NMD: Lead 12 .... best bedroom plexi!

[Dogs of Doom]

i have one of those, plexi is the last thing i could tie it to but...

ok, Friedman... ...

 

[shooto]

Congrats on the amp!…that was my college dorm room amp…It’s totally cool, but I don’t remember anything Plexi about it

 

[AlvisX]

I haven't played this much in years, I just love the way this little amp behaves and love every note and chord that comes thru this little thing, it just makes me want to play more and more. Playing my tube amps is just hard to get into the sweet spot without being overbearing in the small space in my place or because neighbors. This amp has a surprising bottom end and considerable amount of "punch" considering the size.

The PO put a Celestion G10N40 and it really sounds great to my ears. It has thay vintage Celestion character, clear highs that shimmer and jangle, a bottom end that you can feel. I am really eager to try a WGS 10" Green Beret but I have a feeling I'll end up preferring the 10N40 but want to see just for curiosity sake, I have no negatives to say about the current speaker.

The low input is where it's at imo and just dime the MV and use it like a NMV with the gain knob. It's suprisingly quiet at idle even with the master dimed. The EQ behaves like a typical Marshall and allows to dial in all sorts of classic authentic Marshall tones. I'm also finding it's real easy to get wanted feedback ala Hendrix with this little guy and just sounds so cool.

Now I'm super curious about snagging a Lead 20 and other 80s solid state Marshalls. Is the Lead 100 mosfet have any relation? Transistor or circuit wise? I'd love to have a high wattage version of the 12 for jamming/gigs!

Green Beret doesn't sound that great in there IMO . I keep tryin it
What I have found to be the best speaker for the Lead 12 combo is the Eminence 1030V (or whatever that ceramic speaker is called that Fender used in the Pro Junior for many years) Its better than any celestion Ive ever put in there

OR

a full stack

 

[Jethro Rocker]

So my neighbor got a new roommate (I live in a triplex) and they moved into the room on the otherside of mine. I can hear when they are digging in the closet these walls are so poorly insulated... if at all.... Then I also found out they are related to my landlord... I figured I should invest in a little solid state practice amp, something more realistic than my tube amps. I demoed the various modern offerings at GC and my LGS etc, a candidate I found was an old Vox Pathfinder 15R but just couldn't commit before it sold... Sounded great tho! Then I thought about the Positive Grid Spark, it has a lot of cool features and the tones are pretty fun but... Idk, it just didn't feel right... Uninspiring for me.

i've always heard/read people raving about them but kinda figured a lot of it was Johan hype. The Johan videos sounded too good to be true and to my ears he makes everything sound like a Plexi... Couldn't possibly be that he plugs everything into vintage Greenbacks haha... Anyways I tracked one down and plugged in... Holy mother of Guitar! This thing oozes vintage Plexi tone and character... Where has this little gem been all my life? This has to be hands down the best sounding solid state amps I have ever heard maybe one of the best amps considering what it is. Playing this little guy instantly took me back to the times I got to experience true vintage Superleads... There is something there that I can't quite out my finger on but it's there, those sounds are seared into my head from the religious like experience of playing cranked vintage plexi.


Yeah it's not 100% but I'd say it's the closest I've heard beside a straight clone. Yeah it's only 12 watts but the tone is there, the character and nuances are there. This thing cleans up SO WELL with the volume knob, has beautiful punchy, glassy cleans that shimmer... Then get it cranked! Hello Marshall heaven... And it doesn't blow the house down! It still gets pretty loud but definitely realistic in a house or bedroom. The tone and body is incredibly warm and natural, the amp responds to picking attack and different techniques... How is this amp not reissued???

The only solid state give aways to my ears are the very top high frequencies and the very low frequency but even then it's very subtle in my opinion.


Today has been a holy Marshall experience, the only other amp that I've owned that has impressed me this much was a vintage 2204 that I regret immensely selling. This Lead 12 is going to be buried with me, I played ALL day, forgetting to even eat, I couldn't pull myself away. Now I'm sure a lot of my excitement is that I've been searching so long for the perfect bedroom plexi experience and I have found it.

I would take a Lead 12 over a SV20 everytime.


Ok sorry for my purging of Marshall excitement and way too long of a post!

Sounds fun. I like mine.
They are better with a different speaker for sure. That might help your impression along.
ABY both inputs hey? . Didn't know that would work. I will try that.
Enjoy!

 

[Fernieite]

Yup, super great little Marshall
Always want to jump on one when I see it for sale
If I didn't already have a JVM1 Watt and a Pathfinder 15R and a ....
Enjoy!

Yeah, I'm still on the fence between getting one of these Lead 12's or a Vox Pathfinder 15 for the apartment...
Has anyone compared the two?

 

[Maggot Brain]

I wanted to also add this little guy takes all my pedals and sounds just as amazing. Ge Fuzzs, Si Fuzzs, Wah, SD1, Deja Vibe, TS9 and so on and so on. All sounds great, I'm extremely impressed how beautiful the Deja Vibe sounds thru it, I have to admit it can sound a little muddy/mushy thru my DSL40c and SS60 unfortunately.

Green Beret doesn't sound that great in there IMO . I keep tryin it
What I have found to be the best speaker for the Lead 12 combo is the Eminence 1030V (or whatever that ceramic speaker is called that Fender used in the Pro Junior for many years) Its better than any celestion Ive ever put in there

OR

a full stack

I'll have to check those out! Listening to all the 10" demos I can find the WGS sounded the closest to a GB... But that is from the super basic audio clip on the WGS website... So I'm not 100% convinced. The video of Vaughn comparing one in the Pignose amp is hard to tell imo.

Honestly I have a gut feeling I will end up preferring the G10N40 after all is said and done... I LOVE how this amp sounds with this speaker so I have no reason to pursue anything else, I've just been on a speaker kick

I can't wait to wiring an external jack and try it out on my 4x12. I've got all the necessary parts laying around just need to do it... That clip was pretty fkin sweet Alvis! Sounds like a proper Marshall stack!

Yeah, I'm still on the fence between getting one of these Lead 12's or a Vox Pathfinder 15 for the apartment...
Has anyone compared the two?

I demoed one a few days before I found the Lead 12... The Lead 12 blows it away imo BUT don't get me wrong the Pathfinder 15R sounded impressive too.

P.s. I saw Pathfinder 15Rs for fairly cheap on occasion but they are going the way of the Lead 12. You may get lucky and find a 15R for sub $200. I found one for $80 but couldn't get to it fast enough. The cheapest Lead 12s I've been seeing are around $200+ about the going rate for the 15R

 

[scozz]

Congrats @Maggot Brain buddy, great little Marshall, you’re on a roll man!

 

[purpleplexi]

I passed one up last year in the next town for £175 largely because I can remember when you could see them for £80. May have been a mistake.....

Still cheap, I just grabbed one for less than $200.00, it's alot of amp for that price.I guess

 

[purpleplexi]

Anyone had the later one with 6 knobs? JCM era I think. They any good? - there are a few of those availabe cheap.

 

[Matthews Guitars]

It's only fair to mention that I'm ultra extra special picky about the transition between clean and overdrive. I like for it to have a range that's so subtle, you don't really know if the sound is overdriven or not. The Lead 12 doesn't really do that well. But to be fair, not many amps do.

 

[Sir Don]

It's a keeper, I've got two of them but sounding like a plexi?

Not sure about that but, hey, keep on rockin' my friend.

 

[Maggot Brain]

I'm half shocked and half not about the ones that don't think it sounds like a plexi. I mean take it in context, a 12 watt practice amp but yeah, we all hear differently.


I'm achieving "Are You Experienced?" and "Axis Bold as Love" (the albums) Marshall tones all day in this little amp, I think this thing is crazy.

 

[cjs42079]

Try an A/B/Y on your inputs.
I have one set up on my 5002 Lead20. (little pedal on the left)
Switch from High to Low input with a toe tap - or run the Y for both at the same time.
I prefer the blend.
View attachment 113140

omg this is so cool. how can i get one?

 

[fitz]

omg this is so cool. how can i get one?

An A/B/Y switch pedal, or a 5002 head conversion?

 

[Maggot Brain]

omg this is so cool. how can i get one?

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/M196--mxr-m196-a-b-box?main_web_category_rollup=4%2F631%2F880&mrkgadid=3308753579&mrkgcl=28&mrkgen=gpla&mrkgbflag=0&mrkgcat=guitars&acctid=21700000001645388&dskeywordid=92700046937559630&lid=92700046937559630&ds_s_kwgid=58700005285195639&ds_s_inventory_feed_id=97700000007215323&dsproductgroupid=489008505752&product_id=M196&prodctry=US&prodlang=en&channel=online&storeid=&device=m&network=g&matchtype=&adpos=largenumber&locationid=9033391&creative=290335235243&targetid=aud-297527862170%3Apla-489008505752&campaignid=1465808371&awsearchcpc=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwo_KXBhAaEiwA2RZ8hPs8wsv-7AYpyOncQuvyQ8e4Prnzrba_QLYfsyKry6pRjbF7jWLDZxoCELMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Something like this, make it a "2 channel" amp in a way! Indeed cool.

 

[fitz]

MXR M196 A/B Box Signal Switcher Pedal

A/B Switcher Pedal with 3 Outputs and LED Channel Indicators

www.sweetwater.com

Something like this, make it a "2 channel" amp in a way! Indeed cool.

I just got this cheepo one form Ambazon:
It works, no noise, only needs power if you want the light to change colors.
Not exactly a $4000 vintage amp, so...

(edit: fixed the Sweetwater link in MB's quote)

 

[cjs42079]

An A/B/Y switch pedal, or a 5002 head conversion?

Yes, exactly

 

[Dioesque]

Were there multiple different models or versions of the Lead 12?

If so, are certain particular models or variants generally considered better, superior, or more desirable than others?

Or were all Lead 12 amps basically the same circuit, throughout their entire run?

 

[EADGBE]

They're nice amps. I have the Lead 12 Micro Stack version.

 

[cjs42079]

Were there multiple different models or versions of the Lead 12?

If so, are certain particular models or variants generally considered better, superior, or more desirable than others?

Or were all Lead 12 amps basically the same circuit, throughout their entire run?

I’m not an expert, but as I understand it the micro stack lead 12’s are all the same just with 5(?) different colors