F series distortion tones on lunchbox head Rectoverb or Mark

[mwrenne]

Hey guys,
I post here occasionally and have always received great advice, so thank you in advance!

Last time I posted I bought a 395 and Triaxis for a bargain and ended up selling the triaxis before I got to play it for real, and ended up with a free 395 power amp so not a bad deal on my end at all.

At the moment I am still using my F100 head but I am thinking of getting a lower wattage lunch box, and then using the 395 when I am playing a show that needs that sort of headroom.

I am debating between the rectoverb 25 and the Mark V 25 and maybe even the EVH 5153 15 watt.

Where does the F series with contour on sit on the Mark/Recto spectrum? Some people say its more Mark series sounding but Mesa describes it as inspired by the DR.

I have very limited experience with the Mark IV or V they have so many tone options that I was a little overwhelmed.

I could be wrong and it could be how they were setup but my experience with the Recto is that they sit very well in a mix, but its a very distinct, major label sounding tone, very down tuned Metal, Foo Fighters, Fat Wreck Chords sort of thing. by comparison the F-Series has a very colorful thick growl.

any thoughts? I called around and no one nearby has both amps to try out and I don't want to waste anyone's time if one or the other is clearly not what I am looking for.

Thank you,

 

[Nick79]

I went from an F50 to a Mini Rec, which is basically a Rectoverb 25 but without the reverb. For me the Mini Rec is a lot easier to use turned up enough to get it singing, the F50 was so loud that even at gigs i couldn't turn it up enough to get it properly cooking, and if it's not cooking it just didn't do it for me, on channel 2 at least. Ace cleans though.

I found it kind of a cross between the Rectifier and Mark series distortion wise, i could get it close to what i wanted but never did quite get there.
When i bought my Mini Rec i got it within 30 seconds... Its a much more versatile amp, will go everywhere from crystal clean to really heavy gain and everywhere in between. If you put channel 2 on vintage and turn up the mids you can get really nice Mk style fluid lead lines. It won't sound exactly like a Mk series but it can get close. The Rectifiers have a different feel to the Marks, the Marks are very tight and dry with a very strong attack, while the Recs are a bit looser and spongy.

The Mini Rec is also very easy to dial in, which is something i struggled with with the F50, although that wasn't helped by the tone controls not really doing very much.

If you can give a Rectoverb 25 a shot, its hugely versatile and is loud enough to gig with. I gigged mine last night for the first time and my slight concerns about lack of clean headroom turned out to be unfounded - Its a loud little box.

 

[elvis]

+1

I think the MR or the RV25 are quite close to the F50s that I have had, though the 6L6s in those had more guts. I would go with an RV25 head rather than the combo if you go that route, as the combo is really boxy IMO. Both sound great through a recto 2x12 or a 4x10.

There is a lot of recto character in the F-series, so a Single Rec is likely to be pretty close IMO, though not a lunch box. I still love my MR.

 

[mwrenne]

Cool thanks guys,
I am going to check out the rectoverb 25 this weekend. I have high hopes for getting close to the sound I want, I think I had been turning the presence knob way too loud because that is what sounded good to my teenage ears in the 1990's when I bought my first DC-5 and that down tuned nu metal thing hasn't done it for me for a very long time.

 

[Nick79]

Cool, i reckon you will be pleasantly surprised. Although i liked my F50 going from that to the Mini Rec was a revelation, suddenly i could dial in that sound in my head and much more besides. I can also get it cooking enough for it to really shine, which was always a problem with the F. That thing was monstrously loud and i found if it wasn't up enough it just didn't deliver the goods for me.
Let us know how you get on.

Nick

 

[mwrenne]

Ok so I was lucky enough that both amps ended being available to play through.

You are both spot on that the F series channel 2 with contour has far more in common with the rectifier than a Mark V.

Testing out the amps, if I had to choose just an amp to replace my F-100 it would be the Rectoverb.

Mesa has done some tweaking to the amp since i last played one. Channel 2 is great and instant gratification, since I play in standard tuning without much chugga chugga palm mutes the tone is so thick and full any D-beat song I played was just a solid punishing wall. Finding a good sound is easy because the tone is already there I just need to add or subtract a touch for taste. I remembered the old Dual Rectifiers as being boxy sounding without a graphic eq and if you played in a major key you would sound like a Fat Wreck band.


The cleans are also much better than I remember, although the Mark V and F series are more lively with more of a classic fender inspired tone than the Rectoverb which sounds good but more modern and compressed and totally compliments the channel 2 like if I had clean parts and distorted parts in the same song I could jump between the two channels without sounding like I went through a time warp. Oh and I like the reverb way more on the rectoverb vs. mark V

The Mark V is the opposite side of the coin, and if I could I would love to have both amps. Channel 1 was where the Mark V excelled for me, I couldn't decide what I liked more fat or clean mode for my cleans both had a lot of sparkly and weight, the crunch channel kills!! reminds me of what was my guitar tone for 90% of the bands I have played in which was basically the Mesa DC-5 clean channel pull pot engaged the mid cranked all the way (the DC mids were similar to the Mark V in that after midway they became a gain boost) and then eq balanced out on the graphic EQ. I had heard that the DC series clean was based on a Mark IV and I would believe it from this demo, although I remember the ad I got with that head saying it was the preamp of a heartbreaker with a preamp of a rectifier matched to the Mark IV graphic EQ and power but that was a long time ago and I drink a lot.

The second channel of the Mark V is very good and very different, the Mark IV setting is my favorite by a narrow margin but that could change with a drummer or in the studio. Otherwise the Mark IV and IIC+ are close enough that I could use them interchangeably I was bummed on the extreme since it actually sounded less distorted, more open, and more clean gain I think if I down tuned super low my opinion would change otherwise I was expecting total thick modern saturated guitar tone. As my main high gain guitar distortion the Mark is just too dry, to clean of a distortion, and too unforgiving although very articulate and run in parallel with the Rectoverb I think it would be heaven. No matter what I did with the tone controls I didn't find a sound that fit, in the end it is because no matter what it sounds like a Mark series amp, so I can use the rotary eq to get a looser bass response its still a Mark IV or II or III or.....

I am not bagging on the Mark V distortion at all, I can totally see me using this in the studio or to add articulation to the wall o death sound of the F-100 or Rectoverb. But as my one and only high gain tone I need something thicker, fuzzier and able to get really sludgy and gross.


So yeah both pretty great, couldn't make up my mind in the shop so going to think it over a little more. I really wish the rectoverb had the cab clone or speaker defeat so then I could say at least its less expensive but adding a cab clone and now its the same price.

 

[elvis]

Sure, it would be really nice if the CabClone were built in to the RV25. However, I recommend you go with the tone you like. I loved the MV25, but I kept the MR.

The advantage of a stand-alone CC is that you can use it with ANY amp, which I have done quite a bit, actually.

Alternatively, you could get a Torpedo Live. That thing is nothing short of incredible.