Marshall JCM-2000 TSL 100

The amp was made in 2003, I purchased it in Koln.
It's versatile enough for me and me styles which go from Blues over Rock to Hardrock, so I actually need 3 sounds: Clean, Crunch and Lead and that's why this amp does the job for me perfectly.
I don't want to tell you the features for the thousands time, it's a 3channel tube amp with 4 x EL 34 in the power amplifier.

I own an American Stratocaster and a Les Paul Standard, the most different guitars I could test the amp with.

At first the amp isn't noisier than other tube amps I've tested.
The versatility is great although you can't expect the Tsl100 to sound like a Mesa or a Fender (and Marshall) in one amp. It will always sound like marshall, the clean channel may be excluded of this because it's new for a Marshall tube amp to be undistortable like this.

My amp has not ever broken yet but I consider changing the tubes to prevent myself from the embarrassing situation of a broken amp on stage O.o .
The footswitch is said to be very very cheaply made but it hasn't happen anything to it, this may be due to my very careful treatment.

I've been playing guitar for 7 years now, I own two basses, and two acoustic guitars.
If it were stolen I would knock the bastard in his face and purchase a new one.
I love the amp's ability to stay clean at high volumes, that's why I didn't buy the tsl60, although I would have had more of this tube saturation then.
I wish its xlr output would be a little more balanced but I I'm gonna mike it so I actually don't care.

You know the features, 3 channels, clean, crunch and lead, deep boost switch, mid scoop... etc.

This amp sound awesome. I have played many different amps over the years. If you want that perfect JCM800 or Plexi sound, go buy one and dont waste our time in this group dribbling about how this amp dosn't sound this way or that way.

This amp can produce a very wide variety of tones. Marshall has really improved the clean channel over previous amps. The crunch and lead channels will yield that signature Marshall sound.

I use a Les Paul and a 1960 AV 4x12. The rig roars!!! I have no negative statements about the sound.

I agree that placing the footswitch jack on the circuit board was a really stupid move on Marshalls part. The footswitch gets so many connects and disconnects it is easy to see how the solder joints would crack or worse, the board traces could pull off. I am not personnally too worried because I can fix guitar amps. I suggest being very careful when connecting and dis-connecting the footswitch. I also suggest some sort of strain relief on the cable behind the amp to reduce tension on the jack.

So far I have had no problems though. I baby this rig but a touring band cannot do that to all thier equipment. Don't let any amp techs sell you a bias adjustment as this is very easy for anyone to do. Cudos to Marshall for that.

My amp dosn't seem to over heat either. Its a 2005 model so maybe some of the other issues have been corrected.

Since I have no problems but because of the stupid decision by some manager or engineers at Marshall to place the jack on the circuit board, I will give it an 8.

There are several Marshall amp repair houses in my area that I can take it to if broken. Havn't had to deal with customer support but the fact we have to go thru Korg USA for anything makes me a bit un-comfortable.

I am very happy with this amp. IT ROCKS!!! It produces a wide variety of great tones. The cleans are outstanding and don't break up as early as previous amp models. The crunch and lead channels are awesome. Lots of sustain and harmonic content with the right eq settings.

Don't expect an exact JCM800 or Plexi tone. Its not a JCM800 or Plexi (Duh). If you want to nail those tones exactly then go buy one with the cab and effect pedals that your favorite musicians use. Thats how you get thier sound. But then don't complain about not having reverb, channel switching and the other goodies that this amp has.

Because of the stupid footswitch mounting and the lousy manual I can't give it a 10. For the money they charge they could at least provide a professional manual (Mesa does). Marshall, when you charge so much money you could at least provide a more professional manual in English.

However because of the tone and versitility and because I have not had problems, I give it a 9 overall.

I believe mine was a couple years old. 2 effects loops-but really cut the signal down. 100 el-34 watts - but it didnt feel like 100 watts.

I use my stock 81 Les Paul standard to test ALL my amps. The clean was ok... Not crystal clear but alot better than I got out of my JCM 900 4100 series. the 2nd channel (where I kept it the most) would get good and distorted but didnt have alot of punch. And the 3rd channel (I used for leads) had all the sizzle you could ever want but lost even MORE punch than number 2. Overall I was disappointed with what I was lead to believe was the "BIG DAWG" of Marshall amps. Wasnt a real noisey amp but I got ALOT better tones out of a little solid state fender I had in the corner.

Heres where it REALLY sucked. Had the footswitch problem that alot of them seem to have. Cost me over 100 bucks just to get the HEAD itself repaired PLUS the cost of a new footswitch which caused the internal switching components of the head to short out when the cheap made cable on the switch went bad. Its not a matter of IF.... its a matter of when. Plus you have to be easy plugging it in because of the crappy board mounted ONLY jack that it has. And then there is the HEAT issue... this is the HOTTEST amp I have EVER seen. Ive played for over 20 years so I know ohm loads and the importance of GREAT cables but this sucker was running temps that would scare you.

Didnt deal with them because I bought it used.

I have been playing for over 20 years. I like to rock hard and I thought that this was the amp for the future. But it wasnt. I have had 7 or 8 Marshalls over the years and never really liked any of them. So maybe I just aint a Marshall guy. I used a Carvin X100B for over 10 years and thought I needed a change. I Think the Carvin SMOKES it. I have moved on to a Mesa combo (Maverick 2-12) And I am FINALLY happy.

3 channel all valve 100 watts etc.

I already own a TSL60 & that impressed me to go the whole hog & buy the TSL100.

Its versatile & my only let down is the FX loop. The TSL60 has one loop that works fine. The TSL100 has 2, one for clean one for dirty.You can use loop 1 for both, but When you use delay on the dirty sound. It seems to sound less organic & more artificial. Did'nt like that & can't imagine anyone would use it.

Ideally I would have liked a TSL60 with the seperate EQ for each channel, but they don't make one. So we've got the 100.

Channel one is fuller bodied than the TSL60 & the mid boost really livened up my sound.

Channel 2 was similar to the TSL-60, basically a JCM800 high gain sound.

Channel 3 was a bit Fizzy. But on my TSL60 I would run the master volume on 10 & control the sound with the gains/channel volumes. So really I was driving the power amp to get my distortion. I think channel 3 is probably fine, but I may need a powerbreak so I can drive the amp harder to Get the tone I want. VPR is Ok for the bedroom.

Features wise this is as complex as I'd ever get.

I'm playing Gibson Les Pauls, SG Standards & Yamaha SG's. so basically 2 humbuckers on a mahogany neck/body.

Musically I play in a modern alternative Rock band, so I need crystalline Clean to heavy Bollocks. I find by using an overdrive like the Boss SD-1 with the 2 Crunch/lead channels I can go from trad blues to Deftones style Gain with ease.An amp like this is always about compromise. Sure a Jubilee 25/50 may have a lovely pure tone, but it aint footswitchable & the FX loop is pants.

On the 60 I would back off the gain to 6, keep the channel volume on 5 & the master on 10. This amp needs a powerbreak so you can run it hard. On big stages you'll probably be Ok. Keep the midrange up.

If you wanna be in Slipknot maybe this is'nt for you. But I'm quite happy with the JCM2000's tonal range.

I've had footswitch issues with my TSL60, so I know its a design issue with the switch. However the 5 way switch is really cheap in the Uk, about #30.00 a pop. So its a small irritation.

I gig my TSL60 regulaly without backup. So I shall do the same here.

The amp itself is solid & well made.

The warranty is 3 years excluding Valves/ Fuses.

I've had footswitch issues, but Marshall have always been fine.They've arranged local dealers to handle me wherever I've been so I'm pretty happy.

I've been playing 23 years. I've owned lots of Marshalls & the only other amps I've owned were a Crate & a Laney both awful.

I have already owned a TSL-60 & in some ways thats a better amp regarding the FX loop. But this delivers the goods.

I'm pretty sold on the Marshall Sound & want 3 channels. The only other amp I would have considered is the Hughes & Kettner Triamp. But there like #500 more in the UK. So this will do for the future.

1999 model w/1960 cab

First off, let me say that for those giving a bad review, I can only conclude 1 of the following;

(a) you dont like the modern or vintage Marshall tone
(b) your bias is off / bad speaker(cab) matching
(c) your an idiot

now, lets move on.......

For a Marshall, this puppy is loaded with cool features. Everyone seems to be opting for the 3 channel head and Marshall has outdone therselves here. I've owned this amp for 6 years and I cant imagine life without it. I dig the VPR switch for warm-ups and bedroom volume practice(I can acually crank past 1.5). With this & the deep switch engaged, it really sounds more like a full cranked Marshall at low volumes. Yes, I hear you morons; its not perfect but still a huge step forward for Marshall. I also like the dual effect loops as it makes life much simpler. The whole thing really does sound like 3 seperate amps instead of 3 different gain stages. The seperate eq's are also a must for me as I like a mid boost for my solos (take note here, you will cut through better live without over cranking & mudding up the mix!).

Simply put, if you dig the Marshall tone this amp will fulfill you every tonal desire. It gives you every vintage Marshall sound w/ new modern tones as well. I play a Gibson LP standard (stock pickups) into a 535q wah strait into the Marshall. My sound is a mixture of Metallica, Slash, Hendrix and grunge. I also play a lot of blues ranging from BB King to ZZ Top. With minimal tweakage, you will have killer tones of Zepplin, AC/DC, Randy Rhodes, Pearl Jam and pretty much any rock sounds from 60's to modern day rock/metal. (Papa Roach, Stained, ect.) Dont beleive the crap about this amp not being heavy enough; most of these tone deaf morons are stomp box queens.(or even worse a korn-slipnot wanna be/never will be guitarist)

Ok, lets break it down:

The clean channel really is a big step forward for Marshall. Cranking the gain brings you to thedge of breakup. With the mid boost active, it really does sound more like a fender (with a slight gain boost). the eq seems more pronunced than older Marshalls I have heard. Try removing all the mids then sweeping the highs from 5-8 and it sounds like a wah. Nice job guys :)

The crunch channel is where I pump out most of my rythm stuff. This channel has growl, crunch & more bass than the lead channel (perfect for distorted rythems). A bit more gain would be nice but you only notice this with the mids scooped for true metal. With the mids, the distortion seems plentiful. This is also a great channel for blues work as well. Lower gain settings produce nice gritty/ bluesy overdrive witch really sweetens up with the volume cranked.

The lead channel is where things truly become majical. Being mostly a lead player, this channel has no peer (at least in this price range). The distortion is SOOOOOOOOOOO completly saturated but yet retaines total clarity on every note. No matter how fast you play there is no blurr whatsoever; each note cuts through with ease. Mesa & 5150s seem to get buzzy when you crank the gain,but not here!! There's more distortion than you would ever need. With mid-scoop & deep switch engaged, you can get killer metal tones as well.(Dimebag, ect.)

I hate to beat a dead horse but FUCK the footswitch. Come on guys, you charge me 1400 then give out this cheap piece of shit?!!! Not only is the switch crap but its input jack is not bolted down to the chassis!!! Its simply soldered on to the board with no bracing at all!!! Each time you unplug the switch, your pulling it off the board and loosing the already shitty connection. I find it hard to beleive that this is accidental (fuck u too Jim). My advice is to find a tech who will fix this problem as soon as possible. Oh, by the way, biasing this amp is a breeze. Dont let techs lie to you about this; all you need is a $30 multimeter from radio shack. Just hook it up to the 3 prongs under the power tubes (middle is ground :)) and tune each side to 90mv. Again, dont let techs lie to you about this: a 3 year old could do this and the amp will need check often (even fresh out of the box). Outside of the footswich problems the amp has not given me any trouble. P.S. if you need help biasing, e-mail me at ecmccane@ yahoo.com (your welcome)

If u dont live in England, your fucked.

My sound and tone has really developed with this amp (as well as my ear). Right now I cant see myself ever playing on somethig else. The footswich crap is worth the killer tone!! For the price, you cant get a better, more versitile tube amp. No disrespect Mesa, but this amp makes me sound like my guitar heros.

100watts, 3 channels (2 sounding the same) a crappy vpr switch which makes the sound even worse that it already is.

i use a eminar 100w tube head with a marshall cab and a prs tremonti. the distortions on it really didnt have any balls to it or versatility, all it could cover is blues or turn the gain up and crappy blues. i did like the reverb however. my korg "digital" ax1500g can create a better sounds for rock/metal, which is quite sad. it says it's 100w but damn its quiet - the marshall avt150h (solid state ooooh) was way louder in a gig. you really would have to mic the tsl if your gunna play live, unless you dont want to hear it's crap! (good choice)And as for it's 'tubeness', it's nothing compared to an old tube amp, like for say an old marshall mmm so nice. my eminar head tonally rips the tsl to shreds. i think people are getting sucked in coz of it's looks, rather purchasing it for tone.

dunno, i wouldnt rely on it coz ive heard countless ppl complain about the tsl in this department. disgrace to the marshall name. if i were to be silly enough to gig with this, i'd definetly bring a better backup amp, perhaps an ashton..

overall it sounds very thin and sterile, the distortions are pathetic. so what are you paying for? reverb and some shiny knobs? pure crap, not worth it at all. perhaps if it was 1 grand cheaper... and i lost my hearing maybe id think about using it. actually, nah. its a total let down to the marshall name, dont recommend it all.

This thing has every feature you would ever want-
Coolest feature is the VPR switch which allows you to get a great tone at lower volumes.

3 channels with independant vol/tone/gain controls
mid boost on clean, tone shift on crunch/lead channes
presence, fx mix, and reverb controls for clean and lead/crunch
power amp output mute and V.P.R. switches.
FX loops A/B various outs for cabs and cab emulated out.
4 el34 power tubes
4 ecc83 preamp tubes.
100 watt tube power

I use Gibson Les Pauls, with Duncan Alnico II's. I purchased this amp after returning the JSX. This thing can do everything. The Lead channel has a ton of gain, great for any type of metal. The deep switch is a fantastic feature-which gives you a more full sound. This amp has as much gain as a Mesa, and can go from classic rock to nu-metal. The crunch channel is like the lead channel just with less gain. The clean channel sounds great, reminded me of a Fedner, but fuller, and brighter. You can really crank up this amp and it only sounds better, and fatter, and with the VPR (GREAT FEATURE) it sounds just as good at lower levels.
This amp is great for any type of music from blues to nu-metal. I checked out alot of different amps, going back and forth between Mesa, JSX, ect.--I always was coming back to the TSL you just can't find that signature Marshall sound anywhere else.

I have had the amp for a few weeks and have not had any problems. This is my only amp-no backup, even at shows.
It seems very dependable.

5 year warranty. It was very easy to find an authorized service tech.

I have been searching for a great versatile amp for as long as I have been playing. I looked at Mesa, JSX, etc, all of them and I kept coming back to Marshall-its a great amp for the price. If you like the Marshall sound this is the amp for you. It will cover all types of music and personally for me gives me that great 80's metal sound which I was unable to duplicate with any other amp. If the amp was lost/stolen I would be right back at the store picking up another one.

If you love the classic Marshall sound, this is the amp for you-spend the money, you wont be sorry!

Three independent channels provide Fender-like clean, classic Marshall "crunch" or bluesy overdrive and a high gain channel that sounds like a highly driven tube amp rather than a buzzy solidstate amp or digital pedal.

Specific features have been covered many times over. If you like Marshall sound this amp provides all flavors.

Excellent sound for all modes. Each of the three channels also has several tonal features such as a mid-boost and presence control. It is fun to try various amp settings. This is a "hot rod" amp.

Cant say so far.

Havn't had to speak with customer support ... yet

An excellent amp, if you like Marshall tones. This is a very flexible amp also. Can provide very clean to insane overdrive. The crunch channel is especially noteworthy. However, this is a pricy amp.

Unbelievable featured for a tube amp!

All of the features are listed below so i wont go into them

One of the best amps i've ever owned! Remember this is 100 watts & wont be used to it's potential until you turn the thing UP!

I use this & an old JCM800 50w. For my style of music i play the TSL fits my bill perfectly. The clean is very clean & with the boost button engaged gets very fender like. The crunch channel sounds great when you have the volume up & the gain down - then slam the front end with a booster! love that stuff :)
The lead channel is like a hot-rodded Marshall, tonnes of gain - i found that i have to have the gain set quite low on this channel & turn the volume up to get the best out of this one

Make sure the one your trying out has the bias set correctly (Marshall amps tend to have them all over the place)

5 years old, no problems!

Never needed them, but the ones i know who look after the Marshall amps are very knowledgable people

Top amp!!

-3 channels with independant vol/tone/gain controls
-mid boost on clean, tone shift on crunch/lead channes
-presence, fx mix, and reverb controls for clean and lead/crunch
-power amp output mute and V.P.R. switches.
-FX loops A/B various outs for cabs and cab emulated out.
-4 el34 power tubes
-4 ecc83 preamp tubes.
-100 watt tube power

This belongs to a friend that I tech for and that brought the amp to me for repair/maintnence. He plays in a modern christian rock band that covers more sounds than anybody else I can think of. Maximum tonal versatility is a large concern to my frined and he uses every bit of it. I have lots of experience with this amp inside and out. The primary reason my friend bought this amp was the tonal versatility available with a 3 channel amp, and the price is $1000 less than anything else comparable. The only feature that we wish this amp had for live playing was a line level FX loop to run stomp box style FX. This amp offers tremendous bang for the buck.

We are using primarily a Gibson SG Supreme with 57 Classic pickups, Other frequent flyers are a '70s Antigua Tele with Vintage Noisless pickups, and a Jackson NTB Rhoads with Duncans.
This amp tends to sound a little thin and gravely comapred to other things. Alot of different sounds here, but they mostly are noticable in gain variations. There is often little tonal difference between channels and settings, just more or less gain. Covers lots of ground in this manner.
Mostly has your normal variety of modern marshall tones. Crunch and Slightly more Crunch. As a high gain amp this does not compete with others like: Mesa, Soldano, Bogner, Krank, H&k, ect. Does not have the tonal varitey of any of these other 3 channel amps either. If I was in a Maiden cover band this would be my amp.
The clean channel is decent, witch is a major shock coming from a Marshall.

Here's the fun part. As I said earlier the main reason that I am reviewing this amp is that I have spent a good deal of time with it, and as a pro tech specializing in tube amp repairs. That said this is the absolute worst amp I have ever had in the shop. I am the very fist person to preform any type of service to this amp at all. I pulled it apart because it was acting like it had a power capacitor failure. Typical, but not for a one year old amp. The first thing I noticed was that none of the wires connecting the circuit boards were soldered, but were plugged in. The plugs used here are very low quality and can easily be pulled out. This is where I found my problum, one of these plugs was disconnected. This type of modular construction tells me that Marshall built the cheaply expecting them to break and made it really easy to change out a complete circuit board. Even the wiring to the power transformers was not soldered. All of the wiring was of very small guage and is far smaller than anything I have used in even a cheap low power amp. The reverb tank is hooked up using one of the cheap RCA type cables that come standard with every piece of home stereo equipment that you have ever bought. We all know how long those last. The quality of the components on the curcuit boards was mid grade at best and the solder work on the circuit boards was very sloppy. Uses generic low quality tubes with the Marshall name on them. None of the part #s on the preamp tubes matched and looking at them I doubt that they all came from the same supplier. A fully matched set of JJ Audio tubes from Eurotubes fixed this descrepancy. One of the preamp tubes had a protector on it and the other three had little rubber edges around the chassis leaving the tube exposed. The plastic grilles above the tubes, yes I said plastic, show signe of heat damage, so I'm assuming that the protectors were left off at the factory cause these 3 tubes have a heat problum and that rather than remedy the issue Marshall left off some protectors and installed some budget grilles. The rear grille may have lots of little holes in it, but it does not have alot of open space for air to circualte. Speaking of cheap plastic parts the cabinet corners are all plastic and are riveted in place. I have students with $50 crates with metal corners. The Marshall logo on the face of the amp is very soft plastic and not very well attached. That explains why we see so many of them broken. I would not expect the gold caps on the knobs to last very long. Rather than use proper swutches for channel switching and various functions they have used cheaper push buttons that all feel very flimsy. The entire chassis is anodised aluminum. Aluminum is a soft metal and this chassis will warp over time from the weight of transformers. I know this is nit-picking, but the rought grained vinyl covering on the amp seemed to take me forever to get all the gunk out of the crevices. Very hard to clean. After having this amp apart I would not use is for a doorstop. If you have been using one of these amps without failure, continue to use it very, very carefully. If you disagree with my evaluation, take a really good look at one of these up close and personal and compare it with a Bogner Extacy or Soldano Decatone, or have a pro tech that isn't trying to sell you a Marshall read this and tell you what he thinks. We have been using this amp for only one year and have already had one major failure. I just had a '78 Fender 100 tube head in the shop for a new set of filter caps, tube sockets, and tubes. This amp was used and abused full-time through the 80's and this is the FIRST time anyone has done more than change the tubes. The Fender 100 is not consided to be one of the greatest amps on the planet. What does this tell you?

There is no customer support. The only way to contact Marshall is either long distnace phone call to England, or by mail to England. There is NO USA contact. Marshall is distributed by Korg. Korg will tell you to contact a Marshall dealer or repair cneter. How many Guitar Centers do you know of with a truely qualified tech to direct questions or comments about a Marshall product do you know of. This product might as well not have any warranty or manner of customer service at all.

I have been playing 12 years and in the tech and amp repair buisness for approx. 5 years. I also teach guitar. I have owned Mesa, Marshall, Fender, Carvin, Line 6. I have experienced and worked on many others including Bogner and Soldano. I play Line 6 and will probably never go back over to the tube side. I recomend these to all of my customers and students, although if people keep buying amps made like this I am going to be in buisness for a very long time. I used to think that the worst tube amp on the market was either Mesa, or Peavey. You can modify a Mesa or Peavey and make them a reliable piece of gear, but there is no salvation for the TSL 100. If you must buy tubes, buy them in something that is made by a comapny that still has a shread of pride in their work.