DC5 and MK IV --your thoughts?

[edward]

Hi all,

OK, so here's a question that I've been idly wondering about for years ...many years, in fact. As I could not afford a MK IV long ago but knew I wanted a Boogie AND wanted true channel switching, I "settled" on a DC 5 combo.

Fast forward to present day where I LOVE my DC5 for it's rich tone and incredible palatte and versatility, I no longer feel like I've "settled," believe me. But as there is always that dang "grass is always greener" dark side of our human nature, I wonder: is there anything that I'm "missing" by not having a MK IV. As I am now more able to afford one (IF I sell my DC, that is), I am contemplating this move. But the simplicity, lighter weight, and sheer fact that I really dig my DC5 is keeping from doing it. Not to mention that I'd feel like an absolute schmuck if I sold my lovely DC only to find that that very expensive-newly-acquired IV doesn't "do it" for me. ...nothing like fear of losing something good to paralyze you.

So what do you think? Opinions , thoughts, all feedback welcome!

Edward

 

[bentium]

keep your dc5, if you realy love it, dont even think about selling it

 

[Ken j]

If you are that interested in the Mark, I would wait to buy until you can afford both. Live with both of them for a month or two then decided which to keep. You may end up keeping both.

 

[Anonymous]

Post removed.

 

[JamesD]

I agree that if you like your DC5 keep it, no reason to get rid of it. Also very good idea to save up and just buy a MarkIV when you can and then decide which one you like more.

 

[bentium]

It just seems so perfect. Like a cross between Mark and F-series,

the f serie is the new dc serie

 

[insearchoftone]

I own both. The DC-5 is the best tube amp for the money. Awesome dirty and clean channels. Simple controls and has the graphic eq to boot.

I currently use the DC-5 as my right channel of my stereo set up with my Mark IV.

Don't sell it...you will regret it!

Save for the Mark IV, buy it and then make a decision. I bet you'll keep both.

The DC-5 has an in your face tone that I have not been able to emulate on the Mark IV yet. That's another reason to keep it. You may lose that DC-5 vibe you like so much.

Don't get me wrong I love my Mark IV but I feel the same way about the DC-5 too.

If you are looking for a sound that is bigger than the combo, buy a Mesa Recto 2x12 and power it from the DC-5. :shock: WOW! Now that is a HUGE tone!

 

[edward]

Yeah, some support group you people are ...making me think of getting both!!

Thanks, though, I needed that slap in the face I really do like the sound, or should I say ALL the sounds that I get from my DC5. In my very humble opinion it is just so versatile; but that alone means nothing if she didn't sound so **** good. Clean and mild breakup is what really gets me digging it ...and no honeymoon period either. I've had her for almost 10 years no and still love it! BTW, I plug into a Thiele cab too ... yessir, there's a nice big sound I can really dig into!!

So you've convinced me to keep it! Funny how sooo much gear passes through one's hands over decades, yet the true keepers still remain. Shame on me for even thinking of replacing her!

I guess I'll just continue to wait until a MKIV becomes fesible in its own right. The nice thing is that if I don't end up really loving that one, the resale on them is killer. Thanks, all, for the sobering words of wisdom.


Edward

 

[LithiumZero]

It just seems so perfect. Like a cross between Mark and F-series,

the f serie is the new dc serie

I used to have an F50 and now own a DC-10. While their designs may be similar, they are quite different sounding amps. The graphic EQ on the DC makes it a much more versatile amp as well.

 

[edward]

I used to have an F50 and now own a DC-10. While their designs may be similar, they are quite different sounding amps. The graphic EQ on the DC makes it a much more versatile amp as well.

Having never actually played through an F-series, I always speculated that the graphic would add tonal options/versatility, especially since it's assignable. Curious, though: to any who have played an F and DC, what are the tonal differences that you could describe? An academic question, really, as I've clearly desided that my DC5 isn't going anywhere!!


Edward

 

[LithiumZero]

The clean is quite similar but the Lead channel is smoother on the F-Series and has looser low end than the DC. The DC Lead without EQ is kind of boxy sounding so the F-series was an improvement there but The F series contour mode is too harsh to my ears while the DC has a graphic EQ so it's not a problem. I run the DC with EQ always on anyway. With the F-50 I almost never used the contour mode. If the F-50 had a graphic EQ I would take it over the DC. Overall I think that the DC has a more aggressive sound.

 

[plumptone]

I have a DC-3 and an F-50. They are very different. I know the DC-3 is a different animal than the DC-5, but I've played a DC-5 on may occasions.

What the DC's have - that really sets them apart - is the graphic eq. That feature really makes the whole DC series incredibly versatile. The overdrive on the DCs in general seems to be very creamy to me - more along the lines of the old-school, "traditional" boogie vibe I guess.

The F-50 is a fantastic amp though. The contour is essentially the same thing as engaging the graphic with a fairly steep v curve, and it boosts the output noticeably. It can be a very aggressive sound if you're running the gain above 3 o'clock, and has a much more modern thing happening.

However, the overdive channel without the contour angaged, I have found, can give you a very happening mid-gain/crunch thing that is quite controllable with the gtr's volume control. I haven't found this sort of middle ground in the DCs. You can get close by pumping the gain and treble in the clean channel on a DC, but then you lose the natural clean headroom., which is quite good on that series.

The coup de grace for the F-50 though is the clean channel. It's about as good as it gets IMHO. It's a really organic, lets the true sound of the guitar come through, and is very, very articulate.

And by the way, I could never unload my DC-3. I love that amp, and still use it regularly.

That's my $0.02

 

[Ken j]

I did a side by side A-B test with my DC-5 combo and a friends F-50 combo about a year ago. I prefered the DC-5 over the F-50. My friend also did as he sold his F-50 and picked up a DC-5. He also owns a Rectoverb head on a 4 X 12" cab.

At first I thought that the DC-5 didn't have as full of a range with a lack of bottom end, but as we played with them we rapidly realized that since the F-50 power section was always at 100% output we needed to set the output level on the DC-5 to max to make it a fair comparison. Once the output level was on max the DC-5 and the F-50 sounded extremely close on the clean channel with similar settings on the gain, master vol., and tone controls. The output level on the DC is a nice feature for in home and low volume situations. The DC does have more advantages, the presence control and the pull for boost. The presence should speak for itself and the pull for boost is great for that transition from clean, to blues, to a raw crunch. The F-50 has the pull bright, but it dosen't seem that useful to me, you can activate the EQ on the clean channel of the DC to make up for it if needed and dial it in. The lead channel is where the difference is at. The F-50 seems to be more comparable with the modern on the Recto, and the DC with the vintage. I can see that depending on the genre of music that you play you may be more inclined to like the F series lead. Since I primarily play clean and use the lead channel sparingly it is not a huge issue for me. Back when I still had my '61 RI SG I could nail Santana's tone to a "T" with the lead channel and some tweeking with the EQ (no pedals).

 

[ec4321]

edward,

i was in your exact situation a year ago ie dc 5 for a mkiv. I got the mkiv and then sold the dc 5 after i was totally satisfied with the mkiv. While they are tonally diferent in some respects the mkiv has so much versatility especially with ch2 (the dc 5 couldnt do this sound that well imho). I had my dc 5 modded so i could engage the pull boost to ch1 with a footswitch to give me more tonal colour. This did add to the versatility esp live but at the end of the day the mkiv pretty much eclipsed everything i was asking the dc 5 to do. This amp (the mkiv) added so many options sonically that the dc 5 could only dream of. Dont get me wrong i love mesas, all of them but the dc 5 could do 2-3 things really well but imho the mk iv does 10-11 things well. If you ditch the dc 5 for the mk iv you wont be sorry imho.

cheers

 

[edward]

Hey ec4321,

Thanks for your comments! I will get there one one day, and may even agree with you once I get them side by side. But I just can't get myself to part with this amp ...maybe part of that is "sentimental," who knows.

As a side note though, I was speculating about such a mod with the "pull boost" for some time now. In fact, I called Mesa about such a mod and that tech said it wasn't possible ...I didn't buy it. So PLEASE tell me as I've been looking to do this for some time. How do you get that circuit footswitchable? Thanks a bunch!!!

Edward

 

[LithiumZero]

bump for that... I would LOVE that mod on my DC-10!!

 

[UsrName]

If you can find a store locally to try one, do it. Go back 100 times if you have to, that's what I did. Take your amp and see if they will let you compare them side by side. Then you will know for sure which one is for you.

If you're like me, you will always be wondering about the other amp. I haven't heard a DC in person, so I can't compare, but now that I have my Mark IV, I don't worry about the grass being greener anymore. It's a good feeling, really. Good luck!

 

[Monsta-Tone]

I've had both, and still have the DC-5.

The IV was great, but I would much rather play than tweak. I don't have the time to dial in a great sound.

The DC sounds great no matter where the knobs are set. The different tones just change my playing style.

I've modded mine to use 6V6's and have a smother clean tone. I've also modded it to have the footswitch for the EQ on the front of the amp so that I could use a 2-button footswitch.

I usually use the EQ for a Solo boost instead of for chunk. If I want Death Metal tones, I just plug into the Roadster, which is an incredible amp too.



Keep the DC-5. The only amp that I've liked more is my Soldano Lucky 13, but the 13 is nowhere near as versatile.

 

[Melodyman]

Hi all,

OK, so here's a question that I've been idly wondering about for years ...many years, in fact. As I could not afford a MK IV long ago but knew I wanted a Boogie AND wanted true channel switching, I "settled" on a DC 5 combo.

Fast forward to present day where I LOVE my DC5 for it's rich tone and incredible palatte and versatility, I no longer feel like I've "settled," believe me. But as there is always that dang "grass is always greener" dark side of our human nature, I wonder: is there anything that I'm "missing" by not having a MK IV. As I am now more able to afford one (IF I sell my DC, that is), I am contemplating this move. But the simplicity, lighter weight, and sheer fact that I really dig my DC5 is keeping from doing it. Not to mention that I'd feel like an absolute schmuck if I sold my lovely DC only to find that that very expensive-newly-acquired IV doesn't "do it" for me. ...nothing like fear of losing something good to paralyze you.

So what do you think? Opinions , thoughts, all feedback welcome!

Edward

I had a DC5 head back in the late 90's and currently have a Mark IV head that I've had for 7 years now. I liked the DC5 but I love the Mark IV for my needs.

I will say the DC5 had a killer clean channel though......

 

[edward]

Hey, Great feedback, all of you! ...nothing like having a bunch of folks say what a nice amp you've got

I played with the guys last night and man, I really do love my DC5. The stock Mesa-Celestion with my Thiele 112 sitting on top is just too tasty (if only my chops could approach its gorgeous tone ). The OD is beautiful Boogie-tone, no doubt, but yessss, the sparkly clean and its mild clip is ohhhhh soooooo nice! Is it just me or do you ever feel like your amp is just ooozing luscious tone!! One day I will step into the MkIV world, but until then I just gotta stop "looking" at gear and bask in tone I've got now! Rock on, all!

Edward