Starting to hanker after a JVM....

siraxeman

Its that 4 channel versatility that is enticing me....how good are they ? Thinking the 410C...but we'll see. If I do get one i'll flog my Mesa Express - which sounds great n all but its just a 'normal' 2 channels.

capo4th

Mine loved being in the Marshall workshop

MattFGBI

If you want 4 channels of EL34 try an Engl invader 100. Used to be my number 1 when I was in a gigging metal band. 

Jetfire

Mine was awesome and only went back once.. and that was my own fault. I miss it real bad some days!

polotska

They’re okay, especially if you want a Marshall type sound—though they don’t sound as good as more classic Marshalls. The big problem I had is the how the modes are allocated to channels—all of my favorite modes were on the second channel, and it would have been preferable to have those split over two or three channels so I’d have better individual control over their gain/volume/tone settings. I also didn’t care for any of the modes on the OD2 channel.

By many accounts, the Satriani version (which adds a choke, swaps out the digital reverb in favor of noise gates, and has a number of other revoicing mods—many of which were already popular in the JVM modding community) is quite a bit better, though I haven’t tried one myself. 

In spite of @capo4th’s experience, they generally seem reliable, at least by modern Marshall standards.

On a side note, Santiago Alvarez (designer of the JVMs and many other modern Marshalls) left the company some months back.

siraxeman

yeah I did see Satch in the premier guitar rig rundown video saying the 2 OD channels are voiced identical so he can have just more or less of 'that' sound...rather than different voice'ings .

polotska

Just to add to my comments: I found the JVM frustrating and disappointing because I loved the general idea—a proper multichannel Marshall with separate gain/volume/tonestacks for each channel, which Marshall hasn’t often done (the only other Marshalls like this that comes to mind are the 30th Anniversary amps). And the idea of covering a lot of different sounds in one amp (i.e. from clean and “classic” levels of distortion to more “modern” levels of distortion) appeals to me, as well. But the two deal-breakers for me were that the JVMs sound merely good, not great, and the issue I mentioned before with the best sounds all being on the Crunch channel.

The two-channel JVMs are even more frustrating in this respect. They basically omit the clean channel and OD1, and replace the Green mode on the Crunch channel with a different clean mode than the ones on the JVM410. This is even more frustrating, as Crunch Green on the JVM410 is one of the best modes in the JVM line, and I think OD1 fits better with the other modes than OD2 (in addition to sounding more to my taste).

Grunfeld

siraxeman said:

Its that 4 channel versatility that is enticing me....how good are they ? Thinking the 410C...but we'll see. If I do get one i'll flog my Mesa Express - which sounds great n all but its just a 'normal' 2 channels.

I gigged a JVM 410h and either a 4*12 or 2*12 for 7 years.
1)  I LOVED the big array of different gain tones in this amp.  The truth is that I spent most of my time on channel 2, lol, but I could do it all if and when I needed to.

2)  A bit costly to overhall and re-valve.  But... goes with the territory of having a load of valves.

3)  Super reliable.

===
I've moved on from needing my JVM.  Different band; different material, I only need a 2 channel amp SO at some point I'm selling my JVM 410h.  It is having a pre-sale service right now so watch the classifieds or PM if interested to get in early.

andyoz

Interesting that others get stuck on Ch2....thought it was only me.  Get the JS though as worth the extra 100 quid second hand.  Actually, get the blue Rolex JS!

siraxeman

what ya reckon is a decent price guys for the JVM410 combo (option 1) and a 410 head/ 1936 2x12 cab (option 2) ?

IvisonGuitars

Listen to a few Youtube videos, it'll soon subside....!

Moltisanti

They can sound very good on YouTube especially for gainier stuff but the reality for me was that when A/B'd with a JMP the JVM sounded and felt like a toy

monquixote

I've only tried one once but I wasn't very impressed.

Ended up using pedals into the clean channel as all the gain channels were mushy murk.

ICBM

Moltisanti said:

They can sound very good on YouTube especially for gainier stuff but the reality for me was that when A/B'd with a JMP the JVM sounded and felt like a toy

Was that a standard JVM or the Satriani one?

There's a big difference. I'm not sure it's going to give you the same feel as an old JMP, but the JS version has less gain and a more open, punchy response.

timmysoft

They sound incredible but the switching lag is absolutely terrible. The jvm205 through two 1960 412s was one of the best guitar tones I've ever heard.

Drew_TNBD

The Satriani JVM is a step above the original JVM. If you're gonna get one, get one of those. The switching lag is much better and the noise gates are the best thing ever.

siraxeman

I was reading comparisons of the JVM and the Satch JVM after doing a little 'Googling'....and actually found mixed views (no surprise there then!) whilst a few said they preferred the Satch version, a few others said it was smoother and less riff friendly..? Anyway, if I get one of these amps its likely to be used and therefore a bog standard one - the Satch ones don't seem to be out there on the used market as much..plus when they do they're more expensive.

ICBM

Shameless plug - if it's a JVM combo you're after and you can find a tatty one going cheap, I have a very nice condition TSL122 combo cabinet - which I think is the same size - going spare.

siraxeman

Oddly, I sold my TSL 122 last year..or was it early this year? Anyway, regardless when I had that amp I hardly used it. I bought it for the 3 independent channels plus the fact that my other guitarist in my band always sounded decent enough with his TSL602..The 3 channels sounded decent enough but I always preferred my AC30 + Marshall DSL ran with a splitter pedal and from my pedalboard for all my sounds ie clean and dirty. This is why I'd love to try a JVM before buying if I can as I could end up getting one and find the same thing again....

ICBM

Hardly using a TSL122 is the best plan. Less opportunity for it to turn into a smoke machine like this one did...

I still find it difficult to believe anyone sounds decent through a TSL60 of any description either!

siraxeman

I kept the DSL and when A/B'd it definitely is a clear winner on the tone front. But in a band mix I don't think the TSL sounds bad. But we're a funny lot us guitarists! Iron Maiden never sounded bad to me when they used TSLs nor did a good few other bands. But you like Big Muffs...a lot do, I just sold mine...still don't see what on earth some folks see in them. But fizz/fuzz was never my thing...