Marshall Valvestate 8040

The other reviews pretty much spell out the features pretty well, so I'll just list my gripes (which are very few).
It only has two channels (clean and boost), which means you'd likely need a volume pedal for leads if you're playing in a larger than 3-piece group and want to be heard by someone besides yourself. The spring reverb is decent, but I wish it had independent settings for separate channels. I also sometimes wish there were adjustable mids on the gain channel so I could dump 'em when I need my metal fix. For the price, though, it's tough to beat.

I've had this amp for about 8 years and have loved it since (I guess we're in a committed relationship). It sounds awesome for what I like to play (80s/early 90s glam rock). Gets that Marshall tone if that's what you're after (why I got it). I've played a few different guitars through it, including a Les Paul and a Strat; all of them sounded great. The first guitar I used it with was an 80s era Washburn electric with an s/s/h setup and it sounded good too. I can't remember the exact model because it was stolen (along with my Fender P-Bass) several years ago when I was on vacation. If I ever find the bastards, I'll likely be writing my next equipment review from prison. Fortunately, they didn't take this amp; I guess because it is kinda heavy (damn lazy criminals).
As others have mentioned, the clean channel does clip a bit as you crank it up. Can create the dilemma of either distorted cleans (sorry for the oxymoron) that can be heard or nice cleans with not enough volume in some live situations.
I love the boost channel for rock rhythm and lead. Compares in many ways to a friend of mine's JCM (at 1/4 the price).
In short this amp works well for anything rock or with a rock edge to it (i.e. SRV blues) though likely not heavy enough for some types of metal. It works fine for what I like but I'm not so sure it would get "brutal" (as the prompt says) enough for Korn and the like. Since I don't like that stuff, no worries for me. (Not dissing it, just ain't partial to it. Besides, I think I waived my right to dis anyone else's music as soon as I started playing Warrant, Poison, and Faster Pussycat songs through this amp.)

Mixed bag here.
The most common problem with this amp seems to be unreliable pots. I've seen it in other reviews and two friends of mine who also own this amp have expreienced it, esp. on the reverb and the clean channel volume. Just have 'em cleaned though.
I have some problems with the reverb as well (and so does a friend of mine) - it cuts in and out. However, since it has no independent control for separate channels you're better off using a separate reverb or multi-effects processor anyway, so I'm no gonna count that against the amp too much.
However, I bought this amp third-hand and had seen the way a previous owner treated it. Banged around, dropped, it was even once sprayed down with a water hose (no s--t). Needless to say it's much happier with me. Still works and still sounds good. If it can withstand that (and I thought it had just become a giant paperweight when I saw it happen), then you gotta give it some credit.
Keep in mind there is a tube in the preamp which eventually will need replacing (though mine is still going after 8 years).

Never dealt with Marshall, never want to. Like I said, bought it third-hand and methinks immersing it in water likely voids any warranty.
Fortunately, my father in law is an electronics engineer (or something like that) so he takes care of any problems I have with it. Basically, occassional cleaning of those aforementioned unreliable pots.

I've been playing for ten years or so, mainly rock, but I played bass in my college jazz band and old school metal for a while. I have some other gear, including a Marshall bass rig that is pretty good too. Also, I've helped some friends and former bandmates shop around and fiddle with their gear and I really think Marshall is the way to go for rock, especially if you like to keep your gear setup simple.
Bottom line, if you're looking for Marshall tube sound at a bargain price this is a good bet. Obviously you may need one of its bigger brothers if you want to use it for larger gigs, and you should expect to do some routine maintenance on it since its no longer manufactered so you'd have to buy used.
I really dig this amp. If it were stolen (which it almost was), I would almost definitely buy it again or something akin to it. In fact, I recently tried a Valvestate AVT combo which I'm thinking of upgrading to (for more power and built in effects - I hate hauling gear). Always try something before you buy it.
If there's anyone else out there, especially in my area (Hawaii), who likes playing rock (especially 80s/90s glam/hair metal) feel free to email me. Love to jam when I can find the time.

Bought it new in 1993, sold it due to moving overseas in 2001. Loud 40-watt combo, hybrid design. Power stage is solid state, clean channel is non-master volume, solid state, distorted channel is master volume, with one 12AX7 tube. There's a preamp line out and power amp line in, which you can use as an effects loop (but no wet/dry mix). No headphone socket, which it needs.

The speaker was a Celestion G30, and that was no doubt part of why it sounded so good.

The distortion is great, it has that Marshall sound. This was the best sounding of all the small Valvestates, better than any of the VS series that replaced it. You can just about reach that mid-scooped Metallica sound if you have a guitar with high output: better for 70's hard rock than 80's metal, though.

The clean channel sounds OKish at low volume, if you use some external fx to compensate for the fact that it has absolutely no sparkle. On its' own it's dull. Go past 12 o-clock on the gain, and you no longer have a clean channel, you have an unsuccessful crunch channel.

There's also reverb which applies whichever channel you're using, and it's not that great...but better than none

Giving this category a high mark because the distortion is just so good.

Mine developed a problem, the sound cut out sporadically and then completely. Solved this by putting a little 6 inch cable out of the line out socket into the power amp in socket. Would have been easy to fix properly, but never bothered. The footswitch stopped working after I left it in a damp garage for 2 years, I wonder why.

Never bothered

Used this with a 1984 Yamaha SG3000S, a 1979 Gibson Les Paul Standard and a 1993 Charvel Custom. The Marshall and the Yamaha was a fantastic combination, the Marshall and the Les Paul almost as good. This was a great little amp for blasting away at home, in rehearsals and for a small gig. It did OK when playing in a 6-piece band, but I had to angle the amp between wall and floor to hear it well: or sit it on a chair. It doesn't project very well when it's sitting flat on the floor.

I could have done with more headroom, so I'd buy another Marshall Valvestate, but one with a higher wattage. You just can't beat the sound for the price.

Im not sure how old the amp is I bought it second hand..
I play anything from Metal to punk to Indie It easily does them all.
2 channels with footpedal, plenty of gain the clean channels not as nice as say a fender princeton but it's nice enough for me
The features are ok.. I'd like it to have the ability to power another cab.
I use it my bedroom and at band practices and small gigs it's got enough power deffinatly.

Telecaster Single coil and humbucker
The sound could be nicer on the clean channel but besides that it's great for my style punk/ska(clean used a lot)/metal/rock
It's not noisy.
It can make anything from Indie clean to all out death metal in one amp.
The clean channel at FULL CRANK does disort but it's hardly what you'd call ROARING..
The boost channels distortion is down right amazing

It's lasted me so far, I'd gig without a back up
Not broken down yet *touch wood*

not delt with em but I reckon it wud be appauling coz it's a big company

I've been playing 9 years, I've not had much other gear but Im pleased with this amp.
If It were stolen or Lost I'd deffinatly buy another Marshall without a doubht.
I love the distortion, I hate the clean
I compared it to a Fender Princeton 65, The clean on the fender was amazing but the gain on the distortion was cheap and boring.
I wish it had 110 more watts and a 4x12 cab with it :)
Marshall are worth the cash

I bought the amp in "92" at the time there wasn't whole lot really to
choose from - for the money not a bad deal...A clean channel,and boost.Mostly I used it for around the house - in rehearsal it seems to
get buried

I mostly ran Strats thru it, Using a RP-7 helped getting away from that boxly sound. I ran it thru the clean channel.Not bad.
Without the RP-7 it's almost flat.

Would not use it for gigging...It did break down during rehearsal and
that's where I found the 12ax7, it must be soldered into the PC board
Any it's at the shop now...If it's more than $50.00 to fix, forget it.

N/A

With all the combo's out now, No I would not buy another

I had bought my 8040 in 91-92 no a bad practice amp around the house,
but for abnd rehearsls it can get buried. Maybe little too bright.
I used mostly Fender guitars.In the boost channel you have to work
a'little to get a sound you can live with.Clean channel with a RP-7
sounds even better.

The amp can sound boxly??

Never gave any problems until the pre amp tube went out...
The tube appears to be sealed in, I have in the shop right now to be
serviced..See what happens??

All right for home use

Bought it new about 6 years ago. Features have been well covered in earlier reviews. The contour knob on the boost channel allows you dial in a couple of really sweet tones. I usually leave it at about 1:00 o'clock...seems to set the whole tone in balance and allow the other variables to set up and combine properly. I mostly play for me, at home (my therapy...lot's cheaper than a shrink), but I get out with guys once in a while and sit in on a gig or two. Even though this is little 40 watt 1 X 12, it has enough swat to bark right along with some bigger amps, and if you mic it...that will even the palying field further. But really, it's not a performance amp. If you were side by side up against a twin reverb night after night, you'd be toast.

I play an American made Standard Tele, a Strat Deluxe Plus, and a Parker Fly Classic. I'll often run any or all of those through a Dunlop crybaby, and sometimes I dink around with Zoom 505... I think you mostly hear the pedal and not so much the amp or guitar with that (still is pretty cool though). I mostly play blues and rock and if left to my own devious ways, I like to push high gain and distortion where it shouldn't be. You know, thrash a love song or force a ballad to devolve into distorted harmonics. For that, this little amp does a great job. The boost channel can get very dirty without capitulating into fuzz and noise. Tones will break up nicely and can be brought back to earth with some attentive technique. The clean channel has always been a bit of disappointment for me. I haven't been able to find that glassy, crystal clear tone. (I just bought a Fender tube amp...so the search continues.)

The whole thing went quiet about year after I had it. Found an amp guru in Portland, Oregon who fixed it cheap. So long ago, I have forgotten what actually went out on it. Another reviewer has complained of scratchy and dirty sounding gain and volume pots. Yeah, I got that going too. A simple fix...but hard to get around to.

Forget dealing with the big companies. Find someone who knows and loves amplifiers and help the poor guy make a living.

Seems like I've been playing for a long time...yeah, I guess it is a long time...about 30 years. I've enjoyed this amp, but I'm kind of ready to move on. I'll keep it around so I'll have a spare in case Clapton or somebody drops by for a visit. One great thing about this amp, is that it's pretty straightforward and easy to dial in...the main thing I like about playing, is playing...not fiddling and fiddling with amp knobs.

Mine was made in 1995.I play Lead Guitar in a band and find that it suits most of my needs.There are two channels on this: Clean & Boost. The Features are pretty basic, but easy to understand.It is very powerful for a 40 watt amp, but the gain is pretty weak on the boost channel.

I play a 1972 fireglow Gibson Les Paul,with two standard humbucker pick-ups, and a U.S.A. Fender Strat, With three single coil pick-ups.The Strat' has an adjusted bridge for extra tuning stability.I Mostly play Oasis,and with the bass on 2 0'clock, the treble on 11 o'clock and the middle on 12 o'clock,a great sound is produced which makes the guitar sound really deep and resonant.On the boost channel,the gain can provide a solid lead sound.For a really grungy effect,turn the main volume down to 10 o'clock,and the gain up to 3 o'clock.The distortion is quite powerful,and it is ideal for someone who likes a bit of variation in their sound.

It's never broken down in 5 years,and I am confident about playing without a backup at a gig.I have found that as the tubes get a bit older,a smoother,bassier sound is produced.But if you turn up the gain too much or play it full blast,the speaker gets a bit knackered and gives off a buzzing noise.

I have been playing for nine years.I have Boss Flanger,Delay,Compression and Chorus Pedals,a Jim Dunlop wah-wah pedal,a Marshall Distortion pedal,a Zoom GFX-707 Multi Effects Unit,
and a Volume pedal.Quite a wide range,but when connected together and put through the Marshall,it sounds f***in' superb! I HIGHLY recommend this amp to anyone who owns an electric guitar,and will soon be
purchasing another Marshall amp,because with the attention I attract from gigging with this little beauty,I'll have record companies BEGGING me to let them sign me.So an even louder amp will be in order!
The 8040 is a work of art,and even the most demanding guitarist will be satisfied with its abilities..........so go and buy one......NOW!

2 Channels. Clean/Boost. 40 Watts. Pre-amp Valve 12AX7.
Bought it in 1/2001 used from Ebay for $175. Pretty
standard stuff.

For clean, the Volume control, labeled 'Gain' is REAL bad after
turning past 2 o'clock. The amp will be shaking from the bass
and there would be losts of NOISE. If you make the volume on the
Clean channel, it will sound REAL BAD. This is why is an amp for
a SMALL GIG only. It has no balls for the big thing. Go for
for the VS100R instead.

The clean channel is rather simple. I liked the VS100R clean better
because the pre-amp valve is active on the VS100R. On the 8040 amp,
the valve is NOT active. Thus, the clean is at most bluesy at
11 to 12 o'clock settings.
<P>
The distortion sounds like what I could get from a $20 Dod FX55c pedal
or the $79 Zoom 505 pedal. Some say that this amp has a unique
marshall tone, but I really can't hear it. I heard many
responses of users saying they could reproduce any tone with this.
Well, no me. =(.

The reverb is cool.
BTW, I occasionally hear AM Radio on this Amp. I guess most Amps have
this 'feature' of tuning to the wrong frequency by mistake.

This Amp was built in 1995. Today is 2001. This amp is
still sounding ok. The speaker shows some rust on the screws, but
no big deal. I expect this amp to work for another 5 years.
However, replacing the pre-amp Tube is an extra $20 every 3 years
if you do it yourself that is.

The warranty is 5 years. But the warranty on the electronics
was just 90 days from what I recall. Marshall has NO phone number
in the US to call for help. NO email address to write to.

I would grab a used one for under $200 now. With the
VS__R and the new AVT__ series, the 80__ series were
the ones that started it all. The new AVT__ amps have
no place to store your goodies given its closed back.
Great value now!! Go to Ebay and get one.

I believe this amp was made in 1994. The clean channel has gain, bass, middle, treble; the boost channel has gain, contour, bass, treble, volume; there is also a reverb knob, effects loop, line out and footswitch jack. Mine was used and didn't come with a footswitch so I got a Roland FS-1 for channel switching. This amp is not very versatile - not like the swiss army amps that have come up in the last few years. Personally, I like to just plug into the amp with no effects usually and play. I use this amp for practicing, small gigs, and rehersals. It can get quite loud for 40 watts. However, if someone were to use an effects processor into the clean channel, it might be better to get a more powerful amp. The speaker is a Celestion G12T.

I use this amp with two main guitars, a Fender American Strat and a custom guitar with a Schaller humbucker in the back. The fender can get a nice sound clean on the front pickup with the bass on 9, mid on 4, and treble on 9. The fender on the distorted channel sounds good with the gain on 2, countour on 5, bass on 10 treble on 9 - but you have to roll down the volume on the guitar to 8. That setting gives a good frosty tone for SRV type stuff and blues soloing. For heavier distortion, a Vox valve-tone pedal works quite well. The distortion channel really works better with my guitar with the humbucker. Then you can crank the gain and play old OZZY tunes and relive the 80's heavy metal scene. There is a slight hiss on the clean channel. Also, the fender pickups are low output so the clean channel isn't audible until the volume is on 2-3. The trick with this amp is playing around with the guitar's volume. Personally, I think this marshall sounds a lot better than the VS65, VS100 and basically any other amp in its price range. I haven't replaced this amp because I'd have to spend over $500 to get something to sound anywhere near as good. Oh yeah, it sounds good straight into a recorder through the line out (if you don't have mics and serious recording equipment handy).

I've had it one year and it has never broken down on me - which is more than I can say for my tube amp. It has been banged around some too but is very reliable.

Never called them. Never really called England, I think.

I've been playing 13 years. This amp is simple - plug in and get a great sound. I've heard people plug into this amp and make it sound terrible. There are a few tricks (like tweaking tone settings and knowing how to play) that greatly enhance the sound that comes out of the amp. If it were lost I would find it, If it were stolen, buddha help that person cause I would "go to work on them with a pair of pliers and a blowtorch..."

this amp is solid state clean and has a 12AX7 tube in the preamp for the boost channel. Of all the 1x12 and smaller amps i have ever played, this one absolutely smothers the competition. For the price I paid, I got 2 channels, reverb, 3 band EQ on clean, 2 band EQ + contour on boost, and the marshall sound. A great little practice amp that can swell to small gig proportions on demand.

I play a Jackson Kelly Standard with Duncan Design humbuckers, and I play just about everything from the 70's and 80's - rock and metal, as well as a lot of jazz and blues improv. This amp compliments my setup perfectly, even at low volume. The clean channel goes from crisp to fat as hell and the boost channel can go from a jazzy glass overdrive to a full-out assault with a spin of the gain knob. Extremely versatile for its size, although the reverb could use some work, it gets muddy past half cranked.

Absolutely. I have never had a problem with this amp except for buzzing that was caused because of proximity to appliances in my college dorm room last year, which was easily remedied by moving the amp to the other side of the room

Haven't needed to deal with them

If you can get your hands on one of these for the price I did or even close, do it. I would pay full price (around 350) for one of these if they hadn't been discontinued. No matter what style of playing you like to use, this amp has something for you.

I'm not quite sure, but I think the manufacture date was 1995. It has 2 footswitchable channels ( clean and boost) and the preamp section of the boost channel has a 12AX7 tube that produces a veary warm distortion. I play a wide veriety of different styles of music, and I found it sounded the best for blues..a very vintage tone set with the boost gain set at about 1/4 and volume set below 1/2.
The reverb seemed to lack depth compared to alot of other combos I've owned but the tonal qualities seem to balance it out.
I gig alot in small clubs, and I find the size and weight perfect for traveling. One of the nice features is the celestion vintage 30 speaker. sounds great!

my main axe is a '95 tele plus with highoutput "red" Don Lace Sensor humbucker in the bridge position and a "blue" vintage single D.L.S in the neck position.even though I play a wide array of music I find the tele/vs8040 sounds really sweet playing either blues or country. great tone, although I have to mic it always because I've found it sounds way better a very low volume levels as do most low power combos. I've tried to play in large rooms without running through a P.A and it seemed to lose alot of bass at high volume so, I had to take it off of the amp stand and place it on the floor and in a corner.
My second guitar of choice is my GODIN LGX. It sounds great in the boost channel but can't seem to handle the clean channel. maybe just the pickups in the godin but it seems to distort even at low volume levels. I have no complaints about the clean channel with my Tele plus. IT produces a very bright but smooth tone and if I want to I can drop the lows and push the highs to get that "country-fried-chicken-pickin'-albert lee-sorta-sound"
Overall a VERY versatile little amp great for small gigs!

I bought this amp second hand and about 6 months later the reverb started cutting out. I wasn't very happy with the reverb anyways so, I never repaired it. nothing else has ever broke down on it so I think it was from misuse on behalf of the previous owner.
I never gig without a backup amp, but, I am pretty comfortable with the reliability of this amp.

I do repairs myself so I've never had to deal with customer support.

I"ve been playing for about 15 years. If it got stolen or lost I would buy it again. I love the fact that this amp sounds so big for such a small size and the tube preamp sounds sweet!

Don't know the year it was made, bought it used. Is a great amp if you are looking for a vintage guitar sound. Good for blues, rock, surf music... 2 channels that you can change with the channel switch or footswich pedal, one for clean sound with solid state amplification, other with one tube operating a preamp distortion, built in reverb.

Sounds better with my old 1991 strat plus then with my Guild s-100 Polara, a matter of taste. It suit my music style, 70' rock, blues, country. It's very noisy, you can use it with an angry drummer near you. Good for playing in small gigs. Not good for a cristal clean sound, but it got a good clean tone for a rock guitar, the clean channel distorted a bit at high volumes. The distortion is great, real tube sound, better then my sansamp TRI-OD or Sansamp Classic.

I got it used last month so i can't give a good opinion about this subject. I've got other Marshall LEAD 20, for the last 12 year and never had a problem execpt dirth pods. I hope this one got the same Marshall reliability.

Never dealt with them.

I've been playing eletric guitar for 18 year. I own another Marshall Lead-20 for the last 12 years and never had a problem. If my Valvestate 8040 were stolen i will go to prison for murder and will buy onother one for playing with the cops in jail. I love it's sound, better them many fender's amps models. It got a great tune and presence, looks like it was made for a stratocaster guitar.

this amp seems old, i have no idea when it was made though. im not a big fan of the clean channel, but the (1 tube)distortion is really cool, and very loud. mine came with a footswitch, an effects loop, a line out, a power amp in(?), but no headphone jack :( anyways, i wish it had a headphone jack. the 40 watts seems weak to me, but that's only because i now own a mesa boogie.

i use a ibanez talman with dual humbuckers, and i love to make screaming feedback, that's the best part about this amp. very noisy. cool, if that's what you're into.

this amp is only a few years old, but seems like it's about 15. ive had to replace multiple parts. the leads to the speakers, the input jack, and ive also had to have the knobs "cleaned" i keep getting annoying dirt and other noise when i turn the treble and gain knobs

ive emailed marshall cause i lost my schematic and booklet to the amp, but ive never gotten a response. that sucks

ive been playing for about 4 years, i own a boogie mesa, and some random pedals (cool-cat, screamer, et al) im selling this puppy now that i got my mesa, i will miss the noise at times though, but it's not very versatile, so im gonna ditch it.

valvestate, 40w, 1 tube, 2 channles, foot swich, reverb, 1x12 speaker this amp is pretty good for alternitive or other lite rock but i find it not a good heavy metal speaker. this amp seems to be able to get pretty loud befor the feed back kicks in

im using a peavy preditor right now. it fits my music stvyle preety good, but i just bought a valvestate 100r and it fits it a little better because it can get my ok guitar sound great, but dont let that throw you off this amp is danm good for its price. as i already said this amp can get pretty loud for its features.

this amp is pretty reliabale, its never broken down on me yet but im afraid to turn it up loud because once you get past 7 the amp start to shake out of controll. it shakes so bad that if you put it on a hard wood floar it maves around. i wouldn't use it in a gig but is a real good amp foor a garage band or just to practice in your house.

never had to deal with the company

if been playing for five years, i also own the marshall vs100r, i find that marshall amps are all around the best amps you can buy. if it were stolen i would be mad but i wouldnt get another one after getting the vs100r. the one thing i do love on this amp is the celestion speaker and how it can get so loud when this amp is on 6 it sounds like its on 8. this amp is a good amp for some just to play in there room or for a garage band but i wouldn't play it in a gig without backup

It's a 40W Combo amp. Two channels clean and distorted. It has a 12" Celestion speaker. You can switch channel also by a footswitch (in dotation). The Pre has a tube to enhance overdrive. The power stage is designed to emulate real tubes (accordingly to the booklet). It does not have effects loop, just pre-out, main-in. No headphones jack. It has reverb too.

When i sold my previously amp, a Roland Cube 60, I wanted to buy a Marshall. So I get the best Marshall my budget could afford. The clean channel sounds nice to me. But the distorted channel is very cool! The gain knob adds very huge distortion amount and the Contour knob can dramatically change the "color" of the sound. The tube really makes difference! The Bass knob of the distorted channel is very weak and I liked a bit mor basses. I like the Iron Maiden-like sound and I got it with my Squier Stratocaster and ZOOM 9002 effect processor. The gain knob is very sensible and you must tune it with care to avoid an excess of overdrive if you are playing with an external effect processor. For home use the power is far too much and at low volume settings the Volume knob is too sensitive and very little adjustment can change volume level to much. I have played with others and with a drum and it plays very loud. No problems to hear myself. The reverb is nice at lower settings but as you turn it up it gets less pleasant; it seems you are plaing in a tunnel than in a hall. I like this amp very much and I don't think you can get much better for the price. I would not suggest it to people not interested in distortion.

i got it three about three years ago and never broke down. The construction could be some better. The four "legs" are made in hard plastic. I prefer rubber. They are also not very planar so the amp lay on the ground only by three of them. This is not a major problem. The only real problem I had is that the pots started to scratch after a year or so. So I have removed the chassis and have cleaned the pots with a pot-cleaner spray can. The operation is not very hard but I not suggest it unless you have a little practice about handling electric staff and the like. Remember that if you open your Marshall you loose the warranty. (and it can be dangerous to you or to the amp if you don't exactly know what you are doing). I have done the pot cleaning operation two times until now. The tube still works very well. I think that tubes in power stages needs much more frequent replacement but this is not a problem for the 8040 since it has transtistor in the power stage (an integrated device to be more exact a TDA-(somenumbers)).

Never dealt with Marshall. One year warranty.

I would buy it again but Marshall has discontinued it soon and I think that the closest model now is the Valvestate V65R. I think this is a good low cost/mid power/allround use rock amplifier. Very flexible and has enough power for most purpouse. I miss a send-return loop and more bass boost in the distorted channel. It's a Marshall.

This amp is a solid state that has 1 tube for the distortion. There is a line in, preamp in, footswitch, and line out. There is a volume bass, mid, & treble knob for the clean channel, and gian, contour, bass, mid, & treble knob for the dirty channel. It put 40 watts through a 12" celestion speaker. There is no heaphone jack, no effects loop, and only one input jack no headphone jack.

It sounds a bit hollow at lower volumes with an anoying hum. Turn it up a bit and it's a screamer. I can get everything from surf music to blusey tones on the clean channel. My acoustic sounds great through it. I don't play the heavy distortion much but my head banging friend thinks its great.

Bought it used a year ago and play it 4-6 hours a week. No problems yet.

N\A

I wish I could afford a Boogie but for the money I can live with the shortcommings of the valvestate.

Just bought two (brother+me). Great amp. My style varies according to my mood. On this one I can play the music of the Shadows, Robert Cray or Black Sabbath with equal ease. Very versatile. Specs are, two channels. Clean and boost. Footswitchable. Reverb (Non-switchable). No headphone jack (wouldn't mind having one on a 40Watter). Valve pre-amp in boost-channel. Solid-state P.A. . Effects loop in the form pre-amp out/P.A. in. I play mostly in a small garage or at my home studio. Too loud for my needs but you never know when your first small gig comes around. Oh, and Celestion 12" speaker (don't remember the model).

Suits all my musical styles/moods (up to now). I can have anything between clean, bluesy or dirty 'n' damaging sounds with a few knob twiddles and footswitching. Relatively quiet up to Vol. 5 on clean and 3 on boost with the gain knob on 5 but I haven't tried it beyond these settings. With the gain full on and the boost volume on 3 you can distort your brains out (not forgetting the contour knob if you really want to thrash it out). The reverb's o.k. by MY standards but probably a little inflexible by other's. Not for electro-acoustics I think. And don't stand near it at full gain/boost with a semi-solid. You'll get defeaning feedback if you do. But this applies to all amps.

Haven't had it long enough to comment on this one. But it will probably hold out for a good while judging from the build.

I've only dealt with the local supplier. Service was shitty. No manual supplied. No written warranty. Had to pay extra for the footswitch when the catalogue says it's supplied with the amp. Manual clean/boost switch came defective. I've been looking for an official Marshall web-page for days to complain. Hope they're more helpful than my supplier.

I'd buy another 8040 without hesitation but from a different supplier. I love everything that's on board, especially the clean channel, but would have welcomed a headphone jack. I compared it to several other well-known brand's (even 100Watters) solid-state amps. This one came out tops. It was love at first sound.

It's got Two channels, Clean and overdrive, the clean channel's got Bass, Middle and Treble frequecies and a gain knob (Volume), the overdrive channel's got bass, treble and a contour knob varies the middle frequencies of the distortion. and it's got reverb. Ufortunately it's non switchable. In the preamp section it's got a (12X7 or something like that) tube, the power amp section is solid state.

My favorite playing style is 80's heavy metal and 70's hard rock, and this amp gives me the perfect sound, I'm not a gigging or a profesional musician so 40 Watts will do for me, it's loud, the distortion is very cool (I just recently added the footswitch) and I don't need a stomp box for the distortion. The cool thing is the distortion is usable in all of the knob's range (a big plus), the contour knob gives it a lot of versatility and the other knobs do their jobs. The clean channel is good, but it can be better, I have not played it in volumes above 4, but everybody says that the clean channel begins to distort at higher volumes. The Reverb is ok for me, I don't need it that much, but many people say it sucks.

Yeah, it's reliable, mine sounded way better than the one I tested at the store, no problems, altough I'd advise anyone to play this amp in properly grounded areas like it says in the manual.

No, I have never dealt with them.

I would buy it again since is perfect for me, or if I made good money in the future I'd buy the 8080 combo, (80W)

Everything noted above is quite accurate. However, the reverb (yes, it is quite lame) is NOT switchable--a real pain for some. Also, the tone controls for the clean channel vary from those of the dirty channel. One has tone controls as frequency volume knobs, whereas the other has them as +/- boost/cut knobs. I've seen amps of this model that have the tone controls the same (as volumes) for each channel, maybe mine is old. It's not a huge deal, but make settings for switched songs a pain to set up.

Classic Marshall sound. What more can you say?!

It was bought used, and is approximately three or four years old. There have been no problems as of yet. The pots are all clean and smooth, and the jacks and switches likewise. The only concern I have is regarding the footswitch. Unlike Fender's, Marshall's footswitch has the cord hard- wired to the switch (not plugable), which MAY lead to broken wires. Also, the length of cord for the footswitch is not variable.

Wonderful value for the near-priceless Marshall sound. Plenty loud enough to gig with when miked. It's loud enough to stand alone for a medium- sized bar, but gets overdriven at high volume settings of the clean channel. Well worth the cash as an intermediate purchase (or final!).

The only bad thing about this amp is that the reverb is lame. But this 40 watt solid state with a valve preamp and a single 10" or 12" celestion has a dirty channel that imitates stack tones (if not stack punch) really well, and a full sounding clean channel. You can run an effects loop out the front panel (there is no rear panel) by going out through "line out" and back in through "power amp in". I play out in largish bars a few times a month and I'm really happy with it, miked to the p.a. On its own it wouldn't be loud enough for too many gigs. For the price though, you get a hell of a sound.

It sounds like a Marshall. There's tremendous range of distortion on the dirty channel with the gain knob, and the clean channel gets distorted above halfway on it's gain. So you can change channels with the footswitch (included) from slightly dirty to filthy. As I said above,if you like reverb, this is not your amp. My tastes and music, across much of the spectrum of rock, don't need it.

I've had it six months, I never think of bringing a back up, haven't had a problem, and don't anticipate anything beyond dusty pots. It has a five year transferable warranty anyway.

Haven't needed it yet, but there is the 5 year warranty

I think the retail price (at a good shop) is around $370-400 U.S. I'd buy this again in a second, but would go with the 80 watt if I had the the extra cash.