About Freaking Time!

[allbutromeo]

Finally Marshall has a 2555 Silver Jubilee reissue. Not super thrilled on price, but i'd rather get that than spend the same amount on their JCM 900 4100 reissue. http://www.sweetwater.com/insync/mar...bilee-reissue/

[Johtosotku]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Are they really that popular to get a reissue? The last time I tried one it was far too bright and otherwise nothing that special. I somehow feel that they're so wanted because they're rare, not because they're intrinsically better than the other Marshalls of that era.

[allbutromeo]

Re: About Freaking Time!

I love them, a buddy of mine had a JCM Slash sig 2555 in high school and it played/sounded great. Best Marshall I've ever played, though I've never played anything older than a mid 80s 2204

[Edgecrusher]

Re: About Freaking Time!

What do you mean about freaking time? This is the 3rd time that amp has been reissued... after the inital run of silver they were offered in black.. .then they were offered again as the slash signature.. and now again..

[Edgecrusher]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Are they really that popular to get a reissue? The last time I tried one it was far too bright and otherwise nothing that special. I somehow feel that they're so wanted because they're rare, not because they're intrinsically better than the other Marshalls of that era.

They are real bright and toppy... I dont have one anymore... i do still have one silver 4x12 though... I think you are right though most of the demand is cause they are rare and different. Not so much that they are "better" Funny enough here in Italy original jubes arent hard to find... Its not like you trip over them but if you dig around the used gear ads here you can find 1 or 2 every week. They are definitely more common then JMP era Marshalls here.

[Nacho8807]

Re: About Freaking Time!

I would have rather seen Marshall put out something new than reissue another old model, but good for them for recognizing what will probably sell like hotcakes.

[Red_Label]

Re: About Freaking Time!

I'm glad that they're reissuing them. If for no other reason that I might actually stumble on one and finally get to hear what all the fuss is about. I've been playing since the mid-80s, but amazingly enough have never plugged-into a Jub. I remember lusting after them because they looked different way back when. Felt the same way about the red Marshalls.

Btw... what's the difference in tone between the Jubilee and say, a 2203? I had a 2203X last year that was a great amp. Ended-up trading it because I was into other things at the time. If I had to criticize it... it was a one-trick pony and I had to slam the front end with an OD pedal to tighten it up the way I wanted it to sound (used an OCD for that). But I'd gladly have it back if the price was right (it's still at the dealer who I traded it to).

[Edgecrusher]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Btw... what's the difference in tone between the Jubilee and say, a 2203? I had a 2203X last year that was a great amp. Ended-up trading it because I was into other things at the time. If I had to criticize it... it was a one-trick pony and I had to slam the front end with an OD pedal to tighten it up the way I wanted it to sound (used an OCD for that). But I'd gladly have it back if the price was right (it's still at the dealer who I traded it to).

Quite a bit actually... the 2203 is an all tube circuit where the jubilee has diodes in the front end to give more gain. If you needed an OD with a 2203 you will need an OD with a Jubilee. The jubilee tends to be pretty bright and cutting no matter how you twist the knobs... the gain in the jubilee tends to be... for want of a better word.. .fuzzier? Its got a glassy edge to it. To me a 2203s crunch sounds more like someone breaking a tree branch... where the jub sounds like someone smashing a pane of glass... does that make sense?

[Johtosotku]

Re: About Freaking Time!

They are real bright and toppy... I dont have one anymore... i do still have one silver 4x12 though... I think you are right though most of the demand is cause they are rare and different. Not so much that they are "better" Funny enough here in Italy original jubes arent hard to find... Its not like you trip over them but if you dig around the used gear ads here you can find 1 or 2 every week. They are definitely more common then JMP era Marshalls here.

Yep. I see them for sale here as well. They're about the same price as early 80s 800s. Some price them higher because of the prices overseas, but the realists over here sell them for the prices they're actually going for in Europe.

I'd rate them as the same quality, but they have different tones and I prefer the 800s. It's exactly like we said, some prefer the bright tones, but I miss the middy and more powerful tones that the regular 800s provide.

[Red_Label]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Quite a bit actually... the 2203 is an all tube circuit where the jubilee has diodes in the front end to give more gain. If you needed an OD with a 2203 you will need an OD with a Jubilee. The jubilee tends to be pretty bright and cutting no matter how you twist the knobs... the gain in the jubilee tends to be... for want of a better word.. .fuzzier? Its got a glassy edge to it. To me a 2203s crunch sounds more like someone breaking a tree branch... where the jub sounds like someone smashing a pane of glass... does that make sense?

Great post! Very well-put and informative. Thanks.

[Gearjoneser]

Re: About Freaking Time!

I'm kinda pissed they're doing this in silver, because it diminishes the collectibility of originals.....like my fullstack that I've kept in perfect condition.

As for the tone, it's sort of like putting a Tubescreamer in front of a JCM 800, which is a thinner sound than without a Tubescreamer. But the reason for the diode clipping was to get that highgain Marshall tone right out of the box. I guess the Jubilee's highgain tone has about the same girth as a new JVM.

One problem was that the Jubilee's weren't bulky in the mids, so mating it with the Jubilee 412's that were loaded with G75T's didn't help. They sound much better into a 412 with V30's and H30's. It looks like they realized this and went with V30's this time.
Another thing I noticed was that the ends of the handles are now chrome, which is a nice touch. The 87's had the standard black handles. This will be the fastest way to tell a reissue from an original.

In 87, my first good tube amp was a brand new 2555 100W, which I stupidly sold in the 90's.
My current Jubilee is a 2550 50W fullsize head. I wouldn't mind finding one of these Jubilee 100 watters eventually, so I have both.

In 87, the heads sold for $900 - $1100. The current price of $1900 shows us that they've doubled in price in almost 30 years. I'm surprised they didn't reissue this in 2012 or 2017.

[d1dsj]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Another thing I noticed was that the ends of the handles are now chrome, which is a nice touch. The 87's had the standard black handles. This will be the fastest way to tell a reissue from an original.

I certainly hope that there are some other differences, I put a chrome capped handle on my little 2554 when I got as although the amp and tolex are near mint the black plastic end caps had gone brittle and disintegrated!

[PFDarkside]

Re: About Freaking Time!

You're one Les Paul and a creative photo away from a rig pic there...

[Boogie Bill]

Re: About Freaking Time!

I am partial to JTM 45s, and JCM 800s if they have EL34s. But eventually I sold mine when I discovered the Mesa Mark III; it fit my needs the best.

I've had several chances to buy a Silver Jubilee, but never seemed to be able to pull the trigger.

But the thing about a Marshall is that most of them don't sound good until the middle of the third set when they really start getting hot and pushed hard.

Not the amp I'd choose for my practice room amp, but given the right stage/venue/genre, they're hard to beat.

Bill

[dystrust]

Re: About Freaking Time!

Are they really that popular to get a reissue? The last time I tried one it was far too bright and otherwise nothing that special. I somehow feel that they're so wanted because they're rare, not because they're intrinsically better than the other Marshalls of that era.

Quite a bit actually... the 2203 is an all tube circuit where the jubilee has diodes in the front end to give more gain. If you needed an OD with a 2203 you will need an OD with a Jubilee. The jubilee tends to be pretty bright and cutting no matter how you twist the knobs... the gain in the jubilee tends to be... for want of a better word.. .fuzzier? Its got a glassy edge to it. To me a 2203s crunch sounds more like someone breaking a tree branch... where the jub sounds like someone smashing a pane of glass... does that make sense?

Better is a matter of opinion. I've had a Jubilee 2555 since 2001 and it's my absolute favorite Marshall, while others don't care for them. Tone-wise mine is less bright than most 800s I've played, and it seems to be a bit particular about preamp tubes especially. When I got it, it was loaded with the same GTs that Slash was using at the time and it was extremely bright and the gain was weak as Johtosotku describes. I've been running EHs lately and they're much fatter sounding though still with a nice, bright edge. Power tubes matter a lot less IMO, new EL-34s sound nearly identical from one brand to another; KT-88s were a bit fatter and less bright, but not hugely so.

Building on Edgecrusher's answer above, a 2555 has a very similiar power amp to a 2203 of the same era, but the preamp and tone stack are very different. It does have a diode-clipping circuit built into the lead mode which is switchable in the rhythm mode via push-pull on the input gain. I refer to them as modes instead of channels because instead of being a true channel-switcher, it's more akin to a switchable cascading gain stage like a Boogie Mk II. The tone stack is Hiwatt inspired and there is A LOT more thickness on tap than a 2203, at least when running EL-34s. I don't know if you'd need an always-on boost with a Jubilee, I certainly don't as they also have A LOT more gain than a stock 2203. I'd describe the crunch of my 2555 as someone beating you with the tree branch the 2203 broke.