Re: Contemplating the use of a booster?
JEC, I have a Mark V 112 combo--and I'm really lovin' this amp.
For about 30 years now, I have used a DOD FX10 Preamp on my pedalboard to provide a slight amount of always-on boost. I have used mostly single coil guitars during this time.
Going back to circa-1979, I bought a Leo-Fender-designed Music Man Sabre II guitar which featured low-impedance pickups and an on-board preamp with active tone controls. I immediately fell in love with this guitar because of the incredible tonal versatility that the active controls offered. And with the low-noise, buffered preamp--I could drive a bunch of pedals and 100 feet of cable with no loss. My old 1960 Strat started rolling off the high end with anything more than about 12 feet of cable. So I immediately saw the benefit of the preamp, and that's when I bought the DOD, so I'd have those benefits with my other guitars. I was using a SS, non-Master Volume amp at the time and the DOD added a lot of tube-like warmth and punch to the signal. (I was also using one of the old blue MXR 10-band EQs in front of the amp for additional tone-shaping.)
And I continued to use the DOD, even after I acquired my first Mesa amp, a Mark III half-stack, in the mid 1990's. The amp seemed to respond differently with the DOD than if I had just turned the gain higher. I've kept using the DOD this with all my Mesa amps. The DC-3 has Rectifier-type gain, but I only run the LEAD CHANNEL GAIN on about 6; and the same for my Mark IV. The Mark IIIs typically have the GAIN at about 6-7. The Maverick is a bit of an odd-duck in the Mesa lineup, as it was designed with LESS gain in the LEAD channel, but by adding that slight bit of boost from the DOD it's back in the Mark III's ball-park.
Now, I'm not adding a lot of boost--just enough to know that it is on. There seemed to be a sweet spot of interaction. I must admit that I don't play metal, or generally anything with massive gain, but I like that smooth sustain of say, Carlos Santana. And with the old Strat, and now my G&L Legacys, I'm adding a bit of mid-range and not scooping the tone with the EQ in a deep V setting. And with the Mesas, I'm using the boost on both, or all three, channels.
Except...
A few years ago, I re-discovered the joys of a Les Paul--a 2HB guitar. With my old SS SUNN amp, I was never a fan of HB pickups. But times change, and I got back into tube amps. I started performing different material; I started playing with a band. I needed some different tones than I could get with the Legacys; certain songs just sounded better with a 2HB guitar. I started out with a MIJ 335 clone, then moved to the solid-body Ibanez GR-520 Ghostriders. Somewhere, somehow...I bought a pair of Les Paul 1960 Classics, but soon discovered that those pickups just had WAY too much output for the gain of the Mesa amps. Loved the tones, but it would start getting blatty and woofy with too much gain. A set of Seths and set of Antiquitys solved that problem in those two guitars, and my love affair with the LP was on. A G&L Legacy will always be my Number ONE, but I have acquired several more LPs (and 335s), and I love their tones.
In a four hour set with my band, I will use a 2HB for about 12-15 songs, depending on the gig. But, the issue becomes, "How do I deal with the different outputs? How do I even out the volumes and tones of a vintage strat single coil pickup versus a vintage HB?"
And again, I find that my playing style is evolving to meet the demands of needing to use multiple guitars. I don't typically need that extra boost with the gain of the HB pickups into the Mesa amps, but it's still handy with the Legacy's single coils. And since the boost doesn't drastically change the tone, just the volume--it's really noticeable when I change guitars. (I don't reset the tones on my amp for the various guitars.) So, ON for SCs and OFF for HB. And I have the option then of getting even more gain with the 2HB, if and when I need it. And, I'm also using a slight bit of compression/limiting from a Boss CS-3 on certain songs.
Enter the Mark V. The Mark V is something different for me, and I'm having to adjust. The gain available from this amp is way more than I would ever use, so I'm using very moderate gain in the CRUNCH and LEAD channels. With the three channels, and each channel having three modes, it really is like having nine different amps. I'm discovering that in those two channels, flipping one of mode switches if very handy when I change guitars. And the SOLO switch is great--it's whatever setting I'm using--just a little louder, and the amount of boost can be varied. It's a very nifty feature.
I'm still mapping out how to use the Mark V. I think I've read the Owner's Manual about five times, and I still refer to it. I think each guitarist is going to have a different approach to using it. Some will use all three channels; some only one or two. I'm thinking about setting up the lower-gain CRUNCH channel to use with my HB guitars, and optimize the LEAD channel for my SC guitars. Some guys will be changing channels and modes on every song; some will use the RONCO method. They'll find the sweet spots and then "SET IT--AND FORGET IT!"
But at the end of the day, even with all of that gain on tap, the little DOD preamp is not coming off my board. I will continue to use it with my other amps, of course. And the reality of it is that, it helps my pedalboard perform better....a hotter signal, buffered output, and a better signal-to-noise ratio. Those are all tangible benefits, no matter what amp. It works for me, and my style. YMMV.
Some guys like that "slightly dirty" boost of a pedal like the Tube Screamer or the new Soul Food and that's fine. The Soul Food is pretty transparent; many of the others will change your EQ with a mid-boost. Others don't need the distortion, so they get a clean boost like my old DOD. Most of the basic boost pedals on the market are pretty reasonably priced; I think you can find BBE Boosta Grandes, et. al., for less than $75. A clean boost is not a complicated circuit, so it's not a huge cash outlay.
Do you NEED a clean boost with a Mark V? You don't mention which MODE you use in the LEAD Channel of the Mark V, but with your GAIN knob in the 11-1 o'clock position, you should still have quite a bit of gain left to use, even in the EXTREME mode. You have the SOLO mode to provide a foot-switchable boost for those time when you want a little "more". and even in the CLEAN channel, FAT mode is pretty darn fat, and the TWEED mode is just plain ballsy--I think TWEED is the best classic rock crunch tone of the amp.
So, since you're apparently not needing a huge variation of tones from clean to extreme and living mostly in the LEAD channel; and you're not going back and forth between several different guitars with different pickups and output levels; or going from be-bop jazz to '50s oldies to Megadeth in one set...I'd say no, you don't NEED a clean boost pedal.
But down the road, it could prove to be a very valuable tool. How you use it will be something you'll have to find for yourself. There are 1,352 gee-tar pickers in Nashville as the song goes, and that means about 2.5 million ways of getting the job done. No "right" way, or wrong; you just have to figure out what unique way works for you.
Best wishes.
Bill
