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Mesa Boogie Mark V Demo with Doc

So, Chris, I think I think you know a little bit about more about this one. So why don't you educate? Want you and Doc educate me about this guy? Because I'm very excited to have this. Yes. So on studio. Yeah. This is the makes Bookmark five, which is not the absolute newest Mesa Boogie, but it's still one of the newer ones and probably still my favorite of the new bases to be, you know, Hi, grain. Ah, high gain amplifier with their more American voice toe to power section. It came out a couple of years ago on, but still used very widely in the studios. You know, part of the reason why we have it in here was critical of class. That just happened with Steve Evitts and been lineman on recording guitars. This was the primary and that they were using. So we want to take a look at some of the tones that are possible out of this because admittedly like the control section looks a little bit daunting. Especially when people take a look at you. Got this graphic eq you. But you've got these oth...

er accuse over here and then you know you've got three different modes for each of the channels bright switches and everything. So you actually said you use one of these back when you're blind. Some shows with lamb of God, right? Yes. This head was used for the rehearsals. I'm not 100% sure was used in the library. I think he might have had a, um I was feeling for Mark Morton. So I think he actually is running a mark four in addition to a dual rectifier. But for the rehearsal I did. I did have have one of these, but like he said, I just have a mark three way back in the day. And there's definitely some complexities to the to the interface, which is for my taste is you know, I consider myself to be a layman and a lot of a lot of respects, so it can be intimidating, You know, sometimes, um, should we get sometimes first? Yeah. Okay. So I'm assuming you want the Red Channel in this guy Theo way. So yeah. So we're on the mark four mode right now. You know, each of these three channels has three different modes and the actual my favorite mode of the three distortion settings on here for channel three. But, you know, you could make it a little bit more classic standing by on then, you know, you could switch it down to extreme Theo. So one of the one of the main features that gives you a lot of versatility with this thing is that besides the CQ sections that are that air here with each of the channels which are passive eq you there's also two different options for active eq you that you can engage in free to these channels. You can see that there's a graphic eq you right there. But on top of that, you have these thes preset rotary knobs for graphic EQ you So you know, if you've got you know, your V sound or whatever that people tend to go for with some scoop ties and some scoop clothes like me, let me slide that on the distortion. Give me a little bit more stuff. So let's say you have you know, the exact graphic eq you that you would want to have dialed in with this previous mark. Amplifiers from Mesa Boogie, um, you know, always had attended have these graphic accused on there most of the models. But, you know, if you had this perfectly dialed in for Channel three, you might say this is pretty much what I want, but not exactly what I want on Channel two. And you know, like on a mark four or mark three. You would have just either had to deal with that and make it pretty close. Or you would have had to just bypass the graphic eq you and just use the channels. What's cool about this one is that each of these three little rotary knobs that are right here essentially do the same thing. Is this graphic eq you? If it's all the way to the left it, you know, you essentially have it flat on Ben. If you have an older one of the right, it's like extremely scooping the V there. So you know, let's say this is exactly how you wanted to have this channel dialed in, but you want to channel two to be a little more subtle on it. You could just, you know, set the rotary knob for Channel two, and then you have the graphic and let's take a look at Channel Teoh Way I've got I'm using this really extreme the queue here. But, you know, if I wanted to, I could set channel to do more of a subtle kind of sound. It's a little bit engaged. It's like, you know, I had that halfway set, so you know that that's always been like everything's about the same. So and then, uh, you know, the clean channels on it are pretty versatile as well. That's my favorite feature about the mark Siri's is that although you can get a really good high gain tone out of these, you know, the Queen channels are pretty versatile. Everything, uh, you know, that's what I've been a fan. It's It's just off all of the high gain amplifiers that Mason makes. I do think that the Mark five is maybe the most versatile one that they have, you know, whether that of the road King. But the king is very rectifier voiced. You know, this just has its own particular voice that I tend to personally prefer just just listen to it right now, it seems to have a bit more of that mid range cut. I think for me personally that I don't really find with the rectifier. Just listen. Even the I think the second channel almost feels vory Marsha Lee to me, which is JMP or something like that has a riel solid clarity in the upper minutes, which I really like. Theo. People don't know this. Most masons, including this one there actually is an option to put deal 34 tubes in there for you know, which of the tubes that are commonly found in Marshall's and a lot of Wagner's and so forth. So if you wanted to make it more British Voice, you could actually do that. Now you, uh what do you think? Right now? Right now, I'm playing through the fender made E V H 51 53. I've pretty much played most versions of the 51 50 from there, one to the 2 to 65 05 And I prefer this one the most because I find it to be one of my issues with the older 51 50 is what it got a bit saturated in the top end, which, for certain genres of music, works amazing, but as kind of my playing develop my song writing developed. I definitely wanted a little more clarity, and it I feel the distortion structure on the third channel, which is the highest gain channel, was the most work. Better for what I was doing. And a great feature with this one is there is a second channel, the Company Mid range kind of rock crunch tone. I'm doing a new band called Vagus Nerve, and I was playing in a cover band on When you Really Need a wide variety and versatility of of tones, it just it works incredible for that. You do You have watt winner of the 51 I have 100 watt warm, but the other guitar player in my band, it's got Mike gallon complacent man called Mother. He has the 50 while one that sounds incredible thing. That's great about that. Too fresh if you're doing a lot of local gigging, you don't want to carry something too heavy is more than enough power to playing clubs and stuff like that, and it's It's tiny. Get around. So when did you when did you switch and wanted going with the apple car? Well, I was with Randall for a bit and essentially my guy over there left and I was looking around. And then I was on the Mayhem Festival in and I was having issue with my Randall set up. We're doing a gig with Tribune. Inquiry from Tribune had 51 53. I tried it out. My sound guy loved it. He was like, Oh, my God, that sounds so good. So it took me about a year from that time before I before I got one. Once I got it, I fell in love with it. And we planned ever since, you know. So about four years now, since they came out, they seem to be pretty ubiquitous. How I'm seeing him all over the place. You know, I know the guys from Jerry's and I'm the gas medication or using them, you know, they're profitable. Yeah. I mean, that was one of things that I was much like Love the original 51 50. Yeah, it wasn't always as versatile as an amplifier. Actually, my favorite use of the Clean Channel on an old 51 50 is actually a distortion chattel. I My favorite trick on that thing is to put it on crunch and then crank the gain on that. And my favorite distortion channel on a 51 is the queen. I think that's what machine had actually did. I could be wrong so broad. Flynn. Don't call me up in a yell at me, but I think that that I think that's a day. My actions. You use the clean tone and use some distortion pedals. It gets pretty much as distorted as the distortion channel you like. I like and I had a crank home like two o'clock three Within Crunch now pushing and nothing gets really heavy. Well, I think my, um, philosophy philosophy about answers kind of ah, evolved over the years. I look a bit like Kill, switch, engage like every time I see them, they're playing different. And But every time I see them, they sound incredible. Eso A lot of times it's really about the player on. And I looked like Tom Morello, the guys using the same gear since how you literally the same head, same everything. You know, guitar, you know, so beat up. But he sounds great and it's just a matter of you know what? You're going to sound like what you sound like. And if you have something that works, you know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. So that's kind of kind of were out on that right now. Yeah, well, I just wanted to talk a little bit about kind of how your taste in gear have changed recently. So, you know, the band you were, God forbid, was just a straight for metal band about his metal is metal gets you're doing more rock kind of stuff now. So, um however, your have your tastes and gear changed, uh, after that transition, Well, I think one of the common things that happens with new players is you get into a band like Metallica, Pantera Slayer and you get a little crappy combo amp. And your first interrogated distortion pedal in. Your first instinct is turned the game on 1000 because you want to sound like your favorite favorite bands. But, you know, technique suffers, and we had a great experience. God forbid was our first record was recorded with Steve Evitts. You guys after just had in here. And he is a bit of a, you know, a tone snob in a purist. You know, the audio file. So, you know, he really honed in on bringing the gain down, you know, taking a two band, two men pushing the power section, getting getting really loud and allowing the actual that right hand to really create the heaviness he had freeze. There's no heaviness button on the on the board, you know, It kind of it comes from your hand. So if you actually listen to the 1st 2 God forbid records, they're actually fairly low gain for release for the genre and a lot of mid range. A lot of clarity could really hear the distinct of picking. And then we kind of delved out of that on other records because we, you know, somehow you know, it's like, All right, what? We did this. And this is kind of the audio the right way to do it. But, you know, let's break a few rules. Adul Morgaine. Let's kind of scoop it out a little bit more, so we So we kind of went back and forth with tones with the past few records. But now that I'm playing in some different projects, what you're, you know, tones or everything for me. So sometimes let's say I'm working on a part. I'll be working like a plug in, like amplitude or something. You know, for me, I'll work on the part for maybe an hour. Just trying different sounds, trying different offensive. It affects the way you play and affect how you right? You can't just like decouple those two things. You have the right tone that's gonna make you write a certain kind of riff because it sounds so. God damn good. Yeah, sometimes. And it's also not just that I will. You know, I have a few different guitars and this guitar in this particular pickup set, you know, setting my work the best for a particular part. But to me, tone tone is everything. And I'm still a little old school. I don't have a big midi set up like I'm still toe tapping and and hop around because I feel especially with the band doing vagus nerve, which it's very ambient. You know, when I need to create kind of a soundscape, let's give the singer room Teoh kind of do do his thing and not stopover that sometimes it's known when it kind of back off on your on your on your volume out and really get in there with dynamic. So if I'm playing, I'm doing something, knowing when to kind of bring it. Bring it down a little bit. And then when you bring it, you don't play with the dynamics that's watch one of the oldest conventions and rock music is kind of like the light verse and the heavy court could band like Nirvana, you know, because it works because, you know, what I like about God forbid is you guys were, uh, influencing sound right when a lot of this stamp sea change was happening, you know, right when people were moving from pretty much either. Like, you know what you're old like, Not as good, solid state amps on, Do you know, all of like, the sought after him for tube? And then right around then was one. A lot of like the newer digital technologies were changed. Things that I remember actually seen you guys open up for Dillinger. I think it Birch Hill Rafter determination came out and you guys actually had line six amps on stage before. I think anyone else I have seen using their what model was there was actually the original Flex Tone one. And, you know, one of the one of the things The reason why we got that was because I think maybe about six months show before we got them, we saw Ben Nevermore. This is, you know, eso is Jeff Loomis, but also the other guy, Tim Calvert playing and we were like with really crappy club in Jersey called obsessions was a lot of people went right to the front asking questions about the and heard him Cue it up and he was just ripping. It sounded awesome. So, like like, that's an easy solution. Because, you know, you don't have to get a bunch of pedals, everything is built in. It's got the course, has got the delay of the press. One button. I mean clean. You know, I've actually going on YouTube. It looked at some old footage from back then, and the tone live is actually very, very good. But what ended up happening was we did a tour in the UK with his bank old stamping ground, and they had a 51 fifties. Is there something about the tubes and about the way it pushes behind you. And there's a you know, a growl and something you can feel that just, you know, it just sounded heavier. It sounded balls here, so we ended up making making the switch. But when they had to say about that line that line six and that was actually the secret to the tone on her album, Constitution of Treason. While we're mixing the record, the main tone is actually a 51 52. What we're doing revamping. We're just, you know, Eric Rachel was mixed in a track season. New Jersey hitting the wall. Just something wasn't happening. So he went. He got an idea Grab that are old flex tone one did on the re, amp and all the picking clarity on that record. And still, this day, some people think it's the best guitar tone we got. But there's definitely if anything you could say about it. It's very unique. There's something distinct about I think, that we were doing that maybe no one else is doing