Marshall Lead 12
Posted: Fri Jul 08, 2022 10:25 am
I found this Marshall Lead 12 of 1985 vintage back in May in a pawn shop. These little solid state amps are legendary, not least of all because Billy Gibbons famously recorded with one. I tested it, and other than the pots being scratchy it seemed to work fine.
When I got it home and cranked it the thing sounded awesome . . . for about ten minutes. Then it began having an intermittent problem. I turned if off, restarted it, played for a little while, then the same thing again. It eventually ceased to do anything other than hum when I powered it up. I opened it up, looked up some stuff online, poked around with a wooden chopstick, scratched my head a bit, and very soon came to the conclusion that this was over my pay grade.
That's when I reached out to @andrewsrea. I don't know much about amp repair, but fortunately he does . . . and I do mean whole lot. Those of you who have read his posts will know that the guy is like a living encyclopedia of amp knowledge. Andrew told me to send the amp to him, which I did, and when I got it back is was like it was fresh from the factory.
The lead 12 does the warm, organic, mild break up thing so well, which in my experience is such an elusive tone for a solid state amp. When pushed to it's max it sounds like an angry little Plexi, with the bite, pointy nosed mids, "clang," and musical overtones that characterizes those special amps. It's very full, open sounding, and loud for a 12 watt amp with a single 10" Celestion speaker, and I suspect that the oversized enclosure may contribute to this. When used to drive a 2X12 or 4X12 it sounds truly amazing. When the situation arrises that I don't need too much stage volume I will absolutely bring this amp out to gig.
So thank you again Andrew, you are truly a gentleman and amp scholar. But Andrew doesn't just know amps. He wound me a mean set of Johnny Winter Firebird pickups a while back. I know that he also builds pedals, and God knows what other mad scientist skills are part of Andrew's repertoire. We are so fortunate to have a guy like this on the forum who is so generous with his wealth of knowledge, his skills, and his time.
If any of you ever get a chance to score a Marshall Lead 12 at a good price, I wouldn't hesitate. The price has gone up considerably in recent history, so unless you get really lucky, the days of picking one up for next to nothing are probably past. And if it happens that you need your vintage Marshall 12 refreshed, or any amp worked on for that matter, or need to avail yourself of any of the other services he offers, then trust me, Andrew is the man.
How good does it sound? This good. But good luck getting one for 50 Bucks!
The ZZ Top song on which Billy Gibbons plays the Marshall Lead 12.
When I got it home and cranked it the thing sounded awesome . . . for about ten minutes. Then it began having an intermittent problem. I turned if off, restarted it, played for a little while, then the same thing again. It eventually ceased to do anything other than hum when I powered it up. I opened it up, looked up some stuff online, poked around with a wooden chopstick, scratched my head a bit, and very soon came to the conclusion that this was over my pay grade.
That's when I reached out to @andrewsrea. I don't know much about amp repair, but fortunately he does . . . and I do mean whole lot. Those of you who have read his posts will know that the guy is like a living encyclopedia of amp knowledge. Andrew told me to send the amp to him, which I did, and when I got it back is was like it was fresh from the factory.
The lead 12 does the warm, organic, mild break up thing so well, which in my experience is such an elusive tone for a solid state amp. When pushed to it's max it sounds like an angry little Plexi, with the bite, pointy nosed mids, "clang," and musical overtones that characterizes those special amps. It's very full, open sounding, and loud for a 12 watt amp with a single 10" Celestion speaker, and I suspect that the oversized enclosure may contribute to this. When used to drive a 2X12 or 4X12 it sounds truly amazing. When the situation arrises that I don't need too much stage volume I will absolutely bring this amp out to gig.
So thank you again Andrew, you are truly a gentleman and amp scholar. But Andrew doesn't just know amps. He wound me a mean set of Johnny Winter Firebird pickups a while back. I know that he also builds pedals, and God knows what other mad scientist skills are part of Andrew's repertoire. We are so fortunate to have a guy like this on the forum who is so generous with his wealth of knowledge, his skills, and his time.
If any of you ever get a chance to score a Marshall Lead 12 at a good price, I wouldn't hesitate. The price has gone up considerably in recent history, so unless you get really lucky, the days of picking one up for next to nothing are probably past. And if it happens that you need your vintage Marshall 12 refreshed, or any amp worked on for that matter, or need to avail yourself of any of the other services he offers, then trust me, Andrew is the man.
How good does it sound? This good. But good luck getting one for 50 Bucks!
The ZZ Top song on which Billy Gibbons plays the Marshall Lead 12.
