Tell me about the Boogie Mark III purple stripe...

[Random Hero]

I've owned a Mark IIC+ and Mark IV, both of which I loved. Will I like it? Clean and dirty? I have a decent lead on a combo but I may convert it to a head. Your thoughts on the Mark III purple stripe?

 

[Motorpud]

I'm not sure about the purple stripe but I've owned the red stripe and currently have a blue stripe and they both sound(ed) killer. Great lead and clean channels but because of the shared EQ it's hard to switch from lead channel to clean channel and still have a nice clean. That's my only gripe with it even though it doesn't really bother me that much.

I will say one thing, if it doesn't have the graphic EQ I'd skip it, the GEQ is an absolute must on the MarkIII IMO.

 

[The Hoff]

Great lead and clean channels but because of the shared EQ it's hard to switch from lead channel to clean channel and still have a nice clean.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[tfridgen]

With the R2 mod this is not much of an issue, you can get all three channels to sound damn good. My Mark III was a purple stripe and I gotta tell you, it friggin smoked on every channel. It was supposed to have a little less aggressive of a voice but it still killed. It was said before, defnitely skip if there's no Graphic EQ!

 

[Random Hero]

I'm definitely interested in this amp. I'm currently using pedals into clean amps and it's great but I saw this Mark III and wondered if I could make it work. The shared EQ is possibly a bit of an annoyance but I don't remember the clean being awful on the IIC+ when I was specifically setting it for gain. That said, I may have more tweakability with my current set up.

Oh and it has the GEQ.

 

[LP Freak]

With the R2 mod this is not much of an issue, you can get all three channels to sound damn good. My Mark III was a purple stripe and I gotta tell you, it friggin smoked on every channel. It was supposed to have a little less aggressive of a voice but it still killed. It was said before, defnitely skip if there's no Graphic EQ!

The R2 mod has nothing to do with the EQ section. It's purpose is to help balance the volume between channels.

 

[daveg62]

R2 mod adds a volume pot for the rythm 2 channel and allows you to balance the volume better between the channels. Mine is a blue stripe and I gotta tell you I will never sell this amp. If there is one channel I like less it would be the clean, but no way a deal breaker for this amp. I still haven't found a lead sound I like better than my Mark III. NOS preamp tubes really make a difference in this amp. I would highly recommend a nice raytheon or rca 12ax7 in v1 and a nos 12at7 in the PI slot. Those two tube changes in particular have made a huge difference with my amp.
Also ask about the maintenance on the amp. These amps are starting to get old and I wouldn't buy one unless it had a cap job or I was planning on getting it serviced.
IIC+ is in a different league with the clean channel, if that's what you're comparing it to you might be dis-appointed. Mark III's are known for their lead channel.

 

[John4021]

Smokin tone. Mine was loaded,simulclass,reverb/eq, R2mod,EV speaker,hardwood cab.
Loud as hell,but managable.
It would be nice if the one your looking at came with all three footswitches,but can usually find them for sale if it doesnt.

 

[tfridgen]

With the R2 mod this is not much of an issue, you can get all three channels to sound damn good. My Mark III was a purple stripe and I gotta tell you, it friggin smoked on every channel. It was supposed to have a little less aggressive of a voice but it still killed. It was said before, defnitely skip if there's no Graphic EQ!

The R2 mod has nothing to do with the EQ section. It's purpose is to help balance the volume between channels.

That's correct, my bad. I was just trying to let him know that I didn't find any detriment to having shared controls across the three channels. I think when people are having trouble with the shared eq controls, it's more of a volume difference across the channels that is affecting the tone you hear, not so much an issue with the shared tone knobs.

 

[Random Hero]

Cool guys. Any more opinions?

 

[GuitarGoat]

Cool guys. Any more opinions?

I'd go for it if the price is right. I wouldn't use it as a combo either. I had a combo and it kicked through a 4x12 but sounded sub par through the combo speaker. Just not enough bottom end and balls to the tone.

 

[daveg62]

I'd go for it if the price is right. I wouldn't use it as a combo either. I had a combo and it kicked through a 4x12 but sounded sub par through the combo speaker. Just not enough bottom end and balls to the tone.

Or add a theile cab w/EV12L to the combo