Thanks, "old guy" (you're a spring chicken compared to me though). After seeing your upload I bought a used DSL20 combo, swapped V1 for an AY7 (off ebay) and the speaker for the G12M (also used, so run in). Great. I then swapped V2 for a 5751 (70% of AX7 gain if I remember) I had lying around, and ... joy, all for £345 (approx $450).
I’m careful these days, lol as a youngster I ruined a fair amount of stuff til I discovered why people go to school to become engineers and why companies who build cool stuff hire engineers... :)
I been jamming my Marshall DSL20CR cranked for a bit now and the & 70/80 speaker broke in quite nicely. it sounds great. you should have did the test on 20 watts instead of 10 watts. the DSL 20 Sounds its best at a full 20 watts. pre-amp tubes don't get biased only power tubes get biased. the Marshall DSL 20 has auto biasing for it's power tubes. all high gain amps have a hiss. the hiss is good
You make me feel better about the 70/80 because I can't afford almost $200 for the creamback although if I did have the money I would definitely swap out but when your in a tight spot, work with what you have.
I discovered with this amp, when I adjusted the treble down to 1.5 to 2.5 the mids and bass really come up. This is a much fatter sound that I really like. It was still bright enough. So I lower the treble when playing clean tones and then move the treble up to about 4.5 for distortion sounds. Try it, this amp and the DSL 1 really respond to this adjustment, have never heard this before with any other Marshall I have worked with. Cheers
There is this Old mesa rectifier eq trick, that also worked on my DSL1 that you should try. Try putting the treble as low as it will go. The pot wiper has to be resting on 0. Then run the mid up around 7-9, as it will become the new mid&treble control. On mesas it bypasses the treble, and makes them less harsh. On my DSL1 I think it made it nice and fat, and tamed some fizz.
In my experience with Marshalls, and I've owned some since the 80s, is they don't really come alive till you crank them, even the newer models with far higher levels of gain than the old JCMs. Headroom is a big issue with me when it comes to amps. That's why I used a Boogie combo for a number of years. It was a heavy amp, but lighter and easier than moving the Marshall stack to gigs, even the half stack. And the headroom was tremendous. The amp could be seriously loud at 3. I used it on 2 or lower for practicing at home and got all the crunch I needed. Yes. Tubes make a huge difference. I discovered long ago that Philips were great for EL34s, but Fender tubes are great when it comes 6L6. Also, the tubes that came with my Boogie were just fine. but when I changed them every three years it was usually with Fenders because I could find them easier, and they worked great. Great video! Keep jammin'!
Totally agree with Marshalls needing to be up a bit to sound good, that’s why I sold my 40W - just couldn’t do it any justice. My little 5W with a good pedal absolutely kills, lol. People look at the amp, like “should something that small be putting that out!?!?” I’ve never tried any Philips tubes, just usually go with JJs but I’ll try some. It’s pretty much standard for me anymore to drop the gain on that first tube by a notch or two, really settles things down and there’s still plenty of gain. Thanks for coming by!
@@oldguyjammin9732 BTW an amp I highly recommend is the Peavey Valveking II. I may be buying one soon. They discontinued them last year, but they sound amazing. Great classic rock tone and classic rock, organic high gain. I don't like the newer death metal type amps. I owned a Boogie in the 80s but that was 50 cal and tonally the closest thing to a Marshall they made, but with better headroom. I'll take good gain over high gain, then just use a petal to tweak it a bit. That's all you have to do to get the ultimate sound.
@@angusorvid8840- I’ll check it out, I did have a Valveking head for a while and remember enjoying it quite a bit. Recently got a Rectoverb so I know what you mean about headroom, sounds good low too but the tone is what’s so remarkable. I imagine it cuts through any mix, or maybe ‘punches through’ would even explain it better ;-)
@@oldguyjammin9732 A Mesa Rectoverb? Head or combo? What wattage? The 25 combo or head is one of my favorite Mesas ever. I don't like the Dual or Triple Rectos (too thrash metal for me) but the smaller Rectoverbs are simply outstanding. I almost bought earlier this year but settled on a DSL 20 combo which I'm loving.
@@angusorvid8840 - I got the 25W Rectoverb Combo (mini-rec). I have a selection of heads but wanted another ‘grab and go’ smallish combo. I can still plug it into a cab if I want. The DSL20 is AWESOME - at this point it would be my ‘desert island amp’. Still getting to know the Rectoverb though and have a new speaker to put in it soon. I’ve never liked the UK V30s so I’m gonna try a G12-T75
I recently got this amp and I’m in love! However as we all do, any fault at 1st I would blame the speaker cuz of all I’ve read about the 70 eighty but after a few hours of playing around I discovered that this amp REALLY RESPONDS to the knobs! You need to take the time to A/B adjustments to the EQ and the presence knobs to find “your sound”. Those first two hours I wasn’t very excited about the sound until making adjustments well outside what I would’ve expected and now I found that 90’s grunge JCM800 sound that I love! This amp is very “soundful” lolz new word, so play with it if at 1st you’re not happy and STOP blaming the 70 eighty! ….i mean, I would like to hear this paired with a V30 1x12 cab so their playing out both cabs
Great video, I just picked up the DSL 20 a few months ago and it's unbelievably good. I used to be a huge Orange fan and was going to pull the trigger on a TH30 but I got the chance to try this amp out in store and it's got so much more warmth and presence to the tone, makes my LP standard sing. I just installed the Creamback 65 and it was night and day difference, worth every penny. I agree that the DLS 40 is a brick, I owned a Peavey 212 100 watt that was close to the same weight as the DLS 40 so I knew the 40 wouldn't be as practical for bedroom use and lugging around places. The DLS 20 is a wonderful size, very nice at low volumes as well for a tube, I can get some really dirty gain at low volumes and the foot switch going back and forth between clean and gain is so much fun. I will eventually be getting a pedal board and start the money burning collection, I heard this amp takes pedals really well
I'm glad people are still making new videos on this stuff. Until I gain 10 more years of experience, I'm just going with a versatile rig until I know what I want for my tone. I bought a Mexican hss strat with a Floyd Rose, and swapped out the original tuning machine with locking tuners, not necessarily for tuning stability (although I did notice my strat has a slight issue holding the higher strings in tune), but mainly to make changing strings more effortless to sorta combat the pain that comes with a Floyd string change. And hey, I get the bonus of more stability. I would have preferred a Gibson SG, but a nice whammy bar was a requirement for me, the only SG that I saw with a whammy bar that I actually liked was the Gibson Diablo tremolo SG. Unfortunately it's extremely hard to find. I had an epiphone SG and playing it with the shorter neck felt so much faster and I really loved the speed. I also bought a fretwrap because I saw that that also helps with cleaning up string buzz on shredding (I guess you can tell I'm ideally going for speed. I'd love to have my strat scalloped but I'm scared of ruining it) I bought a headphone amp (fender mustang micro) until I saved enough money for an actual amp, and I finally saved up enough for the price range of what I'm willing to pay for an amp. I payed 1000 for the strat, and I'm thinking the guitar should probably be worth around the same or maybe a little bit more than the amp, so I'm looking for an 800 dollar amp. For an amp, my biggest priority is getting the minimum requirement to be able to play with a band. 15 to 20 watts is what I've seen recommended the most. I don't want it so loud that I can't play at home, but I don't want it so quiet that I can't play with a drummer. How much does the DSL 20 weigh? Would I be able to carry it with one hand? Ideally I would like to be able to carry my guitar on my back, the amp in one hand, and the pedal board in the other and then I'm good to go. I don't know why for some reason I gravitate towards Marshalls, over Fender amps. When I think Fender amps I just think clean tones. And again I need to be able to be versatile. I need to be able to play both clean and dirty. But I would primarily be playing with high gain, I'm looking for a creamy brown sound. So with everything that I'm looking for, the dsl 20 seems to be the right fit, and then of course I find out that everyone thinks that the speakers are crap and we need to immediately replace them. And so now I'm here to ask about Greenback versus creamback. It's been quite a journey to get to this part, and I'm sure glad that I'm learning a lot.
Oh, and because I know that playing with the DSL 20 will still be a pain at home, I'm probably going to just buy some sorta wireless headphone configuration that I'll set up with my amp so I don't have to worry about neighbors or anything.
Isn’t the journey grand though? The dsl20 weighs 36 lbs and imo is one of the most versatile amps out there. Of course, it has ‘that Marshall tone’ which some like and others not so much but I like it and find it very easy to work with. It takes pedals very well too which opens up endless tonal landscapes. They do sound best with the masters up past noon so the 20 isn’t necessarily a ‘bedroom amp’ but it still sounds ok at low volumes. From what I’ve gathered the Creamback is a high watt version of the Greenback - otherwise very much the same tone. The Greenbacks are in the neighborhood of 25W where as the Creamback is rated at 65W or so, if you like speaker distortion go with the Greenback, if you like amp distortion and the speaker to stay tight, go Cream. Swampthang is also a killer speaker for these Marshall combos if you play low tuned metal. You guitar sounds great! I once scalloped a Kramer I had back in the day, Focus 6000 or something... However, I only scalloped it from the octave up! If you scallop from 12th or even 10th fret up, not only is it a ton easier, but you can’t screw up the area of the neck you use for chording \m/. Unwanted resonance and vibration can kill tone. I’ve heard enough about those nut scrunchies that I’m gonna try some, Guitar Jon uses duct tape past the nut and other side of the bridge. Another thing I’ve recently done is to block out all my tremolo bars, even on my guitars with a locking nut setup. Of course I can’t pull up, but I can still bend and I can bend without the surrounding strings going down in pitch, plus the sustain has improved, so win, win, win all around. Have the best time ever on your journey :) rock on
** while I’m thinking about it, because you mentioned “metal play” one other amp I’d suggest you ponder is the Laney IRT30 combo - you can check out specs and weight but it’s more metal than the Marshall (think Engl or Mesa) super tight, and with outstanding features like an attenuator and footswitchable boost that’s the best I’ve ever heard. They can be picked up for around the same price as the DSL20. Check on out \m/
I use a Marshall Power Brake even with my DSL 20-H! Using an attenuator to lover voltage is an incredible way to enjoy these amps at 'home level' volumes.
So cool hearing about the ‘power brake’ because I heard about YEARS ago but had no clue what it was :) is it an active attenuator or passive? And you are correct, attenuation is a fabulous invention.
I just bought a DSL20CR in mint condition (minus the floor switch) at a pawn shop for $250 out the door.. somebody obviously wasn't paying attn.. this amp sounded great with the stock speaker, but when I dropped an original Reverend ALL Tone 1250 (Joe Naylor) in this amp, WOW............... probably the coolest amp I've ever owned and I've had too many to name..
Dang dude, great story ~ you’ll definitely get your money out of it should you ever decide to sell. Great amps when you can keep the master up past noon.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thanks! yeah I can't see me ever getting rid of this gem.. these amps are $750 new and no telling on the speaker if you can even find one..
Just traded my 40 in for the 20. I started out with the 20 and it was 1st generation so when I changed channels there was a huge poping sound. I went and traded it for a 40 only because I was getting back into a band doing big venues. Covid hit and that ended that. I could not bring my 40 anywhere like open jams because of the weight and volume. Just traded in my 40 to the newer version of the 20 and I couldn't be happier, I can now go to open jams and actually carry the 20 with no problems. So to sum things up, I love the 20 for taking it to open jams and it's pretty loud even for a band situation, mic it for big venues. I have to deal with the speaker in there because at the moment money is as tight as two coats of paint so I have to work with what I have which I think the 70/80 would not be my first choice to put in any amp but it's what I have to work with and making adjustments on the EQ to what ever guitar I am using helps out greatly when you take your time. I am 62 and this little beast saved my back. The 40 is for the young guys who can handle it now but wait until you get in your 60's. Great video and if you would have played with the creamback in the video, we the guys watching the video would not of heard the difference because of the mics in video cameras and a lot of us use are phones and there's no way we would hear any difference but I take your word for it, those creambacks are nice. Great video, thank you I feel much better about ditching my 40 and going back to my 20CR.
@@mattfischer8413 I believe the first generation was the DSL20C but I really don't recall it's been so long ago, the model numder may have not changed but I bought my first DSL20 when they first came out. Sorry I'm not that much help it's been so long ago. I can tell you when they first came out they had small problems reported so they took out the little bugs but some might not call it second generation I was calling that due to them doing small changes but you can look up to see if they ever made DSL20C.
@@mattfischer8413 if the model is a CR your probably good to go just check with the reverb up and change the channels and if you hear a popping sound, it's an older one.
Very nice! The DSL20CR makes more sense for me size wize,( another toy for the pile) but the difference in price with the 40CR is about one trip to the grocery store! Or even the same price if shopping used. I like to get the most for my money & this is a tough one.
I know what you mean, I had the 40... sold it, got a 20 and love it. The 40 was just a beast with a bit of option overload imo. To really make it work you need the 6 button footswitch, so add that to your $$. If you play out a bit, than the 40 may be the way to go, but if you mostly play at home, I'd stay with the 20. Maybe even the 20 head and a 2x12 upright cab... there you go.
I read that the single greatest improvement of the DSL series is a tweak that removes the fx loop, digital reverb and emulated output (ie all the digital shit). It involves just snipping two resistors and adding about 1" of cable. I'll report back when I've tried it (it may take time as I'm going to try using a switch so I can flick in reverb etc when I feel like it).
That’s be awesome, strange I’ve never run into this mod cause I’m always pouring over the net for such stuff. Can you provide the link? And YES, a switch would be great - I can’t live without an FX loop. Good luck \m/
@@oldguyjammin9732Huh. 1) I've posted the link several times but RUclips strips it back out... 2) Can't do the mod because I can't get the chassis out! I can't see any screws other than the four around the handle, but it seems well and truly jammed in. What is your technique/trick?
@@digitalchris6681 - there is a strip of double sided sticky tape between the top of the chassi (front) and the cabinet. I would invert the amp, so the chassi is resting in place and then, with a very fine tipped screw drive or knife blade, gently work the front of the amp free. Those four screws around the handle are the only one to remov.
@@oldguyjammin9732 done it! Thanks for the tip. And I've figured out how to disconnect the digital board without any messing with the pcb. I replied to you but again youtube stripped it out. If this post survives I'll send more info. Do you have the schematic? Mine is for the dsl15mkii but exactly the same as dsl20cr.
Sure, 80% of the tone comes from the first pre-amp tube in socket 1 which is literally closest one to the input jack. Start there when ‘tube rolling’. I’d try a 12AY7 first which is the same as an ECC81 I believe. I wouldn’t change any others til you try this first and I wouldn’t change any preamp tubes other than the first or second.
Just bought a used DSL20 head and I was surprised I liked it so much. It has KT77 power tubes in it instead of the stock EL34, so maybe that's part of it? Not sure. Speaker pairing was interesting. Tried it in store with a 2x12 Orange V30 cab open back, and loved it. Got it home, and used my oversized 1x12 V30 open back and didn't like it so much, but I do like it better with my much smaller Bugera 1x12 loaded with an Eminence Texas Heat. I think the Texas Heat is a smoother, slightly darker speaker and it tames a bit 'o fizz perhaps. In any case, I had been looking at tons of more expensive options, but the DSL20 just hit the spot. I agree with you on the DSL40. I tried that combo recently in the store and I just couldn't get it anywhere near proper levels to judge properly. I knew it would only be worse at home. Total no-go. I'm pretty sure I hate the stock 70/80 speaker as well. I've dealt with those in the past and never had a good experience with them in any amp.
Awesome man! The Texas Heat or SwampThang are definitely the way to go G12M Creamback is also really good. Cool about the KT77s, I’m gonna look into those. V30s are a poor choice for Marshalls imo. Marshalls are peculiar in that they don’t really sound “great” until the master gets past noon and higher.
Hello, Another great video. I just purchased on of these amps used. It looks like you can connect the amp to external speakers. I have not seen any videos on doing that. I would like to see you connect it to an external speakers and your thoughts (pro's/Con's) (ideas....) on doing it. Thanks, Craig
Hey man, I may do that at some point but until then... your internal speaker is 16 ohms so it has to be plugged in to that single speaker out when your just using the amp as is. If you want to connect another cabinet, you move that little speaker wire over to one of the 2x16 ohm jacks and then plug your 16 ohm extension cab into the other. The manual is also on line and pretty informative, but basically if your using 1 speaker use the one out, if adding a cab use the 2 out jacks... your internal speaker in one, extra cab in the other.
I use a Marshall DSL20CR as a practice amp in my bedroom & study. Definitely don’t need anything bigger than that & even this 20w Marshall is kinda overkill for a practice amp. I don’t use large amps any longer as I have learned that the right amp with the right speakers in the right cabinets can cut through everyone else in the band! Lol Live, I use a Mesa Rectoverb 25 head with two 1x12 Rectifier 60w cabs, one straight & one slant, essentially making a mini stack! The 25 watt head is plenty I for the small clubs/bars/venues that I’m playing in! 🎸
Hello again Oldguyjammin. I think I told you before I have the 40. I’m not as brave as you all these mods ha ha. Sounds great though. I like the mod way better. I never use Ultra. I just put it clean and run a Klon(Soul Food) into it. Sometimes with a TS 808 also. Oh and I ended up selling the DSL 5. Another thing I discovered is an ABY box! I bought it to switch back and forth but I’m having more fun running two amps together! Deluxe Reverb/ DSL40 Blues Deville/DSL40 Blues JR/DSL40 etc. I’m having a ball!!
I’ve had people tell me that THAT’S the best way to run looped phrases too, loop through one amp and lead over it through the other. I’m gonna check that out, I imagine you can run 1 amp, or the 2nd amp separately OR both together... I’m just imagining that and kind of trippin out ha ha. Omg, the tonal options would be astounding!
@@oldguyjammin9732 Those boxes are like 30 bux on Amazon. You’ll have fun I promise you. It’s also cool to have the room full of sound if they’re spread out like mine are. I bought the thing to switch back and forth( can’t even remember why I wanted that haha) but then I started running 2 together. Lotta fun
Great Video! I need help PLEASE!!! I have a 2022 DSL20CR,and after playing for about an hour( Classic gain ), it sounds really " echoey". I've got the gain at 9 o'clock.the volume at 3 o'clock,and the rest at 12 o'clock.I've got my "Strat" volume maxed! The longer I play,the less volume I seem to get.Does this make any sense to you? I'm a beginner and it's very frustrating! HELP!!
@Oldguyjammin the DSL 20 CR is all analogue except the (Reverb) & (soft tube out) . The raised white ceramic cathodes around the Power Tubes are for auto Biasing for the 2 EL34. the power Tubes are Plug& Play. All the resistors are even in hand wired amps.
I’ve really settled on the G12M Creamback as the best sounding speaker for Marshall style amps. V30s have a classic mid-scoop but also have a fizzy top end that can irritate some people. Imo speakers are the final aspect of fine tuning your tone and are dependent on the amp you choose and even how low your tuning will be. For example if the amp is the Peavey Invective and your tuning goes down to C standard or Drop C you’re best bet will be the Emminence DV-77. That V-Type that comes stock is actually pretty darn good, but if it sounds like there’s too much mid-range or isn’t hitting hard enough on the chugs, the V30 will probably sound really good.
I think you could have added a power brake to the DSL 40 and problem solved, because I know for sure when you crank up a 20-watt amp to where it starts sounding good it is still WAY too damn loud for bedroom use. I use a Blackheart 3 watt little giant into a 2 x 12 in the bedroom, and I still can't turn it up past 3 unless no one is home. The difference in volume between a 40 watt and a twenty-watt amp when they both have a pair of el34 power tubes is not much, but the 40-watt DSL has a half power switch so if you wanted to play at 20 watts turn the switch to 20. If you want a good sounding tube amp for home use even 5 watts is too loud.......so you have to get an attenuator.
I’d agree with most of what you said, the 40 just wasn’t for me; didn’t need the dual masters, etc. The 20 was plenty and I found the sweet spot a little easier. You’re right about twice the watts NOT being twice as loud, that’s a commonly held false hood among the newbies, but then again not all 20 watt amps are created equal, some 20s are much louder than others, etc. I’ve always felt that amps on half power mode lose a little of the thump, take the Brent Hinds signature by Orange, between the full/half power and headroom/bedroom switches you have some VERY different tones. My favorite home amp to this day has to be the DSL5 - from quiet to loud it just sounds great! My only experience with attenuators is the passive ones and while I dig what they do, I still feel they suck just the slightest bit of tone out of the fun. I certainly can’t afford the $1k Fryette or something similar, nor do I really need one. Someone with an old non-master Marshall??? For sure \m/
cool video thx! think sounds smoother with the mods. mine is stock but at home i have a jhs little black amp box in the effects loop so that the amp sounds good on low volume...
Ya, that’s cool. I have the same little JHS box in the loop on one of my pedal boards and really love it. I’m gonna be trying an L-Pad attenuator in the DSL20 soon - stay tuned ;-)
Hi again. I finally got this combo and I Will try the jj 12au7 un V1 like in my DSL 1, but i maybe 12ay7 like you if I don't like. Also I Will change the speaker for a Greenback. I Will let you know, amigo!
Really appreciate this video. I have owned the DSL20CR and really liked it, but wound up selling it. Was considering buying it again, but also was wondering about the DSL5CR. Which would you recommend for home use if you don't have to be too quiet, but don't want to upset the neighbors too much? I know you have owned both of the years. Thanks!
For just knocking around I’d get the 5CR, put a 12” speaker in it and then push it with The Killing Floor or Mesa Flux drive - sounds REALLY good both quiet AND loud. I am really liking the 20 but find that the masters have to be up past noon to sound good and that can be pretty loud. It’s nice to be able to crank it up but the fam gets a little irritated ; - )
So today I put the little 5 on top of the 20 and did a quick comparison... ‘too loud’ is so relative and subjective. The 20 sounds really big. I’m gonna do a comparison of both next week. It’s such a hard decision.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thanks very much for the reply and info. I was wondering if you still had the DSL20 or if the 5 watt had won you over. I am not up for modding the 5CR to fit a 12" speaker. My only option would be to upgrade the speaker or not go that route.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think the 5cr has the presence and resonance knobs. They make the 20hr sound awesome. I use the Bugera Ps-1 attenuator in my apartment and my neighbors don't hate me, but they should be paying me!
STB is “standby” and when that’s engaged nothing will happen. Power has to be ON (glows red) and ten the black switch is moved to either High or Low ~ you should get something. Are you using the effects loop? Footswitch? Is the speaker cable plugged in? Etc... might need more info.
I haven’t, sorry but my high school buddy runs his Axe Effects through the loop of his Mesa Triple Crown! Bypasses the preamp all together, just plugs into the return of the loop.
When you mean replace the first preamp tube to the Y, is that tube all the way to the left or right looking at it from the back? I assume it's the one closest to the outside looking either way but I don't want to assume. Thank you.
I have had this amp in head format for a couple years and still don't get it. If I record it at anything below 8 on master volume, the sound is always thin and fizzy to varying degrees. Once I get past 8, something kicks in, big time-I am not sure whether it's the power amp, or speaker compression, or perhaps both-requiring very different EQ settings with a lot more presence and treble to open up the sound. Once I get past 8, there is a lot more compression and the fizz is gone. The fizz part is all upside. I also like the compression and perceive it as very musical, especially in the way the amp sustains and recorded tracks sit in the mix. However, many tone experts claim that the compression is not a desirable characteristic, and that these amps get their tone from the preamp and aren't meant to be pushed that hard. What are your thoughts on this?
I’d disagree with the last statement that these amps aren’t meant to be pushed hard. Imo Marshalls sound BEST when the masters get up past 2 O’Clock or so, it’s for this reason that I sold my DSL40 and grabbed up a 20 and a DSL5... so I could get the master up. Like you said, the difference in tone is astounding. The bass comes on strong, the mids start to attach and just growl and I actually end up turning the presence or treble down. I believe the difference is pushing the EL34s (master up) versus mostly hearing the preamp. I’ve had pretty good results with the JHS Little Black Box attenuator ~ if you turn the attenuator down more than 50% it loses any goodness but less than that, it allows a pretty cranked master while still be comfortable in the house.
I put the MXR 10-band EQ in the loop of my 20HR and man what a difference. I highly recommend it. I use a Orange PPC-112 with a Vintage 30 and it's a monster.
Sorry if this is a stupd question, but can i just change out the power amp tube without rebiasing? Edit: It is a stupid question haha. I was referring to the DSL5CR. This is the 20.
Gotcha, there is a bias adjustment in the DSL5CR but I found it made very little difference in tone. You’ll be fine swapping out the single B7 tube for another one without re-biasing.
Thanks for the informative video. I bought a dsl 20 second-hand. it has a thin sound with some annoying buzz on some tones in clean (i use pedals for everything. so only use clean)! "Gain" seems to be TOO sensitive that I can't go higher than 1! Anyways, totally disappointed (compared to my VOX 15c). I love the "modded" sound of yours! decided to give it a shot and go for 12AY7. Q: Why you replaced 2 of them and not all three?! Q: Do you think I should replace EL34s as well?
Start with the preamp tubes, they're cheaper and it may be the reason for the thin sound. You could replace all three but most of the tone shaping comes from the first one and a bit more from the second. Do you have the 20C or CR? Not sure what your budget is but a speaker makes a big difference too, something like a Texas heat or Swampthang.
@@YT1344 - excellent, the 70/80 isn’t too bad, but if you ever start turning that thing up, you’ll probably want something a bit beefier. Good luck, hope a new tube or two does wonders.
@@oldguyjammin9732 I replaced all 3 of them and VERY happy with the result! The annoying noise on high pitch ear-piercing sounds is gone. Doesn't sound dark at all. Just has a "listenable" high freq now! Just wanted to thank you :)
Yeah I really don't like the 70/80 speaker, one of their worst. I have a Vintage 30, and I think I'm going to get a second 1x12 with a Warehouse greenback.
Hi there, I ordered this amp based on this video thank you, but I find the sound very harsh and thin, and actually quite boxy. I also have a DSL15 which by comparison is much warmer with much better low end base. I tried plugging the DSL20 amp into the DSL15 speaker and it was better but still very harsh. Did you find there was a considerable hiss with all the volumes down?
Marshall's do have a bit of hiss but less than say an EVH LBX or others, Friedman and PRS amps are some of the quietest I've played but you pay for it. I like Creambacks in a Marshall rather than V30s or that stock 70/80 and it makes a difference. Also, swap out the 12AX7 in socket 1 for a 12AY7 ( you could even try a 12AU7 but thats a bit too low maybe) to lower the gain and it helps quiet the amp. Try it in low power mode and get that Master up past noon, then bring up the gain. Using a Bugera PS1 attenuator with the DSl20 is a real game changer too.
That's the point. When I play at home the gain is 1/4 the way round and the volume is effectively off: just a tiny tweak and it's deafening. The valve change allows the volume control to have a sensible range.
@@19fenderman60 - I’d try the less expensive preamp tubes first and see what happens, if you still feel like changing the ‘big glass’ than JJ’s will be perfect. Sometimes its best to just re-tube the whole amp, then you know you’re good. When I change tubes I’ll often save the old ones if I don’t hear any difference. A bad tube will definitely start to make weird little popping noises or whispy singing tones - good luck!
@@19fenderman60 - nothing bad happens when tubes go bad, those weird sounds will just get more noticeable. You can poke around in there with a pencil to check for micro-phonic tubes. Take the grate off, have the amp on like you’d normally play it and gently tap each tube with the lead end of the pencil. A bad tube will give off a definite ‘ting’ that you’ll hear through the speaker. It you got this amp used, it might be a good idea to replace all the preamp tubes, then you just know that everything is fresh. I’ve actually replaced very few tubes over the last 5 years because they wore out :) not nearly the maintenance headache that some talk about.
Thanks for sharing, excellent video. I have couple of questions as I have same amp, If i dont want to remove the speaker is possible to build another cabinet and just plug the cable for the speaker ? (Yes I now realize how a Head works xD but at that moment was not too deep into the topic) and regarding bulbs how can I get thm in Mexico :(
Yes, you can build a separate speaker cab with one, two or even more speakers as long as the impedance of the cab remains at 16 ohms. Someone must ship to Mexico...? Try thetubestore, amazon, tubedoctor, eBay, reverb, etc.
@@lupee10 - sounds good! Happy Cab building :) you didn’t ask but I’m gonna make a suggestion anyway :) You can run the combo’s speaker AND and an extension cab at the same time, sort of like a mini stack. I’d suggest looking for a used (or new) Eminence Texas Heat or Swampthang cause they have a bottom end that blend well with your existing 70/80. To run both speakers move the speaker cable on your combo over one spot (2 x 16 ohm) and plug your new cab into the other - BOOM! Huge sound
You probably wouldn’t hear much difference either... good decision. Grab a movie and dinner at Olive Garden instead, or maybe some music related shirts... or better yet, a tank of gas and a few groceries :(
My DSL20 is probably 3 years old, made in China. I usually drop a 12AY7 in socket 1 to reduce the high end sizzle in most my amps... brings out more of the thick crunch tone. I haven’t had issues with a lack of distortion but I took Ola’s advice several years ago and TURNED DOWN THE GAIN ha ha. I push it with a Mesa Flux Drive pedal (always on) and just love it. Desert island amp for sure. I haven’t had any ‘loss of gain’ issues but did have ‘loss of bass’ !! Replaced two preamp tubes and cured it.
Yes, I did a chassi pull on it also. Lots of little stuff in there but it just seems to be Marshall’s thing. I recently got the JCM800 and while it’s not quite as loaded with gizmos, there’s still a fair amount of little tiny parts on the board. I recently started following PSIONIC Tech guy and he puts the Marshall stuff pretty high up on the dependability chart.
You are correct but your terminology is reversed. Cathode or “variable” biased amps do not need to be adjusted while “fixed bias” amps do... stupid right!?!? carlscustomamps.com/cathode-vs-fixed-bias Love the 20 and under DSL amps - absolutely terrific!
Not sure but I actually have an ET65 in a separate closed back cab i could try. I tend to like the mid characteristics of the Marshall ‘as is’. If I want more scoopage I go to my Randall or Laney.
@@oldguyjammin9732 From my experience the Creamback sounds better in a sealed cab and the ET65 works well in an open back application. You won't get a scooped sound with it, just better balance. It's hard to say which is best with the DSL without trying it.
@@thiagonogueira9363 - start with V1 for sure, that’s usually enough. Rather than ‘brand of tube’ its the gain value in this order starting with 100% 12AX7, 70% gain 5751, 60% gain 12AT7, 50% gain 12AY7 and 40% gain the 12AU7 which is usually too low and will kill your tone... harmonica players like that one. The ECC tubes start at 83, than 81 than 82... don’t know what they’re out of order.
@Formation MC Barman Biarritz did you try the ET65 in the open-back DSL20CR combo? The ET65 tends to balance nicely in compact open-back boxes. I don't like the ET65 in sealed cabs.
Hey old guy. Need you advice. I like high gain heavy rock and metal. Are the tubes and speaker good to leave in. I like tighter gigh gain stuff. Is it best stock for this style?
Honestly if you're after heavy rock and metal I'd go for the Peavey Invective mini head. You can pick one up used for less than this combo.If you've already got this DSL amp than I'd swap the speaker first, try a DV77 or V30. Also, with Marshall amps you need to run the master up at 12:00 or higher to really feel the power amp and get rid of some of the fizzy sizzle that characterizes Marshall amps.
I am not serious about playing out, and I am thinking Dsl5 or the 20. Will the dsl20 sound good enough in low power and lowish volume for home? Or does it really sound not good? My humbucker is very strong ceramic so i think it will be tight with high gain anyway. Thanks Oldguyjammin, really useful info you put out!! I have a Marshall MG15 DFX that sounds okay for home but want a warmer amp such as a valve now. Its 15 watt and 8" speaker. Maybe I can try the dsl5 first? Thanks so much!
@@RA-ot6yr - the DSL5 all the way. It comes with a 10" speaker that I swapped out for a 12" Greenback which is not too hard and well worth it in my opinion. I get lots of "great tone" comments and it gets plenty loud to enjoy around home. Awesome little amp. Takes pedals great! The 20 has to be up pretty loud to sound good imo.
Think I will go with the dsl5. Im interested in the G12H-75 creamback or a V30. I have the Gibson 500T and the Duncan Distortion and they are really mean especially the 500t is more raw. I will upload a video with the dsl when I get one!
No, I sold it before the pandemic. It was just way too much amp for what I do. The DSL20 is PLENTY huge for small venues. If you need more, just add speakers.
Sure, replaced the tube in V1 with a 12AY7 tube and put G12M Creamback speaker in to replace the nasally 70/80. Texas Heat would be another very good speaker for this amp.
Thank you :) most of the tone shaping comes from the first and second tube and often the 3rd, 4th, or even 5th tubes will be rectifiers, effects loop buffers or reverb drivers. Often times, half of the first tube is used for the clean channel and the other half used as the first stage of the dirty channel, the next tube would be the second stage of a cascaded gain circuit and so on. The 5751 is a very nice tube option, it will be more subtle than a 12AY7 but I like them. There’s another interesting tube out there, don’t recall the number right off but it’s a split gain tube with half being full gain (which runs the clean channel) and the other half reduced (which runs the dirty channel) perfect for something like these Marshalls. I’ll look for it..
@@oldguyjammin9732 That's awesome! Thanks for the info! I bought the DSL 20h used in mint condition from a shop on reverb. I was a little thrown off cause it already had the GT-12AY7 in V1. I wasn't sure if that was a mistake, or bad for the amp, so I put everything back to stock. I didn't know it was a common mod. 😆 I'm going to put it back through. It actually sounded pretty good. Yeah that last tube you mentioned sound ideal for for this amp. The clean chanel can use more dirt and the red channel doesn't really need so much. And it can sound a little fizzy at low volumes. I just got a JHS ' little black amp box' which basically gives you another master volume knob in the effects loop. Let's you crank the amp at bedroom levels. That also really helped to get a cleaner power stage tone. It's awesome. I highly recommend if you haven't tried or heard of it yet. Can't wait to hear that combined with the GT-12AY7 tube. Anyway, thanks again? Let me know about that tube model if you can. 🤙
@@usynthesis4749 - found it, but the “gain side” for the dirt channel would only be 20% like a 12AU7 which is pretty low and can start to negatively affect a “high gain” channel, but if you try and like it, let us know! www.tubedepot.com/products/jj-ecc823-preamp-vacuum-tube?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIyZmMtpnu8wIVxBrnCh12vQgMEAAYASAAEgI7CfD_BwE
@@oldguyjammin9732 I got back into playing and didn’t want to spend a bunch on an amp. The MG15 is a good little amp and with a good distortion pedal sounds good, but the 8” speaker is anemic. That amp through a 4x12 is immensely better. But no fx loop
@@davespin9034 that’s cool, as you play more and more (if you stick with it) you’ll probably want to invest in a nicer amp cause it will advance your playing, but it can become a rabbit hole too, lol. Rock on!
@@oldguyjammin9732 is this di ? İ missed that than. İ knew this amp sound good actually. Saw in a few videos.its the di then. İ ve also never seen good di recording so far ..
Estoy interesado en comprar un altavoz para mi Marshall DSL 20W Valvular, ya que el que trae de serie me resulta bastante extridente en agudos, busco un altavoz que se adapte bien a altas ganancias con distorsión, sin que suene estridente ni barroso. Por poner un ejemplo un sonido similar a la guitarra de Sex Pistols o Ramones. ¿Cúal me recomienda? (El precio es indiferente) Muchas gracias por su atención, un saludo.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Hello ! I am interested in buying a loudspeaker for my Marshall DSL 20W Valve, since the one that it comes with is quite loud in treble, I am looking for a loudspeaker that adapts well to high gains with distortion, without sounding loud or muddy. For example, a sound similar to the guitar of the Sex Pistols or Ramones. Which one do you recommend? (The price is indifferent) Thank you very much for your attention, regards.
@@TheBarnaway - awesome, thanks for coming back. In my opinion there is no better speaker for Marshall amps than the Creamback G12M-65. The Creamback covers a lot of musical territory from clean to blues to really hard rock... drop D stuff is killer. If you play drop tuned, darker metal most of the time consider the Eminence DV-77.
Lmao, love the “flabby as fuck man” ha ha. Room tone vs RUclips..? And/or personal preference being that “good tone” is purely subjective. I’m not sure where I was with this vid but settled on a 12Ay7 tube in socket 1 and a Creamback 65M as the speaker - love it.
@@oldguyjammin9732 I have a DSL-20HR running into an Egnater Vengeance 4-12" cab. The only mod is a 12AU7 in V,2 to tame the fizz. I run an EQ with 18db +/- in the fx loop and use it to cut some of the signal from the pre-amp. Then I can run the master volume hotter to make up for the db loss provided by the EQ. This gets those EL-34s glowing baby!!!
I’d say the V-type is a step up from the 70/80 and the Creamback is yet another step up from the V-type. The difference is more apparent as the volume gets louder, but overall the V-type is a really nice speaker.
To have to mod a new amp is an amp best left alone, why on earth spend so many dollars on an amp and then have to spend many more dollars because the designers are not not smart enough to do the job properly in the first place.
It’s part of the fun \m/ designers have to weigh out the time and cost of niceties… like even a simple bright switch! Only 3 parts but… time and labor, worth it? Not to them but to me? Yes.
The stock and modded samples indicate a very marshall lifeless sound. I prefer the JCM 900 combo from my past. Both clean and dirty puts that over priced puppy to shame. What was Marshall thinking making that amp....yuck!
C’mon, don’t kid yourself, the DSL line is really great, dependable and delivers that classic Marshall tone with knob towards contemporary modernness. I also have a JCM800 with 2x12 cab and I’ll be darned if the DSl20 isn’t right there with it. I’ve had a ton of higher end stuff and nothing delivers more versatility than Marshall. However... tone being purely subjective, everyone is welcome to their personal opinions ;-)
Joe I couldn't disagree with you more. This is a fantastic amp, and it really comes alive with an EQ in the loop. I played today without the EQ and it seemed really thin and had turn down the presence and high's. MXR 10-band in the loop is the secret to unleash this monster. Huge difference....
Sounds good with stock integrated pcb ,tubed speaker. Looks blackstarish inside. Hummm all tube or dare I say it ...hybrid? Just an observation from one old guy to another. Bet I'm older than you.
Thanks, "old guy" (you're a spring chicken compared to me though).
After seeing your upload I bought a used DSL20 combo, swapped V1 for an AY7 (off ebay) and the speaker for the G12M (also used, so run in). Great. I then swapped V2 for a 5751 (70% of AX7 gain if I remember) I had lying around, and ... joy, all for £345 (approx $450).
Dang man, keep your eyes open for the cops rolling up cause you stole all that stuff \m/ thanks for sharing!
I love when other people take they’re toys apart. If I spent that kind of money, I would be a little too shy to start taking stuff apart. Thank you.
I’m careful these days, lol as a youngster I ruined a fair amount of stuff til I discovered why people go to school to become engineers and why companies who build cool stuff hire engineers... :)
I been jamming my Marshall DSL20CR cranked for a bit now and the & 70/80 speaker broke in quite nicely. it sounds great. you should have did the test on 20 watts instead of 10 watts. the DSL 20 Sounds its best at a full 20 watts. pre-amp tubes don't get biased only power tubes get biased. the Marshall DSL 20 has auto biasing for it's power tubes. all high gain amps have a hiss. the hiss is good
It's cathode biased
You make me feel better about the 70/80 because I can't afford almost $200 for the creamback although if I did have the money I would definitely swap out but when your in a tight spot, work with what you have.
Really enjoyed your video. Took your advice and dropped a 12AY7 into V1 and really liked the results. Love this amp!
That’s great man, sometimes the subtle changes are enough to appreciate. Thanks for commenting \m/ great little amp!
This was a huge improvement. Good job!
Awesome
I discovered with this amp, when I adjusted the treble down to 1.5 to 2.5 the mids and bass really come up. This is a much fatter sound that I really like. It was still bright enough. So I lower the treble when playing clean tones and then move the treble up to about 4.5 for distortion sounds.
Try it, this amp and the DSL 1 really respond to this adjustment, have never heard this before with any other Marshall I have worked with. Cheers
Sounds good, I’ll try it tonight - thanks Animal \m/
There is this Old mesa rectifier eq trick, that also worked on my DSL1 that you should try.
Try putting the treble as low as it will go. The pot wiper has to be resting on 0. Then run the mid up around 7-9, as it will become the new mid&treble control. On mesas it bypasses the treble, and makes them less harsh. On my DSL1 I think it made it nice and fat, and tamed some fizz.
In my experience with Marshalls, and I've owned some since the 80s, is they don't really come alive till you crank them, even the newer models with far higher levels of gain than the old JCMs. Headroom is a big issue with me when it comes to amps. That's why I used a Boogie combo for a number of years. It was a heavy amp, but lighter and easier than moving the Marshall stack to gigs, even the half stack. And the headroom was tremendous. The amp could be seriously loud at 3. I used it on 2 or lower for practicing at home and got all the crunch I needed.
Yes. Tubes make a huge difference. I discovered long ago that Philips were great for EL34s, but Fender tubes are great when it comes 6L6. Also, the tubes that came with my Boogie were just fine. but when I changed them every three years it was usually with Fenders because I could find them easier, and they worked great. Great video! Keep jammin'!
Totally agree with Marshalls needing to be up a bit to sound good, that’s why I sold my 40W - just couldn’t do it any justice. My little 5W with a good pedal absolutely kills, lol. People look at the amp, like “should something that small be putting that out!?!?” I’ve never tried any Philips tubes, just usually go with JJs but I’ll try some. It’s pretty much standard for me anymore to drop the gain on that first tube by a notch or two, really settles things down and there’s still plenty of gain. Thanks for coming by!
@@oldguyjammin9732 BTW an amp I highly recommend is the Peavey Valveking II. I may be buying one soon. They discontinued them last year, but they sound amazing. Great classic rock tone and classic rock, organic high gain. I don't like the newer death metal type amps. I owned a Boogie in the 80s but that was 50 cal and tonally the closest thing to a Marshall they made, but with better headroom. I'll take good gain over high gain, then just use a petal to tweak it a bit. That's all you have to do to get the ultimate sound.
@@angusorvid8840- I’ll check it out, I did have a Valveking head for a while and remember enjoying it quite a bit. Recently got a Rectoverb so I know what you mean about headroom, sounds good low too but the tone is what’s so remarkable. I imagine it cuts through any mix, or maybe ‘punches through’ would even explain it better ;-)
@@oldguyjammin9732 A Mesa Rectoverb? Head or combo? What wattage? The 25 combo or head is one of my favorite Mesas ever. I don't like the Dual or Triple Rectos (too thrash metal for me) but the smaller Rectoverbs are simply outstanding. I almost bought earlier this year but settled on a DSL 20 combo which I'm loving.
@@angusorvid8840 - I got the 25W Rectoverb Combo (mini-rec). I have a selection of heads but wanted another ‘grab and go’ smallish combo. I can still plug it into a cab if I want. The DSL20 is AWESOME - at this point it would be my ‘desert island amp’. Still getting to know the Rectoverb though and have a new speaker to put in it soon. I’ve never liked the UK V30s so I’m gonna try a G12-T75
I recently got this amp and I’m in love! However as we all do, any fault at 1st I would blame the speaker cuz of all I’ve read about the 70 eighty but after a few hours of playing around I discovered that this amp REALLY RESPONDS to the knobs! You need to take the time to A/B adjustments to the EQ and the presence knobs to find “your sound”. Those first two hours I wasn’t very excited about the sound until making adjustments well outside what I would’ve expected and now I found that 90’s grunge JCM800 sound that I love! This amp is very “soundful” lolz new word, so play with it if at 1st you’re not happy and STOP blaming the 70 eighty! ….i mean, I would like to hear this paired with a V30 1x12 cab so their playing out both cabs
Great video, I just picked up the DSL 20 a few months ago and it's unbelievably good. I used to be a huge Orange fan and was going to pull the trigger on a TH30 but I got the chance to try this amp out in store and it's got so much more warmth and presence to the tone, makes my LP standard sing. I just installed the Creamback 65 and it was night and day difference, worth every penny. I agree that the DLS 40 is a brick, I owned a Peavey 212 100 watt that was close to the same weight as the DLS 40 so I knew the 40 wouldn't be as practical for bedroom use and lugging around places. The DLS 20 is a wonderful size, very nice at low volumes as well for a tube, I can get some really dirty gain at low volumes and the foot switch going back and forth between clean and gain is so much fun. I will eventually be getting a pedal board and start the money burning collection, I heard this amp takes pedals really well
I'm glad people are still making new videos on this stuff. Until I gain 10 more years of experience, I'm just going with a versatile rig until I know what I want for my tone. I bought a Mexican hss strat with a Floyd Rose, and swapped out the original tuning machine with locking tuners, not necessarily for tuning stability (although I did notice my strat has a slight issue holding the higher strings in tune), but mainly to make changing strings more effortless to sorta combat the pain that comes with a Floyd string change. And hey, I get the bonus of more stability.
I would have preferred a Gibson SG, but a nice whammy bar was a requirement for me, the only SG that I saw with a whammy bar that I actually liked was the Gibson Diablo tremolo SG. Unfortunately it's extremely hard to find. I had an epiphone SG and playing it with the shorter neck felt so much faster and I really loved the speed.
I also bought a fretwrap because I saw that that also helps with cleaning up string buzz on shredding (I guess you can tell I'm ideally going for speed. I'd love to have my strat scalloped but I'm scared of ruining it)
I bought a headphone amp (fender mustang micro) until I saved enough money for an actual amp, and I finally saved up enough for the price range of what I'm willing to pay for an amp. I payed 1000 for the strat, and I'm thinking the guitar should probably be worth around the same or maybe a little bit more than the amp, so I'm looking for an 800 dollar amp. For an amp, my biggest priority is getting the minimum requirement to be able to play with a band. 15 to 20 watts is what I've seen recommended the most. I don't want it so loud that I can't play at home, but I don't want it so quiet that I can't play with a drummer.
How much does the DSL 20 weigh? Would I be able to carry it with one hand? Ideally I would like to be able to carry my guitar on my back, the amp in one hand, and the pedal board in the other and then I'm good to go.
I don't know why for some reason I gravitate towards Marshalls, over Fender amps. When I think Fender amps I just think clean tones. And again I need to be able to be versatile. I need to be able to play both clean and dirty. But I would primarily be playing with high gain, I'm looking for a creamy brown sound. So with everything that I'm looking for, the dsl 20 seems to be the right fit, and then of course I find out that everyone thinks that the speakers are crap and we need to immediately replace them. And so now I'm here to ask about Greenback versus creamback. It's been quite a journey to get to this part, and I'm sure glad that I'm learning a lot.
Oh, and because I know that playing with the DSL 20 will still be a pain at home, I'm probably going to just buy some sorta wireless headphone configuration that I'll set up with my amp so I don't have to worry about neighbors or anything.
Isn’t the journey grand though? The dsl20 weighs 36 lbs and imo is one of the most versatile amps out there. Of course, it has ‘that Marshall tone’ which some like and others not so much but I like it and find it very easy to work with. It takes pedals very well too which opens up endless tonal landscapes. They do sound best with the masters up past noon so the 20 isn’t necessarily a ‘bedroom amp’ but it still sounds ok at low volumes. From what I’ve gathered the Creamback is a high watt version of the Greenback - otherwise very much the same tone. The Greenbacks are in the neighborhood of 25W where as the Creamback is rated at 65W or so, if you like speaker distortion go with the Greenback, if you like amp distortion and the speaker to stay tight, go Cream. Swampthang is also a killer speaker for these Marshall combos if you play low tuned metal. You guitar sounds great! I once scalloped a Kramer I had back in the day, Focus 6000 or something... However, I only scalloped it from the octave up! If you scallop from 12th or even 10th fret up, not only is it a ton easier, but you can’t screw up the area of the neck you use for chording \m/. Unwanted resonance and vibration can kill tone. I’ve heard enough about those nut scrunchies that I’m gonna try some, Guitar Jon uses duct tape past the nut and other side of the bridge. Another thing I’ve recently done is to block out all my tremolo bars, even on my guitars with a locking nut setup. Of course I can’t pull up, but I can still bend and I can bend without the surrounding strings going down in pitch, plus the sustain has improved, so win, win, win all around. Have the best time ever on your journey :) rock on
** while I’m thinking about it, because you mentioned “metal play” one other amp I’d suggest you ponder is the Laney IRT30 combo - you can check out specs and weight but it’s more metal than the Marshall (think Engl or Mesa) super tight, and with outstanding features like an attenuator and footswitchable boost that’s the best I’ve ever heard. They can be picked up for around the same price as the DSL20. Check on out \m/
I use a Marshall Power Brake even with my DSL 20-H! Using an attenuator to lover voltage is an incredible way to enjoy these amps at 'home level' volumes.
So cool hearing about the ‘power brake’ because I heard about YEARS ago but had no clue what it was :) is it an active attenuator or passive? And you are correct, attenuation is a fabulous invention.
@@oldguyjammin9732 it is a passive attenuator, no need for a power supply.
I just bought a DSL20CR in mint condition (minus the floor switch) at a pawn shop for $250 out the door.. somebody obviously wasn't paying attn.. this amp sounded great with the stock speaker, but when I dropped an original Reverend ALL Tone 1250 (Joe Naylor) in this amp, WOW............... probably the coolest amp I've ever owned and I've had too many to name..
Dang dude, great story ~ you’ll definitely get your money out of it should you ever decide to sell. Great amps when you can keep the master up past noon.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thanks! yeah I can't see me ever getting rid of this gem.. these amps are $750 new and no telling on the speaker if you can even find one..
They're over $1200 Canadian!@@FrankNStein-cp6qm
Just traded my 40 in for the 20. I started out with the 20 and it was 1st generation so when I changed channels there was a huge poping sound. I went and traded it for a 40 only because I was getting back into a band doing big venues. Covid hit and that ended that. I could not bring my 40 anywhere like open jams because of the weight and volume. Just traded in my 40 to the newer version of the 20 and I couldn't be happier, I can now go to open jams and actually carry the 20 with no problems. So to sum things up, I love the 20 for taking it to open jams and it's pretty loud even for a band situation, mic it for big venues. I have to deal with the speaker in there because at the moment money is as tight as two coats of paint so I have to work with what I have which I think the 70/80 would not be my first choice to put in any amp but it's what I have to work with and making adjustments on the EQ to what ever guitar I am using helps out greatly when you take your time. I am 62 and this little beast saved my back. The 40 is for the young guys who can handle it now but wait until you get in your 60's. Great video and if you would have played with the creamback in the video, we the guys watching the video would not of heard the difference because of the mics in video cameras and a lot of us use are phones and there's no way we would hear any difference but I take your word for it, those creambacks are nice. Great video, thank you I feel much better about ditching my 40 and going back to my 20CR.
How can you tell the difference between a 1st gen and a later gen? I’m picking up a used 20CR today.
@@mattfischer8413 I believe the first generation was the DSL20C but I really don't recall it's been so long ago, the model numder may have not changed but I bought my first DSL20 when they first came out. Sorry I'm not that much help it's been so long ago. I can tell you when they first came out they had small problems reported so they took out the little bugs but some might not call it second generation I was calling that due to them doing small changes but you can look up to see if they ever made DSL20C.
@@mattfischer8413 if the model is a CR your probably good to go just check with the reverb up and change the channels and if you hear a popping sound, it's an older one.
Great video! Thanks! It’s a matter of tastes, and I think I would go for the stock parts
Very nice! The DSL20CR makes more sense for me size wize,( another toy for the pile) but the difference in price with the 40CR is about one trip to the grocery store! Or even the same price if shopping used. I like to get the most for my money & this is a tough one.
I know what you mean, I had the 40... sold it, got a 20 and love it. The 40 was just a beast with a bit of option overload imo. To really make it work you need the 6 button footswitch, so add that to your $$. If you play out a bit, than the 40 may be the way to go, but if you mostly play at home, I'd stay with the 20. Maybe even the 20 head and a 2x12 upright cab... there you go.
I read that the single greatest improvement of the DSL series is a tweak that removes the fx loop, digital reverb and emulated output (ie all the digital shit). It involves just snipping two resistors and adding about 1" of cable. I'll report back when I've tried it (it may take time as I'm going to try using a switch so I can flick in reverb etc when I feel like it).
That’s be awesome, strange I’ve never run into this mod cause I’m always pouring over the net for such stuff. Can you provide the link? And YES, a switch would be great - I can’t live without an FX loop. Good luck \m/
@@oldguyjammin9732Huh.
1) I've posted the link several times but RUclips strips it back out...
2) Can't do the mod because I can't get the chassis out! I can't see any screws other than the four around the handle, but it seems well and truly jammed in. What is your technique/trick?
@@digitalchris6681 - there is a strip of double sided sticky tape between the top of the chassi (front) and the cabinet. I would invert the amp, so the chassi is resting in place and then, with a very fine tipped screw drive or knife blade, gently work the front of the amp free. Those four screws around the handle are the only one to remov.
@@oldguyjammin9732 done it! Thanks for the tip. And I've figured out how to disconnect the digital board without any messing with the pcb. I replied to you but again youtube stripped it out. If this post survives I'll send more info. Do you have the schematic? Mine is for the dsl15mkii but exactly the same as dsl20cr.
@@digitalchris6681 no, I have no schematics.
Very clean after mids, almost sounds like it has a noise gate and a BBE SONIC MAXIMIZER in it. Coool.👍
No BE, just a very useable and nasty amp :-)
@@oldguyjammin9732 😄👍☮️
wonderful video, please tell me I didn't quite understand which lamps need to be bought and replaced? I suspect that I already have lamps ECC83
Sure, 80% of the tone comes from the first pre-amp tube in socket 1 which is literally closest one to the input jack. Start there when ‘tube rolling’. I’d try a 12AY7 first which is the same as an ECC81 I believe. I wouldn’t change any others til you try this first and I wouldn’t change any preamp tubes other than the first or second.
I put a celestion green back into this and It sounds far superior to the 70/80 speaker. Green backs sounds fantastic.
I hear you, the 70/80 really is pretty much crap, lol. I put a M - Creamback in mine and love it. Can’t go wrong with a Greenie either \m/ Thanks!
Just bought a used DSL20 head and I was surprised I liked it so much. It has KT77 power tubes in it instead of the stock EL34, so maybe that's part of it? Not sure. Speaker pairing was interesting. Tried it in store with a 2x12 Orange V30 cab open back, and loved it. Got it home, and used my oversized 1x12 V30 open back and didn't like it so much, but I do like it better with my much smaller Bugera 1x12 loaded with an Eminence Texas Heat. I think the Texas Heat is a smoother, slightly darker speaker and it tames a bit 'o fizz perhaps. In any case, I had been looking at tons of more expensive options, but the DSL20 just hit the spot. I agree with you on the DSL40. I tried that combo recently in the store and I just couldn't get it anywhere near proper levels to judge properly. I knew it would only be worse at home. Total no-go. I'm pretty sure I hate the stock 70/80 speaker as well. I've dealt with those in the past and never had a good experience with them in any amp.
Awesome man! The Texas Heat or SwampThang are definitely the way to go G12M Creamback is also really good. Cool about the KT77s, I’m gonna look into those. V30s are a poor choice for Marshalls imo. Marshalls are peculiar in that they don’t really sound “great” until the master gets past noon and higher.
Hello, Another great video. I just purchased on of these amps used. It looks like you can connect the amp to external speakers. I have not seen any videos on doing that. I would like to see you connect it to an external speakers and your thoughts (pro's/Con's) (ideas....) on doing it. Thanks, Craig
Hey man, I may do that at some point but until then... your internal speaker is 16 ohms so it has to be plugged in to that single speaker out when your just using the amp as is. If you want to connect another cabinet, you move that little speaker wire over to one of the 2x16 ohm jacks and then plug your 16 ohm extension cab into the other. The manual is also on line and pretty informative, but basically if your using 1 speaker use the one out, if adding a cab use the 2 out jacks... your internal speaker in one, extra cab in the other.
I use a Marshall DSL20CR as a practice amp in my bedroom & study. Definitely don’t need anything bigger than that & even this 20w Marshall is kinda overkill for a practice amp.
I don’t use large amps any longer as I have learned that the right amp with the right speakers in the right cabinets can cut through everyone else in the band! Lol
Live, I use a Mesa Rectoverb 25 head with two 1x12 Rectifier 60w cabs, one straight & one slant, essentially making a mini stack! The 25 watt head is plenty I for the small clubs/bars/venues that I’m playing in! 🎸
The 70/80 deserves its bad rap.
Nice upgrade
Yep, it is literally ‘just okay’ :)
Hello again Oldguyjammin. I think I told you before I have the 40. I’m not as brave as you all these mods ha ha. Sounds great though. I like the mod way better. I never use Ultra. I just put it clean and run a Klon(Soul Food) into it. Sometimes with a TS 808 also. Oh and I ended up selling the DSL 5.
Another thing I discovered is an ABY box!
I bought it to switch back and forth but I’m having more fun running two amps together! Deluxe Reverb/ DSL40
Blues Deville/DSL40 Blues JR/DSL40 etc. I’m having a ball!!
I’ve had people tell me that THAT’S the best way to run looped phrases too, loop through one amp and lead over it through the other. I’m gonna check that out, I imagine you can run 1 amp, or the 2nd amp separately OR both together... I’m just imagining that and kind of trippin out ha ha. Omg, the tonal options would be astounding!
@@oldguyjammin9732 Those boxes are like 30 bux on Amazon. You’ll have fun I promise you. It’s also cool to have the room full of sound if they’re spread out like mine are. I bought the thing to switch back and forth( can’t even remember why I wanted that haha) but then I started running 2 together. Lotta fun
Very informative video, thank you!
Great Video! I need help PLEASE!!! I have a 2022 DSL20CR,and after playing for about an hour( Classic gain ), it sounds really " echoey". I've got the gain at 9 o'clock.the volume at 3 o'clock,and the rest at 12 o'clock.I've got my "Strat" volume maxed! The longer I play,the less volume I seem to get.Does this make any sense to you? I'm a beginner and it's very frustrating! HELP!!
@Oldguyjammin
the DSL 20 CR is all analogue except the (Reverb) & (soft tube out) . The raised white ceramic cathodes around the Power Tubes are for auto Biasing for the 2 EL34. the power Tubes are Plug& Play. All the resistors are even in hand wired amps.
You should not post until you know what you are talking about.
Reference points for gain: stock 4:48 , mod 7:06
Good stuff! I think it would be cool to play both versions at the same time in stereo. Like stock panned left and modded panned right. Just a thought.
Genius... that would have been great
Different tubes ads little if any difference! Speaker matters a lot!
Sounded better Stock
Yup
I agree.
Great review thanks
Great video, someone recommended swapping the stock speaker for a v30 celestion, do you think that could be a good choice for hard rock?
I’ve really settled on the G12M Creamback as the best sounding speaker for Marshall style amps. V30s have a classic mid-scoop but also have a fizzy top end that can irritate some people. Imo speakers are the final aspect of fine tuning your tone and are dependent on the amp you choose and even how low your tuning will be. For example if the amp is the Peavey Invective and your tuning goes down to C standard or Drop C you’re best bet will be the Emminence DV-77. That V-Type that comes stock is actually pretty darn good, but if it sounds like there’s too much mid-range or isn’t hitting hard enough on the chugs, the V30 will probably sound really good.
I think you could have added a power brake to the DSL 40 and problem solved, because I know for sure when you crank up a 20-watt amp to where it starts sounding good it is still WAY too damn loud for bedroom use. I use a Blackheart 3 watt little giant into a 2 x 12 in the bedroom, and I still can't turn it up past 3 unless no one is home. The difference in volume between a 40 watt and a twenty-watt amp when they both have a pair of el34 power tubes is not much, but the 40-watt DSL has a half power switch so if you wanted to play at 20 watts turn the switch to 20. If you want a good sounding tube amp for home use even 5 watts is too loud.......so you have to get an attenuator.
I’d agree with most of what you said, the 40 just wasn’t for me; didn’t need the dual masters, etc. The 20 was plenty and I found the sweet spot a little easier. You’re right about twice the watts NOT being twice as loud, that’s a commonly held false hood among the newbies, but then again not all 20 watt amps are created equal, some 20s are much louder than others, etc. I’ve always felt that amps on half power mode lose a little of the thump, take the Brent Hinds signature by Orange, between the full/half power and headroom/bedroom switches you have some VERY different tones. My favorite home amp to this day has to be the DSL5 - from quiet to loud it just sounds great! My only experience with attenuators is the passive ones and while I dig what they do, I still feel they suck just the slightest bit of tone out of the fun. I certainly can’t afford the $1k Fryette or something similar, nor do I really need one. Someone with an old non-master Marshall??? For sure \m/
cool video thx! think sounds smoother with the mods. mine is stock but at home i have a jhs little black amp box in the effects loop so that the amp sounds good on low volume...
Ya, that’s cool. I have the same little JHS box in the loop on one of my pedal boards and really love it. I’m gonna be trying an L-Pad attenuator in the DSL20 soon - stay tuned ;-)
@@oldguyjammin9732 cool, i'm curious ... like your channel by the way! greetings from switzerland 😉
Hi again. I finally got this combo and I Will try the jj 12au7 un V1 like in my DSL 1, but i maybe 12ay7 like you if I don't like. Also I Will change the speaker for a Greenback. I Will let you know, amigo!
Really appreciate this video. I have owned the DSL20CR and really liked it, but wound up selling it. Was considering buying it again, but also was wondering about the DSL5CR. Which would you recommend for home use if you don't have to be too quiet, but don't want to upset the neighbors too much? I know you have owned both of the years. Thanks!
For just knocking around I’d get the 5CR, put a 12” speaker in it and then push it with The Killing Floor or Mesa Flux drive - sounds REALLY good both quiet AND loud. I am really liking the 20 but find that the masters have to be up past noon to sound good and that can be pretty loud. It’s nice to be able to crank it up but the fam gets a little irritated ; - )
So today I put the little 5 on top of the 20 and did a quick comparison... ‘too loud’ is so relative and subjective. The 20 sounds really big. I’m gonna do a comparison of both next week. It’s such a hard decision.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thanks very much for the reply and info. I was wondering if you still had the DSL20 or if the 5 watt had won you over. I am not up for modding the 5CR to fit a 12" speaker. My only option would be to upgrade the speaker or not go that route.
Just buy a DSL100HR and a MX412 Tilted cab and tell the neighbours to fuck off😂
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think the 5cr has the presence and resonance knobs. They make the 20hr sound awesome. I use the Bugera Ps-1 attenuator in my apartment and my neighbors don't hate me, but they should be paying me!
I wish you had put clean back to back with clean and distorted back to back with distorted. otherwise hard to compare
I’ve just bought one of these. I Flick the black switch on the front to STB and and nothing happens? Is it faulty or am I doing something wrong?
STB is “standby” and when that’s engaged nothing will happen. Power has to be ON (glows red) and ten the black switch is moved to either High or Low ~ you should get something. Are you using the effects loop? Footswitch? Is the speaker cable plugged in? Etc... might need more info.
I have a Helix Multi effect processor. Have you ever tested the effects loop with a similar style processor or seen any reviews that have? Thanks.
I haven’t, sorry but my high school buddy runs his Axe Effects through the loop of his Mesa Triple Crown! Bypasses the preamp all together, just plugs into the return of the loop.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thank you! Great videos
When you mean replace the first preamp tube to the Y, is that tube all the way to the left or right looking at it from the back? I assume it's the one closest to the outside looking either way but I don't want to assume. Thank you.
Good question, either way you look at it, V1 is the tube socket closest to the input jack.
@@oldguyjammin9732Thank you so much. Have a great day.
I have had this amp in head format for a couple years and still don't get it. If I record it at anything below 8 on master volume, the sound is always thin and fizzy to varying degrees. Once I get past 8, something kicks in, big time-I am not sure whether it's the power amp, or speaker compression, or perhaps both-requiring very different EQ settings with a lot more presence and treble to open up the sound. Once I get past 8, there is a lot more compression and the fizz is gone. The fizz part is all upside. I also like the compression and perceive it as very musical, especially in the way the amp sustains and recorded tracks sit in the mix. However, many tone experts claim that the compression is not a desirable characteristic, and that these amps get their tone from the preamp and aren't meant to be pushed that hard. What are your thoughts on this?
I’d disagree with the last statement that these amps aren’t meant to be pushed hard. Imo Marshalls sound BEST when the masters get up past 2 O’Clock or so, it’s for this reason that I sold my DSL40 and grabbed up a 20 and a DSL5... so I could get the master up. Like you said, the difference in tone is astounding. The bass comes on strong, the mids start to attach and just growl and I actually end up turning the presence or treble down. I believe the difference is pushing the EL34s (master up) versus mostly hearing the preamp. I’ve had pretty good results with the JHS Little Black Box attenuator ~ if you turn the attenuator down more than 50% it loses any goodness but less than that, it allows a pretty cranked master while still be comfortable in the house.
I put the MXR 10-band EQ in the loop of my 20HR and man what a difference. I highly recommend it. I use a Orange PPC-112 with a Vintage 30 and it's a monster.
Sorry if this is a stupd question, but can i just change out the power amp tube without rebiasing?
Edit: It is a stupid question haha. I was referring to the DSL5CR. This is the 20.
Gotcha, there is a bias adjustment in the DSL5CR but I found it made very little difference in tone. You’ll be fine swapping out the single B7 tube for another one without re-biasing.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thank you for the info!
Thanks for the informative video. I bought a dsl 20 second-hand. it has a thin sound with some annoying buzz on some tones in clean (i use pedals for everything. so only use clean)! "Gain" seems to be TOO sensitive that I can't go higher than 1! Anyways, totally disappointed (compared to my VOX 15c). I love the "modded" sound of yours! decided to give it a shot and go for 12AY7.
Q: Why you replaced 2 of them and not all three?!
Q: Do you think I should replace EL34s as well?
Start with the preamp tubes, they're cheaper and it may be the reason for the thin sound. You could replace all three but most of the tone shaping comes from the first one and a bit more from the second. Do you have the 20C or CR? Not sure what your budget is but a speaker makes a big difference too, something like a Texas heat or Swampthang.
@@oldguyjammin9732 thanks for your quick reply. its DSL 20CR. Has seventy 80 speaker. I'll start pre-amp tubes. Then see what happens.
@@YT1344 - excellent, the 70/80 isn’t too bad, but if you ever start turning that thing up, you’ll probably want something a bit beefier. Good luck, hope a new tube or two does wonders.
@@oldguyjammin9732 I replaced all 3 of them and VERY happy with the result! The annoying noise on high pitch ear-piercing sounds is gone. Doesn't sound dark at all. Just has a "listenable" high freq now! Just wanted to thank you :)
Yeah I really don't like the 70/80 speaker, one of their worst. I have a Vintage 30, and I think I'm going to get a second 1x12 with a Warehouse greenback.
Hi there, I ordered this amp based on this video thank you, but I find the sound very harsh and thin, and actually quite boxy. I also have a DSL15 which by comparison is much warmer with much better low end base. I tried plugging the DSL20 amp into the DSL15 speaker and it was better but still very harsh. Did you find there was a considerable hiss with all the volumes down?
Marshall's do have a bit of hiss but less than say an EVH LBX or others, Friedman and PRS amps are some of the quietest I've played but you pay for it. I like Creambacks in a Marshall rather than V30s or that stock 70/80 and it makes a difference. Also, swap out the 12AX7 in socket 1 for a 12AY7 ( you could even try a 12AU7 but thats a bit too low maybe) to lower the gain and it helps quiet the amp. Try it in low power mode and get that Master up past noon, then bring up the gain. Using a Bugera PS1 attenuator with the DSl20 is a real game changer too.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Thank you 🙂
Guess I'm the lucky one with no hiss.
Tones at 4:10
I did the 12AY7 substitution thing on one tube amp or another awhile back. It sounded just like turning the amp down 30%. No difference.
That's the point. When I play at home the gain is 1/4 the way round and the volume is effectively off: just a tiny tweak and it's deafening. The valve change allows the volume control to have a sensible range.
Can’t find the GT-12AY7 Groove Tubes anywhere.
Yaaaa, some factory burnt down somewhere... bummer, just grab a JJ ~ Close enough :)
@@oldguyjammin9732 Just ordered a pair.
How about the Marshall el34? Need a pair also
@@19fenderman60 - I’d try the less expensive preamp tubes first and see what happens, if you still feel like changing the ‘big glass’ than JJ’s will be perfect. Sometimes its best to just re-tube the whole amp, then you know you’re good. When I change tubes I’ll often save the old ones if I don’t hear any difference. A bad tube will definitely start to make weird little popping noises or whispy singing tones - good luck!
@@oldguyjammin9732 I am hearing faint popping & whispy noises. Thanks for the reply.
@@19fenderman60 - nothing bad happens when tubes go bad, those weird sounds will just get more noticeable. You can poke around in there with a pencil to check for micro-phonic tubes. Take the grate off, have the amp on like you’d normally play it and gently tap each tube with the lead end of the pencil. A bad tube will give off a definite ‘ting’ that you’ll hear through the speaker. It you got this amp used, it might be a good idea to replace all the preamp tubes, then you just know that everything is fresh. I’ve actually replaced very few tubes over the last 5 years because they wore out :) not nearly the maintenance headache that some talk about.
Thanks for sharing, excellent video.
I have couple of questions as I have same amp, If i dont want to remove the speaker is possible to build another cabinet and just plug the cable for the speaker ? (Yes I now realize how a Head works xD but at that moment was not too deep into the topic) and regarding bulbs how can I get thm in Mexico :(
Yes, you can build a separate speaker cab with one, two or even more speakers as long as the impedance of the cab remains at 16 ohms. Someone must ship to Mexico...? Try thetubestore, amazon, tubedoctor, eBay, reverb, etc.
@@oldguyjammin9732 answer appreciated ! thanks a lot we will see what will be next step to build the speaker cab with the creamback
@@lupee10 - sounds good! Happy Cab building :) you didn’t ask but I’m gonna make a suggestion anyway :) You can run the combo’s speaker AND and an extension cab at the same time, sort of like a mini stack. I’d suggest looking for a used (or new) Eminence Texas Heat or Swampthang cause they have a bottom end that blend well with your existing 70/80. To run both speakers move the speaker cable on your combo over one spot (2 x 16 ohm) and plug your new cab into the other - BOOM! Huge sound
I personally prefer on these sound bites the stock speaker and valves , just my opinion 🇬🇧
We love opinions! And often, stock is the way to go.
thought about doing this to a hybrid, but the tubes & speaker cost more than the amp.
You probably wouldn’t hear much difference either... good decision. Grab a movie and dinner at Olive Garden instead, or maybe some music related shirts... or better yet, a tank of gas and a few groceries :(
What year is this amp? Where is it made? Mine is weak on the distortion side. Hoping a change in tubes will pick it up.
My DSL20 is probably 3 years old, made in China. I usually drop a 12AY7 in socket 1 to reduce the high end sizzle in most my amps... brings out more of the thick crunch tone. I haven’t had issues with a lack of distortion but I took Ola’s advice several years ago and TURNED DOWN THE GAIN ha ha. I push it with a Mesa Flux Drive pedal (always on) and just love it. Desert island amp for sure. I haven’t had any ‘loss of gain’ issues but did have ‘loss of bass’ !! Replaced two preamp tubes and cured it.
Those amp are extremely loud, I have solve the problem with the JHS black box connected in the fx loop, check this out
I did the same, great little product \m/
did the 40 watt have surface mounted chips in it as well
Yes, I did a chassi pull on it also. Lots of little stuff in there but it just seems to be Marshall’s thing. I recently got the JCM800 and while it’s not quite as loaded with gizmos, there’s still a fair amount of little tiny parts on the board. I recently started following PSIONIC Tech guy and he puts the Marshall stuff pretty high up on the dependability chart.
The dls 20 can't biased, it's fixed! It's older brother the dsl 15 can be biased.
You are correct but your terminology is reversed. Cathode or “variable” biased amps do not need to be adjusted while “fixed bias” amps do... stupid right!?!? carlscustomamps.com/cathode-vs-fixed-bias
Love the 20 and under DSL amps - absolutely terrific!
I wonder what a more mid scooped speaker like the WGS ET65 would sound like in that amp.
Not sure but I actually have an ET65 in a separate closed back cab i could try. I tend to like the mid characteristics of the Marshall ‘as is’. If I want more scoopage I go to my Randall or Laney.
@@oldguyjammin9732 From my experience the Creamback sounds better in a sealed cab and the ET65 works well in an open back application. You won't get a scooped sound with it, just better balance. It's hard to say which is best with the DSL without trying it.
Well done! Cool video! Have u swap just the v1, right? In addition, besides GT what is others brands can gimme less high end ? Tks
@@thiagonogueira9363 - start with V1 for sure, that’s usually enough. Rather than ‘brand of tube’ its the gain value in this order starting with 100% 12AX7, 70% gain 5751, 60% gain 12AT7, 50% gain 12AY7 and 40% gain the 12AU7 which is usually too low and will kill your tone... harmonica players like that one. The ECC tubes start at 83, than 81 than 82... don’t know what they’re out of order.
@Formation MC Barman Biarritz did you try the ET65 in the open-back DSL20CR combo? The ET65 tends to balance nicely in compact open-back boxes. I don't like the ET65 in sealed cabs.
Hey old guy. Need you advice. I like high gain heavy rock and metal. Are the tubes and speaker good to leave in. I like tighter gigh gain stuff. Is it best stock for this style?
Honestly if you're after heavy rock and metal I'd go for the Peavey Invective mini head. You can pick one up used for less than this combo.If you've already got this DSL amp than I'd swap the speaker first, try a DV77 or V30. Also, with Marshall amps you need to run the master up at 12:00 or higher to really feel the power amp and get rid of some of the fizzy sizzle that characterizes Marshall amps.
I am not serious about playing out, and I am thinking Dsl5 or the 20. Will the dsl20 sound good enough in low power and lowish volume for home? Or does it really sound not good? My humbucker is very strong ceramic so i think it will be tight with high gain anyway. Thanks Oldguyjammin, really useful info you put out!! I have a Marshall MG15 DFX that sounds okay for home but want a warmer amp such as a valve now. Its 15 watt and 8" speaker. Maybe I can try the dsl5 first? Thanks so much!
@@RA-ot6yr - the DSL5 all the way. It comes with a 10" speaker that I swapped out for a 12" Greenback which is not too hard and well worth it in my opinion. I get lots of "great tone" comments and it gets plenty loud to enjoy around home. Awesome little amp. Takes pedals great! The 20 has to be up pretty loud to sound good imo.
Think I will go with the dsl5. Im interested in the G12H-75 creamback or a V30. I have the Gibson 500T and the Duncan Distortion and they are really mean especially the 500t is more raw. I will upload a video with the dsl when I get one!
Stock is win
DSL40 in UNPANDEMIC! PS: Did you sell it without the speaker?! 😜😅
No, I sold it before the pandemic. It was just way too much amp for what I do. The DSL20 is PLENTY huge for small venues. If you need more, just add speakers.
Can you say all things you changed at the amplifier?
Sure, replaced the tube in V1 with a 12AY7 tube and put G12M Creamback speaker in to replace the nasally 70/80. Texas Heat would be another very good speaker for this amp.
@@oldguyjammin9732 thank you!!
Great video! I just got a DSl 20h. I'm curious why only change V1 and V2 and not V3? And also what do you think of the 5751 tube mod?
Thank you :) most of the tone shaping comes from the first and second tube and often the 3rd, 4th, or even 5th tubes will be rectifiers, effects loop buffers or reverb drivers. Often times, half of the first tube is used for the clean channel and the other half used as the first stage of the dirty channel, the next tube would be the second stage of a cascaded gain circuit and so on. The 5751 is a very nice tube option, it will be more subtle than a 12AY7 but I like them. There’s another interesting tube out there, don’t recall the number right off but it’s a split gain tube with half being full gain (which runs the clean channel) and the other half reduced (which runs the dirty channel) perfect for something like these Marshalls. I’ll look for it..
@@oldguyjammin9732 That's awesome! Thanks for the info! I bought the DSL 20h used in mint condition from a shop on reverb. I was a little thrown off cause it already had the GT-12AY7 in V1. I wasn't sure if that was a mistake, or bad for the amp, so I put everything back to stock. I didn't know it was a common mod. 😆 I'm going to put it back through. It actually sounded pretty good.
Yeah that last tube you mentioned sound ideal for for this amp. The clean chanel can use more dirt and the red channel doesn't really need so much. And it can sound a little fizzy at low volumes. I just got a JHS ' little black amp box' which basically gives you another master volume knob in the effects loop. Let's you crank the amp at bedroom levels. That also really helped to get a cleaner power stage tone. It's awesome. I highly recommend if you haven't tried or heard of it yet. Can't wait to hear that combined with the GT-12AY7 tube. Anyway, thanks again? Let me know about that tube model if you can. 🤙
@@usynthesis4749 - found it, but the “gain side” for the dirt channel would only be 20% like a 12AU7 which is pretty low and can start to negatively affect a “high gain” channel, but if you try and like it, let us know!
www.tubedepot.com/products/jj-ecc823-preamp-vacuum-tube?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIyZmMtpnu8wIVxBrnCh12vQgMEAAYASAAEgI7CfD_BwE
@@oldguyjammin9732 ecc823
Can you plug in headphones?
There’s a line out that might accommodate headphones...? Search for “using headphones from line out jack”
Do these amps have a speaker output or effects loop?
I will only use amp with speaker outs AND effects loops.
@@oldguyjammin9732 I got back into playing and didn’t want to spend a bunch on an amp. The MG15 is a good little amp and with a good distortion pedal sounds good, but the 8” speaker is anemic. That amp through a 4x12 is immensely better. But no fx loop
@@davespin9034 that’s cool, as you play more and more (if you stick with it) you’ll probably want to invest in a nicer amp cause it will advance your playing, but it can become a rabbit hole too, lol. Rock on!
İs this because of micing or not but drive channel sounds really bad with both speakers imo.
hahaha, open room micing does sound much different than DI recording, or something captured through 2-Notes, etc.
@@oldguyjammin9732 is this di ? İ missed that than. İ knew this amp sound good actually. Saw in a few videos.its the di then. İ ve also never seen good di recording so far ..
Estoy interesado en comprar un altavoz para mi Marshall DSL 20W Valvular, ya que el que trae de serie me resulta bastante extridente en agudos, busco un altavoz que se adapte bien a altas ganancias con distorsión, sin que suene estridente ni barroso.
Por poner un ejemplo un sonido similar a la guitarra de Sex Pistols o Ramones.
¿Cúal me recomienda? (El precio es indiferente)
Muchas gracias por su atención, un saludo.
Sorry man, my Spanish is not very good.
@@oldguyjammin9732 Hello ! I am interested in buying a loudspeaker for my Marshall DSL 20W Valve, since the one that it comes with is quite loud in treble, I am looking for a loudspeaker that adapts well to high gains with distortion, without sounding loud or muddy.
For example, a sound similar to the guitar of the Sex Pistols or Ramones.
Which one do you recommend? (The price is indifferent)
Thank you very much for your attention, regards.
@@TheBarnaway - awesome, thanks for coming back. In my opinion there is no better speaker for Marshall amps than the Creamback G12M-65. The Creamback covers a lot of musical territory from clean to blues to really hard rock... drop D stuff is killer. If you play drop tuned, darker metal most of the time consider the Eminence DV-77.
That modded version sounds flabby as fuck man. Stock was wasaaay better in my opinion.
Lmao, love the “flabby as fuck man” ha ha. Room tone vs RUclips..? And/or personal preference being that “good tone” is purely subjective. I’m not sure where I was with this vid but settled on a 12Ay7 tube in socket 1 and a Creamback 65M as the speaker - love it.
@@oldguyjammin9732 I have a DSL-20HR running into an Egnater Vengeance 4-12" cab. The only mod is a 12AU7 in V,2 to tame the fizz. I run an EQ with 18db +/- in the fx loop and use it to cut some of the signal from the pre-amp. Then I can run the master volume hotter to make up for the db loss provided by the EQ. This gets those EL-34s glowing baby!!!
Great video man !! This is pure porn !!
Cool, we love us some good gear porn, yes? It’s quite the amp really.
@@oldguyjammin9732 lol thx I've got the 20H
Always tinkering !!! Great video!!
Sounded better stock
They often do...
This guy “the DSL40 was too loud”
Me: plugs in JCM 900 into a 4 x 12 while performing to the neighbourhood and the cops when they turn up
Glad I don't live anywhere near you.
Amp attenuator? $28 bucks and retain your ability to make peoples ears bleed. How would you compare the 7080 vs the V Type?
I’d say the V-type is a step up from the 70/80 and the Creamback is yet another step up from the V-type. The difference is more apparent as the volume gets louder, but overall the V-type is a really nice speaker.
Не показал какие лампы и какой динамик по номиналу. Обзор никакой...
To have to mod a new amp is an amp best left alone, why on earth spend so many dollars on an amp and then have to spend many more dollars because the designers are not not smart enough to do the job properly in the first place.
It’s part of the fun \m/ designers have to weigh out the time and cost of niceties… like even a simple bright switch! Only 3 parts but… time and labor, worth it? Not to them but to me? Yes.
The stock and modded samples indicate a very marshall lifeless sound. I prefer the JCM 900 combo from my past. Both clean and dirty puts that over priced puppy to shame. What was Marshall thinking making that amp....yuck!
C’mon, don’t kid yourself, the DSL line is really great, dependable and delivers that classic Marshall tone with knob towards contemporary modernness. I also have a JCM800 with 2x12 cab and I’ll be darned if the DSl20 isn’t right there with it. I’ve had a ton of higher end stuff and nothing delivers more versatility than Marshall. However... tone being purely subjective, everyone is welcome to their personal opinions ;-)
Joe I couldn't disagree with you more. This is a fantastic amp, and it really comes alive with an EQ in the loop. I played today without the EQ and it seemed really thin and had turn down the presence and high's. MXR 10-band in the loop is the secret to unleash this monster. Huge difference....
No need to upgrade
Sounds good with stock integrated pcb ,tubed speaker. Looks blackstarish inside. Hummm all tube or dare I say it ...hybrid? Just an observation from one old guy to another. Bet I'm older than you.