Marshall Handwired Plexi

[aleclee]

HC Press release

 

[KLB]

That thing is so.... 60's.

 

[cvansickle]

Originally posted by KLB
That thing is so.... 60's.

And that's a GOOD thing!

 

[Amplite]

The 1959HW MSRP is $4000

This price is for the head only?

 

[aleclee]

Originally posted by Amplite
The 1959HW MSRP is $4000

This price is for the head only?

Yeah. It's not gonna put a lot of price pressure on the booteek clones.

 

[e-flat]

MSRP is 4 Grand for just the head!!! Does that mean they'll retail around $2800 ? Uh, I think I'd rather buy a Germino . In fact, all you married fellas might want to try the following trick:

Approach your significant other with an advertisement for the new Marshall HW 100 watter...After praising the amp and telling your wife how amazing they sound, reveal the sticker price. After being told that there is no way in hell that you will spend that much scratch on an amp, agree to "comprimise". Now those $1800 handmade heads will look cheap. Voila! Plus, you'll get ACTUAL customer service!

(I'm not dissing Marshall, here...Just having a laugh. I'm really glad that they have been influenced by the trends in the boutique market toward quality construction, quality components, etc)

 

[Chiba]

Given how good the build quality & sound is on the 2061X (20W handwired reissue head), I imagine these 1959X amps are going to be absolutely KILLER sounding!

--chiba

 

[HeeHaw]

IMO There isn't a plexi in the world that's worth that much. I don't give a hoot if (insert guitar hero) himself played it and recorded his first two albums with it. Remember, this pricing is coming from the same guys that want us to pay nearly $1500 for a glorified valvestate head (mode four), and it uses the same chip as the budget MG line. There just isn't anything magical or mystical enough inside any plexi to justify that pricing.


....but then again, if you want one bad enough, money will be no object whatsoever.


...Now that my rant is finished; there is a guy on HCAF that got one of the new HW Plexies for like $2300 from Sam Ash or MF, I can't remember which. He indicated that it was a killer sounding amp!

 

[hawkeyeinexile]

prompted by an old post by hogy, what do you think a '69 Plexi would cost in '05? my guess is well over $4000, just the head. just a thought and a nod to today's small builders and luthiers.

 

[Scumback Speakers]

Marshall is charging for the labor, and frankly, they should. There are lots of boutique builders that charge near that, and their stuff is good (Hogy, Maven Peal, etc.), too.

It's merely the difference between prefabricated solder bath PCB boards, and good old fashioned point to point wiring. The PTP has always been more expensive, and Marshall is capitalizing on their fame.

Now, whether or not it keeps up with a Germino, Maven Peal, Komet, Matamp, etc., etc. is another story. No doubt one of the more well heeled members will buy one and compare to a real Plexi at some point soon, then we'll all have a better idea.

 

[big mike]

Originally posted by Scumbag
Marshall is charging for the labor, and frankly, they should. There are lots of boutique builders that charge near that, and their stuff is good (Hogy, Maven Peal, etc.), too.

It's merely the difference between prefabricated solder bath PCB boards, and good old fashioned point to point wiring. The PTP has always been more expensive, and Marshall is capitalizing on their fame.

Now, whether or not it keeps up with a Germino, Maven Peal, Komet, Matamp, etc., etc. is another story. No doubt one of the more well heeled members will buy one and compare to a real Plexi at some point soon, then we'll all have a better idea.

+1

Let's also add, The US-UK exchange rate is NOT in Marshall's favor for selling goods right now. It's better than it has been, but at the time the amp was planned, it was almost $2 equal 1 British pound. So I wouldn't be surprised if there's some hedging against a crappy exchange in there too. I'm sure they get paid from Korg in US Dollars, and that's NOT going as far as it did even 2 years ago.

(hope that's not political, that's not my intent at all.)

 

[rooster]

Originally posted by hawkeyeinexile
prompted by an old post by hogy, what do you think a '69 Plexi would cost in '05? my guess is well over $4000, just the head. just a thought and a nod to today's small builders and luthiers.

In 1968, a Marshall head ran $675, I believe. There is a website for this with conversions to today's dollars. I think the equivalent in today's dollars is about $3200-3500 right now.

rooster.

 

[Masa]

Originally posted by rooster
In 1968, a Marshall head ran $675, I believe. There is a website for this with conversions to today's dollars. I think the equivalent in today's dollars is about $3200-3500 right now.

rooster.

Like Mike said, put the exchange rate in consideration. If we can find the price of the head in 1968 in British pound, and convert that to US$, I think it'd be more than $675.

I was in UK last year, and the exchange rate was so bad that I had to pay $20 for a regular breakfast. The cheapest hotel was like $180 a night.

BTW, my friend is in UK now, and he was invited to the Marshall factory to check out some amps. He said Marshall supposedly had a hand-wired Hendrix head clone, which is not in production yet. It's basically a modified 100W Plexi. I'll ask him more about it, when he comes back.

 

[hawkeyeinexile]

Originally posted by rooster
In 1968, a Marshall head ran $675, I believe. There is a website for this with conversions to today's dollars. I think the equivalent in today's dollars is about $3200-3500 right now.

rooster.

did a quick google, used this from Bureau of Labor Stats and got $3770.69. not too far off from $4K, given (as noted) euro exchange, etc.

now IIRC a '67 Showman rig (w/either 1 15" or 2 12" cab) was $950. so, that'd be $5529.34.

i remember getting my first new amp, a '67 Bandmaster w/cab for 10% discount at about $410 and that'd be $2386.35.

first guitar, a '68-69 Gibson LP Custom, $450 (w/case, 10% discount) -> $2619.16.

reverse, i got my Juke 1210 new 3 yrs ago for $1900 and that'd be $352.75 in '67 when i got the Bandmaster. and the Juke is a heckuva lot more amp than the BFB.

and a new Komet head today costs about 2/3 of what the new Showman rig did (MSRP both), comparatively.

makes my Chapins seem like real bargains (same cost as my LP, but my specs, neck profile & other options).

 

[hawkeyeinexile]

Originally posted by Masa
...
BTW, my friend is in UK now, and he was invited to the Marshall factory to check out some amps. He said Marshall supposedly had a hand-wired Hendrix head clone, which is not in production yet. It's basically a modified 100W Plexi. I'll ask him more about it, when he comes back.

hey, Masa, how the heck are you? i saw Bill yesterday tweaking the J-bird at David's.

ask your friend if he's seen any Blackmore heads @ the factory?

 

[Chuck Snider]

That bottom cabinet is really cool...... Looking

 

[LaXu]

In Europe the Marshall handwired Plexi would actually cost less than a Germino or other US Plexi clone. The Germino 100 watters are about 1900€ and the Marshall sells for slightly over 2000€. If you add shipping and taxes to the Germino it'll cost more to get one into Europe. Obviously the other way around the Marshall is more expensive.

I really want to try the handwired Plexi. I was very impressed with the handwired 18/20W amps. Personally I wouldn't mind if they just did the PCB versions with better components so they'd sound as good as the handwired stuff.

 

[Masa]

Originally posted by hawkeyeinexile
hey, Masa, how the heck are you? i saw Bill yesterday tweaking the J-bird at David's.

ask your friend if he's seen any Blackmore heads @ the factory?

Hey Jeff,

Yeah, I had a dinner with Bill. We just kept talking, and he didn't leave until about 10PM. I'm not sure when he got home, or maybe, he's still driving.

No, they don't have Blackmore heads. Even if they do, that'd be too loud, anyway.

 

[larrylover]

Does anyone know if Marshall will make a hand-wired version of the 50 watt plexi head?

 

[ahab]

Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, PLEASE tell me they are going to make a small box 50!

-ahab