Mark VII?

[Bobby Marshall]

We need a new category or just change this one to Mark series. A new Mark? Wow.

 

[Bucketfeet]

Seriously didn't expect this.

Also why did they skip Mark VI naming? Is the Petrucci model considered the VI?

 

[KRichter]

Seriously didn't expect this.

Also why did they skip Mark VI naming? Is the Petrucci model considered the VI?

That's what I'm hearing.

 

[tbonesullivan]

People have been saying that Peavey may own a trademark on "Mark VI" so it couldn't be used.

 

[woodbutcher65]

I'll go with all the above. With Peavey having a Mark 6, there's a naming issue in play. Some say the JP2C is thought of as the Mark 6. Some say that there was a Mark 6 made a couple years ago, only a couple dozen were made, they're "secret" and their release was deferred due the covid scamdemic so they revisited the design and turned it into the VII. Some combination of those is probably true.

 

[gabilotcu]

Olso, Selmer saxophone have a mark 6.
The jp2c could be a mark 6 for us. I don't know why but I start to put some money for this amp.

 

[swbo101]

Seriously didn't expect this.

Also why did they skip Mark VI naming? Is the Petrucci model considered the VI?

According to them the Mark VI was a secret prototype. lol True.

 

[SonVolt]

Kinda let down to be honest. At least with these early demos. They just glossed right over the Mark VII mode.

 

[metricman60]

No more rectifier option. I don't think I need anything new on the back....I'll never use Cab Clone, Midi or headphone out.
Haven't heard any great demos yet...but maybe it has some unique tones that really set it apart. But for $3800....lots of options out there.

 

[woodbutcher65]

There's already a Mark 6 and Peavey has it, so that is very likely why they didn't name this one Mark 6. Copyright issue.

 

[tbonesullivan]

Olso, Selmer saxophone have a mark 6.
The jp2c could be a mark 6 for us. I don't know why but I start to put some money for this amp.

They also did have a Mark VII Alto, though the Mark VI continued in the other models. They also didn't have any other "Mark" series instruments as far as I know.

Peavy also did have a Mark V and a Mark VIII. Things will get interesting in the future.

 

[Cryptical11]

I just played the Mark VII today at guitar center for a couple of hours. Nice amp. Great cleans. Great high gain and lead. Mark VII mode is fantastic.

It was surprising how quickly the sounds went from clean to high gain without the in between overdriven saturation harmonics I am used to from my Mark V35 and Mark IV.

I enjoy using my Mark V35 to cop guitar sounds from records without needing to use distortion/overdrive pedals. The Mark VII seemed less flexible for that.

I went ahead and ordered a used Mark V 90 watt head today instead because it felt like a good time to do that. I hope I like it a lot. The only thing I have not liked about my Mark V35 is having to manually toggle the switch to go from clean to crunch. I use both of these modes frequently so three channels will be great.

 

[KRichter]

Since I had the MKV, I wish I kept the IV. I know if I get the new one, I'll have had I wished kept the V......
(Unless it has the Line6, Insane red mode), then it's a keeper!

 

[KRichter]

Although I've been playing out of Mesa amps for around 30 years. I really believe they pack way too much stuff in those. Anyone who has ever had one broke on them, know what I mean.

 

[woodbutcher65]

Speaking as a lifelong electronics technician, I can't agree with that. I will instead state that any three channel guitar amp on the market will separate the men from the boys, so to speak, with regard to their technician's abilities. You don't want to take any amp to a guitar tech who thinks Mesas are too complicated. He's an amateur level technician. I speak as someone whose best friend was the local amp tech/guru, and he did some fine work and built and modded some good sounding amps, but when it came to complex troubleshooting, when he got frustrated with amps that he could not determine the problem with and set them aside after sometimes wasting WEEKS trying to find the problem, I would step in and typically find the problem in a few minutes to a couple of hours. Because I am a logical troubleshooter, and I do what he would not: Break out the test equipment. Inject a signal, trace it through the circuit with an oscilloscope and other tools, and FIND where things stopped working properly rather than try to do it with an 8 dollar Harbor Freight pocket multimeter and a bunch of guessing.

I do not find Mesas difficult to understand or troubleshoot or repair. In fact they're easier to work on than a lot of amps that actually have simpler circuits. And they tend to be quite reliable. Yes, there are some failures, but by and large, Mesas are more reliable than other brands and models of comparable complexity, primarily because they're built to a higher quality standard.

A technician who can't handle Mesa service, isn't much of a technician. Or he's grown lazy and isn't applying his best practices.

 

[KRichter]

Speaking as a lifelong electronics technician, I can't agree with that. I will instead state that any three channel guitar amp on the market will separate the men from the boys, so to speak, with regard to their technician's abilities. You don't want to take any amp to a guitar tech who thinks Mesas are too complicated. He's an amateur level technician. I speak as someone whose best friend was the local amp tech/guru, and he did some fine work and built and modded some good sounding amps, but when it came to complex troubleshooting, when he got frustrated with amps that he could not determine the problem with and set them aside after sometimes wasting WEEKS trying to find the problem, I would step in and typically find the problem in a few minutes to a couple of hours. Because I am a logical troubleshooter, and I do what he would not: Break out the test equipment. Inject a signal, trace it through the circuit with an oscilloscope and other tools, and FIND where things stopped working properly rather than try to do it with an 8 dollar Harbor Freight pocket multimeter and a bunch of guessing.

I do not find Mesas difficult to understand or troubleshoot or repair. In fact they're easier to work on than a lot of amps that actually have simpler circuits. And they tend to be quite reliable. Yes, there are some failures, but by and large, Mesas are more reliable than other brands and models of comparable complexity, primarily because they're built to a higher quality standard.

A technician who can't handle Mesa service, isn't much of a technician. Or he's grown lazy and isn't applying his best practices.

Agreed, he's the certified tech in my area referred my mesa, actually 2 hours away. Rich at mesa made it good.

 

[mace]

It looks like the effects loop in the VII is after the preamp and right before the 5 Band EQ.

Is the Mark V wired this way or is the effects loop after the 5 Band EQ?

From the manual of the VII "The Effects Loop is basically a circuit bridge from the end of the preamp to just before the Driver stage, with the SEND interrupting the signal at the preamp’s end and the RETURN feeding the signal back into the power section just before the EQ and the Driver tube."

 

[jsullivan2112]

There's already a Mark 6 and Peavey has it, so that is very likely why they didn't name this one Mark 6. Copyright issue.

Nah, Traynor had a Mark III and that didn't stop them. You can't copyright something as generic as "mark", it's like trying to copyright "Version 6", it means the exact same thing. They said that Randall was working on it so long that it basically skipped an iteration by the time it was released. And they liked the name better than Mark VI.

 

[user 41014]

Gut shots anyone that took one of these home? I'm curious what make of filters they are using these days.

 

[Henz]

Gut shots anyone that took one of these home? I'm curious what make of filters they are using these days.

Me as well and (clearing me throat....) an accurate schematic.