All user reviews for the Marshall 1959 JMP Super Lead [1967-1981]

So full head lamps
4 EL34 and 3 ECC83

USE

No need for simple manual one branch and a bitch on

SONORITS

This beast conviends perfectly zic my style (Blues, Pop Rock, Hard-Rock) and a distortion pedal ass Mtal the fans would be pleasantly surprised at last I do not play Mtal but my avis.je used for now with Ibanez SC620 rises Fred / Paf pro and I told you that dry shipments in the ass with a Vox ToneLab but only for the effects (delay , reverb and distortion of what is and my cab 1960 AV) and it's a veritable massacre !!! Test with Les Paul a pot no words I can not think it's really !!! top notch to cry, maigique simply glove !!!

NOTICE GLOBAL

I just recently and I already say I like everything about this tte.Je have not tried many other model I just JCM 2000 TSL 100 for 12 years I personally love and never plant me and with whom I never had any problem apart from the need to change the lamp when it scaffold but nothing else !!! Regarding the price the question that arises not because I changed against a Deluxe Strat and two pedals that I did not use but if you have a head for 1200 mttre that is exlent me a choice but still my opinion.

100 watts all-tube amp, jack connectors (input and output). We're on the basic 2 volumes that correspond to the two inputs, NO MASTER (which is its main asset and default at a time), bass medium treble presence, and that's all! It lacks a master rajoutable by any good craftsman lamps and electronics, and a loop of any effect.

Mine has a line out, but it was not very useful.

UTILIZATION

No manual or so since 1974 I have had the time to lose With 6 buttons on the front, there is no need to leave saint cyr to make it work properly anyway.

The sound is easy to find, hard to refine, as in all great amps. The clean is great for a Marshall, who is not known for it at the base.

SOUNDS

I put him 9 because it is very distinctive, but it's also fascinating.

Given my game mediums are present, but at low volumes they are manageable in the mix (my ears say thank you!)

This is the sound marshall with a Proco rat's ass is biting, it gnacque.

The highs are not the most beautiful in the world, so in the studio I a couple Ampeg vt4 brings crunch and beautiful treble perfectly straight!

I play with a Jazzmaster, the les paul and a strat for clean sounds.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for six months, I also have a jcm 800, which has the same circuit but a master and not the same hp, so its not the same. So I know the marshall.

I love its sound and its ability to adapt to your hardware (hp, guitar, effects), with black shadow sounds modern carefree!

I do not like the volume it may relieve the ears is important, beware! If you ask a master, ask for a post-master stage!

Having two marshall, not the choice I would do, but if it was to be my first purchase, yes I would!

Marshall is one of those amplifier companies as really stood the test of time. They probably easily one of the most recognized amplifier companies in the world. They're mostly used from pop all the way up into metal music. They do have a particular sound and feel that is unlike any other amplifier in the world. If the classic British tone that is inviting in vibrant to say the least. This is one of the all-time best amplifiers that it's ever been built.

UTILIZATION

Features

100W
4 EL34s in the power stage
3 ECC83s in the preamp
True bypass series FX loop
3-band EQ
Presence control



SOUNDS


This amplifier has such a great sound and anyone who has ever been around any type of music knows that the Marshall plexi is just one of the best. This amplifier is basically two channels in one. You have a higher low input for each channel so that gives you a total of four possible guitar to put plugs. Each one of these channels has two volume controls. This is a non-master volume amplifier so in order to get some crank distortion or overdrive you really have to crank the volume out of this amplifier. Of course if you're an apartment or small home this is not easily doable. So therefore you will need any attenuator or some sort of modification to get the amplifier to distort at lower volumes. This can be done quite easily if you push the front of the amplifier with an overdrive pedal such as an Ibanez tube screamer or a boss SD-1 pedal. Or you can or you send it out to get modified by many of the online amplifier modification specialists out there.

OVERALL OPINION


These amplifiers you can find new for right around $2300 or so. That is a decent price for this amplifier and certainly one that might be a little bit out of the budget range of many budgeted musicians. However you can find these all day long used very easily for probably less then half about. I have seen them as low at $100 used so I would go that way on this amp.

This is about as classic as you can get when he comes to the marshall amplification hundred watt amps. This is such a great sounding amplifier and is a great platform for modification and high gain territory. These amplifiers are probably one of the most heavily used amplifiers in all of pop, rock, and metal music. They're extremely versatile in their tone and they cover a wide range of possible musical styles with just basically one channel. There isn't a whole lot of extra features that these older amplifiers have compared to the newer production models. You basically have a presence control knob, bass, middle, travel, and then your volume controls for each set of high and low inputs with the dark and normal input. They are very standard type of amplifier that is a great platform to use effects or modulation or any type of overdrive boosting pedals.

UTILIZATION

No manual is require and probably hard to even track one down from the early 70's However, you don't need one to get this thing up and running. It is as basic as it gets.

SOUNDS


I absolutely love the tone of these amplifiers in a loud aggressive setting. These amps have such a warm and articulation that is extremely comfortable to play and makes your notes of your guitar just jump out. there is a warmth that comes with Marshall amplifiers that is very different from a Mesa boogie or a Fender amplifier which are probably the top three amplifier production companies in the world. I would probably say that Fender is the biggest and then a close second would be Marshall and then a Mesa boogie would be the third most popular heavily used amplifiers. The Marshall has a distinct tone that is very different than most Fender amplifiers but really it takes a lot of its influences from the Fender bassman amplifier. The large majority of the circuit is a reflection of that original amplifier with some new modifications at least for that period of time when Marshall was building these amps. These are great sounding vintage tone amplifiers and they are excelling at giving you a perfect blend of frequencies that compliment most band mixes.

OVERALL OPINION


With the market right now the way it is with people not really purchasing gear as much as they used to be. These amplifiers you can find pretty inexpensively just a few years ago. They are heavily cycled and pretty available if you look throughout many classifieds and especially eBay. If you give enough time you can probably find one that's a really good condition that will fetch a little bit more money but there are a lot of people that are just simply dumping these older amplifiers for newer production amps that have multiple channels with different bells and whistles that are more applicable to today's modern music.

These old Marshall amplifiers have such a crazy tone and a fantastic feel for anyone who is playing pop, rock, or metal music. If you are into the pop and rock tones then you really need a overdrive pedal that can push the front end of the amplifier to get that nice preamp type of distortion. Otherwise these amps are so loud because primarily all the you're getting power tube amp distortion when you really crank the volume. These amplifiers at the time didn't have a load of preamp distortion so what you would have to do is somehow boost the front end of the amplifier or have the amplifier modded buy some guitar amplifier technician to really juice up the tone. Many of your 70s and 80s and even 90s albums that would feature the British tone if they were using a marshall probably had the amplifier modded by someone. And if they didn't they generally would use an overdrive or distortion pedal to really boost the front end of the amplifier.

UTILIZATION

These amps basically feature a simple layout design on the front panel. You have a presence control knob, bass, middle, trebel, and then your volume control knobs. You have your simple high and low inputs and that's pretty much about it. There's not an effects loop on the back because this is before the time that effects loops became more popular and more common. Now today you effects loops on pretty much every single amplifier in production. If it's a new or modern style amplifier you're generally good to see an effects loop whereas many vintage modern amps will sometimes have an effects loop and other times bypass this option.

SOUNDS


The tone of these amplifiers are fantastic and if you have a good overdrive pedal with maybe some effects modulation such as a chorus, delay, or a phaser, then you can get some great singing tone and effects tone that will mix very well in most band situations. There isn't a whole lot this amplifier cannot do when combining it in a nice pop, rock, or even hard rock band setting. These amplifiers are great platforms for getting a general tone that is widely excepted and sounds pretty good in most applications. Overall this is a great sounding amplifier and have a great vintage tone that also can sound very modern depending on how you set the cues and what type of the effects from your floorboard or your rack units can come up with.

OVERALL OPINION


You can find these amplifiers pretty easily and most use classifieds section. It's very common amplifiers and we're heavily circle circulated during its time of production. These are great amps and right now if you can get great deals on used gear because a lot of people are not buying gear these days I would recommend this amplifier to anyone who wants that vintage type tone with an EQ section that is very easy to dial in a good sounding guitar tone with. These are fun amplifiers and just a classic amplifier for most musical applications.

Marshall amps are probably the finest amplifiers for the hard rock and metal type guitar players. They have a great tone and are very addicting to play. These are probably the most iconic and easily recognizable amplifiers and all of music. The only thing to come close is maybe a Fender bass van or twin deluxe but nothing stands the test of time or the hard rock feeling tone as a Marshall amplifier.

UTILIZATION


These amplifiers are very well designed and sound phenomenal we really crank up. Unfortunately the amplifier to find a lot of volume to really find that good sweet spot. Unless you use an attenuator and you really have to crank these things up to get those tubes burning and firing hot to get that sweet British flavored tone.

SOUNDS


The Marshall amplifier sits very well in a band mix. Probably will be because it has a very good mid range voicing due to the EL 34 power tubes. This amplifier sounds really great if you get it modified to get even more again and saturation. The Marshall amplifier in general is a great platform to be modified and built upon. Many guitarists have used these over the last few decades because it has a great sweet warm tone that is very complementing to the band next.

OVERALL OPINION


You could find these guitar amplifiers pretty much anywhere. They're extremely popular but depending on what year you buy it will determine how valuable it can be. There's a lot of boutique amplifier that have copied and redone the Marshall flavor which sometimes sounds a lot better but you're going to pay more in premium prices to get that. These guitar amplifier sound great if you use a good overdrive pedal to throw in front of to get that front end of the amplifier really cooking. So if you have a boss SG one pedal or a tube screamer from Ibanez and you're going to get a really good hard rock tone with that combination.

The Marshall plexi amplifier or the four input amplifier is a classic amplifier and is based upon one of the most regional amplifiers that Marshall created. The four inputs is a standard two channel which is not foot switchable or selectable at all like you would find in most modern amplifiers. If you want to use both of these channels you have to use a jumper cable to go from one of the inputs to the other input and still plugging in your guitar input cable to one of the other inputs. This is a great amplifier for modification is a great amplifier to use in recording or any stage appearances. If one of the most highly sought after martial tones and one of the most brilliantly voice amplifiers in existence.

UTILIZATION


These guitar amps have been some of the most highly used amplifiers that Marshall has ever produced. So many rock guitarist and regular guitarist and just any guitars around if they've ever play to marshal chances are they play one of these for them put Marshall's heads. This is a basic amplifier and sake certainly a good quality amplifier for most musical needs. All the controls are very easy layout and they're pretty self explanatory. You have a presence control it based control and middle control a trouble control a volume control and another volume control and those two void controls will control each set of two inputs high and low.

SOUNDS


The tone of these amplifiers are just classic Marshall. It has a familiar ring to it if you've ever heard any rock album from the 70s on till today. It's a great platform for modification so if you're not getting the tones you want you want a lot more game because in general of these amplifiers don't have very much again unless you really crank volume out of them which is not usable for bedroom playing. So chances are you probably have to get modified in which it'll add a ton more gain a lot more responsiveness to the amplifiers. Today's modifiers have really got a handle on how to make these guitar amplifiers for sound amazing. But if you want to leave cleaning untouched and use a good overdrive pedal to max out your game potential. Depending on what pick ups you have he might need a little bit more game unless game but I generally like to use a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge position of my guitar and a 59 pick up in the next position up my guitar. I find that these pickups really match very well with the voice and tone of this amplifier.

I would say that the speaker of choice when it comes these amplifiers are either a greenback speaker or a GH30 speaker. Does British sounding speakers just match perfectly with this British sounding amplifier. I'm never been a fan of the GT75 speakers or the V 30 speakers or vintage 30 speakers because of the sterile harsh tone in them. I like the way to GT 75 speakers sound with a Marshall JCM 800 amplifier but not with Philip Lexi amplifiers or the four input amplifiers. I really like the sound of those greenbacks with this aunt because he just have a great connection chemistry with that speaker cabinet and amplifier. So depending on if you got it modified or you just using a overdrive paddler distortion pedal a good analog delay pedal will suit your needs very fine we are looking for a good solid solo or lead tone.

OVERALL OPINION


I highly recommend this amplifier to anyone looking to get one of the best marshall tones in existence. This is a great amplifier if you're starting out playing the guitar this probably is to be a little bit more expensive than what you're looking for. I seen them go as low as of $1100 which is a good price for this wonderful guitar amplifier. I highly recommend this to anyone is looking for the ultimate Marshall tones and what's that classic Plexi tone. It's a solid amp for any guitarist out there.

This Marshall amplifier is an established rock 'n roll tone that you've probably heard on countless albums and recordings. This is such an iconic Marshall amplifier with its classic look and remarkable tone. This is the guy and that you wish you could've started out playing if you were lucky enough to own one. It's been a while now since I start first started to pick up the get electric guitar and I continue to always go back to this classic martial tone.

The amplifier sounds extremely good when coupled with a good hard rock guitar such as if Gibson Les Paul or a Gibson SG guitar or even a Fender Stratocaster guitar. It's a great sound that will have you playing for hours on it.

UTILIZATION


The control dials are pretty easy to follow as there is only a presence base, middle, travel, and volume. You have your normal inputs high and low and then you have your darker inputs high and low. I really like to use a jumper cable and connected to channels and run it that way cause I find it gets a better punchier tone that just sounds better to my ears.

When you use a jumper cable to jump the two channels the tone is quite remarkable and get a little bit dirtier and three dimensional to my ears. I hardly would ever play this amplifier with just the one channel and less it was a Modded amplifier of some kind then which defeats the entire purpose of why I'm even talking about the two channels.

SOUNDS

There are two sounds to this amp you have the volume level that is one in under on the volume control and then everything past one is pretty much the same volume level. So as you increase it past one the volume never really changes when you continue to go clockwise all it does is get the power tubes to saturate more. So you have the bedroom volume which is a little bit thinner that is wanted under and then everything else is past one is the same volume. This is a simple circuit and Marshall's never really changed this is pretty much the original specs when it first came out.

I absolutely love the toner this amplifier when you have a good solid distortion paddle in front of it and a guitar that has a humbucker pick up installed. Even with adding a little bit of delay or some course you can get a really good beefy tone added when you use a jumper cable to blend in the darker thumpier low in tones. This guitars and amplifiers and very versatile as far as the modern technology nowadays with multiple channels and everything but this is a classic sound is for those type of people you really love that classic martial sound.

OVERALL OPINION

This amp has obviously been discontinued for a long time but still serve a great price on the used market. I seen him go for right around $11-$1200 for a good price ones and as much is $1800 if people are willing to spend that much money. The great amplifiers if you can get one that's unmolested or on Modded because they're able to retain their resale value a little bit better than a modified one. And if you decide to get a modified these are great starting points for a monotone any hiking tone. If you heard any album from the early 80s all way through the 90s you've probably heard a Modded Marshall is sometime. I highly recommend this guitar amplifier to anyone is looking for that classic Marshall tone or is looking for some Marshall amplifier to get modified. It's an exceptional aunt and with 100 W of power you can really get your speaker cabinet push a lot of loud air.

A head amp legends:
Any lamp for 4 * EL34 power amp and 3 lamps for pramp ..

This head is 100 WTT is the mine in the picture.

APRs have changed the lamp and rgler the bias, and aa power phnomnal grain.
Ms. too powerful for a pice of 15 m without earplugs (so to make cruncher ...

UTILIZATION

RULES is a alone, it carves its litralement sound!
It's not complicated before I took the lead with rglages .. to have a sound "la" Hendrix, I plug the void, and I "sound" I rvais ..

SOUNDS

There are 4 inputs and it is to make ncessaire bnficier to bypass the bass and treble on this type of amp.
One can easily sculpt the sound by adding bass or treble, and if the sound is extremely powerful dj sharp and crystalline, if a sufficient (Ahahahaha) can be added with the presence knob ADEQUATE ..

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for one month and it's ... rve a perfect price, one of 72 original head, and hurts the C. .. more between the baffle which is fine, but everything sounds APRS!
SOUND what!
for all that is funk blues, rock 70 'and the rhythmic red hot chili peppers (that's only I bought Frusciante Registries BSSM head with this ...
Brief

I put 9 for power far too balèze, and warms the winter one piece plexiglass!

So if you're lucky enough to find one, go for it, mine is more original Fully ...

Here we are, after some time I finally have my head full of vintage Marshall amp (everything is original from 1973!). This is the model JMP super lead.

It is a true beauty that this all-tube 100W head, it says much more powerful than a 100W lamp current heads, and this is due to the fact that in the 70 standards have emerged and the electrical power had to be reviewed in the down to some danger with the power failed at the time, the potential difference varied slightly and everything was burning! what happens today!

This head is in reality a power far greater than 100W displayed on the meter (I say this knowingly because I owned for 5 years a whole head lamps 100W Marshall JCM 900, the sound pressure is exerted really different!)

It was then as I said earlier meetings in 1973 to a certain Sylvia, if so! I assure you it has given its name on a small update on the receiver and any checking of the assembly. Everything was done step by step by hand (like the famous editions of the series).

The setting options are very simple: it is first necessary to know that the head has four inputs guitar. Thus we can as hendrix, coupled channels for maximum sound and can then mix them with 2 volume knobs ...
The EQ is quite simple the rest found a presence knob and a treble of (acute) to a medium and one bass.

UTILIZATION

It is of course a very simple configuration (thanks to the qq knobs) but also highly accurate (the change of knobs causes a real change in sound)

In sound it is clear that there has never been better ... the lights EL34 delivers the true original sound Marshall, it's still the same amp as Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townsend or Jimy Page .. . so you can very well see the sounds you can get.
A crunch of madness ... CRUNCH THE MARSHALL ... a heavy distortion or acute (type Heavy metal even if you will) ... and finally a super clear sound by lowering the volume at the guitar (but beware, this operation does not affect the volume almost!)
That's how that splits its microphones is obtained while the sounds you want, and often the neck pickup is clear in its config (volume down so) and the bridge pickup volume is a background for his devastating .. .

Audiofanzine on the question of the manual makes me laugh ... if you can find a manual of over 33 years call me but it's more than keeping qu'épique a manual for more than three decades!

SOUNDS

So here it is certain that extreme metal is a bit inappropriate (though with a good pedal ... burst up even more than any amp !!!). But the true vein of this amp is well on the rock (the rock n roll to punk through the current pop rock, glam rock, and rock in general 60 to 80 years)
Of course I use the winning combination of Jimy page / Angus Young / Slash or of Jimi Hendrix. This is how I usually use either a Les Paul Custom 1957 reissue of the custom shop, a vintage Gibson Flying V. The sound is just perfect (and believe me I am demanding!)
My favorite sound is of course the crunch and with all possible settings!

OVERALL OPINION

Of course, this amp is brand new for me but I live to play on the Marshall stack lamp and I confess to have never found better than this series of amp (I must also admit that I love Jmp series also master volume and the series JCM 800 MKII)

It is also understood that I have tried many other amps that time before finding my true happiness ...
Buy an amp like this is an investment (I paid all the same € 1500) but it should be noted that this amp was in mint condition (new electronic state and outside in perfect condition) and it is an issue special (it has indeed something quite visible in the photo lines of white color, not golden, it is because it was specially commissioned by an artist Londoner for these bands are matched to those of the speakers (who were always white) ...

In summary ... amp perfect for a lot of style and with a unique sound!

jmp mk2 of 76 said "plexi" for short.
amp with 4 EL34 lamps full tube amp doctor for power and in 3lampes Pramper (1sovtek, 1Eh and a tad).
2 speaker out, no effects loop.
no master volume single channel is a view that has the old so Hauris volume!
buttons in its facade presence/bass/midle/treble/volume1/volume2 and 4 between which can be bridged.

no effect integrates, 100 wath is built like a tank in 30 years of service had to change 3 condos.

for the time and the solidity I would put 10, but the remaining objective is to have no loop or master volume would drop na note I shall therefore 8

UTILIZATION

Nothing more simple, you branch and the sound is there, not 50 y button but the possibility of hanging wall channels allows fine alternative, the manual? uh I think about 30 years he lost t!

SOUNDS

I play rock, and sometimes has eye on the metal. I get sounds very bonet it is plugged into a marshall full stack of 76 also 1960ax
I played with a distortion pedal (dual balckstar ht) on a crunch sound of the amp and sends STRID!! can play both the ac / dc metallica note that as the clean sound is very good.

I play this amp with a Gibson Explorer, and that the two are very good husband. amp ragit very strong that he has the guitar glue I see the difference between all the scratches that I glue on the bottom, it is not clear that the modlisation 'm ringing all the same.

the amp has a lot of dynamic and beautifully ragis your calf to play it simple you doing on the 8 and by lowering the volulme a bit of guitar strings or effleuran you sound clear.

for those who want one, you can buy a direct attnuateur volume, and because I succeded costaut has a grill our db killer with this gear, it's simple it'll have a remake xpr to my stack that more cash!

I j'editerasi when my REU carl martin chorus and my tc electronics nova dynamic.

are assimilated to rock it I put 10 because he is doing for a!

OVERALL OPINION

I've had 2 years

most is that it is trsractif the fewer the imposibilit to play a low volume or when you have to play a 0

I purchased a pot shot I have not tried the amp I've tried c mesa, peavey, randall, vox, orange etc. ...

changed against a PS3, The report is EXCELLENT quality made for a full stack of legends <img class="smiley" src="https://fr.audiofanzine.com/images/audiofanzine/interface/smileys/icon_wink.gif" alt="wink" />

for those who play rock, blues etc. ... my amp is the ultimate got this amp if you try bah is an opportunity but hard to find a full origin and your very good as mine or I suggest you do as gratteu the other group, ceriatone is not CHRE and it's still done better than mine and sounds like is more for the sick of the pedal you can order with a loop effect and master volume <img class="smiley" src="https://fr.audiofanzine.com/images/audiofanzine/interface/smileys/icon_mrgreen.gif" alt="mrgreen" />

It's always difficult to evaluate an old marshall, as this exercise is the large gap. Yet I still rubs me.

Before starting this test, I want to emphasize however that the head was mode Tube Thomsen, a renowned German préaprateur. No changes to my model are:

- 4th lamp for more preamp gain
- Electronic OUR refresh, like new welds
- Effects loop
- Master volume

In addition to the basic specs:

- Presence control, gain, bass, mid, treble
- Impedance selector
- Voltage selector oO

The dual input channel no longer exists on my head. I just still high and a low input of the first channel.

----------

Yes, it makes the edit. What saves everything on this head is the addition of the master volume that really saves this head. But anyway, it should be roaring if we want a good thick sound. No id, no effects loop series, no boost, no second channel, no footswitch.

UTILIZATION

Of course, that said, no frills, also said some facility in the settings. Settings liabilities react weakly but react. The master provides a true ease of use for the ears. But it lacks overall, a little flexibility of use. Will be seen in "sound". Where other amps, arrive to spit a myriad of sounds with a minimum of buttons, the marshall is bonded to a field of use and its sound. To buy knowingly.

SOUNDS

SOUND. But what a sound.

it might be the only comment. But that perfectly describes this amp. The head is completely stuck to his era ACDC "Hells Bells". If you are aware, this is perfect. You can influence the brightness a bit, a little envelope of low, but the sound is still there.

I find the clean channel 1 for a magnificent multitude of purposes. Assisted, among others, by the very nice depth and pitch. A natural reverberation enrich the sound in the treble. He does not crunch as easily as channel 2 and so much the better.

In absolute terms, and on all channels, the guitars pickups low earnings "construction in the old" give great results on it. With a White Falcon, Fender Start and my LP (paf59 rise) is a killer categorized. The sound is perfectly defined, very clean with the acidity and the tendency to moan when you go up the gain. Note that adding a fourth lamp preamp seems to me as an unnecessary luxury. Both the head really shows his best character in the half-power crunch.

Channel two, offers a break up a little faster and a more pervasive presence of a tic. It is not what we may call "clean". But the definition of game is transcribed, even if in our days, and Larry Two other rock are even more extremist in this genre. We say that for old gear than forty years, it was admirable for its time.

Are still talking about the dynamics, which is excellent on this amp. Every little noise of the instrument and immediately relayed to the head with tremendous efficiency. Down slightly the volume of the instrument, or change his attack immediately calm the beast. This will appeal to technicians.

The receiver also gets along well with overdrive, distortion and modulation effects of all kinds.

OVERALL OPINION

I use this head for a while and yes, I almost tried everything. As a result, my notes seem harsh, but do not be fooled. I would put a 10/10, but the flexibility of the equipment prohibits me. It was, however, for 650 euros a head really perfect opportunity for anyone who wants an amp british seriously. A special adviser to the fans of AC & DC.

This is what most rock amplifiers were derived from, and many of your favorite classic rock tones were recorded using amps very similar to this one. 100 watt All tube amp. 4 EL34s and three 12ax7s, with a solid state rectifier. One channel at a time, but four inputs. Two volumes, bass, mid, treble, presence controls. polarity, standby, and on switch. No effects loop. No footswitchable channels or boosts. Hand built tube amp, non PCB construction. Rated this a 7 because someone used to a modern amp will likely be unhappy with this amp because of it's limited feature list.

UTILIZATION

If you can turn the amp up very loud, it's possible to get a nice overdrive tone. This will not get you modern levels of gain. Think Thin Lizzy, not Metallica. Most people use a boost pedal in the front end, have these amps modified for more gain, or use an attenuation device so that you can turn the volume up on the amp but the heard level stays the same. There's not a lot to learn about setting these amps up - plug it in and turn it up. EQ works ok, but newer amps have a greater range of tone controls. I gave this an 8 as many users may not have the extra gear needed (attenuator, overdrive/boost pedal) to really make the amp grind, or may not be able to turn it up loud enough to get the sonic goods. This is NOT a bedroom amp!

SOUNDS

Tone wise, this amp is very pure and every nuance of your playing, good or bad, will be showcased. Vintage Marshalls from the 60s and early 70s are THE tone of classic rock, and are difficult to play because of how clean/undistorted they are compared to modern amps. However, they cut like a knife through a mix, and reward the user with expressive tone. I've used dozens of different guitars through my '72, from Les Pauls to Tom Andersons to Fender strats, teles, Vintage Jacksons, newer Charvels, etc... and every guitar, even the same model, sound different through this amp Even when you boost it with a pedal for a little more gain or use a attenuator, it maintains the character of what guitar you are playing, and even subtle things like where you are picking along the string length, how hard, and angle. Most newer amps homogenize your tone, and make several guitars sound the same. Not this amp.

OVERALL OPINION

I love the fact that the amp takes what I put into it and blasts it back out, toneful and nuanced. I didn't like the lack of things that most modern gigging guitarists need - at least two channels and an fx loop... but it sounds so good and pure that you don't miss it as much. Run a pedal in the front or a hotplate for attenuation, and roll your guitar volume down for cleanish tones.

Almost 40 years after this amp was built, and there are many amp companies that try to make clones... and even Marshall tries to state in much of their product literature how their new amps sound like the old ones. Why get a copy when you can buy the real thing?

Value for the money used is great - find one in good shape reasonably unmodified and you could even make a profit when you resell. I didn't try other amps when purchasing this, when I bought it, it was the only one like it in the music store. It's not often that you find one '72 super lead marshall, let alone a wide selection. It's so different than modern marshalls that there isn't really a comparison. And yes, I'd buy it again.

The Marshall Super Lead 1972 is a tube based guitar amp head that delivers 100 watts of power. It has four 1/4 inch inputs in the front as well as a speaker output in the back to send this amp to a cabinet. It has switches for both power and stand by.

UTILIZATION

Using the Marshall Super Lead 1972 guitar amp head is a pretty easy thing to do if you have any previous experience with guitar amps, and if you are using or looking at this amp you probably do. It has pretty basic parameters including volume and gain knobs as well as three EQ knobs. Getting a good sound is pretty easy to do considering that the all the tone control you could want is there and the inherent tone is pretty awesome. I have never seen the manual for the Marshall Super Lead 1972 so I can't speak to how helpful it is, but the amp is easy to use and you really don't need one if you don't already have it.

SOUNDS

Both the overdriven and clean tones on the Marshall Super Lead 1972 are noteworthy and truly sound great. I use this amp mostly with either a Fender Strat or Gibson SG for recording and have found this to be a great set up for recording heavy rock and thick distortion guitar parts. While I've only used this amp for recording, it is definitely suitable for any type of use whether you want to use it for recording or for on the stage. The Marshall Super Lead 1972 is simply an awesome sounding amp for rock music.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using the Marshall Super Lead 1972 guitar amp for about four years and it is one of the coolest sounding Marshall amps that I have used, not to mention the awesome classic look it has. Everything about this amp is great - it has an awesome tone and the perfect amount of parameters so you have total control over your sound. These are somewhat hard to come by these days, but if you can find one used they vary in price. If you can find a good deal on one and are looking for a great guitar amp head for playing thick lead and rhythm distorted parts, the Marshall Super Lead 1972 is a great option.