John Petrucci -- Mark V -- Settings and Tone Tips (Part 1) 

must have been school picture day at mesaboogie

Petrucci then: Talking about philosophies. Petrucci now: A philosopher's beard.

I've watched this so many times and it still never bores me

Forget the low, mid, high, and presence knobs... I want an amp with knobs that read scoopy, chimey, blusey, chunky, and flubby.

Honestly, the stuff he was playing on the clean channel is what impresses me about him the most. Sure his speed and accuracy is amazing, but to play what he played so clean and flawlessly is extremely difficult

Damn... 13 years ago... I bought my first Mark V the very day these two videos were released. It was kind of sign for me ah ah! Had to sell my first one for a year in 2015 and bought another back in 2016... Still in love with that amp and all the possibilities. With a JP or a Cutlass it's just a killer combo! Thanks Mesa/Boogie!

3:26 i love the chords of Hollow Years !!! Petrucci ' s chords are as great as his solos.

i like how people describe sounds: flubby, scooped, chimey, bell-like, powerful, singing, tight, chunky, crunchy, aggressive, narrow, tubular, broad, loose and squishy.

its says 2010... but the enviroment feels 90s lmao

Magic. This guy is, IMHO, in the top 5 currently playing. I saw him at a one of the G3 things in Chicago and he's just got "it", whatever "it" is. Not only speed, which is unfortunately one of those things for some folks think is the only thing that matters. His rhythm, tone, knowlege, and technique are what set him apart from all the other "shredders". And his personality is great. He signed autographs till there were no more to sign, and that's a rare thing.

John's Mark 1 lead tone put a smile on my face...as usual. Thanks for sharing, guys! Keep up the great work!

This clean sound is great, its also very good for practise. Many beginners try to run too soon and go for max distortion like the pros, but it hides your mistakes and they will just persist. So I practise in clean and when its right, only then go and kick ass. It will also sound better because your picking will be spot on.

This is a fine example that it's more about the player than the guitar itself. You can spend so much on equipment, but it ultimately boils down to the person playing it.

This sounds 10x better than any other Mark V demo I've heard...

That clean sound is great. And the crunch is sick. John is Such a nice guy all the time.

I loved clean sound, he´s awesome and very humble!

Just got a new Mark V head today...& this video as well as part 2 is a big reason for getting it PLUS I sold my Soldano Hot Rod head to get it. I went into the store twice to try it out & I've been playing it for hours today. Sounds amazing. Cheers John & Mesa! : )

He's so down to earth, pedagogic and upright. He would be a great teacher.

Hollow years is my favourite song! I always wanted to know the way he played it, I'm so happy! thanks for uploading!!

I've started gigging with the V:35 combo and can't wait to try these out live!

JP is so good at what he does and so humble at the same time

While watching JP playing i found myself singing the song.. You are great dude, great..

I just got my mark V on Monday. I could not be happier.

finally some new vids with JP, greaat! :)

This guy is just amazing, not only playing but teaching. Nice amps of course, I'm getting one right now on the road.

@disturbtheworlds You can direct direct support questions to the factory in Petaluma : US Domestic Support: (707) 778-6565 We are open 9:00am-5:00 pm Pacific Time, Monday through Thursday.

very informative.. and petrucci always amazes me..

All excellent as always

Even when John improvises a song you know is a guitar God! Such skill perfection from practice experience and inspiration! Amazing!

This is one of my favorite finishes of his guitars in the last couple years.

Finally i learnt hollow years from this video..thank you john ..you are just a god of guitar.

I listened to this demo and went out and bought one...killer amp, fair price, and outstanding tone for my money. There are plenty of higher end amps. I believe the very best amp in the world in the one YOU like the best. John, imo, is one of the top ten players world wide.

Awesome.Thank you Mesa/Boogie!

I've got myself one of these and thats it no more searching for tone. Mesa Boogie are the best if thats not to a narrow minded thing to say. I've still got a lot of learning to do regarding getting different sounds as there is so much available here. In a few words though.. WHAT AN AMAZING AMPLIFIER!!! Also great to watch J.P demonstrate and discuss.. An awesome guy!!

So from the first few minutes, I see that he wants a nice scooped, rich, full bodied middle sound, not too pointy, not "right here", soft, more chimey. No danger of flubbyness or darkness.

Thank you John nice job and this class!!!!

Really like this Song thanks for sharing your gift.

I love how John still looks at the neck when he plays. No poseur bullshit.

So true. There's such a world of difference between being merely playing the right notes at the right times and carefully carving the soundscape you want.

I just got this amp a few days ago, and it's all because of this man!

Owned a Mark V for a few years, but only just now watched this. I thought it was kind of neat to see how many similar setting I use to him, like independent conformation, haha.

dude that tone is just... awesome!

For the questions about the Intro song It's called : Animate-inanimate From his solo CD : Suspended Animation

That's amazing John!!!... I love it.

I like mesa's because I think they are kind of classy sounding. It really brings out the subtleties in kore intricate or complex playing styles, instead of just that full on "heavy metal" high mid saturated or dark sound a lot of metal players sound like to me, kind of surreal and such.

GLORIOUS clean sound!!

"Animate Inanimate" by John Petrucci - song used in the intro and outro of part 2

@PositivelyInsane He's using the humbuckers in split coil mode. The bottom switch is in the middle position(coil split) and the top switch is in the bottom position which means the piezo is inactive and only the magnetics are engaged. If you listen closely to the Hollow Years demo he bumps the magnetic selector switch when he first starts strumming which changes it to the bridge pickup for the second chord before he switches back to split coils for the third strummed chord.

Videos like this make me want to swap out my Single Rectifier for a Mark V once I can afford it. Even though I love my Rec this just has so much more versatility, and the gained up tones sound much tighter.

awesome clean tone

incredibley informative, and really cool!

1:22 "it is great for, whatever I just mentioned" 😂😂 Gotta love John Petrucci!!

John Petrucci is the coolest nerd in the history of music! :-)

he is always so happy.

beautiful clean sound

Thank you infinitely for your help ! ;)

the clean tone he use for Hollow years intro is wonderfull.

Lovely to hear Hollow Years 🤘🏽

I love John’s style when he’s improvising arpeggios and he has such a vast knowledge of different chord shapes and progressions. Is there any way someone could steer me towards a particular book I can buy to try to learn that sort of chord progression/arpeggios shapes?

It would be great if John did a Settings and tone tips for the Mark v 25.

It is great to hear people talking about tone. I have to agree with the persone who mentioned that tone starts with your fingers. When I went to MI there was a guy there who play through the crappiest amps you ever heard but he could may them sing.

what i dont understand is this: i dialed in a very very similair sound to his mark v with my mesa dual rectifier, but when i record it i cant seem to get the sound he gets?? i even edited quite a bit. maybe im not placing mics properly?? i tried a few different micing ideas. Can anyone help please????

Dang that sounds fantastic.

Best clean sound I ever heard.

thank you for posting

Thank you for sharing this.....

My guitar teacher has the mark iv, he said it's the best amp he's ever owned. And now I see that Petrucci uses a Mark V! I think I'm getting a Mesa for my next amp...

@JeuneGen I highly recommend TC Electronics effects processors. Specifically the G-System. The TC Electronics G-System will give you complete control over your rig and any other pedals you may want to integrate without changing the core of your amps sound. It also handles the switching for you of the channels (you may need an amp gizmo to interface with the Mark V to change amp channels, not sure because I own a Dual Rectifier 3-channel model and it does). Hope this helps

3:28 ...Heaven :)

"Flubbyness" - Probably the best sound description i've heard.

Anbody know where does the solo at 9:30 come from? I heard it before in the Once in a Livetime large guitar solo, but still don't know where does it come from actually.

Im so getting this one

You are really the greatest guitarist in the world. You make the guitar speak!!!!

I can never watch a John Petrucci instructional video without thinking of that parody video.

He's such a nice guy. A true class act. Mesa/Boogie ftw!

When you're about to click off but you realize John Petrucci is giving YOU advice on guitar and you must respect and stay on the video until it's over

It has an excellent in built reverb that you can set up for each channel.

that pretty good head movement at 10:00 is just awesome

How could u dislike this jealous much !!!!!!!

wish u all the best

@BringerOfTree i agree man, the clean sound is so different... it sounds a piezo like... btu im not sure about it... i´ve already listen humbuckers sounds like that if tha were in out of phase with his coils...

"Flubbyness" - Probably the best descriptive word for a sound i've ever heard.

@bebo7002 The very first song during the intro of the video is called Animate Inanimate off of his solo album.. and the first example he plays has its name on the screen for a bit

You, guys, should do a similar video featuring the 2:90 and the Triaxis, so we, proud users of these amazing pieces of gear, can learn from John's philosophy on how to properly work these guys around. .

great video. I have to have this amp!!

The song "Animate-Inanimate," is from the band Liquid Tension Experiment.

@Schecter725 9:30 is from a piece called Gemini, great bit of music.

He spared us not going into the World Domination mode right away...

@bebo7002 The song in the intro is Animate Inanimate. The first song he demonstrates for clean tone is Hollow Years.

First song in the intro is from his solo album Suspended Animation. Song is Animate-Inanimate

Aaaaand no one noticed another sneak peek of Gemini from the new album, played 10 years before its release ??? 9:30

Now that we've got the settings and tone tips out of the way, can we have a tutorial on how one can afford this? 😀

Clean tone is great.. there is a part of that progression that reminds me so much of a Dave Mathews tune (crash into me, or whatever) where he moves the bass not over the triad. Curious which song was written first. Either way great player and I've always dug his tone.

master is master ! we just need to listen what he says !!! he´s surely right about clean sound without a lot of mid range... he knows abouti it !!! beautifull clean for those pickups...

that clean sound!!

the opening song is called animate-inanimate (from john's solo album)

Both Petrucci and the Mesa sound over the top amazing (incredible!), BUT inquiring minds want to know, is Dave Grohl going for the John Petrucci look or is Petrucci going for the Dave Grohl look? Regardless, Petrucci looks more rested. So how many kidneys do I gotta sell to get one of these amps? =)

I believe the Mark V doesn't have any effects in. What if i want to buy a Mark V but I would like to have some good delay and reverb sounds with it ? Could any of you guys tell me what effect gear is good to go with the mark V ?

Amazing guitarist - amazing amp

@wickedwizardofspeed hmmm, i sorta know what u mean. i played a jackson neck for like 3 years and it took a bit to get used to. after like 2 weeks though, i was in love with it and couldn't go back and sold the jackson. i always liked fender necks but felt it was a bit weird when trying to play dream theater stuff to it and then when i played the JP6 at guitar center i fell in love with it and knew i would get used to real quick. have u played one for a couple hours to see if u got use to it?