Mark IV HATE!

[ajtooke]

This may sound weird or goofy to some,but...

Last week my MKIV started to sound real tinny, trebbly and such. I changed the strings on my SG Standard and was back to MKIV bliss. This is the third or fourth time I have noticed it.

When your MKIV starts to sound bad,change the strings first.

Mick

Strings have changed many a time since I got the amp.

Anyway I turned the amp on today and the distortion was weak, loud popping noises came out whenever i changed channels, and the clean channel wouldnt get clean. Same thing happened a month or two ago and I made a thread about it. I had to turn it off and back on twice for it to go back to normal, and when it finally worked right again - it sounded great, no sizzle at all - for about 20 minutes, when it started to come back. I've noticed since I made this thread that the underlying tone is fantastic, it's just hard to isolate it with my ears because there's always a nasty spiky high end layered on top.

Now that I'll be making more money at my job, I think this will go to Petaluma, CA (I thinK?) for a check over / fix / caps changed / channel switch change / lots of other stuff. Why would my clean channel be dirty in the first place, then when it's fixed all of a sudden sound great, warm up, and then sound like **** again?

 

[King Tone]

take it for what it is worth, my opinions - have the amp checked out and also try changing the...
1. super distortion pickup - spikey high mids, ugh
2. emgs - plain yuck
3. jj tubes - weird unbalanced sound
4. NEVER EVER plug into a crate cab
5. try something different for the speaker like v30s, NOT custom 90. The best sounding mesa cab is the 2x12 recto with v30s, ask a rep and see what they say.

Make sure to try some new good quality cables, something like mogami, and yes it makes a big difference.

I would change the guitar myself but some can be happy with those kind of instruments. No matter what pickup a guitar has, with a thin neck, the guitar makes a thin sound. A prs is a great guitar, I have a mccarty myself, but the pickups in a custom are pretty spikey sounding too if it is the hfs, etc.

I am not trying to offend, just trying to help. Good luck!

 

[Jak0lantern01]

Get rid of the JJ pre-amps, I think you'll be happy. Probably the source of your icepicks.

 

[MikeK]

Have you got any sound clips?

 

[ajtooke]

Have you got any sound clips?

No, sorry - I could try some direct out stuff to see if it picks up any of my fizz, but last time I tried that all the high end was lost and it just sounded muffled

 

[Grandor]

Some amps just don't work for some people I must say.

I had a mkIV for aaaages and I never got a tone that I really LOVED out of it. After having found a GREAT tone in my DR, I sold my mkIV. Then not long after that I sold my DR cause I got over it and now my main amp is an AC15.

Go figure. We guitarists are a finicky bunch, even the ones that don't admit it.

Refer to my sig

 

[MikeK]

Some amps just don't work for some people I must say.

That is the truth.

Oh well, I just thought if there were sound files someone might hear something.

... sometimes when I'm looking for a high gain sound on the DR I use a pedal or two to knock some of the crown off the top end ... too smooth out the tone and let the bottom and mids shine through a bit ... take some bite out and add a little crunch ... it's not just that is it?

 

[ajtooke]

Figures that it wasn't the amp all along, just one of the JJ preamp tubes. It sounds like crap with that tube in V4 or V3 where it was, but move it to V5 (reverb?) and fill the rest in it sounds great. MOST of the sharp / spikyness is gone, I think one of the other tubes might have a slight nasty quality to it as well. But still much, much better which leads me to believe it IS the tubes. Stupid JJ

Either way, I'm happy with it now. I recently bought a widebody combo to switch out with the head and cab for easier transportation, especially in Boston without a car. The combo has a good bit less bass response than my 3/4 back cab but I'm still very happy with it.

 

[Shep]

What the f%&#. Sorry, but treble on 10 with gain and drive on 8? Who the hell made that sh!t?

Dude, if your low E power chord sounds like an ice pick f%&# you in the ear then your amp is f%&#. Get those caps done, check out a MKIV in the shop and get back to us. I think we've given you all the help we can for now.

I have been gigging for 5 years and I haven't gotten any problem with my amp using the same setting. Just got my amp serviced last week (I live in Petaluma) and it's as strong as a 16 year old per Mesa. Note that mine is an old IVA800+ serial number.

You might want to listen to this clip done by Overdriven. Sounds awesome to me. He used those settings.

http://www.netmusicians.org/files/4-OverDriven-Panama.mp3

I play Heavy and Classic Rock so those settings works for me.

Sounds to me like there isn't enough bass on the Eq.. i reckon get it looked at.. scoop lot's of mid's and alittle treble and it should be fixed but theres something wrong there..

WWW.soundclick.com/shep730

There's some of my mk IV clip's..

Tom

 

[bryan_kilco]

What the f%&#. Sorry, but treble on 10 with gain and drive on 8? Who the hell made that sh!t?

Dude, if your low E power chord sounds like an ice pick f%&# you in the ear then your amp is f%&#. Get those caps done, check out a MKIV in the shop and get back to us. I think we've given you all the help we can for now.

I have been gigging for 5 years and I haven't gotten any problem with my amp using the same setting. Just got my amp serviced last week (I live in Petaluma) and it's as strong as a 16 year old per Mesa. Note that mine is an old IVA800+ serial number.

You might want to listen to this clip done by Overdriven. Sounds awesome to me. He used those settings.

http://www.netmusicians.org/files/4-OverDriven-Panama.mp3

I play Heavy and Classic Rock so those settings works for me.

Sounds to me like there isn't enough bass on the Eq.. i reckon get it looked at.. scoop lot's of mid's and alittle treble and it should be fixed but theres something wrong there..

WWW.soundclick.com/shep730

There's some of my mk IV clip's..

Tom

very awesome tones. 8)

makes me want to record really badly with my MKIV.

as much as I hate to say it, lately I've been a little unsatisfied with my MKIV tones. I've started using a 5150, even....seems a bit tighter for what im going for. I guess im confused.....

 

[Nomad]

Tone is Subjective.

There are a gazillion directions you can take the tone of any Boogie to.

From Tubes to Cap Values, from Guitars to Pickups, from Cabs to Speakers and to infinity and beyond!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bryan_kilco]

the only cab I have is a Peavey 5150 cab with Sheffields.

I have only owned 2 cabs in my time, and bother were Peaveys with Sheffields. I like their sound, but maybe I need a Recto cab to get the real true colors from my MKIV?

 

[srf399]

The subjective thing is very true. I tried a bunch of different things to try and get my MKIV to sound good. Tried everything and then in frustration tried one more thing... turfed it for a Deuce II and my problems were solved. Now for someone else's style of playing and guitar the opposite might be the ticket. But if you're pulling your hair out in frustration it's not the next solution that you should be looking for. There are tons of different amps out there... You just need to move on and find the amp that suits you. Stop trying to convince yourself that the MKIV is great and it's all your fault cause it's not true. I found the exact same thing as you explained with the one I had. It sounded worse as I turned it up and was harsh sounding. Go try an Orange, Rivera, other Boogies, Marshall, Bogner, Fender, Peavey... whatever until you find your sound... without having to spend $$$ on tubes, beam blockers, different speakers, pedals. It should just fit pluged straight into the amp... go find one that does that for you THEN refine it from there.

 

[trem]

I can get a tone very similar to Shep's with just the short combo. It's sorta like a signature. If you can't get that kind of smooth lead sound from yours then IMO either something is wrong or it's just not for you.

~trem