Bought a Mark VII!

[dlpasco]

And I love it! Feels like this is The One for me.

Channel options work great for me, basically sticking with Clean, Crunch, and IIC+ mode. I usually keep the eq off but it really sculpts the sound well when it is in use.

This is the best IIC+ mode I have experienced. I am feeling my attachment to my actual IIC+ loosen up a lot.

To me, this is exactly what I wanted: effectively a JP2C with a crunch channel instead of two lead channels.

My VII is a combo and I have to say, this is the first combo I have bought that I didn't immediately want to run through a 4x12. The enclosure is smaller than the V:90’s but it sounds MASSIVE, especially in IIC+ mode.

This thing really does boogie.

Also, +1 to the requests for a dedicated Mark VII channel, please.

 

[dlpasco]

Regarding IIC+ mode, I tried it out and immediately thought "okay, that's covered" - huge, snarling, 3D sound. Did not feel as thin to me as the V and I'm wondering if this was designed with PULL DEEP active. It definitely feels closer to the JP2C sound than the V, except that I prefer this over the JP2C tone (I've had two of them). I wonder if the basic settings they used for John's amp were used here as well. Obviously the power section isn't the same (JP2C is HRG, the VII is DRG) but the other elements may be similar.

Crunch is also great. The Mark III R2 sound has been my favorite for years, and, while I haven't A/B'd them yet, Crunch feels like a great replacement for it, with a lot more sonic range than I felt like I could reliably get out of R2. The V:90's Crunch never really got there for me and there was an inherent, unpleasant element to its sound that I'm not easily able to describe, sort of a congested low-mid thing. It is not present here and feels more like the Crunch update to the V:25, only better to my ears.

I lost a couple of hours playing skinny Clean through a stereo rig. It's fantastic. I may be off base here, but with the eq engaged (light V) it reminds me strongly of the JP2C's piano-like clean tones.

I'm on the fence about whether or not to use it as a combo or a head. A head definitely works better for my home rig, but this feels like a great amp to take out and play as a combo, too. No additional cabinetry required.

I tried pulling the chassis and putting it into my Imbuya head. Looks good, but it's far too tight (I actually broke the post on a tube trying to move it so that I could get the reverb tank plugged in ). So that's probably not a viable option.

I've sent an email to Mesa to find out if I can order a head enclosure for it, just for flexibility if nothing else.

 

[Acey Boy]

Great review...I really want to play one but haven't gotten the opportunity yet!

 

[dlpasco]

I pinged a few people at Mesa about the vintage amp settings baked into IIC+ and this is what they came back with:

Volume 1 is preset to the sweet spot, about 7
Pull Bright on Volume 1 is about halfway on
Treble Shift is on
Bass Shift is off
Pull Deep is on
Pull Bright on Lead Master is on

I'm guessing that the reference to being halfway on for the Volume 1 Pull Bright means that the circuit's influence has been toned down a bit? Not sure.

Either way, I believe it. IIC+ mode is brawny.

 

[Jay Omega]

Congrats on the amp!

Pull bright on Volume 1 half way on makes no sense to me either, the pull switch either brings a capacitor into the circuit or not. The effect of the bright switch is less noticeable the higher the Volume 1 setting, and has no effect when Volume 1 is on 10. Maybe that’s what they’re referring to since they said Volume 1 is set around 7.

 

[Eduardo78]

Congrats! After watching alot of youtube videos I reached the same conclusion, in theory: the VII seems a little bit tighter sounding than the JP-2C and it's the perfect candidate for the ones like me that never owned a Boogie before - just rack gear. Can't wait to put my hands on a rackmount version of the Mk VII!!

 

[mace]

I pinged a few people at Mesa about the vintage amp settings baked into IIC+ and this is what they came back with:


I'm guessing that the reference to being halfway on for the Volume 1 Pull Bright means that the circuit's influence has been toned down a bit? Not sure.

Either way, I believe it. IIC+ mode is brawny.

Congrats on the NGD and glad it is working out for you. I’m not thanking you for your informative post because it, and Mark VII posts from other folks, will cost me dearly in the near future.

What is this Volume 1 of which Mesa speaks?

 

[dlpasco]

The clean channel's gain control on the Mark I, II, III, and IV is called Volume 1. The higher it is, the dirtier the tone gets, but it also determines how much distortion is present on R2 (for the Mark III and Mark IV) and acts as a pre-gain stage for the lead channel, along with the lead drive control.

Mesa considers 7 to 7.5 on Volume 1 to be the sweet spot for getting a great lead tone, along with contributions from the treble and presence controls. When it is that level or higher you really don't need to go beyond 5 on the lead drive control.

In practice I've seen a lot of people dime both the volume and the treble controls, so your mileage may vary.

 

[user 84702]

Congrats on the Mk vii I can’t wait to get one myself. I played one for a bit and felt it was a little more vintage sounding than the jp2c. Loved the iib sound. I used to the Mk iii so I loved the vii vintage vibe

 

[harrisonguitars]

Congrats! Would love to hear sound clips.

 

[Neptical]

Every day I read more and more on how fantastic these amps are. Folks even getting rid of their JP2Cs and Mark Vs. I know there may be some novelty going on but it seems pretty sincere which is making this amp very attractive to try out. However, my Simulclass Mark IIIs wouldn't ever get replaced.

 

[dlpasco]

So, this has completely become my main amp. This is the real deal.

I put this short recording together last night, it's the VII in IIC+ mode, recorded via the cab clone/two notes interface

 

[milin_im]

I just got mine. Yes it sounds and feel better than the JP2C to me, but I'm finding it, like the JP2C, harsh sounding in the IIC+ mode. I'll try tube rolling to see if I can get better results. For reference, I'm getting a closer IIC+ sound out of my IVB for sure.

 

[mace]

OK…you guys are 2 to 3 months on. Is the honeymoon with the VII over or can you still not get enough?

I’m obviously putting off the inevitable here…I’m jonesin’ pretty bad for a VII and it’s probably only a matter of time. But, it is a very big spend and I want to just see how others view it after a few months of use!

 

[user 84702]

Love it only thing I’d change would be have mkiib mode in 2nd channel so both 2c and 2 b could be available to switch between

 

[Inthenoise]

Any thoughts on the MK VII cleans vs those on the MK V? ...or in general?

 

[bandit2013]

Any thoughts on the MK VII cleans vs those on the MK V? ...or in general?

I will throw in my two cents on the subject. My apologies if I go too far in advance.

Considering the change in power tubes over the years with the Mark V90 from the STR440 up until the demise of the company who made them to the STR441 tubes. The clean and fat mods of the Mark V90 seemed to be unrivaled. Even the JP2C could not replicate that characteristic, at least I thought. Oh yes it can. That boils down to power tube choice. STR448 tubes make the clean in the JP2C sound epic very much like the Mark V90. What is even better is the hard to get STR415 tubes. I just wanted to throw that out there. Now to the point.

How does the Mark V90 cleans compare to the Mark VII? Let us assume you are referencing the STR440 power tubes in the Mark V90 first.

There will be a little more warmth to the tone on the clean channel. Not as much charm or chime but still a rewarding experience on all counts. Both clean and fat exhibit piano like low end with top end chime that far exceeded any of the earlier mark amps I have owned. The normal/bold switch is a nice feature to bring out more low end or shore it up in normal voice.

Now for more current offering, the STR441 power tubes in the Mark V90. Way better character than I have heard with a bit more balanced tone. More chime to go with the top end. It is just a subtle difference than the older Mark V tubes. Both sound spectacular.

Now for the Mark VII. Same amount of excellence in clean and fat modes as you would get with the Mark V90. I would say it is closer to the Mark V with the STR441 power tubes. The Mark VII does not have the normal/Bold voicing switch. I do not think it is really needed. I would say it is the happy median between normal and bold. I would have to say the Mark VII is on par with the clean modes of the Mark V90. That was about the only time I could not tell the two amps apart from each other.

As for the tweed mode of the Mark V90, that is not present on the Mark VII. You can get a lot of dirt with the gain control if you need to have that crunchy tone. The good thing is that fat is duplicated on CH2 so if you need to push the gain on a clean channel and also have an unadulterated clean sound you can use that on CH1.

Also, I have experimented with the GEQ used with the clean channel modes. It does not seem to overburden much unless you go nuts with it. You can do the same thing with the Mark V too.

As for the 45W option with tube tracking on the Mark V, you do not have that option with the Mark VII. I guess it depends on what you want to do with the clean modes. Push it with external drive pedals or distortion? I have not gotten that far yet but eventually will so some in due time.

 

[bandit2013]

The Mark VII is an awesome amp in all respects. I am glad I decided to get one.

 

[GJgo]

Not ALL respects. While the VII definitely does some great things and excels for home use it's not perfect. The attack is mushy & undefined, the sound has no push and heavy playing completely disappears in the live mix. I really enjoyed mine till I played it next to my vintage Marks in the band, then I sold it the next day.

 

[mace]

Not ALL respects. While the VII definitely does some great things and excels for home use it's not perfect. The attack is mushy & undefined, the sound has no push and heavy playing completely disappears in the live mix. I really enjoyed mine till I played it next to my vintage Marks in the band, then I sold it the next day.

Just curious, do you have a youtube channel and did you do some Mark VII demo videos? I remember seeing a few videos about the amp being great until played live with a band. Sounded similar to your experience.