Mesa/Boogie Mark Five:25 25-/10-watt 1 x 10-inch Tube Combo Amp - Black Bronco Reviews

I've tooled around with many amplifiers over the years. Fender's classic Champs, Princetons…up to Twin Reverb…a great amp…lots of head room…but arena loudness. Marshall's of many sizes…again for their iconic tone, but again must be played loud to get the mojo.
A totally different animal is this Mesa Boogie MK5 25. All its tones are absolutely dream like, touches your and small audiences ears with warmth…loud enough without leaving ears ringing for days…witch isn't good for obvious reasons.

Oh yeah the Mesa Boogie Mark 5 25 is a Holly Grail and Sweetwater Sails Engineers (Grant Vitek) will get you set up.
Chase no further!

I'm blown away by the range of voices in this small amp. With the various drive modes and the onboard reverb, I don't even want to use additional pedals. Even on the low power mode, this is a loud unit. I added the JHS Little Black Box to make sure the tubes get their exercise even at in-home volumes.

It is embarrassing to own this amp because it is so much better than my playing deserves! Very versatile.

I shied away from this amp for a long time because everyone on the internet says it's "too hard to dial in" or "sounds boxy", etc. Until I played one, and I can say that neither is true. I've been playing guitar for 35 years, have owned and sold dozens of amps, but this 5/25 is an unbelievable achievement in design . EVERY tone that you could imagine is in this amp (and easily dialed in ). Marshall, Fender blackface, even Dumble!
Sparkly cleans, grind, "edge of breakup", doesn't begin to scratch the surface of this amps abilities. definitely sounds much bigger than a 1X10

So , cut to the chase... Theb perfect practice amp? Yes! The perfect gigging amp? Yes! Un-mike'd It'll hang with a loud drummer in any club or bar. Got a bigger venue? DI out or Cab Clone into the board and your golden., I had an outdoor venue gig last weekend and I just did speaker out to a 2x12 cabinet and it filled the mix nicely and sounded glorious!

I have bought & sold several Mesa amps of the span of many years, and I honestly feel this is the best Mesa has ever done. Oh, 24lbs of portability too.

Amazing range of tones out of such a little box. Not cheap, right? Bang for the buck is well worth it. So many options. You can dial in any sound you want. The EQ is ridiculous (easy does it). I was initially concerned with the Boogie name and rep I wouldn't get the super clean Tele and Strat sounds. BWAH! The cleans are amazing. Of course you can get as dirty as you want. And you'll want to go there. Effin' A.

This is my first review on Sweetwater even though I've bought several $ things. You see a lot of reviews thanking sales reps. I get it now. I was looking at a different amp. A Fender. My rep Derek Spaulding said "hey, check this one out." It was more expensive. My wife is in sales. I did sales a long time ago. I was also a buyer.This wasn't an upsale. it was a salesperson being super insightful and helpful.

Thanks Derek

Best little amp you me or anybody else ever heard. After owning it for a year and using it for gigs I can honestly say that. It's sounds as stunning today as the day I heard it in a local shop. I was mesmerized how this little amp filled the whole shop with this heavenly sound. Different players with different guitars all played it and it just continued to deliver. I eventually took it for a spin. With a trusty Strat is memiced Fender cleans and Strat tones to die for. How does this little box do it. Flamethrower lead sounds! Crunchy Stoneish tones. It's all in there at the twist of a knob or flick of a switch. It'll keep up with a drummer too! No problem! If your need a big THUMP or Bone Jarring low end… look some where else. But it you want the ultimate tiny tone machine… the Mark V 25 can deliver. It's not cheap but it doesn't sound cheap either… Strats, SG's and ES-175… it don't care… at 24lbs. and smaller then a Blues Jr. it's the grab and go amp King!

Now that I've had this amp for a year, and (despite the pandemic) actually being able to use the amp for gigs with three different bands (all of which have very different sonic requirements, from super clean and punchy to light crunch to distorted rhythms and fully saturated leads), and since the initial excitement of new gear has worn off, it's time to give my updated opinion: this is still the best small tube amp ever made.

It really took some time to get used to the tone stacks and how they interact with the 5-band graphic EQ (small adjustments make big differences), but now that I have, dialing in the sounds I'm looking for is quick and easy. By itself, this amp won't get that 4x12" cabinet low-end thunk on distorted tones, nor will it get that Fender-esque big bottom end on clean sounds, but overall the low end is surprisingly robust for a small combo, and rivals or betters the low end of most 1x12" combos. Plugged into a bigger cab, the only limitations are the EL-84 tubes, and this amp puts out a LARGE amount of low end then.

But I didn't buy this amp for huge bottom end, detuned metal tones (that's what the Rectos are for). I'm a rocker, not a shredder; every single rock tone I want is in this amp, and they all sound superb. Clean and crisp, slight breakup, mid-forward bluesy, classic rock crunch, hard rock distortion, classic metal scooped tones, modern rock heavy distortion, fully saturated singing lead tones: they're all readily accessible, and they all sound PERFECT.

After a year of solid playing with this little 24 pound box of wonder, I can only repeat what I said in my initial review: if you like small tube amp combos, and can afford this one, BUY IT.

I was one of those people that thought the Mesa Boogie Mark 5:25 was a bit pricey for what I need and want. I don't play professionally, so why do I need an amp that costs over $1,500, I reasoned. However, I now laugh at myself because I have spent more than that on other gear going down the "rabbit hole" of chasing that perfect tone I seek - amps, guitars, pedals, and so forth. I have been looking at this amplifier, watching videos, and reading reviews for over a year but could never quite pull the trigger to complete the purchase.
The turning point was that I just could not get the tone I wanted out of a humbucker equipped guitar. Everything I tried just had a "muddy" sound to it when I tried to clean it up a little. Yes, I do have the well-known clean amp but wanted something that had more versatility as well. I consulted with my Sweetwater sales engineer, Stephen Oppenheim, told him what I was after. He called me to discuss my needs and confirmed that this amp was what would satisfy my needs and wants.
Let me just say, this is one awesome little amp in every way. The first day I ran around like a kid checking out every guitar I have through this amp. It really is unbelievable how this coaxed the character out of every single one. Everything from cheaper "Vintage" brand guitars to high end Fenders, Ibanez, and Gibsons sound so good!
I typically play clean, Blues, Rock and Country Rock. This amp nails the tone I am after for each one with the flip of a switch. If you want more gain it is easy to get that as well. The controls are so sensitive that a slight adjustment changes the sound substantially. I have had it for a month and I have yet to run a pedal through it. It's that good at getting the tone you want. It comes with a great manual, and although I'm not a manual kind of guy I'm glad I took the time to go through it. Last night I played through another amp that I thought sounded good previously. Not even close. Just everything about this little amp is perfect in my opinion. It is so sensitive that it will force you to clean up your act and become a better player.
If you have looked at the features and listened to videos but remain on the fence; do yourself a favor, and take the plunge. You will not believe the sounds you will get out of your guitar. Thank you, Stephen Oppenheim, for talking me through this purchase. And of course, who is better than Sweetwater? I had this gem in my hands within two days in perfect condition.

I needed to downsize a bit, from my Vox AC15 (Great AMP, itself) and the Boogie is really fitting the bill. First of all, it is WAY powerful enough for use in my home, and would easily perform in small gigs, too. Second, it's small size is packed with features that are important to me (tube spring reverb, multi channel, great preset "modes", full EQ, power attenuator, DI/headphones, FX loop, speak outs). This is all in a physical size that is perfect for me, and easy to move around. Third, it is superb quality built. Expensive? A bit - BUT only in so much as it's that level of quality. No, I don't think it's "over priced" at all. With the Celestion Cremeback and MesaBoogie tubes there's nothing to upgrade - and comes with a beautiful cover and Mesa foot switch.

What doesn't it have? An Aux input, which I thought was important to me - but you won't find in a quality tube amp. BUT, running my AUX through my studio speakers to fill the room OR AUX and this amp through my interface / headphones/speakers/recording, is easy and sounds great.

I put off getting a Mesa Boogie for far too long! I can't imagine a better small tube combo considering the features and range of tones they allow you to dial in between the 10/25 watt switches and mode selectors (e.g. Clean, Fat, Crunch, IIC+, Mk VI and Extreme). I was surprised how versatile and impactful the 5-band EQ is. I can't recommend this amp enough...I love it!

I highly recommend checking out the official Mesa Boogie Mark V demo on YouTube along with the Andy Timmons demo to help you dial in some sweet tones to get started.

I've owned a LOT of great tube amps over the years (a few examples: Fender '64 Deluxe Reverb, Fender Vibro King, Marshall JCM 900, Matchless Lightning, Orange OR 15), so I've developed a real snobbish attitude about my tone and my gear. As I've gotten older and PA's have gotten better, I've gravitated towards smaller combos. I tried modelers: a few of them are about 97% there, but nothing reacts quite like a tube amp. I finally decided to pull the trigger on this Mesa after researching it for months. I held off on reviewing it until I could really put it through it's paces. I've played it now at multiple rehearsals for three different bands, and at gigs for two of those bands. From clean, to break up, to crunch, to distortion, to full on saturated leads, I've used this amp to get all of those tones, no pedals involved, and here's my take on the amp: the Mesa Boogie Mark V:25 is the best small tube amp combo ever made.

This amp DEFINITELY takes more tweaking than I typically prefer to get to the right tone (read the manual; it's online, extensive, and extremely helpful), but it can literally get any tone I am looking for, within the realm of a single 10" EL-84 powered combo. In other words, you're not going to get that Marshall stack low end cabinet thunk, but you can still chuga-chuga on some palm muted power chords and get a nice low resonance. Once you get used to the unusual mid control on channel one, dialing in the tones becomes a lot more intuitive, but it's sometimes hard to decide between the using the tone stack or the graphic eq. So, I find myself spending more time on the knobs than usual when I'm first trying to dial in a particular tone, but I'm starting to get the hang of it.

But the tone, oh man, the tone. This amp sparkles and shimmers when clean, purrs when crunchy, and roars when distorted. Every sound I need to achieve is in this 24 pound wonder, and they all sound GREAT. Not just good, not just close, simply great. And there are so many ways to configure the channels and the graphic eq, I can easily set up the amp for any gig. Plus, it's a Mesa; it's bullet proof.

Bottom line: if you can afford it, and you like small combos, buy it.

BY FAR the best amp I've ever owned, and I've had the peavey classic 30, fender champions, and there is NO comparison. The range of tones, and AMAZING saturated sustain on the gain (dirty) channel, are beyond belief. The ability to lower the wattage with a switch is great for indoor practice, and the 25 watts are LOUD. With. the many adjustments and EQ on both channels (yet VERY simple to use), it's everything you could ask for. Many people won't even find a need for an overdrive or distortion pedal. I can't say enough about this amp: WORTH EVERY PENNY.

The tiny little Mesa Boogie Mark Five 25 Combo is really quite an awesome little tube amp. Without going into too many details as deeper The tiny little Mesa Boogie Mark Five 25 Combo is really quite an awesome little tube amp. Without going into too many details as deeper dives have been covered in other reviews, I'll just add a few of my thoughts about it from how I use it. My other current amps are a 64 Fender Princeton Reverb and a Blackstar Studio 10 6L6 and both of them are great sounding small amps in their own particular ways.

I use it mainly for recording direct and the CabClone, though basic with only 2 settings, it gets the job done very well. It has nice dynamics and feel with lots of tonal options to supplement and tweak the direct sound output. Playing it out loud in my home, it sounds very good and would likely work in most smaller venues. In larger spaces you may need to run a direct line to front of house to supplement the speaker, mic it, or add an extension cabinet. I am not blasting it out in my home, so keep that in mind.

The reverb tone sounds very good to me. It's not overpoweringly swampy, but in my opinion, it is a very good sounding tube spring reverb. It doesn't quite get you into total Surf territory when you dime it, but I do like its sound a lot. The two reverb knobs which can be set separately for each channel are located on the back of the amp. They are easily reached and adjusted by feel as they are located just over the top of the amp.

I play mostly clean to slightly gritty guitar tones. The Channel 1 Clean and Fat setting are very good, with just a bit of Vox chime. Great fat Jazz and Classic Rock tones. The Crunch setting sounds great, but does cause a pretty big volume bump when switching the Clean channel selector to that setting.

Using the high gain on Channel 2 with my Strat, I'm able to tame the gain down and get a great warm and creamy 70's Rock tone. I don't do Metal, but I would imagine that it would do the job. Check the Metal reviewers for more info.

The EQ lets you get a boost or cut if all the frequencies controls are moved together, up or down as needed. You can also tone shape with them and it's foot pedal switchable on or off. I mainly keep it out of the circuit, but it seems to work just fine.

It comes with a nice heavy cover and a foot switch allowing both channel switching and EQ on and off. It also has an effects loop which I haven't tried. Be aware that it has an always on cooling fan that sounds like those on a computer, but I think it is fairly quiet.

The amp is very tiny and easy to carry. The control panel is pretty small. If you have huge hands, it might be a problem reaching the the channel 1 toggle switch. The little amp seems like a premium product and is very well made. It comes with a very thorough printed manual with lots of details on how to use the amp and how to get all the tones that are available in it. You will have to work a bit to get the tones, as this is a somewhat complex little beast, but they are there. For its tiny size and all the features and tones available, it is an amazingly cool little piece of engineering. It carries a 5 year warrant too except for tubes. It is a pro level product with a pro level price, but I think it's definitely worth it.

A wealth of options, this is the "Swiss Army Knife" of rock guitar amplifiers. Don't be fooled by its diminutive size; this is one loud amplifier.

I have the Big Brother Mark V 90, got the 25/10 for portability issues. Frankly, the 25/10 is currently my favorite of the two. The portability of the amp without any loss of sound is just amazing. If you are a Boogie fan you got to have one of these small boxes of dynamite. Very pleased and highly recommend it.

I owned a Mark V 25 head when they first came out. After a while I bought a full size 90 watt Mark V head. That head thru a 4x12 was my main gigging rig for a long time. But I have been out of the band scene for a while now and sold off the old rig. But I missed that Mark V sound. When I saw this, it was perfect! Best of all I still have a custom made 1x12 I can run it with if I need the extra volume. It's like having a portable amp head that still is usable all on its own. If you want amazing versatility, and world class tone, and all in a small portable package this is the answer! Worth every penny!

I previously owned a custom Boogie Mark IV (Bubinga cab, cane grill) for almost 30 years - it was a work of art, but way too much amp for me to master - I could never seem to dial in an authentic Mark I or 'D'-esque tone. I reluctantly sold it a year ago as part of a major downsizing of my guitar and amp collection. I didn't miss the amp, itself, (anyone who has parted with great gear know that letting go is a "process") - but I did miss having a Boogie as part of smaller collection. An online thread (a telecaster discussion page) gave me the inspiration to buy a Mark Five:25 Combo from Sweetwater this past summer - with the help of my terrific Sales Engineer, Ashton Vaudt. It lingered on my wish list for some time before I finally committed.

In 55 years of playing (or rather, playing at, guitar), I've owned many amps - Fenders, the Mark IV, several limited edition Vox's, Blackstar, Laney, Marshall and several 5 watt amps of various pedigrees. Without a doubt, the Mark Five:25 is the most versatile and player-friendly of the bunch. My amp arsenal is down to three amps now, and this new Boogie is the centerpiece. I'm still experimenting with it and learning all that the amp has to offer - but dialing in a new tone is so easy and accessible - if you remember to adjust in small increments.

Lastly, that inspiring thread pointed the way to finding a great tone, with little effort. I didn't expect to find a holy grail tone in the Xtreme channel - but there it was. That Ford, Carlton, Santana sweet spot - gorgeous note "bloom" with just a little "hair" - it was so gratifying to find that tone.

Xtreme/Gain, 3/Treble, 0/Mid, 5-6/Bass, 0/Presence, 0/Master, 5 - EQ, On (yes, those are the EQ settings) - 10W (25, for a little more headroom).

The Mark Five:25 is an amazing musical instrument - enjoy!

I bought the Mark Five:25 10" a couple of months ago and it's outstanding:
- At 24 pounds it's as light as a solid state
- The CabClone sounds great for direct recording
- The 10" speaker is loud enough for a real gig
- Probably the best clean tone ever! And here's a little secret to get a Kenny Burrell jazz tone: turn the Fat gain up all the way, high/mid/low at 5 and back off the presence and high until your ear says it's just right
- Try the blues setting from the manual (Mk IIc+ with gain around 10 o'clock) and you're set for most blues gigs

First off, it's loud and a tone monster. There are so many options on each channel it's like a bunch of Boogie amps. I expected the best from Boogie in a small package and it exceeds my expectations for tone and features. Very nice studio sounding reverb and anything from clean sparkly to crunch to extreme. Just dial it in !!! As with any amp, it pays to use a high quality cable, so you have the best tube amp, why not get the best cable !!! If you cut the clean channel to 10 watts and use the fat setting, you get a nice blues tone by cranking the gain. There are too many options to mention but you should get anything you want out of this beautiful compact demon. And, its definitely loud enough for any live performance, don't let the small package deceive you, it's like a box of Nitro. The articulation is excellent or you can get mushy blues soft reaction too. You want the ride of an RR it will do it. You want to race like a Dodge Hell Cat, it will do that too.

I have been looking for a hand wired amp, due to the expressiveness that results. Although there are circuit boards in this amp, I feel that I purchased 6 amps in one. At 24lbs, there is no hesitation on taking down from my walk up apartment to gig, that's reallty nice.
VERY IMPORTANT: READ THE MANUAL. This amp is subtle, try the illustrated examples, read from cover to cover, it's well written and totally worth it.
Headphone jack, now this is really nice, you can turn off the speakers and practice with real clarity. 10" speaker? Well I love the Vibrolux so I like the way the 10" cuts through a band. As the manual states, put it on the ground to couple with the floor for added bass resonance. You can use other cabinets easily, use a 4/12 and you can soar with this thing if you wish. It's like buying a head, with a 10" speaker to use for home/practice/gigging. Believe me please, this thing as is cuts through in a band situation (I have been told to lower the volume, Yeah! on a gig).
The second channel with the lead and heavy rhythm tones has forced me to rethink my rig. The lead tones are much better than my pedals, so using the effects loop for modulation/delay is new for me. It works great.
As per their claim that this amp will improve your playing: I am a heart, head, hands guy who understands that each player has their unique voice. The harmonic overtones are amazing, the low end articulation is something I didn't have with other clean amps. My son described the sound as "Hi-Fi", and I think that is correct. As the amp is more articulate, it will force you to slow down, clean up, establish new habits, and then let you soar again, better and with more clarity, regardless of style.
Direct output? Works great for silent stage, or recording. I use this for Guitar, Bass and Pedal Steel, sound great, huge feature. Like having a modeling or profiling rig.
The
Special thanks to Paul Rowan, my man at Sweetwater. Always a pleasure.

the tone is there, it's up to you to extract it. people are quick to point out the fact that it is small and will probably sound boxy. my experience has been positive. I've played and enjoyed guitars and tube amps for the better part of 50 years and I can assure you, this little amp is a keeper. the tones are there, you just have to know what you're doing, that is, you have to have an understanding of the tone structures your trying to get. it has a small footprint, a big tone and it is lightweight yet it is a heavyweight when its time to rock!

I'd wanted a Boogie since the mid-80's; good things come to he who waits. It is a beautiful sounding amplifier that really makes a Strat sing. Famous of course for its drive I find the cleaner channels very agreeable also. for blues/classic rock the 'clean' setting is a little thin for my taste but 'Fat' instantly fixes this with the flick of a switch. The one major dumb thing about this amp is that they put the 'Crunch' option (which is beautiful) on the clean channel, so if you want clean AND crunch you are SOL. The problem is easily solved with the addition of an OD to the clean channel when you need clean and OD; I use a Timmy; with amp clean gain around 55% the pedal will push the clean into OD nicely without coloring. Drive channel doesn't disappoint with plenty of sonic options. Strangely the IIc+ I had hoped to love also sounds kinda thin and nasal next to the Mark IV and Extreme settings; no need for Timmy here. One thing you need to know... this amp is LOUD, for its size it's a head turner... people literally looking around wondering where the hell that came from 'cos it couldn't possibly be the tiny little Boogie over there. Drummers will laugh... until you point it at them. For home use you have to back off the power stage so far it'll loose tone, so I threw a 'Little Black Amp Box' attenuator in the effects loop on my board and it tames it beautifully, a no-brainer $30 addition to make the amp uber-flexible from a band setting to open-mic to bedroom. It's a lot of amp in a tiny package, absolutely perfect for schlepping around, while others limp around dragging >50lbs monsters I stroll past with guitar on my back, pedalboard in one hand, this 24lb Boogie in the other hand and a spring in my step. I think above all the thing to know here is that the 'tweakability' of this amp is immense (and necessary) and the task of finding your tones WILL take tweaking, it starts off sounding great but there is much more greatness to be had if you sit with it a while. Remember to take a photo of your settings... trust me.

This amp surpassed by far all the expectations I had before buying it.

I am an intermediate guitar player and I have been exploring several music genres, all the things starting from fusion jazz and finishing at hardcore metal. As I moved from my country to USA, I was looking for a small amp that fits all those sounding demands and easily to take it back home, so my sales engineer Zach Menard made an awesome job recommending this chameleon beast.

When I opened the box, everything was in perfect shape as it should, not a single scratch and the quality of the materials did not disappointed me in any form, so i proceeded to read the manual (highly recommended) and about one hour later, just plugged everything. My first impression was that this amp worth's every single dollar. It is the most versatile amp I have ever played in different aspects.

First i plugged my Yamaha Pacifica 112J, just to hear what a cheap guitar sounds with it. I never though a $200 guitar could sound as good as a $2,000 one. Both channels sounded awesome with all the pickups configurations, but the real magic begins when the 5 band EQ is activated. You can go from deep bassy groars to shimmering glassy cleans with the same equipment. Seriously, you can play everything you want with this beast.

After i tested it with the Pacifica, I proceeded to plug in my strat and i discovered a whole new world of excellent sounds that i was not aware off before.

In other aspect, this amp let you use it for room practicing at low volumes with the 10 watts and master volume configuration. I live in a small apartment with my wife, and only by having the door closed, i can crank it up without disturbing her and yet get roary sounds at low volume. For a small gig, it can get as loud as you need with the 25 watts selector without losing any sound qualities. So this make it a tool that will do the job, whatever the job is.

Other useful stuff that it comes with, is the open back cab or close back cab selector and 1 reverb knob (real spring pool reverb) for each channel. Because of this, now I'm thinking of removing my overdrive, fuzz and reverb pedals from my pedalboard and put something else in those spots.

The only small inconvenient I had with this amp, is that for some reason, it detects some sort of radio or tv transmission and I can hear it at the speaker. To fix this, I only changed it to another location a little bit far away from the window and it never happened again. This only happens in that specific spot, but it may be a problem for other people.

Other than that, I think I will never buy another amp in my life because this one does everything I need. For sure I will buy some replacement tube sets to keep using it for several years.

I reviewed the amp last year and gave it 5 stars, but after a year I have 2 comments:
- The CabClone direct out does not sound as good to me as the live amp sound.
- The speaker is not what I am looking for. I plugged it into a Quilter 10" speaker and it sounded great. Also sounds great through the Eminence Tonkerlight 125 12".

If you are looking to play live, I would recommend using an extension cab, or getting the head only version. It's got great versatility. And for recording I would recommend miking it.