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SonicPulverizer « Working man's live amp »
Published on 10/05/12 at 02:44The Jcm 2000 DSL50 is a 50 watt, el34 driven amplifier that really stood apart from the rest of the 2000 series amps alongside its bigger brother the DSL100. The amp feature 2 foot switchable channels that share a global EQ. The amp has a decent number of tone shaping options including a deep switch 2 modes per channel that can be toggled between on the front panel, as well as separate EQ and gain controls for each channel. Effects loop is present on this amp and works pretty decently considering the era and pricing of this amp. The look is typical marshall, but has much less class than the 800 series and other prior models.
UTILIZATION
The DSL 50 and DSL 100 were a departure of sorts from the rest of the 2000 series amplifiers. These two offerings have a much more natural sounding tube distortion to them and are perfectly passable in the professional environment. The abundance of these on the used market for such low prices make them easily replaceable when on the road-- and this reduces anxieties greatly in the touring environment. With that said, the DSL50 had no reliability issues at all for me and sounded great when turned up to gigging volumes, everytime.
SOUNDS
I played through the DSL 50 with a Gibson SG junior. Mesa boogie 4x12. Carbon copy delay in loop.
The amp's clean sounds are not exactly breathtaking, but when paired with the onboard reverb, does the job fine. The ultra channel seemed to have too much gain available and I found myself rolling back the dial to get a tame sound. The crunch setting on channel 1 is a great straight forward marshall tone and when paired with pedals can deliver a lot for the money.
OVERALL OPINION
The Jcm 2000 series has been around the block. Having been the most attainable tube amp to the generation that made pop punk and harcore music a big deal, it's been spotted on a lot of stage and heard in a lot of recordings. It's essentially a working man's solution for getting a useable mid to high gain sound without venturing into the more expensive mesa boogie offerings. When you look at it in this light, the amp is an amazing value. Leave your nitpicks at the door and this could be the perfect amp for you.
UTILIZATION
The DSL 50 and DSL 100 were a departure of sorts from the rest of the 2000 series amplifiers. These two offerings have a much more natural sounding tube distortion to them and are perfectly passable in the professional environment. The abundance of these on the used market for such low prices make them easily replaceable when on the road-- and this reduces anxieties greatly in the touring environment. With that said, the DSL50 had no reliability issues at all for me and sounded great when turned up to gigging volumes, everytime.
SOUNDS
I played through the DSL 50 with a Gibson SG junior. Mesa boogie 4x12. Carbon copy delay in loop.
The amp's clean sounds are not exactly breathtaking, but when paired with the onboard reverb, does the job fine. The ultra channel seemed to have too much gain available and I found myself rolling back the dial to get a tame sound. The crunch setting on channel 1 is a great straight forward marshall tone and when paired with pedals can deliver a lot for the money.
OVERALL OPINION
The Jcm 2000 series has been around the block. Having been the most attainable tube amp to the generation that made pop punk and harcore music a big deal, it's been spotted on a lot of stage and heard in a lot of recordings. It's essentially a working man's solution for getting a useable mid to high gain sound without venturing into the more expensive mesa boogie offerings. When you look at it in this light, the amp is an amazing value. Leave your nitpicks at the door and this could be the perfect amp for you.