Anyone use a Marshall Major?

dc10bass · January 26, 2010, 01:55:50 PM

Group...

Has anyone, at any point, used or are using a Marshall Major tube head?
I understand they can be somewhat temperamental and like to eat tubes, but am curious if they sound that good.
Anyone know if someone produces a decent replica of this head?
I know Jack Bruce used them for a short time during the last year of CREAM.

Psycho Bass Guy · January 26, 2010, 05:21:27 PM

Majors are nice amps, not really so tempermental as they are just removed from the abilities of the average hobbyist "tech." They run their tubes in ultralinear configuration, which means that the negative feedback loop must be carefully tuned and their output tubes MUST have very tough screen grids. Basically, they're a Marshall preamp stuck in front of a psuedo-hifi power section for the guitar/lead model and a PA/bass version, but they're not really all that different. The sound is very mid-focused. On the scale of relativity, with the Fender Showman being the "deepest," followed by the Sunn 2000S with round lows and more punch, leading to the Ampeg SVT being punchier still and low-mid focused, the Major is the most "brash" with more upper mids and less bottom and not much punch.

There's nothing out there like them, but there was also plenty of room to improve the design. Marshall themselves tried with the very limited runs of JMC800 2001 and 2000 amps in the early 80's, with the 2001 being called the "Bass Major" and the 2000 was called just an ungodly overpowered guitar amp.

I have a 4x15 slant-front cab that was part of the 2001 bass cabinet series. It looks like an oversized 4x12 and uses four Gauss 15" speakers, but is ported. There is a straight-front 4x15 that was meant to be the bottom of the "stack," with the cab I have being on top of it, but I've never encountered that model.

FWIW, if you want Jack Bruce's Cream tone, just get an EB-0 and blow up the tone cap in it, no kidding. I played a 63 EB-0 with a blown cap and it sounded like Jack Bruce in EVERY amp I played it through, and all of them were s/s, mostly cheapie practice models. The distortion came from the bass; I've never heard any amp, including a Major, replicate that sound, even with equally old EB-0's that were intact.

dc10bass · January 26, 2010, 05:39:02 PM

Quote from: Psycho Bass Guy on January 26, 2010, 05:21:27 PM
Majors are nice amps, not really so tempermental as they are just removed from the abilities of the average hobbyist "tech." They run their tubes in ultralinear configuration, which means that the negative feedback loop must be carefully tuned and their output tubes MUST have very tough screen grids. Basically, they're a Marshall preamp stuck in front of a psuedo-hifi power section for the guitar/lead model and a PA/bass version, but they're not really all that different. The sound is very mid-focused. On the scale of relativity, with the Fender Showman being the "deepest," followed by the Sunn 2000S with round lows and more punch, leading to the Ampeg SVT being punchier still and low-mid focused, the Major is the most "brash" with more upper mids and less bottom and not much punch.

There's nothing out there like them, but there was also plenty of room to improve the design. Marshall themselves tried with the very limited runs of JMC800 2001 and 2000 amps in the early 80's, with the 2001 being called the "Bass Major" and the 2000 was called just an ungodly overpowered guitar amp.

I have a 4x15 slant-front cab that was part of the 2001 bass cabinet series. It looks like an oversized 4x12 and uses four Gauss 15" speakers, but is ported. There is a straight-front 4x15 that was meant to be the bottom of the "stack," with the cab I have being on top of it, but I've never encountered that model.

FWIW, if you want Jack Bruce's Cream tone, just get an EB-0 and blow up the tone cap in it, no kidding. I played a 63 EB-0 with a blown cap and it sounded like Jack Bruce in EVERY amp I played it through, and all of them were s/s, mostly cheapie practice models. The distortion came from the bass; I've never heard any amp, including a Major, replicate that sound, even with equally old EB-0's that were intact.

Wow... One of the most well written descriptions about an amp I've read in a long time... Thanks!!!
I have a 1962 EB-3, so I'm set with the bass. The pickups are stock but the pots and wire harness are new. I'll have to look into modding that setup.
I had always read that he got that "bumble-bee" sound in the later CREAM years from a modified diode. Also, if you look at some video from the Revolution Club where he is playing his early 60's EB-3 with the toggle switch in place of the varitone switch, the switch is down... he is only using the bridge pickup.

sniper · January 26, 2010, 05:39:12 PM

Quote from: Psycho Bass Guy on January 26, 2010, 05:21:27 PM
FWIW, if you want Jack Bruce's Cream tone, just get an EB-0 and blow up the tone cap in it, no kidding. I played a 63 EB-0 with a blown cap and it sounded like Jack Bruce in EVERY amp I played it through, and all of them were s/s, mostly cheapie practice models. The distortion came from the bass; I've never heard any amp, including a Major, replicate that sound, even with equally old EB-0's that were intact.

would this be like "removing" the tone cap altogether?

godofthunder · January 26, 2010, 05:56:10 PM

I have have been using a Marshall Major in my rig since '83. My main amp really............................the Hiwatts are taking over now but I love having it there. It has been VERY reliable over the years. My tech added a fan to keep it cool and I can blend the two channels also a master volume added..........................ALL revresable. I love mine and would never sell it. It's not for everyone but I bet you would like it. Two songs Don't and Freedom recorded with the Major and My '69 Tbird http://www.myspace.com/johnnysmokerocks

dc10bass · January 26, 2010, 06:46:04 PM

Quote from: godofthunder on January 26, 2010, 05:56:10 PM
I have have been using a Marshall Major in my rig since '83. My main amp really............................the Hiwatts are taking over now but I love having it there. It has been VERY reliable over the years. My tech added a fan to keep it cool and I can blend the two channels also a master volume added..........................ALL revresable. I love mine and would never sell it. It's not for everyone but I bet you would like it. Two songs Don't and Freedom recorded with the Major and My '69 Tbird http://www.myspace.com/johnnysmokerocks

You know... funny thing is that I saw this picture of your rig on another post today and wondered if it was a Major.
So for the record... Majors don't sound like a Marshall 1959 100 watt Plexi but at 200 watts of power... totally another beast?

godofthunder · January 26, 2010, 07:19:58 PM

Similar but not exactly alike. Years ago I had a 100w bass and I loved it gave me a sound none of my peers had at the time, well any how the sound I had I my head (think Live at Leads here)I also got so much crap from sound men that I sold it off for a GK 800RB.................................... that lasted about three months and I could not take the GK any longer. I went to the House of Guitars (Rochester NY) worked there on and off for years and went looking for a Marshall head, no 100w bass amps but they had the Major, I paid $400 for it in '83. Great amp you will not be sorry, it will do Entwistle just fine.

dc10bass · January 26, 2010, 08:12:10 PM

...Now has anyone ever compared a Traynor YBA-3A 200 watt head to the Marshall Major?
If I am correct, I thought I read that the Traynor YBA-3A head was the first 200 watt tube head.

I once had a Traynor YBA-3 (130 Watts Sine Wave @ 4 Ohms), but sold it years ago...
...at the time I had too much gear I wasn't using and something had to go.

Psycho Bass Guy · January 26, 2010, 09:08:38 PM

Quote from: sniper dog on January 26, 2010, 05:39:12 PM
would this be like "removing" the tone cap altogether?

No, but without measuring it, my guess is that the busted cap still had near its proper capacitance value, because it still worked somewhat as a tone rolloff, but at a drastically reduced voltage capability, so that the massive pickup easily overloaded it.

Psycho Bass Guy · January 26, 2010, 09:20:53 PM

Quote from: dc10bass on January 26, 2010, 08:12:10 PM
...Now has anyone ever compared a Traynor YBA-3A 200 watt head to the Marshall Major?
If I am correct, I thought I read that the Traynor YBA-3A head was the first 200 watt tube head.

Apples and oranges: the YBA-3A uses a quartet of 6KG6 tubes which have exceptional peak current capabilities. They're normally used for horizontal deflection in televisions. In stock form, it's not unreasonable to expect 300 watts out of a Super Custom Special, and it is a very boomy, but articulate sounding amp, like crossing the lows of a Fender with a really bright s/s amp. There's nowhere near as much midrange emphasis as a Major and the Major also pre-dated the YBA-3A by two years.

godofthunder · January 27, 2010, 05:50:47 AM

I am no techie but the Traynor has more umph and low end than a Major could even dream of. I always paired the Major with a cleaner amp like a SVT I would mike the Marshall, DI the bass and let the SVT fill out the stage. In effect I use the Major as a big distortion box.