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Marshall 6100LM Opinions and Experiences


chriscnb

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I may have the opportunity to trade my Tremoverb for a 6100LM. First, is this an even trade? I don't know the going rate for these and there was only 1 black one that ended ridiculously low on eBay.

 

The 6100 is a Marshall I have no experience with, much less have even seen in person. I've owned most of the modern Marshalls (2204, 2205, 900mkiii 2500, 4100, DSL50, 2266, 2466, JVM) so I'm pretty familiar with them. What are these closest to?

 

Anyone have any good clips?

 

Overall impressions? Reliability?

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The last few times I've priced out black tolex 6100s, they always seem to be around $750.

Their owners always claim that they're worth $1200, but I've yet to see evidence to back it up.

 

 

It's actually a blue tolex with white logo. Are the LM's loaded w/ 6L6s?

 

Should I be asking for a little cash on top?

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probably the first, the best and the last modern Marshall that was ever made. Great cleans, solid crunch. Takes mods very well.

 

Some people complained about their reliability, but we've bought/repaired a dozen. Nothing much different from a regular marshall, except they're a bitch to service.

 

Hear it before you buy though, some revisions (?) did not sound good "out of the box". I think Marshall did a lot of experimenting with these amps. the 6L6 version sounded surprisingly good (this comes from a EL34 guy :) )

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In europe they pop up for real cheap. But, if the midi chip goes and you can't find one (and it is not so easy as it is seems to be a marshall thing exclusive or whatever so even ebay doesn't help and marshall doesn't make it anymore) you have a brick PS3, sorry marshall.

 

There are ways to improve the reliability but I have not read for one that will protect the midi chip if a tube blows (which has caused some of these phenomena).

 

Other than that I wish more amps had some of the features of the power amp of the 6100: pentode, triode modes, half power mode and best of all it remembers the damping (or pressence/ressonance switch) for the clean and distortion channels, you can now have a loose clean sound that fills the room better and switch and have a nice tight tracking rythm sound which in most amps (bar the peavey 6505+ or the mesa mark IV/V and brunetti XL-R evo) is not a possibility because the pressence ressonance pots are global. Hell, even modellers with power amps can't do that!!!

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Just found out its been retolexed. Should I be asking for cash now? I believe its really a black one.

 

 

In europe they pop up for real cheap. But, if the midi chip goes and you can't find one (and it is not so easy as it is seems to be a marshall thing exclusive or whatever so even ebay doesn't help and marshall doesn't make it anymore) you have a brick PS3, sorry marshall.


There are ways to improve the reliability but I have not read for one that will protect the midi chip if a tube blows (which has caused some of these phenomena).


Other than that I wish more amps had some of the features of the power amp of the 6100: pentode, triode modes, half power mode and best of all it remembers the damping (or pressence/ressonance switch) for the clean and distortion channels, you can now have a loose clean sound that fills the room better and switch and have a nice tight tracking rythm sound which in most amps (bar the peavey 6505+ or the mesa mark IV/V and brunetti XL-R evo) is not a possibility because the pressence ressonance pots are global. Hell, even modellers with power amps can't do that!!!

 

 

what does the MIDI chip do? If it goes will it affect anything if I don't use the Midi features?

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I have one (6101 combo version) and it is a fair amp, but imo not a "marshall tone" monster.

Probably good for a gigging player who needs three separate tones (dull cleans though), but not the one you'd mic up for classic Marshall tone in the studio. (However, the speaker emulating recording out is actually quite good for late night sessions).

 

It will never become one of the "classic Marshalls", but is useable enough that i bought another one some years after i traded my first 6101 for a "Slash" Halfstack.

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  • 4 years later...
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This is an old thread, but it's an opinion thread, so I may as well post here.

 

I purchased a '96 Marshall 6100LM (5881/6L6 model) back in 2010. It is one of the most reliable, phenomenal sounding Marshall's I've ever played thorugh. No problems, whatsoever. I've heard stories about the earlier models, but I believe Marshall addressed whatever issues were reported by '96. I believe failures were/are restricted to the combo version, EL34's running too hot, and abuse. You may have seen some of the '92 combo models with a melted badge at the bottom corner... Heat retention being the obvious culprit.

 

One of my other Marshall's is an '87 Silver Jubilee 2550. I've owned many Marshall amplifier since 1978. If I were to keep only two, it would be the 6100LM and the Silver Jubilee. I love my 2204 as well, but it doesn't have the added features of the SJ and 30th Anniversary 6100LM. The "feature" of the Silver Jubilee is its lower-mid voicing.

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