18 watt Marshall clones?

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TSL

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Anyone have/hear one of these?

There are a number of places you can buy one, or make one from a ready to go complete kit. Recent encounter with one at a pro studio, FABULOUS!

Think I may have found the amp to take to the grave...It's been a long hunt...

Anyway, any of you guys familiar with the 18 watt?

If curious:

18watt.com
 
Yes.. I have one 18 W clone.. with a TMB stack.. I love it.. Perfect combination with my Tokai Love Rock (and also with other Les Paul types) :wink:
 
Check out www.atomamps.com I have one of these and it is the best sounding amp I have ever owned. By the way, I now own about 40 vintage amps.

John Spears is the guy there that builds them. He is a super nice guy and real easy to work with.

Kind regards,
Crushtone
 
You know, I played a bunch of Buddas recently. Just couldn't dial in what I was after. Must say, I now, after almost 30 years ENJOY using a Wah-Wah! Budda make the ONLY good sounding Wah I've ever heard. Worth the high price. Even the under pedal switch WORKS!

I have 3 crybabys, none of the switches work reliably, one is even a Thomas Organ model. Look for that on eBay soon!

While I am replyinmg to Buckwild, I gotta say you have the best taste in Flame tops! How do find those things? Was just looking at you 320 for sale, WOW! I am a sucker for real deep, vintage looking flame. Seems everytime I see a beautiful one, it's either yours, or someone bought it from you! Granted Villager has alot of nice stuff, but you may be the Flame King!

Hey, as for cool vintage clone amps, w/out the price tag of something beat up by the previous owner, they can be found at:

ceriatone.com

You need to mount them in some kind of box of your own though. They started out selling kits, but will do full assembly, soldering, testing, etc for an additional $70! Beat that! I really like hand wired amps, and have no problem paying extra to have something made in the USA, but the boutique amps are SO out of line in price, they make Gibson look like a fair company! If you like vintage circuits, and have no problem with a clone, check these guys out. You can spend a 40 hour week on google and not find one negative remark about these guys, other than they print thier own name on the capacitors, but hey, they Mallory, and other quality components, so who cares?
 
TSL said:
While I am replyinmg to Buckwild, I gotta say you have the best taste in Flame tops! How do find those things? Was just looking at you 320 for sale, WOW! I am a sucker for real deep, vintage looking flame. Seems everytime I see a beautiful one, it's either yours, or someone bought it from you! Granted Villager has alot of nice stuff, but you may be the Flame King!

Yeah I've had some real beauties. The LS-320 I'm selling now is one of the best, if not the best, flame on a Tokai I've ever seen. Thats why Im a bit perplexed nobody has jumped on it. If I can't get my price I'm just gonna keep it. The best way to get a good flame top is to make sure the seller takes a picture of it in natural light. That way you can see everything-dead spots symetry etc. Sometimes it's just a leap of faith though. Taking photos in pure sunlight with a tripod willl lead to showing the most beautiful flame.
Here's a couple more non Tokai flame tops just for the hell of it!

Rock!
1b.jpg

McCarty_web_1.jpg
 
Thanks for the extra guitar porn! My wife laughs at me all the time, "that look on your face, are surfing the web and looking at porn?" My reply is to turn around the laptop and show her guitar photos! Always good for a laugh!

When I show her I am looking at the inside of an amplifier she just shakes her head and walks out of the room snickering! She understands the guitar thing, but when I break out the soldering iron she says things like "I didn't know anyone DID that stuff anymore!" "Where would you BUY a soldering iron? Can you still buy them?" Granted, she is in her 30s, I getting close to 50.

I forget what this thread is even about anymore, but really, thanks for the pics! The nicest flame I've ever seen, and with bookmatching that literally looked like you held a mirror up to one side of the guitar was on a top of the line Hamer I bought 12 years ago. it was love at first sight! Well, my back got better, and I can again stand the weight of a LP, found one of those I really liked, and sold the Hamer to a friend. Kick myself about once a week, but he is a FABULOUS player, truely extrodinary. He has some family obligations, terminal child and all, so he does not get to play alot professionally, and had been playing various "frankenstrats" and such. Had to sell it to him at a giveaway price, he really needed and SHOULD have that guitar. Anyway, I have visiting privledges. Next time I see I'll take some pics and post them here under "other". Really, flame that will make you cry!

OK, off to bed, I've gone on far too long, just love flame, and those nice git pics! :D
 
They'd be a clone of the original mid-60s Marshall 1974 (that's the model ref. not the year) 18W head or 1x12 combo. All-tube including the rectifier. Having a tube rectifier will give it a warm kinda sag in the midrange w/ slight compression evident. Perfect for bluesy rock ? la AC/DC etc. Plus, being just 18W means you can get a nice crunch going even at relatively sociable volume levels (though 18 all-tube watts is still f***in' loud!). If you like AC/DC, especially the early sound, you'll be in hog heaven, but if you're tastes run to modern gainy sludge yoiu may wanna keep looking

I should add that I've never actually played one before, but I have played an all-original '66 JTM-45, which is it's larger 45W cousin & that remains my ultimate, perfect "holy grail" sound. Someday when I've got the wonga to throw around, I'll have to get hold of a boutique copy of one, like a Cornell or a Retro King, as they're cheaper than originals & better than Marshall's own reissues. Still expensive though...
 
leadguitar_323 said:
Next question,

is it possible to build an 18 watt or small wattage amp with the charecteristics of an early eighties 2203 jcm 800 Marshall.....??

Should be, yeah. The differences would primarily be solid-state rectifier & cap values. Go to one of the forums on: http://vintageamps.com/plexiboard/index.php and ask someone. There's some way more knowledgeable people than me over there.
 
Bear in mind that an 18W will never sound EXACTLY like a 2203, which is 100W & typically played through a 4x12 cab with mucho headroom.
 
The 18 watt as it is really perfectly does exactly what most everyone wants a Marshall to do. It automatically does the sound you always try to dial in on other models.

Sure, you could modify it, and people do, but in the end the straight amp is that "sought after" tone. 18 watts is plenty to drive either a 2x12 or a 4x12 as well.
 
Plus, if you wanted the 18W to sound like a JCM 800, there's some pedals that would get you close. The Maxon Distortion Master & the old Marshall Shredmaster (long discontinued, but Ebay is heaving with them) both spring to mind. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the replies fella's, i know that there are some good pedals around but i'm a bit old fashioned, i like the simplicity of a guitar straight into an amp, so the quest to find the perfect amp continues............ :)
 
leadguitar_323 said:
Next question,

is it possible to build an 18 watt or small wattage amp with the charecteristics of an early eighties 2203 jcm 800 Marshall.....??

If that's the amp you ultimately want, save up and get one. Trying to make one amp something else results in spending extra money and still not being happy.

If you can find an 18 wt Marshall, original, reissue,clone, whatever near you, check it out. It will heavy rock like nothing else. If you just want to shred, you have tons of choices.

Really, all the Les Paul players on this forum that are traditional serious rock players should check out those clones. $500 for the amp, wired ready to go, $300 for a repro cab, $100 for a speaker you like, say a Celestion Grennback, or a Vintage 30. Easy to carry, WAY louder than any drummer, and extreme joy for under $1000.

I'll really stop my preaching now, it's just these are the perfect ROCK amp, regardless of other amps you may like. I have several other close seconds, but the 18 watt IS the holy grail...

ceriatone.com for amps

mojotone.com for boxes to put the amp in.

No, I don't work for either company.
 
G'day TSL if it was the amp i ultimately want i'd already have it.
I've only recently found out about these amps, in AUS we find everything out second hand lol. Just asking a lot of questions before i buy...... can't be to careful don't like wasting money . :wink: thanks for your comments
 
The Quest to Find the Perfect Amp!!

Wow, good luck. No amp can do all .... but in the category of small practice or bedroom amp, the winner is the old Marshall "Lead 12" (Model 5005) from the 80's. It's a simple one channel plug in your guitar and roar type of amp. Check out the comments on it in the Doyle "History of Marshall" book and the most recent Vintage Guitar mag (w/ Clapton on the cover). If you are looking for a Bluesbreaker tone, this will deliver.

I've had mine about 19 years and mostly use if for rehearsals but I have done small gigs with it. It can sound good at low volumes, but if the situation calls for it, it sounds so sweet dimed.

This little "demon" (as Doyle put it) was made in the UK and has a Celestion 10 inch. Stay away from any Marshall product not made in the UK.
 

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