it's rather simple actually. When I joined M back in 2005 they already that a plan to upgrade the TSL and make it the new flagship. The starting point I was given to "take a TSL and add a 4th channel with more gain", so pretty much I took a TSL, put it on a shelf as reference and got a JCM800 2203 as starting point. Then everything snowballed from there, since the circuitry I was working on was quite flexible the three-modes-per-channel idea and the 1 wire controller came by themselves. Initially it was just 4 channels and there were always issues with the multipin connector for footcontrollers...
It is always easy to think that I should have done this and that but the JVM is about 16 years old already... I guess the main change I'd have done is to add the noise gate that I designed for the Kerry King amp (and that now everyone uses in the gate pedals
) and that was developed just after the JVM was approved for production. The parallel loop is also anachronic nowadays, it made sense in 2000 but it is outdated, it is not necessary anymore and many users don't understand it.
Plans?, I don't work there anymore... lips sealed!
I always found the DSL a bit boomy/loose on the lower and scooped or perhaps fizzy. I understand that it records quite nicely and for some rock music is very good but it was just not my thing (apart then being an engineer it always bothered me the mess of wires inside...)
Actually the DSL has 1 more gain stage than the JVM but I'd say the JVM is tighter, heavier than a DSL
I guess that'd change every week, no, every day
but probably I'd end settling in single channel, master volume but with some sort of power amp attenuator so you can use the master to control the power amp distortion, high gain, 3 or 4 stages and most likely with a simple booster and gate, FX loop and probably EL34s
Hi Leon, looking forward to that demo, hopefully with a Sony V77 haha. It is actually a completely different amp to the DSL, there may be some similarities like the tone controls and cathode follower but I haven't used any DSL circuitry in the JVM, not even the transformers, we went back to JCM800 magnetics.
I did not have any single issue working with Yngwie, actually it was real fun and I just wish we had worked in more projects. I guess we came along quite well and there has been mutual respect in both directions from day one. Even I was so intimidated when meeting him first time, you know, he is one of my ever-favorite players, but he was also sooooo excited to talk to a Marshall engineer
He came to us with a clear idea of what he wanted and the whole process was very smooth. As said, I just wish there were more together
They are pretty much the same amp. The only difference is the JVM2 clean green which is designed specifically for that amp as the JVM4 has a different clean channel that can't be easily integrated in the 2-channel version. Other than that, I think JVM2 CH1 orange and red are JVM4 CH2 orange and red, JVM2 OD channel is JVM OD2. The main pcb is actually the same in all the amps with different firmware and number of tubes of course.
thanks! I actually don't know myself. I think I was already out of M when the HJS was discontinued and, just speculating, probably the numbers were low when compared to the standard JVM and someone thought it didn't make sense to endorse him anymore? Personally, I think it was a mistake but hey, there you go. In any case, those sorts of commercial decisions were always taken without R&D input, it is not that some parts were obsolete and difficult to find in numbers.
sometimes people ask me to do some experiments/mods but the main problem is that I'm based in Hong Kong, just thinking of shipment costs will make you think twice about that idea... as said, I've done some work for some artists and other players but there is the logistics and sometimes my own available time issues. Thank you so much for the proposal, as said I'm open but it may not make any sense...
