Mesa/Boogie Mark 5 Owner'S Manual Download Page 30

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MARK IV

(Mode Select Switch Center):

This Mode revitalizes the most recent MARK Series amplifier and brings its iconic sound forward for this - and future generations to

enjoy with a whole new set of features and a new plateau of versatility. The

MARK V’s

predecessor, the MARK IV,

was built continually for eighteen years – all that time winning new fans around the globe, proving that the MARK Series
sound can’t be outdated by changing styles, trends or advances in technology… it’s a classic and here to stay.

In comparison to the MARK II-C+ Mode, the MARK IV mode is infused with more low mid and has an attack charac-
teristic that is wider and less pointed in the upper midrange. The bottom end goes down lower and has more gain as

well, giving the sound thickness and girth that produces huge, ominous crunch chords and smooth vocal single note sounds. These
circuit differences create a different feel as well, and the MARK IV Mode feels creamier and gives the impression of less resistance
on the strings - making it easier to play for many guitarists. The slightly less-instantaneous attack created by the addition of low end
makes the IV Mode feel a little slower and less like your picking technique is ”under the microscope” which can be either freedom or
lack of definition - depending on your point of view and stylistic needs.

For lower gain sounds the MARK IV Mode will have more air and three-dimensionality than its C+ counterpart.  Some nice purring
threshold-of-clip sounds can be found with the GAIN set very low (9:00 – 10:00) and the TREBLE around12:30.  With the GAIN this
low you can dial in quite a bit of BASS (11:00 – 1:30) before things get too tubby, letting you really move some air.  Here is also a great
place to experiment with both the TRIODE/PENTODE switch positions and/or the POWER MODES.  The 90 watt setting in combination
with PENTODE will produce a bold, punchy sound that will let you jab with authority.  The 45 and 10 watt settings in combination with
TRIODE will give you a more laid back attack characteristic and a more harmonically complex voice filled with nuance.

High gain sounds in the IV Mode are fat!  The lower bass frequencies combined with the added gain in the low mids makes for the
biggest crunch chording sounds in the entire amp.  In these applications you will have to watch the setting of the BASS control more
carefully as the lower frequency bottom end can get bloated much faster.  If you are looking for huge bottom end with high gain set-
tings, it is wise to turn to the Graphic EQ SLIDERS or PRESET to achieve this.  The BASS control dumps too much sub-low into the
signal path at a point earlier in the preamp.  This gets amplified over and over until it turns to flub where as the Graphic EQ comes at
the end of the signal chain and adds low end to the “finished preamp sound”.

The Channel-global NORMAL/BRIGHT switch is very effective at bringing forward the upper region of harmonics – especially when
using the MARK IV Mode for high gain chording and even single note sounds.  When adding this upper-stratosphere layer of tone
by engaging the BRIGHT position, it may be necessary to reduce the PRESENCE control (which contains a narrower, adjustable
band of these highs) in order to arrive at the sound that is right for your application.  Some people are very sensitive to these upper
highs – hearing them as edgy, buzzy and unpleasant.  For those players the NORMAL position was provided to notch them out almost
completely.  We feel they are an important part of the spectrum as they give the sound spacial width, openness and the beautiful layer
of stacked harmonics we work so hard to achieve. However, they must be blended in as an integral part of the sound.

This can be achieved in a number of ways once you’ve decided to include this region of the spectrum with the BRIGHT switch such as
the rotary Tone Controls, the Graphic EQ, The TRIODE/PENTODE switch, the speaker cabinet and finally… a big component people
tend not to look at, their guitar and its’ pickups. Even their own individual picking and fingering technique and the gauge of strings
they use – all of these factors will affect the type and amount of high harmonics that can be introduced and still sound balanced - one
integrated tone – rather than shrill or even annoying. This is a good time to make one point about the MARK IV.

Pickups are a huge factor and ingredient in the overall character of your tone. Many players stick with one instrument and if they are
having trouble dialing in a sound on their amp they overlook the fact that the sound begins – and is largely defined by – what is sent
to the amp from their instrument.

High gain sounds are especially sensitive to the output and voicing of pickups and even more so, to the amount of high end that is

frOnt panel: M

ODeS

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Continued

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MK II C+

EXTREME

EQ ON

EQ FS

90 W

10 W