NewAmpDay: Marshall 2204 White!

[BIG Dave]

Picked her up off Craigslist yesterday. Looks "mostly" stock except for the EL34 bias mod, Spike Protectors (a string of IN4007 diodes under shrink wrap to PIN 3 of the output tube sockets), and (I think) a replaced cap on the PRESENCE control. Serial number and Build Tag shows manufactured in 1980. The elephant tolex on the headbox appears (IMHO) original. Opinions?

 

[goldtop0]

Black Marshall logo too?
It's very tidy indeed isn't it.

 

[BIG Dave]

Black Marshall logo too?
It's very tidy indeed isn't it.

Yes, black logos were used on the white Marshall's Randy Rhoads used, and of course the 1959 RR reissues. Other than that, I do not believe the black logos are that common. Makes me think the white elephant tolex is probably original as the black logos are not readily available. Also, the tolex is definitely old, looks like it has many, many years of wear on it.

 

[FretsAlot]

Congrats! Neat looking piece... you going to look for a matching white cab for it?

Fretsalot/Scott

 

[dtw576]

A white 1960AX 35th Anniversary cab would go great with that head. Not very easy to find in good shape but they are out there and have English greenbacks in them. The 1960AX works great with 50 watt heads and I have one for my '71 1987, which is in a repro white tolex box with a small black Marshall logo. White and black is rare and looks great IMHO.

 

[BIG Dave]

Congrats! Neat looking piece... you going to look for a matching white cab for it?

Fretsalot/Scott

I've had a white 35th Anniversary 1987X head for about 15 years now and never felt the urge to get a matching white cab. Besides, my days of moving 4x12's are over. My back is no longer cooperating. Maybe a white JCM800 2x12 (model 1936) if one ever comes up for sale. Not sure if Marshall ever produced such a beast...

 

[cryptozoo]

Cool!

 

[chuckNC]

White elephant sale?..................Oh heck, somebody had to say it.

Does it sound as good as it looks?

 

[MWR]

Congrats! My late 70s 2203 served me wonderfully for 15+ years of gigging!

 

[GreenBurst]

A white 1960AX 35th Anniversary cab would go great with that head. Not very easy to find in good shape but they are out there and have English greenbacks in them. The 1960AX works great with 50 watt heads and I have one for my '71 1987, which is in a repro white tolex box with a small black Marshall logo. White and black is rare and looks great IMHO.

The tolex is actually quite different between the two.

The tolex used on the 35th Anniversary amps is not as course as that used on the pre- JCM800 (white) amps. Also the 35th amp tolex mimics vintage Marshalls (ie has gold piping and exposed angled seems at the corners), where as the pre-JCM800 tolex is just a white version of the style of that era (ie has plastic corner caps).

Lastly the 35th Anniversary is really a more cream color vs. the stark white of the pre-JCM800 amps. Maybe those have yellowed with age though, thus lessening the difference.

 

[Heritage 80]

I have a '81 4104 (2 x 12 combo). The vertical input JCM 800's are incredible amps.

 

[Stoj]

Nice one Dave :dude:

 

[JR-Special]

Man, I sure miss amps built simply like these. You look inside a recent Marshall builds and there's all kinds of stuff that just make them overly complicated.

Great find on a nice amp. White tux and black tie!

 

[sickboy79]

Looks awesome! Congrats!

 

[slammintone]

Picked her up off Craigslist yesterday. Looks "mostly" stock except for the EL34 bias mod, Spike Protectors (a string of IN4007 diodes under shrink wrap to PIN 3 of the output tube sockets), and (I think) a replaced cap on the PRESENCE control. Serial number and Build Tag shows manufactured in 1980. The elephant tolex on the headbox appears (IMHO) original. Opinions?

Gorgeous version of probably the best single rock guitar amp ever! Would love a JMP 2204 like that, white or black. My circa '87 2204 is a monster and it absolutely loves NOS Siemans EL34s. I'm going on four years straight with a set I bought new and they are going as strong as ever. Get a set of those, Tesla's or real Mullards and you'll be sounding good for a looong time. :headbange

 

[BIG Dave]

Gorgeous version of probably the best single rock guitar amp ever! Would love a JMP 2204 like that, white or black. My circa '87 2204 is a monster and it absolutely loves NOS Siemans EL34s. I'm going on four years straight with a set I bought new and they are going as strong as ever. Get a set of those, Tesla's or real Mullards and you'll be sounding good for a looong time. :headbange

She had 'real' Svetlana EL34's from 1998 in her when I bought her. The preamp tubes were horrible EH so I replaced those with NOS Mullard ecc83's. Amazing what a good preamp tube will do! Push the PREAMP knob to '10' and she gets super crunchy, dripping with harmonics, and easily coaxed into feedback! I have a stash of NOS EL34's including Mullard XF2's, RFT's and some metal base Philips, the fun is in the experimenting!

 

[Triburst]

I have a '79 JMP 2204. I see you've already discovered these amps absolutely love golden-era British-manufactured tubes.

Surprisingly (at least to me), I've also found that modern-era Marshall 1960 cabs with their 75-watt speakers actually sound great with that amp. Even though I have a '79 basketweave with greenbacks, I tend to use the modern cab more often because it doesn't get flabby at lower volumes.

Congratulations!:salude

 

[Jim Jones]

Funny you should say this - I recently was lucky enough to tour the Marshall factory and was told there are 18 components in their new flagship amps (JVM series?) purely to keep cell phone signals out.

Jim

Man, I sure miss amps built simply like these. You look inside a recent Marshall builds and there's all kinds of stuff that just make them overly complicated.

Great find on a nice amp. White tux and black tie!