High Gain Peavey/Mesa guy looking for first Marshall for 80s rock and thrash

[Neptical]

50 Watts, but there is also 100 watt version as well I see.

Another question I have, would I maybe he happier with a JCM 2000 DSL Head? How do you think it would sound with a Mesa or Harley Benton V30s cab?

As a JCM 2000 DSL 50 and DSL 100 owner, hands down one of my favorite amps. Get one. The 50 has a more squishy tone out the gates.

These amps sit next to my Dual Rectifier ( Rev. G) and they compete.. easily. As mentioned, use a boost like a Boss SD-1.

Also, I like running my V30 4x12 Soldano flat cab which adds some depth to the already monstrous tone.

 

[Crikey]

Jcm 900 4100

 

[Neville]

Came across a interessting video that was released only yesterday. I love the Artist. That being said, I think you could hunt down a DSL50 for the same price. So I stick to suggesting the DSL.
Still, here is the video:

 

[Rokinroller]

Came across a interessting video that was released only yesterday. I love the Artist. That being said, I think you could hunt down a DSL50 for the same price. So I stick to suggesting the DSL.
Still, here is the video:

Thats an excellent Marshall if you can find one these days ! I had one back in the 90's . A truly superb sounding amp . The output section pair of EL34 's were so well designed and sounded awesome . Nice small but powerful amp . The 30 watts was powerful and sweet . I had once run it with 2-4x12 1960 JCM900 cabs and it was so satisfying . If ever one pops up locally , I b first in line to run and grab it .

 

[Deftone]

Came across a interessting video that was released only yesterday. I love the Artist. That being said, I think you could hunt down a DSL50 for the same price. So I stick to suggesting the DSL.
Still, here is the video:

Great vid. I love my Artist 30.

 

[JJB79]

As a JCM 2000 DSL 50 and DSL 100 owner, hands down one of my favorite amps. Get one. The 50 has a more squishy tone out the gates.

These amps sit next to my Dual Rectifier ( Rev. G) and they compete.. easily. As mentioned, use a boost like a Boss SD-1.

Also, I like running my V30 4x12 Soldano flat cab which adds some depth to the already monstrous tone.

I'm inquiring about both right now, both being $700 for a JCM2000 DSL 50W, and a DSL100H. between the two?

 

[Neville]

I'm inquiring about both right now, both being $700 for a JCM2000 DSL 50W, and a DSL100H. between the two?

Easy. Take the newer one. The JCM2000 DSL had a long run and was optimized all the time. Try to find out the serial numbers to check the year of production.

 

[Neville]

Easy. Take the newer one. The JCM2000 DSL had a long run and was optimized all the time. Try to find out the serial numbers to check the year of production.

Ah, sorry, I thought both were JCM2000. Well, then my statement makes no sense

 

[Leonard Neemoil]

Another question I have, would I maybe he happier with a JCM 2000 DSL Head? How do you think it would sound with a Mesa or Harley Benton V30s cab?

How would I know if they've been Fixed?

Not sure which you would prefer but the combos get hotter and heat is one of the main contributions to failure with those amps. So a head would be better imo. You can make the combo into a head.

A JCM or DSL should sound great through any average v30 cab. I play my DSLs through a homemade 2x12 v30 cab made to be half the size of a first gen 5150 4x12 straight cab and love it.

In order to know if the faults have been fixed you'd have to remove the chassis from the cabinet.

 

[Mitchell Pearrow]

I'm inquiring about both right now, both being $700 for a JCM2000 DSL 50W, and a DSL100H. between the two?

To The Forum
The avt cab is the same size as the MG cabs.. but they do have a tiny bit better speakers in them.
I set my Dsl40c’s on top of the MG cabs.
I think after reading your last post .. go for the 100H, I have always preferred it to the HR

Cheers
Mitch

 

[JJB79]

Not sure which you would prefer but the combos get hotter and heat is one of the main contributions to failure with those amps. So a head would be better imo. You can make the combo into a head.

A JCM or DSL should sound great through any average v30 cab. I play my DSLs through a homemade 2x12 v30 cab made to be half the size of a first gen 5150 4x12 straight cab and love it.

In order to know if the faults have been fixed you'd have to remove the chassis from the cabinet.

I suppose how hard is it to repair the faults? I'm not stranger to electronics. I was a supervisor at 2 manufacturers who run SMT and Wave machines and did plenty of my share of repairs so replacing or repairing components on a PCB is within my comfort zone, but not so good at the SMT parts though so I left those with my techs. But a friend of mine is a test engineer(who builds test fixtures) so he can help me out with pretty much any mod as long as the parts and diagram are there.

 

[Rokinroller]

To The Forum
The avt cab is the same size as the MG cabs.. but they do have a tiny bit better speakers in them.
I set my Dsl40c’s on top of the MG cabs.
I think after reading your last post .. go for the 100H, I have always preferred it to the HR

Cheers
Mitch

Yup for sure 100H all the way . JCM2000 a bit risky , unless you are a tech .

 

[JJB79]

Ok guys, I ended up deciding on a JCM2000 DSL50 built in 2006.

 

[JJB79]

Yup for sure 100H all the way . JCM2000 a bit risky , unless you are a tech .

Though I myself have access to a buddy whos a EE, and myself can do many things but decided on a 2006 JCM2000 since it sounds like there's no risk so much with that serial number.

 

[Rokinroller]

Though I myself have access to a buddy whos a EE, and myself can do many things but decided on a 2006 JCM2000 since it sounds like there's no risk so much with that serial number.

2006 should be a good choice

 

[Leonard Neemoil]

I suppose how hard is it to repair the faults? I'm not stranger to electronics. I was a supervisor at 2 manufacturers who run SMT and Wave machines and did plenty of my share of repairs so replacing or repairing components on a PCB is within my comfort zone, but not so good at the SMT parts though so I left those with my techs. But a friend of mine is a test engineer(who builds test fixtures) so he can help me out with pretty much any mod as long as the parts and diagram are there.

Ok guys, I ended up deciding on a JCM2000 DSL50 built in 2006.

You SHOULD be set as far as runaway bias is concerned. Supposedly Marshall fixed that by 2004/5. Not sure about the speaker jack ground problem though.

That's very simple. Just solder a jumper wire to connect the grounds together on the 3 speaker jacks. Otherwise you can fry a transformer if the switching jack fails.

Congratulations on the amp. Those are the best sounding version imo. Will definitely do what you want.

Enjoy!

 

[Neville]

Congratulations! I think those made in england DSLs cover a lot of classic Marshall tones.

 

[JJB79]

You SHOULD be set as far as runaway bias is concerned. Supposedly Marshall fixed that by 2004/5. Not sure about the speaker jack ground problem though.

That's very simple. Just solder a jumper wire to connect the grounds together on the 3 speaker jacks. Otherwise you can fry a transformer if the switching jack fails.

Congratulations on the amp. Those are the best sounding version imo. Will definitely do what you want.

Enjoy!

Thanks for the heads up, that's probably the easiest repair possible. I mean it would be cool as fuck to have one of those modded JCM800s, but I gotta chill on the money spending. If I become rich, sure, but I definitely got most metal sounds covered now but just miss the Marshall sound so I think I'm officially done buying amps. I don't HAVE to buy a cab, as 2 of my other amps are actually combos, one I made into a head with a cabnet I built. How do you think this would be with a Harley Benton Vintage 30 cab? It's a recent purchase, so I don't know how right that crazy fucker Glenn Fricker is if you've seen the videos. Actually I'm gonna search the forum and if it doesn't exist I'll make it. But I suppose I could maybe dial in a Dimebag style tone, or maybe after a couple years or if I run across one of those Randell heads somewhere. I got quite a few things on my list of "great to have that too, but not really looking". I don't do it so much with guitars but am particular about having decent pups if all else is is good, feels good, set up, good. But I suppose at some point a real Gibson Les Paul would be nice. A buddy of mine now that I recall, just this minute, had this amp with a Les Paul. Haven't seen him in years though. Come to think of it, he might have had the problems people are describing with the earlier models. One after noon he calls me saying he had to cancel the show because something went screwy with his amp. From my understanding he'd had the amp for awhile. But instead I just loaned him a 5150 I had at the time(wish I still did, sold it when they went for $500). I don't really recall what the problem actually was. But this was around 2007-2008 or so, so I'd say the chance it was one of those was likely, but I also recall him mentioning that he insisted his Les Paul be new, he might have done that for everything else, but, if you know exactly what you're getting, nothing wrong with the used market for amps just as long as they don't look beat the hell up, like they'd been through an 80s motley crew tour. Unless of course they didn't know that and you could some how prove it, then it'd be worth money and maybe a couple hundred dollars worth of coke residue that fell into the amp. ok ok I'll shut up now, I get yappy and kinda comical when I smoke weed.

 

[JJB79]

In other news, now a dude on Facebook marketplace who I messages several days ago now got back to me. A DSL100H fullstack, yes, a full stack, for $750. I'm not hard up so I'm gonna check it out. Now I don't know what the cabs are but can assume it's whatever is paired with it. If it's seriously like new and the cabs are quality even if the speakers are shit it's still an amazing deal as I can fill the cabs with whatever I want, or sell one of them for a decent price. I have no need for 2 4x12s but I think just keeping one would be fine.

 

[V-man]

As a metal/thrash guy, you MUST get a 2203/4 type circuit for what you are asking. It was THE amp for hard rock and thrash during that point in history. It is the only sensible choice to nail what you seek.

The only other (tube alternative) would be a somewhat cheaper 2205/10 amp, which had a little more gain and was used by some rock/metal acts at the time. It will get you there fine, but the 2203/4 is the grail tone for a reason.

You may get suggestions like DSL/900/Valvestate, etc. Most any Marshall can be dialed into the ballpark of “800-ish” and many can give you a better start at modern metal out of the box. However, if your hi-gain/modern tone is settled with Peavey/Mesa etc,why compromise on the good things your rig lacks to get a cheaper Marshall that competes with what you have/like at the expense of doing what you don’t have less well?

If you were looking for an amp that does it all out of the box as a compromise, other suggestions are good, but the specialized tool for your precise needs is a 2203 with 6550s IMO