New Mark III Owner!

[big_red]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I just recently purchased a Mark III Green Stripe (with Graphic EQ) from a local music shop. The amp came with an old Metal Grate style 4x12 slant cab and a case for the head. A bit of the amp's history includes the original owner being Lenny Kravitz.

Anyways, with the amp also came two foot switches. One for Rhythm/Lead, and one for Reverb and EQ In/Out. The Rhythm 1/2 footswitch did not come with the amp, and I was told by one of the store's best guys (and a good personal friend of mine) that the Reverb/EQ foot switch does not work for the Reverb. The EQ part works, but the Reverb is apparently innoperable while the footswitch is plugged in. The second issue is that the faceplate of the head does not have any tolex or jute on it. It's kind of mottled red and black and has the big MESA/BOOGIE print on it.

Unfortunately I have not yet had a chance to play the amp since its purchase (I did, however, play for quite a long time at the store, I believe it was over 3 hours of the 4 hours I was there; mostly just fiddled with the sounds on this beast) so I haven't been able to test anything or try anything new with it.

Overall, I'm extremely excited to have a Mark series be my first foray into Mesa Territory and I have already heard some truly incredible sounds out of it. It honestly, like any Mesa, made me a better player and really enjoy my playing more. Out with my Fender Hot Rod, in with Mesa Boogie!

Onto my questions!

1) Is there anything I should really watch out for in any of your experiences with this amp?

2) Is there someone I could talk to about diagnosing the reverb/eq footswitch?

3) Is there someone I could talk to about getting a replacement Rhythm 1/2 footswitch?

and lastly,

4) Is there any way I could conceivably set this amp up to use Midi switching in the future? I mostly ask this about the shielded-stereo nature of the Reverb/EQ section.


Thank you all very much!
Keep on rockin',
Spencer

 

[welshboogie]

From my III days...

Unless I'm wrong, you can't buy replacement/new footswitches any more, you'll just have to keep an eye on ebay/classifieds to find one..or build your own..

The REV/EQ footswitch (again from memory so might be wrong!!) is a stereo cable, make sure you are using a stereo cable..

As far as the amp itself is concerned, as the III's are now getting older, its just a case of keeping on top of any age-induced issues, they are normally bullet-proof so you shouldn't have anything to worry about, but if you are looking to gig out this amp then it may be worth getting it checked over by a tech for peace of mind...

Midi? - the only way you could possibly midi the III up is with some sort of switching matrix like the RJM gizmo or something similar which has 1/4 jack out switching capabilities...

 

[big_red]

Oops, yeah that's what I meant, herp derp

Should have clarified! I was thinking along the lines of a Voodoo Lab GCX, but was wondering if it would be possible to use two of the GCX loops jumpered into a stereo cable and run into the Rev/EQ input.

On further thought, I just saw another thread on here about someone's Mk III rig and I like their idea of building a completely new 3 button footswitch.

May be trying my hand at that soon...

 

[MrMarkIII]

All replacement foot switches can be ordered from the Mesa website.

Alternatively, you can find aftermarket foot switches on eBay made by Switch Doctor and Payne Labs, and the Boss FS-6 is great for the Reverb/EQ function (as well as channel changing), as it has LEDs, which the Mesa REV/EQ pedal lacks.

Is it possible your REV/EQ footswitch doesn't work properly because you are not using a stereo (TRS) cable? That's the first thing to check.

Whatever you do, make absolutely certain that the amp is on STANDBY before you plug or unplug the REV/EQ pedal, or you will get a huge, nasty, extremely loud "POP!" when you remove/insert the plug.

Also, the Reverb pedal is quirky. It does not turn the reverb on and off, it toggles between a low reverb level and a high reverb level. These levels are determined by the reverb knob on the rear if the chassis. The higher you turn up the knob, the higher both levels get, until, at 10 on the knob, you are getting levels which switch between about 5 and 10 (all the way up).

If that isn't weird enough for you, note that the reverb is BEFORE the effects loop, so chorus and delay in the loop are going to get "reverb-ed" first.
I like it, some don't.
Hope this helps. I have a green stripe, too.
Don't know jack about MIDI, but the RJM stuff gets talked about a lot.
Oh, yeah, there are three speaker jacks, one labeled 8 ohms, and two labeled 4 ohms. Obviously, one 8 ohm cab goes into the 8 ohm jack. If you run two 8 ohm cabs, plug each one into a 4 ohm jack. (You don't use the 8 ohm jack). The Mesa website has the manual for the Mark III, and the Lonestar manual (among others) has some good info in the back about all kinds of speaker hook-ups.

 

[big_red]

That is good to know about the reverb!

I stopped by GC today (a friend of mine works there) to show off my amp and gave it a whirl for about an hour and a half. Figured out some nice sounds with a couple different guitars. I seriously can't wait to jam with the guys when I get a chance, it's gonna be rad.

One thing I noticed on the back of the amp, is that there is no reverb control pot. There is a black plastic cap over the hole where a pot would go, and very faded sharpie showing the word "REVERB" directly underneath it. The front Reverb control pot works just fine, however it is slightly noisy.

Possibly modded at some point in the past?

Loving the Graphic EQ! It's fun to mess with, and it's really interestingly shaped a new tone for me. The inside of the amp is completely dusty, I'd like to get in there sometime soon with some canned air. Also, how can I find out what year mine was made?

 

[MrMarkIII]

Nope, no mods, you have what is called a "long head", which is actually a wide head, compared to the combos. So the reverb knob is on the front, and you have eight knobs on the front panel. The combos have seven knobs in front, with the reverb knob on the back. Mesa did not make a separate back panel for the "long" head, they just used the combo panel and covered the hole.

 

[big_red]

I see. As far as I can tell, the Rhythm/Lead footswitch works just fine, and I've read the manual and figured out where all the foot switches need to be plugged in. I'll give the rev/EQ footswitch a look tomorrow, but I think the cable was a TRS captive cable, stuck permanently into the footswitch box.

 

[jpdennis]

... I'll give the rev/EQ footswitch a look tomorrow, but I think the cable was a TRS captive cable, stuck permanently into the footswitch box ...

Odd, I don't think it should be captive. Go to the Mesa site, then to store , then to pedals and see if it looks the same as the ones for the Mark III.

Dennis

 

[Neptical]

Congrats on the purchase of the Mark III, brother. Lots of excellent tones in that box. Enjoy!

 

[big_red]

Odd, I don't think it should be captive. Go to the Mesa site, then to store , then to pedals and see if it looks the same as the ones for the Mark III.

Dennis

Interesting, I took a look at the M/B store and the footswitch is completely different. I'm considering ordering a Switchdoctor pedal when I get paid next... Does anyone know if he does them in colors different from the picture? I'd like to get black instead of white if possible...

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p587/SwitchDoctorWeb/MESA%20BOOGIE/MarkIIIaluminum4buttonnew.jpg

 

[big_red]

Just discovered why the Rev/EQ Footswitch doesn't work right:

it's a RHYTHM/EQ footswitch.
Here's some shots of the amp, notice the mottled red and black face on the head.

It looks to me like someone had taken the front off and/or it was painted or something. Definitely want to fix that up and put some jute on it.

 

[MrMarkIII]

Yo, that foot switch is for the DC series, it's not a Mark series foot switch.
You should be able to sell it and get the correct switch, though.

 

[nogalian]

Congrats on your GS MKIII!!! I have been experimenting with the same issue you mentioned with the midi control ( via GCX ) of the switches on my MK III and I can tell you it works GREAT!! I am running two MKIII's. I place a splitter in the out of one of the loops on the gcx and run one cable to amp 1 and the other to amp two. Whenever I tap that loop on the GCP it will turn on the rhythm channel or the lead channel (using the same set up on a second loop). Works great. One button controls the channel switching on both amps or for you your awesome GS!! I still haven't figured out the switching for the GEQ yet. The loops on the GCX are mono and the switch is wired for a stereo cable. Tried a stereo y cable but it didn't work ( as I expected)
Anyhow, AWESOME AMP!! Enjoy!!

 

[Vigo1999]

You also can have one of this and solve all your problems ;-) no more tap dancing