Marshall Origin 20

mark_jwedge · June 2018

Had my first up close encounter with the Marshall Origin amps yesterday. I did see them at the Birmingham guitar show but it was during the designated quiet bit so couldn’t get to hear it.

The other guitarist in a band I play in brought the 20 head to a gig last night and I was really impressed. Now a slight disclaimer is that I didn’t actually play it but I thought it sounded great. I love the 4 input Marshall sound and am very lucky to have a 50w Top Hat Emplexador head which I used last night and you could definitely tell the two amps were from the same tonal family so to speak.

He used it with a Les Paul into a Road Kill 2x12 with V30s. It was certainly not a high gain amp (but neither were the amps it’s inspired by. I guess that’s what the Jubilee/JVM/DSL ranges are for) but at gig volumes it had a great classic breakup sound that he then used with a Klone, KoKo boost and OCD for different levels of dirt as needed. Then had a Boss MS3 hooked up in 4cm for switching and modulation effects and it took all the pedals superbly.

It was plenty loud for an unmiced gig through that cab/speakers with maybe 70 or so people in the pub. He actually started the gig on one of the reduced power options but switched to full power during the first song for more headroom rather than because he needed more volume.

The sound was clear, bold and punchy and sat very auidibly in the mix.

The bass player used in ears and we used the line out on the head to feed that and it worked great.

No idea what it is like at home/lower volumes but in a band gig setting it worked really well and seems a great compact gigging head as it’s quite small. Pretty much the same size as a Suhr Badger 30 head. Overall very impressed. Will see if I can have a play through it at rehearsal

Ddigger · June 2018

Thanks for posting that - it would be good to hear from someone who has played one loud.

photek · June 2018

I had the head for a couple of weeks, the core sound of it was great but it is really a low gain amp, I couldn't get much more than a light breakup out of it (using a 2x12 cab with greenbacks) without it being too loud in my band mix. For blues, country or people that use pedals for drive it is a great option as it is light, quiet (in terms of background noise) and seemed nicely built. if you expect the gain levels that Marshall show in their demo videos then you need to have the thing set at near maximum volume at which point you wont hear your drummer (maybe not a bad thing haha).

Creed_Clicks · July 2018

Sounds interesting. I've been looking for a 1 channel 20 watt, and this could be an option. Is it heavy does one know?

photek · July 2018

@Creed_Clicks The 20w head isn't heavy at all, lighter than my Jubilee Mini head.

Creed_Clicks · July 2018

Is it wider than your average 1x12 cab? I know that's a silly reason not to buy an amp, but does it look like a "T" when it's sat on top of a 1x12? Can't really find any vids or pics online to show.
I'm narrowing it down to one of these, a Jet City 20hv or a Laney Cub 15 head. My guess is the Marshall is the better of the 3... It looks the best so far!

riffpowers · July 2018

Creed_Clicks said:

Is it wider than your average 1x12 cab? I know that's a silly reason not to buy an amp, but does it look like a "T" when it's sat on top of a 1x12? Can't really find any vids or pics online to show.
I'm narrowing it down to one of these, a Jet City 20hv or a Laney Cub 15 head. My guess is the Marshall is the better of the 3... It looks the best so far!

I'm having similar thoughts to you.

riffpowers · July 2018

If I stick a ts9 in front fo it would i get anywhere close to early 80's rock/metal type sounds??

TTBZ · July 2018

It fits on a 1912 quite nicely I think, it's like a small box plexi kinda size. With a TS9 or SD1 in front you might get close but only with the master quite high as it gets a lot of its gain from the power amp. Best bet is to take your board to a shop that'll let you crank it up through some greenbacks to get the best out of it

Creed_Clicks · July 2018

Wonder how it would take a big muff!

Parker · July 2018

I’ve played two now. I find them very warm and middley. Would probably have loved them a few years ago, but now very uninspiring

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Marshall Origin 20

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