tried a bunch of low watt amps

[Lucifuge]

I've got a Dual Terror and I think it's ace. Sounds lovely when played in stereo with my JCM800. In fact, it sounds killer on its own too!

Um, isn't this getting a bit away from the "low wattage" thing?

[TheyCallMeVolume]

 :hmm:

[bucketshred]

I've got a Dual Terror and I think it's ace. Sounds lovely when played in stereo with my JCM800. In fact, it sounds killer on its own too!

Um, isn't this getting a bit away from the "low wattage" thing?

No.

[Philly Q]

It is a small amp which can go down to 7 watts.  Not exactly bedroom, but definitely low wattage.

[Alex]

I've experimented a lot with different setups trying to get a very good sound at low volume levels. IMO the power amp side (low wattage) is only part of the equation.
At least just as important is the flexibility of the preamp and the cabined/speakers.

Preamp
I feel the more flexibility/gain/EQ the preamp offers, the better it will work, especially for high gain where the most gain is naturally made in the preamp. This is why a 5150 120-Watt head can be a better bedroom choice than a Marshall Class 5, depending on how important gain is for you. I had a 5150 and was genuinely surprised how good it worked.

Cabinet/speakers
Huge part, totally overlooked. Most speakers need a certain "push" from the power amp to sound proper/right. A lot of fizziness in gain often comes from the speakers in low volume setttings. I've experimented a bit and for home use I use a small 1x10" cab with a fairly low sensitivity rating, so I have to turn up the power amp a bit more. It works far better than my 2x12" or even my 1x12" cab (with a high power speaker). But in the "real world", i.e. on stage, the 2x12" will kill the 1x10" cab of course.

[Hammerheart]

I loved the JMP1 combo I tried in Guitar Guitar. It's the only one of the Marshall Anniversary amps I liked (and I liked it a lot). Really nice tone to the combo. Just a bit too much money for me to buy it on a whim though.

[Philly Q]

I think the JMP1 is the one which appeals to me most.  It is expensive, though, as you say.

[AndyR]

Same here on the JMP1... although I was thinking "how expensive can it be, boys?"

Just checked... OWCH!

OK, I don't think I'll be getting one :lol:

[dave_mc]

I've experimented a lot with different setups trying to get a very good sound at low volume levels. IMO the power amp side (low wattage) is only part of the equation.
At least just as important is the flexibility of the preamp and the cabined/speakers.

Preamp
I feel the more flexibility/gain/EQ the preamp offers, the better it will work, especially for high gain where the most gain is naturally made in the preamp. This is why a 5150 120-Watt head can be a better bedroom choice than a Marshall Class 5, depending on how important gain is for you. I had a 5150 and was genuinely surprised how good it worked.

Cabinet/speakers
Huge part, totally overlooked. Most speakers need a certain "push" from the power amp to sound proper/right. A lot of fizziness in gain often comes from the speakers in low volume setttings. I've experimented a bit and for home use I use a small 1x10" cab with a fairly low sensitivity rating, so I have to turn up the power amp a bit more. It works far better than my 2x12" or even my 1x12" cab (with a high power speaker). But in the "real world", i.e. on stage, the 2x12" will kill the 1x10" cab of course.

agreed

if you want power amp distortion then you do, to be fair, need low wattage- or some form of power scaling/attenuation/low efficiency speaker or the like (though it's also worth bearing in mind that a single-ended 5 watter won't really sound the same as a 100 watt tube amp up full, either).

But if you're ok with preamp distortion higher wattage amps often sound better than low wattage amps. there's no guarantee and you really have to try them to see which ones do sound good turned down... but when you find them it's great.

and not to bang on about this or repeat myself ad nauseum, but it's probably also worth pointing out how loud a 5 watter is through normal-efficiency guitar speakers- you're talking around the 105dB mark, maybe more. that's loud in a small enclosed space. a 100 watter might not sound amazing at whisper volume, but a 5 watter cranked is absolutely not whisper volume either :lol: Any of my high gain high wattage amps are sounding really good (IMO) long before they hit 105dB.

[Philly Q]

Same here on the JMP1... although I was thinking "how expensive can it be, boys?"

Just checked... OWCH!

OK, I don't think I'll be getting one :lol:

I can see myself caving in and buying one.... but not just now, I've spent too much "GAS money" in the last few months.  I'm not exactly skint (thankfully), but I have got spending fatigue!

Only thing is, they're not going to be available for long, are they?

[AndyR]

Only thing is, they're not going to be available for long, are they?

:lol: My thought process earlier included this very sentence...

Luckily, though, it didn't have as much power over me as it might have done a couple of years ago.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

I'm not exactly sure what their gameplan is with these. I've been hearing rumors that they will put them in production, that this is it, and that there will also be a Slash AFD 1 watt or 5 watt head/combo, which really tickles my fancy as I love the AFD100.

Anyhow, I'd say wait until NAMM comes around to see what Marshall's gonna do. If they put them out again, they will be lower priced I'm guessing. If they don't, then I'd hop on ones on eBay very quickly while they're still routinely going for around $600, maybe cheaper. As we all know with these sellers, if they find out something makes their item more rare, they'll charge $6,000 instead of $600!

[Philly Q]

Presumably if they start making "unlimited" production versions, they'll be made in China or somewhere rather than the UK (do Marshall do that?  I must confess to complete ignorance here....) 

But they'd certainly be cheaper, as you say.

[gwEm]

Marshall do already produce some stuff in China, including some tube stuff I think.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

Marshall do already produce some stuff in China, including some tube stuff I think.

And the new DSL's. AFAIK that's all they outsource for, and maybe some of their budget amps like Haze, MG, etc.

On the other hand, I can't wait to see what they bring out for NAMM! Being a big Marshall guy, I've been waiting to see their big 50th Anniversary amp come out for a while now!