MK 4 or Quad/295?

[LUCRETIA]

Which one shld i get and which is more versatile??Mk4 or the quad/295 combo? :? :?

Can the quad/295 combo get the mk4 tone? :?

 

[Marshall_Fascist]

Can the quad/295 combo get the mk4 tone?

some what, yes.


top section of quad is a mark IIc, and bottom is a Mark III(black dot?)
I would get the mark IV though. Jmo. sounds fuller to me.

 

[FRUCTAL]

I had two Mark4 before and now Quad and 295. 295 has bigger, better transformers, Quad has a lot better preamp than Mark 4. Mark 4 has less organic sound. A difference is BIG. Hi.

 

[LUCRETIA]

k thnks guys for the input.Anyone with clips?

 

[Nocki]

Sorry no clips.

I owned a Quad preamp (no 295...) a mark IV an now a triaxis. the quad was the best preamp of them. liquad feel to it. better cleans better high gain and more modes/sounds. only problem for me was its 3 HE. but it was the best sounding amp I had... and it is cheap!!!

 

[justanotherboogieplayer]

Hi,
I agree with FRUCTAL and Nocki,
those amps are both very good amps and they both are very versatile.
But the quality of tone is way better in the Quad. Breath, life and dynamics are in it´s own class.
A MK IV Combo is almost completed (missing only effects), small but heavy. A Rack with a Quad needs a power amp (+effects if needed) and separate cabs. That makes it bigger and more heavy in total, but you can splitt the units and the weight. This can be an importand point to think over.
The quiality of the poweramp in a Mark IV is verry high and the switching possibilities offer a lot of colours to the sound. So it depends on the Poweramp you choose, to compare the two possibilities.
295 is very good 2:90 also is and, not to be forgotten: VHT 2:50:2
Maybe a Mesa 20:20 is an issue, too.

Do you realy need stereo?

Take a look at the posts about FX:
http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?t=3434&sid=247b223ae67ee02af4f976d068ecda40

If you look at the preamp only ... no question: Quad is in the lead.

 

[Mark Fore]

I had the quad/295 set up and wasn't knocked over by the tone. This was in '91 so when the Mark IV was launched I went that way and never looked back. I have purchased other Mesa gear, but always kept the Mark IV's. To me, there is such a big difference it is no contest. Punchier, meatier, the whole package. I would suggest getting the head if you are on the fence. A quad/295 w/ cabs against a 1x12 combo will sound too different and not be apples to apples.