You aren't giving the Extreme mode it's fair chance

[MarkIVwidebody]

If they named it anything besides Extreme people would try it out longer. I do think the IV and IIC+ modes are a little of a disapointment. I don't care though because extreme is great to me and I get a great clean and crunch tone. On channel 2 I can nail Plush by S.T.P. for example. Don't try to copy the other two modes on ch3 and see what you can get from extreme. I hate the preset for it. The e.q. is where it's at....the typical V shape works best.
I have the gain at 4oclock boosted with a modded sd-1 and the tone is sick...like paint peeling, screaming, etc. My bass is at 9oclock so I can't even imagine how guys can't get enough low end. Try extreme and use the e.q. (Funny that on my line 6 spider III p.o.s. the only useable channel is called extreme. lol)

 

[rabies]

the guys that claim "not enough low end" are either goofy bass players or recto users with 15s. my ex-Mark IV had sick bass and I imagine the trannies on the V are pretty big...

 

[gibson5413]

The Extreme setting is one of the unsung heroes of the V. I like it a lot!

 

[t2mike2]

or maybe the guys who post not enough bass, are ACTUAL OWNERS OF THE AMP, rather than who guesses on transformer size, and assumes incorrectly that transformers are the sole determiner of bass levels and or timbre.

Mike~

 

[t2mike2]

to the OP, youre right, extreme mode does sound the best. It should have simply been named Mark V mode.
~mike~

 

[rabies]

or maybe the guys who post not enough bass, are ACTUAL OWNERS OF THE AMP, rather than who guesses on transformer size, and assumes incorrectly that transformers are the sole determiner of bass levels and or timbre.

Mike~

well if it's really lacking in bass, use a ported cab (GBenz) or add a 15" spkr Dimebag style.

 

[t2mike2]

i was using a ported 1/12 cabinet, ( real folding port , not just holes).The thing is you shouldnt HAVE to spend another 5-600 bucks on an extra cab, just because the amp designer made a poor choice.

its like saying, hey my mercedes stalls at idle.. get a new engine! lol

or dont get that mercedes.

~mike~

 

[metal190]

The obvious reason the mercedes comparison doesn't work is because when you buy an amp you are not buying a complete, standalone system. If you love everything about the tone of the mark v except the lack of bass, no problem. there are options for complimenting the amp with cab and other components that can more than compensate. When buying a car, you generally don't buy the engine, the transmission, the body, etc. separate. With any guitar, amp, fx, cab combo, you always buy the parts that work together best, and you take into consideration any limitations of each. (And every component will have limitations)

 

[MesaGod666]

Extreme is a **** good setting.

 

[t2mike2]

What frustrated me was that a Mark III sounded great through my cabinet, and the Mark V did not. .... or through its own built in cabinet. When you cant get decent bass but all from the most monstous of cabinets, something needs to be reworked, and it isnt the cab.

Its crazy tho, they had it right... and then ruined it.


~mike~

 

[metal190]

Yeah, that's fair. A combo amp should sound good, period. Granted good is relative, but it sounds like in Mike's opinion it did not sound $2000 good. I'm picking mine up tomorrow and will be excited to A/B it with my road king. (I know, apples and oranges, but it should be fun all the same.)

 

[metal190]

And I think its worth mentioning (and I find myself having this conversation about bands a lot) that you'll always leave someone disappointed. Regarding dream theater's latest album I have two friends who aren't excited about the album - one says they're not doing anything new or different, one says they've changed too much and in the wrong ways. I imagine amp building to be the same. I guess if you're Mesa you just hope that the general consensus is that after people have had a chance to really spend time tweaking that the are pleased with the changes you made. And in the meanwhile, FWIW, there's nothing 'wrong' with being one of those who doesn't like the changes, nor is there anything noble about loving every new feature that's peddled to you.

What's interesting, is that I love zakk wylde. He's a marshall man. Love satch. He wails on his peavey. Petrucci is phenomenal. He's a boogie guy. a lot of ways out there to get amazing, different tones. All that matters is that first, you find a tone that makes you grin as you play and second (as a sort of bonus) you find some people that love the sound you've carved out for yourself.

 

[rabies]

Love satch. He wails on his peavey.

I have a live DVD and he says behind the scenes he's using two Marshall heads (doesn't say which models!) I think the Marshall, Mark II-IV, and Recto are the ultimate for hard rock and metal. Everything else is just trying to be (either cheaper or more expensive).

 

[binnerscot]

Yeah, that's fair. A combo amp should sound good, period. Granted good is relative, but it sounds like in Mike's opinion it did not sound $2000 good. I'm picking mine up tomorrow and will be excited to A/B it with my road king. (I know, apples and oranges, but it should be fun all the same.)

I think the V combo has the same general response as a IV combo...they still sound like 1x12" combos.....very good, but still an open back 1x12", and you can still plug it into a cab of your choice. I am very happy with the V as a combo.

Though, I will say that my little F-30 can still scare the my Mark V a little bit when opened up, as it is a bit of a mini-Recto.

 

[JAZZGEAR]

i was using a ported 1/12 cabinet, ( real folding port , not just holes).The thing is you shouldnt HAVE to spend another 5-600 bucks on an extra cab, just because the amp designer made a poor choice.

its like saying, hey my mercedes stalls at idle.. get a new engine! lol

or dont get that mercedes.

~mike~

lol! Do you guys all play in a band w/o a Bass Player (or Keyboards), cuz last I checked, the amount of bass you guys require seems to fall in the frequency space of a Bass Player (or Keys). And if the style of music you play calls for it, then the Mark is the wrong tool for the job. There are better options.

For my style of music (R&B, Classic Rock, Funk, Latin, P&W, Blues, Jazz), the Mark V is perfect.

 

[scott7d]

I don't have any major gripes with the Extreme setting. I just think the Mark IV setting has a heavier, darker vibe. I will mess around with Extreme some more though. In fact, I still need to mess around with about 90% of what the amp is capable of :lol:

 

[PeeMonkey]

I agree that if they named it anything but extreme people would take the channel more seriously and not think of it to be exclusively a metal channel. Lately I've been finding myself going to the extreme mode over the IIc+ / IV modes, I still dig the other two, but the extreme has taken the dominant spot on ch. 3, anyone else using the extreme more than the other two modes now? I'm not really looking to cop a IV or IIC+ tone but just my dialing in my own tone I dig, and so far the extreme is doing it for me, maybe that will change in a week or so, great thing about boogies is the endless amount of tweaking you can do for diff tones, but then again that can be bad as well for some

Tweak with your ears and not your eyes!! Some of the settings I have are so out there it looks weird as hell.

Also I think they should've just named it Mark V mode Maybe people will prefer that over the other 2 modes on this amp

 

[MarkIVwidebody]

I only use extreme. We both play 8 string guitars, have thunderous low end and our bass setting is at 9 o'clock.

 

[Tfunk Ian]

lol! Do you guys all play in a band w/o a Bass Player (or Keyboards), cuz last I checked, the amount of bass you guys require seems to fall in the frequency space of a Bass Player (or Keys).

That's kinda what I was thinkin'...

I've played a Mark V and I own a Mark IV. If I set the Mark V to Mark IV on channel 3 and dial in my usual settings, it sounds just like my Mark IV. Keep in mind that the guitar is a midrange instrument. If you put a little more lower mids in your sound (can be done on the Mesa 5-band graphic), that's where you'll find a lot of your meat, chunk, and thickness. Trust me 240Hz and 750Hz are your friends...

I will say though that some 1x12 cabnets can have a strange midrange honk to them. I prefer to use them in combination with vertical 2x12's. That combo gives you midrange/upper midrange clarity and low mid richness with just the right amount of low end. Now, double that and you're really talkin'...

 

[mlockett]

To my ears, extreme sounds good thru my 4x12 (Engl w/ V30s) but not so good thru my Boogie Recto 2x12 vertical. I think the cab has a large effect on the sound turning mushy.