Dialing in my Dual ERECT & Mark X

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drewiv

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I'm not a Mesa guy and I really purchased both of these modules for guest players. For some reason I got a wild hair up my behind and plugged them both in my MOD50 for Mesa Monday night. I can't get them dialed in, AT ALL. I can't even get them close. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Am I trying to dial in a Marshall tone? Do I really just not like Mesas? I know these are great modules as a bunch of you out there rave about them. What am I doing wrong?
 
You'll never like the dual Mark X... just donate it to me... :lol: Ok, so I'd be willing to buy it, I guess... :lol:
 
I've never owned the JF versions of those modules, but I have an SG Diablo, a Mesa Studio Preamp, and a Mesa Mark III, so I consider myself reasonably well versed in both types of tones. I'd love to take a crack at those modules when I take a trip out to your place after the holidays. I'll bring the Diablo along for comparison.
 
Whoopysnorp said:
I'd love to take a crack at those modules when I take a trip out to your place after the holidays.

That might be best. I'm going to pull them out and go with something I know. Maybe take another crack at it over the weekend with fresh ears.
 
I've noticed fresh ears are best!
I like the mids scooped out of the mark x much more (eq and shape switch). I also like to keep the module level around 10/11 it seems to give better saturation. I also like the gain pretty high on the mark. If ur a Marshall guy it may not be your cup of tea. To each their own. It is authentic mark though. Great bite and cut.
 
Try starting the day off with one of them- seriously. Some modules sound "weird" when played side by side with others. For example, my Mamba 99% of the time sounds killer and seems to make other modules sound strange and weak...but if I start off with the others, my ears tend to enjoy them more :? If I play for too long and then add in the mamba, instead of powerful and deep it sounds not as clear. IDK if it's a phase thing, a mental thing, or what, but just a crazy element to consider.
 
crankyrayhanky said:
Try starting the day off with one of them- seriously. Some modules sound "weird" when played side by side with others. For example, my Mamba 99% of the time sounds killer and seems to make other modules sound strange and weak...but if I start off with the others, my ears tend to enjoy them more :? If I play for too long and then add in the mamba, instead of powerful and deep it sounds not as clear. IDK if it's a phase thing, a mental thing, or what, but just a crazy element to consider.

Very true.
 
drewiv said:
I'm not a Mesa guy and I really purchased both of these modules for guest players. For some reason I got a wild hair up my behind and plugged them both in my MOD50 for Mesa Monday night. I can't get them dialed in, AT ALL. I can't even get them close. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Am I trying to dial in a Marshall tone? Do I really just not like Mesas? I know these are great modules as a bunch of you out there rave about them. What am I doing wrong?

I've not had a chance to try the Mark X yet but I'm lucky enough to own just a few mark series Boogies so here is what I do to kick off with them.

Initially set everything (with the GEQ out) at 12 o'clock position except bass between 9 and 12 o'clock, treble at 3 o'clock. On a real Mark the bass dialed in from the pot always seems a bit loose and woofy so I dial it back and compensate with the GEQ. On the treble side you always need to start with loads - it seems to interact with the gain pot, so if there is not loads things seem muddy.

Once you get to the point of being happy(ish) with the sound dial in the GEQ - I'm assuming that on the Mark X Rob has hard wired the typical Mesa V shape? So just add it in and redial to taste!

It should be said that real Marks can be a pig to dial in just right - and the difference between sonic nirvana and sounding like a chainsaw can be simply a bumped knob.

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On that note good luck sir :)

Ross
 
Yeah, I don't know how Rob designed his module, but if you try dialing in a real Mark series amp the way you would something in the Marshall family, you'll get poor results. My typical Mark settings are T: 7-8, M: 5-7, B: 1-2. I will usually pull a bit of the midrange out with the graphic EQ although I'm not a fan of the scooped V Metallica tone.
 
Lots of great pointers. I think my Quick Rod and Voxless are going to spend some time in the MOD 50 until the weekend. Give me time on some modules I know how to dial in and maybe fresh ears. :D

I'll be back to the Mesas come the weekend.
 
For high gaijn on the MarkX I seemed to like the V scoop setting on the mid toggle and lots of mids on the pot...and a clean boost in front to put it over the top
 
I just got my JF erect on Monday (thank you Rob) and am pretty happy with how good it sounds. I'm mainly using a closed back Egnater 2x12 with the 80 watt Egnater Celestions with it, and one side of mr r/t250 with 6550's.

As a point of reference I was thinking of the typical Foo Fighters tone and was able to dial that in pretty closely? Both high and muted mid gain stuff. To my ears those tones essentially were there.

And I second listening to it first and getting to know it apart from the Mark X.

There are too many tones in the mod IMO to not run through at low gain with vintage the modern, then tight and not tight, them orange and red...

Then roll up gain knob repeat etc. playing with EQ to taste. The recto amps certainly inspire love and hate, but I think the power tubes and speakers make an important impact here.
 
If this can help you, my settings on my MarkUs are:

Bass:2
Mids:4
Treeble:7

This is for the pre-gain EQ.

Is the EQ of the Mark X pre-gain, and the "shape" switch activates a V-EQ post gain?
 
Drew: If you want to give me a ring, Ill happily suggest some settings and approaches for each. I think you are spot on about the Marshall approach and having to get out of your traditional comfort zones.

I was faced with an interesting design decision when developing the Mark X. The channel EQ's on the amp are pre-gain as you know, but this is very counter-intuitive to what most players are familiar with. With adding a post-gain GEQ not being an option, I was forced to make some choices to make the module as user-friendly as possible. Thus, I opted to leave it post gain and tune it accordingly. It was a hybrid decision based on the needs of the intended customer (mostly the high gain Mark Series crowd). It provides the closest possible voicing with flexibility for shaping the tone.

The OD Special is my nod to Dumble and similar to Mark I tones. The EQ is pre-gain on this one and sure enough, it confuses many. I try to address that before the sale as much as possible to manage expectations but I still get a good share of inquiries about how that EQ works. I find the guys that have a background with Mark amps usually appreciate it quite a bit though.
 
Thanks again everyone. I switched over to my Voxless and Toxin modules and shook the walls for a bit. :D

Rob, you know I'll contact you if I'm having REAL issues. I'm going to wait for one of my Mesa playing buddies to come over, or when Max comes over to try out some modules, whichever comes first. I'll just throw them in and let them dial away. I've been playing Marshallesque amps for so long, it's hard to get out of that mindset. It's like putting a Les Paul in my hands, I just can't play it.

I'll be in touch if I need to, I know you're busy.
 
Whoopysnorp said:
drewiv said:
It's like putting a Les Paul in my hands, I just can't play it.

Ha, looks like I'm gonna have to bring my own axe when I come over!

:lol: Probably wise of you. You won't find a Gibson or Fender at my house. :D
 
Hey Rob,

I understand your option about how you build your Mark X.

I would be very interested in a Mesa Mark module, based on the 3rd channel of the Mark V that includes the 3 modes, with pre-gain Eq. No need of a shape switch because I make my sound with the EQ of my Lexicon G2.

I know that you have a lot of work in progress, but if a custom Mark X is possible perhaps we can discuss about that by PM.

Just let me know. Thanks.
 
I never tried the Mark X- Had the "original" JF Erect (one in Matt Fig's video) and loved the orange channel with modern voicing- Mids cranked a bit and gain backed off to about 11 o clock. Lows and highs depended on guitar/cab combo but the thing had a ton of low end available and never had it past noon on the bass. Also preferred the "tight" setting over the "loose" setting although the loose setting was a truer Mesa Recto sound and feel...
 
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