Dsl40cr was my first tube amp. Acquired a vox ac15c1, ac10, 1987 fender red knob twin, and a 1958 fender tweed deluxe through the years. Dsl is hands down the best amp I own.
The DSL40CR is the most versatile, yet user-friendly amplifier I own. You get great tones right away, yet you can dial in a wide variety of tonal characteristics too.
The price seems alright too. I am in the process of trying to replace my Fender Supersonic 22 due to the ridiculous noise floor issues on the clean channel and I really like the sound of this thing. Something about Marshall cleans that my ear tends to like. The other amp in contention is the Wangs 2204hw. Bit undecided. Is the DSL40CR quiet on the clean channel? As in is the noise floor low so as to be a non issue when recording with condensers? Is it suitable for a home studio? Not too loud? Can you get good tones out of it without having to bring the roof down? I'm kind of looking for a good all rounder that's usable in a home studio situation.
I always thought Marshalls were one-trick ponies that werent for my style of music. But now that ive played my Vox awhile and played some Fenders, I realize that the Marshall sound is something Ive been trying to get for a long time
When I started playing guitar a million years ago - 1982 - I saw a lot of Cort guitars for sale in my local music store, here in the States. Kudos for playing a Cort in this video. It sounds great! Cheers.
I have the 40c, with the Sweetwater Creamback speaker upgrade. And yeah, it does everything. I modded it with a tone switch to tame the Lead channel in certain circumstances, but for most players that’s unnecessary. Anyway, it can do everything from clean jazz tone to the grittiest and most screeching heavy rock. My fave is to run the Clean channel high, and boost the input. Run that into a deep 2x12, with the 40c on top and its 12” also firing, and it sounds like Trower and Blackmore and Hendrix.
Pound for pound, the best value when trying to nail the Marshall vibe, whichever your style (Plexi, 800, etc). Takes a while to dial in both bedroom studio and live gig settings but worth the journey. Use mine as an edge of breakup pedal platform with a JHS Angry Charlie v3 driving the front always on.
Have owned a lot of amps. Just play at home now. The DSL40CR is the best bedroom amp I've ever owned. I can rattle the walls with 40 amps or master down to bedroom levels and still sound great. Just amazing controls on the sound and volume.
Good demo! Thinking about getting one, I have an Origin 50, JVM410H and 1959HW. The DSL40CL gets that extra JCM 800 gain beyond the Origin while still getting the classic '70s hard rock JMP tones like the Origin. Cheers!
Nice job on this. I bought this amp 18 months ago and love it. Takes a while to dial it in. Totally agree with the high gain on channel 2. I am going to try your e.q. settings.
Great amp all around. What I do is set the amp eq flat and use my pedal board to handle the eq. Then depending on the room, make adjustments at the amp. Usually less bass in small rooms (bars), or more treble in more open spaces (outdoor gigs). Keep it consistent and then adjust the amp to taste.
Typically 20w mode with only a tuner and Soul Food on front. Having the 6 button foot switch is brilliant I have 4 different sounds dialed in. Clean. Crunch (AC/DC style low gain), Crunch more, rocking out. I set the masters to 3 or so then get everything dialed in, and finally use the masters to get the volume where I want it. Usually around 80-85 db.
I never knew Julian from the Trailer Park Boys played guitar...lol...not sure if anyone else saw the resemblance Great review...I'm planning to buy this amp this weekend actually
Great demo! Very informative. Explained the amp to a tee. I clicked on expecting to see an older guy since it said middle age, but then I see this young guy! I'm old as you may have guessed. Love to see the younger people appreciating the music and the we equipment we had when we were young! Especially Marshall! Thank you young "middle-aged" man! LOL
I personally think the clean channel when cranked (gain, volume, and master volume) sounds pound for pound more like a plexi or 59 Super Lead. The crunch channel cranked up the same sounds like a JCM 800, while the ultra gain channel resembles more modern marshalls.
The fact that you get 2 fucking classic amps and still a good modern sound too all in one amp for a decent price is amazing to me. I’m picking mine up tomorrow, first tube amp.
I have owned a DSl40CR and a 5CR for the last 3 Years and both ate fantastic amps and are all the amps I will ever need. I also bought a mini Marshall jubilee in early 2020 because i fell into the trap of thinking in I needed a " better" higher quality amp but less then a year latter I traded the jubilee for a Gibson explorer because I barely played the jubilee and that was because I much preferred the tone of my DSL amps alot of people will say I am crazy or have no ear for tone because I think the DSL Series sound better . The jubilee had much nicer Cleans but I don't play clean that much and when I do it's always a pushed clean so the overdrive sounds are what matter most for me and I felt the overdrive tones from the DSl amps were much better. I found they did the classic Marshall sound much better then the mini jubilee. The jubilee has its own district tone that does not sound like any other Marshall . It's not the amp for 69 to 72 live zeppelin or 1976 live Rush . The DSL does that much better. I just did not like the Jubilee tone but sadly I did not finish learning my lesson about so called better amps . In mid 2020 I bought a slightly used but barely played JVM 1 by 12 combo because again they are supposed to be better and the JVM line is supposed to be Marshall's flag ship modern Marshall and plus it has all those extra overdrive options. Now I certainly preffered the JVM over the mini jubilee by quite a wide margin I still did not like it near as much as my DSl amps especially after I put a creamback M65 in the 40CR and bought a couple of good extension cabs with high quality 12 inch speakers to run both the 5 and the 40 through but mainly the 5 . I really did like the JVM but ended up returning it after a couple of weeks as I had bought it through a big box guitar chain with a 30 day return policy and that was because the DSl amps just sound better and found it much easier and quicker to dial in the tone I wanted with the DSL amps . My biggest complaint with the JVM was who noisy it was. It was far more noisy then either of my DSLs . I also found rhe mini jubilee quite noisy. Even at low volume the JVM was very hissy and noisy . I thought there might be a problem with the amp but when I went online and visited some JVM threads on the Marshall forum les paul forum and gear page i learned that they are just really noisy amps I also found the JVM to be very boxy sounding overly bass heavy and a touch too dark .. it has lots of high end but amp had this blanket over the speakers kind of tone so I ended up returning it was very frustrating because underneath that muffled/blanketed layer was a great sounding Marshall tone . Someone latter told me the issue with JVN I had was the speaker. It had the celestion G12B speaker which apparently is a bass speaker and that is what made my JVM sound bass heavy dark Muffled blanketed etc but no matter I love my DSL40 and 5 and prefer them to everything else I have tried at least in the range of amps I can realistically own . There are a few non master volume reissue amps I like better but they are completely impractical where I live in terms of volume. A 40 watt amp with a master volume is the maximum I can get away with and for non master volume amps a 5 water is the limit and in those ranges of amps nothing tops the DSl 5 and 40 for the tone and versatility I am looking for
100% yup. The DSL40 is a workhorse and a daily driver. A swiss army knife of Marshall tones at actual gig volumes. I don't play arenas with master sound engineers all that often so I have to rely on sound control at the stage. The DSL40cr delivers confidence and consistency in spades.
@@antibnl if all you will do is play bedroom levels, then a smaller amp is best. 5w all tube will still get loud. Much more feel and dynamics at your disposal. Honestly my Yamaha THR10 sounds fantastic thru studio monitors. It's a 10w solid state and nails the sound that inspires me even thru headphones.
Have you been able to get that mid-tone vintage low-gain growl that AC/DC does so well on TNT intro? I'm struggling to get a taste of it on my DSL40CR. It's got a lot of bass and a bit modern.
I bought one earlier in the summer put a creamback 65 in it sounds absolutely beautiful I use a Nobels od1 or a boss sd1 to kick the front end killer amp super quiet too…
I have one of the older DSL40C (Pre-CR), Creamback loaded versions. Such a great amp as a clean platform with the gain set just to edge of breakup. The Presence and Resonance knobs really help fine tune it to being fat but clear without being complicated. It's really a fantastic amp.
I had this amp and loved the clean channel. However didn’t really like the overdrive sounds. They were good but didn’t have a tight bottom end which is what I’m hearing on your post. I got rid of it and purchased an evh stealth 15 lbx which gave me an amazing pedal platform. I tried a tube screamer with the Marshall which tightened up the bottom end but thinned out the highs and mids. However I do miss this clean channel a lot. The evh smokes it on the crunch and high gain.
I am so glad this video came out. I am a new player, bought this amp and a 1959 Epiphone Les Paul. I had no idea how to use this amp until I saw this. I wish I could see how you equalize it.
I own a DSL 5 and a DSl 40 as well as 3 of those epi 59 les Paul's . The first epi 59 I bought was good I bought 2 more and as good as the first one was the 2nd and 3rd ones were even better sounding then the first untill I put a set of Gibson custombuckers in the first one now its better sounding then the other 2 which still sound amazing I in their own right . A DSl 40 and an epi 59 les Paul are both so good they are all the amp and guitar you will ever need but guitar and amps are so addictive you always end up buying more no matter how good the gear you already have is .
5:57 I find that with mine, pushing the gain past 1 o'clock is largely unnecessary on the ultra red channel. I also have emg humbuckers if that makes any difference. But from experience, the ultra red is best when it sits at around noon or 1 and you play more aggressively instead of relying on gain. It's heavy enough for stuff like thrash metal, no need for pedals (though they certainly sound great in this amp). One of my guitars has the het set pickups and even noon is too much gain for just riffing around. Just don't dial up the gain so high and you'll get a crushing but still very saturated heavy tone out of it.
@13_on_guitar Probably the pickups on your guitar. Mine run pretty hot, so higher gain like that just makes it sound muddy. But you'd be surprised how saturated a guitar tone can sound with relatively low gain
Just bought mine couple weeks ago. Guitar center. I play origin 50 head thru marshall 4x12 vintage with greenbacks. I need another portable combo. This DSL is bit different but i really like it a lot! I use spark boost and Boss Ge7 eq for overdrive and boost. I have the cream DSL40 with black plexi marshall logo and very Suprized ehen i opened the back to find a celestion G12 vintage made in UK speaker. My amp is the cream DSL vintage. I play my 2019 cherry les paul classic. Hint of delay echo repeat in fx loop. Very happy with this amp!
Dude! This is the best gear review vid ever! Can you make a video on how you record your sound? I just use my iphone built in microphone and I have no idea why my sound isn't so great.
I have one and its a great overall representation of what Marshall can be. I did do a swap of the speaker to a WSG Vet 30 and I did clip the C19 diode and that help tame some of the higher harshness but still plenty bright
@@GCKelloch Yea. The V-Type leans towards the V30. The Vet 30 does have some of the high end rolled off, even more so. At the time of acquisition, I was going for the Billy Joe Armstrong sound with lots of mids and rolled back highs above 4K.
Excellent video dude; concise, to the point and without waffle. Obviously the DSL40 is loud enough to gig with, but how would you say it sounds at very low volumes for home practice? (sort of talking volume if you get what I mean) Thanks man
Awesome Demo/Review thankyou. I have a Marshall MG15MSII "mini-stack" and love it. But need to Upgrade to Tube Amp some day soon and this may be an option. Cheers
I want one of these so bad I’ve seen a few used for around 600 to 700 cad. Might just have to bite the bullet and feel the wallet pain for my first tube amp.
Gomorron, Jason! Klockan är strax åtta här på morgonen i Sverige när jag kollar på din video o äter frukost samtidigt. Vad kul att se din nya studio och att du testar just den förstärkaren jag vill köpa. Dock är den väldigt dyr här så jag får spara. Den tröjan du har på dig är precis den jag beställde 😊 Ska ta på den idag när jag duschat. Kul att du nu är igång med att göra videos igen! Ha det bra nu!
God morgon Eva! Det är alltid bra att höra från dig. När du får tag i en kommer du inte att bli besviken, det är verkligen en fantastisk förstärkare. Du måste lägga upp en selfie med din skjorta på Facebooksidan för medelålders Gear Junkie.
I will be getting this today and bought it brand new, and it is being shipping from Musicians Friend. After ordering, I read some bad reviews about them.... but, then, they mentioned they are shipping the NEW item and from warehouse. This is for my Son who has a Les Paul Gibson and currently using Bose S1 Pro and he also sings and almost all songs of Alice n Chains (he loves Layne Staley). So, this is for him to Rock. I play the Cajon drums.
Ultra Gain Red can sound Great but you have to set the Gain low . I find anything above 3 on the gain with ultra red gets too compressed and starts to mush out . I did find the red Channel became alot firmer after a speaker swap . I swapped out the V type for a Creamback M and the red ultra now has alot more top end clarity and a tighter more refined bass and low mid .
I have one of these and always loved it after a speaker swap. I don’t use it that much but recently the tubes went and needed to replaced and rebiased. I picked it up and about a week later when I sat down to play, it stopped working all together. Waiting for the diagnosis now but I always heard how reliable these are.
@@ronnieparfait Celestian V type G12. Not as shrill As the stock 70/80. Never liked that speaker. V Type rounded out the highes just a bit and gave it more a Marshall clean to my ears.
@@ronnieparfait Celestian V type G12. Not as shrill As the stock 70/80. Never liked that speaker. V Type rounded out the highes just a bit and gave it more a Marshall clean to my ears.
@@EM-km8em love the sound, but It’s kinda quiet, not that I have had a chance to crank it living in a apartment and the pod go doesn’t seem to work with the 4 cable method and I am not sure if it’s the pedal or the fx loop in the amplifier.
My biggest problem with the dsl40 is that I have $1000 worth of overdrive pedals that i no longer use because the amp sounds to good by itself. I use a boost, a carbon copy and a fatham. Everything else is just collecting dust.
I found the Boss SD-1 works better than my TS808 because the EQ curve is more pronounced. I'm saving that for another video about different TS style pedals.
@@JasonAyalaSpare the SD1 works well and does a much nicer job tightening up the red channel . I found tube screamers and Fulltone full drives made the sound more mushy and made the low end sound very ratty .
@@adamwatson6916 I use a tube screamer mini in front of the ultra gain green and it sounds incredible. Just make sure not to overdo the gain to leave room for the TS boost
For these videos I just have them panned left and right. In a recording situation I would use 1 mic to accentuate part of the frequency, i.e. 1-2k and the other to accentuate upper mids 4-5k and or lower frequencies.
Great to cya in your new studio Jason. Very 😎 Been looking at a SV-20C for similar reasons to you, i e. I don't have a Marshall amp. No doubt I'd be equally happy with your choice. Think I should start checking out the used market. Cheers. 👊
How do I get that mid-forward vintage growl/swell that you hear on AC/DC's TNT intro? I've tried and it seems like the tone is just more modern than that on my DSL40CR. Any tips for getting that warm vintage sound?
@@JasonAyalaSpare I figured it out, mostly. Main fix was just a Creamback speaker swap. its subtle but significant. It fixed the scooped, modern sound (a decent amount) and make it more of what you'd expect from a Marshall. BUT it also way tightened up the bass when the gain is on. More responsive and it doesn't just go to mush when you hit that hard E minor open chord. Classic or metal stuff, much better on both the Strat HSS and Ibanez. The next thing is swapping out the V1 pre-amp tube for a JJ ECC823. It'll cut the gain down a few steps on the OD1/2 stuff but leave the Classic side untouched. Specialty tube from Eurotubes only...20$. That doesn't fix the bass response/gain (the speaker helps a lot without needing the tube screamer) but it makes the whole sweep of the knob mostly usable depending on your guitar. Those two adjustments really make the DSl40CR into a proper amp with less flaws. Solid settings for some classic rock on (on both classic crunch and OD1) are Treble 6 (or 7+ with creamback), Mid 7, Bass 1 (or touch more with creamback), presense 5 (or more with creamback), resonance 0. Classic Crunch gain at 3...OD1 gain on 4 or 5. Gets close to that JMP lower gain on classic side and a JCM800 (sorta) with as much hotrod as you want now that it's tighter. I like to get decent volume levels on both channel and masters but you can use them to fine tune.
I really want to like this, but while it sounds good in reviews, it’s got this piercing treble quality that my ears don’t like. I wonder if a speaker upgrade would make much of difference or if that can be softened via the eq?
In the room it sounds fine, I must admit that it took me a while to learn to Mic this amp properly, I was just doing it the same way as I would mic my Fender deluxe.
Is it possible to get it to bedroom level? I tried the dsl20 and it didn’t sound as good Currently living in a apartment and I may need to play it at normal tv volume
Im told the CR has better voicing than the C, with less fizz, but haven’t tried a C. But the volume drop between channels on the CR does annoy me, especially between the clean channel.
@@beachsidetech the volume drop happens on the C as well. Makes dialling in a switchable sound challenging. Found a bit of relief when attenuated through a captor
well ... I'll stick with my JCM 800 LEAD from 1985 , 50 watt combo wih 2 channels and 1 celestion . It's heavy AF but I will not change it , it's with me since 1993 , I bought it third hand lol ...nobody wanted to keep it cuz is too heavy but when I turn it on everybody turn their heads . it's a killer sound !
I've played a DSL 40 combo at Guitar Center enough to know that it's gonna be my first "real" amp lol EDIT: Quick note, I like the OD2 channel but I never put the gain that high on it, honestly, I don't think I've ever put it past 12-1.
Dsl40cr was my first tube amp. Acquired a vox ac15c1, ac10, 1987 fender red knob twin, and a 1958 fender tweed deluxe through the years. Dsl is hands down the best amp I own.
The DSL40CR is the most versatile, yet user-friendly amplifier I own. You get great tones right away, yet you can dial in a wide variety of tonal characteristics too.
Is the DSL 40 CR the same as a DSL 40
@@alek6857 the cr is the newer version I believe
The price seems alright too. I am in the process of trying to replace my Fender Supersonic 22 due to the ridiculous noise floor issues on the clean channel and I really like the sound of this thing. Something about Marshall cleans that my ear tends to like. The other amp in contention is the Wangs 2204hw. Bit undecided. Is the DSL40CR quiet on the clean channel? As in is the noise floor low so as to be a non issue when recording with condensers? Is it suitable for a home studio? Not too loud? Can you get good tones out of it without having to bring the roof down? I'm kind of looking for a good all rounder that's usable in a home studio situation.
@@alek6857 it's the latest version. worthwhile improvements over the previous version. tone is better
I absolutely love my DSL40!
This is the best demo I’ve heard of this amp. Really good tones and nice chops. 🤘
I always thought Marshalls were one-trick ponies that werent for my style of music. But now that ive played my Vox awhile and played some Fenders, I realize that the Marshall sound is something Ive been trying to get for a long time
It's all part of the journey
When I started playing guitar a million years ago - 1982 - I saw a lot of Cort guitars for sale in my local music store, here in the States. Kudos for playing a Cort in this video. It sounds great! Cheers.
I have the 40c, with the Sweetwater Creamback speaker upgrade. And yeah, it does everything. I modded it with a tone switch to tame the Lead channel in certain circumstances, but for most players that’s unnecessary. Anyway, it can do everything from clean jazz tone to the grittiest and most screeching heavy rock. My fave is to run the Clean channel high, and boost the input. Run that into a deep 2x12, with the 40c on top and its 12” also firing, and it sounds like Trower and Blackmore and Hendrix.
Holy crap, you look just like Julian from Trailer Park Boys, love it! Great video too!
He just needs to be holding his mixed drink, as he always does..!
Marshall 40 CR is a great amp.
Pound for pound, the best value when trying to nail the Marshall vibe, whichever your style (Plexi, 800, etc). Takes a while to dial in both bedroom studio and live gig settings but worth the journey. Use mine as an edge of breakup pedal platform with a JHS Angry Charlie v3 driving the front always on.
Have owned a lot of amps. Just play at home now. The DSL40CR is the best bedroom amp I've ever owned. I can rattle the walls with 40 amps or master down to bedroom levels and still sound great. Just amazing controls on the sound and volume.
Best review I've seen in a long while - nice one dude!
Still never found a more fun song to play than Kickstart My Heart.
It sounds awesome played through this amp 🎸
@@JasonAyalaSpare What were the amp settings for when I come around on od1? And were you using any pedals or the resonance or presence?
I’ve got the DSL 40 CV Limited Edition with a Greenback. Killer amp. 😊
Good demo!
Thinking about getting one, I have an Origin 50, JVM410H and 1959HW. The DSL40CL gets that extra JCM 800 gain beyond the Origin while still getting the classic '70s hard rock JMP tones like the Origin.
Cheers!
Nice job on this. I bought this amp 18 months ago and love it. Takes a while to dial it in. Totally agree with the high gain on channel 2. I am going to try your e.q. settings.
Great amp all around. What I do is set the amp eq flat and use my pedal board to handle the eq. Then depending on the room, make adjustments at the amp. Usually less bass in small rooms (bars), or more treble in more open spaces (outdoor gigs). Keep it consistent and then adjust the amp to taste.
Typically 20w mode with only a tuner and Soul Food on front. Having the 6 button foot switch is brilliant I have 4 different sounds dialed in. Clean. Crunch (AC/DC style low gain), Crunch more, rocking out. I set the masters to 3 or so then get everything dialed in, and finally use the masters to get the volume where I want it. Usually around 80-85 db.
I never knew Julian from the Trailer Park Boys played guitar...lol...not sure if anyone else saw the resemblance
Great review...I'm planning to buy this amp this weekend actually
Oh $hit! Your right! 😂😂
Great demo! Very informative. Explained the amp to a tee. I clicked on expecting to see an older guy since it said middle age, but then I see this young guy! I'm old as you may have guessed. Love to see the younger people appreciating the music and the we equipment we had when we were young! Especially Marshall! Thank you young "middle-aged" man! LOL
Thanks mate, I'm not that young 😀
I like that Cort you’re playing.
I've had it for a while. I put the Seymour Duncan hot rodded set pick ups in it about 2 years ago.
I personally think the clean channel when cranked (gain, volume, and master volume) sounds pound for pound more like a plexi or 59 Super Lead. The crunch channel cranked up the same sounds like a JCM 800, while the ultra gain channel resembles more modern marshalls.
It's a killer amp is what I'm saying. Who needs a clean channel?
The fact that you get 2 fucking classic amps and still a good modern sound too all in one amp for a decent price is amazing to me. I’m picking mine up tomorrow, first tube amp.
Very detailed and thorough review. Good job.
Glad to see you are back.
Thanks Matt
I have owned a DSl40CR and a 5CR for the last 3 Years and both ate fantastic amps and are all the amps I will ever need. I also bought a mini Marshall jubilee in early 2020 because i fell into the trap of thinking in I needed a " better" higher quality amp but less then a year latter I traded the jubilee for a Gibson explorer because I barely played the jubilee and that was because I much preferred the tone of my DSL amps alot of people will say I am crazy or have no ear for tone because I think the DSL Series sound better . The jubilee had much nicer Cleans but I don't play clean that much and when I do it's always a pushed clean so the overdrive sounds are what matter most for me and I felt the overdrive tones from the DSl amps were much better. I found they did the classic Marshall sound much better then the mini jubilee. The jubilee has its own district tone that does not sound like any other Marshall . It's not the amp for 69 to 72 live zeppelin or 1976 live Rush . The DSL does that much better. I just did not like the Jubilee tone but sadly I did not finish learning my lesson about so called better amps . In mid 2020 I bought a slightly used but barely played JVM 1 by 12 combo because again they are supposed to be better and the JVM line is supposed to be Marshall's flag ship modern Marshall and plus it has all those extra overdrive options.
Now I certainly preffered the JVM over the mini jubilee by quite a wide margin I still did not like it near as much as my DSl amps especially after I put a creamback M65 in the 40CR and bought a couple of good extension cabs with high quality 12 inch speakers to run both the 5 and the 40 through but mainly the 5 . I really did like the JVM but ended up returning it after a couple of weeks as I had bought it through a big box guitar chain with a 30 day return policy and that was because the DSl amps just sound better and found it much easier and quicker to dial in the tone I wanted with the DSL amps . My biggest complaint with the JVM was who noisy it was. It was far more noisy then either of my DSLs . I also found rhe mini jubilee quite noisy. Even at low volume the JVM was very hissy and noisy . I thought there might be a problem with the amp but when I went online and visited some JVM threads on the Marshall forum les paul forum and gear page i learned that they are just really noisy amps I also found the JVM to be very boxy sounding overly bass heavy and a touch too dark .. it has lots of high end but amp had this blanket over the speakers kind of tone so I ended up returning it was very frustrating because underneath that muffled/blanketed layer was a great sounding Marshall tone . Someone latter told me the issue with JVN I had was the speaker. It had the celestion G12B speaker which apparently is a bass speaker and that is what made my JVM sound bass heavy dark Muffled blanketed etc but no matter I love my DSL40 and 5 and prefer them to everything else I have tried at least in the range of amps I can realistically own . There are a few non master volume reissue amps I like better but they are completely impractical where I live in terms of volume. A 40 watt amp with a master volume is the maximum I can get away with and for non master volume amps a 5 water is the limit and in those ranges of amps nothing tops the DSl 5 and 40 for the tone and versatility I am looking for
Hi Adam. Do you think i can get Nice tones with dsl40 até bedroom volumes? Ir the dsl5 is better for that purpose?
100% yup. The DSL40 is a workhorse and a daily driver. A swiss army knife of Marshall tones at actual gig volumes. I don't play arenas with master sound engineers all that often so I have to rely on sound control at the stage. The DSL40cr delivers confidence and consistency in spades.
@@antibnl if all you will do is play bedroom levels, then a smaller amp is best. 5w all tube will still get loud. Much more feel and dynamics at your disposal. Honestly my Yamaha THR10 sounds fantastic thru studio monitors. It's a 10w solid state and nails the sound that inspires me even thru headphones.
Have you been able to get that mid-tone vintage low-gain growl that AC/DC does so well on TNT intro? I'm struggling to get a taste of it on my DSL40CR. It's got a lot of bass and a bit modern.
Happy for you, hope youll like your new house.
It's amazing, we're so fortunate.
I bought one earlier in the summer put a creamback 65 in it sounds absolutely beautiful I use a Nobels od1 or a boss sd1 to kick the front end killer amp super quiet too…
I did the same thing put a creamback bought a nobels od1 and a boss sd1 haven’t looked back 👍👍👍
How does the cream back compare to the v type ?
@@jonahlmoore a little smoother and sweeter and more vintage sounding smooth highs tight bottom end
I have one of the older DSL40C (Pre-CR), Creamback loaded versions. Such a great amp as a clean platform with the gain set just to edge of breakup. The Presence and Resonance knobs really help fine tune it to being fat but clear without being complicated. It's really a fantastic amp.
This amp and a parametric eq is awesome!
Just scooped a new one for $675. Awesome demo and commentary
@russellparker8779 sorry bout the camera work though
I had this amp and loved the clean channel. However didn’t really like the overdrive sounds. They were good but didn’t have a tight bottom end which is what I’m hearing on your post. I got rid of it and purchased an evh stealth 15 lbx which gave me an amazing pedal platform. I tried a tube screamer with the Marshall which tightened up the bottom end but thinned out the highs and mids. However I do miss this clean channel a lot. The evh smokes it on the crunch and high gain.
I am so glad this video came out. I am a new player, bought this amp and a 1959 Epiphone Les Paul. I had no idea how to use this amp until I saw this. I wish I could see how you equalize it.
Bass 6, Middle 7, Treble 7, Pres 6, Resonance 0. I didn't change it for any of the examples.
I own a DSL 5 and a DSl 40 as well as 3 of those epi 59 les Paul's . The first epi 59 I bought was good I bought 2 more and as good as the first one was the 2nd and 3rd ones were even better sounding then the first untill I put a set of Gibson custombuckers in the first one now its better sounding then the other 2 which still sound amazing I in their own right . A DSl 40 and an epi 59 les Paul are both so good they are all the amp and guitar you will ever need but guitar and amps are so addictive you always end up buying more no matter how good the gear you already have is .
Wow. What a way to learn...I would recommend something smaller. For someone new and learning. But cool.
Aw gee sus ! Twiddle with the knobs until you find the sound that wants to make you play ! Aw gee sus !!
@@adamwatson6916 I don’t understand what you did. The Epiphone 1959 Les Paul comes with Gibson USA pickups as standard.
🤔
5:57 I find that with mine, pushing the gain past 1 o'clock is largely unnecessary on the ultra red channel. I also have emg humbuckers if that makes any difference. But from experience, the ultra red is best when it sits at around noon or 1 and you play more aggressively instead of relying on gain. It's heavy enough for stuff like thrash metal, no need for pedals (though they certainly sound great in this amp). One of my guitars has the het set pickups and even noon is too much gain for just riffing around. Just don't dial up the gain so high and you'll get a crushing but still very saturated heavy tone out of it.
Yeah, I don't really like UG2 cranked. Once you get it past half way you just add more compression rather than gain.
I don’t know if it’s just my amp but mine sounds good on the red channel with the gain on 7
@13_on_guitar Probably the pickups on your guitar. Mine run pretty hot, so higher gain like that just makes it sound muddy. But you'd be surprised how saturated a guitar tone can sound with relatively low gain
Just bought mine couple weeks ago. Guitar center. I play origin 50 head thru marshall 4x12 vintage with greenbacks. I need another portable combo. This DSL is bit different but i really like it a lot! I use spark boost and Boss Ge7 eq for overdrive and boost. I have the cream DSL40 with black plexi marshall logo and very Suprized ehen i opened the back to find a celestion G12 vintage made in UK speaker. My amp is the cream DSL vintage. I play my 2019 cherry les paul classic. Hint of delay echo repeat in fx loop. Very happy with this amp!
Dude! This is the best gear review vid ever! Can you make a video on how you record your sound? I just use my iphone built in microphone and I have no idea why my sound isn't so great.
I might be able to get around to that early next year. I still record using Mics and my gear demo's only use a single mastering EQ.
I’ve got one with a red fang speaker. As well as a 15h. Divine amp
I certainly agree I love mine 👍👍👍👍👍
I have one and its a great overall representation of what Marshall can be. I did do a swap of the speaker to a WSG Vet 30 and I did clip the C19 diode and that help tame some of the higher harshness but still plenty bright
@@GCKelloch Yea. The V-Type leans towards the V30. The Vet 30 does have some of the high end rolled off, even more so. At the time of acquisition, I was going for the Billy Joe Armstrong sound with lots of mids and rolled back highs above 4K.
IS yours the C or the CR?
@@JasonAyalaSpare Mine is the C - I bought it in 2014 from Guitar Center. It originally came with the Seventy 80 speaker
do you think that the c19 mod was worth it? Ive had this amp for a while but the "fizzyness" has always been an issue for me. thanks
@@grantmcmichen40 I strummee one chord with the c19 engaged and was like nope. Then removed it
Your channel is amazing!
Thanks so much 🎸
Excellent video dude; concise, to the point and without waffle. Obviously the DSL40 is loud enough to gig with, but how would you say it sounds at very low volumes for home practice? (sort of talking volume if you get what I mean) Thanks man
Love these but $1049 is not all that affordable to some
That being said I have the 40c and absolutely love it!
DSL 40 👍
Awesome Demo/Review thankyou. I have a Marshall MG15MSII "mini-stack" and love it. But need to Upgrade to Tube Amp some day soon and this may be an option. Cheers
Make sure you get the CR version not the older C version. The C sounds much fizzier.
@@JasonAyalaSpare I just picked up the C version the other day. My first Marshall, and I dig it.
The Digitech Bad Monkey is a legendary sleeper OD of awesome. I've been using one for almost a decade now!
Great content my dude!
Thanks
Hello from the future. They now cost $1,000,000.
Had a cr with creamback for years . Sounds as a good as my stack
I want one of these so bad I’ve seen a few used for around 600 to 700 cad. Might just have to bite the bullet and feel the wallet pain for my first tube amp.
Get the CR version, the C has really fizzy top end.
Gomorron, Jason! Klockan är strax åtta här på morgonen i Sverige när jag kollar på din video o äter frukost samtidigt. Vad kul att se din nya studio och att du testar just den förstärkaren jag vill köpa. Dock är den väldigt dyr här så jag får spara. Den tröjan du har på dig är precis den jag beställde 😊 Ska ta på den idag när jag duschat. Kul att du nu är igång med att göra videos igen! Ha det bra nu!
God morgon Eva! Det är alltid bra att höra från dig. När du får tag i en kommer du inte att bli besviken, det är verkligen en fantastisk förstärkare. Du måste lägga upp en selfie med din skjorta på Facebooksidan för medelålders Gear Junkie.
@@JasonAyalaSpare Tack för ditt svar! Okej, det ska jag göra under dagen😊
This guy pushed me over the edge to pull the trigger on the 40. UPS has it now hold my breath
I will be getting this today and bought it brand new, and it is being shipping from Musicians Friend. After ordering, I read some bad reviews about them.... but, then, they mentioned they are shipping the NEW item and from warehouse. This is for my Son who has a Les Paul Gibson and currently using Bose S1 Pro and he also sings and almost all songs of Alice n Chains (he loves Layne Staley). So, this is for him to Rock. I play the Cajon drums.
I love Layne Staley, I was just playing Down in a Hole through that amp yesterday 🎸
there's literally Nothing bad about the DSL, it's about as Good as you can get for Versatility.
Ultra Gain Red can sound Great but you have to set the Gain low . I find anything above 3 on the gain with ultra red gets too compressed and starts to mush out .
I did find the red Channel became alot firmer after a speaker swap . I swapped out the V type for a Creamback M and the red ultra now has alot more top end clarity and a tighter more refined bass and low mid .
i have one and I love it
I have one of these and always loved it after a speaker swap. I don’t use it that much but recently the tubes went and needed to replaced and rebiased. I picked it up and about a week later when I sat down to play, it stopped working all together. Waiting for the diagnosis now but I always heard how reliable these are.
@@Maschine_Elf I’ll see if he can figure it out this time. If not, gonna find someone else.
I love it even with the stock speaker. Never personally found any reason to swap it out
What speaker did you go with? thanks in advance. ✌🏼
@@ronnieparfait Celestian V type G12. Not as shrill
As the stock 70/80. Never liked that speaker. V Type rounded out the highes just a bit and gave it more a Marshall clean to my ears.
@@ronnieparfait Celestian V type G12. Not as shrill
As the stock 70/80. Never liked that speaker. V Type rounded out the highes just a bit and gave it more a Marshall clean to my ears.
Dammm, just got myself one today. Along with a new epiphone Les Paul custom and the line 6 pod go
How do you like it ?
@@EM-km8em love the sound, but It’s kinda quiet, not that I have had a chance to crank it living in a apartment and the pod go doesn’t seem to work with the 4 cable method and I am not sure if it’s the pedal or the fx loop in the amplifier.
@@kevinlopota3626 i dont really need the pod i just want the amp for its cleans and distortion hehe :p
My biggest problem with the dsl40 is that I have $1000 worth of overdrive pedals that i no longer use because the amp sounds to good by itself. I use a boost, a carbon copy and a fatham. Everything else is just collecting dust.
That’s what I was wondering with the Marshall DSL ; what happens to all my dirt pedals if I buy this?
What were the amp settings for when I come around on od1? And were using any pedals?
You definitely have to have the 2 master volumes on.10 and just use your channel volumes for taste
Hi Jason. Good demo. Just out of curiosity, did you throw a tube screamer in front of the ultra gain setting to try to tighten it up?
I found the Boss SD-1 works better than my TS808 because the EQ curve is more pronounced. I'm saving that for another video about different TS style pedals.
@@JasonAyalaSpare the SD1 works well and does a much nicer job tightening up the red channel . I found tube screamers and Fulltone full drives made the sound more mushy and made the low end sound very ratty .
I've been using a treble booster in front of the ultragain channel and I like it
@@adamwatson6916 I use a tube screamer mini in front of the ultra gain green and it sounds incredible. Just make sure not to overdo the gain to leave room for the TS boost
I just bought mine and I love it. Could you explain the double microphone set up?
For these videos I just have them panned left and right. In a recording situation I would use 1 mic to accentuate part of the frequency, i.e. 1-2k and the other to accentuate upper mids 4-5k and or lower frequencies.
I would like to see s solid state version of this amp. Unfortunately Marshall and Fender want to load up their solid state amps with special effects.
Solid state amps have pretty much disappeared 🤔
From what I hear, the Marshall MG100DFX is a close comparison in a solid state amp.
The DSL40CR is a huge improvement over the 40C.
Please, which song is that before "When I come around"?
Great video!
Kick start my heart
@@JasonAyalaSpare Thank you so much!
Great to cya in your new studio Jason. Very 😎
Been looking at a SV-20C for similar reasons to you, i e. I don't have a Marshall amp.
No doubt I'd be equally happy with your choice. Think I should start checking out the used market.
Cheers. 👊
clean channel is quite good - it's not a fender clean - but a great Marshall clean.
How do I get that mid-forward vintage growl/swell that you hear on AC/DC's TNT intro? I've tried and it seems like the tone is just more modern than that on my DSL40CR. Any tips for getting that warm vintage sound?
You might need to run an EQ pedal to accentuate those specific frequencies.
@@JasonAyalaSpare I figured it out, mostly. Main fix was just a Creamback speaker swap. its subtle but significant. It fixed the scooped, modern sound (a decent amount) and make it more of what you'd expect from a Marshall. BUT it also way tightened up the bass when the gain is on. More responsive and it doesn't just go to mush when you hit that hard E minor open chord. Classic or metal stuff, much better on both the Strat HSS and Ibanez. The next thing is swapping out the V1 pre-amp tube for a JJ ECC823. It'll cut the gain down a few steps on the OD1/2 stuff but leave the Classic side untouched. Specialty tube from Eurotubes only...20$. That doesn't fix the bass response/gain (the speaker helps a lot without needing the tube screamer) but it makes the whole sweep of the knob mostly usable depending on your guitar. Those two adjustments really make the DSl40CR into a proper amp with less flaws. Solid settings for some classic rock on (on both classic crunch and OD1) are Treble 6 (or 7+ with creamback), Mid 7, Bass 1 (or touch more with creamback), presense 5 (or more with creamback), resonance 0. Classic Crunch gain at 3...OD1 gain on 4 or 5. Gets close to that JMP lower gain on classic side and a JCM800 (sorta) with as much hotrod as you want now that it's tighter. I like to get decent volume levels on both channel and masters but you can use them to fine tune.
Pickups make a big difference too, if I use my Les Paul vs my Jackson with EMG 85 for metal.....it sounds like 2 completely different amps.
I really want to like this, but while it sounds good in reviews, it’s got this piercing treble quality that my ears don’t like. I wonder if a speaker upgrade would make much of difference or if that can be softened via the eq?
In the room it sounds fine, I must admit that it took me a while to learn to Mic this amp properly, I was just doing it the same way as I would mic my Fender deluxe.
Thank you for that information!
@@JasonAyalaSpare
Whats up with the lack of reverb on this amp? Can't really hear any difference between reverb 0 and reverb 10.
Yeah, it's pretty tame. But then again Marshall aren't really known for their reverb.
buy a reverb pedal
What pedals should I buy if I really like the 80s metal sound?
I'd recommend the MI Audio Crunch Box, it gets high gain Marshall tones, then you could push it harder with a Boss SD-1
Is it possible to get it to bedroom level?
I tried the dsl20 and it didn’t sound as good
Currently living in a apartment and I may need to play it at normal tv volume
I think so, it's not ideal to run it so low, but it still sounds pleasing.
Was this the 40C or 40CR? I have the newer CR and ive heard the C sounds quite different.
Mine is the CR, sorry I forgot to mention that.
Im told the CR has better voicing than the C, with less fizz, but haven’t tried a C. But the volume drop between channels on the CR does annoy me, especially between the clean channel.
@@beachsidetech the volume drop happens on the C as well. Makes dialling in a switchable sound challenging. Found a bit of relief when attenuated through a captor
i need this amp!!!
It's great
What's the difference with this and the 40hr
The HR is a head only, not a combo.
I had the 100w head and it had a delay when switching from clean to gain. Does this amp do this as well?
No, but that would be super annoying
What were song was that when u demoed the wah wah ?
I was just improvising.
How's this work for metal drop d or drop c
Sounds great, I use a guitar in D standard and drop C with this amp, sounds killer.
To bad this didn't have the option to go down to 5 or 1 watt for home use. That would warrant my purchase.
They do have a 5 watt version, but it's got a 10x inch speaker.
Be careful - not all DSL amps sound the same. I had a smaller one, I think it was a DSL20 combo, it sounded really awful.
well ... I'll stick with my JCM 800 LEAD from 1985 , 50 watt combo wih 2 channels and 1 celestion .
It's heavy AF but I will not change it , it's with me since 1993 , I bought it third hand lol ...nobody wanted to keep it cuz is too heavy but when I turn it on everybody turn their heads .
it's a killer sound !
I would too, sounds like a killer amp
@@JasonAyalaSpare lol it's the heaviest 50W combo that anybody will ever see , a real pain in the neck to move it 😆😆 but everybody loves it .
Is this the best amp EVER made?
No, but it sounds good 🙂
I wouldn't go that far.
Why buy a DSL20 when the 40 does 20w
It’s probably the best Marshall amp that won’t cost you a kidney.
Callie Manors
Unique Wells
Subscribed because of your name and I also am middle aged 😅❤
Lindgren Valley
Christiansen Stravenue
Ida Hollow
Thumbs up for using the Bad Monkey before they went viral lmao. 👍🏻
JULIAN!?
I was hoping you were going to do some playing
you obviously didn't watch the video
Nicole Lake
Koelpin Passage
Champlin Center
did that cort electric geetar come with duncans?
No, it was an upgrade.
Myrtis Plains
Wiza Roads
Lang Bridge
Erwin Greens
Kshlerin Fields
Medhurst Route
Boyle View
I've played a DSL 40 combo at Guitar Center enough to know that it's gonna be my first "real" amp lol
EDIT: Quick note, I like the OD2 channel but I never put the gain that high on it, honestly, I don't think I've ever put it past 12-1.
Hilll Ferry
Ugggggggh as if I didn't feel stupid for selling mine, I feel double-y stupid after hearing your playing.