Marshall 2205 JCM800 Split Channel Reverb [1982-1989]

I have been playing the guitar for 3 years and I'm currently in a band called Sendero Luminoso. My guitar hero is Tom Morello; however, my other influences come from Jimmy Page, John Frusciante, and Angus Young.


I paid an unbelievable price of 645 American dollars on eBay. Bids for this amp are increasing to nearly $900 and I was lucky to buy it from the seller. I mainly got this amp because I had heard that it has a great Plexi sound and that British crunch that I've been seeking along with some unique features.

The greatest thing I love about the unit is the sound. It's unbelievable each time I turn it on. I have the distortion all the way up and I still can get the feel of crunch in the sound. Another unique feature is that both channels could be mixed; if you turn up the volume of the normal channel while you're on the boosted channel, the normal channel's settings are added to the mix. Thus you have so many options and sounds with this amplifier. There is also an effects loop and reverb.

There is only one problem with the amp head, that is I get a lot of white noise. I don't know if it's my guitar, since it was custom made, or something else. I really don't want to buy a suppressor too. So I just came to deal with it and maybe I'll find the problem out. May be cheap cables? That's the only problem though.

It's in great shape. There's some very small tears in the Tolex but it doesn't have the sound of the amp. The D.I. knob is missing in the back as well but I've heard that Marshall made the knobs protruding out too far therefore many of them break easily.

This amp is great for many different sounds. If you like the crunch and "bad ass" feel of a Marshall get this amp. It has great reverb, channel switching capabilities and many more. I guarantee that anybody would be happy with this amp if you're looking for a sound unlike no other.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I got this wonderful amp though my guitar instructer who knew that i was looking for an amp. He had a friend who was selling it but really really didn't want to. If i didn't bought my amp when i did, he probely would of kept it. Not only I'm lucky to have a jcm 800 but i stold it for only Five hundred dollers. I have never seen this head close to five hundred dollars on ebay.

what i love about this amp is that it has that cunch that you can only get from a jcm 800. And whats really cool is that if you turn down your volume nub on guitar, it makes your cruch chanel cystal clean which you can not get out of the new marshalls. so if you had two volume nubs on your guitar you can set your treble pickup on max and you bass pickup down a little bit which would make your pickup slector like a distorsion swich on your guitar for leads.

Theres only two minor flaws with this amp. which are that it's impossible to find a person to mod it, i wanted to gain my own signture sound and it's a little hard to controll the volume and it's only a 50 watt. Whatever you do never get a 100 watt becasue thoughs are extremly worst. 50 watts is all you ever need.

this amp is One of the first marshall amps to have two chanels (clean/crunch). It's one of the first marshall amps to have spring reverb, i beleive. The quility of this amp is very good. It's older than me and it's in ship shape.

this is one of the best marshall amps you can buy. Many artists faver the marshall jcm 800 amps for a real good reason.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Marshall amplification has been the leaders in high gain amplifier since the 60s. They are the best and most heavily used rock tone machines in the world. Some of their famous examples of amplifiers are the Marshall plexi and the Marshall JCM 800 series amplifiers. Today they have gotten even more modern in their building and features.

They have such a great tone and classic tone that has been featured on almost every rock album since their inception. A lot of the original Marshall plexi and JCM 800 amplifiers were modded by many of the guitarist back in the 80s and early 90s. In the late 80s, Marshall decided to release a split two channel JCM 800 amplifier. This would give you the users a multi-channel amplifier to meet the new upcoming musical needs.

UTILIZATION

This amplifier is very easy to use if you spend any time with the new modern amplifiers built today. This is it two channel amplifier with its own separate EQ sections for dynamic Ewing of the channels. You also get a reverb section and at 50 W of power this is no week sounding amplifier. The tone is very classic Marshall sounding and it takes no time to dial in that sweet spot for your tone.

SOUNDS

This amplifier stays true to the JCM 800 tone but gives a more versatile experience for the new music at the time. This amp sounds very good when combined with a good Gibson Les Paul for a Gibson SG or even a Gibson Explorer guitar. Use that in conjunction with a nice chorus pedal and then you have a great 80s sound from the 80s amplifier.

OVERALL OPINION

This amplifier is no longer in production. You have to search the use market to find one of these if you wanted to get this tone. Many builders today build two channel 800 circuit amplifiers so that could be another option available to you.

These amplifiers I've seen on the used market in the classifieds for writer around $900. I would suggest getting a normal JCM 800 amp, as I never really cared for the two channel JCM 800 amps. This is a good amplifier for someone who wants versatility but there are other options to be considered when dealing with this type of amplifier.

(Originally written by joemanix/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
50 watt all-tube amp (five 12AX7 and two EL34).

Front panel:

Instrument input

Two channels:

Channel 1: clean and crunch sound (bass, treble and volume controls).

Channel 2: distortion sound (bass, treble, middle, gain and volume controls).

Common to both channels: spring reverb, presence and master volume controls.

Rear panel:

FX loop

Direct out with level control

Two parallel speaker outputs

Impedance selector (4/8/16 ohms)

AC power selector (120/220/240 V AC) for full versatility

Footswitch connector for channel selection

In short, it's quite comprehensive for an old Marshall from the 80's.

UTILIZATION

Two channels switchable only via footswitch (without footswitch, the second channel is active).

Enough sound control possibilities. Easy controls. You get the classic Marshall sound when all controls are in center position.

The combination of gain, volume and master controls allows to perfectly balance the channels.

Its 50 watts are more than enough, and its sound loaded with mids/highs really cuts through the mix.

SOUNDS

The sound is present, it seems rudimentary at first but it's very effective.

It's a typical Marshall sound, the lows are not emphasized, mids and highs are strong. Distorted chord sounds accurate but the sound stays always warm and has the great ability to cut through the mix.

It's a typical rock sound but it's also very good for blues. The main advantage is the sound character. Don't expect a Mesa or Fender Twin clean sound. The first channel provides a crunch sound at high volumes (but it depends on the guitar).

The distortion of the second channel provides a big ACDC and Lenny Krawitz rock sound. The sound character is amazing. You have the impression that you're playing with an authentic amp.

Everything above describes the original amp, even though I serviced it and adjusted the bias myself.

Considering that these amps are easy to tune, I thought I could increase its performance. I first replaced all condensers with high-quality components (power supply and signal sections). The lows didn't increase but the sound became a bit clearer.

Small technical correction: the distortion of the second channel is produced by diodes. Some people say these diodes "help" the amp produce a higher distortion but the truth is that the amp overdrives thanks to the diodes.

After having studied the JCM800 2204 (all(tube single channel amp without diodes), I reproduced the distortion circuitry of the 2204 (V2) to implement it in the 2205. I had to add a 12AX7 tube, some resistors and condensers, and also adapt the original circuit to bypass the diode bridge.

The result: the distortion and the sound color are almost identical but the sound is much more precise and dynamic to get a more expressive sound.

But don't try this if you don't have enough knowledge, high voltages of tube circuitries can be dangerous and even fatal.

OVERALL OPINION

This amp is magical. I use it often with its reverb and without any other effect.

The amp is not very versatile but it allows you to play rock and blues, it's good enough for me!

Even if it sounds raw, it always cuts through the mix without a sweat.

Now that I tuned it I will keep it a very long time.