Love and hate go hand in hand...

[kingdomheights777]

I have owned my Mark V and 2x12 Recto Vert for about 2 1/2 months. I absolutely love it but with the same breath i get frustrated with it. Its almost like a marriage lol.
I love it in the fact that I can get tons of different sounds from it and it fits me, but the frustration lies in spending more time tweaking it than playing it.

One day I will think I have the perfect sound, then I get to practice and with it going against the other two guitar players in the band with a Dual Recto and an Orange Rockoverb. And then I think it sounds like crap. :?

 

[Nermel]

Maybe the Mk V is just not for you...not saying it's better, but maybe you should blow that Dual Recto and Orange out of the water with Herbert...sounds like you want more of that type of sound anyhow.

 

[kingdomheights777]

Maybe the Mk V is just not for you...not saying it's better, but maybe you should blow that Dual Recto and Orange out of the water with Herbert...sounds like you want more of that type of sound anyhow.[/quote

I know for a fact that the "Mark" sound is my type of sound I owned a triaxis for 5 years and loved it. Sold it for a Herbert and hated the Herbert.

 

[Mark Fore]

Are you running the combo through an extension cab? If not, get a Recto 2x12 and sit the combo on top of it. Those other guitar players in your band will be envious of your crushing tone.

 

[kingdomheights777]

Are you running the combo through an extension cab? If not, get a Recto 2x12 and sit the combo on top of it. Those other guitar players in your band will be envious of your crushing tone.

Yeah i am running a it through a 2x12 Recto Vert Cab, I just gotta tweak some more i guess lol

 

[guitardom]

man i am w you 100%!!!!

i have had mine a bit longer than you and will feel one day like i have complete control over it and then the next i am stumped and cant get ANYTHING to sound good out of it. i have a couple different cabs, a big selection of guitars, it just seems to change day to day.

have done quite a bit of tube swapping in it as well. everything just seems so touchy on it. slightest bit of alteration of anything and then you gotta tweak it back in.

i recently am experimenting w a boss ge-7 eq in the fx loop while using the preset eq so i can tweak the preset eq which i like for the most part, just needs some tweaking. cant figure out if i am all for it or not though, but it does help to cut 1.6k and alter the lows abit with it.

but i completely feel your pain and when i am asked about it, my exact answer is "its a love hate relationship"

i have to say i have more than 1 guitar player around here jealous. it sounds so **** good when everything is dialed in!!

 

[Bob A.]

I haven't really posted here much since getting my Mark V in May, I wanted to take time to get used to the amp and form a solid opinion, and that took a lot of time and tweaking. It really took me a while to get sounds I liked, it is a tricky amp to dial in. Reading the manual and having a little patience paid off. I love the sounds I can get from my V (especially channel 1 tweed mode @ 10 watts), and I have altogether stopped looking at or caring about other amps.

I had a pretty difficult time making it sound right with my band at first too, I would get a sound that I thought was great and then it sounded awful with another guitar, bass and drums. You'll get there, it just takes some time. I spent a few hours with my guitar player shaping his and my sound to work well together and we got there eventually. It was a love/hate relationship at first, but the more I get used to the controls and their differences within each mode, the more I really love this amp.

What made a huge difference for me was changing my pickups. I'm using a Les Paul Classic, it had a Duncan Custom 5 in the bridge and a '59 in the neck when I got the V. I just wasn't happy with what I was getting, so I put the stock 500T/496R back and there it was. everything seemed to sound better (to me) with hotter pickups.

 

[Mark Fore]

Are you running the combo through an extension cab? If not, get a Recto 2x12 and sit the combo on top of it. Those other guitar players in your band will be envious of your crushing tone.

Yeah i am running a it through a 2x12 Recto Vert Cab, I just gotta tweak some more i guess lol

The 2x12 vert is different than the horiz... to me, by a lot. The vert was harsh with a lot of highs to my ears. The horizontal is just all around meatier. The combo on top of THAT will get you where you want to be. Definitely try it out if you can to see what I'm talking about. I've had both and now swear by the 2x12 horizontal over the vertical.

If you stick with the vert, put the combo on the floor without wheels running it with the 2x12 and see what that does for you.

 

[rabies]

but the frustration lies in spending more time tweaking it than playing it.

this is the main reason I sold my Mark IV. Too many knobs can be a bad thing (and a good thing) simultaneously.

I like my Marshalls (or Riveras) and beer. I ain't a tweeker...

 

[Scary]

I have owned my Mark V and 2x12 Recto Vert for about 2 1/2 months. I absolutely love it but with the same breath i get frustrated with it. Its almost like a marriage lol.
I love it in the fact that I can get tons of different sounds from it and it fits me, but the frustration lies in spending more time tweaking it than playing it.

One day I will think I have the perfect sound, then I get to practice and with it going against the other two guitar players in the band with a Dual Recto and an Orange Rockoverb. And then I think it sounds like crap. :?

That's why I always dial in something quick and work with it. It doesn't have to be the 'perfect' tone as long as it's close. It's too easy to get hung up tweaking a Mark series amp. Buzzkill for many it seems.

 

[kingdomheights777]

[/quote]If you stick with the vert, put the combo on the floor without wheels running it with the 2x12 and see what that does for you.[/quote]

Interesting, i will give that a try

 

[th0rr]

I have had this with every tube amp I have owned. Some nights it sounds great. Next night same settings, same guitar, same space, bleh. I don't know if it has to do with mood, ears or something I ate. For me it hasn't just been with the Mark V.

 

[Mark Fore]

George Lynch referred to that years ago as "Tube Gremlins" that would sneak into your gear and wreak havoc on your tone so it would never sound the same way twice. It's a strange phenomenon.

 

[kingdomheights777]

George Lynch referred to that years ago as "Tube Gremlins" that would sneak into your gear and wreak havoc on your tone so it would never sound the same way twice. It's a strange phenomenon.

Well I swear that they do exist lol

 

[ryjan]

I'm just about to sell my Mark IV for this reason. It seems you dial in the perfect tone and if you bump the speaker cable everything changes. Minor volume adjustments completely alter your tone. I have mine in my basement studio where no one touches it and I swear its a different amp everytime I turn it on.

 

[CudBucket]

I have had this with every tube amp I have owned. Some nights it sounds great. Next night same settings, same guitar, same space, bleh. I don't know if it has to do with mood, ears or something I ate. For me it hasn't just been with the Mark V.

Amen. No matter what amp I've owned I've gone from love to hate on an almost daily basis. Practice is the only real cure for tone problems.

 

[kingdomheights777]

[/quote]
Amen. No matter what amp I've owned I've gone from love to hate on an almost daily basis. Practice is the only real cure for tone problems.[/quote]


practice with a band or alone practice time lol

 

[danvortex]

weather, humidity, mood, etc...

 

[Anonymous]

weather, humidity, mood, etc...

another important factor is the amount of alcohol in your system

 

[Old BF Shred]

I must say my Studio 22+ and Triaxis do seem somewhat sensitive to small changes in the tone controls.
Once I had the Triaxis set up in the rack case, with my FX processor, I did not touch the controls much and it seemed to be stable.

I do think that our ears can perceive sound a bit differently from day to day and that accounts for a lot of it. :shock:

I will say, however that I seem to get the most consistent tone from my Stiletto compared to my other Mesas...it sounds "killer" to me every time I turn it on. Perhaps it's from less touchy tone controls although they still provide a very wide range of change (typical with Boogies).

Maybe I just finally "found my tone" and some variation in the amp's settings does not affect me as much.

another important factor is the amount of alcohol in your system

Yea, I think a few cold ones can make us sound a little better.....a theory we likely have all tested from time to time, Im sure! :lol: :lol: :lol:

Take care!