So I played my first Mark IV today....

[ibanez4life SZ!]

And was blown away :shock:

Such a tight and clean amp, even with the most brutal gain. Loved the strong mids and harmonic overtones in each chord! What a tone! Best part was, that this was with minimal tweaking...I can only imagine what it can do if I spend more time with it.

I'm currently a rectifier owner, and am seriously considering coming over to the Mark IV series.....

Anyone play the Mark through a Mesa 4x12 traditional? The one I played was a combo...I can imagine it would sound just as good if not better.

Also, I'm worried about the swap itself...I'd have to sell my rectifier to fund the Mark ($1900 new :?), and I'm a bit worried on doing such a thing, adding more money, without getting to spend some serious time with the amp....

I can't see myself being unhappy with the amp...the cleans were amazing (really made me realize how bad recto cleans are ) and the gain nearly ripped my face off....I'm just a bit worried....

What is an 18 year old on a budget to do?

 

[Russ]

Buy used.

 

[srf399]

Just do it.... bite the bullit and git er done!

 

[Russ]

Though it is nice to buy new I would say that it is more economically smart to buy used. Let someone else take the depreciation hit. If you buy for a real world price used you can always get back an amount closer to what you have into it if you ever go to sell provided your purchased item doesn't become really unpopular. Sometimes the value goes up and you may even make money having bought used whereas you might not ever see any gains still from having bought as new later when you go to sell. I hope that makes sense.

In any event, now you have an idea of things to come should you pull the trigger. You also have seen a bit of what we are all talking about and why we think Mark series amps are so good. Take some more time getting to know the Mark IV before you buy one though. Make sure it is what you want. You will never get that Rec bottom end nor rectified sag from a Mark. Should you make up your mind and it is to go Mark then buy used.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

I think that's pretty much the thing...I've grown tired of the rectifier bottom end, rectifier sag, and undefined gain..... :?

Maybe the best thing to do would be to save up a bit more, buy the Mark, own both for a week or two, and then ditch the Rectifier after I see head to head the differences.

 

[Elpelotero]

I knew you would make a post like this one day....I just didn't know if it was going to be the mark4 or the 2ch rec. for you, but I knew i would read this post one day...enjoy the other side of the fence!! the grass is very green!

 

[bunyok23]

luckily for me i have the best of both worlds.mark iv and a tremoverb head.

im trying to get a trad cab and see the difference.

be practical.buy used.

 

[disassembled]

Now is the time to buy a Mark IV on the used market. I bought my wide combo for 1050 and another just sold for 965 on the bay (which had a BIN of 1100). You can sell your 3 channel head for 1200 easily on the bay and just use your cab with the mark IV. The shipping is the only thing I would be worried about (if the amp works MOST LIKELY it is in good working condition) but the one I bought was local and will be picked up.

I don't suggest buying a head as they seem to fetching more $ which really doesn't make sense. You can always turn a combo into a head if you needed a head in the future.

I like the way the wide head/combo looks and they seem to be going the cheapest on ebay.


I remember last year people were selling their Rectos for around like $1000 and now they are all at around $1200 or more.


Good luck and troll the bay for mark iv's


Greg

 

[Random Hero]

I knew you would make a post like this one day....I just didn't know if it was going to be the mark4 or the 2ch rec. for you, but I knew i would read this post one day...enjoy the other side of the fence!! the grass is very green!

I'm sorry to say, but me too. I thought it would be a 2ch Recto to be honest, since you love Tremonti, etc, but either way, yeh.

You won't regret the Mark IV, trust me. I play mine through the Recto 4x12, and it sounds ginormous. I much prefer it to my old Rectos.

 

[Aart]

So what does an 18 year-old on a budget do?

Sell your recto and buy a Mark IV!

Just like this 18 year-old here on it's way to his third Mark IV!

 

[Shep]

I think that's pretty much the thing...I've grown tired of the rectifier bottom end, rectifier sag, and undefined gain..... :?

Maybe the best thing to do would be to save up a bit more, buy the Mark, own both for a week or two, and then ditch the Rectifier after I see head to head the differences.

Hey i had a recto for a month ( 3 channel dual ) and it's nothing compared to my mk IV , i run a traditional cab to and i think the mk iv sounds the best..if you get a IV and have both amps at the same time..you will sell your dual and buy another IV or even a III ( a REALLY good amp too ) becasue the mark tone is unbeatable..

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

You guys aren't making this easy for me :lol:

The only Mark IV I have EVER seen locally is a used one at GC....the only store here that stocks Mesa (a smaller store, our GC DOES NOT stock Mesa) has never had a mark IV in stock in their history :?

Now, this Mark IV at GC is a combo and has been their for atleast the last year if not longer....it has had a blown fuse this entire time and no one bothered to fixed it. I finally called in the guys, told them I was interested in the amp, so they fixed it and I let here rip.

As I've already told you, beautiful.

I have no idea which year it is from though, so I have no idea if it is an A or B....is 1992 the year that they made the change?

They have is for sale for $1200 used...considering all it has been through and how long it has been sitting there, I can definitely talk them down, and maybe even get fresh tubes with it.

Only thing that bothers me is that it's a combo.....I just love the sex appeal of the head.....if I could get them low enough on the combo, maybe I could afford to get a head case for it? Anyone have any idea how much such a thing would cost?

I would also make some money back from the combo w/ speaker.....an empty mark combo cab is selling for $100...might go higher, and mine will have a speaker too....

Oh, the choices :?

 

[Aart]

If you like it, take it.
You could try to trade the combo cab for a headcab or sell the combo + speaker for about 250$ and buy a (used)Head cab from the money.

Take it if you realy like it!

 

[disassembled]

I have no idea which year it is from though, so I have no idea if it is an A or B....is 1992 the year that they made the change?

They have is for sale for $1200 used...considering all it has been through and how long it has been sitting there, I can definitely talk them down, and maybe even get fresh tubes with it.

Only thing that bothers me is that it's a combo.....I just love the sex appeal of the head.....if I could get them low enough on the combo, maybe I could afford to get a head case for it? Anyone have any idea how much such a thing would cost?

I would also make some money back from the combo w/ speaker.....an empty mark combo cab is selling for $100...might go higher, and mine will have a speaker too....

Oh, the choices :?

$1200 for a combo is a good price (you can get that much for your dual rec if it's in good condition) but i bet you could talk them down to $1000 or so if you wave some money in their face. You can tell if it's an A or B by looking at the effects loop - mono = A stereo = B. The serial numbers after 5500 or so I think are all B's.

A head cab can be bought for $100-$125 used and the combo with speaker can be sold for $200 easily. If you are smart with this transaction you can actually make some money! What speaker is in the combo? C90 or EV? If it's an EV you might want to consider keeping the combo and going with a 212 cab or 112 thiele.

Make sure everything works (effects loop, class A simul class switch, verb, all pull functions, etc) as you don't want any surprises when it comes home. You probably should set aside $125 for some new tubes as well because that is probably the reason the fuse blew in the first place.


Greg

 

[Platypus]

Do it! Do it! Do it!

I'd sell the rectifier and get the Mark but that's only because I just went through what you are now. If you're gonna own a rec, get a pre500 2ch one and get yourself a Mark in the time being, I promise you won't miss a thing.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

^ My thought exactly....

Any idea what the new price on a Headshell is? I could get a good price on the combo, and I would demand new tubes on the purchase.

I might just bite the bullet and buy new....the peace of mind is worth it to me....a friend is considering buying my Recto, so it would make the transaction a whole lot easier.

 

[MetalMatt]

I'm thinking of jumping myself.

 

[disassembled]

I have heard some stories on some of the new stuff and I think the QC might be in question. At this point in time you might be safer buying used as you know that if there are any problems they would have probably shown themselves already. Mesas are pretty tough so i wouldn't worry about the trannies or other expensive components just going bad on ya. If you give the amp hell in the store and it comes out fine then you should feel confident that it will be fine in the future. The depreciation isn't as bad as other brands but depreciation is depreciation nomatter how you look at it. Buying on the used market you can always get what you put into it unless you overpaid, of course, but this shouldn't be the case here.

I say buy the combo and be patient to wait for a good condition headshell to pop up here or on the bay. Is it really imperitive that you have a head? You should give the combo a try at least to see how it pans out and then make an educated decision. Who knows you might like the small footprint of the combo and might ditch your 412 cab for a 112 or 212.

I'd like to echo Plat on this one.....do it do it do it! Now that the amp is working again someone may snatch it up so start your haggling!


Grge

 

[JOEY B.]

No one amp can do it all. But two Marks in stereo will get the low end of the recto and the harmonic bliss of a true "Solo Head". :shock:

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

I'm definitely considering it....

Now, about the versions....A and B of the MKIVs....is one truly better than the other? And if so, why?