Who are the bands with walls of Marshalls???? [Archive]

Luke

07-05-2009, 08:58 PM

jazzandmetal?

07-05-2009, 08:59 PM

Here you go:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izK5MdjbWkk&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eyoutube%2Ecom%2Fuser%2FChr isMUFC9000&feature=player_profilepage

Slayer rocks the Marshall.:Devil

Captain Midnite

07-05-2009, 10:13 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqzyDUU5JCo

The Last Rebel

07-05-2009, 10:15 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCP67NIvzjU

Maybe not a wall, but enough to get your pants a flappin'.

big mike

07-05-2009, 10:39 PM

Kiss first tour with Ace and Peter back they had Marshall cabs EVERYWHERE> In the lighting trusses, etc.

Pretty damn cool.

xntrick

07-05-2009, 11:48 PM

Yngwie and Anthrax use to have the whole stage covered.

Of course if you've ever worked with bigger bands you learn that most are dummies for display purposes only. Speakerless 4x12 cabinets and 9volt battery LED lights in the amps, the reason is to reduce the cargo weight since there is no need for that type of stage volume.

Never forget this is SHOW business.

when i saw YJM back in the early 90's he had the wall of marshalls which was overkill for the aragon ballroom, simply too much volume for that small of a venue...

Austinrocks

07-06-2009, 12:05 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q83qv6oRx8I

so how many amps are on, did not see power lights on the heads, looks cool for sure, noticed a mic in front of the one at the end,

FenderBigot

07-06-2009, 06:28 AM

Back when The Smithereens released "11" they hit all the TV talk shows/SNL/MTV live gigs with stacks of Marshalls all over the stage... I think they've scaled back a bit today as they're not as big as a draw or playing huge arena stages.

semi-hollowbody

07-06-2009, 07:12 AM

I will never forget the disappointment I felt when I found out that these walls of marshalls were mostly fakes just for show...I grew up with the 80's spandexed "george Lynch" type posing in front of a WALL of amps, with that metal look on their face...I am still dealing with this fake wall of marshall knowledge ;)

or that Jimmy page got his best tone from a small supro and NOT a wall of marshalls...

well at least angus and malcolm still record with full stacks...dont they???

CharAznable

07-06-2009, 07:17 AM

well at least angus and malcolm still record with full stacks...dont they???

50 watt half-stacks.. on 5.

ericprsse

07-06-2009, 07:31 AM

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Bankston

07-06-2009, 09:11 AM

I saw Ted Nugent in around '87. He had 10 Marshall stacks across the stage. The red lights on the heads were all on. Don't remember how many cabs were mic'd. But it's the loudest frakking show I've ever been to. My sister-in-law at the time lost partial hearing in one ear.

Priest is another band that used to have Marshall walls on stage.

Nowadays, Zakk Wylde still tours with his wall of doom and at least 2 of those stacks are on full blast.

Dubious

07-06-2009, 09:22 AM

I just saw Dinosaur Jr over the weekend. J had three full marshall stacks. All three were on and miced... He even switched out a head midway thru the set.

jtm622

07-06-2009, 09:49 AM

I played in a band that had a wall of Marshalls back in the mid-'70's... That said, we each only used one 4x12 1960 cab and one Superlead head... Because seriously, the stage volume created by two fully cranked Marshall stacks was overkill - not to mention that the one mic'ed 4x12 each of us was using was going thru a sound system which was blowing out thousands of watts...
We had 'em for mainly for looks, and as spares - remember, those older 1960 cabs were only rated at 100 watts - and they were fairly easy to blow up...
But the truth was that if you DIDN'T have that wall of Marshalls, you looked like a broke-dick operation to the audience... :)

Drew68

07-06-2009, 09:56 AM

I am still dealing with this fake wall of marshall knowledge ;)

or that Jimmy page got his best tone from a small supro and NOT a wall of marshalls...

well at least angus and malcolm still record with full stacks...dont they???

I read a recent interview with Judas Priest's Tipton and Downing where they mentioned employing one of those $139 Marshall MG15CDR amps in the studio. I laughed because I used to have one of those cheap little solid-state Asian-made Marshalls and it sounded pretty good!

http://www.streetsoundsnyc.com/catalog/5a31_1_697_1.JPG

The Golden Boy

07-06-2009, 12:04 PM

or that Jimmy page got his best tone from a small supro and NOT a wall of marshalls...

Nah, I'd say a Hiwatt head through a Marshall 4x12.

Craig Gates

07-06-2009, 01:11 PM

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z260/ghosttour/JohnnyRamone.jpg

ronmail65

07-07-2009, 12:43 PM

I remember seeing Judas Preist on the Screaming for Vengeance tour (which is also available on DVD). They had a double decker stage with about 20 full stacks and heads (all JCM800's). It was awesome looking!!

Funny thing though.... while I'm sure they were mostly fake, only 3 heads had their rocker switch lights on. So I don't know if they forgot to change their 9v batteries on the other 17, or if those 3 amps were the ones they were actually using.

cugel

07-07-2009, 01:04 PM

lemmy and co ususally have about 4 full stacks on stage all marshall, natch

Dr. Tweedbucket

07-07-2009, 07:34 PM

I wonder if this was real or not. I'll bet they were all fully functional, but maybe the extras were for backup in case one blew up? :YinYang

http://i30.tinypic.com/mkes2g.jpg

teefus

07-07-2009, 07:41 PM

boc on their "on your feet or on your knees" tour.

zosozep7

07-07-2009, 08:11 PM

You only need one Marshall Stack for a concert. The rest is all show.

gennation

07-07-2009, 08:27 PM

I hope KISS has been mentioned...

http://www.nolifetilmetal.com/images/kiss_live75.jpg

DEMENTED

07-08-2009, 05:57 AM

I dunno man, in the OP's youtube vid of Europe I swear there are a couple of Elmwood heads on the Marshall cabs to the drummers left side.

Doodad

07-08-2009, 06:22 AM

Kiss first tour with Ace and Peter back they had Marshall cabs EVERYWHERE> In the lighting trusses, etc.

Pretty damn cool.

I was about to say. I saw them in 1976 on the Destroyer tour and it WAS a wall of Marshalls. And flame. And smoke. And lights. And cantilevered stage lifts.......:thud

todd richman

07-08-2009, 06:51 AM

How about Iron Maiden around the time of Powerslave-lots of MkII Marshall heads and cabs. "Scream for Me Long Beach!"

gadgetprop

07-08-2009, 07:00 AM

I always wondered if those were fake up there for 'show' - damn, I kind of feel like santa just died.... but I guess it makes sense - 1 marshall is damn loud

ronmail65

07-08-2009, 09:49 AM

How about Iron Maiden around the time of Powerslave-lots of MkII Marshall heads and cabs. "Scream for Me Long Beach!"

A few years ago someone was selling these heads in pairs on eBay (or at least the seller claimed they were Maiden touring gear). They were props -- empty replica MkII cabinets with working power lamps.

ronmail65

07-08-2009, 09:55 AM

I'd guess this was definitely real gear that was actually used.

If you go back into the '60's and earlier, you'll find that the power amp sections of these amps and their speakers were very inefficient by modern standards. You'll also find that these bands relied heavily on amp volume as part of the house sound, or that it was necessary to achieve overdrive / distortion. So I think walls of Marshalls, Hiwatts, etc... that were used in this era were more than just "for show". Most of the time, I'd bet the gear was real and it was actually being used.

I wonder if this was real or not. I'll bet they were all fully functional, but maybe the extras were for backup in case one blew up? :YinYang

http://i30.tinypic.com/mkes2g.jpg

billm408

07-08-2009, 10:00 AM

You only need one Marshall Stack for a concert. The rest is all show.

:aok

Back in the day, it was common for metal bands to use empty cabs on the backline. Most of those guys were playing half stacks, but you can't beat the visual of cabs stacked 3 high, 3 across! :dude

dc_jcm800

07-08-2009, 10:43 AM

I'll never forget the disappointment. There was a local metal band back around 82-83 the had a wall of Marshalls. From seeing Maiden, Preist etc live on the big stages, this was just awesome to see in a small venue.

All empty, except one cab each.
Booo...I thought.

There is nothing I enjoy more though than the site of all those black Marshall cabs.

cram

07-08-2009, 10:52 AM

I saw a broadcast of a foo fighters show where their stage backdrop was literally a collection of amps. all different sorts of cabinets, combos, heads and I'd have to assume a flight case or two... I just searched for images of that setup but came up empty.

FirstBassman

07-08-2009, 11:37 AM

Of course, back in the day, it was Hendrix, Cream and Blue Cheer.

sixty2strat

07-08-2009, 12:22 PM

Did an outdoor festival gig last year. I had a A JMP head with checkerboard cab an 8x10 cab and 4x12. the bass player had a 70's SVT. Being older veterns 20+ years ex pros we out played the shoe gaze indie bands, and since they all had fender deluxes, Ac30's and line 6 stuff our wall made us scary bad asses....lol...was going to bring a leslie..lol GOD BLESS A WALL

ronmail65

07-08-2009, 02:02 PM

I'm guilty of this too...

I had 6 Marshall "mini stack" cabinets (4x10 or 2x12 diagonal mounted) which were built just like your standard slant and flat 4x12 cabs. These were made back in the '80's and early '90's (model 1965 and 1966 cabs). They weren't a lot smaller (only about 1.5 inches smaller all the way around, and 2 inches less depth). They didn't appear a lot smaller on stage, but it made a huge difference when it came to fitting them into vehicles and moving them around (I could fit 4 cabs, 2 heads, and 2 guitars into my 4 door 3 series BMW sedan). I eventually got rid of them because they really didn't sound that good. I probably should have kept them and at least swapped the 12" speakers.

Anyway, it was cool playing in front of a wall of Marshalls even though only 1 or 2 of the cabs were actually plugged in. It was a great backdrop and, from an image perspective, it made us look us a little "big time-ish".

billm408

07-08-2009, 02:02 PM

Here you go.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/MarshallStack_Slayer.jpg/800px-

Kerry King's set up for Mayhem. It's been years since I've been to their rehearsal space, but I'd give odds that only the two mic'd cabs are loaded.

jtm622

07-08-2009, 03:56 PM

I actually saw Hendrix on one of his very early tours, and he had a line of 4 model 1200 Sunn amps behind him - ALL 4 of 'em were cranked up "to eleven", and he blew up about half of 'em up (before he walked off the stage in disgust...)
Their sound system then consisted of 2 Fender Dual Showman 2x15 JBL cabs (one on each side of the stage), with only the vocals coming thru them, as far as I could tell... Mitch Mitchell was not even mic'ed, and the guy was busting ass just to even be heard...
That said, and with all due respect - they sounded like hammered sh#t by today's standards... :)

JTM100

07-09-2009, 09:36 AM

I'd guess this was definitely real gear that was actually used.

If you go back into the '60's and earlier, you'll find that the power amp sections of these amps and their speakers were very inefficient by modern standards. You'll also find that these bands relied heavily on amp volume as part of the house sound, or that it was necessary to achieve overdrive / distortion. So I think walls of Marshalls, Hiwatts, etc... that were used in this era were more than just "for show". Most of the time, I'd bet the gear was real and it was actually being used.

Inefficient????!!!!!! Have you ever stood in front of a cranked HIWATT stack??? It is the modern stuff that isnt loud enough! That being said, yes they did actually use them back then.