Mojave Ampworks impressed us last year with its Peacemaker, a powerhouse of an amp head running EL34s in its power section and providing tones that aim to please a range of rock guitarists. With its 100 watts of output, the Peacemaker was designed for, and best used in, a full-band environment, and preferably those with loud drummers – otherwise consider an attenuator a "must have" device when wanting to get the most out of the Peacemaker.
Continue reading
Metropoulos Amplification ’68 12000-Series Plexi 100 Watt head
Introduction
"I want an amp that can nail the early Van Halen tone 100% but I don’t have $5,000+ (at the time of this writing – 11/05) for an original Marshall ’67-’68 era plexi." This is what many of you have written to us and asked for in the past. "What should I use?"
Some of you have even had more demanding requirements for your amplifier citing that in addition to the Van Halen tone, you ALSO wanted the ability for the amp to respond and produce tones as diverse as Cream, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and AC/DC, among others.
Continue reading
Celestion Heritage Series G12M and G12H “Greenbacks”
Chances are if you ask a player who uses vintage Marshall amplifiers to name their favorite speaker, they’ll either call out the G12M or G12H “Pre-Rola Greenback” speaker. These two speakers literally defined the sound of rock since the 1960’s and have continued to do so ever since.
Continue reading
Mercury Magnetics Epiphone Valve Junior Mod
The Epiphone Valve Junior is a small 5W amp head that is first most noteworthy because it is, well, cheap. Especially considering it is a tube amplifier, selling for $129 is frankly a bargain. Because of its simplicity and price, it has had a bit of an underground following being a pure-tube circuit with a single 12AX7 in the preamp stage and an EL84 as its output tube running Class A. The amp has 4,8, and 16 ohm output jacks to enable a wide use of cabinets.
Continue reading
Metropoulos JTM45 Kit Review
"MetroAmp.com is your resource for everything you need for repairing, restoring or modifying your vintage (or not so vintage) Marshall." This is the claim made by George Metropoulos at Metropoulos Amplification. In my case, I was in search of a replica point-to-point circuit board for my Marshall JTM-45 reissue. Did MetroAmp.com deliver? Not only did MetroAmp.com deliver; they gave me the product and information to help complete my quest for a vintage Marshall JTM-45.
Continue reading
All About Ohms
Electrical resistance within speakers, amplifiers, as well as all basic electrical connections, is expressed in ohms, named after George Simon Ohm, a German physicist. While we needn’t go into the background of him and his achievements, or even the heavy details about resistance, ohms, or impedance, this is an area that is often confusing to people. The following is a primer all about ohms and how it relates to speakers and amplifiers. My hope is that very simply, any confusion on the topic will be eliminated.
Continue reading
100 Watt Marshall Super Lead
The 100 Watt Marshall Super Lead was THE amp that started it all for the greatest rock and roll tones achieved – or I should say, the greatest LOUD rock and roll tones of the 60’s. Yes, the Vox AC 30, Fender Bassman, and even the Marshall JTM 45 came well before Marshall’s famous 100-watter, but it was the Super Lead that upped the ante for high-powered rock performances and really is the standard by which all rock guitar tone is judged. With generations of guitar greats such as Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Edward Van Halen, and countless others all using the Super Lead with stacks of 4 x 12 cabinets, there is no wonder why this amplifier is legendary; especially the very earliest models, known as the "plexi" heads.
Continue reading
The Hiwatt Custom 100 DR103
When Marshall amplifiers became wildly popular on the music scene in the mid 60’s, clone and copy makers soon followed with their own versions of the famous Marshall Super Lead design. It needs to be noted that Hiwatt was NOT one of these companies. In fact, what may appear at first as a simple variation and copy on the Marshall SuperLead in what was the form of the Hiwatt Custom 100 DR103 head, further examination quickly reveals that the design itself was actually far from it.
Continue reading
The Marshall Shopper’s Guide Part 2: Metal Panel JMP to the JCM 2000
We love our Marshall amps! The purpose of this article is to recognize the various changes in the amplifiers from the “metal panel” era of the JMPs from to the JCM 2000 series so that the potential buyer can be better educated. Some deliver the goods better than others and I’ve owned many Marshall amps over the years and had to learn the hard way after plenty of dollars spent. Ultimately though — use your own ears and compare. Enjoy the next installment of our Marshall Shopper’s Guide.
Continue reading
The Marshall Shopper’s Guide Part 1: Marshall Plexi Era
One of the most common questions we get here is, “What kind of Marshall amp should I buy?” We get countless questions not only about what type to get, but also questions about specific vintage vs. newer models, higher powered vs. lower powered models, types of speakers and how do they all sound, etc.
Continue reading