Mesa Engineering Mark Five: 35 Head & 1X12 Combo

review
114
GUITARIST APRIL 2016
MESA ENGINEERING MARK FIVE: 35 HEAD & COMBO
7
6
combined with a decent 2x12 or 4x12 adds
even more level and spread.
Verdict
While the flagship Mark V is truly
astounding, it’s a complex beast. The Mark
Five: 35 is easier to use, without sacrificing
anything tonally. The extra power over the
25 adds headroom to properly define its
exquisite clean tones, with all the punch
and cut you need for a great solo sound, and
like all Boogies, it’s relatively portable. Mesa
hasn’t always had great success with its EL84
designs, but the recent Mark Five: 25 and
Recto-Verb Twenty-Five scored consecutive
bullseyes in every respect, as does the Mark
Five: 35. The sounds are stunning: it performs
almost perfectly and is built to last forever.
Of course, such excellence doesn’t come
cheap and at nearly two grand, justifying
the cost to significant others may not be
easy. However, where there’s a will, there’s
usually a way. At this level, there’s plenty of
stellar competition, too, but only one amp has
‘Boogie’ on the grille. If you’ve been waiting
for the perfect blend of Boogie tone and Mark
V features, the 35 has your name on it.
MESA ENGINEERING
MARK FIVE: 35
HEAD
PRICE: £1,749
ORIGIN: USA
TYPE: Valve preamp and valve
power amp
OUTPUT: 10, 25 or 35 watts RMS
depending on channel selection
VALVES: 6x 12AX7, 4x EL84
DIMENSIONS: 230mm (h) x
480mm (w) x 275mm (d)
WEIGHT (kg/lb):12.5/27
CABINET: Birch Ply
CHANNELS: 2, footswitchable
CONTROLS: Ch1/2: Gain, bass, mid
and treble, presence, master volume,
solo volume, reverb (on rear panel),
voice select, output select, EQ select,
5-band graphic EQ
FOOTSWITCH: 4-button switch
switches channels, EQ and
solo functions
ADDITIONAL FEATURES: CabClone
speaker emulated direct out, series
effects loop, headphone output
OPTIONS: A wide range of custom
finish options is available; contact
dealer for details and pricing
RANGE OPTIONS: The flagship Mark
V costs £2,599 in combo format or
£2,449 as a head, while the Mark
Five: 25 is £1,399 (head only)
Westside Distribution
0844 326 2000
www.mesaboogie.com
MESA ENGINEERING
MARK FIVE: 35 1X12
COMBO
PRICE: £1,949
ORIGIN: USA
TYPE: Valve preamp and valve
power amp
OUTPUT: 10, 25 or 35 watts RMS
depending on channel selection
VALVES: 6x 12AX7, 4x EL84
DIMENSIONS: 460 (h) x 475 (w) x
290mm (d)
WEIGHT (kg/lb): 20/44
CABINET: Birch ply
LOUDSPEAKER: 1x Mesa 12”
Black Shadow
CHANNELS: 2, footswitchable
CONTROLS: Ch 1/2: Gain, bass, mid
and treble, presence, master volume,
solo volume, reverb (on rear panel),
voice select, output select, EQ select,
5-band graphic EQ
FOOTSWITCH: 4-button switch
switches channels, EQ and solo
functions
ADDITIONAL FEATURES: CabClone
speaker emulated direct out, series
effects loop, headphone output
OPTIONS: A wide range of custom
finish options are available, contact
dealer for details and pricing
RANGE OPTIONS: See Mark Five: 35
head options, opposite
PROS Extraordinary tones, superb
build quality and real-world features
that all work really well
CONS It’s expensive and, despite the
compact dimensions, quite heavy;
loud pop when changing channels
PROS Same controls and features
as combo, great tone; not fussy on
speaker types; easy to carry
CONS Need to buy a separate
cabinet; loud pop when switching
between channels
8 9
6. The CabClone also
offers a ground
lift and a speaker
defeat, which leaves
the headphones
output active for
silent recording
7. That famous EQ
is footswitchable
and can be preset
to affect either or
both channels
VIDEO DEMO http://bit.ly/guitaris textra
GIT405.rev_mesa.indd 114 19/02/2016 09:39