the passenger
Member
- Messages
- 3
I'm still dumbfounded and confused by the recent events. It seems that a ten-year-long amp searching journey ended for me two days ago when my new Marshall DSL15 head landed at my doorstep. I have owned many great amps before, including a split channel Marshall JCM800, 2554 Jubilee combo, Orange TT, Laney Pro Tube, VOX Night train, old DSL, etc. I have played extensively on late 70’s JMP heads and combos and an early 80's 2203. In the previous years, my holy grail has been the Jubilee combo because of its incredible tone and its capability to cover the characteristics of other legendary Marshall amps – I have been able to tweak really close late JMP and 2203 type tones out of it.
Lately I needed a smaller backup amp for a new project so, after doing my homework, I pulled the trigger on the small DSL head (I've been also considering the Jet City JCA20). I haven’t really expected anything special, I only needed a workhorse for a basic usable rock tone. When the amp arrived, I’ve done the basic mods firstly (snipped C34 and C75) before even plugging it in. Took about 10 minutes, than I fired up the bad boy and started to compare it with my good old Jubilee, both on full power mode. And I couldn't believe my ears... with some basic adjustments I was able to get the exact same tone that my Jubilee produces, even a little better (more organic and tubey). I could describe the DSL15 as a mix of a 2203 with its robust, incredibly percussive attack, combined with the fatness of the Silver Jubilee...
Granted, I only used it with the master turned above '6' (1 o’clock). I can’t comment on its bedroom tones, I only use it fully cranked. I can’t believe what’s happening here... To be honest, this little beast sounds as good or even better to me than the legendary Marshall amps I’ve owned or tried in the past. Have any of you had similar experiences with the DSL15H?
The other surprise: cranked to full blast, the 15 watt DSL had the exact same volume as the 50 watt Jubilee, I couldn't perceive any difference. My 15w Orange TT on a 4x14 V30 cab was far less loud than this DSL on my oversized 1x12 Cannabis Rex cab...
I think that those who gave a bad review to this amp haven’t really cranked it, haven't done the basic mods, or maybe the combo version has bad speaker choice, I can't think any other reason. With the volume above '6' and the gain just below '3', this is a totally classic, old-school JCM800-esque monster amp. You just don’t need to turn the gain above '3'. You can simply leave the gain knob at quarter and use the guitar’s volume pot. The clean channel is also there if you need it, which is also magic in itself.
I recorded a riff with the Jubilee and the DSL15 side-by-side on the same speaker (a really bright, harsh one unfortunately) just to show you guys what I’m talking about. Listening back the recording confirmed what I heard in person, the Jubilee sounds almost lifeless compared to this tiny monster. Also, on the Jubilee the bass was set on '10' (max), while only '2' on the DSL with the 'deep' switch off...
Lately I needed a smaller backup amp for a new project so, after doing my homework, I pulled the trigger on the small DSL head (I've been also considering the Jet City JCA20). I haven’t really expected anything special, I only needed a workhorse for a basic usable rock tone. When the amp arrived, I’ve done the basic mods firstly (snipped C34 and C75) before even plugging it in. Took about 10 minutes, than I fired up the bad boy and started to compare it with my good old Jubilee, both on full power mode. And I couldn't believe my ears... with some basic adjustments I was able to get the exact same tone that my Jubilee produces, even a little better (more organic and tubey). I could describe the DSL15 as a mix of a 2203 with its robust, incredibly percussive attack, combined with the fatness of the Silver Jubilee...
Granted, I only used it with the master turned above '6' (1 o’clock). I can’t comment on its bedroom tones, I only use it fully cranked. I can’t believe what’s happening here... To be honest, this little beast sounds as good or even better to me than the legendary Marshall amps I’ve owned or tried in the past. Have any of you had similar experiences with the DSL15H?
The other surprise: cranked to full blast, the 15 watt DSL had the exact same volume as the 50 watt Jubilee, I couldn't perceive any difference. My 15w Orange TT on a 4x14 V30 cab was far less loud than this DSL on my oversized 1x12 Cannabis Rex cab...
I think that those who gave a bad review to this amp haven’t really cranked it, haven't done the basic mods, or maybe the combo version has bad speaker choice, I can't think any other reason. With the volume above '6' and the gain just below '3', this is a totally classic, old-school JCM800-esque monster amp. You just don’t need to turn the gain above '3'. You can simply leave the gain knob at quarter and use the guitar’s volume pot. The clean channel is also there if you need it, which is also magic in itself.
I recorded a riff with the Jubilee and the DSL15 side-by-side on the same speaker (a really bright, harsh one unfortunately) just to show you guys what I’m talking about. Listening back the recording confirmed what I heard in person, the Jubilee sounds almost lifeless compared to this tiny monster. Also, on the Jubilee the bass was set on '10' (max), while only '2' on the DSL with the 'deep' switch off...
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