Marshall JCM-2000 DSL 401

I bought this one used in 2009, but probably it was built back in 2003-2004.
I play classic rock, hard rock and a bit of metal (Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eric Clapton, Guns n' Roses, Metallica, Muse).

It has 2 channels, Clean and OD, then OD is splitted in OD1 and OD2 that has a 20dB boost. Clean has Gain, Treble, Middle, Bass controls; OD has Gain, Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass controls. There's a Master Volume knob, Accutronic 2-springs Reverb and parallel FX loop mix. Comes with a 2 switch footswitch to select Clean/OD and OD1/OD2 channels.
Master power switch to warm up tubes and secondary switch to cut signal.
In the back it has power cord, two fuses, two plug speakers output with a switch between 16ohms and 8ohms, Digital out, Send/Return FX Loop, Reverb Footswitch (not provided, fits Marshall PED801) and Channel Footswitch.
Comes with a Celestion 100W 12" 16ohms Speaker.

The back is closed with wood plates, and it has a little metal net for ventilation where you can see the glowing tubes inside.

Comes 4 12AX7 pre-amp tubes and 4 EL84 power tubes, all with Marshall writed on it.

It's easy to open and to reach inner components.
I never never never used the FX Loop: I plug my FXs directly in the main input.

I have bought the additional pedal switch to control reverb, I wished it had it from the beginning, maybe a 3-switch pedal to control everything.

I use it mainly at home, with master volume barely reaching 5 out of 10. Never gigged with it.

I use it mainly with a '94 Gibson Les Paul Standard and a '91 Fender Prodigy. My FX chain is an Ibanez modified TS-9 Tube Screamer, a Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q and a Boss ME-50 Multi Effect. I use the Boss for heavy distortion, chorus and delay, and tubescreamer and wah for overdriven wah sound.

In most cases, from the day I bought this amp, my whole FX chain fell silent and switched off. The sound from the 3 channels il so spectacular, so brown, so hot and warm that I need nothing else.

Clean channel is simply incredible with the Gibson, especially in the first half of the Gain knob. Turning the Middle knob, you can travel to full '50 vintage sound (at 0), to warm acoustic sound (at 7-8). If you want to use this channel at its best, leave the bass knob at the final quarter. Of course, like all Marshall tube amps, it lacks of screaming high tone sound, and the treble knob is way less capable of hights than cheaper solid state amps. At full Gain, there's a light distortion using the Gibson at high volumes, mainly due to humbucking output signal; with the Fender single coils the distortion is less audible.

Overdriven channel is very subtle: in OD1 and low Gain, you can bring to life a high acoustic overdriven sound, full and coloured (something like AC/DC in "You shook me all night long" or Dire Straits in "money for nothing"). At full Gain you get a lot of harmonics for many pure rock sounds (Rolling Stones but some other rock classics too). OD2, that I play at high Gain, has some incredible powerful tones for G n' R and AC/DC but even Sex Pistols, Kiss and so on.

As I stated, you cannot bring a decent heavy metal sound out of the OD2word channel, so you need a pedal for it.
For now, the amp is noiseless in all conditions. If you go really near the amp, you can ear a low humming sound, but only if you stay perfectly silent.

It never broke down. This thing is very heavy and sturdy. I always let it warm up and I try not to move it while it's hot.
And it gets really hot playing! After one hour or two the front panel is so hot that you can hardly touch it for a second or two. I've read that someone put a fan in the back to vent the hot air outside, but I'm not willing to do that for now.
I now I will change the tubes and I will try to adjust the bias by myself. I've read some instructions on the web (on the Marshall site too) and I found it very easy to disassemble: only a couple of screws.

I've played for nearly 20 years, sometimes in a band, now only at home with friends, but this is my first tube amp. Passing from Marshall solid state to tube is worth the price, always. This Amp is for pure rock lovers: no digital effects built in, no heavy distortion, pure brown vintage sound. And an affordable price. Trying a lot of amps, listening at the ones my friends own (Vox AC30, Hughes & Kettner Edition Blue, Fender too), I think this one is perfect for me. OK, if you want high tone clean sound, this one isn't for you and so if you want heavy distorted metal sound. But for warm tones, it's the best combo amp you can buy.
In the range of combo tube amps for <1000euros, I think it's the best choice.
Never gigged with it, but I think it's ok for a club or a small venue.
There's nothing that really disappoints me: if I have to say, it can come out of the box with a reverb switch pedal, and maybe it becomes too hot while you play; but all we are talking about is the quest for killer tone, isn't it?

I bought this one used in 2009, but probably it was built back in 2003-2004.
I play classic rock, hard rock and a bit of metal (Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eric Clapton, Guns n' Roses, Metallica, Muse).

It has 2 channels, Clean and OD, then OD is splitted in OD1 and OD2 that has a 20dB boost. Clean has Gain, Treble, Middle, Bass controls; OD has Gain, Volume, Treble, Middle, Bass controls. There's a Master Volume knob, Accutronic 2-springs Reverb and parallel FX loop mix. Comes with a 2 switch footswitch to select Clean/OD and OD1/OD2 channels.
Master power switch to warm up tubes and secondary switch to cut signal.
In the back it has power cord, two fuses, two plug speakers output with a switch between 16ohms and 8ohms, Digital out, Send/Return FX Loop, Reverb Footswitch (not provided, fits Marshall PED801) and Channel Footswitch.
Comes with a Celestion 100W 12" 16ohms Speaker.

The back is closed with wood plates, and it has a little metal net for ventilation where you can see the glowing tubes inside.

Comes 4 12AX7 pre-amp tubes and 4 EL84 power tubes, all with Marshall writed on it.

It's easy to open and to reach inner components.
I never never never used the FX Loop: I plug my FXs directly in the main input.

I have bought the additional pedal switch to control reverb, I wished it had it from the beginning, maybe a 3-switch pedal to control everything.

I use it mainly at home, with master volume barely reaching 5 out of 10. Never gigged with it.

I use it mainly with a '94 Gibson Les Paul Standard and a '91 Fender Prodigy. My FX chain is an Ibanez modified TS-9 Tube Screamer, a Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q and a Boss ME-50 Multi Effect. I use the Boss for heavy distortion, chorus and delay, and tubescreamer and wah for overdriven wah sound.

In most cases, from the day I bought this amp, my whole FX chain fell silent and switched off. The sound from the 3 channels il so spectacular, so brown, so hot and warm that I need nothing else.

Clean channel is simply incredible with the Gibson, especially in the first half of the Gain knob. Turning the Middle knob, you can travel to full '50 vintage sound (at 0), to warm acoustic sound (at 7-8). If you want to use this channel at its best, leave the bass knob at the final quarter. Of course, like all Marshall tube amps, it lacks of screaming high tone sound, and the treble knob is way less capable of hights than cheaper solid state amps. At full Gain, there's a light distortion using the Gibson at high volumes, mainly due to humbucking output signal; with the Fender single coils the distortion is less audible.

Overdriven channel is very subtle: in OD1 and low Gain, you can bring to life a high acoustic overdriven sound, full and coloured (something like AC/DC in "You shook me all night long" or Dire Straits in "money for nothing"). At full Gain you get a lot of harmonics for many pure rock sounds (Rolling Stones but some other rock classics too). OD2, that I play at high Gain, has some incredible powerful tones for G n' R and AC/DC but even Sex Pistols, Kiss and so on.

As I stated, you cannot bring a decent heavy metal sound out of the OD2word channel, so you need a pedal for it.
For now, the amp is noiseless in all conditions. If you go really near the amp, you can ear a low humming sound, but only if you stay perfectly silent.

It never broke down. This thing is very heavy and sturdy. I always let it warm up and I try not to move it while it's hot.
And it gets really hot playing! After one hour or two the front panel is so hot that you can hardly touch it for a second or two. I've read that someone put a fan in the back to vent the hot air outside, but I'm not willing to do that for now.
I now I will change the tubes and I will try to adjust the bias by myself. I've read some instructions on the web (on the Marshall site too) and I found it very easy to disassemble: only a couple of screws.

I've played for nearly 20 years, sometimes in a band, now only at home with friends, but this is my first tube amp. Passing from Marshall solid state to tube is worth the price, always. This Amp is for pure rock lovers: no digital effects built in, no heavy distortion, pure brown vintage sound. And an affordable price. Trying a lot of amps, listening at the ones my friends own (Vox AC30, Hughes & Kettner Edition Blue, Fender too), I think this one is perfect for me. OK, if you want high tone clean sound, this one isn't for you and so if you want heavy distorted metal sound. But for warm tones, it's the best combo amp you can buy.
In the range of combo tube amps for <1000euros, I think it's the best choice.
Never gigged with it, but I think it's ok for a club or a small venue.
There's nothing that really disappoints me: if I have to say, it can come out of the box with a reverb switch pedal, and maybe it becomes too hot while you play; but all we are talking about is the quest for killer tone, isn't it?

Just got this amp for $420. I'm a songwriter who plays originals in different styles, but all the stuff is kind of edgy and garagey. I need a good clean sound, a good semi-gainy, airy rhythm distortion, a high gain punk, thrashy rhythm sound, and a nasty high-gain metallish lead sound. I can get all these sounds with the aid of a Tube works Overdrive, vintage DOD Overdrive, and a Milkbox conpressor. So, I have to say this amp is pretty versatile.

Dig, sometimes I get the impression that folks want to turn on the freakin' amp, crank it up and get the perfect tone. Forget it! That's not gonna happen. Even if you spend $4000 bucks. You've got to know what you want in your head and suffer to get it. This amp has the goods to allow you to do that. If you don't like that growly, ballsy Marshall tone to begin with don't buy this. If that's the tone you basically want, you can work with this amp to produce a myriad of blissful tones from nasty metal stuff to sweet, clean honey. But use your noodle. Don't give up, be fierce in your desire to get the tone you want, and I think you'll be rewarded.

Just got it, so I don't know, but I will be using a fan behind it, due to the overheating issue I've read about.

I've been a rock n roll freak for about 45 years, starting off with the drums, but committing seriously to the guitar about 10 years ago.
I've been in several bands, but only one as a guitarist. This is my first Marshall tube amp. I've been working with an AVT 150 for six years and I like it alot. I think you can't get a better solid state, but it ain't the tube sound. I had a Fender DeVille with 4 10s, but the overdrive was a bad joke and I couldn't get enough gain without horrendous feedback. I play an Ibanez RG450DX which isn't a super ballsey guitar and the Marshall gives it some nougies. To me, the thing I love, is that I didn't pay a hell of a lot and I got the great basic Marshall tube sound with three channels and reverb. From there, I feel I can do just about anything and it's all gonna have that great Marshall tube sound. The first night I got this thing I only got three hours of sleep, cause I spent the whole night finding the sounds I needed. And I found them. Now it's daily tube bliss. Ya know, one final thing, for a single speaker amp, this thing has amazing presence and it's loud as crap. Getting all this blissful sonic s--t for $400 bucks--man, somebody up there likes me!

Pretty versatile but not as many features as a lot of those all-in-one copy cat amps out there that want to cram in as many features as possible while keeping the costs down. unfortunately those amps usually end up sounding like crap. The 401 is a basic 2 channel amp with a footswitchable boost for the od channel. If you want fancy effects, there is an effects loop which allows you to blend it in via the front controlls. The good thing about this is that you can upgrade your effects later withoug swapping out the whole amp. It does however have a built in spring reverb which I find is more than enough for every day use. What is it missing? A lead boost for the clean.

The clean is prestine. With the gain at about half you get just a touch of drive which is where most solid state amps fail. Most pedals and solid state amps fail miserably when you are tying to get a clean with a slight drive and end up sounding harsh with a "static" like ticking sound generating the od. This usually leaves me wanting it either clean, or with enough drive to mask the overly digital clipping. The DSL Clean has no such problem and gives you smooth drive that is barely noticable.

The od is another story. As said by others here, its a little sterile and dead in comparison and only starts to shine when you set the master volume well over half way. A change in seaker did help (Celestion Vintage Neo) but it was a change in valves that did the most. All in all, i'm still not happy with the overdrive but it IS good enough for live use as well as rehearsals and sounds a lot better than a lot of others I have tried. Then again, I could be just fussy because I am comparing it to the clean channel? ;)

No problems yet but I have a lot of marshall gear and none of it seems to give me trouble. It DOES get very hot, to the point where you cant touch the metal front face/panel for more than a few seconds but its a 2001 model and still going strong.

Took my jtm45's to the Milton Keynes head office for a service and the guys there are great.

Its a great amp for rehearsals and live shows. Its small yet has enough power and good tone but I honestly cant recommend anyone to spend well over ??500 for new one. Look for a deal second hand or on ebay and you will not be disappointed.

Mine was made in 1998, which is one of the earliest versions of the this amp. I personally feel the first couple yr. models definitely are voiced a little different than the later ones (not saying it's bad, it's just different). I purchased it used in Austin, where I live.

mine is the 100 watt head version (Modded). At the store I bought it @, I had the amp tech drop a Massive stand-up output transformer into the amp plus 6550 power tubes. Needless to say, this beefed up the sound considerably. The clean channel doesn't wimp out like it would before, and the Red channel is more ballsy, with more warmth and sustain.
I play Power Blues/Rock n Roll. i.e. Johnny Winter, Albert Collins, Hendrix, DB II, Stones.

This amp is versatile, one just needs to plug in different guitars, for what you like. I don't know what it sounds like with a heavy metal guitar w/ EMG's sooo...you'll have to check that out...

It has 2 channels, I always leave the 'clean' on the crunch setting put the gain @ about 12 o'clock (that's still pretty clean sounding). the Red channel is usually set @ 2-3 o'clock on the gain 1 setting. If I want 'more' I hit the dip switch for gain setting 2.

Here's where I cheat a little...On top of having the amp set for a pretty clean sound (blues power, baby) I um....ahem, run it through a 2004 Boogie cabinet loaded with 70 watt Vintage 30's. yes I know 70 watts?? huh? they made those for a little bit, they're clearer sounding. Also I use a very heavy gauge dual copper speaker wire to connect the amp to the cabinet! yes! Go audiophile, Go!! Also, in my pedal setup I use an overdrive pedal to push the red channel for leads and such. Just bought the Xotic AC Booster pedal, this sounds REALLY good on the Red channel, a bit of a compromise on the clean channel though.
Don't use the effects loop, yuck!
Love the reverb. I do wish the amp wouldn't fizz out. Occasionally, I hear it. On the red channel it will fluff balls, as opposed to punch balls.

With the upgraded output Xformer and the 6550 tubes, it had plenty o' power. I tour around regionally, and play clubs in my hometown.

I play 3 strats out live. one is a custom shop w/god only knows what pups those are. the other is a '68 reverse white strat (yea, I know dorky) but a damn good guitar it can do some tonal things that the custom shop can't. the 3rd is set up with really high action for slide. 58-13 gauge. tuned to Eb. this combo with this amp is very musical.

The only time I've ever really wrestled with the amp is @ one club in particular. They have the stage power setup so that when the stage cans light up they suck almost all the power coming out of the wall. 120 v goes down to about 90v. NOT good for the Xformer!! and no, this does make one achieve 'Brown Sound' Nirvana, I'll take the shotgun please!

This amp, when running smoothly can go from Winter to Hendrix, to ACDC to Keef, to modern day shred, you just need to be willing to turn knobs. oh yeah, do not use JJ preamp tubes in this amp, sounds super brittle!! Try Groove tube preamp. I don't know what kind of Power Tubes are in this amp, I think they're Svetlanas...not too sure.

I wouldn't call the distortion brutal, with the upgrades it saturates more, and punches and sings. The clean channel clips @ higher volumes. For instance, if you have 2 cabinets plug this amp into both side by side, put the clean on almost noon and the Red channel on 1 o'clock. This is when the amp sounds best!

It is a dependable amp, but I have to replace the power tubes every 6 months due to gigging. That's normal, if that didn't happen I'm not playing enough. I don't own a backup. I need one though.

The amp did blow through the tubes in 2 months after I had the modification done. This was to be expected. Think of it as an organ transplant. It takes a little time for things to settle down.

All in all its a good amp, I do wish Marshall would stop skimping on the internal components that lie on the PC board. ex: Right out of the box the new 5150 III has more power and clarity because it's built with better components. Whereas with this model Marshall I had to shell out some cash to get it running right. Marshall should reconsider some things and stop making that silly Vintage/Modern, digital reverb, Really??

Umm...I think we all know how soon Marshall gets back to your emails....like NEVER!!!

I've been playing for 14 yrs. Professionally for 8. If it were stolen or lost of broke beyond repair. I would take that as the high sign from G_d that its time to move onto a different amp all together.

I think suits me better than a Boogie head, especially the newer ones. I don't like the new 3 channel ones...

The DSL suites me better than the TSL. The TSL I found, compresses too much, and doesn't sing.

I wish this amp was better made, less B.S. more solidity!

I rate it an 8 because i've dorked with the original amp like i stated previously.

Not sure what year
64W Two Channel
Tube
Great for Blues, Rock, Heavy Metal and Clean as well.

I play either a Washburn N4 or a Strat with half stacks and a hotrails on the bridge. Boss Compressor, Boss Ds-1, Boss Metal Zone and Boss Noise Gate in that order between the guitar and the front of the amp. I do not use stomp boxes thru the effects loop because the effects loop is designed for racks.

I get anywhere from single coil Texas Blues tone to Heavy Metal. The clean channel is beautifull. I sometimes use the compressor sustainer to make it just a little fuller with single coils. For Humbuckers... no need.

The gain channels are great, although I like the OD1 just pushed a little further with my Boss DS1 and Compressor during solos. If I want a lot of gain, I use the clean channel with the Metal Zone engaged.

It is just a Fat Tone Machine. I went with the 40Watt heat, since I do not play arenas and I prefer to have less watts to get break up from the tubes at lower volumes.

It has been rock solid, but I treat it with respect.

Have not had to use them, but I once spoke to Mr. Marshall at the NAM show and he's a super nice guy.

The amp is great... no other way to explain it. I believe the OD2 gain level could be a little less than some people would expect, but the amp reacts great to my pedals... which I do not us many off. The clean channel is fantastic. Not what you would expect from the stereotipicall Marshall sound.

I have been playing for 26 years. And for a long time, I tried to emulate the Marshall sound with all kinds of gadgets.. but could never get the real tone I wanted. I finally broke down... got a Marshall... and I have only played Marshalls since. I am not saying that it is the best Amp in the world, just the one I like best. I use a JCM2000 TSL60 with a 1960A cab for larger situations, and it has a bit different voicing, a little deeper and chunkier... great as well, and you can use the same pedals without really changing settings between both amps.

2002 DSL 401
2.5 Channels

Post Phase Inverter Master Volume (Huge feature for those who intend to use it in very small venues or even at home)

I wish the Parallel FX loop could go from 0:1 to 1:0 wet:dry ratio but it's fine for the FX that SHOULD go after the pre-amp like Reverb, Delay, (all time effects).

Surprised to find a DI Output for silent recording. Very convenient for gigging or recording.

8/16 ohm switching with the option of using both internal/external cabs together is real nice too.

Both 2.5 channels + Reverb are footswitchable.

Using a PRS Custom 22, stock Dragon II pickups, no effects.

What You Need To Do Before You Play:
Change R31 to 27k ohms Change R36 to 33k ohms. Set bias to 550 millivolts (Service Bulletin Issued for Pre 2003 DSL 401s)
Tung-Sol 12AX7 Reissues in V1/V2/V4
(NOS Mullards + Balanced NOS Mullard in V1/V3/V4 if you can afford it)
JJ 12DW7 in V2
JJ EL84 Matched Quad For Power Section
Celestion 16ohm Vintage 30 Speaker Change
Patch Cable through FX Loop Send/Return
Put Amp in very corner of the room to emulate a closed back.

I gotta say when I first got this amp, I hated it, but after months of experimentation, I now think it's the most versatile little thing on the planet.

It's a Post Phase Inverter Master Volume Amp (PPIMV) meaning that whatever signal created in the pre-amp stage is sent through the V4 PI before hitting a Master Volume Potentiometer. This means you can have PI distortion (which in theory is output stage distortion and distorts smoother than pre-amp gain) without power-tube distortion (only available at very high volumes). In most other tube amps, the Master Volume comes before the Phase Inverter so that PI distortion and Power Tube distortion are no longer independent.

Simply put, for those who aren't getting enough Bass response from the OD channels, max the OD Volume. Always, unless you hear a "fizz" which is the PI tube distorting TOO much. To get even more saturation, use a patch cable through the FX loop and turn the FX setting to maximum because there's a gain circuit in the FX loop, amplifying the pre-amp signal even more. For a beautiful saturation, I run my bridge humbucker at about 6-Volume, 9-Tone, and the OD1 at 5-Gain, 10-Volume. If in doubt, try to get less gain through the Gain knob, and more though PI distortion and you'll notice the sound is much fuller. If there isn't a noticeable difference between OD1 and OD2, you're setting the Gain too high or you're keeping your guitar volume too high. If you're doing things right, it's gonna sound similar to a Vox AC30. At balls out volumes, it'll sound closer to a deep Marshall tone.

The Clean channel actually sounded better with the stock Goldback speaker strangely but it's still good. I use it mainly with the Cu22 pickups in parallel for an acoustic-like clean. I actually used to use the Clean channel exclusively before I figured out how to use this amp (and the slight modifications) but now the OD channels get 85%+ of my time.

I usually keep the Reverb above 5.

If I wasn't lazy and afraid of circular saws, I'd fabricate a 1x12 closed back extension cabinet with the same width as the combo to make a mini-stack.

Reverb and FX potentiometers died because I assume the heat from the Power tubes melted them (had the bias set at 1.375V w/o changing R31/R36). Pre-amp cuts out sometimes... I think it's a tube problem and not the circuitry.

Worthless. Trust me, I tried multiple times. I'd rather eat burned popcorn than go through Marshall customer service. I think my problem is that I tried to contact Korg USA (which is Marshall's USA distributor)

I love this thing. I wish it wasn't so damned heavy (even heavier now with the V30) because I bring it everywhere and I'm afraid I'm gonna drop it one day... and break my toes.

Clean, Overdrive 1, Overdrive 2, Reverb, effects loop, D.I out

I have only the stock valves in and i think they sound pretty good, The best feature the amp in my view is the gain for the clean channel because it gives you just that little bit more when using clean. The distortion channels are good too but ive heard changing the valves to some better one changes the tone of the OD 1 and 2 quite alot. The reverb is nice but controll over the reverb time would be nice

Ive had this amp for just under a year and it went wrong about 5 months after purchase, i think it was the preamp but im not too sure. One thing i dont rate about it at all is the heat it gets to! after a couple of hours of it beeing on it does get really hot, so much so that you cant touch the front pannel!
I dont have a backup amp fpr gigs but this one serves its duty well, i havnt had a problem at a gig with it yet.

The first time it went wrong we thought it would cost an absolute bomb to post back but when we rang up marshall they were really helpful. They sent a postal service to come and collect it and then gave us a date when it was really to be sent back. ALL free of charge! Another thing is, if you live near the marshall factory you can have it booked in. So you just drive to the factory and have a look round while your amp gets fixed.

I do like this amp, but an upgrade will deffinatly be happening if i continue with gigs. I dont use the distortion on the amp that often because i use a boss gt8. The amp makes this sound well with a thick warm tone.

Its a 1x12 combo amp thats all tube. 3 channels and an EQ for clean and distorted. it has reverb a standby switch, footswitch, effects loop and a direct out which is really helpful for recording (a feature the other JCM2000 DSL heads dont have!)

im playing this amp with a PRS santana se and a fender mexi strat and the clean tones are ok. not really inspiring but one step above a PA head id say. OD1 is kinda like a vintage marshall where it doesnt get too distorted but pushes the signal hard. its closer to the distorted clean channel than OD2. OD2 is like the JCM 800 or 900. its not a true metal sound but it is HEAVY. if youre a fan of van halen randy rhoads or newer santana this is a great channel. like all tube amps the louder you play it the better it sounds so crank it up some if you feel uninspired. i also want to mention marshall made their fame and fortune on stacks and half stacks not 1x12 combos. unless you enjoy the sound of a crappy cabinet buy a decent 4x12 and you will be amazed at the improvement. i tested it against a 15 watt line 6 spider and the little line 6 had more bass!

I have used this amp for about 5 years now and it cranks hard still. make sure to get the tubes changed or you will wonder why an all tube marshall sounds like a crappy practice amp

the only thing that has gone wrong was the reverb tankwent out but you can buy a new one for $20 to $30

i have not dealt with customer support but i was trying to build my own marshall 2 button footswitch and i couldnt find schematics anywhere online

Its a great amp overall. not for metal players but if you like guns n roses, earlier ozzy, nuno bettencourt, or any rock n roll up to the late 80's this is your amp. once again buy a 4x12 for it if you buy one because marshall sucks at building combo amp enclosures but their cabinets rock. if it were stolen i might buy something else due to my huge dream theater fascination and all the options out there.

My DSL 401 was a 2007 model that I purchased new from my local music shop. The amp is very versatile, can go from jazz, to blues, to rock and classic metal.

This is a simple 40W EL84 driven, 2 channel amp, clean and distortion with spring reverb. The distortion channel has a second gain stage for more saturation. The lack of a volume control on the clean channel is frustrating. Also, lack of bias points on the back would have also been very useful. When rebiasing the amp the whole chasis needs to be taken out the cabinet and you need to then locate the bias pins on the PCB. All the other JCM2000 series amps have the bias points on the back so why not the combos?

It is quite well assembled though, it seems strong and sturdy and coulld probably take a fair bit of bashing.

Sadly this amp does not sound very good at all on the overdrive channel which is why I no longer have it.

It has a good clean channel, bright and warm and stays pretty tight. It's ideal for blues, jazz, country etc. The lack of a separate volume control is bloody annoying though. You have to find a balance with the overdrive channel and it usually means sacrificing the tone on the overdrive channel because you have to bring the master volume down so the clean channel isn't deafening when you switch to it.

Now, the overdrive channel in my opinion is pretty poor. The amp has been voiced with too much gain and too much treble. High notes are shrill and harsh. Low notes are flabby, loose and undefined and the amp overall has a nasty fizzy muddy character. Using the neck pickup will take obviously take away some of the harshness on the high end but the low end gets even more muddy and flabby. It just doesnt sound musical and isn't pleasant to my ears at least and at ??450 this is no way worth it.

In an attempt to improve the sound, I replaced the stock speaker with a Celestion G12T-75 and did and did a retube all round with JJ Tesla tubes and has the amp rebiased. This improved things a little bit, the amp sounded abit smoother and tighter but still pretty mediocre and wasn't worth the money.

The spring reverb is pretty good, at least on the clean channel, but on the overdrive channel it seems to make the amp sound even more fizzy.

It hasn't failed on me but it's only beed used at home and did one short gig. However, there is a serious design flaw with this amp. It gets extremely hot, to the point when it's too hot to touch the front. This is really worrying. Also, the valves just plug directly into the PCB. This is worrying as the heat eventually results in cold solder joints which can cause the amp to fail. When the tech installed the new valves for me he told me that some of the joints had cold soldered around the valve sockets. Very worrying.

One year warranty but I havn't dealt with Marshall so cannot give an opinion.

This amp is a real let down I'm afraid. Marshalls are made for dirt, crunch, and rock n roll. This Marshall lacks an acceptable overdrive channel and for a valve driven amp its very disappointing.

The heat issue is very worrying and there's just no way I'd ever use this amp for frequent gigging.

In this price range, there are far better sounding, more reliable amps.

This one just didn't do it for me, and after a year of being frustrated with the tone, I finally decided to get rid of it.

My advice is to stay away from it.

Thanks for reading

clean + overdrive + boost + reverb

this is the perfect amp for the overdriven clean sound, alla hendrix little wing and chilli peppers stuff. not quite got the spakle of a fender but for that break up sound it is top dog.

1st 1 made fart noises when turned up, second 1 i got home didnt have a fuse in it ?????

if ur in england i reccomend this amp coz its cheaper and better than the fender hot rods. This amp is big enough for any gig as u will be micd up. Sometimes i have to really crank it at practice, but thats how it sounds best. If u buy a fender hotrod, u will never turn the volume past 3, hence its very hard to get a good clean break up sound.

40w all valve amp with 3 channels - Clean, OD1 and OD2
Channel switching is footswitchable and the footswitch is supplied. Reverb is also footswitchable but unfortunately you have to buy that seperately. It would have been far better and easier if Marshall had supplied one footswitch that did the channel switching and reverb all in one. There is an effects loop which is of the parrellel variety and a control on the front panel determines the level of effects that is incorporated into the final sound. As a 40w valve amp there is plenty volume available for smallish gigs.

This particular amp has had the speaker changed to a Celestion G12T-75 and the valves changed for a full set of JJ Tesla's.

I use this amp with an Ibanez RGT42 fitted with Bare Knuckle 'Cold Sweat' pups and use it for everything from 60s and Blues music up to Metal. There is a surprising amount of headroom on the clean channel for a Marshall amp and the sound is initially crystal clear, eventually moving into a pleasant light crunch. With the stock speaker the sound ir fairly bright but has a touch more bottom end with the new speaker fitted. The sound is clear and warm but isn't really what a Marshall is all about.

OD1 introduces you to some of those classic Marshall tones that we all know and love. Think in terms of AC/DC and you have the basic idea. The OD2 channel increases gain levels and also adds a 20db boost for solos. In terms of gain, think of bands like Iron Maiden. Overdrive on both of these channels is harmonically rich, creating a warm tone. The stock amp can be a little fizzy and 2-dimensional but the changes made to this amp give more depth to the sound and greater articulation. It's a good amp at this price point as it comes but improving speaker and valves certainly helps to make a good amp great.

This amp cannot get to the heavily saturated gain levels of modern Metal so don't expect it to. Realistically, at this price point, very few amps do in any kind of successful way and is easily solved by using a decent pedal. Try a Seymour Duncan Twin Tube Mayhem and then the amp will do absolutely everything.

Cranked up the amp really sings but is surprisingly versatile. At very low volumes in the home, the whole thing seems flat and lifeless but the volume doesn't have to be that high for it to be very useable. I use this amp in the home and will work fine unless you're trying to play at a time that neighbours would object to.

My rating is based on the modifications done to this amp but it would be a point or two less if it was a stock item.

I believe early examples needed additional valve cooling to avoid problems and I may also do that but so far it's been fine.

Not really needed it so it would be unfair to comment.

I looked at loads of amp options before buying this and there was a case to be made for each. Laney VC/LC-30 is a cheaper option but not quite as versatile or reliable as the Marshall. The Spider Valve is very versatile but doesn't have the same quality of tone and ultimately is more expensive. This Marshall is just a really good amp for the money it costs and, as I discovered, there are some decent used examples around in stunningly good condition for relatively little money. I would certainly buy it again if I had to in a heartbeat.

Judging from the cosmetic condition of the tolex, I assume that this model was manufactured within the last two or three years (I am far too lazy to perform serial number searches). The DSL-401 is a fairly basic, two-channel, all-tube combo. It sports 4xECC83 in the preamp and 4xEL84 for power, which push 40 watts through the stock Celestion 1x12. Each channel has a volume, low, mid, and treble, and the lead channel includes a gain control and two foot-switchable gain stages. In addition, there is a master volume, a master reverb, and an FX mix which is used to color the parallel FX loop. Included is a two-button footswitch that switches from the clean to the lead channel, as well as switches between the two gain stages. Also, there is an additional ext. speaker output jack, a speaker emulated D.I. output jack, and an input jack for the reverb footswitch (not included). The drawbacks (feature-wise) include: the lack of a presence control; having a master reverb (as opposed to independent reverb for clean and lead); and finally, I dislike the need for a second footswitch for reverb (just give me a three-button footswitch). I cannot comment on the FX loop: conceptually, I understand the difference between a parallel and a series FX loop, but since I have never needed to use either, I cannot comment on which would be considered a more beneficial feature. Overall, when one considers the features as a whole, the drawbacks are not earth shattering.

Like many guitarists my age (early twenties), I started as a metal-tween, but quit that gig before I learned how to sweep well, after which I played rock band (the real thing, not the video game), then I forayed into college-guy jazz, then blues, post-rock, and then folk. Now I am having an existential crisis and just want to play guitar again (working my way to guitar hero). Luckily this amp understands me and can indulge my multi-faceted identity. I am in between genres and guitars right now, so I just plug in my MIM Fender Toronado (sp?) and see what happens. The Toronado's humbuckers do not have the hottest output, but they can push the clean channel to break up nicely, and they provide enough sustain on the lead channel to have some fun (it has a nice 70's moustache tone). The tonal spectrum of this amp seems quite promising although I hate to indulge the cliche and say that it will play anything from Jazz to Metal because it will not; that being said, it is also not a one trick pony. The amp is responsive to the player's dynamics, and it behaves like most other tube amps. I believe that it is most comfortable when you accentuate the throaty midrange and keep the crunch under control. That being said, it is pretty safe to say that most classic rock, alt-rock, stone-rock, and crack-rock are at your fingers. Further, the DSL 401 is rather unique for a Marshall in that the clean channel has some quality to it and can go anywhere from Nashville to Jangle (again, it is neither a blackface nor a Ac-30). The first overdrive is a nice controlled crunch, while the second overdrive saturates to levels beyond my need. One can get a "metal" sound out of it, just not the type of gain/tonal character of a Mesa Dual Rectifier (it's more Rudolph Schenker than Max Cavalera). Hey, it's a Marshall. This amp has plenty of volume on both channels for small clubs, but it performs reasonably at lower volumes as well. I'm sure one could throw a mic in front of it if needed, but I remain skeptical about the D.I. output. In conclusion: if you are looking for boutique tone, look elsewhere and blow the kids' college funds. If you are looking for scooped, ultra-high gain, then this is probably not for you. I am sure that with more experimenting, and some higher quality pieces of electrified wood, I will be able to wring some versatility out of this amp.

Apparently the JCM 2000 DSL-401s manufactured prior to 2003 have issues with overheating and cheap circuit soldering. This amp was no exception. While I was testing it at the local Guitar-wall Mart the amp just lost power (the main power switch and the ECC83s remained lit). Needless to say, the salesman I was working with became rather flustered and asserted that he would sell me the amp at a "stupid discount," assuring me that the only issue was the power tubes. His "stupid discount" was a markdown from $799 to $249 (that is roughly a %69 discount) if I took the amp as-is. Luckily I had read about the reliability issues, and I was prepared to sacrifice some more $$ to get it up and running. I took it to my local shop, had the bridge rectifier replaced, the soldering redone, and the pots/jacks cleaned for $125. This brought the total to $393, when one considers the taxes. I plan on throwing in heat sinks and a fan when I retube it (and maybe a Vintage 30). If problems like these are inherent to this amplifier, then I would be hesitant to gig with this w/o getting the mods done, or having a very reliable back-up (I would hate for the power to go during your shred-slam-twang-post-punk version of Freebird).

I didn't seek out Marshall for troubleshooting. That being said, there are many fantastic online communities that readily discuss all types of gear issues.

I love this section - the biography - here it goes: I've been playing off and on for about a century. I've owned hundreds of amps and thousands of guitars. I once played with Robert Johnson and Buckethead at the SAME TIME...in reality I'm a hobbyist who can appreciate value and quality when I see it. When all is said and done, this has both going for it, although it does not exemplify, so to speak, either aspects. When I bought this amp, I was initially searching for a modelling amp of similar wattage and comportment. However, after about 2 hours of testing and consideration, I felt deeply troubled by the fact that these modeling amps were metonymic for the post-modern individual: trying to accomplish too many things at once. I would rather have 4 pieces of equipment, each of which did one thing well, rather than one piece of equipment that screams, "mediocre at best." I understand that modelling amps have come a long way since their inception, and that their price and versatility tempt use to bite the apple, but I don't think they really are for me. I'm happy with my purchase and will enjoy this amp until the necessity or fate deprives me of it.

Yet another update to my previous review !!!
Ok i have now totally sorted this amp... I have replaced my gain changed ECC83 tubes and put back the standard marshall Pre amp ECC83 valves back in. The secret with this baby is to max out the master volume when playing , then use the channel volume and guitar volume to trim the sound. Using this method i can get a range of great tones from clean to grind. This is not buzzy at all and makes this baby sing. The guy playing a MG100HDFX through his 4x12 was nearly in tears
opposite me, The DSL401 tone was so good with my USA Tele...

Addition to my previous review..
After further reading and reserch on line i can now add i have further changed the gain structure of this amp.
1) Adding a JJ 12DW7 (in the V2 position) like the guy who wrote this....
"This is where the 12DW7 tube comes in. It is half a 12AX7 (high gain) and half a 12AU7 (low gain). I looked into this but found that in the V1 position,the way the tube was setup the 12AU7 section was the half working on the clean channel. After learning more about what was hapening in the mpa I looked at the schematic and found that in the V2 postion the 12DW7 would do just what I wanted it to - lower the gain of the OD Channel, while leaving the CLEAN channel unaffected. I popped it in and WOW!!! I could actually get clean sound out of the OD channel. The Buzzyness was gone, too!! On the RED channel I could actually hear that at a certain point the buzziness would come back. It still has PLENTY of GAIN, and it sounds SO much better. As a side effect the difference between OD1 and OD2 is much more pronounced now".
2)JJ Ecc83S (in the V4 position)
"A good balanced ECC83S in V4 for the phase inverter really helps these amps...."
Adding the above pre amp valves has significantly improved the gain structure, i have also added NOS Mullard's in V1 and V3 positions...nice !!!
Top stuff with these mods...

I have a very early 1998 model amp. 3 channel used for rock and blues / indi etc... Strange use of parallell effects loop instead of series but mine works fine !!! i have modified my amp to play as i like it. it is now awsome.

Ok the amp needed re valving and a speaker upgrade to get it to sing properly. I have read other reviews and taken advice and can say this amp is now fantastic. Shame that Marshall could not do it properly in the first place but.... modifications take heed the route to pure tone with this baby. 1) Speaker upgrade - get a Celestion Vintage 30. 16 ohm is fine. 2) Matched Quad set of JJ EL84's.3) Set the amp Bias to 0.7. This requires taking the chassis out finding the trim pot behind the reverb pot and then the 3 pin connector on the circuit board then using a multi meter. Take heed here dont do this unless you are very carefull and used to dealing with electronics. Info on how to bias amps can be found all over the net. After these mods the amp will run cooler and sound bloody marvelous.Score with mods perfection, without, sounds muddy and i was unable to find my sweet toneusing the EQ. As for the effects loop. it works fine using the mix knob. i use it at 9 oclock for delay, 1 oclock for flanger etc...experiment it works !!! i read another review regarding wah in the loop ??? no wonder it sounds awfull, wah is a front end device dude plug it between your axe and amp.

mine was made in 1998 from reading other reviews the early ones are supposed to be avoided due to overheating problems etc... but mine is re biased to 0.7 and has been going for 9 years !!! hope i havent talked up a problem now !!!

Marshall are brilliant just ring em up if you live in UK

30 years plus playing, i love valve amps, and marshall are my favourite and i have a JCM 2000 DSL 100 head as well. This little baby rocks seriously hard, good product with the mods. I use a 1992 EVH music man amongst others. if you own this amp or are thinking of buying one do the mods and you will not be disappointed.

Good range of tones, nice and warm - but I have swapped out tubes twice - see below

Bought it new out of the box - has burned out on my three times. Took it too authorized Marshall repair shop - they added a fan, replaced internal fuse, replaced tubes, took it in again, rreplaced tubes and master volume. Now it's down a third time (lights on, no sound). Whatever the true problem is they haven't fixed it. This is a lemon!!!!

No response from Marshall - service center clearly has no clue.

Being a 3 channel foot switchable amp with reverb, it would seem pretty versatile. However, it doesn't have the traditional Presence control, and the parallel effects loop doesn't work with any pedals, including wah, preamp for volume boosts, EQ, chorus, delay, etc. The most you can get out of any pedal is 50% of its effect output.

Sounds great. It's a bit buzzy and the top end is thin like the rest of the JCM 200 series. I've also owned the TSL100 with a 1960A cab. It's decent, but I've certyainly heard better.

This would be an awesome amp if the effects loop were of the series type instead of the parallel type. This amp is almost $1,100. new, and that's just way too much cash for an amp that has a useless fx loop. What were Marshall thinking- did they expect us to run rack effects through an amp this small? Did they intend it mainly for studio use? Because if they did, they still made a mistake because if you were to use this in the studio, you would use the studio's effects rather than run rack gear through the amp.

I'm disappointed because I can't do anything with this amp beyond simple plug and play. I should have opted for the Peavey Valve King 2x12. That thing is 100 watts, 2 speakers, 3 channels, Presence AND Resonance controls, and a host of other cool options such as a real effects loop and you can plug in an extension cab while using the internal speaker at the same time, and class A/B controls.

Overall this amp sounds like a Marshall and the basic coolness factor is high, but in the end it lacks a lot by today's standards. I suggest buying something else.

Is a all-tubes Combo 40 watt with one Celestion 12" 100W 16Ohm speaker and spring reverb.
Has 3 channel (1 clean with gain,treble,middle,bass controls; OD1/OD2 with volume,gain,treble,middle,bass controls and switch for Od1/Od2 selection),the OD2 channel is same of OD1 boosted with more saturation.
Has FX mix,reverb and volume master controls.
In rear pannel 1 output with impedence selector(8/16 Ohm) for external cabinet , 1 output for direct mixer with cabinet simulator, send-return for loop efx, 2 input for reverb and channel footswitch.I have only the 2 bottons channel footswitch.
Don't has presence control.

I love the clean sound: is warm and jazzy, set T-M-B controls at 7-3-6 (range 0-10) and sound good with my humbuchers guitars. If you take the gain under the master volume control there is no distortion.
The OD1 channel is "vintage", very vintage. Good for Cream sound.
The OD2 is more saturated and confused, more aggressive tone, good for Greenday sound.not bad at all.
Set Vol at 2 has enough power to me at home, at 4 in rearsal room.

Is my only Amp!
I change the preamp tubes, and all the soldering on the board: they brokes after 3 years (teach explain that happen because of the vibrations of the speaker).not good soldering!

My Brother has a Fender Hot rod Deville 60W, Very good clean sound but not good enought distortion (Bright, and no eq. controls, good for rythm parts not for lead ones).
Not too much versatile, but enought for my style.

Mine's a 2002 which I bought in about 9/10 condition, and I retubed it with all new Groove Tubes Gold series, including a matched phase inverter.

2 and 1/2 channel marshall 40 watt combo w/reverb. Channel switching is cool, no delay, dropout, or popping when switching. I think the parallel effects loop is the most useless feature of the amp, virtually making the fx loop useless. Series loop would push this amp's features to 10.

It's pretty loud, loud enough for just about any gig the common player might play. It does everything from clean to high gain classic rock, a bit beyond Priest/Maiden metal, but nowhere near modern metal territory.

It's generally quiet, but there is some white noise which would be significant in a studio mic'ing situation.

I like the Who, Thin Lizzy, Zep, Skynyrd, AC/DC, 70's Kiss, Aerosmith, etc, and this amp does that schtick as well as any other Marshall available so far. It's no prize winner, b ut a good all-around tone tool. The clean channel gets really nice Jazz tones from all my guitars, and that's saying a lot.

I like the tone a lot, but the top end is pretty buzzy- especially with the red channel. Less so with the new tubes, but still it's pretty slicey. It cuts through a mix ok depending on which type of guitar I use, but that buzz can dominate sometimes.

The clean channel distorts pretty early, so you need to keep the master volume up pretty high and set the volumes of each channel relatively low.

I'm not into this bit about changing tubes and speakers, and modifying things, I like things stock. I retubed it because it was used, but the speaker will remain original.

These amps aren't the most reliable combos in the world, but I feel if you take care of them properly they should last indefinitely. In fact, mine's used and 5 years old now; I took the guts out and the board looks as pristine as the day it was made. As for overheating goes, well it hasn't happened with this one yet, though the top does get hot. I would expect that since heat rises and gets trapped under the chassis. I will not even consider adding my own internal fan mod. If it comes to that, i'll just tag along a desktop fan.

Playing since 1977. I've been in glam bands in the 80's and turned to a church worship group in the 90's. I've played for more 30,000 peeps per year. I use USA Made guitars like Gibson and Fender and prefer fender and Marshall amps.

2 overdrives and reverb. Its a Marshall tube amp, what else do you want?

I play a Gibson SG with exposed pick-ups so the clean channel is still pretty dirty. OD1 is fat, but there is that lag in the button depression to OD explosion that I still am not used to. Boss pedal distortions are instantaneous, so I have to learn the pedal click, amp click lag. The clean to OD2 seems to have less of the lag. The OD2 is an oh so yummy cherry, but I can't seem to find a sharp edge to the tone.
For a 40 Watt amp, this thing is bloody loud and powers an additional Nemesis 2x12 bass bin just fine.
The amp does make this strange metallic rattling sound when it powers up, which I assume its the tubes warming or being faulty. Not noticeable when cranked.
Since I play jangly pop through to experimental noise, I guess I could be using any amp, but it's Marshall and I'm a poser.

It seems to be reliable.
Well I haven't had problems with it.
It's never been gigged by me, but jammed numerous times at about 8-9 on the volume and I just gave it some. Real wall of noise kinda stuff.

Second-hand, but the guys at the Swop Shop in Carlton said to bring it back when I mentioned it was cutting out. I replaced my guitar lead and surprise surprise, it wasn't the amp.

I've been playing for 10 years.
I use the SG plus a back up Washburn my bro gave me, am currently trying to sell a Fender Jaguar(looks nice, but a guitar should not be this much of a nuisance), which sounded alright through the amp.
Pedals: BOSS ME-50 + side board of Boss DD-3 delay, OC-3 Super Octaver and HM-3 Hyper Metal. Also have a Jimi Hendrix Cry-Baby Wah for when I feel inspired. Trying to learn an E-bow presently.

This amp is good, but will probably get the 60 Watt version of this amp with the twin Celestrials in future.

this amp is a 2004 model. Offers 3 channels, 1 clean, 2 ODs.
the OD channel has a gain and volume. the clean channel has a gain.
there's a master volume and master reverb. The amp runs the EL-84 power tubes. Has an effects loop, foot switch for both ODs and Clean.
also has a foot jack for reverb on the back of the amp.

i was really suprised by this amp. Its actually the kind of amp i like, but never had. I had a DSL 50 head into a 2x12, but I think the 2x12 cab ruined the tone, crappy cab, too muddy. anyway, i actually can't stop playing this amp. It produces great raw bite tone. Yeah, i agree its not a warm tone compared to other amp. But, I think for playing vintage rock such as led zepplin and ac/dc its great. I think the clean is a great warm tone. But, i usually play the OD 1 channel, which is a smooth OD with some bite. I have a lot of fun with this amp. The OD 2 can sound close to OD 1 when backed off, but when cranked, its heavily distorted and sound great with the bridge humbucker. I like this.

i bought this use, which is the way to go. Beat inflation and Tax, always BUY USED !

never dealt with marshall

I've had a lot of amps. I currently have three. I have a MESA Roaster, which is the best amp ever built. I have the Vox VTX 60, which is an effects amp and is fun. I have this marshall DSL. I play the marshall the most because it offers that BOXY MID RANGY RAW BITE i like. The mesa is a much warmer tone and build quailty is as good as it gets; sure is HEAVY though. Anyway, never was a marshall fan, but I like this amp. I think the 1x12 cab has a lot to do with the unique bite. I'm becoming anti 2x12 and 4x12 and 4x10 and liking the 1x12 amps because of the tightness they offer.

made in y2000 and bought last year

lack of bass in Drive CH when received.
I have swapped the tubes and some by-pass caps and now I do like its sound. Then why "9"? I have not tried the replacement speakers though I do not need it at the moment.

anyone needs more low end, swap the by-pass cap C83(Clean CH) and C84(Drive CH) with larger ones such as 25uF. But 25uF in Drive CH might be too large in case of high gain usage(causes boomy sound).

anyone needs less gain, replace V2 with 12DW7/ECC832.

I was in luck, I found NOS Mullard EL84(Quad), 2 x GE 5751 Black plate and 2 x RCA 12AX7 by US$150.
Now they are set as,
V1:RCA 12AX7
V2:JJ ECC832(12DW7)
V3:JJ ECC83S(12AX7)
V4:GE 5751 Black Plate
V5-V8:Mullard EL84
provides great sound

The Master for the reverb control has gone(always on).
removed tank and cable as I'm not a big fan of delay/reverb.

never used

When I was young, I could not buy Marshall. At that time, there was no valve state amps. Now I have it with the great sound after the minor/small modification.

2 channels + overdrive 2. Good to have a switchable clean channel. It's a shame there's no separate volume control for OD2, as there's too big a jump in volume from OD1 to OD2. Spring reverbs are always a little tacky. FX loop and footswitch are useful.

Over the years I've variously owned (among many others) a Vox AC30, a Marshall master volume 100 stack, a Fender Twin, and a Marshall JMP Mk2 50 watt combo. The AC30 had one very nice tone; the 100 watt stack was too loud (!), the Fender Twin kept blowing valves, but the Marshall JMP Mk2 50 watt is gorgeous, and the only vintage amp I've kept.

Overall, the DSL has come as a bit of a disappointment. Although only 2 years old, it came initially with a loud residual mains hum. Once it was serviced some of the hum went away (but not all). However played next to my old 50 watt JMP the DSL just lacks... something indefinable. I've since changed the gold-back speaker for a vintage G12-65 heritage... which has given it a little more bass. But it still sounds brash next to the JMP.

I was planning to gig with the DSL and to keep the JMP as back-up ... but to be honest I think I'll do it the other way around. The flexibility of the extra channels is in the DSL's favour... plus it's smaller and lighter ... but as I say, the JMP oozes tone, and the DSL sounds harsh and tinny in comparison. It's a shame, but there it is. Perhaps it's down to the DSL having different valves, I don't know?

Apart from mains hum, no problems yet ... but I have read about overheating problems with this model so I've installed a switchable fan just in case...

No contact with Marshall, but the amp technician I use says Marshall parts are usually easy to get hold of.

2004. update. got it july 06 and love it. very easy to use. great tone!

loud amp once broke in. very marshally sound! sounds awsome clean and od 1,2! had no problem with volume difference in channel switching. adjust the clean volume and od volume and master to get equal volume. the reviewer that couldnt do that is retarded. pedals in front end sound great. i always use a box fan with all amps. hard rock with a LP is great! i use a reverb pedal too for variety. the stock speaker is fine.

no trouble yet. 2004 model. i bring back up anyway in case.

who knows? who cares? i know where the repair shop is.

30 years, yes again and love it! very expensive but worth it. its small and light. can be used as a 40 watt head so its like having two amps!

I bought this amp in 2003. I have to say I love how this amp sounds. I've always been able to get really good clean sounds (used to play in a reggae band), and the overdrive will take your head off. I run it through a 4x12 1960A marshall cab, and that makes a huge difference as you can expect. It adds all the bottom end that is missing, huge sound. It is also very loud. I've used it to play many shows, and it has always been loud enough, even when there wasn't an appropiate PA.

I got really good clean sounds from it. It doesn't sound like a vintage Fender by any means, but if you want a Marshall amp you're probably not too concerned with the clean channel anyway. The over drrve channels are AWESOME, everything I expect from a Marshall. OD2 is great for metal, or other types of music that require very heavy distortion, specially if you run it through a cabinet. OD1 is great for blues and lighter rock. The louder you turn it up, the better it responds. I play blues, reggae, jazz, and punk rock through it, it handles all those styles to perfection for my taste. I use a Les Paul junior with two humbuckers, and epiphone dot, and a fender stratocaster.

I know there are lot of complaints from people on the reliability, and a lot of complaints about it getting too hot???? I've NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH THIS AMP, and I've used it EXTENSIVELY for touring, and many, many shows, in not very good playing conditions. I've played many hot and humid basements and bars with no proper ventilation, and never had an issue. I don't think it gets too hot, even after hours of being on and turned up way loud. It's never broken down on me, and it's never done anything weird. In fart, it's been the most reliable amp I've ever had. Will continue using it to gig with no backup..... this "little" guy has proven himself worthy of handling any playing condition over and over.

Don't know about Marshall, but Dietze music in Lincoln, NE, where I bought it, provides the best customer service and has the best techs. I'll have to give it a 10 since Dietze is representing Marshall.

I've been playing guitar for about 17-18 years. If it were stolen I'd like to get the DSL50 head, just so it can match the cabinet I have, but I really have to say I love this little guy. It is very loud, plus it has an advantage over the head: you can actually carry it around! you can play with your friends on a Saturday afternoon without having to carry a cabinet with you. If you want the "true" Marshall sound, but don't want to get a bulky cabinet, check this guy out! you need tubes if you want the real Marshall sound, and this amp delivers. I absolutely LOVE the overdrive on this amp, it kicks you in the face.

Real valve sound, clean, blues middle variable distortion and Marshall overdrive.

This amp makes a lovely warm and variable tone, letting you play and vary the sound without digital effects. The reverb is a real spring and is really noce, I have tried a new fender digital reverb but i prefer this Marshall.

It has been fixed, may sometimes whistle. It has a smooth on button that doesn't click. The volume controls might be a bit scatchy now, but the sound and makes up for it.

Repaired under warranty (through guitar shop).

This is the best amp I've had.

- 4 ECC83 Pre-amp Tubes
- 4 EL84 Power-amp Tubes
- 16ohm speaker
- Separate Clean/Overdrive EQ controls
- Master volume/reverb/Parallel effects Control

Fairly simple amp to operate, lacking in excessive controls you will never use. I occassionally use the clean channel as a bass amp also. Only a 9 because I just wish there was a separate master-volume control for Clean/Overdrive and possibly a built-in power-attenuator.

I love the amp's clean channel but am warming up to its overdrive. I think the whole +20db Overdrive2 channel is a little pointless if you have high putout pickups but I suppose it would be pretty awesome for people playing vintage strats to stomp on the footswitch for a solo.

The OD channel seems to have less bass but I believe this is because my tubes are dying.

Overall I couldn't ask for more except for a power attenuator.

... no comment

N/A

If it was stolen, I would think about buying it over or possibly getting the Mesa F-50. The F-50 has a harsher tone in my opinion but has the reliability advantage.

Amp is a 2005
This amp is very versatile.Great for rock,blues,funk,jazz,punk,metal.
3 channels clean,OD1 and OD2,all footswitchable.FX loop is OK.reverb sucks period!I wish it had a 3 spring fenderish type of verb.I use midiverb in my rack so the stock verb is turned off anyway.I use this amp anywere i want. It has loads of volume if needed.Keep in mind this amp is all tube and is 40 watts with 4 EL84 power tubes in it.I love these tubes. saturation out the ying yang!!!!!!

OK Let me give you some great advice.CHANGE THE STOCK SPEAKER!!
I went with a HELLATONE 30watt or try a vintage 30.The 100watt stock speaker is good for clean but still lacks bottem end and low mids.
The hellatone 30 made this amp sound like early van halen,with a big warm bottem end,low mid crunch with nice glassy highs blended in.Think van halen 1 or early 80s Gary Moore (Victems of the future).
I,ve had lots of marshalls,100watt 50watt old 4 input MK2 models,70S,80S AND 90S and this amp with the 30watt celestion in it hold its own next to its bigger brothers.You also can run a 4x12 or a pair of 4x12s off this amp and get great results from it.If you go that route make sure the cabs are loaded with vintage 30s or 25watt greenbacks.YOU WILL THANK ME FOR THAT ADVICE!!!!OK With all that been said, let's get to my favorite settings.OD2= GAIN-5 VOL-5 TREB-5 MID-3 BASS-10 REVERB-0 MASTER-sounds great 3 on up!!!!I use a Digitech bad monkey tube driver to push the front end a little.This is very comparable to a tube screamer.set for clean boost only (no distortion) at all...LEVEL-10 LOW-5 HIGH-5 GAIN-0.If I want to go clean,I simply turn off tube driver and roll back the guitar volume.If I want to go cleaner then switch to OD1. And if I need total cleanliness I go to the clean channel in the amp which is set as follows, GAIN-4 TREB-7 MID-4 BASS-7.This amp has great saturation with loads of harmonic overtones.I use a TELE with DIMARZIO tone zone stacked humbuckers and a 1982 JACKSON randy rhoads with stock pickups.Both sound great for various styles.Anything from big and bluesy,oversaturated sustain to super fat SCORPIONS type of crunch.Another cool trick is to slave your preamp via FX SEND into a rack then into another amp (set clean).This gives you a wet / dry effect. (very cool).

Buy a fan 4 inch at radio shack and mount it on the grill on back of amp so it pulls air out.
My amp has never let me down!!!!!!!!!

What can i say?

Marshalls are the best amp in the world. period. and
they stand behind warranties.

Trust me, you will love this amp and will have a hard time putting your guitar away at night......
10 all the way.
My hat is off to MARSHALL on this one.
My hat is off to DAVE AT AVATAR SPEAKERS FOR THE HELLATONE 30WATT.
If you own this amp go to avatarspeakers.com and you will thank yourself for investing about 80 more dollers in your amp.
Watch your amp come to life!!!!!!!!

Features, 40 watts all tube EL84 and 12ax7 (ECC83) tubes Two channel amp with "boost" on the overdrive channel, 1x12" speaker effect loop and reverb. comes with footswitch. I play mostly classic/hard rock and blues, using a fernandes ravelle, fender tele, and customised yamah rgx420s. jim dunlop db01 wah jekyll and hyde od, boss ge7.

Its a marshall so you know whats its for ...... rock and roll. If your after an amp to try and make your own tones look somewhere else as all marshalls share the same charateristics, if you like angus young, slash, gary moore or any other marshall user its as close as youll get for this price. for the clean channel i set the gains to 5 trebble to 7 mids to 4 and bass to 6. i find these settings respond well to my picking dynamics even more so if i increase the gain. The od channel gives really good but not exact angus and slash rhythm sounds, perfect for what i do, i just use the boss ge7 as a solo boost, i dont like the amps boost. i use the jekyll and hyde for heavier stuff and it sound great. i really like this amp, its a great first time tube amp but it will undoubtly be compared to a jcm800 ro some other classic for this reason alone i give it an 8 but this is a very good amp

the first one i had packed in after a week and a half, but a new one was sent straight away and has been solid since.

havent dealt with marshall but gak were great

ive been playing 3 years now and its my first tube amp so i dont have anything else to compare it to. When i first got the amp i was a little deflated i was expecting a massive bone crushing tone like heard on appetite for destruction or back in black, but i didnt.Ive come to realise that like myself most peole hear music on cds and try to emulate that tone by buying similar equipment, but you wont get it because albums are edited and polished in massive recording studios. you can however get a good tone from this amp though it did take me a few months but ive put this down to the tubes as the tone improved the more i played it. you can get good bedroom levels out of it and it will easily fill most pubs/clubs. For the price its a good gigging amp, if lost or stolen i would push the wallet for something more boutique to try and establish my own tone.

2004 model I think, 40w 1x12 tube combo. Fairly basic 2 channel system with clean and overdrive/distortion channels, selectable via footswitch. Also has rubbish reverb and an effects loop. I play mainly rock and indie. This thing is loud enough for gigging small to medium sized club venues.

This amp tends to be good at several things, rather than great. The clean channel is probably the highlight, but is lacking in sparkle compared to a Vox or Fender, particularily for aggressive chording. The overdrive mode is nice and makes a decent blues sound, but lacks articulation. The distortion channel is overkill, its fuzzy and pretty useless with effects, unless you like washy unintelligible noise. Don't expect to play metal solos and hear every note clearly.

On the plus side, when this thing is played loud it sounds much better. It cuts through a band mix pretty well.

After a few months the amp began to periodically go silent (a common problem). After getting this fixed I haven't had to take it back. Seems to run very hot.

N/A

I have been playing about seven years, and I play a Telecaster fitted with a Dimarzio Tone Zone. I also have an Ibanez RG320 and an Epi Les Paul Custom Plus.

If it were stolen/lost, I would be sad, because I intend to sell it. If I bought Marshall again I would go for a DSL50/TSL60 and cab.

Its decent for a garage band or doing small gigs, but it just isn't really convincing at anything. Its reasonably inexpensive for a valve combo, but dont buy it just because it says Marshall on the front - theres better out there for less.

Mine is a 2003, just post heat fix era. The amp is plenty loud but not in the same way as you would get from a 4x12. I play all kinds of music but you mostly would get a Marshall for it's characteristic "crunch", everything else is just frosting. Features are well documented on the Marshall web site: http://www.marshallamps.com/product.asp?productCode=DSL401

The only surprise on this amp is the lack of a presence control.

This is a tricky one. If you pay $1000 and expect it to be perfect, you will be dissappointed. The stock speaker sucks (swap it for a Celestion Vintage 30 asap!) and the tubes are horible. Mine were microphonic, squealed and sounded like gravel. A quick swap with JJ's all around and a re-bias (colder than spec) and the amp sounds great. It's dissappointing that right out of the box, this amp is unfit for anyone at the semi-pro and above level.

The amp sounds pretty good with both single coils and humbuckers, very bright as you might expect from Marshall. The lead channels are usable but there is a SIGNIFICANT drop off in bass response on the lead channel(s).

Honestly, Marshall is WAY down the reliability ladder as compared to Mesa Boogie and Fender. There are heating issues, design issues and all kinds of random things that make this a very questionable amp for gigging.

I've owned in excess of 50 amps over 25 years including about 12 Marshall's. There are serious issues with this amp, however, if you are willing to invest the time and energy, this can be made into a good sounding and somewhat reliable amp. If you want the ultimate in engineering, get a Mesa Boogie. If you want the classic Marshall "whump", you might do better with a DSL-50/100 head and 4x12 cabinet setup. If you have your heart set on a 1x12 Marshall combo, this is your amp.

Features, Two channel amp with "boost" on the overdrive channel, 1x12" speaker effect loop, reverbtank

EL84 and 12ax7 (ECC83) tubes

You need to tweak it a litte before finding the "right" sound. I changed the speaker to a Celestion Vintage 30 (16 ohm) and it lifted the sound to "rock heaven".

Note that this is not an heavy metal amp, for Classic rock sounds - especially with a gibson guitar with humbuckers it sounds awesome. I have both strat and gibson, both sound very good.

You dont need anything else than guitar cable and this amp.

I had a 2x12" cab or 4x12" cab in addition to the 12" and it gives even more punch. it is classical marshal sound, and its not noisy (but you must also consider what you put in the chain too)

Both clean and od channel have an EQ, and that is good, They are easy to tweak, when you get the right feel for it.

Marshall, tube amp, proably like any other tube amp,

Very good - reply on email same or next day - good advices

It is kinda expensive, and the celestion vindage 30 speaker cost money too. But when you play on it, its worth the price.

I compared to other EL84 powered amps, ac30 cc2 ,peavey classic etc - they all cost about the same price, this one weighs 19 kg, and it has the marshall sound, so i went for this one.

They are still making these so i would get a new one if stolen - if you loose a marshall amp , you diserve it....

Have a lot of other stuff too - this one is nice and use it often.

2004 model.update

this amp rules. good clean channel and the best OD ever. if you forget your pedals. this will get you through the night alone. this amp heats up but not as bad others posted. my band uses fans anyway for air on stage so i set my box fan the size of this amp, maybe a little bigger where it blows on the amp and gets air on stage. another fan on the other side of the stage too. the reverb sucks but who cares. this didnt seem very loud at first but now i guess its fully broke in and very loud now. plenty of punch. i love it. i need amps with good OD in case of pedal break down or gigs where the amp will just do and this wins....

got it in july 06 new. floor model. no probs. yet

i ve had good luck with marshalls in the past

30 yeARS ALL HARD ROCK. STILL LOVE THE BOSS METAL ZONE but this amp does the trick if the pedal breaks.i would try to replace the amp if stolen but they are $$$. i would just use my fender twin amp '98 USA.that has good OD too just different sound but gets it done without trouble. the dsl401 is just as portable as the hot rod deluxe but doulble the $$$ but way better tone. no ice pick highs. just tone...the tone i get with the les paul standard is worth the money to me..

you know all this already.

Very amazed with sound qaulity but it is ??400 worth of amp, much better than my old JCM900 4100 100 watt tube head. Lots of dynamics and good low level overdrive and natural tube break up distortion with a humbucker on the clean channel.

Only 2 days old.

Met Jim at the london guitar show this summer, had a prob with my old JCM900 marshall at the time and he invited me down the factory to pick up spare parts (I live in MK also) and they didnt charge me for them, the head was 15 years old, well out of warenty! Good stuff by Marshall.

Playing 6 years, 2nd tube amp, much more usuable, have mic'd it up through a PA and plays great with the band. Looked at MESA F30 and AC30s but this beat them all.

see the marshall web site.. 2004 model

bought it yesterday. this amp was made in 2004 and has been the floor model for two years. ive been playing this amp for a while in that store. 2 years and no problem while in the store so i thought it might be trouble free. hope so. i traded my blues jr and hot rod deluxe and a fender cabinet even for this. used the amp lastnite at a gig and worked great. pure marshall tone 100% and was very controllable. used an amp stand and a sm57 mic and sounded stellar. o/d 1 and o/d 2 flat out rule. need more compression ? buy a Boss metal zone and youll be set.

ive always had good luck with marshalls. we'll see. cant be any worse than the crappy made in mexico FENDERS. ive bought 4 Fender amps in 2 years and have nothing but trouble. deville, jr, deluxe, twin reverb. all mexico garbage. and sounds like it too.. i sold them all.

30 years of playing. more gear than god. Gibson and Marshall rule everything....

This is an "What you see is what you get" amp - Controls in front, standard marshall style. Two Channels drive channel has a +20db Boost stage , there is an reverb tank, and effect loop. Marshall gives a foot controller for channelswitching

Basically, buying this amp - knowing why you buy it, and what you want from it there should not be more features. It is an basic tube amplifier with a classic technical design.

Want other stuff, with more "jalla" ? - buy the valvestate - good sound for less money (DSL 401 is not cheap)

Due to the thermal stuff undernath I would like to see air holes on top to let the heat escape better...

I bought this brand new - so it took some hrs to "Burn in" the tubes (EL84) And that doesn't take too long time - it gets really hot. But the sound gets better the hotter the amp gets.

I Have tried with three differend guitars :

Gibson Les Paul WIth Burstbucker II pickups:

You get everything from classic Zeppelin, AC/DC Guns and Roses (Slash style) Allmann Brothers rock style sounds - from tne OD1 Channel - Dont need the OD2 unless you want real gainy lead stuff.


Epiphone ES335

Get the classic Jazz styles, and the "allmost distorted" blues stuff like BB King etc this is very good - Get allmost the same rock sound as les paul, but the ES is a little brighter in itself.

Fender Strat with Texas Specials

Sounds like a "texas" strat with this amp. Also very nice Country Twang - with a little "break" on the clean channel.


All in all this amp sounds great. However I dont think I would play Heavy metal with this amp - but that is not of any interest for me either...

Dont know - it is all new - with a warranty. But my other marshalls have been OK for 20 years or more - tubes blow sometimes - but its an valve amp yoy know

Give 10 because of preivous marshalls have never been bad

Warranty is OK

Repairs is OK, done by my own or guitar tech.

But Marshall is hard to get on e-mail, you have to call them, but in Europe that is OK -

I played for 30 years in various settings, I Own a Marshall Rack and some guitars + some stompboxes.

If someone stole it, I would get a nother, the will still be made for a while I guess. But if it gets stolen in 20 years, I'd proably be too old to catch the bastard stealing it..

I compared this to Peavey Classic, Peavey Valve King, and Vox AC30CC2 - I chosed this one because it doesnt weigh a ton (my rack does...) and I feel familiar with Marshall and how to crank them and tune them to "my sound". THe others are very nice too.

I WIsh it had tremolo like the AC30 - but I use a BOSS TR-2 who does the job very well - so it doesnt bother me.

This is an amp yuo can plug right in to, and get the right sound at once. I think it will be better as I use it. Only had it for some weeks, but have gigged, rehearsed and "explored" it a lot, and I have already a better rig (Marshalll rack : JMP-1 & 9200 Mono Block on 2x1922 cabinets with an BOSS GE215 EQ, and an ALesis Qadraverb II in the loop) but this is my "backup" and "small gig" amp. ANd I look forward to use it

I have had this amp for about eight months. Made in 2005. Featurewise I first liked the cruch channel with higher gain, and did not like the clean and the red chanels, and the fx loop. Later I started to like to clean channel a lot (with adjustable gain), and the yellow (cruch) channel with touch of gain. Also, I grew to like the fx loop as well, it's really designed to sound well with time based fxs, like a reverb. I don't care much for the red channel. I can't think of any further features that I would really need. I take one point off, because the fx loop (as well as the built in reverb) is too much weaker on the clean ch compared to the drive channels.

It takes a while to get the hang of this amp. First I too felt bad about the fx loop, the too big volume difference between the yellow and red channels, and a weak clean channel. Then, I discovered the clean channel, it has a really nice sound with the neck pickup, and as you go up with the gain, each twist up gives another sound. At about 2-3, and 5 are my two favourite spots. One problem is that the fx loop is weaker on the clean channel, but I solve that by using a Digitech multiFX processor (only for the reverbs) in the loop, and I have a softer and a stronger reverb setting ready, for the od and clean chs.

The sound makes me want to play the amp again and again, the dynamics is beautiful, and dhe cruch is soo sweet. The only weakness in terms of sound is the built in reverb, it sounds week and tinny, or boingy, I don't know how to put it. The spring reverb in my Tech21 Trademark10 (also accutronics) is way nicer.

I don't really like the red channel. The way to think about it is that (if you turn the gain to about 1) it picks up where yellow channel stops with the gain at 10. If you use it that way, there are no volume difference probelms (though you have to adjust the gain). Anywhere above 3 with the gain on the red channel is way too fizzy, noisy. And I have relatively low output humbuckers (super 58's in an Ibanez Artist)

The direct out is far poorer than the mic-ed sound of the amp (too buzzy, harsh), but that I guess is generally true for all amps.

All in all, if you have a way to footswitch reverbs in the fx loop with varyous levels, it's easy to have beutiful clean and dirty sounds footswitchable.

No probelms yet (although I was conscous to get one made after 2003 as others recommended on this forum - thanks).

no idea, got it used.

I like the stories people make up about what they would do to someone who stole the amp. Well, if the thief ran away with the amp qiuck anough (about 45 pounds) I wouldn't bother trying to fight that guy.

Not my amp, a friends'. Made 2000-2003. This amp is versatile, but it doesn't completely satisfy with the clean or overdrive. It's nice that there's two overdrives, good for kicking into a nice solo.
The amp has more than enough power for a garage(with a drummer and bassist). I don't mind the ok cleans, but the overdrive could be better.

I play a Gibson Les Paul with Burstbuckers, and it suits my music styles just fine. It suits it, but could have gotten the job better! Sounds from Allman Bros. to Sabbath. The clean stays pretty clean the whole way through the volume range. The distortion can get pretty dirty, but not dirtier than Sabbath, for example. The distortion has a certain quality that I do not like, maybe it is the el-84s.

It hasn't broken on my friend, but the tubes are starting to sound weaker.

n/a

I've been playing for two years, but I don't mean to brag I have a good ear. I play through a Rivera Chubster, which I bought used for $670. (goes 1300+ new) The Rivera is by far superior, and I would recommend people to save up or wait for a good deal on a Rivera, because although this amp gets the job done and is good compared to Solid State, it leaves something to be desired. I didn't expect it to be a plexi in a box, but still... :(

This is not my amp, it belongs to my girlfriend's father, and I generally use it playing in his band filling both lead and rhythm duties on 3rd guitar.

The DSL401 is a fairly compact 1x12 combo rated at 40W that uses 4x12AX7/ECC83s and 4xEL84s in - as far as I can gather from the schematic and what Marshall say the amp ISN'T in their manual - Class AB mode. It uses a solid state recifier and there are op amps and transistors used in the reverb, FX loop and switching control sections.

It has 2 fairly independent (separate EQs) channels, with footswitchable (included) overdrive voices (basically crunch and lead), global spring reverb (optionally footswitchable), global FX loop and master volume. It has a DI out but no headphone out, but does have selectable 8/16ohm speaker out settings.

Basically it is a very well rounded amp that does everything you'd expect a proper amp to have, without all the extra stuff you probably won't use. Footswitchable FX loop would be useful but you can just control your pedalboard instead. Bit of a shame they left the reverb switch off the otherwise very nice included footswitch.

Everything's nicely laid out and it only takes seconds to figure out how to drive this amp, which can't be said for all amps certainly. It's also not too weightly, which is important because we have to cart the band's gear around a lot.

I have a standard Fender Mexican Telecaster and have used this amp extensively with a late 90s PRS Custom 22, but most of the time it is played through a.... Fender Squier Strat!

And my word, it sounds flippin' awesome through this amp!

In this band we play classic blues and early rock staples - think songs that have been covered by so many people you don't know who did the original! We also squeeze in some Elvis, Clapton and Creedence, amongst others. So I'm usually using a fairly clean tone just on the verge of overdriving, using the guitar's vol control to give me more dirt for leads.

In this roll, the 401 works brilliantly. It has a lovely chimey sound and the lower output fits this band very well. The other two guitarists both use Fender amps (Hot Rod Deville 2x12 and Reissue Blues Deluxe) which are simply too loud (I'm also the band's sound man). Naturally, they both complain they can't get that "just breaking up" tone at low volumes. The 401 has no such issue.

The overdrive channel sounds great though I rarely use OD2, it has a nice cremy lead tone but in this band there is rarely a need for it. The reverb isn't the typical Fenderish "spank" but it adds a nice depth.

Very little hiss through the amp too. Bottom word, it sounds great! Ironically, the other guy in the band who sold it to its new owner (who is the drummer, btw) really regrets selling it and getting a DSL half stack.

Not mine but as far as I know, it hasn't had any problems. We don't back the amp up with anything (already enough guitarists) at gigs. Will probably need a retube and rebias at some point but otherwise totally troublefree.

Other than getting the user manual off their website, no involvement.

I've been playing for about 13 years, and play a lot of different styles of music. I've been lucky enough to play a lot of really really nice guitars through really really nice amps and to be honest, the sound of this amp through any guitar is very very surprising. It sounds fantastic! For what we do in our band, it is simple to use, gets the right tones at the right volume and doesn't weigh a tonne (have you ever picked up a DeVille 2x12"? it weighs more than our loaded 14U mixer rack!). For the price, it is insanely great. I'm building my own tube amp now, but if another came up around the price, I'd probably buy it.

Very impressive.

Made in 1999. In good shape

I would prefer the option of making the effects loop series rather than parallel. It is a little limiting, but the fact that you can crank the effects send volume up loud enough makes up for it. I would prefer a single footswitch for channel-switching & reverb.

I use a Les Paul Standard SL. I play Claptonish blues and rock.

It took some doing, but this amp now sounds fantastic. I replaced the tubes and biased them. One thing I learned is that you cannot try this amp out in the store out of the box and know how it sounds. You can get the Marshall sound out of this amp. but you have to let the tubes burn in at least 3 hours, and it has to be set up correctly.

I just got through the entire process of re-tubing my Marshall DSL 401. Here is what I found after a lot of research and trial & error.

First of all, the amp takes EL84s for the power section, but many brands of that tube will not fit. One brand that does fit is JJs. They slide in very easily.

To get them in you must take the whole electronics section out of the amplifier - don't try to push them in without seeing the sockets, you can really mess up the pins.

Once you get the tubes in - you MUST re-set the bias. You can do this yourself but be SURE to read up on how to do it, and get the correct tools. You need a DVM and SMALL alligator clips.

Here is the recommended procedure from Marshall:

Here's the Marshall Service Bulletin on biasing the JCM2000 series amps:

Procedure:
1. Make sure the amp is connected to a load with the proper impedance selected.
2. Power up amp on Standby, and let the circuit stabilize for a couple of minutes.
3. Locate the male three pin molex connector (CON2) with the two mini pots (PR1 and PR2) (located on each side of the molex connector) on both ends found at the bottom of tube bay.
4. Connect DMM (set to read mV) with alligator leads, reference common lead to center pin (pin2) on molex connector CON2 and positive lead to pin1 on CON2.
5. Take amp off Standby with no signal, adjust mini-pot (PR1) closest to pin that the positive lead from your DMM is connected to and set it to mV voltage that is listed below.
6. Repeat steps 4 & 5 for pin3 mV and until pin1 & pin3 mV readings are the same.

Bias Settings:
DSL50 45 mV TSL 601&602 80 mV
DSL100 90 mV DSL 401 1.375V
TSL100/122 90mV DSL201 .675V

Note that it says the correct setting for the 401 is 1.375 v.

I strongly recommend going lower. I got this from another message board, an experienced tech had done many of these amps and he noted that first of all that setting is above the tubes suggested range (will burn up the tube faster) but more important, the amp simply sounds better when it is biased lower. He suggested about .7 v.

I did a listening test, first at the recommended voltage and then at the lower voltage. With the JJs I installed all around, I found I could only bias as low as .84 v.

Without a doubt, on my amp the overall sound was better at this lower voltage. At the highwe voltage I got a cleaner, truer guitar sound, especially on the cle3an channel. But that isn't why we buy Marshalls, am I right? I wanted that biting lead, sustain for years sound. The lower bias setting got that.

I did notice a little more not-pleasant saturation at that setting, (THD?) so I tried to raise it a little to see if I could get rid of it but keep the tone. No, I went up to .9v but I lost the tone and still had the saturation, so I went back down on the bias.

While I was in there, I also replaced the black 16-ohm Celestion with a vintage 30 (8-ohm). If you do this, be sure to change the switch on the back of the amp to 8 ohm.

My 401 now sounds great. I was definitely worth the trouble.

Here is another tip. If your reverb sounds weak open up the amp and make sure it is plugged in correctly (red plug to red socket). Mine was backwards and it did not sound good, but by fixing that I now have plenty of reverb even on the dirty setting.

The amp now rocks.

Well, it started acting strange so I decided to re-tube it. It is not easy to work on. Be sure to buy replacement tubes that fit. Other than that - yes it gets hot, but I have no problems with solder parts. I have just installed a fan and will probably use it. If you buy a fan, get the large one.

All I have to say is under "sounds" - this amp can really rock, but you have to baby it a little. If you are afraid to work on it take it to a tech. Ask him if he can bias it as you listen to what he is doing. Get the sound you want.

For what I do, which is playing a combination of light rock, funk, pop and reggae, this amp is perfect. There are no built in effects apart from the reverb, but that suits me just fine as I don't use 'em. The footswitchable channels work a treat and the amp is LOUD on the overdriven channels!

I play two Epiphone Les Pauls (not at the same time - still working on that trick!) and it's damned near impossible to get a totally clean sound at high volumes - I've experimented with rolling the guitar volumes right down, and this can produce some quite fat cleanish tones. I play rhythm with the gain on 5 on the clean channel (just starting to crunch up when you strum hard) and then switch to the overdrive with gain on 10 and vol about 7 to get the perfect soloing sound. I have the EQ pretty flat on the clean channel, but lift the top a bit on the od. If I were playing a Strat or other single coil guitar I'd probably roll the top off a little, the other way, and maybe the bottom up. This amp suits me well as I never go for totally clean sounds, and when everythings turned up the sound is penetrating, dynamic and fat, in equal proportions.

I bought the amp new in November 2004 and have gigged it regularly ever since. One of the El84s has just started to develop a bit of a rattle, but they're inexpensive and easily replaced (the back cover simply unscrews, and the valves drop out once you remove a little metal cage under them). I use the amp all the time with no back up.
Note - this is a valve amp - you need to let it warm up a bit before you crank it!

Never had to deal with em, but you get a 3 year warranty, and a nice letter from Jim Marshall!

Fantastic little combo for the money, looks good, sounds good, fairly portable and reliable. If you want a bright, clean sound buy a VOX or Hot Rod, but if you want authentic Marshall tone at a good price with a beatifully driven valve tone at sensible volumes levels, this gonna be ya baby!

40W, 2 Channels with lead boost, fx loop, reverb, footswitchable channel, boost and reverb with seperate pedal.

4xEL84 4X12AX7 ALL TUBE except rectifier - printed circuit board

I wish it had footswitchable Tremolo - then it would be a 10

Amp will do Country/Jazz thru Thrash Metal - Great Amp for the Money - Very versatile. Don't be afraid of Marshall clean. Just use your guitar volume and get great clean sounds with any guitar!

I play all types of music with it on all types of guitars...American LP's, Strats, Teles, PRS's, Carvin's - even Taylor acoustic!

This Amp does any sound you want! - just dial it in for a type of music or a certain guitar and you're there. - Marshall distortion Rocks!

All Marshalls I have ever used are very reliable.
I would never gig with only one amp without spare fuses and tubes.

Amp got very hot - I installed a small $8 fan in back and tied it to the power switch to pull heat away - works great - now stays warm without overheating. Has never broke down in 3 years except one blown fuse.

not contacted them

Great Amp for Live or Practice! - 40W perfect for cranking up and pushing the power tubes - Great overall machine for the money.
Tremolo circuit would be nice.

Best overall amp I have used for many types of music.
it's a 9!

I would give this a 10 but for the lack of a footswitch jack for the effects loop and the fact that the channel 2 boost is not loud enough to really lift your solos. I use the amp on channel 2 boost all the time and lift the volume with a Morley volume pedal. Many amps have loads of built in effects. I prefer the sound of the amp with just a bit of echo and reverb. That's all you really need isn't it?

I just had to replace the crap speaker that Marshall put in this otherwise superb combo. The stock speaker does not have enough bottom end and also somehow stops the amp from sustaining properly on solos. I have now installed a 16 OHM Celestion G12T-75. The sound is now simply awesome for a small combo. This amp (with the right speaker)can give you any sound you want from REM/Audioslave clean to really overdriven 70s metal.

I do not understand why Marshall install these cheap speakers in their combos. The G12T-75s are what they put in their extension cabs so why not in their combos for Christ's sake. They only cost #43 retail. Marshall - you really should do something about this because your amplifiers are just soooo good!

Only had it for 3 months. Reliable so far. I gig with this regularly with no back up.

NA

Once I had replaced the speaker the sound was superb. You can really get that Marshall stack sound without breaking your back or your wallet.

I have now built a cab the same size as the 401 and fitted it with another G12T-75. I use this and the internal speaker together and they sound fantastic. The fact that you can connect a second speaker is a real plus and gives so much more flexibility. I can use the second cab to spread the sound either side of the stage or as a monitor. (Warning - do not use an 8 OHM speaker plugged in at the same time as the internal 16 OHM speaker. You will damage your amp).

If this amp were stolen I would definately replace it with another one. This amp rocks. Accept nothing other than Marshall - they know what they are doing (apart from their choice of stock speaker - moan, moan). I REALLY LOVE THIS AMP. BUT ONE. NOW!

I am writing this after having this amp for about 8 years, so Ive got a pretty good idea of it.
Loud enough for small gigs, clean channel can't keep up with OD1/2 though in terms of volume if you want to keep it dead clean. This is what youd expect though from a valve amp. I use this amp for practising with my band and gigging, no problem in terms of volume.
Has all the features you need, though would be nice to have a 3rd eq'd channel for solos.

I use this amp for what it was built for - ROCK baby! DO NOT judge this amp at low volumes, distortion can sound a bit $%^&, but when you crank it up it sounds sweeeeeeeet! Very noiseless (unless tubes are wearing out). As i mentioned, with clean channel gain past about 4 on decent volumes, it will distort. So you cant go rockin out with disortion on gain 10 vol 10 then expect to jump back to a nice clean sound at similar ear-splitting volumes. Ain't gonna happen. Though this can be a good thing as you can use the clean channel as an extra distortion channel, specially with a stompbox. Overall though has a freaking great sound!

No problems, had to replace preamp tubes after about 6 years of use, which is pretty good usage. Apart from that, nada de nada.

ooookay, but i emailed them once re replacing tubes, and they told me not to be messing around and take it to a qualified techician, which is a bit of a piss take, as all you have to do to replace tubes is literally unplug one set and plug in another (I found out afterwards). On the other hand, i guess they have to cover their backs as there are some decent voltages lurking around in amps!

Been playing 10 years, this amp is the mutt's nuts. Not the loudest beast in the jungle, i mean if you want an amp for massive gigs go look for the dsl100 or tsl100 and get a stack. If you want an amp that produces wicked tones at reasonable volumes, and doesn't bust your suspension when loading into a car, this bad boy is just the ticket. Only problem is it's smaller (than stacks etc) size can make the ignorant bystander believe that you posess a cheap and crap amp. Remedy this by angling it into his unsuspecting ear, cranking it to 11 and busting out a few of the evilest licks in your reportoire. That'll shut the twat up.

This is a follow up after having this amp for over a year. I have previously had amps from Mesa Boogie, Line 6, Peavey XXX, and several effects processors that I used through a power amp. I was always quickly dissatisfied with all my amp set ups. After over a year I still love the sound of my DSL 401. I honestly don't think I could find something I would like better. I gig with it 1-2 times a week and have never had a problem. I did install a cooling fan from radio shack (blows air out from cab) when I bought the amp based on things I had read. With the fan, the amp is barely even warm to the touch after 4 hours of use.

This has a pretty standard Marshall set-up; Clean channel w/ gain and independent equalizing options, Dirty channel has gain and volume and goes from crinch to OD. There is a master volume, reverb and effects mix. This is an all tube amp (40 watts- loud!) and as such will not offer some of the options of a solid state amp. It does have a line out for mixing and can easily drive a cabinet if the situation requires. I give the options a 9 only because I would have liked an independent volume for the clean channel.

I play through an American Deluxe Strat (1999) and a Schecter C-1 Classic. This is my first Marshall although I have owned and played through many other great quality amps (Fender Deville 212, Peavey classic 30, Genz Benz El Diablo 60, Fender Twin, etc.). I have never really wanted to own a Marshall. I thought it didn't match my sound. After trying this amp out, I have decided that I was wrong. I love the clean on this amp!! Outstanding. Unlike other reviewers, I could not get the clean channel to distort at any volume.

The OD is very impressive. I have read some of the other reviews and my advice is "Don;t buy this map if you are looking for a rectifier, or modeling type amp!". This is a Marshall and as such SOUNDS like a Marshall. It sounds great! However it sounds like a great Marshall. I feel like it may be getting a bad rap from some of the reviewers who have complained that they can't get a differnt sound from it. If I had read the reviews, I probably wouldn't have bought it. Man, am I glad I didn't research this amp and tried it out on a fluke.

NA - It looks like it is built like a tank! However, I will get a road case for transport as I do with any amp of considerable investment.

NA - Met Jim Marshall at a NAMM show in 2001. Seemed like a great guy and I would think if Marshall didn't stand behind their gear, I would have heard about it by now.

This is a BIG Marshall sound in a very portable package. I bought this to use on smaller gigs as an option from my Genz Benz El Diablo 60. The Genz weighs in at 75lbs. with a speaker upgrade. The Marshall weighs in at 42lbs. I thought I would "compromise" my sound and trade the portability. However, I am finding myself playing the Marshall almost exclusively. This was a great purchase!! If lost or stolen, I would have to try another all tube Marshall, but would probably come back to the 401 DSL just because of the size and weight. It packs a great punch and would hold its own pound for pound with any amp on the market

good for rock light metal- like led zep, black sabbath and the who type of music. i use all the features - reverb, cleab, distortion , od1 and od2. i wudnt want anything else put in2 it. using loads of effects covers up the quality of sound you get from it.

so dam good - the louder you play the nicer it sounds because it makes the valves sing more. distortion good for rock and light metal. not good 4 death metal- not that any1 would want to insult the quality of marshall by playing death metal through such a class amp

because of the nature of the valves you have to treat the amp with respect. it isnt like a transister were u can throw it downstairs and it wont break. u have to respect it but dont worship it too much if u understand what im saying. i would gig with it. it blasts out a mammoth sound and can easily cope with a live drum kit, in fact u might want to keep the volume down, it mite be a low powered amp but it can drown out a drum kit easy!

the shop i bought it from gave me a years shop warranty then marshall gave me 3 years warranty and also i year warranty for the valves.

i have been pkayin 7 years. i own a gould les paul shape. lovely guitar and it plays better than a fender strat in myy opinion. if it was stoen i would get the same amp maybe a 60w version though. i love everything about it i hate nothing. i was gonna get a transister but it didnt have the clarity of sound that the jcm does. the extra #250 was worth it a mile.

Excellent amp for all typs of playing .Dont let the size fool you , I run a 4/12 cab and the sound is so sweet. You can get almost anything from classical to blues to metal, I play all of those , so this amp is my dream come true . I have the 100 watt heads , and this amp can keep up very well. The quality and workman ship is there and shows. The EL84's are great I love the tight fat sound you get , I use GT 4's , the sound is incredible! If you have not pluged into a 4/12 with this amp you just dont know what this amp can do. I've used mesa's like the rocket 44 is very close to this amp.I would trade the mesa for the marshall any day.Mine is like new mint ! I payed 490.00 shipped off ebay and it was well worth it !I got a screaming deal! I would pay the 1000.00 If i had to, its worth every penny. The reverb does not suck ,Its warm and brings a great sound to your ears. You have to have a 4/12 hooked up to hear the true sound of this amp. The 1/12 is great,but the 4/12 brings out the true sound. Clanell 1 gives you the best clean marshall sound I have ever heard(I've had tons of marshall mesa amps). You get this fender vibe from it . The od1 is nice and bluesy, then kick in the od2 and start playing arpegieos roll off your tone cut back on the volume and you get a a sweet solo to die for. This amp is a 10 all the way in my book for $490.00 what I payed .If your looking for the high quality go with this amp its affordable and made to play.

I play 2 USA Jacksons a USA kelly ke-2 black flametop 2 hum and USA Jackson SL1 with EMG's , 100 watt JCM900 4100 6l6 dual reverb. Boss efx.
All my stuff makes this amp sing like a bird.

I have never had any problems 100 % reliable !

Manuals are not to good in my opinion , but the quality of the amp is !

100 % well worth the price , I would buy it for 1000.00+

Amp's made in 2001 A.D
What a coincidence, its has 4 12AX7s and 4 EL84s. All small tubes, needless to say, it won't sound like one with EL34s or 6L6s.
It has all an amp should have, the older JCM comes with "Presense" knob which enhances the sound. I think there is a need for that. The reverb sucks, as many would agree.

It gives a warm tone/sound/resonance whatever for the clean.
Its best suitable for ROCK and Blues, if you like Gary Moore kindda blues, this amp is for you. Otherwise go get a JCM 800. Apart from that, the Clean distorts at 4 onwards, too early to distort I should say. Prolly 6 onwards would be better.

I use an Xtreme pedal for this amp, the stock distortion doesn't sound good to me, you gotta crank up at high vol even so, it still gives a crunchy sound which I don't fancy in my playing. So as what some people would do, just mod a DS-1 and plug it in. Forget about the stock distortion

I bought this amp used, in 2005. The previous owner took really good care of it and had the tubes replaced to its own original tubes. He also added a heat sinker to absorb the heat. So far the longest I played on the amp is about 3 hrs and it get hots but not too hot until the transistors fall out. Its alright.

Never needed them.
Its outta warranty since its more than a year old

As i mentioned, i bought it used.
The original price was twice the amount I paid for this baby. Its overpriced as many would say in the previous reviews, I agree 100%.
My only regret is that I never sourced out for vintage amps like the JCM 800 or 900, which they still are available somewhere out there, more reliable and better sounding.

If I had this amp stolen or spoilt beyond repair, I'll beg, borrow or steal to replace it. I never gig with this amp before and am going to do so this Christmas. Whatever the case is, its still a Marshall and made in the UK.