JCM2000 DSL100 - To fix or not to fix?

[gregr]

someone who will only work on things he "likes" (presumably "finds easy") is an amateur.

Or he has enough business that he just doesn’t need to. But he shouldn’t be a dick about it.

 

[JonSick]

I guess it really depends on how the repair guy wants to look for his business.

The thing about those JCM2000s is that there are "fixes" around. Personally I have done these "fixes" a couple of times and not one of them lasted or didn't cause other problems down the line. When I repaired the JCM2000s that passed through my hands exhibiting this typical bias runaway issue, I did gig them and play rehearsals with them mainly as I wanted to be confident the thing was working before I moved it on. While I'd say the TSL100 is my favourite amplifier, I don't need ten of the things.

IMO the only real repair to these JCM2000s is to replace the mainboard. It solves a lot of issues in one fell swoop. Sure there can be other issues besides as a result of these faults. In my case I've had a couple of dead OTs as a result of lots of overheating and the amp being left to do it and of course there is the cost of the tubes.

So from a business perspective, turning around to your client and asking for £450 on the extreme end to do all that work (board, OT, tubes) if worst case scenario on an amp you can pick up on eBay for not much more is a hard ask. Of course, that same £450 JCM2000 on eBay may well have the exact same issue of course. Then there's the internet folklore of these issues are only apparent on the TSL100 and not the DSL100 or DSL50. Both are false.

Well, the JCM2000s I sold on or traded, I was straight up about the work I had put into it and tried to include any invoices for pieces I bought more as proof than anything else. But those were amplifiers I most certainly tested in real world situations to make sure nothing was going to blow up once I'd passed it on. In some cases I sold, in some cases I traded.

I can't say I made money overall as I'm sure I didn't. TBH the amps that passed through my hands came to me simply through quirks of fate. There were a lot of these JCM2000s sent out to rental places, a lot of people bought them when they were going cheap on the used market especially when zeh Germans came. But what I can say is I've been using my main TSL100 now for around six years pretty solidly and it's yet to die a firey death since I replaced the mainboard. I don't remember if that one took a new OT too or not, but certainly new mainboard, sorted out the bias board pots, etc. The point is, since that work it's not shown a single problem. And I know I've been lax as it's definitely not had a new set of power tubes either. It may well do with them now.

I'm rambling... The point is that they can be repaired if you're willing to throw the cash at them to make a proper lasting repair. And really not all of them will need extensive work beyond the mainboard to get them going. For me the ones that did were obviously quite abused and it seemed evident that previous owners were happy to just let them overheat and not cut them off when they sounded bad.

As for the OP though, he is right. I mean $475 for a new head and no problems is a pretty good deal. I would have been tempted myself in that scenario for sure. But yep, I can understand an amp tech not wanting to get into that situation with a JCM2000.

 

[PBG]

So, just got the new amp Its like Christmas when new boxes come that say Marshall Got it setup and turned it on. I didn't play that much because Im working, but its amazing how much brighter the amp sounds. Its totally controllable but for the 20 minutes I spent on it, I think its sounds FAR better than the old one. Plus, no buzz!

 

[PowerTube44]

...its amazing how much brighter the amp sounds.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Serious question.

 

[Sir Don]

@PBG I think you backed the right horse. The new DSL's sound fantastic and are great value for money.

Please don't listen to the 'made in Vietnam' or 'cheap construction' comments.

The amp sounds great and is super versatile, end of story.

 

[PBG]

I havent gotten a chance to play a lot through the amp but it is definitely brighter and has more distortion. I can tell already it sounds better, but I
need to clean up the low end. Im not sure if its how I like it yet. More later

 

[Ufoscorpion]

I havent gotten a chance to play a lot through the amp but it is definitely brighter and has more distortion. I can tell already it sounds better, but I
need to clean up the low end. Im not sure if its how I like it yet. More later

Tubescreamer

 

[paul-e-mann]

So, just got the new amp Its like Christmas when new boxes come that say Marshall Got it setup and turned it on. I didn't play that much because Im working, but its amazing how much brighter the amp sounds. Its totally controllable but for the 20 minutes I spent on it, I think its sounds FAR better than the old one. Plus, no buzz!

View attachment 94078

Looks great congrats!

 

[paul-e-mann]

I havent gotten a chance to play a lot through the amp but it is definitely brighter and has more distortion. I can tell already it sounds better, but I
need to clean up the low end. Im not sure if its how I like it yet. More later

The new DSLs have been revoiced so you'll need to discover new settings and discard the settings you used on the old DSL.

 

[PBG]

The new DSLs have been revoiced so you'll need to discover new settings and discard the settings you used on the old DSL.

Dude, you are absolutely correct!! That is VERY true!! I need to play around with it when I have time... Wireless comes today

 

[PBG]

Heres my wireless

 

[slade]

I’m now feeling the same way with my tsl. Should I replace the pcb or let it go. I re tubed it and it sounds good except for this fuzziness. It’s there with all of the volumes off and it gets louder as the volume goes up. I’m trying to figure out how to post a small video clip.

 

[Jimmy Bondy]

@PowerTube44
I haven't forgotten about this. I've marked up the schematics for both the M1 and M2 generations of the DSL100. The M2 has some significant changes from the M1 which is very similar to the JCM2000.

DSL100H (M1)
View attachment 100839

DSL100HR (M2)
View attachment 100840

Hello,
I have a DSL 100h, if i want it to sound like a JCM 2000 DSL, i only have to change R9 and R20 to a 10m resistor and R33 to a 2m2 resistor? Thats all? Anyone tried this?