What Mesa head has the tightest low end and gain?

[ttbaron]

I used to own a dual rectifier 3 channel and I had it retubed with JJ ecc83s preamp and Svetlana winged C power tubes. I used a Tonebone hot british pedal in the front end and a bbe sonic maximizer in the loop and it tightened up the channel 3 modern low end amazingly. There was absolutely no comparison between recording straight through the head and when using the pedal and maximizer. Unfortunately I had to sell it, but now I'm back in the market for a Mesa head. Can anyone let me know how the older 2 channel rectifiers and basically any other Mesa head compares with the low end tightness and gain. I play heavy progressive metal and need definition without losing low end. If I can get a head that is tighter to begin with I'll be in tone heaven!

 

[Platypus]

Mark IV.

 

[Elpelotero]

+100.

but if you must have a recto, the older ones are a little tighter. however, not nearly like a mark4

 

[Living_justice]

mark 4 all the way, i use a mark 4 and my other band memeber uses a 2 channel older recto, amazing sound, we only use a boss noise suppresser, thats all we need.

 

[Shep]

mk iv with a mesa trad 4x12 cab... nothing more..

 

[tele_jas]

Mark IV
Mark II+C

 

[Russ]

Definitely the Mark IV...

 

[ttbaron]

What's the difference between the long and short head if any?

 

[Elpelotero]

the placement of the knobs. that's it

 

[Russ]

The physical dimension left to right. The short head fits in a standard 19" rack in its rackmount. There is no rackmount for the long head. The long head has more air in the combo cabinet for different tone. The short head fits on a 2x12 vertical. The long head doesn't. The short head is slightly lighter. There are more controls and a blue power light on the front of a long head. The footswitch mounts on the back of the head mount directly to the cabinet on the short as opposed to being suspended on one end with the long head.

 

[t0aj15]

The short head fits in a standard 19" rack in its rackmount.

The short head also fits in a 19" rack in it's original head shell if you use a shelf rather then mounting it. I prefer this method over mounting it, because I can easily pull the head out and use it without the rack.

 

[Living_justice]

short head smells nicer two

 

[ttbaron]

Were there any changes in the manufacturing of the Mark IV throughout the years? Any year(s) better? I'm definitely getting one so I'll need some tube recommendations and what is a fair price for a used one in good condition?

 

[Russ]

In the mid 90's there was a slight change in the circuit. The older "A" version has a smoother lead and a more classic sounding R2 channel. The update made the "B" version have a bit more gain in R2 and added a Satellite send. Check out the other threads on tube recommendations and A to B amp differences. These topics have been discussed to no end. Currently Mark IV's are going for about $1,000 on average with $800 being the low side needing stuff like minor repairs or parts and $1200 being the higher side with exception to ones that are minty new that seem to be selling for just a couple hundred shy of new. The price also varies a little depending upon whether you are looking at a rack, head, or combo. Take into consideration that the rack will be the cheapest to ship without a case and the combo will be pretty expensive to ship because it weighs a ton. The combo will also be more expensive because you are getting a speaker with it. Custom finishes such as other than typical tolex and grille will also drive your price up. Unless you have a different means of channel switching in mind such as midi be sure you get your footswitch because it costs $240 from Mesa to replace.

 

[jbird]

Stiletto Trident :idea: :?: :!:

 

[ttbaron]

Does the Mark IV have a series or parallel effects loop?