Tell me about the Mesa Mark IV

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Jimty said:
The answer to this will depend on who you ask. I predict the discussion that’s going to follow will include the following:

1) There’s no material difference.

2) The A is way better.

3) The B is way better.

4) The rare transitional A/B is the best of the best.

5) There’s no such thing as an A/B - Mike B suggested as much below.

I

Thread 'Questions about Mesa MKIV AB (transitional model)'

Hey All,

Apologies if this post is in the wrong spot. I am aware there is a Mesa MK IV A version and a MK IV B version. There is a transitional period sometimes referred to as an AB version (where I assume mesa was using whatever parts were leftover), in the transition from A to B. Supposedly this was relatively limited to serials 6k-roughly 6200. My B is 6206 and appears at first glance to be one of these transitional models.

I was always under the impression the transitional models had no difference from a normal B (minus, essentially, cosmetics), but wanted to confirm that is the...

6) But I have an A/B and I can hear a difference…..

For what it’s worth I have an A/B (or a very early B, depending on who you ask) with chassis number 5860. I’ve no idea how it compares to an early A or a later B. All I know is that you’ve so many tonal options that you can get a huge range of sounds out of it and it’s an amp I plug into and always smile. It’s great. I don’t think you can go wrong with an A or a B or whatever is in between (if anything).
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I am considering grabbing a IV and really have no idea if I should go A or B. Which one is more open sounding? Do you also know which revision Lamb of god used?
 
My favorite is when someone goes to the extreme of saying the Rev A is trash.

My second favorite is when they say R2 channel is trash.

The difference between A and B comes down to preference period.

Most people play R2 in full power mode, which I admit is sort of bland sounding especially when you compare it to the crunch channel of the V or VII. Play that fucker in tweed power mode and then the goodness will come out of R2.
 
PurityS.L.G said:
My second favorite is when they say R2 channel is trash.
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Well, I've always been more of a thrash guy than a trash guy, so... :whistle::cool:

And switching to tweed mode *just* to make R2 sound useable defeats the purpose of having a 3 channel amp where all 3 channels sound great. 😉
 
Speeddemon said:
Well, I've always been more of a thrash guy than a trash guy, so... :whistle::cool:

And switching to tweed mode *just* to make R2 sound useable defeats the purpose of having a 3 channel amp where all 3 channels sound great. 😉
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This only matters to metal guys who only use channel 3 and want it as big and bold as possible. They’re not gonna use channel 2 anyway. People who really like to engage the variety in the amp will set it many different ways to get what they need. All channels sound fine if you set the amp to Tweed, even for high gain.
 
PurityS.L.G said:
My favorite is when someone goes to the extreme of saying the Rev A is trash.

My second favorite is when they say R2 channel is trash.

The difference between A and B comes down to preference period.

Most people play R2 in full power mode, which I admit is sort of bland sounding especially when you compare it to the crunch channel of the V or VII. Play that fucker in tweed power mode and then the goodness will come out of R2.
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Fredrik Thordendal has a Rev A for example
 
Catthan said:
My only comment on getting Marshall-style crunch tones out of them is that whilst you can do so convincingly, they feel a bit different under the fingers - Boogie feels somewhat stiffer but that's just an observation, not critique, and wouldn't deter me from using a IV like this in a recording.
Same as the crunch channel on a Tremoverb recto.

@TheGreatGreen, are we effectively hearing the influence of the recording chain being greater than the amp circuitry?- presumably some type of brit cab w. G12s etc?
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Nope! I used the same blend of four IR's I always do:

1. Mesa Recto V30 4x12 - SM57
2. Mesa Recto V30 4x12 - 4047
3. Creamback 2x12 - SM57
4. Creamback 2x12- M160

I used this exact same blend with most of my Wizard MC2 and Uber Ultra clips you can find in my Soundcloud uploads, and I used these same IR's for the Master of Puppets cover and the Mark IV "preamp-centric" clip from the same post.

All I did for the "Marshall style" example was adjust the EQ knobs, GEQ, Drive controls, and master amp's controls, and a voicing switch or two until I got something that sounded like my Suhr SL68 to my ears. Mesa Marks are just really, really versatile.

I agree with you that the Mark doesn't feel all that much like the Plexi, you're right about that. But for tracking, I think you can get the IV fairly close.
 
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Good amp. Had a B for many years. Not touch sensitive; pretty compressed, if that’s your thing.

Very clean clean. If you like a gritty clean, you need to run gain on 10. Good loop. Lead is great and signature sound, but not dynamic. Again, lots of compression. A JCM 800 way less compressed and open sounding, for example.

But it does a lot of things well. You can tell I don’t like a lot of compression and I realized that with this amp.

The IIC+ is a better amp, IMO, since IV R2 is useless and IIC+ more dynamic
 
I’m pretty sure Lamb Of God used the rev B. At least 3 of 4 heads in this rig rundown looks like IVb, with the smoother tolex and the rounder EQ slider knobs. Only the top one in Willie’s rig looks like it could be an A, but it could also be an early B.

I’ve had both, but prefer the A myself.

 
skoora said:
This only matters to metal guys who only use channel 3 and want it as big and bold as possible. They’re not gonna use channel 2 anyway. People who really like to engage the variety in the amp will set it many different ways to get what they need. All channels sound fine if you set the amp to Tweed, even for high gain.
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I'm just sayin', if my Rev A Mark IV's R2 channel sounded anything like the Mark V(:25)'s Crunch Mode, I'd never sold it. :censored:
And believe me, I tried all the switching options.
 

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NineShallDie said:
I’m pretty sure Lamb Of God used the rev B. At least 3 of 4 heads in this rig rundown looks like IVb, with the smoother tolex and the rounder EQ slider knobs. Only the top one in Willie’s rig looks like it could be an A, but it could also be an early B.

I’ve had both, but prefer the A myself.

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Ah, not sure about LOG’s stuff - when I agreed with peterc52 that was about the A being the more open of the two Mark IVs.
 
Buy one and send it to Mike B to do a Bias mod and then gain mod to the lead channel. When I worked with Mesa back in the 90's Mike did 2 heads for me. One I kept and the other went to Mark Snyder, who had hooked me up with Mesa to begin with. I sold my Dual Rec. Rev C. #31 which I got directly from them but my Mark IV is still here. Oh, I also had a Mark II C+ that went when I got it. Channel 2 isnt too bad for lower crunch type tones and was mentioned its a great pedal platform. Good luck!
 
phil b said:
Buy one and send it to Mike B to do a Bias mod and then gain mod to the lead channel. When I worked with Mesa back in the 90's Mike did 2 heads for me. One I kept and the other went to Mark Snyder, who had hooked me up with Mesa to begin with. I sold my Dual Rec. Rev C. #31 which I got directly from them but my Mark IV is still here. Oh, I also had a Mark II C+ that went when I got it. Channel 2 isnt too bad for lower crunch type tones and was mentioned its a great pedal platform. Good luck!
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Gain mod?
 
ultimatemetalguitartones said:
Gain mod?
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Yep. Mike did it before I even got it. I told Mark what I was looking for which was more gain that a stock 2c+ and he asked Mike if he would do it. Mark was kinda excited that Mike said yes and ordered 2. I couldnt afford 2 even at artist pricing cause I had also picked up diamond plate cabs and some custom switchers, but he wanted to keep one for himself anyway, which he did. I spoke to Mike about it when I sent it in for service about 10 years? ago. He said all it was just a resistor. Back then him and Mark called it the "Metallica mod". When I asked him he didnt even remember calling it that at all.. LOL
 
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