Germino Headroom or mesa mark v

[Grasley]

Hey Guys!! I have the opportunity to get either a Germino headroom with matching 4x12 cab (greenbacks) or a Mesa mark v with a 2x12 cab. I know they are different amps that will do different things but im curious as to what you guys would choose.....also to consider is i have a Marshall jvm and a Mesa triple rectifier....

 

[logdrum]

Mesa. Not that I have played a Germino but it seems they are more old Marshall (Plexi, BB) based.

But then again you may like the older simpler designs and can widen your sound palette.

 

[Trotter]

Germino.... by a mile

 

[tone?]

Completely different Amps.
One doesn't do what the other does at all

What type of music do you play ?

Besides the Germino will need an attenuator.
I have a headroom 100.

 

[moosewayne]

Me personally, I go with the Mesa but that's only because I just don't have the need for all-Marshall all-the-time.
If I did, I'd have kept my Reinhardt.
If I had a bunch of amps then the Germino is a cooler piece of gear with loads of TGP mystique.

I use my Mark V every single day and I'm continually blown away by it.

 

[coldengray]

If you are looking for classic Marshall 60s rock you cannot do any better than a Germino. Greg knows it all and his support and customer service are amazing. Those amps have a transferrable lifetime warranty. I just got a Germino Classic 45 and it kills the Metro JTM I had. I also have a Germino Masonette that delivers classic Plexi lead crunch at same volumes. Greg is a master.

 

[Dave_C]

Hey Guys!! I have the opportunity to get either a Germino headroom with matching 4x12 cab (greenbacks) or a Mesa mark v with a 2x12 cab. I know they are different amps that will do different things but im curious as to what you guys would choose.....also to consider is i have a Marshall jvm and a Mesa triple rectifier....

Apples and oranges but Germino by a country mile.

 

[geek-mo]

I would get the Germino and I wouldn't give it a second thought. The alleged tonal versatility of Mesa amps is overrated, in my opinion. I would rather have an amp with one knob that sounds really good than one with 10 that might not get the sound I'm looking for after exhaustive twiddling.

 

[cfjimi]

I had both. Currently got a Germino Fillmore 100. I didn't like a few of the modes in the MK V. For me they were unusable. I like an old school amp like the Germino. This amp and any number of pedals and I have many different colors and tones in which to play with. From OD's, distortion, fuzz pedals, etc.

 

[ufguy73]

I had both. Currently got a Germino Fillmore 100. I didn't like a few of the modes in the MK V. For me they were unusable. I like an old school amp like the Germino. This amp and any number of pedals and I have many different colors and tones in which to play with. From OD's, distortion, fuzz pedals, etc.

curious, have you tried a Headroom? Interested to hear comparison to the Fillmore

 

[Dave_C]

I had both. Currently got a Germino Fillmore 100. I didn't like a few of the modes in the MK V. For me they were unusable. I like an old school amp like the Germino. This amp and any number of pedals and I have many different colors and tones in which to play with. From OD's, distortion, fuzz pedals, etc.

Same here. After having been through the do-it-all channel switching route many times while also using a bunch of world-class NMV single-channel amps cranked to max clean volume (with attenuation) and overdriven with OD pedals, I tend to greatly favor the latter, although I do still love my D-styles

 

[1960lp]

Germino all the way!

 

[cfjimi]

curious, have you tried a Headroom? Interested to hear comparison to the Fillmore

Yes, I've owned a Monterey 100, Headroom 100, Lead 55. All great. They were sold for one reason or another at the time. When time came I could afford another amp, I picked the Fillmore 100, simple cause it's an early '67 Black Flag repro. It does have a MV on the back that I hardly use as I've recently got a Fryette Power Station

 

[forum_crawler]

Mark V by several miles. Awesome versatility, lots of tones, and if it breaks I can take it to an authorized repair centre and have it fixed. I can also try it at the store.

If I wanted a Marshall sounding amp, I would get a JVM, if I wanted a Marshall but not a Marshall, I would get a Splawn.

I don't tour with my amps and I wouldn't want to have to ship them anywhere for repairs so... Something that can be fixed locally is very important.

 

[lgehrig4]

If I had the 2 amps that you already have, the Germino would be my choice. Does a better job of rounding out your collection,

 

[coldengray]

Germino backs his amp with a lifetime transferrable warranty, but if you are worried about ever having to ship it the circuit is handwired and therefore very easy for any tech to troubleshoot and fix. That kind of thing wouldn't influence my decision to buy an amp anyway - I would go with whatever tone you are looking for.

 

[lgehrig4]

Mesa's warranty is lifetime and transferable as well. They have authorized techs throughout the country. Both amps are rock solid but any tech should be able to work on the Germino. You can even do some of the simpler troubleshooting.

 

[Dave_C]

Germino backs his amp with a lifetime transferrable warranty, but if you are worried about ever having to ship it the circuit is handwired and therefore very easy for any tech to troubleshoot and fix. That kind of thing wouldn't influence my decision to buy an amp anyway - I would go with whatever tone you are looking for.

Exactly. The Germino is a helluva' lot easier to service than the snakepit inside a Mark V! LOL. Plus, the vintage 60s Marshall circuits and schematics are widely available and well known. Aside from Greg's lifetime warranty, any tech worth his salt should be able to service a Germino. The same cannot be said about the Mark V.

 

[coldengray]

Which will cost more to troubleshoot?

Germino:


Mesa:

 

[Dave_C]

Which will cost more to troubleshoot?

Germino:


Mesa:

Bingo. And, which is more likely to NEED troubleshooting in the first place?