Marshall combo amps? Opinions wanted.

[Bryan]

I'm looking for a good distorted Marshall lead tone but I don't really want to get a half stack.

How close do the Marshall combos come to getting that sound?

I basically want the Marshall tone at a lower volume and in a smaller package.

Discuss....

[jgcable]

All Marshall combos sound like Marshalls. I would suggest looking at AVT or Valvestate for SS and JCM2000 and Artist for tubes. There are also the JCM900 combos.
The JCM800 combos are probably the best but they don't have enough gain for most metal.
Randall has nice Marshall sounding combos. So does Laney.
One of the nicest combos I have believe it or not is a Peavey Transtube 112 Bandit. You really need to let your ears do the deciding for you because there are a ton of Marshall sounding combos out there.
I jammed for a while with a band with a Valvestate 8080 1 x 12" that ripped. It was loud and sounded great.

[DonP]

I have a Laney AOR 50 combo that kicks ass, but it is because of the 1x12 sealed cab. I prefer sealed cabs for the extra bass.

[skorb]

I had a Marshall valvestate AVT50 for a while that I loved, before I found the Vetta.

[Bryan]

Tone wise, what's the difference between the JCM 600, 800, 900, and 2000 combos?

[jgcable]

Forget the 600, the 800 is old school metal.. think Kiss and very early Judas Priest, 900 is late 80's early 90's metal and the 2000 is all the above with the added gain to do death or thrash metal.
Personally.. I don't like very many Marshall combo's. I like Marshall heads and closed back cabinets.

[Bryan]

Well I would prefer a head and cab too but I don't really need anything that large and loud. If I can get a good tone going in a smaller amp, it can always be miked and made louder through the PA.

So for the money, the 2000 seems to be the most versatile. Correct?

[akoch]

I play a TSL122. Not a bad combo, sounds fine. Don't expect it to sound as deep and full as a half-stack, but again for a combo it sounds very decent.

Though, I would not try to say it is much quieter than a half-stack. Don' expect this. Don't know, may be if you went with a SS, but a tube amp requires some minimal (around 4?) volume to come to life. And expect teh sweet sport to be much higher than this also

Cheers,
Alex

[horns666]

I had a two 12" JCM 800 version of the 2210..that was my favorite Marshall combo..I didn't need to slam it with a stomp for my tone..which at the time was classic VH and Edge of Thorns Savatage..it does that nice..

It was the 100 wt combo with the two Celstion 75s in it..someone could tell you what model nuber that was..I forgot

If you want to get it more ballsy..you favorite stomp should suffice..

I don't care for the latter model Marshalls at all such as the TSL/TSL..they don't sound like VH..the gain structure and tone is mushy and buzzy..geared for "Nu" and the leads just don't sound warm and have that "sing" that I love..You can't play the intro to Aint Talkin' 'Bout love with it, that's a REAL Marshall tone IMO..that's how I judge any amp for the last 20+ years..it has to be able to nail that perfectly..then we go from there...That's my rule..

I don't care too much for combos myself..I need at least a half stack ..I play with intense drummers that bash hard..and I need to all the girth, volume, clarity, definition and projection I can get...combos just don't cut it with me..

Combos never sound "full bodied" over a drummer, a lack even more in a full band..

Unless your playing country, blues or classic rock..if that's your gig..I have seen them work OK, because the band is much less intense in general..other than that I never seen a metal band that used a combo that had a killer or audible tone.. never!

I tried a 5150 Combo after owning five 5150 stacks...sorry man, but getting that 60 wt version to convey what I'm used to was a complete joke...it sounded horrible at high volume levels in a band !!

On it's own it was OK..to me, it's a loud practice amp ..that's not loud enough to TCB with a band..so what's the point..

This has been my personal experience with combos..they're louder practice amps..and that's all they'll ever be to me..no matter what model it is..

I never take them seriously, because they're not even cose to my needs..you really have to push them hard..way passed their cool sounding thresholds .. then they become obnoxious and hairy noise...

They're cool for recording and practice..other than that..I can't see a real use for them..seriously.

I had a few nice combos..my freind had a 1982 white Annniversary JCM 800 Marshall Combo..sounded great until we all played together..then it was just honking , thin, mids without a lick of low end or edge..if you dig that..that's your amp!

Just my honest experience and POV with combos..

Bill Z

[horns666]

BTW.. am I alone in this opinion..anyone esle experience this at all..I don't want to come as sounding like a dick, and pissing on any parades..but this is just must honest view on combos in general..

[RacerX]

I had a two 12" JCM 800 version of the 2210..It was the 100 wt combo with the two Celstion 75s in it..someone could tell you what model nuber that was..I forgot

4211



I have the 4210

[horns666]

4211



I have the 4210

Thanks Ron..yes I remember seeing a pic of yours..those are my favorites..!!!

[akoch]

"BTW.. am I alone in this opinion..anyone esle experience this at all..I don't want to come as sounding like a dick, and pissing on any parades..but this is just must honest view on combos in general.."

You just answerred this in your post... there is a tone for recording, there is one for practice, there is one for live work. These seldom come together in one package, at least the ones that sound best in studio more than likely suck on stage and vice versa. It is a question of what one is looking for. Here you go man... Nuances and fine shades tend to disappear when playing live, and 'feel' and ability to project one's tone come forward as more important thing on-stage. Go figure

When I played live, I had entirely different requirements than I have now. I bet it is not only me.

[horns666]

"BTW.. am I alone in this opinion..anyone esle experience this at all..I don't want to come as sounding like a dick, and pissing on any parades..but this is just must honest view on combos in general.."

You just answerred this in your post... there is a tone for recording, there is one for practice, there is one for live work. These seldom come together in one package, at least the ones that sound best in studio more than likely suck on stage and vice versa. It is a question of what one is looking for. Here you go man... Nuances and fine shades tend to disappear when playing live, and 'feel' and ability to project one's tone come forward as more important thing on-stage. Go figure

When I played live, I had entirely different requirements than I have now. I bet it is not only me.

Yeah, that makes perfect sense..this is true..there ya go..

I guess I applied my experience with guys that used their combos for everything..

[jtr]

I have a JMP 50 watt 2x12 & 50 watt head with a 4x12 ,the combo sound only lacks lows because of the open back other than that they're very close.