Th Jim Marshall Story
With virtually no formal edu ation behind him due to hildhood
illness, Jim Marshall began work at the age of 13 in 1936.
During a su ession of jobs with little or no prospe ts, Jim had
started tap dan ing and later singing with bands in the evenings.
His natural talent for musi further shone after he took over on the
drums when the band’s original drummer was drafted.
It wasn’t long before Jim found himself with regular work as a
drummer. In 1947 he began studying with the highly respe ted
drum tea her Max Abrams and by the early 1950s Jim had turned
professional. He be ame highly sought after as a drummer, led his
own band and was a highly su essful drum tea her.
Jim’s su ess ontinued and by 1960 he had opened the first Marshall
shop, initially selling drums. However, due to popular demand he was
soon sto king guitars and amplifiers. By listening to the guitarists
oming into the shop, Jim realised that they required a sound that
wasn’t on the market at that time. With the aid of several engineers in
1962, after months of trials, the first Marshall amp was born and was an
instant su ess. Jim designed and built the mat hing speaker abinet
and the rest, as they say, is history.
In th B ginning...
There was the JTM45 whi h was first unveiled in 1962 at Jim
Marshall’s musi shop in West London. At that time, ro k guitar
playing as we now know it was very mu h in its infan y and players
were onstantly looking for new ways to redefine their tone. It
qui kly be ame lear that the JTM45 was the perfe t amplifier for
the task at hand! While it was apable of providing plenty of ‘ lean’
power, the JTM45 also did all kinds of wild things when turned up all
the way. This was just what legendary ro k ‘n’ roll pioneers like
Pete Townshend were looking for.
By 1965 it was Pete Townshend’s need for greater on-stage volume
whi h inspired Jim to build the first ever 100 Watt Marshall guitar
head. The Who’s guitarist also wanted bigger abinets and, as a
single 8x12" abinet (Pete’s original request!) proved to be totally
impra ti al, Jim ame up with the idea of ‘sta king’ two 4x12"s, one
on top of the other. And that’s how that irrefutable i on of ro k
amplifi ation, the ‘Marshall Sta k,’ ame into being.
The fa t that so many legendary guitarists from that all-important era
of the late ’60s/early ’70s, hose Marshall as their ba kline was no
a ident. These players all had their own distin tive style and ea h
one was omplemented perfe tly by the dynami s and feel that the
Marshall 1959 Super Lead ‘Plexi’ amplifiers offered. This was
personified by the late, great, Jimi Hendrix who reated sounds
through these Marshall amps whi h had never been heard before
and arguably, have never been mat hed sin e.
Th N xt Stag
As ro k guitar playing evolved, Marshall ontinued to su essfully
reate new amplifiers that offered exa tly what players were looking
for. In 1975, the first Master Volume (MV) amps provided a higher
level of distortion than ever before and also did so at a mu h more
ontrollable volume. This breakthrough was exa tly what many
guitarists of that era were looking for.
By the time the ’80s rolled along, the MV spe ies had evolved into
the JCM800 Series. The unmistakable roar of these amps, whi h
shaped the tone of that de ade, is still favoured by many of today’s
utting-edge guitarists su h as Kerry King of Slayer and Zakk Wylde.
The JCM800 family also featured more flexible models with
swit hable hannels and built-in reverb.
As in reased gain be ame the order of the day, Marshall laun hed
its Jubilee amplifiers in 1987. This no-nonsense, superb sounding
amp be ame the firm favourite of Slash of Guns ‘n’ Roses fame and
was later re-issued in 1996 as the limited edition Slash Signature
amp. As the ’80s gave way to the ’90s, players demanded even
greater flexibility and gain levels from their amps. Marshall, of
ourse, responded in a timely fashion with the JCM900 Series, the
30th Anniversary amps, the best-selling Valvestate line and the
‘industry standard’ JMP-1 MIDI pre-amp. These produ ts delivered
exa tly what players needed and took entre stage for mu h of
that de ade.
Right H r , Right Now. . .
Re ognising that today’s guitarist demands a high level of versatility
while still raving Marshall’s now legendary, valve-driven tone, we
laun hed the JCM2000 Series in the late ’90s. This strong line of
all-valve heads and ombos offers both the tone and flexibility that
players su h as Jeff Be k and Gary Moore demand . . . and
ountless others too.
We also took hybrid amp te hnology to new heights with the release
of the AVT (Advan ed Valvestate Te hnology) line of amps, whi h
su essfully blend our valve expertise with digital effe ts and
utting-edge solid-state power amp ir uitry that emulates the
sound and feel of a valve power stage. The result? A flexible and
affordable alternative to all-valve amps whi h opened the Marshall
door to the next generation of guitar greats.
Fully understanding that guitar players on a budget, or that are just
starting out, deserve the best possible tone and features at an
affordable pri e, we laun hed our new MG Series. This
award-winning range of nine ombos and a head redefined what
players an expe t from inexpensive amplifi ation.
Continuing our poli y of listening to the needs of today’s guitar
players has led to the reation of the Mode Four. Attitude, striking
looks and above all in redible power set the Mode Four and its
mat hing abinets apart. Combine this with an arsenal of great tone
and features, delivered through state-of-the-art te hnology and you
have a Marshall like no other that has already won awards and a
host of onverts.
Due to overwhelming publi demand, in 2004 we laun hed the
first two models in our brand new Handwired range, the 1974X
and 2061X. This was followed by the mu h-anti ipated 1959HW
in 2005 and the limited run of JTM45/100 heads made to
elebrate the 40th Anniversary of the now i oni Marshall sta k.
The Handwired range is an ongoing series of meti ulously
a urate, handwired re-issues of lassi Marshalls from
yesteryear, in luding the Super 100JH Jimi Hendrix sta k.
Reviewers and users alike are unanimous in their a laim of our
point-to-point perfe tion. 2007 saw the introdu tion of the
award-winning JVM4 range and the 2203KK Signature Series
Kerry King head.
N w for 2008
2008 is just as ex iting with the laun h of the JVM2, a two hannel
amplifier very mu h in the same vein as the JVM4 and omplete
with a 4-way programmable footswit h, this range is destined to be
as su essful as the JVM4.
This year also sees two new additions to our Signature Series with
the laun h of the 1959RR, in honour of the late, great, Randy
Rhoads, a stunning 100 Watt head that delivers a slightly different
tone than the standard 1959 – a must for any Randy Rhoads fan.
Last, but ertainly not least, is the very first Signature bass head, the
1992LEM, in honour of our good and loyal friend Lemmy from
Motorhead, a monster of an amplifier that epitomises Lemmy’s
i oni style.
Th History...
Th Story Continu s...
19 62
JTM45
19 66
Model 1959
1975
Master Volume
1981
JCM800 (2203)
19 87
Jubilee Series (2555)
19 90
JCM900 (4100)
19 92
30th Anniversary (6100)
19 97
JCM2000 (DSL100)
2000
VS2000 (AVT50H)
2006
Vintage Modern
2007
JVM4 Series
2008
JVM2 Series
3
2