JTM60 vs JCM900

[Mark Le Comte]

Hi, two amps that are for sale near me look pretty appealing. Both 2x12 combos, a JTM60 and a JCM900 50W dual reverb, both for the same price.

What are the relative merits of each of these?

[Jeff_H]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

I believe the main difference will be in the gain stages. The JTM60's came out in the mid 90's IIRC, and were replaced with the JCM600's a few years later. I owned a JCM600 for a year or so. The tones were quite pleasing and the clean channel was very good. I have heard reports that the JTM60 has nice cleans as well. It is a more "classic rock" voiced amp, but if you turn them way up you can get some really nice crunch. Some shipped with 5881 power tubes, which to me gives a more sterile tone. EL34's, the right bias and the right pre-amp tubes will really turn it into more of a rock monster.

The JCM900's I think were Marshall's take on high gain to compete with all of the other high gain amps that were out in the 90's. A lot more pre-amp distortion, tighter, more modern sounding if that makes sense. Still, as time has gone on, people seem to appreciate the 900's a little more than they used to.

I think it all comes down to what style of music you play, and what type of gain you need on tap. If you want all of your gain to come from the pre-amp and want a slightly tighter sound, the 900 may be your best bet. If you want something more classic rock to hard rock the JTM 60 will probably suit you better. You can always goose it with a boost pedal if you need more out of it.

[marvar]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Some of the JCM900s are considered sub-par, it depends on the model, I think they made like, 3 versions of it.
I have a JCM600, which is the new improved (vents in the top and few other minor changes) of the JTM60. I really like mine, but I only use the clean channel w/pedals for od.
classic Marshall tone- the od channel uses diodes for clipping, and can get a bit over the top, but, there are fixes for that.
I think some models of the JCM900 used clipping diodes also.

[Jeff_H]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Yeah, when I hear people talk about "the good 900's", it seems they prefer the 2 channel version with no reverb. Don't know if those models use different diodes for clipping for OD, or if the entire tone stack is different. I would imagine that all things being equal, just the addition of reverb wouldn't change the character of the amp.

[stevie_bees]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

The JTM60's were great classic rock sounding amps, though the earlier ones sometimes had overheating issues. I think they resolved the problem in later ones, but you might find modified JTM60's with fans fitted.

[Jeff_H]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Stevie, I think that's why they changed to the JCM 600's, because all of those have vents on the top to help dissipate heat. I remember reading that somewhere now.

[stevie_bees]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Yeah, that could well be it Jeff. A guy I played alongside briefly in Gibraltar had a JTM60, and it sounded fabulous with his Les Paul. No doubt they are great sounding amps.

[marvar]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Just do like I do on my JCM602- put a small personal fan behind it, to circulate the air- you'll be fine- ditch the stock Marshall/Celestions if you can.

[Gr8Scott]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

The "better" JCM-900's were the Mark III versions. Odie had one and it sounded great. I used to lust after that amp quite a bit. Not so much anymore though. I have far better amps now than I used to have.

[Jeff_H]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

I don't lust after anything Odie has, except the money he owes you.

[Gr8Scott]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

I don't lust after anything Odie has, except the money he owes you.

LOL. I wonder if he still has that Marshall?...

[Jeff_H]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

I'm sure he sold it for crack or something....like a mantastic massage weekend. Is ignorance bliss, no, Magnus is bliss.

[Gr8Scott]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Lol

[Chickenwings]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

Yeah, when I hear people talk about "the good 900's", it seems they prefer the 2 channel version with no reverb. Don't know if those models use different diodes for clipping for OD, or if the entire tone stack is different. I would imagine that all things being equal, just the addition of reverb wouldn't change the character of the amp.

The no reverb master volume models are not two channel. They are one channel with a selectable volume pot switch. They are very different amps inside also to the dual reverb models which is the main reason many people like them better. They are really like a jcm800 master volume but with an extra clipping stage after the preamp v1. There is a lot more to it than just a reverb circuit. They were not built to be flexible, they were built to have one great sound. Jcm 900 dual revrbs are still good amps - i used one for nearly 10 years.....its jus that the master volume models are much richer hamonically and more touch responsive.
So if the 900 is a mark III master volume, then get it for sure - its the best of the three. If its a dually, then perhaps the JTM is better if you want less gain and a more classic rock sound. 900 duallys are built for high gain sounds. However - all of them need to be dialed in to a pretty fair volume before you can get the best out of them because they clipping sounds best when combined with some power amp saturation.

[Brow]

Re: JTM60 vs JCM900

I've never been much of a fan of the 900s myself, but to be fair to the amp, I've never owned and haven't spent more than a few hours with the various different model.

I did have a JTM60 1x12 combo for while though, and I'd definitely agree it's more of a classic rock than a metal amp.

It was a good enough sounding amp, but mine had the overheating issues which eventually led to bad valves and a replacement OT.

1 trick I was told about with those amps is to put a small patch cable in the send/return jacks and then use the FX loop mix control as an additional gain stage. It didn't add too much more gain, but was more than adequate when I needed something more.