Marshall DSL40CR 2-Channel 40-Watt 1x12" Guitar Combo

I wanted to give it the maximum 5 stars. So I give it 6 stars because it truly deserves it. As a lifelong tone hound since I started playing guitar in the early 70s, at age 13. I’m 61 years old now, the same age as President O’Bama. I play a Les Paul and a telecaster through a 1959 Fender Bassman and I just sold my Fender Twin to a family member. I play Jerry Reed style chicken pickin or at least he’s one of my influences. I had to use a compressor to sound right on the twin. Also it’s hard to rock out on a twin without my tube screamer. But then the Twin is so heavy! I replaced everything with the new Marshall DSL40 and it feels half as heavy as the Twin! It chicken picks like a compressed amp should and there’s no need for the tube screamer. It’s much easier to ... MoreI wanted to give it the maximum 5 stars. So I give it 6 stars because it truly deserves it. As a lifelong tone hound since I started playing guitar in the early 70s, at age 13. I’m 61 years old now, the same age as President O’Bama. I play a Les Paul and a telecaster through a 1959 Fender Bassman and I just sold my Fender Twin to a family member. I play Jerry Reed style chicken pickin or at least he’s one of my influences. I had to use a compressor to sound right on the twin. Also it’s hard to rock out on a twin without my tube screamer. But then the Twin is so heavy! I replaced everything with the new Marshall DSL40 and it feels half as heavy as the Twin! It chicken picks like a compressed amp should and there’s no need for the tube screamer. It’s much easier to set up than the heavy Twin, and I don’t have to wrestle with all the cords and batteries and pedals. Much more efficient and it even sounds like the old Fender Bassman. Now I can leave the Bassman in the closet, locked up, and I don’t miss the Twin at all. Marshall and AMS have really done it all with this amp - all the sound of the Bassman, with the volume of the Twin, at half the perceived weight!

A Rock Star (With One Minor Change)!

Overall:This amplifier absolutely rocks! With so many options you can dial in any sound that you want, from crystal clear clean to roaring rhythms and screaming leads. As everyone has already said, the reverb is almost nonexistent. However, the amp, tubes and build are rock solid. BUT... if you really want to blow your mind, swap out the speaker with one that fits your style. My style is classic hard rock so after much research I swapped out the 70 watt Celestion V-Type speaker that it comes with for a 150 watt Eminence Swamp Thang and I swear that it sounds as loud and ballsy as my full-on DSL100 full stack with 1960 cabs. The difference is mind boggling. No fizz, no speaker distortion at all. Just a loud, clear representation of my sound. Obviously the Swamp ... MoreOverall:This amplifier absolutely rocks! With so many options you can dial in any sound that you want, from crystal clear clean to roaring rhythms and screaming leads. As everyone has already said, the reverb is almost nonexistent. However, the amp, tubes and build are rock solid. BUT... if you really want to blow your mind, swap out the speaker with one that fits your style. My style is classic hard rock so after much research I swapped out the 70 watt Celestion V-Type speaker that it comes with for a 150 watt Eminence Swamp Thang and I swear that it sounds as loud and ballsy as my full-on DSL100 full stack with 1960 cabs. The difference is mind boggling. No fizz, no speaker distortion at all. Just a loud, clear representation of my sound. Obviously the Swamp Thang might not be your speaker of choice but do your research and this will be the only amp you will ever need again!

Awesome Marshall sound!! But don't look at it wrong

I bought this for band practice and gigging. It's powerful, and sounds awesome! Classic Marshall sound but for the first time at a price I can afford. However, it's SO cheaply made. I bought this used for through GC but the first one never got shipped because the channels wouldn't work. Then I had a second one that got delivered and at my first practice the channels stopped working. I finally bought a new one and it works, but I had to replace the speaker with a more expensive celestion vintage 30 to not sound harsh and cheap. Finally, after a month of use, the mp3 input jack stopped working. I don't want to have it fixed because I can't do without it for weeks and feel like shipping it around would cause more problems. The gold metal looks cheap and the ... MoreI bought this for band practice and gigging. It's powerful, and sounds awesome! Classic Marshall sound but for the first time at a price I can afford. However, it's SO cheaply made. I bought this used for through GC but the first one never got shipped because the channels wouldn't work. Then I had a second one that got delivered and at my first practice the channels stopped working. I finally bought a new one and it works, but I had to replace the speaker with a more expensive celestion vintage 30 to not sound harsh and cheap. Finally, after a month of use, the mp3 input jack stopped working. I don't want to have it fixed because I can't do without it for weeks and feel like shipping it around would cause more problems. The gold metal looks cheap and the potentiometers feel cheap. My amp before this was as a Blackstar HT5 and the quality blows Marshall away. Only thing is, it sounds killer with the Celestion so if you are willing to put up with a chintzy amp with a horrible track record that sound great once you replace the speaker, this is for you!!!

Good amp some design issues

Sound:With good tubes properly biased, yes.Features:One feature that I absolutely detest is the effects loop button. When it is activated the front of the amp ceases to operate and when deactivated, the front works but the effects loop deactivated. There's no reason for this feature to exist. Substantially limits what the user is able to do. Bad decision in the design.Ease of Use:Just need to fix the owners manual to include specifically how to bias the tubes.Value:At the time I bought it, it was around $800. So at that time, yes.Overall:It took me a while for this amp to grow on me as it sounded like crap out of the box. I replaced the stock speaker with a Celestion V30 and replaced the stock tubes with Ruby EL34STR and a 5751 in the PI as is my ... MoreSound:With good tubes properly biased, yes.Features:One feature that I absolutely detest is the effects loop button. When it is activated the front of the amp ceases to operate and when deactivated, the front works but the effects loop deactivated. There's no reason for this feature to exist. Substantially limits what the user is able to do. Bad decision in the design.Ease of Use:Just need to fix the owners manual to include specifically how to bias the tubes.Value:At the time I bought it, it was around $800. So at that time, yes.Overall:It took me a while for this amp to grow on me as it sounded like crap out of the box. I replaced the stock speaker with a Celestion V30 and replaced the stock tubes with Ruby EL34STR and a 5751 in the PI as is my typical configuration. Still couldn't get an acceptable tone was fuzzy and grindy. Years later, I learned that you can self bias the amp. After reading forums, there is little info on how to bias the amp and nothing in the manual. I discovered the bias was at 31mv so I turned both to 40mv and HOLY SMOKES this was the tone I've been seeking all these years. Eureka, I found it and it's incredible now. Completely unacceptable that Marshall included zero information in the manual regarding this, which is a pretty important feature. Moreover, it's important that I explain how to bias this. When you place the multimeter leads in the ground and point, one point will give a reading and the other red test point will read zero, always. YOU WILL NOT BE USING THIS TEST POUNT AT ALL. Go back to the one that gives the reading and keep it in that test point and adjust the pot to 40mv. Then, keeping the multimeter lead in the same pot, turn the other bias adjust til they both read 40mv. Next onto the effects loop, there is a button to turn the effects loop on and off as you can not use both simultaneously like in other amps. What good is this feature? Worthless and is an absolute thorn in my side as I would like to use the midi to switch between both which is why I bought it, but can't. Now, the amp does sound good now that it's properly biased as well as replacing the stock speaker, but I lost years of good tone due to the lack of instruction in the instruction manual.

Great Amp

I've not owned a Marshall since the late 80's and that was just a practice amp. Overall it's a great amp but like other high-class tube amps, if you have the gain up too much the tone gets really muddy. I use to have a Mesa Dual Rectifier head and that was the same way. I have to keep the gain somewhere around 7 for a metal tone (kept the gain on 7 also on the Mesa). When I had the Mesa I also used a G-Major for effects and a BBE Sonic Maximizer for an awesome tone. I don't have that gear any more but I'm sure that the Maximizer would continue to clean up the tone on this. Just like other high gain amps if you crank it up you'll need a Gate. The clean channel is a bit thin but like other amps the EQ applies to all channels, which is the reason I had a G-Major, you ... MoreI've not owned a Marshall since the late 80's and that was just a practice amp. Overall it's a great amp but like other high-class tube amps, if you have the gain up too much the tone gets really muddy. I use to have a Mesa Dual Rectifier head and that was the same way. I have to keep the gain somewhere around 7 for a metal tone (kept the gain on 7 also on the Mesa). When I had the Mesa I also used a G-Major for effects and a BBE Sonic Maximizer for an awesome tone. I don't have that gear any more but I'm sure that the Maximizer would continue to clean up the tone on this. Just like other high gain amps if you crank it up you'll need a Gate. The clean channel is a bit thin but like other amps the EQ applies to all channels, which is the reason I had a G-Major, you could EQ each channel separate. I've not used the FX loop to see how that works.

Happy!

I got mine on sale and I'm happy with this amp. I would say this is the best amp for the money but the increasing price is slowly taking that away since not everything is going up. With a few pedals this amp can cover a lot of ground. For a combo it will fill your needs but really shines with a closed back cab with better speakers. My only gripe with the dsl line is that each model is more than slightly different. I've had the dsl 20 & dsl 100 and the first thing I noticed about the dsl40 is the presence & resonance knobs aren't as drastic, remember I'm running through the same cab. The resonance knob is particularly the weakest not having as much range as the other dsl's. Even though I love the V-Type speakers for SS & digital amps I don't care for it with the ... MoreI got mine on sale and I'm happy with this amp. I would say this is the best amp for the money but the increasing price is slowly taking that away since not everything is going up. With a few pedals this amp can cover a lot of ground. For a combo it will fill your needs but really shines with a closed back cab with better speakers. My only gripe with the dsl line is that each model is more than slightly different. I've had the dsl 20 & dsl 100 and the first thing I noticed about the dsl40 is the presence & resonance knobs aren't as drastic, remember I'm running through the same cab. The resonance knob is particularly the weakest not having as much range as the other dsl's. Even though I love the V-Type speakers for SS & digital amps I don't care for it with the dsl40. To be honest I don't use this amp all the time. With pricing and quality control issues in todays crazy world the dsl40 has become my safety net. It has everything I need to get the job done and the easy individual biasing add up to a solid workhorse.

I like it a lot

I did notice a lag when switching between A and B, as some people have mentioned. It was annoying but as time went on after a decent amount of use the lag sorta went away, maybe it needs to be broken in idk, but I was bummed about it when it was brand new. I've had it since 2017 if I remember correctly and aside from that issue this amplifier sounds insane. I used to have a JCM 900 1402 100w 2x12 and I definitely like the EL34s compared to the 6L6 and the 4 12AX7 gives it a little more gain which after like 40 mins of playing with warm tubes, it sounds incredible. It'll melt your face. Clean channel isn't too bad but as we all know, if you're interested in a marshall you're probably going for a more aggressive sound, which this does real well. Vintage gain channel ... MoreI did notice a lag when switching between A and B, as some people have mentioned. It was annoying but as time went on after a decent amount of use the lag sorta went away, maybe it needs to be broken in idk, but I was bummed about it when it was brand new. I've had it since 2017 if I remember correctly and aside from that issue this amplifier sounds insane. I used to have a JCM 900 1402 100w 2x12 and I definitely like the EL34s compared to the 6L6 and the 4 12AX7 gives it a little more gain which after like 40 mins of playing with warm tubes, it sounds incredible. It'll melt your face. Clean channel isn't too bad but as we all know, if you're interested in a marshall you're probably going for a more aggressive sound, which this does real well. Vintage gain channel sounds more like a JCM800 and gets heavier with that modern scoop button. Great for classic rock and metal but I'd say it's a good amp all around but if you're going for anything cleaned up, I'd probably try something else for that.

Killer tone, killer features, killer power

Overall:Wow, this thing rocks. Everything from full, chimey cleans to full blown metal gain, Hendrix to Slayer, it does it all. IMHO it maintains the tone whether it's on 20 or 40W, high or low volume. Of course at 40W with high gain/high volume it will blow your windows out, but that's awesome because it sounds amazing and it's sound you can feel. This thing is just incredible from bedroom volume to full blast. I love it. The build quality is great, too, and aside from the typical hiss you get, especially with the gain cranked, it's quiet. I had some weird tube noises at first, but after a few heat cycles that went away completely. The reverb obviously isn't anywhere near Fender territory, but it's not bad at all. I love that it has master volumes for both ... MoreOverall:Wow, this thing rocks. Everything from full, chimey cleans to full blown metal gain, Hendrix to Slayer, it does it all. IMHO it maintains the tone whether it's on 20 or 40W, high or low volume. Of course at 40W with high gain/high volume it will blow your windows out, but that's awesome because it sounds amazing and it's sound you can feel. This thing is just incredible from bedroom volume to full blast. I love it. The build quality is great, too, and aside from the typical hiss you get, especially with the gain cranked, it's quiet. I had some weird tube noises at first, but after a few heat cycles that went away completely. The reverb obviously isn't anywhere near Fender territory, but it's not bad at all. I love that it has master volumes for both channels and the option to hook up to extension speakers, which I did in the form of an Orange PPC-112 with a Celestion Vintage 30 (which is awesome in its own right), and holy crap it sounds amazing alongside the V Type this amp comes with. Celestion really nailed it with both of those speakers.My only complaint is the Softube emulated line out sounded kind of muddy and lifeless, basically the complete opposite of the amp itself. I hooked it up through a Little Dot mkIV headphone amp and listened through a pair of Sennheiser HD6XX and it didn't exactly wow me. Maybe I'll try a set of Grados and use this as an excuse to get a solid state headphone amp and see if that makes a difference.I haven't tried the midi function as frankly that's over my head, or the FX loop because I don't have any pedals.All and all, like others, I'm completely blown away by this thing, figuratively and literally, and if it doesn't satisfy your needs, put a smile on your face, and give you motivation to keep your axe in your hands, I don't know what will.

Marshall sound for a fair price!

With this amp, you are definitely getting the classic fiery Marshall sound from the 60's and 70's. My favorite guitar sound is Clapton in Cream, Bluesbreakers, and the Allman Brothers, and I am now completely able to recreate these legendary tones with this amp together with my Les Paul. It's very easy to use, the eq settings are extremely customizable and versatile. The mid and high ranges can be pushed way further than most would want. It definitely screams and pierces as much as you desire it to. The presence and resonance controls are wonderful. I was playing a peavy that only had post amp tubes, and the 4 preamp tubes on this are a huge step up and give the overdrive so much more shape and quality. The only downside is that the reverb on this amp is very weak. ... MoreWith this amp, you are definitely getting the classic fiery Marshall sound from the 60's and 70's. My favorite guitar sound is Clapton in Cream, Bluesbreakers, and the Allman Brothers, and I am now completely able to recreate these legendary tones with this amp together with my Les Paul. It's very easy to use, the eq settings are extremely customizable and versatile. The mid and high ranges can be pushed way further than most would want. It definitely screams and pierces as much as you desire it to. The presence and resonance controls are wonderful. I was playing a peavy that only had post amp tubes, and the 4 preamp tubes on this are a huge step up and give the overdrive so much more shape and quality. The only downside is that the reverb on this amp is very weak. Even when turned all way up its still a little less than I like to have as my standard reverb, so I have to hook my pedalboard up to achieve the sound I want, even when just sitting on the couch trying to write and practice. It's not a bad quality reverb, its just not quite enough for me.

Price keeps going up!

I like mine, it is my go to for live performance. When I purchased mine the street price was far lower than it is now. The bang for the buck is disappearing now that they are over a grand. Mine blew a tube within minutes upon arrival, simple fix. I got about a year out of the speaker before it blew and had to purchase a replacement. Probably the most bang for the buck right now is a 5150 combo which I also have and it is a beast. Nothing is made in the U.S. or UK any more. Not even Celestion. You would have to go with a hand builder and spend 2-3 times as much. This doesn't mean there are bad amps being imported. I'm happy with both.