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 | Download Example 1 Channel 2, MKI setting - Les Paul Std. Treble Pickup |
| Download Example 2 Channel 1, 45W Fat Setting - Tele, Neck Pickup |
| Download Example 3 Channel 2, Edge Setting - Tele, Neck Pickup |
| Download Example 4 Channel 1 Clean 10W - Les Paul Custom, Rhythm Pickup |
| Download Example 5 Mark IIC+ - Les Paul Custom, Neck Pickup |
| Download Example 6 Mark IIC+ - Les Paul Custom, Bridge Pickup |
| Download Example 7 Mark IV Extreme Setting - Caparison |
| All clips recorded through Boogie 1x12 closed-back WideBody cab, Sennheiser 421 through Groove Tube Vipre Preamp into Pro Tools. Clips 1-4, Rich Tozzoli. Clips 5-7, Brandon Ellis. | |
Redefining “Feature Rich”
Upon removing the Mark V from the well-padded shipping box, I immediately noticed the knobs are recessed further than on the Mark IV. It’s a good thing, because they stick out too far on the Mark IV—I’ve sheared several of them off mine. I was a bit surprised to find the sturdy, eight-button aluminum footswitch separate from the head. The Mark IV footswitch connects directly to the rear (though not easily) and protects the tubes. Although the Mark V’s controller comes with a pouch, it would be nice to have a spare pocket for the cable, because you can’t really fit both inside. And if you lose the cable at a gig, well, you’re in trouble. Aside from that, my overall first impression is certainly one of a well-built, tank-like piece of gear—typical Mesa/Boogie.
Sitting it atop a Marshall 4x12 loaded with Celestions, I looked over all the controls (23 knobs, 17 switches, and a five-band EQ). Because I’m so used to the Mark IV, it was probably not as daunting a view as others might find it to be. While there’s no denying the sound of that head, there’s also talk out there that it’s confusing to use, and I could see how others might feel that way about it. But I was relieved once I figured out how the Mark V is laid out. It has three distinct channel sections, followed by the EQ and Master outputs. Whereas the Mark IV combines several knobs (such as R1/R2 Bass and Mid), each Mark V channel features independent Gain, Master, Presence, Treble, Mid, and Bass controls. Each channel also has a number of toggle switches to select various modes and power/operating-class options. So right off the bat, it makes more sense than the Mark IV.
The Whole Mark Series in One Amp
The five-band graphic EQ, which is found on all the Mark series amps, features the same frequency choices (80, 240, 750, 2200 and 6600Hz). But, unlike on the Mark IV, it can be assigned to each channel independently. A small, three-position toggle switch on each channel allows you to bypass the graphic EQ completely (center), leave it on all the time (top), or turn it on and off with the footswitch (down). A small LED above the Power/Standby switches lights up when it’s on, so you can see if it’s bypassed or engaged. Taking this a step further, on either side of the EQ are a set of three rotary Preset controls and a set of associated Slider/Preset switches. With the switches, each channel can be assigned to Sliders (up) or Preset (down), where the amount of the EQ in the signal can be dialed in using the three Preset knobs. Like many others, I’ve always found that the classic “V” shape works best, and this new setup is a different way to blend in the amount of EQ you want for each channel.
Also common to each channel section, but unique to the Mark V, is a toggle switch that lets you independently select three power modes. Toggling up gives you the most power and headroom with 90 watts. In this mode, all four output tubes are in-line, but in two different classes of operation. The outside pair run in class AB and run cooler, while the inside pair run in “extended” class A and have a reduced bias. The fact that they all work together simultaneously is where the term Simul-Class originates. The middle toggle position is 45 watts (extended class A, push-pull). Here, only the middle tubes are running in extended class A with a reduced bias. What’s cool in this position is that, with Channels 1 and 2, you can then choose the type of high-voltage rectifier that best fits your style. Two small toggle switches on the rear offer Diodes or Tube settings. The former provides maximum punch and impact, and the latter reduces headroom and gives a more classic feel. And, finally, toggling down causes the channel to operate at 10 watts (class A, single-ended). Single-ended design emphasizes the second harmonic, and on the Mark V the two tubes next to the 5U4 power supply are wired in parallel. The 10-watt mode delivers the most old-school, spongy feel of them all.
Other features that differentiate the Mark V from the Mark IV—and any other Boogie, for that matter—are the three Reverb knobs on the rear panel. Each channel features its own reverb, and by turning the knob (mix control) to the off position, the ’verb is bypassed. It is a very nice-sounding reverb. Also on the back is a useful 1/4" Tuner Output, which can be used silently by tapping Mute on the foot controller. You can also pull on the front Solo control to activate silent tuning. There’s a Bias Select switch on the back, as well, and it allows you to replace the stock 6L6s with EL34s. You can also choose to run 6V6 tubes—but only on the Variac Power setting.
The Mark V also has two incredibly useful master output controls. The Output controls the overall output of the Mark V, but only when the effects loop is engaged. For the purest tone, you can choose the Hard Bypass toggle switch on the rear panel, which removes all effects loop circuitry from the chain, leaving your channel Master in control. The Solo control is wired in series with the Output and can be set higher and activated with the footswitch to give you a volume boost—it’s not active when the footswitch is not attached. That’s one feature that was certainly designed by a real-world player.
Plugging In
Despite all the similarities and differences, it’s really all about the tone. To begin with, this amp has a totally killer clean sound. Playing through both the Marshall 4x12 and a Boogie 1x12 WideBody closed-back cab, it delivered on all three wattage settings. My main guitars are a Les Paul Custom and a Telecaster, and both were quite happy to be playing through this monster. It’s got a sense of clarity, crispness, and punch that even my Mark IV doesn’t have. Damn! The night after I got the amp, I brought it out to a jam and had the house guitarist, Joel Newton, check it out. Coincidentally, he brought his 30-plus-year-old Mark I that night, so we listened to each amp side by side. As Joel played his Gibson ES-335 through the Mark V, I stood back and listened to exactly what I’d heard at my studio: clean, clear, wide, fat tone. “I liked it and thought it was punchy, with a vintage, tubey sound,” he told me. “It seemed like a mix of vintage tube sound… big mids but with a more shimmery, clear high end than my Mark I—almost like a boutique amp.”
On a funky, groovy number, I plugged my Tele in and opened up Channel 2 in Mark I mode and Normal setting. With medium gain and running at 45 watts with a tube rectifier, it was sweet. I easily punched through the jam, and I felt like I had full control over my individual notes and chords, and with volume to spare. I was able to dig into the Tele and break the amp up more as I picked harder, which was exactly what I was looking for. It definitely takes some tweaking to find what you want on this amp (sometimes it was too thick for me, sometimes too crunchy) but you can’t love every sound when it has so many to offer.
Back home at my studio a week later, I had 17-year-old wunderkind Brandon Ellis come check it out. Ellis, who last year ventured to Sweden to study guitar, played my Les Paul and his Caparison Horus with EMG 85s. I had him sit down at the amp without explaining anything. It took him a bit to look it over and dial it in, as was to be expected from someone seeing this thing for the first time. He set the Gain on Channel 3 at 3 o’clock, with a 90-watt, Mark IIC+ mode and Pentode setting. Listening to the online audio examples, you can hear a crisp Les Paul playing a lick in E-flat tuning, as well as a heavier lick from his Caparison tuned to C#. He also dialed in an Extreme mode setting with Diode rectifier, which is a high-gain setting pulled from the Mark IV. “It was more dynamic than I expected,” he reported. “It was confusing to work with at first, but once I sat with it, it was okay. It’s a more organic, woody-sounding amp than I’m used to playing, versus the processed and compressed sound that I typically use. It’s great for single-note lead work.”
The Final Mojo
The Mark V is not for everyone—especially those who want a simple amp. It’s a somewhat complex, seething monster of sound that is a living history of what Mesa/Boogie has offered—with new capabilities thrown in. But with a little time and effort, you can go from very clean to very mean and pretty much everywhere in between. The flexible design also allows it to be as comfortable onstage as it is in the studio. It’s not cheap, hitting the streets at around $2K, but this is clearly a case where you can be fully confident you’re getting what you pay for. With the Mark V, Mesa/Boogie has released another winner, and I suspect it will be around for many years to come.
Buy if...
you want the ultimate in flexibility and everything the Mark series has offered at your fingertips.
Skip if...
any more than two knobs is too many, or if you just want a single-channel amp.
Rating...
Street $1990 (head) $469 (WideBody closed-back 1x12) - Mesa/Boogie - mesaboogie.com |
LR Baggs Align Reverb Acoustic Reverb Pedal
The Align Series Reverb was built from the ground up to complement the natural body dynamics and warmth of acoustic instruments that we love so much. The circuit seamlessly integrates the wet and dry signals with the effect in side chain so that it never overwhelms the original signal. We shaped the reverb with analog EQ to reflect the natural voice inherent in acoustic instruments. Additionally, the tone control adds versatility by sweeping from warm and muted to open and present. The result is an organic reverb that maintains the audiophile purity of the original signal with the controls set in any position.
Epiphone Firebird I
When Gibson debuted the Firebird I and Firebird V in 1963, the design was as innovative as it was radical. Like the Flying V and Explorer, the Firebird seemed Martian—or at least like a work of futurist art, with its offset body shape, extended lower and upper bouts, reverse headstock, and through-body neck.
Firebirds came in three versions: The single-pickup Firebird I, the two-humbucker Firebird V, and the three-pickup Firebird VII, with the latter two featuring a Vibrola tailpiece, trapezoid inlays, and neck binding. The first time I saw a Firebird in action, it was in the hands of Johnny Winter, who gave no quarter as he ripped conflagrant solos from its fretboard, but Brian Jones, Clapton, Allen Collins, Paul Stanley, and Phil Manzanera also helped make the model a legend. Original ’60s Firebird V’s sell for as much as $35,000, and reissues peak at nearly $10,000 for the Gibson Custom Shop’s ’63 Firebird V. That’s a lot of dough to look badass on stage. But now, Epiphone—in collaboration with Gibson’s Custom Shop—has taken high-quality reissues of the 1963 Firebird I and V into a more affordable realm. They’re still pricey for an Epi’, at $1,299 and $1,699, respectively, but undeniably brimming with panache.
“I was surprised by how sweet and heavy Gibson’s Firebird Mini Humbuckers sound. There is nothing mini about their tone.”
An’ a I, an’ a V
Our review Firebirds arrived impeccably set up, with action low enough for speed, but high enough for slide—my comfort zone, coincidentally. They are handsome guitars too. The I is finished in gleaming cherry, while the V is decked out in vintage sunburst and a shiny Vibrola tailpiece.
The necks are the not-so-secret weapons on these models. They are 9-ply mahogany and walnut (original Firebirds have a 5-ply neck), sandwiched between mahogany wings, but both guitars are still fairly light. The I is 7 1/2 pounds and the V weighs about 9 pounds due to the additional pickup and bridge hardware. There are 22 comfortable, medium-jumbo frets, which allow easy navigation and elegant bends, a Graph Tech nut, dot neck inlays on the I and trapezoids on the V, a classic Gibson-scale neck length of 24 3/4", and an Indian laurel fretboard. The banjo-style Kluson Planetary tuners, as well as the reverse headstock, take time to get to use to, but contribute to the instruments sleek, clean lines. The Firebird I’s electronics are simply a master volume and tone, with CTS pots and Mallory caps inside, in service of a warm-to-cutting single alnico 5 Gibson USA Firebird Mini Humbucker. The V offers more ways to shape your tone: The Vibrola is cool and vibey and there’s a classic four-dial Gibson control set (also routed through Mallory caps and CTS pots), a 3-way pickup switch on the lower bout, and a pair of those Gibson USA Firebird Mini Humbuckers.
Epiphone Firebird V
Trial by Firebird
I was sure I would prefer the Firebird V playing experience, because I am typically a neck-pickup player, but both guitars revealed sonic charms through Carr Vincent and Telstar amps running in stereo, my vintage Marshall Super Lead, and a Positive Grid Spark.
Low-action setups on both accommodate everything from campfire chords to screaming single-note playing past the 12th fret, with the perfectly smooth fret ends and comfortable neck making it all a pleasure. The neck broadens to 2 1/4" at the body, from 1 3/4" at the nut, making it easy to hit high notes accurately. But what really excited me, besides how artful these guitars look, is the power and sound of the pickups.
I was surprised by how sweet and heavy Gibson’s Firebird Mini Humbuckers sound. There is nothing mini about their tone, whether slashing and growling through the Marshall or pouring thick honey out of the Carrs. And through the Spark, a highly pleasing snarl and juicy warmth were all on tap. Despite my predilection for neck pickups, I became really excited by the Firebird I. The simplicity and elegance of its look, streamlined controls, clean surface, and light weight made the I a joy to play, especially with the treble rolled to near-zero. There, early Clapton-esque tone was a cinch to find, and for blues and pseudo-jazz-licks (the best I can muster in that genre), the warmth and clarity were delightful. Despite its basic construction, the Epiphone Firebird I is assuredly more than a rock machine.
Sure, having the addition of a neck pickup on the Firebird V provides a wider selection of tones, but the voices achievable on the I were no less winning and, honestly, I could not find any pickup-and-dial configuration on the V that sounded all that different or better than those available on the I. But, ah, a Vibrola is a very nice appointment—not just for its grand appearance, which is like some antiquarian treasure, but for the subtle bends its enables. If atmospheric guitar tones from the Ventures to Hermanos Gutiérrez are your passion, you’d want the Vibrola, which stays remarkably in tune, given its relatively primitive design.
The Verdict
Make no mistake: With their uncommonly proportioned offset bodies and reverse headstocks, guitars like the Epiphone Firebird I and V require time to get acquainted. But if you’re unafraid to stand out from the crowd, these instruments will serve you visually and sonically. Both play well and offer a good scope of vintage tones—from aggressive to dark maple sugar—with simple dial adjustments. And while many other Epiphone models sell for less, these well-crafted copies of original Gibson designs provide custom-shop or boutique-builder quality at a much lower price. PG
