Test Your Ears! Can You Tell Which Marshall This Is? Results Are In!

[JCMDOUG]

DSL100H just because I have been impressed with that amp and its low cost.

 

[rick16v]

Well that is your prerogative.

You could plug any one of those amplifiers into a cabinet and just say something like this is my favorite 4x12 with my favorite G12-whatever speakers.

Speakers and cabinet type are 50-60% of the sound heard, not the amplifier.


Oh, wait, unless it is a combo being recorded. There is only one on the list.

It's just a bit of fun! Rather than picking holes in it you could instead join in or leave it alone.

 

[mickeydg5]

It's just a bit of fun! Rather than picking holes in it you could instead join in or leave it alone.

You are right. I revised the post a bit. But yes I would not want him to give anything away.

 

[charveldan]

1974x ...

 

[Ghostman]

If I admitted a cabinet and/or speaker that would give away things wouldn't it? For example, admitting a cabinet would eliminate that it was or wasn't a combo, and if I said a certain speaker it might confirm it was one of the combos.

So I'm sorry sir, but I must decline until I post the results...

...of course, that's sort of the point of this little fun exercise; taking away the visual element and leaving you with only your ears to determine if you're hearing a "vintage" Marshall, a "big" Marshall, a "small" Marshall.... Its very interesting how much we "hear" with our eyes!

Well all the above, except the DSL100h, would be available in either Head or Combo.

This parallels one of my Threads about how it's unrealistic for anyone to tell what type of speaker is being used, unless it's compared to something else.

 

[Coronado]

I thought it was the 74x, only because it had a nice amount of gain, but not quite as heavy (to me) as say some of the others? But I know I definitely could be wrong (usually am). To be honest, I don't think I could tell some of my own amps apart in a blind test. Pretty bad, right?

 

[Jethro Rocker]

I don't think it's bad. Most Marshalls have at least a similar tonality, if set that way. It sure wasn't a Fender or Mesa!

 

[marshallmellowed]

Can you tell which Marshall amp this is?

So many talk about a "plexi" sound or an "800" sound or a... well you get the idea, but can you REALLY hear the difference without knowing exactly what it is?

I have owned or do own all the options listed. Listed roughly in factory introduction order, so this has little bearing on what it may or may not be.

Can you tell by the recorded tone alone? I think the answer is no. I just did a poll using recordings from 6 different amps, and most could not tell a difference, or at least anything significant. What can't be discerned from a recording is how an amp responds to your playing and how it feels to the player, this can only be judged by actually playing through an amp. There are modelers that can produce recordings that "sound" just like a recorded Plexi, but I guarantee they don't have the dynamics or feel of a real Plexi. My vote would be complete guess, because I'm confident I could make a recording using any amp I own, or the Axe Fx, that would sound like the sample recording. The speaker/cab used, combined with the recording equipment/techniques are more dominant than the actual amp used, especially if those amps are all Marshalls or all Fenders...

 

[mickeydg5]

The first part of the recording is guitar>amplifier>speaker only. That is what I judged.

With good effects or a modeler one can practically make any amplifier sound like any other amplifier. But that is a different case.

 

[Philip Lyon]

Just out of curiosity - would you consider it a 'good' tone?

I'm also slightly confused by your description - is it possible to have 'thump" and yet still make the bottom end 'distinct'? Turning up the bass to get more 'thump' would inherently make it less tight, would it not?

It just sounds like EL84s to me and yes, turning up the bass with these does make for a less tight mushy low end in my opinion.
They are less bassy and more mid oriented than any other tube I know.
EL34s produce a good amount of bass (not as much as 6L6s in my experience) and to my ears can be tighter and at the same time "deeper" toned with fat mids and a crisper top end than EL84s, less bell like.
The tone as recorded Is OK but not to my particular taste - EL84s aren't either but if there's no other choice I would use an amp with them and usually, with much more tweaking than usual, get a tone to my liking - fairly close to what is "my" sound but not as close as with EL34s.
EL34s just have it in my opinion and EL84s don't !

 

[HotRats73]

It's not a bluesbreaker and doesn't sound like an 800; I don't hear the "modern" tone of a 900 or a DSL/TSL. The recording doesn't sound like an amp used at high volume so....my vote goes to 1974

 

[Snow and Steel]

Another lesson in "hearing with our eyes" ;-)

 

[johan.b]

Extended low end suggest dsl/tsl to me (they're basically the same amp)...but what shows up in a recording doesn't necessarily show the full picture..

J

 

[Kris Ford]

Another lesson in "hearing with our eyes" ;-)

 

[Snow and Steel]

After much wailing and gnashing of teeth....


I have a "A/B" comparison.

TWO of the amps in the list are in this recording - one is the same amp as in the recording in the beginning of this thread, and the other amp is also on the list. Now, for legal reasons I can't post the clip publicly, but if you are REALLY interested, PM me and I'll send it that way. I know that sounds very cryptic, but it will all make sense when you get it.

 

[Snow and Steel]

3 more days for results, and a/b comparison still available via PM

 

[Gblev]

I picked the 1974x.

Since you are using pedals for the solo section, I figured that would cancel out the 900, and the DHL since you really don't need a pedal with these amps (IMHO). I have an 800, and the sample did not reflect what I hear with my 800. I thought about the Bluesbreaker, but I figured you would have played something different with that, maybe even did your solo section with it. It just didn't sound thin, or bright enough for a TSL to me. So that left me with the 1774x. I had an EL84 amp at one time, and it's distortion character was similar to that in this video. So that left me with the obvious choice. But I could be wrong all together.

 

[Jab996]

I voted DSL

 

[mickeydg5]

Another lesson in "hearing with our eyes" ;-)

Would that be as in sprinkles on titties or sprinkles made of titties?

 

[Snow and Steel]

Brand new sample - same amp, same settings, same recording process. The only thing that changed is I turned the amp up as far as I thought I could get away with without getting the cops called on me. I needed earplugs, lol. It was REAL loud.