Does this Mark IV sound ok or not right?

[Lution]

I posted this in Rigs and Tones but wanted to get some more opinions from folks who personally own a Mark IV and read this section of the board more often.

~Please Read Before Clicking The Link~
Just want to get some opinions on the Rhy 2 channel. It sounds IMO that there could be some internal issues with this amp's preamp section. The Rhy 2 channel sounds like its about ready to die... and not in a good way, in a bad way.

take a listen and tell me honestly what you think.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=122032&songID=6509600

This recording is only a quick riff or two in the Rhy 1 channel then I click over to the Rhy 2 channel, then back to Rhy 1.

Here are my settings used for the recording.

Mesa Boogie Mark IV v.B Combo - Celestion MC90 speaker
Brand new Quad of Shuguang 6L6GC-M Power Tubes (hand-picked and tested by Lord Valve with Mesa bias levels)
Brand New Tung Sol 12ax7 Preamp Tubes - Shuguang 9th Gen 12ax7 in V1 Position
Micced with a Shure SM 57 on axis
straight into an Edirol UA-25
Recorded into Sonar LE
Mastered as a high quality mp3 using Cool Edit Pro
Guitar used was a PRS SE Singlecut with stock humbuckers
plugged straight into the amp. ( i double checked my guitar cord)
no effects and no post eq
Double-checked for clipping signal. there was none.

I used the settings from the Mesa Boogie manual for Clean/Crunch/Lead except I have the Rhy 2 gain set lower at 6.5

here is the top group of knobs:

6 Pulled
6.5 Pulled
5
5
3
7
3
2
2

bottom row

8 Pulled
6
2
3
7
5
2
4

Graphic EQ was OFF
Master at 3
Full Power
Pentode Mode
Simulclass

I also tried lowering the bass and the gain levels down and it doesn't shake that cutting out choked out sound. I tried a different set of power tubes and preamp tubes. No luck in changing this sound. It sounds the same all over the knob values too.

Thanks for your input. It could be just my ears, but Rhy 2 just doesn't sound like it should. The Lead Channel also has some residual affects. Sounds a little bit like Rhy 2, but not as bad.

Also, if anyone has a favorite setting for Rhy 2 let me know the settings and I can record something using those particular settings for comparison.

 

[HamerFan]

Clean sounds fine. R2 sounds like a bad speaker. Kinda buzzy and no sustain in the single notes.

 

[Lution]

Clean sounds fine. R2 sounds like a bad speaker. Kinda buzzy and no sustain in the single notes.

I've also tried it in my Bogner OS 2x12. Sounds exactly the same.

Does my clip of Rhy 2 sound your Rhy 2 channel on your Mark IV?

Thanks

 

[HalfDeaf]

I think something is wrong with your amp. R1 sounds fine, but R2 does not sound right at all. R1 and R2 share a lot of circuitry, so the issue may be difficult to diagnose.

Based on what you said in your post, its definitely not tubes and its not the output transformer (since R1 is fine). Read up on some of the recent LDR switching problems reported on this forum. I had some problems with one of my LDR stacks. When they start failing, it can lead to lots of weird problems that are usually seen on only 1 channel.

My advice is to send it to Mesa and have them fix it. I've had bad experiences with local techs - even "Mesa-certified" ones. FYI - "Mesa-certified" doesn't actually mean much. It only means that the tech sells Mesa tubes and hasn't had enough complaints to lose the "certification". This was confirmed by Mesa when I called them on it.

 

[MrMarkIII]

Looking at the manual, you're running many controls a lot lower than the "Instant Gratification" recommendations.
That's fine if you want cleaner sounds, but it doesn't sound like super-clean is what you're seeking.
You're not gonna get singing sustain running your gain and treble controls below 7 or 8.
My $ .02

 

[Lution]

Looking at the manual, you're running many controls a lot lower than the "Instant Gratification" recommendations.
That's fine if you want cleaner sounds, but it doesn't sound like super-clean is what you're seeking.
You're not gonna get singing sustain running your gain and treble controls below 7 or 8.
My $ .02

This clip wasn't using the "Instant Gratification" settings.

In my first post I stated that I used their Clean/Crunch/Lead settings with the gain set a bit lower, because when I cranked the gain it sounded even worse.

also, this clip was only of the Rhy 1 and Rhy 2 modes. I did not click on the Lead channel in the recording of this particular clip.

 

[ruso]

Sounds fine to me...

Rhythm one sounds nice, punchy and clean, rhythm two sounds like **** as usual. :lol:

 

[Tyrant]

I sit in R2 alot. It should sound better than that. Mebbe these setting will help. Roll of your guitar volume to clean it up. My Mark was acting odd until I cleaned all jacks and switches real good, then it came to life....well after many hundereds of dollars buying JUST the right tubes.
:wink: Good Luck

R2 Gain(P) 10
R1+R2 Bass 2.5
R1+R2 Treble 2.5-5
R2 Pres 5
R2 Master 5
Output 5.5

Tweed or Full
Harm/Simul/Triode

 

[Fxrs]

Without listening to the clip, the 1st thing I would check would be whichever, if any, preamp tube is R2 specific. Also, just in case, put a patch cord in the loop, as dirty loop jacks can lead to intermittent cutouts.