Billy Apple Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 Thought I'd take a punt on a Marshall Super Bass and all told I'm very happy with it. Arrived via courier on Tuesday with no damage, so well done Interparcel / UPS. Mind you the seller must own a Bubblewrap mine as I could've dropped it down the stairs without bothering a bottle! So thanks to Tommorichards and thanks to Basschat for having a reliable marketplace with stand-up members. So without further a-do!.. Ta Da!.. [url="http://imgur.com/JklsO4u"][/url] Now I've never played through a Marshall before and for some reason I always thought they would sound a bit stuffed-up and gainy, but I've been blown away by this thing. It's really fresh and open, with a lovely articulation and beautiful treble clank. All wrapped up with a nice punchy, kick in the guts bass. I've heard these were non too popular for not being loud enough, but at half volume I think the whole of the village heard me today. It really starts cooking when you get the volumes up. There is very little fuzz and no gain control, it all comes from the back-end which as we all know is where the beauty of valves lie. Also I'd argue that this head is just about a manageable weight to make it a contender for regular gigging. At 20Kg it is portable in the valve sense, certainly easier than a 35Kg SVT. I thought I'd check the serial number with Marshall, so I phoned them up today and was told one or two interesting things. Firstly, it has no markings on the front save the Jim Marshall Sig. I'd understood that this was due to it being an early JCM800 transitional model. Phil the historian at Marshall told me that all JCM800 Series Marshall Super Bass Mk II's where scripted on the front with JCM800 from '79 onwards. He said that the original lettering was silk screened on and that people used white spirit to remove it in an attempt to make the amp look older. He told me the EQ section was interactive and in his opinion didn't sound as good out the box as the older heads, but with a bit of work you can get them to sound better. The slope pot boosts low end a bit and the mid sweep affects bass and treble. Anyway, I've just got everything pushed a bit and it sounds great. I took it out the sleeve today and everything is in good order, save a clean needed to the top chassis. The lead dress is very good and it doesn't look like any repairs or mods have been done at all. The amp runs very quietly indeed. I was relieved not to find any horror stories inside. Stuck to the chassis was the original QC label and this has given a little bit of interesting history to the amp.. Well, the amp was born on 16/06/81. The test was carried out by Dennis who has only recently retired from Marshall. Jean did the AC, tag board and back panel and Rena did the assembly. Rena, it turns out was Jim Marshall's wife! So all in all a pretty good pedigree! All I need now is a cab wide enough to sit it on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 Congrats Sean, looks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merton Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 Nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 Ohh... If only my guts would allow me to gig such an amp... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 [quote name='discreet' timestamp='1455831617' post='2982888'] Ohh... If only my guts would allow me to gig such an amp... [/quote] Same here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertbass Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 2 off 4x12s would look rather nice sitting under it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTypeV4 Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 Lovely looking amp, I hope it serves you well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deedee Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 Great review, very interesting for those of us who've never dipped a toe in the Marshall gear pool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gramatron Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 I had one of these until last year. A genuinely brilliant sounding amp, for some reason over looked and under rated by people. I only sold it as it was sitting there not getting used due to buying an ad200b. The same model has been used by refused and underoath on their last few albums. I think tool used them for guitar as well. You got yourself a good purchase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsgbass Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 Congrats on a beautiful head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Ooooh she's a beauty!! I have a Marshall Super Bass too. Mine's an interesting story hailing back to '68 / '69 and makes a very lovely sound too. I totally echo your comments about sound. Get it away from those classic sealed cabinet 4x12's and through a Barefaced Big Twin II, it sounds clear and articulate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chriswareham Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 What's happening to your Burman amp? Please tell me you're not going to sell it as I don't think I'd be able to resist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy Apple Posted March 2, 2016 Author Share Posted March 2, 2016 [quote name='chriswareham' timestamp='1456934316' post='2993744'] What's happening to your Burman amp? Please tell me you're not going to sell it as I don't think I'd be able to resist. [/quote] It's still around. I've yet to put them up against each other Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy Apple Posted March 2, 2016 Author Share Posted March 2, 2016 [quote name='dood' timestamp='1456917302' post='2993449'] Get it away from those classic sealed cabinet 4x12's and through a Barefaced Big Twin II, it sounds clear and articulate. [/quote] If only they were wide enough not to have each end hanging over! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 [quote name='Billy Apple' timestamp='1456934772' post='2993757'] If only they were wide enough not to have each end hanging over! [/quote] That's very true..will just have to try out the Barefaced 6x10 / 8x10 then!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarwickRoss Posted May 20, 2016 Share Posted May 20, 2016 Just came across this thread. I've a 1979 Super Bass with a Jcm 800 series bass 4x12 cab. Would like to buy a 4x10. Any recommendations... 4 or 8 ohm? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarwickRoss Posted May 20, 2016 Share Posted May 20, 2016 There she is... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DGBass Posted May 22, 2016 Share Posted May 22, 2016 A nice looking example of a JCM800 Does it have 5881 or EL34 tubes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted May 26, 2016 Share Posted May 26, 2016 (edited) - Edited February 28, 2022 by Jus Lukin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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