Mark V by end of this year

[Dr.StrangeNote]

According to a privately owned well respected music store, guitar/amp sales person in Central Jersey, Mark V will be available by end or this year, orders will be placed. All Mark IV's in their store are all gone, I got on a list to be contacted if any IV's, Studio's, or Quads show up. No new orders for the IV or even the V yet....

 

[simonich]

According to a privately owned well respected music store, guitar/amp sales person in Central Jersey, Mark V will be available by end or this year, orders will be placed. All Mark IV's in their store are all gone, I got on a list to be contacted if any IV's, Studio's, or Quads show up. No new orders for the IV or even the V yet....

Great. What store?

 

[Octavarius]

Great news!!

Seems like me and Barry were right after all. It's their 40th Anniversary!!

 

[jdurso]

According to a privately owned well respected music store, guitar/amp sales person in Central Jersey, Mark V will be available by end or this year, orders will be placed. All Mark IV's in their store are all gone, I got on a list to be contacted if any IV's, Studio's, or Quads show up. No new orders for the IV or even the V yet....

hmm respected music store in central NJ?? Russo's (i consider that south though)? Musicians Workshop?? Hmmmm.... :?

 

[danyeo1]

Is Russo a "respected" store? Maybe the store itself is but the salesmen there are a bunch of A-holes.

 

[jdurso]

Is Russo a "respected" store? Maybe the store itself is but the salesmen there are a bunch of A-holes.

uh compared to some of the other stores around the central jersey area i'd say they're respected because most guys there know what they're talking about (most not all). but i agree most of them are pompeous dicks UNLESS you get to know them and give them business. Theyre not like a GC where you can go in there bash on their equipment once a week and still be welcomed to come back in anytime you like. what i will say is there one of few places in central jersey that carries good stuff.

musicians workshop is the only other store that comes to mind as being respected. the best guitar selection outside NYC. and they know their stuff and are awesome to deal with. Great selection in amps and pedals as well. beats GC when you want quality. The only other central jersey stoes that could come to mind might be toms river music if you consider that central jersey (its south jersey to me) or maybe guitar and bass center but they're not a mesa dealer.

 

[Barry]

Great news!!

Seems like me and Barry were right after all. It's their 40th Anniversary!!

Thats correct . Keep your eye on the Mark . Its the one amp thats been around sice the inception of the company . Its still evolving .

 

[igfraso]

Great news!!

Seems like me and Barry were right after all. It's their 40th Anniversary!!

Thats correct . Keep your eye on the Mark . Its the one amp thats been around sice the inception of the company . Its still evolving .

I agree with you all.

In my opinion, Randall Smith is overhauling the whole Mark Design category. The Mark 5 should be in the same pack with the Lone Star and the Express amps as the second generation of Mark designs.

As we know, the first Princeton Boogie was born in 1969 and evolved into the Mark I in 1972. Later in 1980, after some changes in the tone chain design, the Mark II-A was introduced and started a separate branch that evolved in parallel with the Mark I branch. The Mark II-A was, over the years, evolving into the rest of the Mark II/III/IV branch that we all know. This is why the Mark I (vintage or reissue) coexisted with the Mark II/III/IV line within the Mark series.

I cannot understand whether the Nomad (1998) was an attempt to replace the Mark IV or not. But in my opinion, after that, Randall Smith put full speed forward and came up with:
- the Lone Star (2004), a Super Mark I, that was introduced on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Princeton Boogie and led to the phase out of the Mark I.
- (hopefully) the Mark 5 that is expected to be announced in 2009, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Princeton Boogie (as per the quote here above) and the 20th anniversary of the Mark IV (with the Mark IV recently discontinued).

Except for the Nomad, that I don't know where to properly classify it, this is my take on the evolution of the Mark design:
- Princeton Boogie/130 Lead/Mark I original/SOB/Heartbreaker/Mark I reissue (evolved into Lone Star??)
- Mark II/III/IV (evolving into Mark 5??)
- Studio .22/DC/Nomad/F (evolved into Express??)

Regards
Daniel

 

[jdurso]

interesting theory daniel

all im hoping for is a tone derived fromthe mark iv BUT with the option to throw in some recto sag and be able to assign the tubes to the different channels (diodes or rectos). also an improved clean ala the express line. at that point you get the articulation and smooth gain of the mark iv, the girth of a recto and the cleans of the express all in one package. and if they stick to the 3 channel designs and possibley have soemthing like 2 voicings per channel like the express you'd be able to do just about anything you want.

picture it channel 1 express clean and blues, channel 2 mark III rhythm/mark IIC+ lead, channel 3 recto vintage/mark iv lead.... 8)

i think that would make a lot of people on the recto/mark fence very happy (especially ones who can only own one or the other)

 

[siggy14]

Never see that happening, t hink about it, why would he make an amp that does both his flagship amp tones.

As much as he loves amps, he is a business man, if he puts the recto and the mark tones in one box then he would be losing business.

interesting theory daniel

all im hoping for is a tone derived fromthe mark iv BUT with the option to throw in some recto sag and be able to assign the tubes to the different channels (diodes or rectos). also an improved clean ala the express line. at that point you get the articulation and smooth gain of the mark iv, the girth of a recto and the cleans of the express all in one package. and if they stick to the 3 channel designs and possibley have soemthing like 2 voicings per channel like the express you'd be able to do just about anything you want.

picture it channel 1 express clean and blues, channel 2 mark III rhythm/mark IIC+ lead, channel 3 recto vintage/mark iv lead.... 8)

i think that would make a lot of people on the recto/mark fence very happy (especially ones who can only own one or the other)

 

[igfraso]

Jdurso:
that would be nice.
While I don't know if that will be the best for Mesa in terms of business strategy (they will prefer you to own/buy more than just 1 amp), it will certainly be a dream come true to be in both sides of the Mark/Recto fence.

Yet, I am still confident that Randall Smith will surprise us. If you check Mesa's history, you can see they didn't follow a "discrete evolution model" but rather a "continuous gene flow model" between the Mark and the Recto designs.

Take this, for instance:
a) Mark Design (the "Mesa/Boogie" part of the legend)
- Princeton Boogie/130 Lead/Mark I original/SOB/Heartbreaker/Mark I reissue (evolved into Lone Star??)
- Mark II/III/IV (evolving into Mark 5??)
- Studio.22/Studio.22+/DC/Nomad/F (evolved into Express??)

b) Rectifier Design (the "Mesa Engineering" part of the legend)
- Single/Dual/Triple Recto/Rectoverb
- Maverick/Blue Angel
- Road King/Roadster
- Ace/Deuce/Trident Stiletto

I would say that the F-50 (as an example) borrowed something from the Recto side of the fence and the Maverick and the Blue Angel did just the opposite.
So let's cross our fingers and keep our hopes high.
Regards
Daniel

 

[danyeo1]

Is Russo a "respected" store? Maybe the store itself is but the salesmen there are a bunch of A-holes.

uh compared to some of the other stores around the central jersey area i'd say they're respected because most guys there know what they're talking about (most not all). but i agree most of them are pompeous dicks UNLESS you get to know them and give them business. Theyre not like a GC where you can go in there bash on their equipment once a week and still be welcomed to come back in anytime you like. what i will say is there one of few places in central jersey that carries good stuff.

musicians workshop is the only other store that comes to mind as being respected. the best guitar selection outside NYC. and they know their stuff and are awesome to deal with. Great selection in amps and pedals as well. beats GC when you want quality. The only other central jersey stoes that could come to mind might be toms river music if you consider that central jersey (its south jersey to me) or maybe guitar and bass center but they're not a mesa dealer.

I hear what you're saying but those guys gave me a good enough reason to never shop there again. I was there about 2 years ago. Maybe the guys they had don't even work there anymore but one guy went OFF on Diezel amps after i asked to play one. He ripped them up and down saying it was amazing that a $4000 could sound like such ****. And after a while another guy basically told me and my friend to buy something or get out! WTF, isn't the customer always right?

But yes, I have shopped at Musicians Workshop since 1990, great little store.

 

[jerseydrew]

Any place in NJ that has a 609 area code, is consider South Jersey. Russo is in south Jersey IMHO.

 

[jdurso]

Any place in NJ that has a 609 area code, is consider South Jersey. Russo is in south Jersey IMHO.

agreed... i actually consider anything below exit 100 or south of monmouth county to be south jersey. being at 114 i'm pretty close to that boarder

 

[Elixir]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

 

[jdurso]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

wait it out.... because either way its to your benefit. if the mark v comes out you'll see mark ivs going for much cheaper than they are now.

 

[Elixir]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

wait it out.... because either way its to your benefit. if the mark v comes out you'll see mark ivs going for much cheaper than they are now.

Yes, I'm slowly coming to this conclusion. So, by Jan 2009 I should definitely know what to do huh?

 

[wastoid]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

wait it out.... because either way its to your benefit. if the mark v comes out you'll see mark ivs going for much cheaper than they are now.

Is that why some Mark IICs still go for over 2k? I'm not convinced Mark IVs will lose much of their value, considering a) how much stuff was recorded with them and b) how anal guitarists are about precisely nailing their favorite guitarist's tone. Seems like it could go either way.

 

[Elixir]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

wait it out.... because either way its to your benefit. if the mark v comes out you'll see mark ivs going for much cheaper than they are now.

Is that why some Mark IICs still go for over 2k? I'm not convinced Mark IVs will lose much of their value, considering a) how much stuff was recorded with them and b) how anal guitarists are about precisely nailing their favorite guitarist's tone. Seems like it could go either way.

Where can I find a comprehensive (if it even exists) list of famous Mark IV recordings/use?

We all know the obvious ones, but a real list would be nice.

 

[jdurso]

So, any new info on the Mark V actually coming out soon? I'm in the market for a Mark IV but I don't know what to do. Should i play the waiting game and see if a Mark V comes out by the end of the year?

Decisions, decisions.

wait it out.... because either way its to your benefit. if the mark v comes out you'll see mark ivs going for much cheaper than they are now.

Is that why some Mark IICs still go for over 2k? I'm not convinced Mark IVs will lose much of their value, considering a) how much stuff was recorded with them and b) how anal guitarists are about precisely nailing their favorite guitarist's tone. Seems like it could go either way.

the whole mark iic thing is due to two things... one they're waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy harder to find, so rarity feeds it more than anything... the other part of it is the hype they get. its like the prs mcbraz i just bought... if GC knew it was a McBraz they would have had a 4500-5000 price tag on it like all the other mcbrazz's you see sell on ebay for. is the guitar that good? not for $5000... its all hype and the fact they're hard to find.

another thing to consider is that up until a few months ago you could just order a mark iv from your mesa dealer. the Mark IIC has been out of production for a while now which is part of its rarity. mark ivs are all over ebay, craigslist, local dealers, etc... what i think will happen is if the mark v comes out, the mark ivs will start hitting the used market hard because people will be making room. in that process you'll see the mark ivs price drop a little for a while. they will eventually go back up but i think when the mark v first comes out you'll see some more affordible mark ivs.

sorry for the long post... that was more of a thinking outloud type post