Sound Pure's Take

Condition: Used, Excellent

Hand-wired point-to-point in North Carolina, the 16-watt Carr Mercury V 1x12 combo captures British-inspired crunch and boutique refinement in a Tweed solid-pine, dovetail-jointed cabinet weighing 40 lbs. Powered by four 12AX7 and two 6V6GT tubes running through a 12" Celestion Creamback M65 speaker, it offers premium audio-grade components, custom transformers, Jupiter signal caps, and all-tube spring reverb. Dual blendable Volume controls (High/Low) and a 3-position Boost switch seamlessly bridge vintage chime to hot-rodded gain. Outfitted with a built-in attenuator for whisper-quiet drive, a Parallel/Series switch, 3-band EQ, and a Line Out, this versatile amplifier delivers uncompromising, recording-ready tube tone at any volume.

From Carr Amplifiers

The Mercury V reinvents a long-standing Carr platform to deliver snarling Marshall-esque British tones with a highly evolved feature set and surprising versatility. From thick cleans, to punchy midrangey crunch, to wailing roar, it’s all here with attitude to spare. Rendered in a supremely portable package and able to nail all reduced-volume requirements, the Mercury V brings stack-like sonic thunder to the rehearsal room, studio, and club stage.

In 2003 Vintage Guitar magazine’s cover story declared the original Mercury the ‘Tone of the Gods.’ Its bigger brother the Mercury V now configures that directivity and touch sensitivity into an even more fully-featured, breathtakingly versatile design enabling a broad range of gain structures, voicing capabilities and output levels to tackle just about any genre or playing style.

Based on a pair of 6V6GT power tubes for a full-throated 16 watts, the Mercury V harnesses an ingeniously original preamp circuit featuring dual Volume controls (for High and Low voicings), a three-position Boost switch, and a three-knob EQ stage to kick out a dynamic range of distinctly English tones. The results included everything from pushed ’60s cleans, to chunky ’70s rock, right into’80s and ’90s crunch and singing leads, and even scorching high-gain sizzle. The internally paired High and Low channels can be run in parallel like a jumpered four-hole classic, or switched to cascade in series, taking the gain levels off the charts and into the 21st century.

An onboard attenuator—Carr’s forte—can be switched in to take the firepower anywhere from 4 watts down to a mere whisper, and there’s a post-power amp Line Out to send it to the PA or into your recording interface for tracking. Add lush tube-returned spring reverb, and there’s a wealth of multi-dimensional tone packed into this remarkably compact combo.

It’s all put together with the top-quality parts and construction that Carr is famous for, including in-house crafted dovetailed solid North Carolina yellow pine cabinets, military and NASA-grade power supply components, and trenchant mid-Century signal elements rendered in true point-to-point wiring.

Mercury V — from a whisper to a roar, and scary good all the way.

Construction
Hand wired point-to-point in the USA
Color
Tweed
Components
Custom USA made transformers, Solen Fast Cap Film Power Supply, US-made Jupiter signal capacitors, carbon comp resistors, and more
Power
16 watts
Channels
One (with two blendable Volume controls)
Tubes
four 12AX7, two 6V6GT
Controls
High and Low Volume, three-way Boost, Reverb, Treble, Mid, Bass, Attenuator, Line Out
Switches
Parallel/Series switch, three-position Boost, Attenuator in/out, on/off/standby
Features
All-tube spring reverb, Boost switch, built-in attenuator, 8-Ohm speaker out, line out
Cabinet
Hand-crafted from solid pine, dovetail-jointed and uniquely styled
Speakers
Celestion Creamback M65 12"
Weight & Dimensions
1x12" combo 21" (W) x 17" (H) x 9" (D at top, 10" at bottom), 40 lbs

Warranty

This item is sold without the Sound Pure 3-year warranty (used / B-stock / dealer-exempt). Coverage terms for items in this category live in Terms & Conditions, Section 27.

Returns

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Sound Pure Studios Control Room A — Durham, NC

Sound Pure Studios · Durham, NC

Come hear it in our control rooms.

Sound Pure is a working studio in Durham, NC — a 1,000 sq ft live room and two pro control rooms. Book a session to audition gear in a world-class acoustic space before you buy.

$2,145