Talk to me about the Boogie Mark V

[ibanez4life SZ!]

Hey guys!

Taking a slightly new stance on playing out live....I'm keeping the Axe FX for at home playing and recording (as it is just PERFECT for that), but out live, I'd like to take a good tube head with me....no effects, just solid tone!

I'm seriously considering the Mesa Mark V...I've always liked the Mark tones (LOVED my Mark IV), and with the new feature sets, it seems like it will cover all I need..it seems like a very versatile amp.

What are your experiences with it? Is there another amp that tops it in your opinion, with similar versatility....an all-in-one amp that one can play out live with?

Thanks much!

Eric

 

[BeZo]

It has a lot of features and sounds great. It's just way too many options for me.

You know they have more knobs on the back of that thing?! Ridiculous!!

 

[Ricky Rockhardo]

If you find yourself needing one pm me

 

[Les Zombie]

nice amp

 

[thiswaythatway]

As with all Mark series amps you have to watch how you set the EQ. If you scoop the 750hz slider too much you'll completely vanish in a band mix. But there's a lot of tweaking with the V. If you wanted to plug in and get great tones without the fuss I'd look elsewhere IMHO. Also, I've played some V's that sound really average and others that sounded great. I did notice a difference, not sure if it was tube related.

 

[Atropos_Project]

I'm not sure if there's anything more flexible as far as tube amps go at the price point of a V. I've owned mine for about a year and a half, and while at times it's been a love / hate relationship, it pretty much does everything I need it to. It has more gain on tap than I'd ever use, can get absurdly tight if you want it to, etc. It covers a ridiculous amount of ground.

You will spend quite a while getting it dialed in just how you like it, Then 2 weeks later, you'll start knob twisting again on one of the channels. I think this is one of the things that people dislike about it initially, as you can indeed make it sound pretty bad if you want. (for example.. Mark I mode on channel 2 requires some unorthodox settings to get the most out of it).

In my experience, switching the 6L6 tubes out for EL's made me far happier.

Overall, I'm glad I own it, and there's only a handful of amps out there that I would consider replacing it with.

 

[daveg62]

It sounds like you already know what tones you are looking for. If you loved your Mark IV before maybe consider just getting another one. I don't have any experience with a V but from what I hear it does the IV no problem plus more.
Sure there's about 100 other amps in the same league, just depend son what you want.
That being said, if you already have an axe-fx I can tell you that it does the Mark IV tones pretty spot on, so you could just buy a decent tube poweramp and run it into a theile, 2X12 or 4x12 and use the axe-fx. Just another thing to think about. I run my axe-fx into my Mark III power section and it sounds awesome!

 

[snakeman1986]

I'd like to know about this myself. I've never played any marks and I have no way of trying one. I have a mesa single Rec series 1. I have lots of complaints about it. Headroom (50 watt problem), Fuzz, high end is kinda piercing at times but at the same time the low end is nearly impossible to tame, and its kinda flubby. so i got an eq. Low end tamed! But still the high end (even with the eq i cant figure out how to get rid of it) and fuzz is a problem as well as the flub. What's the difference in sound between a mark and a recto? I have a Titan coming so im hoping this will all be a problem of the past.

Btw sorry to thread hijack here

 

[droptrd]

isnt there some rumor that the 1st 1000 dont sound as good as the newer ones?

 

[TX6Strings]

As with all Mark series amps you have to watch how you set the EQ. If you scoop the 750hz slider too much you'll completely vanish in a band mix. But there's a lot of tweaking with the V. If you wanted to plug in and get great tones without the fuss I'd look elsewhere IMHO. Also, I've played some V's that sound really average and others that sounded great. I did notice a difference, not sure if it was tube related.

I don't know why everybody has such a hard time dialing in the V. I have a IV and I've found it's much harder to dial in than the V.

I have also played a few I wasn't impressed with and one that absolutely smoked...wish I had bought in on the spot when I had the chance. All that said I don't think I'll ever give up my IV. While the V can get close it's not exact. Great amp though.

 

[Wizard of Ozz]

It's a killer sounding head, and can cover anything from clean to mean. It's outlasted quite a few other amps I've had recently. Really versatile, and you get 3 useable/different/distinct sounding channels. Not something you always find in channel switchers today.

I don't know why everybody has such a hard time dialing in the V. I have a IV and I've found it's much harder to dial in than the V.

I had the same experience with the MKIV. Much easier finding great tones in the MKV.

I have also played a few I wasn't impressed with and one that absolutely smoked...wish I had bought in on the spot when I had the chance. All that said I don't think I'll ever give up my IV. While the V can get close it's not exact. Great amp though.

This +100. I've played several... they are not all created equal. Mine smokes, so it stays.

 

[polaris20]

As with all Mark series amps you have to watch how you set the EQ. If you scoop the 750hz slider too much you'll completely vanish in a band mix. But there's a lot of tweaking with the V. If you wanted to plug in and get great tones without the fuss I'd look elsewhere IMHO. Also, I've played some V's that sound really average and others that sounded great. I did notice a difference, not sure if it was tube related.

I can't speak directly for the V, but if it's anything like the 750 on the GEQ on my DC, that's correct. Mesa likes to show the GEQ with a pretty steep dip on that slider, but it really sucks out the life in a band mix if you're not careful.

 

[djabthrash]

The Roadster destroys the Mark V. The gain on the Mark V is severely lacking and its too small sounding. By small, I mean not as 3D or massive as say the Roadster, which IMO kills the Mark V. I've played both extensively. The Roadster can really do it all and the Tweed mode cleans are really where its at for that dynamic, Timmons-esque clean tone. So many players don't spend enough time with either amp to really make opinions though. The Roadster shines cranked. If you don't play loud, get the Mark V. If you do, then the choice is simple.

Some other user posted clips of the Roadster in action recently from a live YouTube gig. Check it out, seriously. The amp is the most versatile amp I've played and gigged with, hands down.

 

[djabthrash]

As with all Mark series amps you have to watch how you set the EQ. If you scoop the 750hz slider too much you'll completely vanish in a band mix. But there's a lot of tweaking with the V. If you wanted to plug in and get great tones without the fuss I'd look elsewhere IMHO. Also, I've played some V's that sound really average and others that sounded great. I did notice a difference, not sure if it was tube related.

I can't speak directly for the V, but if it's anything like the 750 on the GEQ on my DC, that's correct. Mesa likes to show the GEQ with a pretty steep dip on that slider, but it really sucks out the life in a band mix if you're not careful.

Agreed, this was my experience too. I liked the Mark IV much more than the V. Sure, the V has nicer cleans, but cranked, that is totally subjective.

 

[djabthrash]

As with all Mark series amps you have to watch how you set the EQ. If you scoop the 750hz slider too much you'll completely vanish in a band mix. But there's a lot of tweaking with the V. If you wanted to plug in and get great tones without the fuss I'd look elsewhere IMHO. Also, I've played some V's that sound really average and others that sounded great. I did notice a difference, not sure if it was tube related.

I don't know why everybody has such a hard time dialing in the V. I have a IV and I've found it's much harder to dial in than the V.

I have also played a few I wasn't impressed with and one that absolutely smoked...wish I had bought in on the spot when I had the chance. All that said I don't think I'll ever give up my IV. While the V can get close it's not exact. Great amp though.

I don't think its about trouble dialing in. The amp's second channel is just too dark to really be used in a mix. Unless you have it set clean or with really light gain. That was my experience.

 

[djabthrash]

If you find yourself needing one pm me

Good luck unloading yours. I'd do it now while the hype still seems to be apparent. I remember this was the case with the Roadster when it came out, but too many people wrote that amp off because of the darkness of it at low volumes. You got to crank IT!

 

[djabthrash]

If you don't like the Mark V, I'd seriously look into the VH4. That amp kills it and is super versatile too. Good cleans, but you wont get that saggy Tweed feel without a pedal.

 

[Tone Zone]

The Roadster destroys the Mark V.

( )

 

[djabthrash]

The Roadster destroys the Mark V.

( )

So do you disagree, and if so, based on what? The Mark V is too limited for what I do. Maybe its different here in France, but I found the sound to be seriously limiting. I found the Roadster to be indefinitely versatile. I also found the VH4 to be a much better overall rock amp too. I don't get the hype. I couldn't get rid of mine quick enough.

 

[lolzgreg]

I had two Mark IVs and a Mark V in the same room, at the same time, through the same model and make of cabinets, with the same speakers. The Mark IV is all-around better to me. We even swapped tubes between one of the Mark IVs and Mark V to see if it made a difference; The Mark IV sounded better than the Mark V in both situations.

Now, what is "better" you ask?

The Mark IV HAS MORE USABLE GAIN, it IS juicier, the EQ is more responsive, and the distortion channel overall is more fun to play and fluid. The Mark IV makes a bit more noise, but the Mark V was harsher.

I think you'll be happier with a Mark IV.