This amp has every sound I've ever wanted out of a Marshall. Super clean voicing that comes through the celestion. Highly modifiable 4 high / low distortion and clean channel. The clean sound is the best of any Marshall I've owned. I run a Friedman overdrive Walrus Chorus, a couple delays, and Boss Compressor and absolutely love the British style bluesy metal sound it gives. Beautiful Amp. Looking forward to the Marshall six way selector stomp.

Great Amp!

I own many amps, including a late 80's Marshall JCM600. I was unable to get the classic crunch sound from that amp, as it just has a bit too much gain. Although this amp is made in Asia, it is a great Marshall amp, with that classic tone that you can only get from a Marshall amp.Although it is a great amp, I knew that I didn't care much for the Celestion G12-P 70 (seventy/eighty) speaker, when I purchased it. The amp is very bright and the stock speaker is very bright as well. So, I replaced the speaker with a Celestion Creamback, upon arrival. What a difference! This amp sounds fantastic with that speaker.It does take some time to dial in the right tone, and I really only tend to use the classic crunch channel, but you can get a pretty nice Fender "chime" from ... MoreI own many amps, including a late 80's Marshall JCM600. I was unable to get the classic crunch sound from that amp, as it just has a bit too much gain. Although this amp is made in Asia, it is a great Marshall amp, with that classic tone that you can only get from a Marshall amp.Although it is a great amp, I knew that I didn't care much for the Celestion G12-P 70 (seventy/eighty) speaker, when I purchased it. The amp is very bright and the stock speaker is very bright as well. So, I replaced the speaker with a Celestion Creamback, upon arrival. What a difference! This amp sounds fantastic with that speaker.It does take some time to dial in the right tone, and I really only tend to use the classic crunch channel, but you can get a pretty nice Fender "chime" from a single coil pickup, and a great, warm crunch as well. Very classic rock/80's metal. The effects loop is great and, although there are many complaints about the reverb being almost non-existent, the reverb is just fine. It's a Marshall, not a Fender. It is a basic digital reverb. So, you don't get the Fender full/warm spring reverb, but you do have separate reverb controls for the Clean/Crunch and Lead 1/2 Ultra gain channels.The amp has plenty of volume for just about any gig, unless you're playing an arena. The pentode/triode switch is a nice function, to give you the ability to drop the power in half, to 20 watts. Although there is not a noticeable difference in tone, between the two settings, I prefer to keep it at full power, and just lower the master volume. I can play a live gig with volume at 2-3 and not need to turn up any more than that.The only downside is that the tone controls control all channels. So, you cannot set separate tone for Clean/Crunch and Lead1/2 channels. This does make it challenging to dial in the right settings that will work well for two channels. Also, a tad more gain on the crunch channel would be nice to have.

Great amp

This is a great amp! I had the 15 watt version a while ago so I already knew this would sound good, but with more power. At 40 watts of all tube power, this thing is a beast! Lots of headroom so you get a really nice bottom end out of it as well. I play a strat through it with 50's style pickups, so not a very high gain guitar. With the classic gain set to "crunch" and the gain turned to 12 o'clock, I get a nice warm dirty-clean sound with just a little light break-up. On the ultra gain channel, I keep it on "lead 1" to get that classic JCM800 type of sound. Lead 2 sounds pretty good and would be ideal for more modern tones. With a set of humbuckers, you could likely dial in a good metal tone there. Conversely, with the switch set to clean on the classic gain ... MoreThis is a great amp! I had the 15 watt version a while ago so I already knew this would sound good, but with more power. At 40 watts of all tube power, this thing is a beast! Lots of headroom so you get a really nice bottom end out of it as well. I play a strat through it with 50's style pickups, so not a very high gain guitar. With the classic gain set to "crunch" and the gain turned to 12 o'clock, I get a nice warm dirty-clean sound with just a little light break-up. On the ultra gain channel, I keep it on "lead 1" to get that classic JCM800 type of sound. Lead 2 sounds pretty good and would be ideal for more modern tones. With a set of humbuckers, you could likely dial in a good metal tone there. Conversely, with the switch set to clean on the classic gain channel, you can easily dial in sparkling cleans if you don't like the dirty-clean sound.My only two complaints with the amp are that the reverb sounds weak, and for an amp that technically has four channels, the footswitch is only a two-way. The reverb probably wouldn't even be bad to me had I not just been playing a Fender amp with real spring reverb. That thing on 2 had more reverb than the Marshall on 10! But to me, that's not much of an issue. I actually kinda like that the reverb is there but not in your face about it. As far as the channels go, it would be nice to have a 4-way footswitch to use, or even a boost switch that works with both channels. Again, no biggie. I just dial in the sounds I like and use a tubescreamer to push the front end for solos.Some people complained about the speaker and that there's only one eq for both channels. I guess that's a preference thing and I'm sure other speakers might sound better depending on the sound you're looking for, but to me, this speaker sounds great! And as far as the eq goes, I don't really see a problem there either. I tend to set my eq somewhat flat with the bass and treble at 6 and middle at 7 so I'm not really relying on eq for my tone.

I really like an amp with a Marshall flavor.

Pros: Nice clean sound, several different crunch or distortion sounds. Solid build with protected corners and a cool Marshall look. Many different ways to tailor your favorite Marshall sound. Reasonably loud with many speaker impedance choices. Cons: Hard to see the knob settings. Hard to find the right replacement knobs with the D slots if you want to change the original ones out. . Heavy at 50lbs. You may need to install wheels. No cover included. You will need the $150 6 switch pedal to be able to actually access the different channel choices by stomp box. Classic Gain channel "Red" is much louder than Classic Gain channel "Green". Don't understand why. Shared EQ's for 4 different voicings is never a really ideal method I guess. All in all a really decent amp at ... MorePros: Nice clean sound, several different crunch or distortion sounds. Solid build with protected corners and a cool Marshall look. Many different ways to tailor your favorite Marshall sound. Reasonably loud with many speaker impedance choices. Cons: Hard to see the knob settings. Hard to find the right replacement knobs with the D slots if you want to change the original ones out. . Heavy at 50lbs. You may need to install wheels. No cover included. You will need the $150 6 switch pedal to be able to actually access the different channel choices by stomp box. Classic Gain channel "Red" is much louder than Classic Gain channel "Green". Don't understand why. Shared EQ's for 4 different voicings is never a really ideal method I guess. All in all a really decent amp at a good price point.

I'm blown away by this beast!!

For my first tube amp.......HOLY COW!!! I've been using solid state amps for years thinking that digital technology could emulate the sounds and tone of a tube amp. Boy was I WRONG! This darn thing totally blew me away. From the cleans to the crunch side then on up to the ultra gain leads 1&2, I couldn't stop playing with it. I would tweak the EQ and play for a while thinking " well what if I change this or change that just a little" It hit me right in the chest after just a few power chords on it. The reverb is ok for it being digital. Nothing like a spring reverb though but I can live with it! The low end this thing puts out is dead on to MY ears. I've read some reviews that the stock Celestion speaker just doesn't quite cut it, well so far I have no issues with ... MoreFor my first tube amp.......HOLY COW!!! I've been using solid state amps for years thinking that digital technology could emulate the sounds and tone of a tube amp. Boy was I WRONG! This darn thing totally blew me away. From the cleans to the crunch side then on up to the ultra gain leads 1&2, I couldn't stop playing with it. I would tweak the EQ and play for a while thinking " well what if I change this or change that just a little" It hit me right in the chest after just a few power chords on it. The reverb is ok for it being digital. Nothing like a spring reverb though but I can live with it! The low end this thing puts out is dead on to MY ears. I've read some reviews that the stock Celestion speaker just doesn't quite cut it, well so far I have no issues with "thumper" It's built solid and at 40W, it will deafen you if you're not careful. Thank goodness for the pentode/ triode switch to cut this bad boys power in half LOL I can't wait to play through with my jamming buddies, boy are they in for a surprise. I would highly recommend this Marshall to anyone that's wanting a tube amp that's quiet enough for home use but loud enough to gig with.

Love my Marshall DSL40C. Unless you need MASSIVE power, this amp will get you the tone you want and/or need no matter what you play.. It's got power...just not MASSIVE ridiculous power, which some people need. But this 40 watts will make your ears bleed. Lol

Seriously...this amp can play whatever you want it to play. It does seem to have bass heavy sound to it. But you can turn that down if you want to. If I had any complaint, it would be that the speaker gets a bit flubby sounding if you play with lower tunings. B standard still works with the right guitar but it isn't really a tight bottom end when played that low. I still love this amp. I compared it side by side to the Blackstar HT club 40 at Guitar Center with my own guitar. The Marshall won hands down. It has a fatter and warmer sound to it. I always heard the Blackstar has "a more modern metal sound" to it. Well, if you want it to, the Marshall DSL40 does metal and it does it very well. I like the full/high gain channel better than the Blackstar easily. ... MoreSeriously...this amp can play whatever you want it to play. It does seem to have bass heavy sound to it. But you can turn that down if you want to. If I had any complaint, it would be that the speaker gets a bit flubby sounding if you play with lower tunings. B standard still works with the right guitar but it isn't really a tight bottom end when played that low. I still love this amp. I compared it side by side to the Blackstar HT club 40 at Guitar Center with my own guitar. The Marshall won hands down. It has a fatter and warmer sound to it. I always heard the Blackstar has "a more modern metal sound" to it. Well, if you want it to, the Marshall DSL40 does metal and it does it very well. I like the full/high gain channel better than the Blackstar easily. I'm very happy with the Marshall. It literally does everything I need it to do and it sounds amazing no matter what. The tone really is remarkable clean or dirty.

Pretty Incredible little Combo Without Mods

I was in a local music store and a DSL40C was sitting on standby, so I tried it out with a LP traditional. Within 5 minutes I was easily able to get some incredible tones and knew this amp would now be on my radar for a future purchase. I have a fairly big amp collection and am always chasing tone. Some noteworthy would be a Friedman and a Mesa Express plus. I'm one of those purists who doesn't use pedals for OD. Why buy a 2 Channel amp with distortion if you are going to run it clean with your pedal collection? So after a week I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I ordered it from MF. Considering the tone you get, features and the price point, this one is a winner. I've been playing in local original rock, alternative and progressive rock bands since the 90s and ... MoreI was in a local music store and a DSL40C was sitting on standby, so I tried it out with a LP traditional. Within 5 minutes I was easily able to get some incredible tones and knew this amp would now be on my radar for a future purchase. I have a fairly big amp collection and am always chasing tone. Some noteworthy would be a Friedman and a Mesa Express plus. I'm one of those purists who doesn't use pedals for OD. Why buy a 2 Channel amp with distortion if you are going to run it clean with your pedal collection? So after a week I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I ordered it from MF. Considering the tone you get, features and the price point, this one is a winner. I've been playing in local original rock, alternative and progressive rock bands since the 90s and own some high end amps. This one seems to be my new favorite. To set the record straight- People automatically think you need to mod or change the speaker on this. I like it stock, and have plugged it in for a night into a 212 Friedman Cab with the Creambacks everyone is hyped on. I honestly prefer the stock speaker and have no intent on modding it. I will say, the amp sounds much different when up in the air, or too close to a wall. It has awesome response on the ground and tilted up an inch or so. There are so many factors to consider such as room size, amp position, guitar, cables, pedals - all of which can change the tone. I suppose my only small complaint would be that the amazing cleans don't have the volume when cranked up. A solution is to run it on crunch and bring the gain way down. Also of note- The Reverb. I have Fender reverb amps. The verb on this amp is GREAT! How much do you need? I'm running them around 12 o clock and they add a fullness to the amp. When doing any kind of muting and such, the foot switched reverb on/off functions well. So much has already been said on this amp, but in ending, it's amazing as is and sounds great with a variety of guitars- Buy it!

Versatile, Loud, Great tone, Good price, very satisfied

I've had the amp for a few weeks now and it's been awesome!. I have a fender strat with 2 single coil Seymour Duncan pickups and a bridge humbucker with a push pull pot so I can go single coil to double. I play classic rock, alternative, punk, rockabilly, and other similar styles. The tone controls allow you to get a very wide variety of sounds to suit most styles of playing. I haven't messed around with the clean channel enough to give an accurate assessment, but the crunch and ultra gain channels are great. You can get a bright tone with a little bite to it all the way to a deep/heavy grunge distortion The pentode and triode switch is a lifesaver because this amp is loud! After I unboxed it I had to crank it up all the way to see what it could do and my ears were ... MoreI've had the amp for a few weeks now and it's been awesome!. I have a fender strat with 2 single coil Seymour Duncan pickups and a bridge humbucker with a push pull pot so I can go single coil to double. I play classic rock, alternative, punk, rockabilly, and other similar styles. The tone controls allow you to get a very wide variety of sounds to suit most styles of playing. I haven't messed around with the clean channel enough to give an accurate assessment, but the crunch and ultra gain channels are great. You can get a bright tone with a little bite to it all the way to a deep/heavy grunge distortion The pentode and triode switch is a lifesaver because this amp is loud! After I unboxed it I had to crank it up all the way to see what it could do and my ears were ringing all day. I keep it in the lower power triode position and even with the volume set between 2 and 3 it's still pretty loud but quite enough to keep neighbors and heavy sleeping roommates happy. The only thing I wish the amp had is separate tone controls for the two channels. The reverb is ok. It's not bad but not great either. But overall I love the amp and would recommend it to anyone looking into a good quality all tube amp with that awesome Marshall tone. As a closing remark I've used solid state amps and effects pedals for years and have switched over to tube amps fairly recently starting with a fender pro junior and now the DSL40. I know there's a lot of debate on tube vs solid state but now that I've started recording my music I've noticed how Solid state amps and digital effects sound a little too unnatural/synthetic so I had to make the switch to all tube. I hope this review helps anyone looking to buy a versatile tube amp at a reasonable price

Very pleased with this Amp

Always wanted the Marshall sound and found this amp at a very reasonable price point versus the JVM205 half stack which I was also looking at. Was a little concerned about the Vietnam build and quality but no issues thus far. With a little break in time the amp sounds very good, even with the stock 70/80 Celestian speaker. Many people say they switch this out for the creamback speaker but I'll leave as is for now. What surprised me was the quality of the clean channel. I've had Fender Twin and Hot Rod Deluxe amps before so can appreciate a good clean sound and the DSL40c sounds pretty good on the clean channel. The dirty or OD channel has the classic Marshall sound with two gain structures. I play a strat most of the time so I set the gain on the first OD to about 7 ... MoreAlways wanted the Marshall sound and found this amp at a very reasonable price point versus the JVM205 half stack which I was also looking at. Was a little concerned about the Vietnam build and quality but no issues thus far. With a little break in time the amp sounds very good, even with the stock 70/80 Celestian speaker. Many people say they switch this out for the creamback speaker but I'll leave as is for now. What surprised me was the quality of the clean channel. I've had Fender Twin and Hot Rod Deluxe amps before so can appreciate a good clean sound and the DSL40c sounds pretty good on the clean channel. The dirty or OD channel has the classic Marshall sound with two gain structures. I play a strat most of the time so I set the gain on the first OD to about 7 and that provides a nice chunky sound where open chords ring though nicely without too much distortion. Also use a PRS from time to time so dial the gain back to about 5 for that. The second OD provides some insane level of gain good for metal. As mentioned before no quality or reliability issues thus far....I've done three shows with it and no unusual noise, hissing, popping, etc as some others have remarked. All my effects are run through the effects loop and the amp is dead quiet. The pentode/triode switch is another great feature and I've only run the amp at 20 watts so far, mic'd up through a PA, which is plenty loud if you drive it a little. Nice to have the option to go to 40 watts for a large venue or outdoors. The only drawback thus far is the weight. It's 50 pounds and a little bulky. If you're not transporting it around much it's not really an issue. Oh, and I wish the footswitch had indicator lights for channel indication and reverb on/off.

no complaints

I've only had it for a year or so, but so far so good. I've played professionally for decades on and off and have owned and still own a lot of great amps; a 50w plexi, 80s ac30, several twin reverbs, bassmans, 4 DrZs (still have a z28), late 60s Vibrolux (still have), and late 60s Deluxw reverb (still have - forever!), Swart AST, and a Goodsell. Okay, so this is not and will never be a collectable Marshall amp, but after playing through it in the store and noting the price, I bought it on the spot. Yea yea yea the reverb sucks, but my plexi didn't have one at all and neither did my Vox AC30 and they were both great amps. I bought this because I wanted to have a Marshall sound again without straining financially and this beast delivers plenty of that. I liked it bone ... MoreI've only had it for a year or so, but so far so good. I've played professionally for decades on and off and have owned and still own a lot of great amps; a 50w plexi, 80s ac30, several twin reverbs, bassmans, 4 DrZs (still have a z28), late 60s Vibrolux (still have), and late 60s Deluxw reverb (still have - forever!), Swart AST, and a Goodsell. Okay, so this is not and will never be a collectable Marshall amp, but after playing through it in the store and noting the price, I bought it on the spot. Yea yea yea the reverb sucks, but my plexi didn't have one at all and neither did my Vox AC30 and they were both great amps. I bought this because I wanted to have a Marshall sound again without straining financially and this beast delivers plenty of that. I liked it bone stock, but it was a bit trebly for my ears being schooled by Fenders all these years, so I swapped the speaker for a Vintage 30 and did a slight mod on the gain channel and now its way better than stock IMHO. The clean channel is great, but eveybody knows that Marshall is mainly about high gain and here we have it in truckloads. I read a couple reviews that said not to get this for gigging. Why the heck not? I gigged with a Peavey Classic 30 with absolutely no problems for years and a friend of mine has gigged with one 5 nights a week for 17 years! This thing looks to be constructed every bit as good as the Peavey and the cab is sturdy ply, not mdf as some have asserted. Anyway, I'm gigging with it and my Deluxe Reverb. So there. If it blows, it blows, but I'll have fun with it! That's why I bought it.