Mesa discontinues the Mark IV?

[Codyyy]

It is no longer on the website - this can really only mean one thing (I think ).


MARK V!



I'm excited. Hopefully more information comes soon. Summer NAMM release, possibly?

It's about time.

 

[sakeido]

Dear God I would explode if they announce a Mark V at Summer NAMM, which is unfortunate, because then I couldn't sell my Stiletto and buy a Mark V to love and cherish for all my days. Its a great time to introduce a new Mark, the old ones have got amazing popularity now because of Lamb of God and Petrucci both sporting Mark IVs.
All it needs is a crunch channel that doesn't suck! come on, come on, come on!!

 

[Codyyy]

Having seen Petrucci live recently, my Mark IV GAS was bad enough.

This is just what my bank account needs

Fortunately, I just applied for a job

oh and out of curiosity, would you get the combo?

 

[ShawnFjellstad]

if the mark v has a rhythm tone that isn't so lacking as the mark iv, mindy might have some competition.

 

[sakeido]

Having seen Petrucci live recently, my Mark IV GAS was bad enough.

This is just what my bank account needs

Fortunately, I just applied for a job

oh and out of curiosity, would you get the combo?

Nope. My Orange cab got along with my old Mark IV real nice - I wouldn't trade it for anything.

What I want to see most from the Mark V is more voicings on the clean channel like there is on my Stiletto.. fat clean (like the Mark IV) thin clean (like the Lone Star) and crunch (like the Stiletto). Then an actual crunch channel that doesn't blow and is nice and open sounding, good for metal riffing. Then that same orgasmic lead channel, and it would absolutely need the graphic EQ.

If they introduce the Mark V at summer NAMM, that means we'll be hearing about it in a month! I'm excited. But if they don't announce it, the Stiletto will do, I guess.

 

[darren]

I just hope they don't bugger up the Mark series like they did when they replaced the F-series with the Express amps.

 

[Codyyy]

I just hope they don't bugger up the Mark series like they did when they replaced the F-series with the Express amps.

Yeah - part of me wants them to keep it mostly the same with some minor tweaks... just so they have less of a chance of fucking it up. But then, what would be the fun in that?

Plus, looking at the evolution of the series, the changes between each Mark have been pretty drastic and revolutionary (I believe this series is responsible for the first amps with channel switching, effects loops, etc). So I would expect nothing less if they are giving it a whole new roman numeral

Source: A Mesa Boogie History - Sep 2007

 

[hirah]

here's what Randall Smith said at the introduction of the f series. that time might be sooner than later. although this was a few years back.

WILL THERE EVER BE A MARK V?

“Yes, there will probably be a Mark V… but not for a long time. And it will probably sound just like the Mark IV but with a simpler control layout. It’s not next on my palette because the Mark IV is still going strong after 12 or 13 years. But who knows? By the time that bad boy comes around, anything could happen!”

 

[HighGain510]

Hmmm.... if that's true and he makes it easier to dial in I think they'd have a huge hit on their hands. A lot of guys complain about Mark IV's being "too hard to dial in" so if that issue is resolved that would be sweet. I'm looking forward to seeing if they introduce anything like that this summer as well!

 

[TomAwesome]

A Mark V would be fantastic.

 

[Codyyy]

here's what Randall Smith said at the introduction of the f series. that time might be sooner than later. although this was a few years back.

yeah but that was what... 6-8 years ago?

I highly doubt they would just discontinue the Mark IV without a successor.

 

[sakeido]

yeah but that was what... 6-8 years ago?

I highly doubt they would just discontinue the Mark IV without a successor.

The timing is too convenient.. they do this now, right before summer NAMM, to build interest, unveil the Mark V at NAMM and then two or three months later, the first Mark Vs hit the street and they sell quick as people go apeshit for a new evolution in an amp that was good enough to go unchanged for 18 years or so.

 

[Codyyy]

The timing is too convenient.. they do this now, right before summer NAMM, to build interest, unveil the Mark V at NAMM and then two or three months later, the first Mark Vs hit the street and they sell quick as people go apeshit for a new evolution in an amp that was good enough to go unchanged for 18 years or so.

haha my friend's way pissed about this - he just bought a '93 Mark IV, spent like $1300 on it.

He's a total n00b though, the thing sounds like total ass Needs new tubes, and probably a new speaker.

It's his fault for buying before trying

 

[ibznorange]

the shop here doesnt like to stock mark IVs cause "its really really easy to make one sound really really bad", which if some idiot plugs one in and sounds like shit, could put them off mesa entirely. It almost did to me. first big amp i plugged in was a mark IV head (325 bucks too, but i passed it up cause it sounded shitty), and it sounded awful since i didnt know what i was doing. easier to make sound good would be nice for noobules

 

[Codyyy]

the shop here doesnt like to stock mark IVs cause "its really really easy to make one sound really really bad", which if some idiot plugs one in and sounds like shit, could put them off mesa entirely. It almost did to me. first big amp i plugged in was a mark IV head (325 bucks too, but i passed it up cause it sounded shitty), and it sounded awful since i didnt know what i was doing. easier to make sound good would be nice for noobules

huh - I didn't know that. Although I still think that there is something seriously wrong with my friend's.

 

[sakeido]

It is really really easy to make one sound bad, it took me months to dial mine in. With just 20 or 30 minutes in the store, there is almost no way you could get "your" tone out of it.

 

[TomAwesome]

Yeah, not everyone can appreciate the Mark IV. I have a friend who had one he was just using as a power amp for his GT-8. I wanted to smack him! Then he ended up replacing it with a Krank. Then I wanted to kill him!

 

[XEN]

Yeah, dialing in on the Mark IV is not as straightforward as on most other amps. Like the early Mark series amps just about every knob affects a couple of different things. I don't know of many amps out there with a more comprehensive manual. I guess though that it's always been relatively easy for me to dial in sounds I like on it, even on the rhythm channel.

The Mark V has a lot to live up to once it is released. I'm hoping for a slight bit more modern feel on the lead channel, maybe in the form of a mode switch, and a footswitchable solo boost since I like to use the same channel for riffs and leads. I'm also hoping for independent controls for each channel, easier MIDI switching, and by all means, the graphic EQ. If that comes off it's not a Mark series IMO.

 

[hirah]

funny story.
a few months ago i went to gc and they had a mark 4 combo.
there was a 10 or 12 year old kid looking at guitars and amps with his father. the kid didnt even seem like he had started to play yet. so the gc guy grabs an ibanez off the wall and plugs into the mark 4. turns a few knobs and proceeds to have the most awful sound come out of the amp. he then shuts it off and tells the father there must be something wrong with it and they'll try a different amp. i think they went to a line 6.
so i'm always pondering getting a mark 4 for the convenience of an all in one head. i have a quad now, so i basically have most of the mark sounds, and i know how to set it. so i try out the mark 4 with a jem. the gains were all cranked, the mids were on zero the treble was cranked and the bass was on 10. the graphic resembled a v, but the lows and highs were maxed. a few tweaks to the controls and the amp sounded like it should.
first i couldnt believe they were trying to sell a beginner a mark 4 for like $2400. it was a hardwood cab, wicker grill.
then i couldnt believe how bad they had it setup. i should have told them it was broke and seen if they would have cut the price.
once you grasp the interaction between the controls, the mark series aren't that hard to dial in. they take a good amount of tweaking to get your sound from there though.
but to make it sound good, not great, is easy.