Scott Henderson Discussion

[Preserved Moose]

Hey Scott,

thanks for answering questions on this forum. I've been surfing here for 4 years or something and always found your advice very helpful.

I'm thinking about buying a real amp. Until now I have been playing over small transistor boxes (which is kind of embarrassing). It should be a tube amp with a 2x12 cabinet. I have been thinking about the Fender Hot Rod Deville, especially because Fender just released a Michael Landau signature version of it. But I have come to the conclusion that I enjoy Marshall style amps a bit more. Fenders are too clean… But the (somehow) inevitable 4x12 cabinet seems a bit too much for my purposes and for some reason no one cares about Marshall combos (are they that bad?)…
Wayne Krantz uses a Marshall 2553 Silver Jubilee with a 2x12 cabinet and I like his tone:

http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/22218-rig-rundown-wayne-krantz

What do you think about using 2x12 cabinets with Marshall heads? I understand the heads have to be made for 2x12's. Are there any alternatives or certain models that could work for me?

I'm really looking forward to hear your new album und see you live in april! Thank you for your music! It's very important to me.

Cheers,
Matthias

[Scott Henderson]

You shouldn't have any problem running a Marshall with a 2x12, but the Marshall should either be 50 watts, or you'll have to use more powerful speakers than Greenbacks or Vintage 30's. Celestion makes the Heritage 65 (the speaker I use in my 2x12), Creamback, and V-type, all of which can handle more power. And the speakers should be 16 ohm, so your cabinet gives the amp an 8 ohm load.

The problem with Marshall (in my opinion) is there's only one good one which exists, besides the old ones which are extremely pricey. That amp is the JCM 2000 DSL. They don't make them anymore but it's really easy to find used ones in great condition. WARNING - don't get anything new that Marshall makes. They're in a very bad state right now and EVERYTHING they make sounds like shit!!! If the amp has a Resonance knob, run away as fast as you can!! That's one of the new amps, and you can turn that Resonance knob from 1 to 10 all day, but it won't help - whoever invented that knob (most likely not a musician) succeeded in making the worst sounding knob in the world. The JCM 2000 DSL was the last good amp Marshall made. I rent them all the time on the road, and I've seen Jeff Beck play through them a few times - they're good sounding amps.

As far as 50 watt Marshalls or combos, sorry, I don't have a clue. I don't know if the JCM 2000 ever came in those versions.

Hope that helps!

[dizzy]

I used to have a 50 watt jcm 2000 head. It was a great amp. I stupidly sold it.

[Scott Henderson]

I just went on ebay and found both 50 watt and combo versions of the JCM 2000 DSL. Cool!

[Preserved Moose]

I'll definitely try out the JCM 2000 DSL. I checked the index for more on that topic and learned a lot. Thanks!

A dumb question about wattage: I read a rule of thumb somewhere that you need twice the wattage in your cabinet than in the head. A 50 watt head needs at least 100 watt in the cabinet, so two 65W Heritage speakers (a 130 watt cabinet, right?) would be sufficient. Is this correct?

Thank you for your fast help, dizzy and Scott!

[Scott Henderson]

I don't think you need twice the power in your cab. That's if you're turning your amp all the way up, which would be ridiculously loud. I record my 100 watt Marshall on 6 with a pedal (that's LOUD) through my 2x12 all the time and I've never had a problem with my Heritage 65 speakers.

[Preserved Moose]

Thanks Scott!