marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

E

esandes

Well-known member
i think the amp just plain sucks compared to a cranked up plexi. it sounds flat against a plexi. i'm thinking of trading it in for a bogner helios. sure the MV feature of the 800 is nice for low volumes but when you have the liberty to crank it up a bit the plexi just kills the 800 in terms of punch, focus and just balls. i owned a 1981 800 (2204) and sold it before i had a plexi. now i find the plexi just destroys the 800 re-issue (2203).

my 50w plexi has more punch and focus than the 800. each string just jumps out of the speaker at volume 1 with the 1987. at volume 4 (low channel w/ preamp at 10) with the 800 it sounds dull. sure the dirty channel of the 800 is pure metal sound but the 800 can match it and then some if i turn up the non-MV of the plexis. am i the only one?
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

I play a Plexi almost exclusively. I have thought of building an 800, but I have been so satisfied that I am unsure whether to go that direction. Honestly, the 800 is known for drive, as is the Plexi, but you don't hear people raving so much about the 800's clean tone.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Apples and Oranges. Just cause you have a Plexi( and true they have a girth and a big clean the Jcm800 does not ) is not a reason to get rid of your JCM800. They are a different animal, and theJCM 800 has a sweet amazing crunch all it's own that the Plexi does not. You will regret selling the JCM800..not so much as a real one from the 80's, but still...(BTW, a JCM 800 can sound damn good clean)
 
Last edited:
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Side note: too lazy to count but it seemed like every other word in the op was 'plexi'.

I miss my old 2203.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

No clue about the reissues..

IME, the 50w clearly sound better than the 100w when it came to the 800s series. Maybe a transformer issue with the 59/2210/03. That was with 6550s that came with them BITD. Have not spent enpugh time with el34 versions to.say for sure.

Also IME based on amps I owned, the JMP master volume amps sound much better than the JCM mv series. Again maybe a parts quality issue, IDK.

The best sounding JCMs were the 1959s. Much less crisp/harsh than the 2203.

That said, I am partial to the older nmv amps too...whether plexi or metalfaced.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

The problem with 800s is that they don't give it up until you get up on the master. At that point your almost as loud or as loud as a plexi anyway. There's more pre-amp gain (and compression) everywhere with an 800, but its a different flavor rather than one being better than the other.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

yes the 800 does sound compressed. it's nowhere near as loud as my 50w and 100w plexis.

the 800 does have it's place, yes. it has some nasty crunchy gain. it's a one trick pony. i thought my old 800 had nice cleans but the plexi owns it in that category.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Yes 800s can't get the cleans of a plexi. My plexi (a 30 watt Metro JTM45 set up like a JTM50 for now) gets great cleans with a PAF or a single coil by backing off a bit or into a nice overdrive pushed at fairly reasonable gig volumes.

It doesn't do high gain. Thats what Jubilees are for. Jubilees can get a good clean for single amp gigs, or a high gain drive at low and high volumes, but I miss the dynamics of a plexi going through various shades of clean and drive with just the guitar. A good plexi is a very good thing to have.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

It really depends on what you want to do. Sure an 800 is a one trick poney, but it does that one trick extremely well. Load up a high power humbucker and play 70's 80's metal all day long.

For classic rock like Jimi or Zeppilin and blues rock from Peter Green, and Kossof up through Framptom you can't beat a good plexi.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Lake Placid Blues said:
It really depends on what you want to do. Sure an 800 is a one trick poney, but it does that one trick extremely well. Load up a high power humbucker and play 70's 80's metal all day long.

For classic rock like Jimi or Zeppilin and blues rock from Peter Green, and Kossof up through Framptom you can't beat a good plexi.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. I don't like comparing amps most of the time because I know they all do some things really well. You really need to play the right style of guitar playing with whatever you're plugged into.

And with vintage amps, if they haven't been restored to 100% of their potential - even better than stock, your opinion of it's tone doesn't even count. It's like driving a junky worn out 70's muscle car and saying "this thing sucks!" Most older Marshalls are still running on worn original tubes or crappy cold war era tubes. Many of them hum from old capacitors. And if you aren't using the best Celestions, you're not hearing the full capability of the amp's tone.

And most of all, don't judge amps based on youtube clips. If the guy isn't a good player, he's probably making a good amp sound sh1tty. And then there's camcorder mic's, bedroom walls, low volume, unmaintained amps, bad pickups, etc. All of those factors can make a great classic amp sound like a Marshall MG series on youtube.
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Also, there were many models of JCM 800's. The single channel early ones with new tubes, and biased better than Marshall did.....those amps roar like a plexi with more gain. The channel switching models started sounding thinner and buzzier as changes were made.

I've owned around 20 Marshall amps, and upon getting them and checking the bias, I was surprised to see how cold the bias was.
They even sounded OK. Then I opened them up and saw them biased from 20 - 30mA, when 39mA is where they were supposed to be. Once they've been retubed and biased properly, I'm thinking to myself "whoever used this amp for the past 30 years never even heard it sound the way it was supposed to sound." :smack:
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis



<---- very interesting !
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

PLEXI ?

. . . i cannot say for sure . . . but man, what a nice tone !




This man can play !
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

I think your idea of selling off some stuff and buying a Bogner Helios is a good one. It would be cool to have a 50W version with a low serial number.

I like 100W amps too, but 50 watters are always easier to tame down for normal gigging situations. And the 50W Helios is around $2400, which is attainable.

I stood right in front of that amp and heard the Helios 100 really do it's thing from lush cleans to brutal plexi gain, and it's a thing to behold. Reinhold Bogner is the greatest amp designer of our time, and the Helios is built upon all his knowledge of making Marshalls roar like nothing else. That amp is worth the money, if you've got a place where you can wind one up.

Also worth noting is that I've now had some time with my 3 Bogner pedals, and they are all incredible. They don't sound like pedals...they sound like you've added an XTC or Uberschall channel to your amp. The blue one is great for boosting your Marshall and shaping it's gain structure for a good blues rock tone. The Red pedal is the winner of the 3 in my opinion. It's simply the best sounding heavy OD/distortion pedal I've ever tried. It's not a buzzy piece of crap....it's like adding an XTC red channel to your amp...totally worth the money! The Bogner Red is an instant classic.

And if you want super modern highgain that is like owning an Uberschall or Diezel Herbert, just buy the Ubershall pedal. If you have a good tube amp, that pedal will instantly turn your amp into a killer metal tone.

I've always loved Bogner amps, but I really am impressed with their pedal line. They are amazing pieces of gear. You'll know why they're $300 after you own one for awhile. They're too good to be priced lower....they really are. Just seek out used ones for less money.
 
Last edited:
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

Em… uh… ehnn…
 
Re: marshall people....jcm 800 and plexis

esandes said:
he used the DSL 2000. DSL stands for dual super lead. super leads aka plexi. it's a two preamp channel amp based on clean and cranked DSL sounds. no?

it's basically a hot rodded plexi to me.
Click to expand...

GOTCHA !
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

xxxplorer
Played a Peavey JSX and XXX cab
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
Fender_Punk
Fender_Punk
S
Crate Stealth GT-50C Combo to head conversion
Replies
2
Views
368
Masta' C
Masta' C
F
Ceriatone 18W Questions
Replies
0
Views
212
fretburner
F
Sirion
I Now Own All The Amps!
Replies
15
Views
787
PS412
PS412
MikeS
NAD - Friedman JJ Jr.
Replies
1
Views
350
justFred
justFred
Back
Top