Marshall sounds like ass

[7 Dying Trees]

yes they work great on stage and not so great in the bedroom...

unless you have no neighbours and your ears have a high pain threshold...

 

[noodles]

I like the 800's, with a boost pedal they are immense

The sound of Bay Area Thrash is a JCM800 with a Boss Super Overdrive in front of it. I prefer Mesa, but I could play an entire live set with that rig, no problem.

 

[ohio_eric]

I given how a lot of modern amps are voiced some Marshalls might sound "thin". Marshalls aren't the best amps for djent or that super thick chugging sound. That being said the closest I've ever come to having an orgasm while playing was when I got to play through an old SuperLead that was wide open. Dear God that was just amazing. It's one the reasons my GAS for a Splawn is so strong, I love that Marshall tone. Like noodles said if you want that old school Metallica/Exodus/Megadeth/Anthrax crunch a Marshall should be your weapon of choice.

 

[axechain]

yeah..thanx for the replies guys.. i might try it with a boost infront the amp but anyway i will stick with Laney halfstack for now it gives more djent and full body power then marshall
and to play at a rehearsal room with this amp cranked up it`s bs ... you whant to hear something beside your guitar))) i was using it with volume on 75% of it maximum but without a boost pedal infront
but as many people as many opinions. . .
marshalls are not my thing i quess

 

[budda]

i guess not. go play a powerball, i think that'll have enough body to tide ya over

 

[angryman]

I love the sound of the Old JMP with a OD up front & the old 800's sound awesome with a Tubescreamer up front too. But they aren't what I want form an amp.

 

[zimbloth]

Though I agree certain Marshalls do sound good, the whole "if you cant get a good sound out of a $1000 amp then the problem is you" thing is ridiculous, as are the people who agreed with it. Just because an amp is expensive doesn't mean it's necessarily great and the problem is you. I think Krank and Randall have proved that theory wrong. Sometimes an amp just isn't to your liking or is overpriced, that doesn't mean its your fault.

 

[Naren]

I play my GNX3000 through a Marshall JCM2000, JCM800, or JCM900 every week at practice (and usually one of those live, as well). If I don't use the GNX, the JPM2000 sounds the best out of those. If I do use the GNX, then they all pretty much sound the same (I get the sound programmed into my GNX with some nice tube sound added in there).

I would never say Marshalls sound like "ass." I've played Marshalls that I thought didn't sound very good and I've played ones that I thought sounded "okay" and I've played ones that sounded good or EXCELLENT. My GNX can get a billion times better sound than I could get through the amp itself (or through the amp with any pedal added), which is why I used my GNX. Of course, even though I'm playing through a Marshall, the sound the audience hears is not the sound of a Marshall, but the self-constructed sound coming out of the GNX (whether that's completely custom rhythm guitar, a Mesa Triple Rectifier, a special lead channel, or whatever else I have).

 

[Unknown Doodl3.2]

All I know is that if I ever got a marshall I'd want to sound like Karl Sanders man I wonder what his secret is, god his tone is just orgasmic IMO

 

[sakeido]

I dunno, our new guitarist has a Marshall Mode Four and it sounds absolutely horrible. His JCM2000 is a lot better, but for some reason he doesn't like it.

 

[Eric]

I dunno, our new guitarist has a Marshall Mode Four and it sounds absolutely horrible. His JCM2000 is a lot better, but for some reason he doesn't like it.

I'm not a Marshall fan either and I think the Mode Four is the only one I ever cared for... the guitarist tho... just probably doesn't want to admit its not that good because of the price tag that Guitar Center slaps on those babies... GEEZE. Mode Fours are really expensive...

 

[Lozek]

Well, for me, I've always felt that I didn't get on with Marshall in general, although there's a few models which still sound amazing. There's a world of difference between the old ones and the newer ones, if you can get hold of something like an old JCM800 from before 1984, you'll find them totally different to the ones built after 1984. They did a cost cutting exercise in 1984 and took out loads of important stuff. Tell tale signs of the old Marshalls include:

- Hi & Lo Gain inputs being vertical rather than horizontal (the old ones were hand-wired, the new ones are soldered straight onto a PCB).

- If it has 3 or preferably 4 large blue filter caps in the back, you've got an early one, they cut those down to 2 on the later models.

- Check for 'Drake' output transformers (highly important to good tone, by the way). These are highly sought after, the company built them only for Marshall and had an agreement to supply no-one else. After 1984, Marshall moved to a cheaper alternative.

So yeah, it's true that Marshalls don't do what, say a Powerball, can do, but they certainly do have a tone that is unique. Can you imagine Entombed getting 'that' sound from anything else?

 

[All_¥our_Bass]

All the marsalls I've ever tired weren't bad, but they weren't my thing either.

A) They get muddy when you crank the gain. (don't worry I know they aren't made FOR DEATH METAL)

B) There are certain high-end frequncies they don't reproduce. There's no 'shimmer'/'zing'/'crispness'/'sparkle'(which makes the dist. muddier), but my cheapo pratice bass amp reproduces them though, and guitars sound great through it.

 

[ibznorange]

everyones trippin balls about blanket statments jesus

I couldnt get a good metal tone out of my HW plexi, and those cost 3k+ new. that said, did it suck? no. just wasnt made for it. straight up, maybe marshall doesnt make an amp that works for you. blanket statement, and a perfectly legitimate one.

both sides, keep in mind the difference between opinion and quality.

Marshall doesnt suck, but not hearing tone you like from a pricey amp doesnt mean youre an idiot, either

 

[ChrisPcritter]

I love seeing these posts because as you read the first few lines, you think, this dude is screwed... Not that I like to see people blasting someone, it just usually ends up being kind of funny.

I never cared too much for marshalls but for the most part kept it to myself. I asked a friend of mine that turned me on to the XTC why I liked so many amps based on marshalls but didn't like any marshall I had played. His response was that most of the stuff I had heard and played was something I was retubing for someone.
1 New tubes equals better tone.
A reissue of an amp that was made to be played loud and then played at a low volume wouldn't give good tones.
2 don't play a jubilee on a volume of 2 and expect great tone.
3 You don't know if something sounds good unless you've tried different speakers and tubes with it.
4 His last word of wisdom.... Get an early JCM 800 then tell me you don't like the tone (after a retube)

Well I got an 81 JCM 800 2204 that has 6550 power tubes New High gain tubes in spots one and two.. It's as good as the hype.

 

[Chris]

Hooray for AYB responding to the 14 month old thread.

 

[ibznorange]

oh goddamnit

 

[Thin_Ice_77]

Meh, I'm not a fan. I wouldn't say they suck or whatever, but they don't do what I want so I have no interest in them.

 

[canuck brian]

I just saw a band two nights ago running new Marshall's I wasn't too familiar with (i think both were Mod4?) and they had a decent tone outta them.

Hell, Chuck got a solid sound out of a Valvestate head. It's all personal preference though.

 

[petereanima]

Hell, Chuck got a solid sound out of a Valvestate head. It's all personal preference though.

i wish i had a dollar for every time when (back then - when i played the valvestate 81000) someone afer a show came talk to me, congratulating me on my "very good tube tone"...