Can anyone here do a comaprison for me? JSX VS mark IV

[kmanick]

I don't want to see JSX bashing, I'm just curious as to how these 2 amps compare tone wise.
I have a Rectoverb and I was thinking about going up to a roadster so I can switch back and forth between a vintage channel and a Modern
channel, but I've also been thinking maybe I should just trade up my JSX to a Mark IV and keep the Rectoverb.

I like my JSX because it handles the 80's type of metal sound better than
a Recto, and it has a great lead voicing to it, but I've been wondering if
a Mark IV can go into that territory as well as the JSX does. (I can get a pretty good "marshally" type of tone out of the JSX).

I've never had the chance to actually sit down and play thru a Mark IV so I'm at a loss here.
I love my JSX (KT-77's with an MXR 10 band EQ in the loop, thru C90's = )
The loop on the JSX is also very good, Mark IV loop?
Or is a Mark III a better fit here?
Gas is a real *****........... 8)

 

[Noe2575]

I am lucky enough to have access to a lot of amps for tryouts.
Being a long-time Mark IV owner, I recently borrowed and brought home a JSX and a 6505 2x12" COMBO and A/B/C'd the 3 amplifiers with tthe following guitars:

- Jeff Beck strat with hot noiseless and hot rails
- EVH Music Man
- Peavey HP signature USA custom

Here's the breakdown of my assesment:

Peavey JSX
Please note: I tried this amp through the 2x12" cab of the 6505 Combo.) The JSX sure has a lot of gain. In fact, I would say maybe too much. On the ULTRA channel, it was hard to keep my guitars from making all sorts of noise in between licks. Everything got quite messy quickly. I really had to play with the gain before 12 o'clock on this channel, which was still ample. I actually preffered the 2nd channel the best. It worked great with high gain, fat switch on/off, strat or humbuckers, you name it. The clean channel is quite round but always a bit too bassy. In fact the whole amp gets a bit too bassy for me. If you are mainly a lead/shred player, the JSX will probably satisfy you the most out of the 3 amps, as the compression on the 2 dirty channels is spot on. Legato runs come out very easy, as do harmonics...etc. Overall though, I still wonder how this amp would actually go in cutting through in a band situation, it seems to be great for bedroom jamming but almost sounds a bit processed and not always tube-like.

Peavey 6505 combo
RAW - That's how I best sum up this amp. It definitely doesn't care for strats, but excels with the HP signature and Music Man. It has got so many upper-register harmonics when hanging a chord, and just so much power. There is a real "energetic" quick-response, like this amp is ready to deliver at any point. The crunch channel off the first channel does a great AC/DC re-endition and the Lead channel really takes off and loves detune. As a lead player, it is good, but not as good as a JSX. Rhythms really sound big but I find I need to really dig in to get the notes to jump. The reverb is absolutely useless on this amp. The clean sound will not please many, I don't think, it's just not that kind of an amp. It's dull and bright or bassy, nothing in between.

Mesa Mark IV combo
I have this amp for 15 years and have acquired a 1x12" recto cab to go underneath about 5 years ago. The built-in 12" EVL really does need some help to not sound so boxy, and the recto cab looks after that beautifully. Still the 6505 combo's cabinet sounds mighty big compared to the boogie setup, virtually as big as a stack.
I should rephrased my opening statement: I have loved and hated this amp for the last 15 years, but I love it as I am writting this. For one, its options never cease to amaze me. Whatever configuration I think of, it seems like this amp has one way or another to accomodate it. From midi channel switching to driving slave power amps to 2am recording sessions at home. And now that I have had that flexibility, I can't let go! For these reasons alone, I will NEVER sell this amp. Of course, it better sound good as well, and this thing absolutely sings on a good day.
If i am in the mood for some Larry carlton, it is too. If I am in the mood for some Faith No More, it follows suit. If I am in the mood for some satriani or vai, it does that quite well! I however typically struggle when trying to emulate Fender or Marshall sounds. EVH is hard/impossible to dial in and SRV does not come out easy either. But that's when I realize that what I need is MY sound, and the Mark IV seems to reflect my personality better than any other amp. In fact, this amp was the one that showed the most tonal/gain/volume differences when i switched guitars. Even within the strat itself, the single coil neck pickup was worlds apart from the bridge hot rails. In the JSX, they sounded a bit different tonally and that's about it. The Mark IV has got a lot of gain too, BUT:
As a lead player, this amp really keeps me on my toes. If I don't execute a legato run spot on, there is no net and my lack of technique will not only be heard, but magnified. No such thing with the JSX, it's like it knows what you are trying to do and helps you along the way!
On the whole, the best tones are in the Mark IV, but I need help (TS808 or Rat) to boost my leads a bit so that I can get away with a few mistakes!

Sorry for the long-winded answer, I sincerely hope this helps.

Noe2575

 

[kmanick]

Thanks for taking the time ot go into such detail.
I used to own a 5150 and basically found the same thing.
from the time that I wrote this question I have found that I may move the Recto instead of the JSX for a Mark IV.
I've had the JSX for almost a year now and I have it really dialed in.
I run the gain on the ultra channel at about 4 with a clean boost infront and it absolutely sings. In a way it's got some similarities to a Mark IV as it takes some time to really figure out how to get the EQ to work correctly.
Like the rectos EQ, everything is tied in together.
I've been trying to do some recording lately and I find that the Recto is a
really difficult amp to record unless it's blasting, and I unfortunately can't always do that.
the JSx is very easy to record.
I love the Nevermore/petrucci type of tone that I get out of the Recto but , I am much more of a lead player and I think I may get a long with a mark series amp better.

 

[Noe2575]

What I love about the Mark IV too, is the fact that it can crunch up somewhat like a 6505...
I went on the G3 tour last year in Australia and was fortunate to get on stage to see all the rigs. John Pettrucci was using 2 Mark IVs and a tube screamer (along with a bunc of other modules, but gain wise, this was it.)
I have got a picture of his rig from that tour somewhere if you are interested.

Noe2575

 

[kmanick]

sure post them up for us.
I saw the G3 this past year here in boston and seeing that show is what gave me Mesa gas in the first place.
Petrucci's sound absolutely squashed everyone else that night.

 

[mk5]

THe JSX is WAaaay brighter and thinner sounding than the Mark IV.

I will never forget hearing Satriani through his JSX next to Andy Timmons with his LSC. Andy's tone won hands down. Not even close. It cut through better and did not sound brittle as the JSX did.

 

[kmanick]

I really wish a store here in Boston would actually get one in so I could try it.
I'm pretty sure I would buy it on the spot

 

[trem]

THe JSX is WAaaay brighter and thinner sounding than the Mark IV.

I will never forget hearing Satriani through his JSX next to Andy Timmons with his LSC. Andy's tone won hands down. Not even close. It cut through better and did not sound brittle as the JSX did.

Yeah, Satch loves everything super bright, even the chromes . To those that own one, is it possible to make the JSX to sound not so bright? Thanks.

~trem

 

[kmanick]

check out how I have mine dialed in.
this is at pretty low volume and prety representative of what the amp sounds like in the room.
I use an MXR 10 band EQ in the loop to bring up the lower mids and kill the highest of highs to smooth it out.
On the ultra channel with the gain at around 4.
http://www.netmusicians.org/index.php?section=user&value=kmanick

 

[LithiumZero]

I've owned a JSX and currently have a Mark IV. The JSX is a great amp but the Mark is MUCH tighter and fuller sounding. The JSX always left me wanting something. It didn't seem to have a lot of character and sounded kind of lifeless at times. Good, but uninspiring if you know what I mean. The JSX was definitely a much better amp with 6L6's than it was with EL34's.

 

[LEVEL4]

Thanks for taking the time ot go into such detail. I used to own a 5150 and basically found the same thing. from the time that I wrote this question I have found that I may move the Recto instead of the JSX for a Mark IV.

FWIW, I'm selling my 6505 (too fizzy) to move into a Recto for heavy rhythms. Plan on buying the Mark IV for leads.

 

[UsrName]

I've owned a JSX and currently have a Mark IV. The JSX is a great amp but the Mark is MUCH tighter and fuller sounding. The JSX always left me wanting something. It didn't seem to have a lot of character and sounded kind of lifeless at times. Good, but uninspiring if you know what I mean. The JSX was definitely a much better amp with 6L6's than it was with EL34's.

This was pretty much my experience. The Mark IV definitely has it's own tone, which I love BTW, and it's different from the JSX and the Rectoverb. It's not as fizzy sounding as the JSX, but it can be if dialed in wrong. I got bored with the JSX after a couple months; it did get a good high gain "Marshally" sound, but I couldn't get the mid gain tones I was looking for.

The Mark can do everything else but that Recto sound, but you have to dial it in. It does, however have a "Mesa" tone and not a "Marshall" tone, IMO. But the EQ is very handy at getting close to whatever you want.

If you can't find one to play, check out the rigs and tones forum for clips, or try Youtube.