Silver jubilee or slash 2555sl > other diode amps?

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uzeurillus1on1982

uzeurillus1on1982

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I recently did some tube swapping in my Marshall 2555sl which is basically a silver jubilee with slash’s signature slapped on it and it got me thinking….why do most Marshall purist dislike diode clipping except when it comes to the silver jubilee? I never owned a jcm900 and only briefly had a 2205 not even long enough to form an opinion
 
uzeurillus1on1982 said:
I recently did some tube swapping in my Marshall 2555sl which is basically a silver jubilee with slash’s signature slapped on it and it got me thinking….why do most Marshall purist dislike diode clipping except when it comes to the silver jubilee? I never owned a jcm900 and only briefly had a 2205 not even long enough to form an opinion
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I honestly have no clue. It's pretty stupid IMO. We all love to boost our vintage Marshalls (I do with both of my 72s) yet putting diodes in the circuit is "BAD" lol. I have had many 2205/10s, and many original 87-89 Jubilees plus a 2555x and they all sound killer with the built in diodes.

A great sounding 2205/10/Jube is just as killer as a boosted 2203/4 IMO. Just slightly different tones; compression amount.
 
Gary Holt gets great tone from a boosted Jubilee. I've wanted one for my Marshall collection for a long time.
 
Catthan said:
80s mode on Bogner Helios and Goldfinger 90 is diodes.
The Jube is a very credible amp.
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I have a Helios 100w. I love it. But, I run it on ‘70s mode. The ‘80s mode isn’t bad, it’s just too sizzly for my tastes.
 
I fucking hate diodes in an amp. Thins them out and you lose a ton of headroom that makes an amp loud. It’s not the same as boosting an amp not even close. You’re messing with the impedance curves of the tonestack with diodes placed later after preamp tubes which you’re not doing with diodes before the preamp tubes. Location of the diodes matters just as much as the types of diodes used.
 
glpg80 said:
I fucking hate diodes in an amp. Thins them out and you lose a ton of headroom that makes an amp loud. It’s not the same as boosting an amp not even close. You’re messing with the impedance curves of the tonestack with diodes placed later after preamp tubes which you’re not doing with diodes before the preamp tubes. Location of the diodes matters just as much as the types of diodes used.
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Sounds like you haven't played a Jubilee, or a 2205/10. If it's done right, they can sound killer. I've had so many stock and modded Marshalls, and compared many side by side. Sure, if you run a 2205/10 the WRONG way, it will sound thin. That's why the recommended way is to put both the gain and lead ch vol up between 7-10, they will sound as full as a 2203 and thump with the best of them. Same with a Jubilee. Lead master AND output master MUST be up above 6 for it to sound it's best; or it may sound thin.

I get it, you probably like to get all your gain from tubes and that's great. It is a different feel of course. But the only difference I've ever noticed between my 2210 straight in, vs my boosted 72s is the amount of compression. 2210 is clearly more compressed. But the feel is similar, and the 2210 is still not even close to the overly compressed plasticky 5150 series compression.
But, if one doesn't run those 2210/Jubilees with those separate gains up high enough, you'll get a thin sound for sure.
 
I don't use the diode clipping on a Jubilee, I don't like it. Not because of diodes, it just doesn't sound good to me. I prefer to crank the output master and use the lead master for volume and hit it with a boost. Way fatter to my ears.
 
napalmdeath said:
I don't use the diode clipping on a Jubilee, I don't like it. Not because of diodes, it just doesn't sound good to me. I prefer to crank the output master and use the lead master for volume and hit it with a boost. Way fatter to my ears.
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Did you physically remove the clipping diodes from the circuit, or how are you not getting diodes in the lead channel? IIRC the lead channel has always-on diodes that aren't affected by the rhythm clipping switch.
 
MusicIsLife said:
Did you physically remove the clipping diodes from the circuit, or how are you not getting diodes in the lead channel? IIRC the lead channel has always-on diodes that aren't affected by the rhythm clipping switch.
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I don't believe there's any diodes on the Lead channel if the rhythm clip is not engaged. I could be completely wrong, however.

But, I can say for sure, (from owning Jubilees), it's drastically less fizzy and grainy leaving the rhythm clip OFF on the lead channel and cranking the output master, and using the lead master for volume. It's a hair more gain than an 800, and sounds fantastic boosting with a pedal. Big and fat. That's the only way I'd use it. Basically as a single channel amp.

I'm willing to bet that's how Gary Holt uses it. There's no way he'd double-boost the Lead Channel with the rhythm clip engaged. It would sound like shit.

In fact, I hated the first one I got. But later discovered it was complete user error. I later learned how to properly use the Output/Lead Master volumes, hit it with a boost, and leave the rhythm clip OFF. Totally different experience, and a happy one.
 
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glpg80 said:
I fucking hate diodes in an amp. Thins them out and you lose a ton of headroom that makes an amp loud. It’s not the same as boosting an amp not even close. You’re messing with the impedance curves of the tonestack with diodes placed later after preamp tubes which you’re not doing with diodes before the preamp tubes. Location of the diodes matters just as much as the types of diodes used.
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I agree with most diodes in amps. The jube is different, at least from what I remember. I will play one at @RedB4Black 's house tommorow, and report back. I also think the 900 wo0uld be an awesome amp. The problem i have with both is the build style.

But i hate when an amp doesn't get loud, which is why I generally hate Jose style circuits.
 
Smashedguitaris⸸ said:
I agree with most diodes in amps. The jube is different, at least from what I remember. I will play one at @RedB4Black 's house tommorow, and report back. I also think the 900 wo0uld be an awesome amp. The problem i have with both is the build style.

But i hate when an amp doesn't get loud, which is why I generally hate Jose style circuits.
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Jose's that I've played, will thump with a Wizard. I had a 3 ch Cameron (Jose, Aldrich and Alex) 70s Marshall, and that thing absolutely crushed at volume. Sure, most Jose masters when engaged drops the vol a bit, but the overall output stays the same. The max vol with/without the Jose master is the same. Just have to turn up the Jose a bit more to get there.
 
I love it how so many of the anti diode guys play with a dirt pedal in front of their sacred all tube Marshalls. My Jube sounds outrageously good and totally hangs with my 2204 plus pedal.
 
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