Mesa Mark 4 info & prices

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mooncobra

mooncobra

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I was looking at a local mk4 that sold. It was 1750. So, a month or so later, that being today, I check reverb and many mark4 are now listed at 3500 and up. Others are around 2500. Are some considered more desirable due to a revision and supposed better tone?

Anyone know?
 
i think A's go for more. there are a lot less of them, and i personally think they sound way better but we can save that debate for another thread.
The transitions tend to be less than a's, and B's go for the least based off what i've been seeing for the past few years. i check mesa stuff on reverb and ebay a few times daily just in case something crazy comes around. The A's do vary greatly in price though. sometimes i see them go super cheap because they're beat up or look old, sometmes people try and get 3-4k because they play up the lore of it. "metallica used it" "its the closest thing to a c+" "mike b recapped it" or whatever else they want to pull out of their ass to justify the high price.
 
mooncobra said:
I was looking at a local mk4 that sold. It was 1750. So, a month or so later, that being today, I check reverb and many mark4 are now listed at 3500 and up. Others are around 2500. Are some considered more desirable due to a revision and supposed better tone?

Anyone know?
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Simply greed.

The $1750.00 price is where a good used IV should be.

Rev A/B ….. whatever. Those amps all sound killer as far as I can tell.
Not $3500.00 killer.
If it was owned by the player from Fates Warning……….maybe?
??????
 
Generally speaking I'd say heads go for more, long heads go for most. Like with the IIs and IIIs the combos are always the bargain. I don't see a price difference between As and Bs thought there are slight tonal differences. The A is a bit more raw & the B is a bit more compressed, it really seems like a bridge amp between the totally raw II & III and the totally compressed V & JP.

I've had an A and two Bs and personally I preferred the B. I'd put the value on a clean head around $2200. I'd peg a clean combo more like $1800.

Do keep in mind that many As have a time bomb brown cap and a service is prudent. When it leaks it makes a BIG mess.

Now time for personal opinion. The cleans are fine, but nothing special. R2 is the worst tone I've ever heard form a Mesa. The Lead channel is phenomenal & does a thing that no other Mark does, and that's why you want one.
 
GJgo said:
Generally speaking I'd say heads go for more, long heads go for most. Like with the IIs and IIIs the combos are always the bargain. I don't see a price difference between As and Bs thought there are slight tonal differences. The A is a bit more raw & the B is a bit more compressed, it really seems like a bridge amp between the totally raw II & III and the totally compressed V & JP.

I've had an A and two Bs and personally I preferred the B. I'd put the value on a clean head around $2200. I'd peg a clean combo more like $1800.

Do keep in mind that many As have a time bomb brown cap and a service is prudent. When it leaks it makes a BIG mess.

Now time for personal opinion. The cleans are fine, but nothing special. R2 is the worst tone I've ever heard form a Mesa. The Lead channel is phenomenal & does a thing that no other Mark does, and that's why you want one.
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I miss my old mk4. Bought it back in the day for $800 Canadian. Bought a mk5, but like you say, the lead channel was way too compressed and did not have the awesome percussive attack the mk4 did. How does the new mk7 stack up?
 
VHTStark said:
I miss my old mk4. Bought it back in the day for $800 Canadian. Bought a mk5, but like you say, the lead channel was way too compressed and did not have the awesome percussive attack the mk4 did. How does the new mk7 stack up?
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A/Bing the IV next to a VII- the VII is more like a modeler. It has great tone & feel, much better than the V, but no push and mushy definition. The IV smoked it in percussiveness, the difference was shocking really.
 
GJgo said:
A/Bing the IV next to a VII- the VII is more like a modeler. It has great tone & feel, much better than the V, but no push and mushy definition. The IV smoked it in percussiveness, the difference was shocking really.
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I agree. I AB'ed my IIC+ HRG vs a VII recently and was pretty disappointed in the VII. I wouldn't really consider it's feel or tone to actually be that great (too synthetic in tone and not receptive enough to many nuances in playing). It's weird because like you said notes lack weight and definition to them vs my iic+ (especially on faster palm mutes), but I thought it would be the opposite since it was tighter and more modern sounding than my iic+, yet they get washed out somehow. It's funny how it made my c+ seem comparatively like such a warm and vintage sounding amp where vs my other amps I own I don't really get that vibe normally from my IIC+
 
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I have had about seven mark iv’s over the years (my favorite of the mark series) definitely prefer the B’s. I won’t pay what they are going for these days knowing the last few required an additional $300-500 in repairs. Also buyers beware apparently the push pull pots are now discontinued and no longer being made. My friend busted off a push pull on his mark iv about two months ago and couldn’t get the replacement pot for it. I hated the Mark V and i sold my mark iv after i got the JP2 (Twice) wish I didn’t because i 2as not a fan of the Jp2c after spending some time with it.
 
I have read that the R2 channel is tweaked on the B and its a desirable tweak.

I will say I love my mark IVA, had mine for 20+ years. R2 is the weakest channel, but with a boost, I still enjoy it.

As for prices, I would look for one under $2k if you are willing to wait. And at least for me I wouldn't really want a combo. Sure you can run it through a cab, but I think the R2 and the Lead channels sound best through a closed back cab.
 
blackba said:
I have read that the R2 channel is tweaked on the B and its a desirable tweak.

I will say I love my mark IVA, had mine for 20+ years. R2 is the weakest channel, but with a boost, I still enjoy it.

As for prices, I would look for one under $2k if you are willing to wait. And at least for me I wouldn't really want a combo. Sure you can run it through a cab, but I think the R2 and the Lead channels sound best through a closed back cab.
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Isn’t it easy to swap the headshell and get a head out of a combo? Just in case I stumble upon a great priced one ofc.
 
CrystalSky said:
Isn’t it easy to swap the headshell and get a head out of a combo? Just in case I stumble upon a great priced one ofc.
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Piece of cake, as long as you have a head shell to swap it into. I've had a dude named Scott make 12 or so of them for me for combos I've converted. Very nice work.
 
GJgo said:
Piece of cake, as long as you have a head shell to swap it into. I've had a dude named Scott make 12 or so of them for me for combos I've converted. Very nice work.
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Thanks for the confirmation!
 
I’ve had a IVA and three IVB’s and prefer the B strictly for the Rhy2 channel which just feels a lot more alive to me. Interestingly, my 08 IVB was the only one with relatively usable spring reverb - I say relatively because none of them had particularly good or transparent reverb.

I got my first ever IVB head for $900 and when I listed it for $1500 and someone bought it an hour after posting I was really surprised. Skip forward a year and I was really kicking myself for selling it, so I’ll admit, I splurged a bit on a $2k IVB from almost the same year and similarly exc condition… and I think it was well worth that price but I really love the amp.

If you can stomach a combo, they go cheaper. My 08 was a short combo and was very nicely built with metal jacks all around instead of the plastic ones my 90s heads have, plus the C90 sounded amazing in it. I would’ve kept that one too but I just don’t have the space for combo amps. Sold that one for under $1750… screaming deal for essentially the same amp as the head plus a unique speaker… someone is very happy I’m sure
 
Yep, Scott is the man! He made me a head shell for my IIB+ and god damn it looks sharp (sweet amp too).

I scored my IVb a few years ago for $1300 just before prices jumped. Sent it to Mike B for a cap job and now it's a lifer. Always wanted to try the IVa but not in too much of a hurry. Obligatory Mark photo with the IIB+, IVb, and III++ Green Stripe (still missing the IIC+ sigh)

 
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