I did push up on them as much as poss. without cracking the board plate. but guess what? they only go so far no matter how much you push up on them?!? Consider that I tried to push these tubes in as far as possible to ensure a proper fit. But as I said, I noticed that the plate where the sockets are seated was being pushed upward as I was pushing on the tubes, so obviously I stopped, but my question is the following: did I damage something since the base plate of the sockets was pushed upward and why don’t these tubes sit flush with the socket?? what gives man? This amp is giving me a hell of a lot of frustration and I have never had problems even with the cheapiest amps out there . thanks for all your tips and suggestions, all highly appreciated Dissapointed and MAD with this AMP........:evil: :evil: l
Mark V amp hum, hiss and crackling noise in 3rd channel?!?
- Thread starter ricorocks
- Start date
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mesaboogie6L6
Well-known member
You didn't do any damage, not sure why cheap Mesa branded tubes don't fit flush with the sockets, like I said in my previous posts, MESA DOESN'T MAKE AMPS LIKE THEY USED TO AND WILL NOT IN THE FUTURE! One reason why I won't buy a Mesa amp after 96'.
Sometimes my tubes don't seat right either, my amps are also 22 and 17 yeard old, not brand new, but I push them right up with no problem. I've also retensioned my sockets too.
Don't worry about it, shouldn't be a big deal, I understand your frustration though.............
Sometimes my tubes don't seat right either, my amps are also 22 and 17 yeard old, not brand new, but I push them right up with no problem. I've also retensioned my sockets too.
Don't worry about it, shouldn't be a big deal, I understand your frustration though.............
Erm... The "crackling sounds" will stop. If they're from pre-amp tubes, you'll get rid of it with a tube swap, or if it's from not allowing the amp to warm up long enough (this is when I experience crackling), then you'll get rid of it by allowing it to warm up longer before playing.
Knowing that and the fact that many of us don't care for the stock tubes which are easily replaced for relatively little money, is the power cord and power tube sockets (which are fine on my particular amp) really enough to cause you to rage-sell your new amp? I hope you'll give it a bit more time and do a tube-swap before you get rid of it, but move on to a considerably more expensive, if less featured, SLO or similar if you've not the patience for something that isn't 100% to your liking straight out of the box.
Knowing that and the fact that many of us don't care for the stock tubes which are easily replaced for relatively little money, is the power cord and power tube sockets (which are fine on my particular amp) really enough to cause you to rage-sell your new amp? I hope you'll give it a bit more time and do a tube-swap before you get rid of it, but move on to a considerably more expensive, if less featured, SLO or similar if you've not the patience for something that isn't 100% to your liking straight out of the box.
fuzzgod
Well-known member
Greetings all,
Just as a flipside to some of the discussion on this post, I've (knock on wood) had my MkV for 4yrs now and have had excellent performance from the ole girl. Only replaced tubes once, and replaced them with Mesa's 6L6s...can't complain about the quality of tone at all. I've seen/heard many players much better than myself make these things sounds amazing, which is why I'm a believer in crafting good hands, not just buying good gear...though that certainly helps!
Everyone's product has some rough patches and units that go bad, but in all honesty, I'd be hard pressed to find a company the size of Mesa Boogie that has better overall quality and support for their product. But enough of that...
Sorry to hear about the troubles and hope you're all back to playing soon.
Catch you down the road!
Cheers!
Just as a flipside to some of the discussion on this post, I've (knock on wood) had my MkV for 4yrs now and have had excellent performance from the ole girl. Only replaced tubes once, and replaced them with Mesa's 6L6s...can't complain about the quality of tone at all. I've seen/heard many players much better than myself make these things sounds amazing, which is why I'm a believer in crafting good hands, not just buying good gear...though that certainly helps!
Everyone's product has some rough patches and units that go bad, but in all honesty, I'd be hard pressed to find a company the size of Mesa Boogie that has better overall quality and support for their product. But enough of that...
Sorry to hear about the troubles and hope you're all back to playing soon.
Catch you down the road!
Cheers!
I agree that Mesa is quite exceptional in terms of service and quality given their substantial size. Mesa could ship their amps with all NOS tubes like some boutique amp builders do, but the price of all of their amps would reflect that disproportionately: not only would it cost them more because NOS tubes are more expensive, but Mesa would not get a price break based on quantity like they receive from Ruby. They could use components of the same tight tolerances and durability that Soldano use, as well. However, I'm not sure so many people would care to own Dual Rectifiers or Mark Vs if they were $4000+. Beyond prohibitive costs, I can't imagine the chassis size that would be required to fit all of the Mark V's circuitry if it was built with Soldano-grade components, not to mention the weight of the thing...
While I don't care for the Mesa preamp tubes, I think credit must be given to Mesa in other areas, like how they've continued to build cabs with their custom-voiced V30s when I have little doubt they would save money just ordering bulk common Chinese V30s like a lot of manufacturers do. If they switched, most guitarists wouldn't notice and some wouldn't care. Many who may notice a difference between how their Rectifier cab sounds versus an older Rectifier cab they've previously play will attribute the difference to their speakers not being broken in yet, and by the time they are broken in, the player's ears will probably have adjusted to their own cab assuming the speakers' performance was nearly satisfactory prior to break-in.
My point is there are a lot of ways to cut costs, and many corporations would exploit all of them. Mesa may go to **** one day like so many other formerly great manufacturers of music-related pro-level gear, but it's hardly time for a postmortem yet.
...Anyway, sorry for the tangent (which wasn't directed at your post at all), fuzzgod. I initially tuned back in just to state that the current Mesa-labeled power tubes are rarely a problem for most people: it's the 12AX7s that are problematic in terms of sound and reliability. Power tubes will generally sound similar in an amp till you really drive it hard. Other than switching to 6L6s or EL34s from the opposite, the difference from a full pre-amp tube swap is pretty much guaranteed to be more significant in how much the tone is changed compared to a power tube swap. For anyone interested, a full set of non-NOS tubes from Doug's or The Tube Store can be acquired for $100-120. For me it was a cheap upgrade relative to the price of the amp that did more good for its tone than anything else I possibly could have done.
By the way, mesaboogie6L6, in other "companies going downhill" news, =C=s are now being produced with cheaper components to save on costs and the quality has dropped to the point where Doug says he won't be restocking them. You may know this already, but you didn't say anything about only liking NOS =C=s so I thought I'd warn you just in case (as mesa metal warned me). Even before that, Doug regularly recommended Ruby 6L6GC-MSTR for Mesa amps which are the same tubes as Mesa GC STR-440s. They may not be NOS quality, but while I wouldn't object to any criticism of Mesa pre-amp tubes, I wouldn't include the STR-440s under the same umbrella of condemnation.
While I don't care for the Mesa preamp tubes, I think credit must be given to Mesa in other areas, like how they've continued to build cabs with their custom-voiced V30s when I have little doubt they would save money just ordering bulk common Chinese V30s like a lot of manufacturers do. If they switched, most guitarists wouldn't notice and some wouldn't care. Many who may notice a difference between how their Rectifier cab sounds versus an older Rectifier cab they've previously play will attribute the difference to their speakers not being broken in yet, and by the time they are broken in, the player's ears will probably have adjusted to their own cab assuming the speakers' performance was nearly satisfactory prior to break-in.
My point is there are a lot of ways to cut costs, and many corporations would exploit all of them. Mesa may go to **** one day like so many other formerly great manufacturers of music-related pro-level gear, but it's hardly time for a postmortem yet.
...Anyway, sorry for the tangent (which wasn't directed at your post at all), fuzzgod. I initially tuned back in just to state that the current Mesa-labeled power tubes are rarely a problem for most people: it's the 12AX7s that are problematic in terms of sound and reliability. Power tubes will generally sound similar in an amp till you really drive it hard. Other than switching to 6L6s or EL34s from the opposite, the difference from a full pre-amp tube swap is pretty much guaranteed to be more significant in how much the tone is changed compared to a power tube swap. For anyone interested, a full set of non-NOS tubes from Doug's or The Tube Store can be acquired for $100-120. For me it was a cheap upgrade relative to the price of the amp that did more good for its tone than anything else I possibly could have done.
By the way, mesaboogie6L6, in other "companies going downhill" news, =C=s are now being produced with cheaper components to save on costs and the quality has dropped to the point where Doug says he won't be restocking them. You may know this already, but you didn't say anything about only liking NOS =C=s so I thought I'd warn you just in case (as mesa metal warned me). Even before that, Doug regularly recommended Ruby 6L6GC-MSTR for Mesa amps which are the same tubes as Mesa GC STR-440s. They may not be NOS quality, but while I wouldn't object to any criticism of Mesa pre-amp tubes, I wouldn't include the STR-440s under the same umbrella of condemnation.
Well like i said guys, thanks for all your help, support and insight. i will try swapping all the pre amp tubes and see what happens, but this along with the pow tubes that do NOT sit flush with the socket , the POP everytime i tap dance on the F Switch, the detachable power cord, the crackling hum hiss etc. are really gettin' to me. i hope i can resolve ASAP cause' i can't take it no more... i wanna give mesa another chance before going another Route . Thanks all and Rock On... :|
The power tubes seem to have been a big factor in the issues I have been having.
Was playing around with it two nights ago....and I got a wicked rattle....put on gloves and isolated it to the 2 inner power tubes which are basically new........swapped those out for an old used set I had....fired it up and sounded great then died.....blew the fuse. Then I replaced those old tubes with another used set I had....turned it on....one of them REDPLATED!!! Shut it off talked to MEsa.....swapped my new tubes position....inner to outter....seems to be A-OK now....noise is almost gone too.....so it seems power tubes were/are the issue.
I love my Mark V though....**** nice amp....just keep trying tubes.
Was playing around with it two nights ago....and I got a wicked rattle....put on gloves and isolated it to the 2 inner power tubes which are basically new........swapped those out for an old used set I had....fired it up and sounded great then died.....blew the fuse. Then I replaced those old tubes with another used set I had....turned it on....one of them REDPLATED!!! Shut it off talked to MEsa.....swapped my new tubes position....inner to outter....seems to be A-OK now....noise is almost gone too.....so it seems power tubes were/are the issue.
I love my Mark V though....**** nice amp....just keep trying tubes.
Well guys I just sent it back to Mesa for warranty work. I don't want to screw with my new amp if it's under warranty (have Mesa take care of it). Will keep you all updated as soon as i get it back and let you know what the friggin' problem was, HOPEFULLY!!! Later :| :|
mesaboogie6L6
Well-known member
Good decision, let them figure it out, you are the customer!
Hope it works out for you, yes please update us on the problem.
Thanks
Hope it works out for you, yes please update us on the problem.
Thanks
mesaboogie6L6
Well-known member
67mike, hope they figure out your MarkV issues as well.
ricorocks.........You rock on too, man!
ricorocks.........You rock on too, man!
Thanks guys for your support, hey 67mike so you're also having problems with the "V" eh? strange man (Makes me wonder). i bet we got a bunch of lemons, hope they figure out the problem and RESOLVE this friggin' problem that is affecting a lot of people from what i'm hearing on the forum. **** it's sure gonna be hard without a "V"... best cleans, articulation and definition clarity that i ever heard on an amp. if it wasn't for this i would already have gotten rid of the amp. but despite all i love it's TONE (When it works) . Rock on mesaboogie6L6 at least you can . Tear Later guys.. :| :|
farren said:
You can breathe...I bought a Rivera Chubster 55 today....WICKED amp!
SO the Mark V got a new roommate....will be interesting when I get the Mk V back from Mesa and can A/B them....I tell you the Rivera cuts like a knife and it melts faces.
