Mesa experts... advice on 5 band EQ ?

VegaBaby

VegaBaby

Fractal Fanatic
Hey Guys !
have to admit that I've never been much into Mesa amps. be it the real thing or the Axe's models. now with the addition of the 5 band EQ bringing the models one step closer to realism, I wanted to give it try. sort of like having too much time in a music store and trying amps you usually wouldn't.

question is... always heard about that 5 band EQ being so "essential", and the famous "V" curve used by all the Mesa guys. could anyone give me some pointers or starting points for that "V" ? I know...depends on this and that...but there needs to be a common starting point, a set and forget maybe even. any input appreciated !
 
Frowny face or V would work perfectly.

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Something like that! Do not reach the top with the two higher sliders, and do not reach the bottom with the lower one. Adjust to taste. Remember it'll make it sound louder.
 
Here are some presets

seq-mesa-boogie.png
 
As Simeon mentioned above, it all depends on what kind of sound you are after. I am a Mesa guy and I HATE scooped sounds, I would never set the famous V curve on any EQ. There is life beyond that EQ setting ;-) But if you are into scooped sounds, then the V is the way to go I guess. Just don't take it for granted that the EQ HAS to be set like that, it is not true.
 
This is different than I set in my IIC+ at home but sounds pretty good.

80hz = 6.9
240hx = 2.15
750hz flat
2200hz = 1.62
6600hz = 3.6

hope you like it too.
 
some fantastic tips here, guys ! really appreciate it !

gonna play around with suggested settings, diagrams etc. like I said, never been interested in "the" Mesa tone, but now it would just be stupid not to try and see what can be done.

just out of curiosity, how much boost and cut can be done (in dB) on the real Mesa EQ ?
 
when I actually had a mark IV my EQ was very similar to #2, just make sure you kill the bass on the first page down to 2 or less.
 
is9582 said:
This is different than I set in my IIC+ at home but sounds pretty good.

80hz = 6.9
240hx = 2.15
750hz flat
2200hz = 1.62
6600hz = 3.6

hope you like it too.
Click to expand...

Almost 7 db boost at 80hz? You might be getting into a fight with your bass player very soon :p Seriously though.. any FOH would use a high-pass filter at minimum 80hz and up.
 
I suggest you flatten the eq, then take each slider to its upper limit and lower limit so you can hear what each is doing. Then shape to taste. It's an old mix engineer's method.
 
Geezerjohn said:
I suggest you flatten the eq, then take each slider to its upper limit and lower limit so you can hear what each is doing. Then shape to taste. It's an old mix engineer's method.
Click to expand...
mixing, knowing and hearing what frequencies do is actually not one of my problems ;). I simply started this thread out of pure curiosity as it seems that there has been a huge "fan following" of Mesa's 5 band EQ since their early days. since that "magic" never really bothered me, I just wanted to see if I missed something, like the famous "V" setting without the amp doesn't seem to have that "magic". it'll probably make more sense in a few days ;) ...
 
Haha, yeah might seem that way but this is less extreme on the 80hz slider than my setting was on my IIC+ in the band. Had the full blown "V" with both extremes at the top of their range. Our bass player never seemed to have any problems with it. Of course these are just suggestions for others to try and modify as they wish.
 
I've started using the following curve with a USA Clean 1 (Mk IV) model to get me in to Trey Anastasio territory. It's remarkable how powerful the EQ is, really. I eyeballed the settings of Trey's actual amp setup and it worked very well getting me closer to his Summer 2013 sounds.

Screen_Shot_2013-08-10_at_4.41.56_PM.png
 
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iaresee said:
I've started using the following curve with a USA Clean 1 (Mk IV) model to get me in to Trey Anastasio territory. It's remarkable how powerful the EQ is, really. I eyeballed the settings of Trey's actual amp setup and it worked very well getting me closer to his Summer 2013 sounds.

Screen%20Shot%202013-08-10%20at%204.41.56%20PM.png
Click to expand...
not sure if you should show that image, Ian ;)
 
When I first got my Mark III in 86'....kickin' in the V for the first time floored me!
The 2x12 had two EVs.... The sound was hugely dimensional!! .....like 3D!!

I must admit I had a hell of a time balancing my overall volumes between clean, Rythm crunch and lead. But I sure blew away everyone locally within a 5 mile radius!

The amp with the V settings was always great by itself! But in a full band setting the sound would "haze" out with very low 750hz settings. Depending on what you are after, you would set this band accordingly lower or higher.
Moderation with the V got the guitar to stand out nicely and still impart that dimensionality!

I never used the V setting for my leads ...to me it lacked girth or body and I could not get comfortable soloing with the tone.

Funny as with the axe .....I am utilizing other amps as my main crunch Rythm tones 100% of the time. I use the Mark IIc+ for 90% of my solos with very little EQ or none at all.

With this new 5 band update....I should fiddle around again with that....for old time (old school?) sake! :)
 
I'm not really sure why the Mark amp model just doesn't have the EQ faders that match up with the real amp. If its supposed to model say the MarkV the entire magic to that amp is the graffic EQ on it. The amp isn't particular good sounding until you start pulling out the midrange in the 750 and it just doesn't work by using the PEQ block after it. That is one that always confused me in the Fractal that the EQ isn't just exactly set to same graffic faders. If you want to be accurate then you would think it would be there. I've noticed many amps that aren't exactly accurate or some not even close to there actual tube counterparts.
 
iaresee said:
I've started using the following curve with a USA Clean 1 (Mk IV) model to get me in to Trey Anastasio territory. It's remarkable how powerful the EQ is, really. I eyeballed the settings of Trey's actual amp setup and it worked very well getting me closer to his Summer 2013 sounds.

Screen_Shot_2013-08-10_at_4.41.56_PM.png
Click to expand...

Always thought that the EQ wasn't used with the clean Mesa tones.
 
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