Marshall head

such a reliance on PCB layout, internal
wiring is minimal but what there is has
been neatly routed. One benefi t of this
type of construction is built-in
consistency – gone are the days when
you could tweak a Marshall just by
repositioning a few wires inside the
chassis. However, this construction
means the fi ve ECC83 preamp valves
are deeply recessed and will be tricky
to replace in a hurry.
The reason for such a densely
populated control panel is that the JVM
is a proper four-channel design, with
four sets of gain, volume and tone
controls for each channel.
Furthermore, each channel has a mode
switch that offers three distinct voices
with varying amounts of gain, giving no
less than 12 preset sounds to play with.
There is a digital reverb with a level
control for each channel, two
switchable global master volume
controls and presence and resonance
controls to fi ne-tune the power amp’s
high and low frequency response.
Moving to the rear panel, there are
no less than fi ve speaker outlets, two
effects loops (one series, one parallel),
a balanced speaker-emulated line out,
which works in conjunction with the
front-panel standby switch to offer a
silent recording mode, a footswitch
jack for the included six-button stage
board and a pair of MIDI sockets. Yes,
the JVM is MIDI compatible so any
MIDI effects unit can track program
changes, or send program changes to
the JVM. But that’s not all. The non-
MIDI stage board is also programmable
– you can use it to either duplicate any
of the front panel switches or recall
entire channel presets. Every time you
change a function the amp remembers
this setting so, for example, if you
select the crunch channel in red mode
with reverb and the switchable master
volume engaged, that’s what you’ll get
the next time you return to that
channel. Marshall has deliberately left
each footswitch button with a blank
label, so you can work out your ideal
set-up and then write the various
functions on it yourself. Furthermore,
this board isn’t connected using an
expensive multicore cable; any two-
conductor lead up to almost any length
will do the job. It’s a very clever and
logical switching design, making what
seems at fi rst glance an intimidating
amp child’s play to operate.
SOUNDS: However, massive fl exibility
and clever switching tricks aren’t
enough. Do those four tri-mode
channels cut the proverbial mustard?
Holy rock ’n’ roll, yes they do!
The clean channel is one of the best
you’ll fi nd on any guitar amp, let alone
a Marshall. In green mode, this
channel’s volume control is bypassed,
so the gain takes over as a single
volume control, giving you a very
pleasant, high-headroom clean sound
that can be either fat and juicy or
crystalline, depending on how you set
the EQ. Switch to orange or red modes,
and the gain stages are added post-EQ,
which is unusual for a Marshall, giving
a wide range of highly interactive mild
break-up effects.
The crunch channel takes you from
JTM45 or ‘Plexi’ tonality into JCM800
MARSHALL JVM410H HEAD £899
GUITAR AMPS GUITARIST INTERACTIVE
120 JANUARY 2007
Marshall is back with a new
fl agship that delivers on
every promise. Its versatility
is up there with the best and
so are the tones
JVM410H HEAD TEST RESULTS
Build quality
Features
Sound
Value for money
■ WE LIKED Huge versatility linked to a
switching system that’s as easy as pie;
superb tone; excellent low-noise
performance
■ WE DISLIKED The PCB-mounted
preamp valves are deeply recessed, making
them fi ddly to replace
The speaker-
emulated line
out offers a silent
recording mode
MARSHALL
JVM410H HEAD
PRICE: £899
ORIGIN: UK
TYPE: All-valve four-
channel head with solid-
state rectifi cation
OUTPUT: 100W RMS
VALVES: Five ECC83/
12AX7 preamp, Four
EL34 power amp
DIMENSIONS: 260 (h)
x 700 (w) x 225mm (d)
WEIGHT (kg/lb): 21/44
CABINET: Birch ply
CHANNELS: Four, each
with three voicing modes
FOOTSWITCH: Six-
button stageboard
included, can be user-
programmed to suit
requirements
CONTROLS: Gain, bass,
mid, treble, volume and
mode switch x 4, reverb
level x 4, master volume
x 2, presence and
resonance
ADDITIONAL
FEATURES: MIDI in/thru
sockets, series effects
loop with bypass, parallel
effects loop with
instrument/line level
switch and mix controls,
balanced speaker-
emulated line out
operates in standby
mode for silent recording,
digital reverb
OPTIONS: Also available
in 2 x 12 combo format as
the JVM410C for £1,155,
1960A/B 4 x 12 cabinets,
£460
Marshall Amplifi cation
01908 375411
www.marshallamps.com
GIT285.rev_marshall 120 4/12/06 11:25:25