Mark III Blue Stripe

[groovetuber]

Hello. I am in the market for another Mesa and I am definately going for another Mark series amp. I thought I should at least ask about the Mark III. First off, how do you determine a Mark III to be a certain "stripe?"How does it compare to the Mark IV B version, especially in terms of its clean channel. I am really only going to be using the clean channel on whichever Mark amp I get because I use pedals for overdrive/distortion. I really loved the Mark IV I had and my pedals worked amazing with it. I didn't even use the effects loop and they sounded fantastic. Would a Mark III blue stripe sound just as good in terms of the clean channel and handling effects? Just ot give an idea of what kind of clean sound I like, on the Mark IV I had my settings as follows: Gain about 6, Treble 4, Mids 5.5, Bass just under 3, Presence around 2. Thanks for any and all help.

 

[reo73]

Buying a Mark III for just the clean channel is like buying a Corvette to only drive to the neighborhood grocery store. I doesn't do the amp justice and there are better amps out there for that use. The Mark III clean is fatter than the Mark IV but it will take pedals well. But If you just want a great clean and are going to use pedals for all the OD and dist why not get a nice fender amp? A Mark III wants to be used on the lead channel, that is what the amp excels at.

 

[lookslikemeband]

I'm in the market for a MarkIII, and I'm only planning on using it in conjunction with a Dual for my dirty.

mmmmm..... dirty.

 

[lookslikemeband]

I use a Fender Twin for a lot of my cleans.

But I'll tell ya... when I had a MarkIV, I was REALLY impressed by it's clean channel.

 

[groovetuber]

I actually tried getting an amp that was just clean. I bought a vintage '69 fender twin reverb and I just didn't like it. I liked the Mark IV cleans a lot better. I don't really care that I won't be using the other channels. The cleans are amazing on the Mark IV and I'm sure are amazing on other Mark series amps. So I have found Mesa cleans to be the best for my taste. Any other help is appreciated.

 

[Bullen]

This is a red stripe. See the colour over the power cord.

 

[groovetuber]

Gotcha, I understand the stripe thing now, thanks! I have another question, how does a Blue Stripe compared to an early 80s no stripe, specifically on the cleans, because again, that's most likely all I will be using.

 

[Schmoog]

the stripes are attempts to get that IIc+ sound, theoretically, the blue stripe is the closest in sound and response to the IIC+, where the green stripe is closest in sound to a mark IV. my blue stripe's clean channel is incredible. very bouncy, and not at all compressed. and it gets clean and STAYS clean at high volumes, which I love. Blue stripe is a good bet. I wanted to get a green, but the only one I found was a blue. I traded my stiletto for the blue without ever hearing it. they guy I traded with played the stiletto for like 30 minutes, I jsut kinda sat there, traded without ever hearing it, and the amp brings the biggest **** eating grin to my face everytime I plug in.

 

[groovetuber]

^ Nice man, I'm glad to hear it! When I originally bought the Mark IV I used to have, I totally bought it in the dark. Never played one before and the results were so amazing. Hopefully I'll get the same kind of results with a Blue Stripe if I decide to go for it. Now, another question. What kind of tonal qualities would an open back Mark III, or an open back cab give? If I get a combo, I plan on buying a 1x12 extension cab, and I could choose to buy a closed back. What would that combination be like, open back with a closed back?

 

[dmt]

I would recomend a Simul-Satellite for your cleans. I own one and it is a killer clean amp. It is one channel (clean) all tube, 85 watts. Simul-Class w/5 band eq and the 200w Black Shadow EV12L. It will also slave your Rect and give you stereo for your high gain. You can even slave the EQ from the Rect if you like.

 

[groovetuber]

Does the simul-satellite have reverb?

 

[groovetuber]

I don't really know anything about the Simul Satellite and they seem pretty hard to track down. Basically all I am looking for is something very similar to the Mark IV B cleans at a decent price.

 

[groovetuber]

I've been lookin at this: http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Boogie-Mark-III-Tube-Amp-Guitar-Combo-Studio_W0QQitemZ190086285653QQihZ009QQcategoryZ43374QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

What does the DR signature stand for? I thought it was supposed to MBs initials. And what do those dots mean?

 

[Schmoog]

DR is fine. those "dots" are actually holes, mine has em too I think. not sure what they're for. its not bad, a little pricey for the condition its in. and be careful, I dont think that is the original speaker. mine has an EV OEM EVM12L, NOT the black shadow EV

 

[geoangus]

and be careful, I dont think that is the original speaker. mine has an EV OEM EVM12L, NOT the black shadow EV

You might be right about the one in the auction, especially since it is rotated in its installation, but I believe the speaker on my late 80's blue stripe is the original, and it is an EV Black Shadow EVM 12 "made for Mesa Boogie by EV". I also have a 1984 M/B catalog, and it says the EVM Black Shadows "are highly recommended as an option to high power 1x12 Boogies and are also available for replacement use in 200 watt 10", 12" and 15" models".

 

[Schmoog]

and be careful, I dont think that is the original speaker. mine has an EV OEM EVM12L, NOT the black shadow EV

You might be right about the one in the auction, especially since it is rotated in its installation, but I believe the speaker on my late 80's blue stripe is the original, and it is an EV Black Shadow EVM 12 "made for Mesa Boogie by EV". I also have a 1984 M/B catalog, and it says the EVM Black Shadows "are highly recommended as an option to high power 1x12 Boogies and are also available for replacement use in 200 watt 10", 12" and 15" models".

I wonder if regular EV EVM12L's were available as an option in 88. Mine has a regular EV, not the black shadow ev made for mesa type. I assumed it was original because it was stamped "OEM model" but maybe not?

 

[Schmoog]

also of note is that this particular mark III is missing 3 screws in the half back cover thing. and that the 3 that are present are non original. I would also ask for a picture of the top of the amp to check the SUS4 screws. My Mark III had two of the sus4 screws broken off and one was bent and broke when I tried to take it out. I had to buy a bolt extractor and buy new screws to fix it. was a pain in the ***. also, check the fuse, someone at some point put an 8 amp fuse in mine, and that puts the amp at risk (and usually indicates some kind of power tube shorting trouble). I changed the fuse and had rich koerner at time electronics give it a once over and make sure everything was working properly.

 

[groovetuber]

Thanks for all the information Schmoog. I'm most likely not gonna go for that one anyway, considering the condition. And you're right, that is a little pricey.

 

[Schmoog]

hold out for the right one. the one I got has got a lot of nicks and such in the tolex. and had the aforementioned SUS4 and fuse problems, but it sounds INCREDIBLE. and I can get past the exterior, as long as it sounds good.

 

[dmt]

The simul-satellites are hard to find, but are basically a mark III. I just had mine retubed with KT66's tubes and the tech told me that it had a Mark III PCB and its just missing the guts to make it MKIII. But as these amps are hard to find, I'd rather keep it more or less stock. No reverb, but everything else.