Off Topic Marshall JVM Amp Advice!

[Jonny Dubai]

Hay Tim. I have the Vintage modern and it is a cracker for the 70's and 80's muscle rock sound. However as it is a single chan with 1 swich (for the xtra muscle), You may not get the sparkle cleans you need. It cleans up realy well with the volume on the guitar backed off.

Whern i was reading your 1st post i thought you would go straight for the Line 6 Bognor job.

Good luck mate,

J

 

[MrMusashi]

well both the 410 and the 210 will do cleans like no other marshall.. they made the green on clean bypass the volume knob, so only gain will work.
and it will give ya more clean volume than you probably ever will need! you gotta gain it hard to make it break up and then its so loud your soundman will come over and smack ya out of the social security number registry with a used 25feet microphonecable with neutrik plugs in both ends

personally i like the 4 channel version, but some people think its over the top. when am i ever gonna use 4 channels??
well, the point of the 4 channel amp is that you get more sounds to choose from!
if you only need 3 sounds you can program those right into the footswitch.. if you need 4 you can do that too.. dont look yourself blind on all the knobs, you just fiddle them till you find your sound, program it and youre set

versatility is the keyword here, and the 4 channel version got more to choose from!
and its only 4,5kg extra

MrM

 

[roburado]

Can you go wrong with a Marshall ???

The new JVM seem really great. I own a DSL 401 and I am very happy with it. If I have to buy a new amp, I will surely buy a JVM.
For the weight problem, do you really need a 100 W ? My experience is that 40 W or 50 W is enough. If you need more sound level, you need a PA.
For instance, the big Mesa cabs you see in the Dream Theater concert are just there for the visual aspect... A small combo is miced backstage.
My 2 cents ...

NO. If you go to the mesa boogie site, JP does a demo of his rig in a video and he's clearly using his 4x12's. No way thats a combo. I doubt JP would take a monster rig everywhere just for show. My .02 cents.

-Phil

The video I am talking about is not the video that you can see on the Mesa Boogie site.
In "my" video, JP shows that the miced amp is under a blanket in order to avoid the reverberations.
JP does not need his cab, he uses in-ear monitors. In an arena, 4 cabs will not be heard by the public. The PA does the job.

JP did at one point hide his cabs in an enclosure around the time of the World Tourbulence tour, because DT started using in-ear monitors at that time. However, that's not the case now. He went back to using cabs on stage during the Train of Thought tour, because he likes the feel of having the cabs moving the air on stage. He's definitely using the big 4 x 12s. He doesn't mic all the cabs, though. I don't know if he's even using all of them. So, there is some aspect of doing it for show. I asked him at a clinic why he went to using all those cabs that he had onstage during the Octavarium tour. He said it was partly because it looks cool. You can definitely see microphones on his 4 x 12s.

JP has covered up his cabinets in studio, but his favorite cabinet to use is the small Rectifier Traditional cabinet loaded with Vintage 30s. That's what he likes. He's been using those for a long time. The rest of the rig changes again and again, but that cabinet has been there for years--at least for the past 10 or 11 years.

Okay, enough of this hijack.

 

[roburado]

A Marshall wall of cab is the dream of all guitarist (me included of course). But now bands like Iron Maiden do not use them anymore. You have a few amps miced backstage.

Well, I'm a guitarist who has no interest in Marshall. I guess I'm the exception. I'll take Mesa and/or Egnater.

 

[TNT]

Tim,

You know, I kinda heard the same thing on the 2x12 Marshall cab, that you can get them with the V30's. Do you know anyone who has that cab??

I'll certainly get one, it's my favorite giggin' cab, I use the Mesa Boogie 2x12 v30's now.

 

[DaveB]

Tim,

thought I'd chip in with my 2 cents (or pence)

I dont really dig the JVM amps at all, overly complex and tonally beaten by many other amps IMHO. We also sent a new 2 channel head to a customer and the output transformer blew in the first hour......

The H&K Duotone is a far better amp for me - we have a second hand one in stock now (and I'm really expressing my honest opinion here - not chasing a sale, lets face it I can have the pick of the bunch!!!)

Dave

 

[pjc812]

right up my alley

Tim,

I used to sell these. I actually worked for the dealer who was probably the first one in the states to get them. We couldn't keep them in stock, we'd get five and they'd be gone.

IMO the 410 sounds better than the 210. Same basic concept and really not that much difference in price.

I'd get it if I were you, just a few things you need to consider.

Run a BBE sonic maximizer in the effects loop and a noise suppressor through the front. Do NOT under any circumstance turn the gain all the way up on the overdrive channels!! This amp has more gain than any Mesa ever dreamed of and pulling that stunt got a lot of people very unhappy because of uncontrollable feedback. Mind you, they did that after I told them not to. The gain sounds dimed at 3!

This amp does take some time to get familiar with, and you'll need a quiet room in which to do it. If you're trying it at GC, take it home and play with it. If you don't like it just return it.

Another beautiful thing about this amp is that it sounds AWESOME at low volumes. It also has the Silent Record feature which I dig, you have an XLR out you can run from and hit the standby switch, you're only using the preamp tubes and the output is shut off.

Get the head and the MC212 cab. Cheaper than the combo and lighter. That way you can expand later.

 

[Tim O'Sullivan]

Tim,

thought I'd chip in with my 2 cents (or pence)

I dont really dig the JVM amps at all, overly complex and tonally beaten by many other amps IMHO. We also sent a new 2 channel head to a customer and the output transformer blew in the first hour......

The H&K Duotone is a far better amp for me - we have a second hand one in stock now (and I'm really expressing my honest opinion here - not chasing a sale, lets face it I can have the pick of the bunch!!!)

Dave

Dave,

Thanks for the advice - sadly the price is really the stumbling block for me. Buying something like this from H&K puts the price in Mesa territory, which is about double what I want to pay. Sure looks like one smart amp though..

 

[scruffydoo]

I have a JVM410 and for the money it can't be beat, the features and versatility are superb, fabulous clean and crunch tones, not super keen on the overdrive channels if Im being honest, I find them a touch thin, having said that I personally prefer the thicker mesa sound although I know a lot don't. This amp is a grower you need to live with it a while before really getting to like it.

Just for ref I also have a vintage modern, a spider valve and a mesa roadster.

The roadster smokes em all and is definately worth saving for, the spider valve is an excellent amp (and a real bargain) once you dial it in, you'd be amazed at the tones you can get out of it if you tweak it yourself instead of using the patches.

All of them sound excellent at both low and high volumes, tis a geat time to be amp shopping as there's loads of good quality choice.

 

[mr.b]

Can you go wrong with a Marshall ???

QUOTE]

YES!!

 

[beachjammer]

I personally love the tone of the new JVM amps! I almost thought about getting rid of my Mesa for one but decided not to. As far as price goes though, I think that they're in the same ballpark honestly. My only grip about the JVM or any Marshall is dependability and customer service. I used Marshall for years and years until I purchased a new JCM900 that croaked after only 3 months and I couldn't get it serviced or taken care of under warranty. There's also a bunch of returns to my local Marshall dealer including the newer JCM800's. That's what I'd watch out for. I'd pick my dealer carefully incase you have any trouble.

 

[Jonny Dubai]

I got one on order. 50w head and a boogie 2x12! Can't wait.

J

 

[bdtunn]

I play the JVM 210H through a Mesa 4x12 and the results are steller! I would recomend getting a BBE sonic maximizer and running it throught the effects loop. Play around with the mix to fit your needs. But honestly you have no idea what this pedal will do to that head, it brings it alive (like I'm sure it does on most but I couldn't beleive the diff!!).

 

[Hendog]

I am confused. The OP said that he cannot afford the Mesa so he is going with the Marshall. Are we talking about the JVM or the JCM??? The JCM is certainly more affordable than the 2k + Mesa stuff, but the JVM is in that ballpark.

Someone straigten me out! (and also let me know where I can buy a Mark V before I pull the trigger on a Roadster)

 

[brownpants69]

My advice, after owning and playing a JVM for a while... DO NOT BUY A JVM!!!

But that's just my opinion. I'm selling mine on Ebay at the moment after 18 months of fizz. The specs are great and I am seriously in love with clean channel, but when it comes down to it this is a modern marshall and if you are after any convincing Marshall tones look elsewhere!

You will be driven to madness by the noise and hiss. The overdrive and dirt sounds are fizzy, undynamic and harsh. The eq is overly bright- Great for cheap far eastern guitars with overwound ceramic pickups, but pants for anything else.

Midi switching is cool though, great FX loop, switchable volumes etc, but the amp is the biggest factor in the tone chain (IMO)- show your guitars some respect and buy something else...

I am

(Small Print: I am over-opinionated and bitter and twisted about spending £900 on an amp I don't like... hahaha)

 

[shep]

Yes !
I have a video from a French mag where John shows his rig (it was filmed in October in Paris. Great show !). I will try to upload it on Youtube.

What!. i am not a huge JP fan but i know he uses about $20000 worth of rack gear and mesa amps into a stereo pair of mesa cabs sometimes more. Unless it's one of his smaller shows then it's a mk IV with some 4x12s and some nice rack effect's.

 

[shep]

Also i would go a Second hand Mesa boogie mk III with a EQ. They are about $750 mark on ebay US and sound AMAZING! Better than anything Marshall.sound better and built stronger too!! get a nice closed back cab with it and you will be Very happy!

 

[phatduckk]

I have the 4 channel version and love it. I dunno which 2 channels are "missing" on the 2 channel version.

But all in all im a big fan. it totally works for me

 

[B2D]

Tim - what kind of music do you play? How many channels do you need? Do you need built-in effects?

I like the 2-channel JVM50, but I really fell in love with the Bogner Alchemist head and combos when i tried them. Gorgeous tone and very malleable.

 

[fbecir]

What!. i am not a huge JP fan but i know he uses about $20000 worth of rack gear and mesa amps into a stereo pair of mesa cabs sometimes more. Unless it's one of his smaller shows then it's a mk IV with some 4x12s and some nice rack effect's.

No, no ...
It was a big show (Zenith of Paris). The 4x12s you see onstage are just there for hiding the backstage. There is just one miced 4x12 in an isolation booth.
Of course, JP uses a very big rack with several head.