Classic rock from a Mark IV?

[hfisher3380]

Hey all - I am the proud owner of a Stiletto Ace head and a Mark IV combo. I have a very wide variety of musical tastes ranging from '60s stuff to modern hard rock and some modern metal but the guitar tone I love most is a classic rock / classic metal. Obviously I absolutely love the tone from my Stiletto since this is what it excels at (like a more reliable and tweakable Marshall on 'roids) and I do love what the Mark IV can do - however I sometimes have difficulty convincing myself that my classic rock tone on the Mark IV is really "classic rock tone". I've tried everything - turning up the treble and presence, turning the bass completely off, playing with EQ, using both R1 and Lead channels, boosting with a Maxon OD808 etc...just can't seem to get a tone bright enough to sound like "classic rock" to me. I still have a feeling that tone may be somewhere in there - anyone want to give me some hints on how I might be able to achieve it?

Thanks!

 

[dmotisko]

It almost sounds as if what you are describing is that you have to much gain. I would try backing off the gain on the amp instead of boosting it. Maybe even use your 808 in the clean channel and adjust it for desired gain. What kind of guitars are you using and how hot are their pickups. I use 3 different guitars and all are set up different. I have a 74 hot rodded tele deluxe with some hot dimarzio's in it ( Tone Zone: bridge, Air Norton: neck ). My 07 Honeyburst Les Paul has dimarzio's as well but I set it up for a medium output guitar and went with ( Air Zone: bridge, Air Norton: neck ). Last but not least is my 07 American Strat Deluxe ( stock ). I play each guitar for a different feel and play them all equally because they each sound so good through my Stiletto Deuce II. Have fun sorting it out. Thats the pleasure of it all.

 

[trem]

It is what it is. It won't ever sound like a stiletto. You seem to have left out R2 though.

 

[NuSkoolTone]

It is what it is. It won't ever sound like a stiletto. You seem to have left out R2 though.

I agree. Throw some EL34's in there and use R2. Watch the Bass and the Gain and you can get some Vintage goodness!

 

[sixstringmonk]

I think there is an inherent mid hump in the Mark series that may be going directly against what you are looking for.

 

[mr_fender]

Mids are what you want for classic rock! Also, the Mark IV has A LOT of gain on tap and can sound quite compressed if you have the gain up too much. It's odd that you can't get it bright enough, since the Mark IV can be a very bright sounding amp. How old are your power tubes? Could be the speakers you're using too. Try using the lead channel with the gain up about 7 or so and the lead drive down low, like about 2 or 3. Push the mids a bit and it responds so great to your pick attack. I find it great for classic rock. R2 has a good selection of mid-gain tones available too. I find it works quite well with a strat for SRV and Hendrix. With a Les Paul, you're in Zep, AC/DC, and ZZ Top territory.

 

[MarkofXlnts]

I have EL34's in mine and feel that R2 covers some classic rock territory. In addition, I leave my treble and presence at zero, the amp is VERY bright - at least for my taste. Have you tried working with the GEQ??

 

[Tuna141]

Like several posters had mentioned - there are some nice classic rock tones available on R2. IMO, this is definitely the classic rock channel and it is where I spend a lot of my time.

I also agree with the suggestions regarding preamp tube swapping. I found it made my IV sound better. Great tube suggestions by Shredd6. I have an RCA and a GE in my amp too. Great tubes for use in Mark amps - makes the amp sound more open and vintage, IMO.

I also prefer all 6L6 power tubes in mine - more Fenderish tone.

Another tip is to keep your individual channel volumes down so you can crank your Master Volume to around 4 -5 where you begin to get some thickness from the power tubes. I also keep R2 gain almost maxed (around 9)

Good luck.

 

[eagle]

Doesn't do it.