flagship marshall scandal

[bourbonsamurai]

headfirst amplification released an autopsy of a 2023 jcm800 2203x today, detailing marshalls swap to mav (marshall vietnam) output and power transformers, from the former dagnall factory spec.  no big deal?  keeping the $3500 price, with no notification the inferior trannys are now factory spec?  im calling bullshit on this one, yall.  the transformers are the "iron", when "big iron" marshalls are discussed.  what a load of crap.  no wonder marshalls artists are jumping ship..

[Stitsel]

I just watched this yesterday..... Thank God I have a coupla old real Marshall's. I feared this sale would in some way result in this kind of thing  .
Seeing him demonstrate that hum was painful. 
 

[bourbonsamurai]

I just watched this yesterday..... Thank God I have a coupla old real Marshall's. I feared this sale would in some way result in this kind of thing  .
Seeing him demonstrate that hum was painful. 
 

 

the hum could be something as mundane as a cold solder.  can happen to any amp.  im more aggravated with the swap.  when a company does shit like this, theyre calling us stupid, without saying so.

[Dinosaur David B]

Guys, this is hardly the first time Marshall's done shit like this. They've changed components many times throughout the decades out of everything from necessity (can't get the parts), economics (let's use cheaper parts), and shear stupidity (let's stick our heads up our arses).  Of all of the decisions they've made over the years, their getting it right percentage is pretty low. The only thing that saved them was when they got it right, they got it really right. 
 

[bourbonsamurai]

20 years ago, when i was selling and modding vintage marshalls here in new orleans, names like drake, dagnall, and radiospares (rs), were just names i looked for inside an amp, to help authenticate originality and stock condition.  since then, people have throughly investigated what made these components different, the significance those differences meant to the unique identity of each model.  marshall gained by this, when they reissued these amps, respecting these component differences.  this isnt 1973, when even elite techs didnt have access to this information.  in 2023, anybody thats interested can learn more in a day, with a google search, than the entire industry collectively knew, 50 years ago.  its a smart, well informed and educated group, theyre trying to bullshit now, with this nonsense

[Tatosh Guitar]

I seem to be out of the loop here. Can someone throw a link here so I know wtf is going on?

[Stitsel]

@Tatosh : 

[Tatosh Guitar]

Thanks man!

Interesting. Not surprising coming from a big company, at least not to me. If anything, I am more surprised they hadn't done it sooner.

Also, while all parts are important to the equation, the iron (or transformers if you will) are probably the most important part of something like an amp. The Output one is THE most important one but the PT are also a huge deal as demonstrated in this video.

On a semi related subject, if any of you guys has an old Dagnall PT laying around and is willing to part with it I would like to have words with you. My 71 Superlead had it replaced at some point before I got my hands on it, with some cheap copy from a company in Seattle that no amp guy I have ever spoken to seems to have heard about, and of course, it burned to death as soon as I started cranking it. I would like to put it back to spec with an original one before I start looking at the clones available, if it doesn't get too expensive that is.


 
 

[Dinosaur David B]

History of Marshall transformers

Before they used Dagnall, the older ones used Drake transformers and lay down transformers. A few even used the Partridge transformers (found in Hiwatts and some Laneys). 

[Tatosh Guitar]

History of Marshall transformers

Before they used Dagnall, the older ones used Drake transformers and lay down transformers. A few even used the Partridge transformers (found in Hiwatts and some Laneys). 

 

Yeah, I had forgotten some of that, but around 10 or so years ago I became obsessed with old Marshalls and tried to learn everything possible about them.

Both of my old Marshalls have upright transformers, and I am pretty that Superlead had a Dagnall before someone butchered it. If I can't find an original one I might just go with a clone (they really can get it right these days in that department). Plus, as I posted earlier, the Power Transformer isn't that big of a deal as far as the tone is concerned, unlike the Output one which is essential for the Marshall tone we know and love. For what is worth, my 69 Superbass has Dagnalls.