DSL HELL

DSL's can sound good but it takes some working with the EQ to to get them there IME. They are fizz-bombs with a muddy low end if you EQ it like a "normal" Marshall. I have to turn the treble and bass turned way down and the mid turned way up to get decent tones out of them but once you get them dialed they are pretty decent sounding amps for the money.
 
gball said:
DSL's can sound good but it takes some working with the EQ to to get them there IME. They are fizz-bombs with a muddy low end if you EQ it like a "normal" Marshall. I have to turn the treble and bass turned way down and the mid turned way up to get decent tones out of them but once you get them dialed they are pretty decent sounding amps for the money.
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And we have some DSL players in here. If I remember. Mitch, Robert, BFT, and a few others. I have 0 experience.
 
chilipeppermaniac said:
And we have some DSL players in here. If I remember. Mitch, Robert, BFT, and a few others. I have 0 experience.
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I use the precursor to this: the JCM2000 DSL, what exactly are you after @67plexi ? I can give a few pointers on the strong and weak points as far as settings go with this amp, but admittedly, the DSL15C is a little different circuit than the JCM2000 but the core amp is the same
 
It's a customer amp and does not care for it ether. I'm servicing his amp collection he said got the DSL-15 to tide him over until his other amps
were shipped.
As far as amps I build my own and have a descent collection of vintage ones.

If I was to buy a new amp it would be from my friend Pierangelo Mezzabarba in Italy best amp builder in the world.
If you fast forward this video to 16:17 clean work and the best components and Onori transformers.

 
67plexi said:
It's a customer amp and does not care for it ether. I'm servicing his amp collection he said got the DSL-15 to tide him over until his other amps
were shipped.
As far as amps I build my own and have a descent collection of vintage ones.

If I was to buy a new amp it would be from my friend Pierangelo Mezzabarba in Italy best amp builder in the world.
If you fast forward this video to 16:17 clean work and the best components and Onori transformers.

Click to expand...
Mezzabarba are really cool amps, kind of a Soldano-esque sound quality on steroids. Very very expensive like Soldanos as well but great amps.

The big difference I see in the DSL15C vs something like the DSL40C, DSL100H/HR and even the JCM2000 DSLs is #1 they are using 6V6 tubes vs the standard EL34s and #2 a BIG difference is they lack the clean/crunch switch on Classic Gain. This is, in my opinion, the secret to making the DSLs have that classic Marshall gain crunch like a pushed Plexi or a JMP 2203. Lots of people who dont like the ultra hi gain sound will often not like the DSLs Ultra Gain OD1 and certainly not the OD2 sections, but DO love the Crunch section of the Classic Gain channel. This unfortunately doesn't have that option to begin with, so it seems like they are sort of melding the clean and crunch section together which is going to rob you of the clean and deprive you of the Crunch: an unfortunate compromise really.

The newer DSLs vs the JCM2000 added the Resonance feature which is pretty neat in my opinion. But one thing I've noticed in all of them, is the Tone shift switch is basically a Mid Scoop and unless you crank your mids beyond 6-10, it basically cuts them out entirely and thus losses that famous Marshall mid sound. Another thing is the Deep switch: often its either WAY too much low end when engaged or too bright when not. This is where tweaking the settings is a MUST. I personally kick mine out and raise the Bass to 10 and it balances quite well, but the added Resonance feature probably helps this problem seen in the older JCM2000s. Ive even seen where guys took the switch out and had a pot used in its place to adjust it.
 
chilipeppermaniac said:
And we have some DSL players in here. If I remember. Mitch, Robert, BFT, and a few others. I have 0 experience.
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Once I started using the ECC823 in V1, EC83MG in V2, 12AT7 in V3 and 5751 in V4, the amp really performed well...I had zero complaints. The only reason I switched away from the DSL40C was to get a lighter head/cabinet arrangement.
 
67plexi said:
It's a customer amp and does not care for it ether. I'm servicing his amp collection he said got the DSL-15 to tide him over until his other amps
were shipped.
As far as amps I build my own and have a descent collection of vintage ones.

If I was to buy a new amp it would be from my friend Pierangelo Mezzabarba in Italy best amp builder in the world.
If you fast forward this video to 16:17 clean work and the best components and Onori transformers.

Click to expand...

Cool amp, but terrible way to demo it (with a backing track). Could be any high-gain amp barely sitting in front of those (decidedly mediocre) backing tracks. I just wanted to hear the amp.
 
TBTH (everyone's ear is different) Ive had a few DSLs move in and out of the swamp....none "stuck" never could put my finger on it......just never got it "right"
.. to my humble tonal enjoyment the Origin and the Valvestate 8020 and Master Lead 12 mosfett sound more "traditional Marshall" ......
dsl is a good Modern Marshall tone IMHO
 
Jethro Rocker said:
Exactly what @Clockworkmike says. That particular model is missing Crunch mode and OD1 mode. It just does extremes. A DSL with all the modes and an OD covers an awful lot of ground. Apparently the new HR Series sounds even better still.
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Absolutely! They are one of the most versatile amps ive ever seen honestly. In fairness ( and i say this as a fellow owner and user), they dont master any one channel setting perfectly as some amps can but what they can do, is like you said, cover all the ground beautifully well. You cant make it a perfect 2203 in crunch or a crystal plexi in clean or even get on par with a lot of other modern ultra gain amps like a Bogner, ENGL or Diezel. But unlike all those aforementioned amps being pigeonholed: it can cover the basics of all of those territories and that makes it highly respectable in my opinion
 
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