Mesa Boogie Mark V 90-watt Tube Head – Black Taurus Mesa Boogie

PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS:

• Simul-Class™ Power Amp (Patents 4,532,476 & 4,593,251) featuring Multi-Watt™ (Patent 7,602,927) and Duo-Class™ (Patent 7,173,488) technologies which provide three power and three operating class options that are channel assignable via 10/45/90 Watt Power Switches: Choose 2 power tubes operating in pure vintage Class A (single-ended), producing 10 Watts – 2 tubes running in time-honored Class A/B producing 45 Watts or 4 tubes running in Mesa’s legendary, patented Simul-Class Power that blends the best of Class A and Class A/B simultaneously to produce 90 Watts of pure tonal magic / 4x6L6 (or 4xEL-34), 7x12AX7, 1x5U4
• Bias Select Switch (6L6/EL34)
• Fixed Bias for Consistent, Maintenance Free Performance
• Full Power/Variac Power™ Switch (Patent 5,091,700)
• 3 Fully Independent Channels with 9 Modes (Channel 1 = Clean, Fat or Tweed™, Channel 2 = Edge, Crunch or Mark I™, Channel 3 = Mark IIC+™, Mark IV™ or Extreme)
• Normal/Bold Switch on Channel 1, Normal/Thick Switch on Channel 2 (Mark I mode only), Normal/Bright Switch & Pentode/Triode Switch on Channel 3
• Each Channel features: Independent Gain, Treble, Mid, Bass, Presence, Master, Footswitchable or Auto-Assignable Contour Depth Control, Footswitchable All-Tube, Long Spring Reverb Control, Rectifier Tracking™ (Auto-selects Tube for all 10 Watt Modes, Diode for all 90 Watt Modes, selectable Tube or Diode for 45 Watt Modes on Channels 1 and 2, Diode for 45 Watt Mode on Channel 3 – Patents 5,168,438 & 7,193,458)
• 5 Band Graphic EQ is Footswitchable, Channel Assignable and Selectable between 1 group of 5-Band Sliders or 3 channel specific, variable depth Contour Controls
• Footswitchable, Channel Assignable or True Bypassable Fully Buffered FX Loop with Send Level Control (over all channels when activated)
• Output Level Control (over all channels when activated)
• Footswitchable Solo Level Control – Patent 6,724,897 (over all channels when activated)
• True “Hard” Bypass Switch removes FX Loops, Output Level & Solo Level Controls from signal path
• Tuner Output w/Footswitchable Mute
• Slave Out w/Level Control
• Fan Cooled with On/Off Switch
• External Switching Jacks for Channels 2, 3 (channel 1 is default), EQ & Solo
• Aluminum Chassis
• New 4×4 – 8 Button Footswitch (Bottom Row: Channel 1, Channel 2, Channel 3, Solo – Top Row: Reverb, FX Loop, EQ & Tuner Mute)
• Slip Cover
• Kitchen Sink, Ice Maker, Beer Cooler (just kidding) but easier to use than this list suggests (not kidding)!
• FORMAT: Medium Head (Width 22-7/8 inches)

Description:

OVERVIEW

The MARK V is really a collection of amplifiers. There are far too many circuits and sounds to think of it as merely an amp. It is also a living history of the Mesa/Boogie company. From the groundbreaking MARK I that introduced the world to high-gain with it’s cascading pre amp, to the Mark II – the world’s first high gain Dual Mode Channel Switching amplifier and it’s later siblings that introduced Simul-Class™power. From the MARK III that ushered in the era of 3 Channel footswtching performance, to the MARK IV which gave all this power individual control, the MARK V is the embodiment of the last 40 years of guitar amp history.

PREAMP

Three distinct Channels present the 3 footswitchable sounds in a simple to dial platform, but don’t let that fool you… beneath each set of controls lies another layer of performance. Each preamp Channel contains 3 distinct Modes that are controlled by a simple mini-toggle MODE switch found in the upper left corner of each Channel. This switch is responsible for the voicing of each Channel. In some cases these voicings are related by style and give you important musical differences within a gain structure and sonic theme. In other cases, both gain and EQ are radically altered to achieve drastically different sounds – yet these sounds appear on the same set of controls. This is a result of needing a certain circuit architecture and Tone control string to achieve a particular sound style. Sometimes these extreme mode differences require different Gain and Tone control treatments to achieve a recognizable and iconic sound. In other words, it may require some dialing of the controls when you are touring through the modes. With circuits capable of these extremes, there is simply no way to avoid this. Don’t worry though, with what you learn in this manual combined with using your ear – you will quickly learn to choose a mode and dial it up to your needs in seconds.

CHANNEL 1 contains the lowest gain sounds of the three Channels and can be thought of as the Rhythm or Clean channel. The other two channels contain modes that work better for soft clip, medium crunch and high gain rhythm work. There is a tight, skinny CLEAN (toggle up), a warm, rich FAT clean sound with added lower fundamental (toggle center) and a higher gain pushed version of this architecture found in TWEED (toggle down). A Channel-global BOLD voicing switch adds punch and cut starting in the high mids to help you stand out in a dense mix and give you an increase in headroom.

CHANNEL 2 is the transitional channel between the low gain sounds of CHANNEL 1 and the high gain fury of CHANNEL 3. This channel contains the biggest differences between modes and there is definitely dialing required as you toggle through the voicing Modes. A stripped, British-inspired EDGE (switch up) unleashes low to mid gain aggression. Channel 2Low mids are added for a thicker, throatier CRUNCH sound that travels up the gain scale while retaining a tight attack. And finally, MARK I flips the architecture to arrive at the iconic high gain voice that put MESA on the map back in 1970 with the little Boogie amp. This creamy voice is infused with thick bottom end and works great for fattening up single note solo sounds. You may want to run the BASS control very low (off to 10:00) when the GAIN is high in this mode to retain the best attack characteristic and avoid flubbiness. There is also a NORMAL/THICK switch that affects the MARK I Mode only to add extra gain in the mids for added single note focus.

CHANNEL 3 goes on from there to encompass the best of the MARK Series Overdrive sounds. Beginning with the MK II C+ (switch up) the sound is pure, blistering focus and this is the classic Boogie voice of the 80’s that became the foundation for players like John Petrucci, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, as well as a staple for L.A.’s first call session players of the day Steve Lukather, Mike Landau, Dean Parks and many more.

The classic V curve on the Graphic EQ became an integral part of this sound and went on to be the sound of choice for some of the hardest hitting Punk and Hardcore bands of the 90’s and 2000’s and is still currently used by many top acts. The original II C’S bring many times their original selling price – if you can find one – and this faithful recreation of that burning sound is the cornerstone of CHANNEL 3. The MARK IV is also represented here in FAT (toggle center) where a dose of thick midrange gain is added combined with a rounding out of the upper harmonic peak. Finally EXTREME (switch down) unleashes all the aggression and attack of this circuit for a full gain assault that cuts through any mix. (Beware, the volume jumps up when EXTREME is selected.) There is also a NORMAL / BRIGHT switch included that affects all three Modes in CHANNEL 3.

EQUALIZER

The on-board 5 Band Graphic EQ has been an iconic trademark of MARK Series Boogies since they first appeared on the MARK I back in 1970. The shaping power of this feature can’t be denied, especially when combined with the MARK II’s tight, focused gain sound. In the ’80’s the classic “V” setting of the EQ on MARK II and III models became a new sound in Heavy Rock and etched the on-board Graphic a place in Rock history.

While the MARK V Tone Controls are accurate and effective over a wide range, they come