Marshall DSL 50 vs DSL 20 (demo/comparison)

Timecodes:
00:20 DSL50 Clean Strat full band
00:54 DSL50 Crunch Humbucker full band
01:29 DSL50 80s Hair Metal/Rock full band
02:17 DSL50 High Gain Modern Rock/Metal full band
03:01 DSL20HR Clean Strat full band
03:35 DSL20HR Crunch Humbucker full band
04:10 DSL20HR 80s Hair Metal/Rock full band
04:58 DSL20HR High Gain Modern Rock/Metal full band

05:43 DSL50 Clean Strat isolated
06:17 DSL50 Crunch Humbucker isolated
06:52 DSL50 80s Hair Metal/Rock isolated
07:40 DSL50 High Gain Modern Rock/Metal isolated
08:24 DSL20HR Clean Strat isolated
08:58 DSL20HR Crunch Humbucker isolated
09:32 DSL20HR 80s Hair Metal/Rock isolated
10:19 DSL20HR High Gain Modern Rock/Metal isolated

11:02 Isolated A/B back to back Clean Strat
11:37 Isolated A/B back to back Crunch Humbucker
12:11 Isolated A/B back to back 80s Hair Metal/Rock
12:59 Isolated A/B back to back High Gain Modern Rock/Metal

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The signal flow was as follows:
-Guitars
-Fractal Audio Axe Fx III (for recording the DI's)
-Marshall amps
-Fractal Audio LB-2 Loadbox
-Fractal Audio Axe Fx III (for IR loading and noise gate)
-OwnHammer Impulse Responses from the OH 412 MRBW GNR M25 MMMC
-Steven Slate Drums
-Cubase 10 pro

Thanks!

[jcwm]

Came for the comparison, stayed for the playing. Awesome!

[TheOtherJohnBrowne]

I think the JCM 2000 DSL is one of the most underrated amps of all times. The cleans and crunches are great and put a boost infront of it on lead 1 and it just wants to murder things. I love that amp so much. I think the DSL 20 HR holds its own pretty well. Tubes play a role here too.
I picked up a DSL 100H for cheap a while back, just to see if it could hold a candle to my JCM 2000 DSL 100. With its stock tubes it got crushed but with the same tubes as in the JCM they are really damn close.
Great bang for the buck amps. Killer playing as usual. Thanks!

[tonedriverss]

Best demos, best riffage ! DSL's my favorite all time amp . Had DSL50, and a couple 100's .... after this vid, I am going to hunt for a DSL20 or 40 ! Love your channel, bro .

[LoreAccurateHusky]

I just want to say that this video is the reason I've owned a DSL 50 for the past year and a half.

Honestly it's now my favorite ever Marshall amp and I couldn't be happier owning one.

I was originally looking at the DSL 15 since they went for super cheap but then I saw the DSL 20 had proper el34's and ecc83's. I was going to go with the 20 until I saw how compressed that 20 sounds against the 50. I heard that higher headroom openess on the 50 and I was immediately dead set on buying one. It was hard to find but when I got it, I loved it. It's got that Marshall sound but with so much gain on the red channel and that green channel is so glassy and thick, the best clean I've ever heard.

[LuxTheSlav]

The 50 has that tiny bit more sparkle on the top that gives notes much better definition under heavy gain (which is the only part I'm personally interested in). It's not a mahoosive difference, but the 20 definitely sounds more muffled in the A/B test. I'm usually reluctant to call it as straight-forward as this, as I know biases and preconceptions play such a large role, but this was crystal clear, to me anyway.
Fantastic channel, by the way. True gold mine for us tone freaks.

[ianlarson]

So. Here's the thing? I just bought and tested the SV20H! An incredible amp for sure! All plexi all the the 20 watts and more! I!!! I really couldn't ask for more considering I had a 1959 100 watt not hand wired plexi! Turning it up meant blowing the widows out of my house!! I loved this amp and always was astonished buy its tone! Way too loud! However? Here's the crux? I also have a JCM 2000 50 watt in a head to head comparison with the 20 watt 1299.99 before tax English made SV20H? Sounds the same as the the DSL 50 watt! The 50 watt version is less than 700.00? English made. If you just run it dry it sounds exactly like a plexi!

[coreyyoung]

I really love the comparison videos you do. They're so incredibly useful, especially with the A/B and switching between stuff with the timecodes quickly. I have been waiting for a comparison like this a while, thank you. I would love to hear the DSL20 against some of the Orange lunchbox heads and the 6505MH at some point.

[BrokenCompassRecords]

You did it!!! Thanks man you're awesome. I'll go with the dsl 20 for now

[stcenturymetal]

Love my DSL 20 added a OD-200 get all the tones I could ever need. Awesome video and playing.

[annhel]

for crunch and the hair metal i preferred the 50, for everything else i feel like the 20 sounded way better.

[chrismonaut]

I love that you used the Greenback IRs! I tried a DSL100 through a Standard 1960 with T75s when it was brand new and was quite underwhelmed... two years later I tried the DSL50 with an 1960AX loaded with greenbacks and I loved it. Was a big lesson for me as a kid how much the combination of head and cab matters. (and as far as marshalls go I tend to prefer the 50 watts over their 100 watt counterparts for whatever reason)
Thanks for all the great videos Jon, really enjoy them a lot!

[mikehumphrey]

I think you just sold the rest of the Marshall DSL 20s they ever had in stock ever.
Thanks a lot buddy you're the reason why I can't find one lol.

[adamwatson]

Channel A crunch mode on the DSl 50 is absolutely pristine low Gain classic Marshall.

[ianlarson]

I remember buying a British made Dsl 2000 50 watt not to long ago for about 500.00. On a whim, and still own and still enjoy! Everybody was downplaying this amp for a long time! I was as well. However not anymore. Remember, all new Marshall amps get a lot of crap until they don't! and then there unobtainable. The hundred watt version is everywhere currently. Not the fifty watt!! I think the twenty watt will far as well.

[acerob]

Great comparison on some if my favorite amps ever. I got an Origin 20H and a DSL40CR in my garage. Since I prefer the head with cabinet I was thinking to sell the 40cr and get one of theese two. I would go with the 20 since I gig only in small clubs and very rarely I have to bring my amp because the club already has all the equipmenst... but I don't know.. the DSL50 is more iconic to me, but maybe is too loud for my needs

[luizalbertokoehler]

For my use I would say that the DSL50 sounds the same 0:20 (clean) and 0:55 (crunch) as the DSL20HR 3:02 (clean) and 3:36 (crunch)

[SimonMedia]

On my cheap headphones it sounds the same :) I have DSL20 :) and I love the sound :) very aggresive yet pleasant to listen - It could be dialed in even or some oldschool death metal :)

[KM-]

I've had both and gigged both. This great comparison video highlights my experiences exactly. The 50 has balls, the 20 hasn't.

[Bcwilderness]

perf balance in the mix with the 20, put a single recto over that and boom, best tone vids on the tube as usual, a pleasure to hear, cheers bud

[jasonsapp]

Just picked up a DSL 20 HR and am VERY HaPpY with it! Have owned a Runt 20 now for about 8months and the whole time have been running it with an Eq pedal in the loop....just not aggressive enough....this DSL 20 does it and more, plus the reverb ...wish I had bought the DSL 20 first