GNW reader, Marc, writes regarding the Marshall Tube Amp info: Hi, coolest regards and bravo to a most excellent web site... I just have a little disclaimer about the description of the Marshall JCM 800 you have listed on your site... maybe it was just a mistake, but no Marshall 2203 or 2204 EVER had any kind of transistor or diode clipping in the circuit as you mention...

It was the split-channel 2205 and 2210 that had this incorporated into the circuit... The ONLY difference between the JMP master volumes and JCM 800 ones were the cabinet design, except for in the mid 80's the inputs on the 800's were changed from top and bottom to side by side, an indication that the potentiometers were hard-wired to the circuit board, without any jumper leads, which DID change the tone of the amp a little bit, but made it a little more stable in high-gain situations... just a little info... now if I can find a bunch of these for my backline for a good price...

P.S...

JCM 800 master volumes:
The JCM 800 master volume heads also have the model numbers 2203 and 2204 but are not identical to the JMPs. These amps have more gain than the JMPs and this is partially due to a solid state clipping-circuit(NO!!!) that was added for this sole purpose. Some tube-fanatics consider this to be a work of Satan and refuse to play JCM 800s.

Being a work of Satan or not, the Mk II master volumes still provide a sound that lots of people love. The sound is quite dark and barky with an accentuated upper midrange, so if you are looking for the scooped-mid Metallica sound, look elsewhere or buy an EQ and a distortion pedal. These are no-nonsense machines for more classic rock sounds. They can indeed be criticized for having basically just one sound, but what a sound! Lots of people consider that sound to be THE sound...

see also:

Amps @ GuitarSite.com

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Ampage
the original web community for music electronics enthusiasts

Tube Amps and Electronics