Choice of two

U

Undertone

New member
I have the opportunity to get either a Marshall DSL 401 or a HRD II on the low side of the price curve. I wanted to bounce it off the group here to see what the preference is because I'm stuck and I can't decide. As a little background, I do the small bar thing doing classic/pop/funk music. This is also going to double as my practice amp too.

I just can't wait to get away from my Flextone III ASAP!

Thanks in advance!
 
Re: Choice of two

I like that Marshall that's a sick little amp. Very versatile since you have the 3 channels to choose from and at 40W, you have plenty of power for small gigs and it will more than suffice for practice without being overkill. I'd take the Marshall.
 
Re: Choice of two

Actually I may change my answer. By HRDII I assume you meant HRDIII? That one has a speaker out. I thought the Marshall did too but I read wrong it has a speaker emulation out which I'm assuming is an XLR line out. You my find the speaker out on the Hot Rod might be a good option if you ever want to add the optional 2 speaker cabinet for more power on stage.
 
Re: Choice of two

No I di mean the HD II not the III. I would love to get a HRD III but it's out of the price curve for now.
 
Re: Choice of two

I played a used DSL401 at Guitar Center last year and loved the tone. I thought the EL84s worked great and produced a nice chimey clean tone. However, it's been noted that many people have had reliability issues with the 201/401. Also, I've read that each 401 is a case-by-case scenario with some hits & misses. You might want to try it out before you seal the deal.
 
Re: Choice of two

The list goes to three. A Mesa F-50 for $450. Here's the rub: The reverb doesn't work. I was told it's about a $100 fix and it doesn't affect the amp working now.

Would you do it? Or is this a can of worms?
 
Re: Choice of two

They're both good amps but the 401 has a little more magic in my opinion. It that growly Marshall tone with EL84 chime. It's pretty loud. I wish they'd reissue it because I'd buy one.
 
Re: Choice of two

I will say I loved the F-50 when they first came out. I was about to buy one when they released the Lonestar.
 
Re: Choice of two

Undertone said:
The list goes to three. A Mesa F-50 for $450. Here's the rub: The reverb doesn't work. I was told it's about a $100 fix and it doesn't affect the amp working now.

Would you do it? Or is this a can of worms?
Click to expand...

Reverb not working? They often break down on any amp. Its a tiny wire inside the tank that carries the signal to the springs and back. It has to be small so it allows the springs to vibrate freely, but it also gets moved around a lot when you carry the amp to the car etc. Open up the tank and solder it up again. 5 minute job.
If that doesnt work, then clean the contacts and/or replace the tube for the reverb.
Its very unlikely to be anything more complex than that.
 
Re: Choice of two

I've got the DSL401K, its my main gigging amp, in the small club scene. It has two speaker jacks, so you can run extension(s) and or the built in speaker. its also got the speaker emulated DI out, which is a nice option to micing the amp, and sounds pretty good. Its got an FX loop too, but I never use it. The master volume is nice to get those preamp tubes humming without being too loud.
I like it. It doesn't have a lot of headroom on the clean channel, it'll break up before it gets very loud on the clean channel, but its a nice bluesy kind of break up. The OD channel is also nice, and it can go from classic sounding, with gain around 5, to pretty saturated at ~8. It can be a bit bright, so I keep the treble lower than the bass or mid.

I've been using it for about 10 years now, 50 or 60 gigs a year, and practice, and I have had to have it serviced, including the soldering for which I think its notorious. It didn't seem excessive to me, you're going to have wear and tear with a working amp, aren't you?
 
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