DSL40c or not to DSL40c?

[mat_79]

Hi, I'm new to the forum. I'm not up on the etiquette so bear with me : )

I've always used Marshall amps but have never owned a tube amp. I've always splashed my money on guitars, beer & cigarettes.

I've quit drinking and smoking so now is the time to enter the Valve arena.

I've read and heard such great things about the DSL40c and I'm so close to just getting one. I've seen all the reviews and read this forum and it seems like the one for me - it's also in my budget.

My one concern..and it may be ridiculous, is that it doesn't have a separate EQ for the clean channel. I would go and try one out but there are no Main Dealers near me.

Is this something I shouldn't be fussing about...and just buy it?

I play mostly Rock/Blues stuff but like to have option of going HEAVY now and again.

Thanks.

(Can't seem to ad a signature...this is what I have aside from a couple of medical conditions):
2006 Gibson Les Paul Standard Desertburst.
1965 Fender Jaguar Reissue. (The 'Cobain' one).
2001 Epiphone Les Paul Standard Cherry S/B w/SD Alnico 2 pros.
1956 Reissue Epiphone Gold Top w/P90s.
2010 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Wine Red.
x 3 Fender Strats (one has SD JB HB at Bridge).
1970s Conrad Jaguar w/PAF at Bridge.
'Jaguar' type Frankenstein project.
Takamine Electro Acoustic.
Simon & Patrick Electro Acoustic.
Electro Harmonix Small Clone.
Cry Baby.
oh..and a Marshall G30R.

 

[Micky]

Just do it.
You will love it...

 

[shades of blue]

Yeah it's a great amp. I have the DSL100 Head. Here is what I found about the EQ...just about everything set at noon sounds good, which allows you to use your tone knobs on your guitar to add or take away treble to your taste. Go for it!

 

[Vinsanitizer]

I own the 40C.
Like you, I have always detested shared EQ between channels on guitar amps.
If you are truly like me, then for live performance shared EQ is unlikely to cut it for you, as you will always want a more scooped clean and a fatter solo.

There are three options I've employed which may appeal to you, all of them favoring the purchase of the 40C - I am very happy with mine:

1. Don't take shared EQ so seriously. Just find the happy medium and play.

2. Use a stompbox before the Input that has gain and tone controls (bass/mid/treble even better). Set both your two amp channels for a good clean channel and a basic crunch/rhythm on the Ultra channel, then kick on the stompbox for a gain & tone boost for solos on the Ultra channel.

The drawbacks to this method are:
a) May not boost volume for solos unless your Ultra channel's gain is set pretty low.
b) You'll now need to switch channels AND the boost pedal on/off for solos separately.
c) If you factor effects into the equation, you will be dancing instead of playing.

3. Use a floor FX board that includes an amp channel switching feature, such as the BOSS GT-10 or GT-100. Research the "4-cable method". This method is complex but can allow you to control various features like gain, effects, volume boosting and amp channel-switching, all at the kick of a single switch. It does work, but you will have to burn some midnight oil working with it. Essentially what this does is use the floor box as the main audio generator, and uses your amp's preamp as if it were one of its own preamps, via the FX Loop Send; you mix everything the way you want it and save it into various patches, which then output back into your amp's FX Loop Return. In this way, every aspect of your amp and effects is controlled through patches at the pedalboard. This can open up an unlimited number of capabilities, but it can get very complex because of the sheer amount of control you have.

I hope this helps you.

 

[Micky]

Hey Vin - Do they have any 40C's at the GC over on Wolf Road?
May be headed down there this weekend, and wanted to check one out...

 

[Vinsanitizer]

Hey Vin - Do they have any 40C's at the GC over on Wolf Road?
May be headed down there this weekend, and wanted to check one out...

I didn't see any there when I bought mine a few weeks ago, but they could be in stock now. I bought mine at Parkway Music on Route 9 in Clifton Park.

• Guitar Center
  Wolf Road, Albany
  (518) 446-1500
  Open 10:00am
  
  
• Parkway Music
  1777 Route 9
  Clifton Park, NY 12065
  (518) 383-0300
  Open 11:00am

 

[SugarLandMarshallFan]

I own a DSL40C and couldn't be happier with it. Even the Celestion 70/80 speaker does very well. The awesome thing about the EQ is if you set everything at 5 (12 o'clock) it sounds almost perfect. I always start new amps with all the tone-shaping controls at 12 o'clock then tweak from there. When I got this one out of the box I set the treble, middle, bass, presence, and resonance controls all on 5 (12 o'clock). A month later and they're still at those same settings. Why? Because the tone is absolutely amazing without messing with it.

 

[mat_79]

Thank you. All good advice...I appreciate it. I think I'll go with it and order one.

Cheers

Mat

 

[DirtySteve]

Another happy dsl40 watt owner here! I also have my eq at noon most of the time. So far I haven't messed with the eq too much, but I was wondering about an eq in the loop if the shared eq does become something of an issue. Set the amp eq to sound good on one channel and then kick on the eq to tweak the other?

Anyway, very happy so far and it's the best sound I've ever had!

 

[Vinsanitizer]

Another happy dsl40 watt owner here! I also have my eq at noon most of the time. So far I haven't messed with the eq too much, but I was wondering about an eq in the loop if the shared eq does become something of an issue. Set the amp eq to sound good on one channel and then kick on the eq to tweak the other?

Anyway, very happy so far and it's the best sound I've ever had!

Yes - Steve, for what it's worth, using the BOSS floor board as I described above works very well for that and, especially in your case, is easy to set up. That way you can just hit one switch and change channels and EQ at the same time. You can also add effects easily as well. I realize a floow unit is costly and may not work for everyone, but I offered that up in case there ar any others like me who are major control freaks. LOL!! Glad you like your DSL! Mine's been awesome in the short time I've owned it.

I will try the 12:00 control settings. I'm sure that would work well, since I haven't found a bad tone in it yet.

 

[paul-e-mann]

Buy It!!! It will bring you much happiness.

 

[6strimgplayer]

Yes buy it! I have had mine for month or so and the shared eq works fine.

I ended with treble on 0 mid at 4 bass at 8 p&r ant noon works great

 

[Vinsanitizer]

Yes buy it! I have had mine for a month or so and the shared eq works fine.

I ended with treble on 0 mid at 4 bass at 8 p&r ant noon works great

So far I've been: Treb-1, Mid-4, Bass-3, Pres-0, Res-0, using the Ultra channel. I can't choose between Ultra 1 and Ultra 2 because I like them both. I think the Bass is low because the amp sits right up against a wall in a smallish room.

The amp can be excessicably laudacious, or whisper quiet.

 

[mat_79]

Thanks again for your input and expertise. Like some of you say..I could run an EQ in front of it, but sounds like I won't have to. I think I'll get one ordered today. Exciting...I never get 'new' things.

 

[mat_79]

Bought it...now I have to wait for it!

 

[DirtySteve]

Mine only took 3 days to arrive.

 

[BeardedRetroGuy]

I own the 40C.
Like you, I have always detested shared EQ between channels on guitar amps.
If you are truly like me, then for live performance shared EQ is unlikely to cut it for you, as you will always want a more scooped clean and a fatter solo.

There are three options I've employed which may appeal to you, all of them favoring the purchase of the 40C - I am very happy with mine:

1. Don't take shared EQ so seriously. Just find the happy medium and play.

2. Use a stompbox before the Input that has gain and tone controls (bass/mid/treble even better). Set both your two amp channels for a good clean channel and a basic crunch/rhythm on the Ultra channel, then kick on the stompbox for a gain & tone boost for solos on the Ultra channel.

The drawbacks to this method are:
a) May not boost volume for solos unless your Ultra channel's gain is set pretty low.
b) You'll now need to switch channels AND the boost pedal on/off for solos separately.
c) If you factor effects into the equation, you will be dancing instead of playing.

3. Use a floor FX board that includes an amp channel switching feature, such as the BOSS GT-10 or GT-100. Research the "4-cable method". This method is complex but can allow you to control various features like gain, effects, volume boosting and amp channel-switching, all at the kick of a single switch. It does work, but you will have to burn some midnight oil working with it. Essentially what this does is use the floor box as the main audio generator, and uses your amp's preamp as if it were one of its own preamps, via the FX Loop Send; you mix everything the way you want it and save it into various patches, which then output back into your amp's FX Loop Return. In this way, every aspect of your amp and effects is controlled through patches at the pedalboard. This can open up an unlimited number of capabilities, but it can get very complex because of the sheer amount of control you have.

I hope this helps you.

4.) Get a JVM combo. The things have separate channel EQs, two Master Volumes, independent Reverb controls for each channel.....oh yeah, and they're flippin bad-ass.

Seriously, though, if the DSL doesn't have the features you want, find the Marshall that does. The JVM is basically a DSL on steroids with more features.

Yeah, sometimes I joke around going EVERYONE should get a JVM blah blah blah. I would not have posted here at all though until I read in your post that you hate having a shared EQ for a 2-channel amp. That immediately said "then get a JVM" to me. That's why I posted here. I thought I should throw that option out at you and see if you bite.

The JVM combos come in a 100-watt 4-channel 2x12", a 100-watt 2-channel 2x12", a 50-watt 2-channel 2x12", and a 50-watt 2-channel 1x12".

The JVM heads come in a 100-watt 4-channel head, a 100-watt 2-channel head, and a 50-watt 2-channel head.

I personally own a JVM410 4-channel 100-watt head that sits on a 1960A Lead 4x12" cabinet with Celestion G12T-75 in it and it's just incredible. I love it so much I bought an expensive Marshall-labeled flight case for it...and I don't gig. (yet...)

 

[Ampcrazy]

I wouldn't buy that amp. Don't do it. You are encouraging the attitude that it's money before everything else, even amp performance. That is why these are made in Vietnam, whereas back in the day they were proper UK made.

Not to mention this is the very reason UK and US companies are leaking jobs to the far east at an alarming rate, ending up with whole swathes of the population ending up losing their livelihood and the ability to support their families.

In short i urge people to stop being selfish and frivolous and only thinking of what's best for you at this time. Think of the people that will end up possibly losing their jobs because of this whole attitude.

If you stay in the US, why not buy a US made amp and support your own countrymen and craftsmen instead of bailing out Vietnamese workers?

 

[Ampcrazy]

Bought it...now I have to wait for it!

 

[Far Rider]

Not this crap again