The Vintage Modern is no more

[Lake Placid Blues]

I see that the Vintage Modern is no longer in production. I'm kinda saddened, but if they can't sell it- they can't sell it.

I thought it was a way cool idea. It was basically a four holer with a good post PI master volume so you could use it in the modern world. It had a few nice features that could be handy in a vintage amp such as more pre-amp gain if you want it, an FX loop, and reverb.

Some of the possible reasons for the market failure?:

1 It wasn't a channel switcher. It wasn't designed to be a channel switcher. It had a boost function but it couldn't really be used as a channel switcher and wasn't very good pressed into the role. Modern Players like channel switching, and for $1800 they want features.

2 It was competeting against other Marshalls re-issues or Marshall clones among players like me and that's a small market today.

3 It was a KT66 amp instead of an EL34 amp. Early plexis had KT66s but the Marshall sound is EL34s.

Anyway I'm going to be on they look out for a good one in the next few years. One of the best Marshalls in years in my opinion.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

That's really surprising; almost everyone I know who has played one thought it was great (myself, included).

 

[JeffB]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

Yup...my fave Marshall since ..well..certainly introduced in the last 25 years.

I agree that the KT66s were probably a bad thing from a sales standpoint.

Also it was not obvious you really need to work the preamp gains first to get your base tone. I witnessed a few guys who twiddled for 2 minutes, and shut it down cos they did not know any better.

And a 2 channel JVM was not much more dinero and had more tones. That said, I do not think the JVM holds a candle to a VM.for doing the classic Marshall tones of the 60s/70s.

And coming out with a JVM, and a VM at the same time.was pretty stupid too.

Used market prices are gonna shoot up for sure among those who know better about the amp.

 

[FuseG4]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

hopefully they will make a cheaper made-in-asia version, like they did with the DSL. It might sell a lot more that way.

 

[B2D]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

I've played 'em a few times and they were good amps but not great amps. I think the KT66's were the thing I didn't like. I would've liked to have tried one with EL34s or even 5881's.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

That sucks, but they will re-introduce it when their Chinese or Indian manufacturing facilities can produce them. Just like they did with the DSL series.

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

Paul Gilbert will be saddened.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

Paul Gilbert will be saddened.

He can always go back to Laney. Any amp company would be crazy not to pick him up as an endorser. Paul Gilbert, one of the original 80's guitar supreme beings. Personally, I think Paul Gilbert should become a Bogner man.

 

[Drunken Bowling]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

A lot of people that used it and reviewed it seemed to like the JCM800 and JVM more. One of the most common things I read was that it sounded too thin.

 

[Simon_F]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

I suspect that, ironically, it fell into the gap between vintage and modern. "Vintage" players buy the reissues of old models, "modern" players buy the JVMs. It's a shame because it looks like a great amp. I only tried one briefly but I've often been tempted to pick up a used one on eBay - they can be had pretty cheaply used, though as mentioned above, that may change now. And yes, I think I would have been more tempted if they had an EL34 power stage.

 

[JeffB]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

IDK about any Chinese reintroductions. The VM was not very popular. The DSL was EXTREMELY popular, and has been brought back to fill a glaring gap in Marshalls product line that has been an issue for 20 years. A Chinese VM would probably be a waste of their time, money, and resources.

I hope I am wrong about the VM being gone for.good, but the discontinuation of the DSL and VM are two completely different scenarios.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

IDK about any Chinese reintroductions. The VM was not very popular. The DSL was EXTREMELY popular, and has been brought back to fill a glaring gap in Marshalls product line that has been an issue for 20 years. A Chinese VM would probably be a waste of their time, money, and resources.

I hope I am wrong about the VM being gone for.good, but the discontinuation of the DSL and VM are two completely different scenarios.

No they're not. It's all about Marshall moving production to China and India. Jim Marshall is gone man. They want to exploit the name and build cheap so they can line their pockets. Marshall already makes several models outside of the U.K., including the SL-5. Why would a Chinese VM be any more a waste of time than any of their other models like the Haze, DSL, or MA series? That makes no sense. From the looks of their website, they've pulled a lot of models. You don't see any of the cheap stuff except the DSL's. The Haze, MA and Class 5 are gone too.

It seems to me that Marshall is about to make a big move or are getting hit real hard by the competition. Whatever they do, I'm sure it's so they can raise the prices on their UK stuff even more. Marshall, as of late, seems to be all about price prestige rather than developing and upgrading their products before they raise prices on them. The JVM hasn't changed, and none of the improvements people want has ever been implemented in that model, yet the prices on them have gone up nearly $1000.

 

[JeffB]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

If you feel the original flagship DSLs were pulled from production several years ago for the same reason as the VM is being pulled today, I do not know what to say other than I think you are just trying to argue, clueless of the product lines sales and/or reliability issues (MA, HAZE) or maybe both.

At any rate, you might want to take it up with someone else.

 

[Jeffrec]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

They were great amps once you dialed in the right tone. I wish they had made a 1X12 version, though. The combo was heavy as hell.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

If you feel the original flagship DSLs were pulled from production several years ago for the same reason as the VM is being pulled today, I do not know what to say other than I think you are just trying to argue, clueless of the product lines sales and/or reliability issues (MA, HAZE) or maybe both.

At any rate, you might want to take it up with someone else.

I wasn't trying to argue, but when you slip in comments like "clueless" then expect a retort. First of all, you're WRONG because I didn't say that "DSL's were pulled from production for the same reason as VM's are today." Maybe you should take an English class or learn to read. I said they would probably re-introduce them through their foreign factories like the DSL's.

Second, you made this statement:"The VM was not very popular. The DSL was EXTREMELY popular, and has been brought back to fill a glaring gap in Marshalls product line that has been an issue for 20 years"

Well, how do you qualify that statement? Where is the proof that the VM's were not very popular? How do you know for fact that Marshall did it to "fill a glaring gap" in their product line and that it was an "issue for 20 years?" What makes you think Marshall believed they had a "glaring gap?" What inside information of Marshall do you have that you can say they dealt with that "issue for 20 years?"

Furthermore, the statement you made that "A Chinese VM would probably be a waste of their time, money, and resources" is based on what? How would you know that it would be a waste of time more so than the MA, Haze or DSL series?

That's not all. You also stated "clueless of the product lines sales and/or reliability issues (MA, HAZE) or maybe both." So what evidence do you have that there are reliability issues with the MA & Haze? How do you know there are more reliability issues than the VM's had? Also, what do you know of their sales? What data do you have that makes you more knowledgeable about Marshall sales than I do?

See, it's those kinds of ignorant statements that provoke an argument. You say you don't want to argue so you can have the last word and avoid a sensible discussion. Don't throw stupid stuff out there that you can't substantiate and then try to avoid the discussion.

 

[Agileguy_101]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

You're an asshat Yngwiestein.

 

[misterwhizzy]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

UMD, a lot of your responses are very adversarial. It makes me respect your opinion less when I read posts like that.

 

[UberMetalDood]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

Look, thanks for saying so, but how would you respond to being called clueless? If I don't respond the same way you would then does that make me a jerk? I think you mistake direct for adversarial in some cases. Just because I dispense with cordiality or refuse to avoid a direct discussion doesn't mean I'm adversarial. Besides, maybe there is something behind it. Maybe through other interactions or observations, I might perceive someone a bit negatively and respond accordingly. Maybe JeffB here came across as kind of a punk at one point in time and I carry an attitude towards him.

Maybe JeffB lost my respect some time in the past, and this is between him and I. If someone treats me with disrespect, contempt, arrogance, etc..., then I'm going to respond to them with the resentment I feel towards it. It's as simple as that. I'm not a jerk to anyone who is not a jerk to me first, and if I ever am, I'll be a man an apologize. If a person who was a jerk to me in the past apologizes to me, I usually forgive them immediately and carry on.

So if you lose respect for my opinion based on something besides the substance or logic of my assessment, then perhaps you let your feelings get in the way of the exchange of knowledge at-hand. I'm not trying to be adversarial to you since, as far as I know, you're cool with me. I appreciate your opinion and will try to adjust my interactions accordingly. However, I am who I am. Consider that if you knew me, you would know that I'm very laid back and go with the flow. Surely I make my opinions known and never back down from a challenge or fight, but I rarely ever do it with contempt. I'm just competitive by nature.

I don't really hold grudges man. I'm very simple - I have a mental "trust" list. A person is either on my trust list or not. Everyone goes on my trust list at first, but I eliminate them from it if they ever cross me or give me reason to not trust them. I'll probably carry some attitude, but never any true contempt unless the violation of my trust is severe.

This isn't the area to have this discussion, but since you put it on the public record, I had to put my side on account.

 

[Agileguy_101]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

I could never take anyone seriously that would have Ronald Reagan as their avatar.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: The Vintage Modern is no more

This thread has been most educational, but for the wrong reasons.