Mesa/Boogie Mark Five: 25

16 Guitarist January 2015
FIRST PLAY Mesa/Boogie Mark Five: 25
every possible need, from fat ‘blackface’-
inspired cleans to full-on metal. Lurking in
there are very close approximations of the
original Mark I and the coveted Mark IIC.
Both channels have identical rotary controls
for gain, EQ and volume, with an increased
range on the upper channel’s mid knob acting
as a variable boost.
The power output can be pre-set for each
channel, to either 10 or 25 watts. Then there’s
the five-band graphic EQ, a key part of the
Boogie magic for many users. This can be
pre-set to on, off or footswitchable modes,
using the included two-button plain
aluminium footswitch – a small nod to
the past.
Inside the precision-cut and folded fan-
cooled aluminium chassis, the electronics
follow Mesa’s conventional layout, with front-
panel controls hand-wired to a densely-packed
printed circuit board. Mesa’s boards have a
distinctive and pleasing look: in the past, many
were hand-drawn and lettered by Randall
Smith himself, with a unique layout style and
the odd choice comment silk-screened in
between component numbers – often
referring to music Smith was listening to at the
time! The Mark Five: 25’s PCB has been laid
out using CAD, but still has several quirks,
which are part of Mesa’s secret sonic recipe.
Both channels have three very different
voicings, totalling six basic sounds that cover
1 Miniature marvel: it’s
a tight fit but Mesa has
crammed a complex six-
valve preamp and a valve-
powered reverb spring
into a fan-cooled chassis
that’s smaller than many
lunchbox amps
2 Mesa’s superb CabClone
speaker-emulated output
is one of the best we’ve
ever used
3 The graphic EQ uses
expensive toroidal
inductors, like those used
in high-end studio
outboard equipment. It’s
a core element of the
Boogie magic
1
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GIT389.rev_mesa.indd 16 25/11/2014 13:21