MARSHALL AMPS

Marshall Amplification is a British company which designs and manufactures music amplifiers. Marshall amplifiers are well known and highly popular among guitarists. The sight and sound of a Marshall stack amp with a Gibson Les Paul or a Fender Stratocaster is an iconic image in pop culture. Marshall amps were originally built as direct copies of Fender amplifiers, but soon incorporated certain traits which made them more favorable to guitarists seeking a heavier sound.
Like most professional-level amplifiers, big amplifiers still use valve preamp and poweramp stages instead of solid state devices (transistors), although Marshall also manufactures cheaper solid-state or hybrid devices.
Valve amplifiers (known as "tube amplifiers" in North America) are generally considered to exhibit a "warmer" tone than those of transistor amps, particularly when overdriven; instead of abruptly clipping off the signal at cut-off and saturation levels, the signal is smoothly rounded off. Vacuum tubes also exhibit different harmonic effects than transistors (see tube sound for more about the sonic differences between transistors and vacuum tubes). Though technology continues to change, the most sought after and most expensive amps use technology that is considered quite obsolete. The sound of a Marshall 1959SLP or JCM800 amp is among the most recognized in popular music, and there is a constant demand for both cutting edge and vintage amplifiers.
In 2007 Marshall released a new flagship line of UK-built amplifiers. After what many considered a "slump" period in which the company released nothing new and simply rehashed old models, Marshall finally came out with a new comprehensive range of amplifiers, the "JVM" series. Guitarist Magazine UK has already claimed that the JVM410 would be the "hottest" amp for 2007; they also hailed it as "The Ultimate Marshall." JVM is an acronym for Jim Victoria Marshall, Victoria being his daughter and current managing director of Marshall Amplification. The JVM series consists of a number of models, the flagship being the 100 watt JVM410. The JVM410 has four independent channels, Clean, Crunch, OD1 and OD2 and is available as a head or a combo unit. The other models in the range are the 100 watt JVM210 and the 50 watt JVM205 both are available as a head or a 2x12" combo. The final model in the JVM range is the 50 watt JVM215 which is a 1x12" combo. The JVM2 models have two independent channels consisting of Clean/Crunch and Overdrive channels. On all models each channel has its own set of tone, gain, volume and reverb controls and a master section consisting of dual master volumes, presence and resonance controls. The channels also have three different gain settings; by pressing the channel selection button repeatedly, the amplifier will change from green to orange to red while increasing the gain of the channel. This effectively gives the JVM410 12 independently-voiced modes which run from completely clean to ultra saturated modern metal and lead tones.


Marshall JVM 410-C Review:

Features : 10 Hi, well the features is what made me buy this amp. I tried 12 different amps, some had tone but no features, some had features buy no tone. JVM410C has them both. I love the tones, but it's does take time to dial them in. I found the Eq to be very sensitive. Lets take a look, 4 channels, 2 Master Volumes, Midi this is a big plus, 4 reverbs, and lets not forget it has 3 modes per channel. Man I use them all.
Sound Quality : 10 Well I sold my Mesa Triaxis, to buy this amp. I love the Combo, for 100watts, it's perfect for Pub gigs. I was worried that, 100watts was going to be to much, but man was I wrong. Here is the secret. OD1 and OD2 both have way too much gain, so the gain only needs to be around 3 or 4, going past this causes howling squeling, and lots of unwanted noises. Clean - Awesome, I am so sick of having shitty or fake sounding cleans. Crunch, JCM800 yep, this get those tones. OD1 an OD2 really have to be heard, Singing, crunchy tones. I must say the speakers are perfectly matched, I love the tones, big bottom and crisp highs, it sounds hugh. Marshall has done a great job with this amp. This is the best tone I have had for a long time.
Reliability : 9 I have not need them yet.
Overall Rating : 10 Well I tried 12 amps to get this one, Mesa Boogie MK4 combo, Hughes and Kettner Tri-amp Mk3, switchblade, Vox accv50, Fender, Hot rods, Super sonic, ENGL, thunder 50, screamer 50, ect, ect. You get the picture. I am fussy about my tone, the 2 x12" combo speakers work really well together. I love having 12 sounds to pick from, 2 Master Volumes, I don't use the footswitch, I use my Boss GT8 to control everything. I have had compliment after compliment since buying the amp, thanks Marshall.


Marshall MG250DFX Review:

Features : 8 You know the features, this is one of the newer one being shipped with eminence speakers. I thought someone at the store swapped out the speakes for something else at first the found out that these are a better speakers and were preffered for tone quality over the Celestions that normally come with it. This amp would be nice as a barebones twin but adding some features like chorus and stuff is nice. Not contralable enough though.
Sound Quality : 10 This amp's clean is clean and is the best in class for it's price rage period. The distortion is amazing, I have heard a few of this model before and almost bought one about three years ago but it didn't sound this nice. I don't know if Marshall changed anything other than the speakers but it's as if they're out to prove a point. This sucker is loud, I mean really loud, no need to hook up a 4x12 cab here. I use a deluxe super strat.....I have the Distortion straight up set at twelve oclock, the bass at 2 oclock, contour at full counter clockwise and same with the treble. I run the master wide open and use the channel volume to set the loundness. The clean is done to taste but as mentioned....it's amazing
Reliability : 10 Good amp, I whish the fan were quieter for rehersal but you cannot hear it live. Like most major manufacturers it's extremelly dependable.
Overall Rating : No Opinion I've been playing for 44 years and as far as playing is concerned I have almost no limits to versatility or ability. I've tried many amps and have always considered the following when purchasing an amp.....size, weight, power and flexibility. I've owned three different modelers -Johnson, Yamaha and Line6- And they are great amps, I really liked the Johnson as an over all package for tone and programability but I felt diconected.....too much latency, the Line 6 has the latency problem solved but the tones are exagetrated. I did own a Peavey Classic 120 watt twin and probaly one of the best amps I've ever owed tone wise but the powere rattled the shit out of the tubes and I was forever changing them and heavy weight wise, it was a back breaker. I've owned a lot of different amp (4 Marshalls in the past) and budget this time around was not considered, I passed up some amps at 4 times the price bassed on tone alone (one was a marshall 602) I needed non backbreaker but really good sounding and I was surprised at how good this amp farred in head to head with other amps costing a lot more. It's not as pretty as some but the tone is amazing honestly one of the least expensive amps I have ever owned but what can I say?....it sounds really good.