can do the Bogner moddedMarshall thing of course... The Friedman is more of its own thing.. I say this based on the two Friedman modded Marshalls I had. They were both awesome at what they did, but the stock Marshall tone was gone.. With the Helios you get both the stock Marshall tones and the hotrod tones.. I have not had a BE so maybe they retain the classic Marshall tone better than the Friedman modded Marshalls???

 

[philb]

Still love the Mark V. I alternate between it and the Friedman.

 

[Jdub]

Still love the Mark V. I alternate between it and the Friedman.

Nice. It is a great amp for sure. So many different flavors available. I have been really diggin the mark I mode and the tweed mode. Of course the mark II and IV modes are fun too..

 

[Jdub]

Here is my previous review from 2012 based on about 20 minutes with it..

"Boogie Mark V
This amp surprised the crap out of me. I expected to hate it. I used to play a Mark 4 long long ago and also a triaxis 290 rig but I went away from Boogie in 1998 and never looked back.. until now.. wow. I managed to figure out how to turn it on and get it on the mark 2c/iv/ and extreme mode with the eq in preset mode. It sounded great. thick and crunchy with nice harmonics. plenty of snap crackle and pop.
I was shocked. I fiddled with some more and was able to make it sound like I expected it to. nasally and horrible, but man. I was absolutely shocked by how good it sounded witht he preset eq. someone tweaked it right. Maybe Ralphie(gainfreak) was in Portland recently.... The clean channel was sparkly and the Mark 1 channel sounded like a howling mess. again. all the horrible boogie tones are in here too but it has some great sounds in it. I couldn't help but bust out some whitesnake riffs etc. Dare I say, as much of a Marshall guy as I am, this amp rocks and I want one.."

 

[anomaly]

Gotta love those horrible, nasty, nasally boogie mark tones! like a screaming kazoo!

 

[thiswaythatway]

Gotta love those horrible, nasty, nasally boogie mark tones! like a screaming kazoo!

Yeah just terrible.

 

[Jdub]

Gotta love those horrible, nasty, nasally boogie mark tones! like a screaming kazoo!

Yeah just terrible.

It can sound terrible. Some amps are hard to make sound good, others hard to make sound bad. The Mesa Marks seem pretty easy to make sound good or bad, just takes a little right or wrong doing with the knobs. I am getting the hang of this thing and am finding much more good than bad.

Great amp. So Dan, how do you find the Mark V compares to the older Marks. Is it like Marshalls where the older the better per model.. for the most part.. as much as a dig this thing I am also looking at a Mk2b and also a Mk3 black dot. any comments on how those compare to the V

Thanks! btw I checked out some of your clips. nice work.. especially losfer words and catch a ride..

 

[Stumplegriltskin]

Had one 2 years ago and like an idiot, I sold it. Well I just bought another one 2 weeks ago. I just sit in front of it after a little blaze and be amazed at the complexity and multidimensional aspect of the tone.

 

[greatmutah]

Congrats dude. The Mark V is one of my favorite amps I've ever played. I generally love any and all Mark series amps and the V is no exception. Every mode and every feature is super usable and there is a huge variety of tones to be found there.

 

[camrock]

Nice. Congrats. Definitely one that is on my list.