New Dsl 100 Reliability?

[Goldmember]

Come on, Marshall, throw me a frickin' bone. I didn't get the "buy one get one free" 2-fer special when I purchased my 100h! I didn't even get a shmoke and a pancake!

Then, come to think of it, what would I do with two? My DSL 100h from 2014 has functioned flawlessly since I first flipped the switches.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

As an owner of both a JCM 2000 DSL 50 (made in 2000) and a DSL100h (made in 2014), I can honestly state that the 100h is as reliable as the JCM. I run it in triode 50w mode, with all of its original factory tubes, and have never had any issue with it. The JCM has a Drake OT, and a new set of JJ valves, and required only one bias adjustment (no drift).
Crunch (Green) channels are the gems of these amps. I'm not sure how to describe the subtle difference between the two on the Crunch channel, other than to say that the 100h has a very slightly more "modern" sound. Gain level settings are almost identical, too. I hope that this helps.

Thanks to everybody for their input on the matter. I'm guessing you have owned the DSL100H new since 2014?

A pawn shop has one of the DSL100H's that appears to be in nice shape for $490. I'd have to bring in one of my cabs to try it out because they have no cabinets. I was also very conflicted between the old and new one. A tech told me that the older jcm2000s have a flaw in them to where the board becomes defective. He said that he has changed many of them.

Amp repairs get costly.


Maybe this only applies to certain years?

I looked between Reverb and Ebay and it seems that I can get an older one for around the same money as the DSL100H, give or take a little $.

I do like the idea that the newer ones have a resonance control.

Decisions ...decisions. Of course if money was plentiful, I'd grab a Silver Jubilee or a JCM800...but either are far to pricey for me.

I also guess the headshell could be swapped as well?

 

[charveldan]

Thanks to everybody for their input on the matter. I'm guessing you have owned the DSL100H new since 2014?

A pawn shop has one of the DSL100H's that appears to be in nice shape for $490. I'd have to bring in one of my cabs to try it out because they have no cabinets. I was also very conflicted between the old and new one. A tech told me that the older jcm2000s have a flaw in them to where the board becomes defective. He said that he has changed many of them.

Amp repairs get costly.


Maybe this only applies to certain years?

I looked between Reverb and Ebay and it seems that I can get an older one for around the same money as the DSL100H, give or take a little $.

I do like the idea that the newer ones have a resonance control.

Decisions ...decisions. Of course if money was plentiful, I'd grab a Silver Jubilee or a JCM800...but either are far to pricey for me.

I also guess the headshell could be swapped as well?

Pre 2005 JCM-DSL's can have the dreaded bias drift issue.
Theres nothing wrong with a pawn shop score.

try it before you buy it.

If you do buy it i would re-tube the power section with a matched quad.

 

[Goldmember]

JCM 2000 DSL 50 models do not appear to suffer from bias drift. How do I know? Aside from my DSL 50 showing no symptoms, all the research I have done (on the bias issue) points to the DSL 100 models as mentioned in charveldan's post above.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

Has the 50 watter been good to you reliability wise? I don't see the 50's very often...

 

[Easton55]

I've had my 100 for two years and no issues at all. It's always done what I've wanted it to, and never been sorry I went with it over the 800, which was my other option, but at three times the cost. I would buy new over used, but that is just me. Unless of course you knew the history on it, who played it, how it was maintained, etc. Never been a fan of having to fix something used after buying it, no matter how good a deal it may seem initially.

 

[baconjerky]

Has the 50 watter been good to you reliability wise? I don't see the 50's very often...

My 50w jcm 2000 is a stud and I'd recommend one any day of the week.

I get it, the idea of a Vietnam Marshall after decades of production in Britain bothers some people. Especially with how the company proudly displays the Union Jack. The new dsls even shamelessly dropped JMs signature on the front.

Me? I'm on the fence. I don't own one but might not be super duper opposed to one in the future if it blows me away. Fact is the new dsls can sound killer. Let's just hope that the Marshall future doesn't entirely lie in China though

 

[Goldmember]

Has the 50 watter been good to you reliability wise? I don't see the 50's very often...

I completely agree with @baconjerky !

 

[ricksconnected]

Never been a fan of having to fix something used after buying it, no matter how good a deal it may seem initially.

then folks like me scoop it up, fix it, keep it/ sell it and run all the way
to the bank either way.

 

[Goldmember]

then folks like me scoop it up, fix it, keep it/ sell it and run all the way
to the bank either way.

That's exactly how I acquired my DSL 50. Dude sold it to me cheap because it had crackling and very low output. I took it home, assessed that one of the power valves was blown, plugged in some matched JJs, then biased. It's been faithful ever since that day.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

When funds are available, I maybe considering the 50. I was playing in a band for a while using a Mesa F-50 head and it did have great tone and probably the best clean tone I have heard on a head. The downfall is that the amp didn't seem to have very good cut in a live setting behind a hard hitting drummer. This is with me running the mids fairly high and using a mini Tube Screamer to give it some push. The build quality was flawless. I never had an issue with that amp during the time I had it. A reliable amp is a plus to me. .The Rectifiers and F-Series are very dark voiced amps. Not saying they are bad but very dark in voicing.

The other thing about it is that the amp had no presence control. When I had a Peavey XXX years ago, I was reaching for one and it didn't have it either. So in my experience, I don't like amps much that don't have a presence control.

This brings me to wanting to try a Marshall DSL. I have limited experience with Marshall's but know one thing about them, they cut live like nobody's business! I had an SL-X many years ago but if I remember correctly, the board burned out in it and was gonna cost more than it was worth to fix it. So I guess it's time to go back to the Marshall side.

The DSL may fit my needs. I need a clean sound at times and hard hitting metal tones for everything else. I've also owned quite a few 5150 Peavey heads, the sound is tight and aggressive but lacking in versatility. There no clean tone nor clean channel either.
I simply outgrew that 5150 sound. Another decent amp but no longer what I'm after.

I had a Splawn ProMod years ago that was about anything that I could ever want in an amp. It was the insane hot rodded Marshall goodness and sweet clean. I had to sell that amp after I met hard times after a car accident and not being able to work. Can't afford another one.

 

[Angus Rhoads]

Can't speak for the head versions, but my old UK-made DSL401 was trouble-prone and I eventually offloaded it for my JVM combo. I picked up my Vietnam-made DSL40C 4 years ago and haven't had any issues with it.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

I believe the DSL40C was the one that had overheating issues?

 

[Angus Rhoads]

I believe the DSL40C was the one that had overheating issues?

No, that was the DSL401.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

Whoops, that's what I meant lol.

 

[Angus Rhoads]

When funds are available, I maybe considering the 50. I was playing in a band for a while using a Mesa F-50 head and it did have great tone and probably the best clean tone I have heard on a head. The downfall is that the amp didn't seem to have very good cut in a live setting behind a hard hitting drummer. This is with me running the mids fairly high and using a mini Tube Screamer to give it some push. The build quality was flawless. I never had an issue with that amp during the time I had it. A reliable amp is a plus to me. .The Rectifiers and F-Series are very dark voiced amps. Not saying they are bad but very dark in voicing.

The other thing about it is that the amp had no presence control. When I had a Peavey XXX years ago, I was reaching for one and it didn't have it either. So in my experience, I don't like amps much that don't have a presence control.

This brings me to wanting to try a Marshall DSL. I have limited experience with Marshall's but know one thing about them, they cut live like nobody's business! I had an SL-X many years ago but if I remember correctly, the board burned out in it and was gonna cost more than it was worth to fix it. So I guess it's time to go back to the Marshall side.

The DSL may fit my needs. I need a clean sound at times and hard hitting metal tones for everything else. I've also owned quite a few 5150 Peavey heads, the sound is tight and aggressive but lacking in versatility. There no clean tone nor clean channel either.
I simply outgrew that 5150 sound. Another decent amp but no longer what I'm after.

I had a Splawn ProMod years ago that was about anything that I could ever want in an amp. It was the insane hot rodded Marshall goodness and sweet clean. I had to sell that amp after I met hard times after a car accident and not being able to work. Can't afford another one.

Mesas sound fine on their own, but whenever I've heard them live in a band setting they sound like somone talking with their hands cupped over their mouth, seem to be lacking in the upper mids.

My buddy has a first gen Triple XXX and his has both Presence and Resonance controls - did later models get rid of them??? I always liked the Triple XXX better than the 5150, thought it had a lot more tones in it.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

Does he have the XXX II?

The original runs of the XXX have a resonance switch but no resonance knob. No presence control on them anywhere that I can remember. The JSX and XXX II have resonance and presence though for sure.

That's what I found out about most Mesa amps. I got awesomeness on it's own but very drowned out live.

This is one like I had...

https://Reverb(dot)com/item/869286-peavey-triple-xxx-tube-guitar-amp-head-2007

 

[Angus Rhoads]

Oh, you're right, it's the 5150 that has those controls.

Yeah, with the Mesas I don't know if it's the amps themselves or the cabs, but there's just something about them that never jived with me, especially the Rectifier models.

 

[dslman]

I got my DSL50 off eBay, not knowing it had been dropped, and cracked the shell all the way through. I clamped and glued the thing back together, but the amp performs perfect.
I've since upgraded the O/T,choke, and reverb tank .
I go back and forth between my 100H and 50, and love them both.

 

[Goldmember]

I got my DSL50 off eBay, not knowing it had been dropped, and cracked the shell all the way through. I clamped and glued the thing back together, but the amp performs perfect.
I've since upgraded the O/T,choke, and reverb tank .
I go back and forth between my 100H and 50, and love them both.

Hi DSL, did your 50 have a Drake as its original OT?