Ive been thinking lately that my Mesa Mark IV is not cutting it anymore. I put a Maxon OD808 in front of it and I'm still not satisfied(Dont get me wrong, this amp is one of the best Ive had, but for in your face metal, Im not happy). People have been telling me to check out the Engl Powerball. What do you guys use for balls to the wall metal? Im also interested in hearing this new VHT Deliverance head. What does Andy use on most of his recordings?
Mother of all metal amps
- Thread starter ptgeek911
- Start date
Jackal_Strain
Sigurd Løberg
Ermz
¯\(°_o)/¯
Had a shootout recently of a:
Peavey JSX
Peavey 6505+
ENGL Powerball
Mesa Triple Rectifier
And the rectifier blew everyones' heads off. Unbelievable metal amp. I always tend to favor the Mesa gear. If you like the character of the Mark IV, it may be a logical step to check out the rectifiers.
Peavey JSX
Peavey 6505+
ENGL Powerball
Mesa Triple Rectifier
And the rectifier blew everyones' heads off. Unbelievable metal amp. I always tend to favor the Mesa gear. If you like the character of the Mark IV, it may be a logical step to check out the rectifiers.
RootBoundApollo
Member
I dig my Krank Revolution a lot. Andy used Kranks on the newest Arch Enemy and Nevermore albums and those are probably my two favorite heavy guitar tones that I've ever heard
Mood Bender
Member
+1 those two are why I have a Revolution...
I enjoy playing my Revolution as much or more than any I have.
KeithRT99
BOOSH.
TheDude
Jocke Skog
Take any PODxt, set output to "Stack Pwramp", plug it into any power amplifier (+100W), and connect it to your favourite 4x12.
You can get any tone from Bitch Boys to Meshuggah, if you practise the tweaking a tad.
You can get any tone from Bitch Boys to Meshuggah, if you practise the tweaking a tad.
Mood Bender
Member
RootBoundApollo
Member
Truth, but the snarl on those albums seems to be a characteristic of the Krank more so than the Mesa.
KillDivision
Member
Jackal_Strain
Sigurd Løberg
They're too expensive! I can't justify paying that much for an amp when I can get a 5150 for a third of the price. And I think it sounds better!
Exocaster
Nozzle
- Aug 29, 2005
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Before we go blindly recommending amps:
What are you going for tonally, and what is it you don't like about the Mark IV? What, specifically, is the Mark IV not doing for you?
If I may ask, what are your Mark IV settings? The Mark IV's controls are sort of counterintuitive compared to a more "normal" amp. It's very mid-heavy, to the point where you can't really dial out mids without the graphic EQ, and the amp's bass control adds more mud than anything past about three or four on the dial. And it's very dark without turning the treble up. Despite all these seeming "issues", the Mark IV is actually capable of a wide variety of tones due to the graphic EQ and power stage options.
I used the following settings with an EMG-loaded Jackson tuned to B or A for death metal with my Mark IV. With a boost pedal and the EMGs, it was the tightest thing going next to possibly a VHT.
Lead Channel, Full Power, Simul-class (Mesa EL34s and NOS GE 6L6GCs), Triode.
Lead gain- 8, Fat Pulled
Bass- 3
Mids- 4
Treble- 8
Lead drive- 6
Presence- varies, depending on room
Graphic EQ- Boost 80hz, cut 240hz, leave 800hz flat, boost 2200hz slightly, boost 6600hz.
Boost settings (I used a Boss SD-1): Level 5:00, tone 1:00, Gain 7:00
...and a cab with Vintage 30s.
What are you going for tonally, and what is it you don't like about the Mark IV? What, specifically, is the Mark IV not doing for you?
If I may ask, what are your Mark IV settings? The Mark IV's controls are sort of counterintuitive compared to a more "normal" amp. It's very mid-heavy, to the point where you can't really dial out mids without the graphic EQ, and the amp's bass control adds more mud than anything past about three or four on the dial. And it's very dark without turning the treble up. Despite all these seeming "issues", the Mark IV is actually capable of a wide variety of tones due to the graphic EQ and power stage options.
I used the following settings with an EMG-loaded Jackson tuned to B or A for death metal with my Mark IV. With a boost pedal and the EMGs, it was the tightest thing going next to possibly a VHT.
Lead Channel, Full Power, Simul-class (Mesa EL34s and NOS GE 6L6GCs), Triode.
Lead gain- 8, Fat Pulled
Bass- 3
Mids- 4
Treble- 8
Lead drive- 6
Presence- varies, depending on room
Graphic EQ- Boost 80hz, cut 240hz, leave 800hz flat, boost 2200hz slightly, boost 6600hz.
Boost settings (I used a Boss SD-1): Level 5:00, tone 1:00, Gain 7:00
...and a cab with Vintage 30s.
Thanks so much for the settings man. But I think the Mark IV is getting the boot anyway. I looked at the Krank Revolution, and it blew me away. Im going to go try to tweak the Mark IV a little more, but it looks like the Krank is what Im gunning for.
Gnash
Lefty
aramism
Member
tried and true over and over again, the dual rectifier is the mighty of the mighty.
if you like the mark iv but aren't happy with the "metalness" then like moonlapse stated, you might like the dual recto.
if you can try to get one off ebay, the 2 ch dual rectifier from the early 90's has the most fabled recto sound. i have the road king series 1 myself and the ch3 on it according to mesa tech mike t. is a faithful reproduction of the 2 channels second distortion channel dubbed "orange"
it sounds great for balls metal. i also really like the "cut" you get on a road king when you engage the el34's in addition to the quad 6L6's especially in the vintage mode on ch3 with the rectifier setting to tube rectified.
sounds good with the right pups. i prefer my C tuned ibanez with dimarzio EVOS. sounds very very tight. or my ibanez 7 string with a dimarzio blaze in bridge
if you like the mark iv but aren't happy with the "metalness" then like moonlapse stated, you might like the dual recto.
if you can try to get one off ebay, the 2 ch dual rectifier from the early 90's has the most fabled recto sound. i have the road king series 1 myself and the ch3 on it according to mesa tech mike t. is a faithful reproduction of the 2 channels second distortion channel dubbed "orange"
it sounds great for balls metal. i also really like the "cut" you get on a road king when you engage the el34's in addition to the quad 6L6's especially in the vintage mode on ch3 with the rectifier setting to tube rectified.
sounds good with the right pups. i prefer my C tuned ibanez with dimarzio EVOS. sounds very very tight. or my ibanez 7 string with a dimarzio blaze in bridge
