Mark III no stripe..no EQ...what can I expect?

[jjblacksheep]

I've come across a good deal (to me) on a Mark III no/black stripe head...it has no EQ, no Reverb....for $500. Since I am a Mesa virgin, I'm not sure what to expect. I know there are varying opinions on each Mark III.....I am a little uncomfortable hearing people say things like "if it doesn't have the EQ, skip it". Is it really that serious? I figure a good EQ in the loop would get me pretty close. I'm sure I'll buy it but I'm a little let down with some of the stuff I've read on here and other sites. I would think that thing would still kick some serious ***. Just fishing for opinions on here, especially if someone has experience with the above amp. I'd appreciate any feedback.

 

[Restless Rocks]

I played full time with a MkIII no/EQ for 15 years and never missed it. I only use it on my Mk IV as a slight tweak for Rythym 2. Okay it is essential if you're looking for the cookiemonster scooped mid metal grind thing (the MXR 10 band in the loop will get you there).

 

[kmanick]

An MXR 10 band EQ in the loop can get you most of what the onbaord GEQ can do.
if it's in good shape $500.00 is a good deal, If you like the Mark III sound , I'd go for it.
My III has the onboard GEQ and I still use a 10 band in the loop (for multiple tone settings lead/rhythm etc)

 

[jjblacksheep]

That's what I was thinking, a MXR 10-band which I tend to use on practically everything anyway would get me close enough. I'm checking it out tomorrow but I think it's in fine shape. If I like it as much as I hope I will, I'll be parting ways with my old fuzzy Carvin X100b.

 

[fretout]

Sounds like a good deal to me, but I would prefer to have the GEQ on my amp (I guess it's just my OCD acting up). Like the other post above me, I would recommend the MXR EQ in the loop. This won't be the same as the Mesa/Boogie EQ (because the frequencies are different), but it will be close enough, and for $500, that's a GREAT deal.

When you pick it up, POST SOME PICS!!!

 

[bartchamdoh]

I have two purple stripe mark 3,s without graphic eq and a green stripe with and the two purple stripes can cover most of the same ground for me, having said that i can only balance two channels at a time on the non eq versions( but i don,t know if this is a stripe issue or not)and i,m more of a hard rock as oppossed to metal kinda guy!( so i don,t use those scooped metal settings)

 

[jjblacksheep]

Thanks for the replies. It kind of came down to this for me.............I stumbled across this amp here locally, was going to sell some gear anyway, and for the price/condition of the amp, I'll be extremely happy to have a Mesa head sitting on my cabinet. I feel as though if I pass on this deal purely on the EQ issue I'll be kicking myself for years. Hopefully a week from now I'll be on here with fresh pics of her!

 

[jjblacksheep]

Well I did it. 60W head.......................but the seller was wrong, it's actually a purple stripe, not a black stripe. I only had about 15 minutes on it so far but it seems beastly. Me like.

 

[primal]

500 bucks, that is a great price.

I think a good EQ in the loop (if it even needs it) and you'll be fine.

I used to use the eq on my Mark IV all the time, now I rarely do.

You got a great deal!

Enjoy!

 

[bartchamdoh]

Yup the purple is easy to confuse with the black stripe as the purple used is very dark. Also the blue and green are often confused as the green is kinda torquoisey( however once you,ve seen a blue there,s no confusion as they used a dark blue stripe!) I have 2 purple stripe non eq/reverb sixty watters , one is a short head is in sexy black tolex with wicker grill, whilst the other is a rack mount paired with a tc electronics g major in the loop...what else! With the short head i just put an rv-5 in the loop for reverb, that and a foot switch and i,m ready for action!( i get my verb from the g major with the rack version)...awesome sounding amps!!!

 

[kmanick]

Congrats that's a sweet Deal.
the 10 band in the loop should work just fine
Enjoy!!!!

 

[fretout]

Well I did it. 60W head.......................but the seller was wrong, it's actually a purple stripe, not a black stripe. I only had about 15 minutes on it so far but it seems beastly. Me like.

Congrats man! A stripped down purple stripe should sound pretty good! I don't see too many purple stripes up for sale...