Marshall Class 5: Awesome

Aeon · Post by **Aeon** » Thu Oct 14, 2010 9:28 pm

For the last several years I had been using my Fender Twin Reverb at gigs, and while a great amp, it's definitely a one-trick pony (not to mention a HUGE pain in the ass to move around). I was always trying to get it to be something else via pedals, but I've found over time that I'm more of a guitar -> amp kinda guy (ok, I might use a tuner pedal and maybe some reverb if the amp doesn't have it built in). Pedals always end up sounding like.. well, pedals to me, and I like hearing an amp's natural character moreso than some sort of outboard circuit. I've been in the market for a new amp, and the Class 5 ended up being my choice. My criteria for whatever I got were as follows:

-Easily portable
-All-tube circuitry
-Gets a good overdriven/crunch tone without too much fuss
-Not so expensive that it'd be a major tragedy if it got broken/stolen

I had been testing the waters with my brother-in-law's Orange Tiny Terror combo, and it was a very nice amp.. However, I think the Class 5 ended up being a better choice for me and my rig. The Orange had a very distinctive overdrive sound that was a bit more mushy than I wanted. The Marshall has a nice clean tone with a strong midrange presence, and the overdrive (once you roll the volume past about 4/5) gets you right into Plexi territory. It is a bit of a cliche guitar tone, but it's a classic for a reason.

I will get a video demo up when time allows, but I must say that for the price, you can't beat this little amp. It is PLENTY loud for playing over a moderately-loud drummer, and every gig that I've ever played ends up mic'ing amps anyways, so stage volume is essentially a non-issue for me. It's definitely not just a 'practice amp' and gets LOUD fast. The 5-watts is simply an indicator of how much clean headroom it has, and it can be easily hooked up to external speakers if needed... but for me the 10" is enough for the band I play with.

mickie08 · Post by **mickie08** » Thu Oct 14, 2010 9:30 pm

cool. I keep looking at these. Initially they had some rattle issues that have been fixed so now I am seriosuly thinking of buying one but my local GC never has one in stock to try.

Aeon · Post by **Aeon** » Thu Oct 14, 2010 9:31 pm

Yeah, make sure you get the revised version that fixed the rattle issue. Apparently this was a big problem with the original issue, but they've apparently since fixed that up.

And here's a pretty accurate video of the amp:
[youtube][/youtube]

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Thu Oct 14, 2010 9:59 pm

Strangely enough, I just tried one of these at the shop today (with a Blacktop Jaguar, very nice) and can attest that they really do sound fantastic.
I'm seriously thinking of getting one for playing out.

Sloan · Post by **Sloan** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 2:40 am

i wish they fucking made a 20-30w version of this at the same price. i mean fuck a 5w amp is <$200.

Haze · Post by **Haze** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 7:23 am

last time i played one i couldn't get along with it unless every knob was on 10. Played it in gaytar centers vintage mojo sound proofed room thing, people outside the room even said it was fucking loud and sounded gooood

Aeon · Post by **Aeon** » Sat Oct 16, 2010 4:07 pm

I reiterate again that 5W is only indicative of its clean headroom. It gets mega loud on its own, and has an external speaker out. 5W in this case is actually a blessing imo, because you can roll up into that sweet Marshall goodness far earlier than something with higher wattage.

Re: the EQ, yeah, I find that for Marshalls in general, the EQ knobs can be seen as reductive and not additive, so basically the approach should be to start on 10 and roll back to taste. A lot of other amps have their EQ set so that "5" or "12 o'clock" is the more neutral position and you adjust from there.

I think it sounds best with the Treble at 8, Mids at 10, and Bass between 2-3. A 10" speaker can't really handle too much bass, but it sounds good without it regardless.

I think this amp with a small Fender (Deluxe or Princeton or something similar) run with an A/B/Y switch would be a perfect live rig. But it works great on its own too.

Sloan · Post by **Sloan** » Sun Oct 17, 2010 7:54 pm

[youtube][/youtube]

5w for liek $100 fuck.

DGW · Post by **DGW** » Fri Oct 22, 2010 5:05 am

Thats a nice little home amp..just wondering if it can keep up with drums & bass...

Aeon · Post by **Aeon** » Fri Oct 22, 2010 8:41 am

DGW wrote:Thats a nice little home amp..just wondering if it can keep up with drums & bass...

Depends on the band. It definitely won't have enough clean headroom, but for a typical alternative rock band it can hold its own. You will probably need some external speakers for a louder band.