Any Mark V mods out there?

[vintagemusicgear]

I really like my Mark V. Above all else, I love the clean channel. But I find at times that the crunch and lead channels can use some more gain, especially when using lower powered pickups. Plus I've been a long time..... Marshall guy. Do you know anyone has ever modded a Mark V to have more gain, and more "Marshallness"?

 

[bcdon]

Channel 2 & 3 have loads of gain but if that's not enough for you why not put a tube screamer in front of the amp?

 

[MBJunkie]

vintage...

Glad you are liking Ch1 of the MkV. Indeed it is aweome IMO!

Very nice high gain sounds are offered in Ch2 and 3 of the MkV, but never ever expect the Mark V (or any other Mark series amp) to sound like a Marshall.....aint gonna happen...they are voiced very differently IMO.

Do experiment with the various modes offered in Ch2 and Ch3. Some of the best high gain sounds offered in Ch3 for me are with the gain set between 12:00 - 2:30 o'clock. Also, a good balance between channel gain, channel volume and master volume (assuming it is active) not to mention preamp tone settings and GEQ (if engaged) can make a huge difference in the perceived amount of gain. Experiment and have fun, but don't expect a "Marshall Sound" out of your Mark V no matter how you set it.

Best of luck!

 

[screamingdaisy]

Increasing the treble will increase the gain.

Also, are you sure you desire more gain? Or are you looking for a slower, more squishy response?

 

[vintagemusicgear]

I find that it's really the sustain I'm looking for. I can get really nice sustain out of my EVH 5150 III head, but when I crank the gain on the Mk V to get that type of sustain, the amp starts to squeal like crazy. Not microphonic squeal, it's "too much gain" squeal. But the gain on the Mk V is less than that of the 5150. I don't set the gain on the 5150 too high otherwise it just compresses it and makes it mushy. I like a "fast" attack, so I don't use the variac feature. I heard the Mk V clean is a clone of the Lonestar clean channel, is that true?

 

[screamingdaisy]

I find that it's really the sustain I'm looking for. I can get really nice sustain out of my EVH 5150 III head, but when I crank the gain on the Mk V to get that type of sustain, the amp starts to squeal like crazy. Not microphonic squeal, it's "too much gain" squeal. But the gain on the Mk V is less than that of the 5150. I don't set the gain on the 5150 too high otherwise it just compresses it and makes it mushy. I like a "fast" attack, so I don't use the variac feature.

5150s create extra distortion via a cold clipping stage. It allows the amp to create a more aggressively distorted sound with less compression than the Mark V's style of clipping.

What I typically see with people who switch to a Mark and complain that there isn't enough gain is that they crank the gain looking for the distortion they're used to. It's not there and you won't find it. Mark's don't have a cold clipping stage. Marks are smoother and don't have that chainsaw grind that the SLO style amps have.

My suggestion is to back the gain off to somewhere around 1:00 and 3:00 and fiddle with the EQ until you get a sound you like. Increasing the treble will increase the gain and change the voice of the amp. Increasing the midrange will stiffen the attack while reducing it will make it feel more compressed. Increasing bass will slow the attack down but will also increase flub. Reducing the bass will speed up the attack but also reduce depth.

I heard the Mk V clean is a clone of the Lonestar clean channel, is that true?

The fat mode is based on the Lone Star, but the amp isn't a Lone Star

 

[talltxguy]

Interestingly enough, the Mark V manual states that V2B is an unused triode. So perhaps modding is not that crazy of an idea if you can find a tech who's got some skills.