Marshall amps

It's not so much the price. It's that they've become a lifestyle company. Bluetooth speakers, headphones. and earbuds. You have to go digging on their website to even find the amps, and then what's there. The last time they released a new amp was almost 20 years and there are no signs of anything new or updated or anything at all. The Modified series is what they were trying to do over 35 years ago with the 900s, may have gotten closer then (SLX), and over-charge worse than Gibson for all they really are. Want a modified NMV? There's the Jose for about the same price and arguably higher quality. Want a modified 800? There's the Snorkler for considerably less. Want a Plexi? There's Germino. Want something more modern? There are too many choices, and most are better built, better sounding, and cost less.

To be fair, the JVMs are great amps, too. The Studio series is probably the best thing they've done since Jim passed and that's just smaller versions of what they had 35+ years ago. All because there's more money to be made in cheap lifestyle appliances. Sure, everyone needs to make money, but to some of us, it's about more than that. It's about taking pride in trying to be the best, and Marshall was the best, but now they don't seem to care at all. And that, to me, seems a million miles away from what Jim tried to do. Disgraceful.
 
Was this just because they were struggling to stay afloat on amps alone? I just wonder if Marshall had to resort to being a different company because they could no longer expect 1 new amp series to pay the bills for the next 5 years. I am curious if they are facing the same broader struggle that boutique amps face, but the expensive brands always put out something new every year. Marshall doesn't really do that, at least most years.
 
ChurchHill said:
It's not so much the price. It's that they've become a lifestyle company. Bluetooth speakers, headphones. and earbuds. You have to go digging on their website to even find the amps, and then what's there. The last time they released a new amp was almost 20 years and there are no signs of anything new or updated or anything at all. The Modified series is what they were trying to do over 35 years ago with the 900s, may have gotten closer then (SLX), and over-charge worse than Gibson for all they really are. Want a modified NMV? There's the Jose for about the same price and arguably higher quality. Want a modified 800? There's the Snorkler for considerably less. Want a Plexi? There's Germino. Want something more modern? There are too many choices, and most are better built, better sounding, and cost less.

To be fair, the JVMs are great amps, too. The Studio series is probably the best thing they've done since Jim passed and that's just smaller versions of what they had 35+ years ago. All because there's more money to be made in cheap lifestyle appliances. Sure, everyone needs to make money, but to some of us, it's about more than that. It's about taking pride in trying to be the best, and Marshall was the best, but now they don't seem to care at all. And that, to me, seems a million miles away from what Jim tried to do. Disgraceful.
Click to expand...


what I got from this is the amp company contributes around 5% of total revenue; everything else is making money on the Marshall name, history, branding, etc. so much profit / revenue that the "big corporation" doesn't need to invest or even keep the amp company around since its contribution to revenue is so small. It's only a matter of time before the squeeze every last drop of value out of the amp company, and let it die a slow, lingering, painful death because nobody at corporate gives a fuck about it.

They keep talking about Marshall making floor and digital modelers / processors, which will funnel even more investment away from the amp company and tube amps. The mass produce amps in Vietnam, and still build classic amps in the UK.

Gibson did the same thing when they acquired Steinberger, they milked it for every penny then ignored it, and just let it die slowly with the Spirit line. I had original '80s Newburgh L Steinberger guitar, and two basses - the last I sold a few years ago. The Synapse SS-2F were very good, the best that Gibson Steinberger made IMO; I still have one. They made a few other models like the ZT-3 and the Demon SD-2FPA that were very good, but not many sold or made.
 
At least Gibson is still primarily focused on making guitars. Mesa Boogie seems to be doing just fine, too. Vox, Orange, they're still in the amp business. Even Fender, who charge ridiculous prices, is still coming out with new amps, even if most of them are digital. Marshall missed that boat. Even if they came out with something great, they'd forever be playing catch-up at this point.

It's like General Motors getting bought out by a foreign investment firm and switching their production lines to making clothes... think of it, Chevy jeans, GMC work boots, Cadillac polo shirts. Sure, they still make the Corvette, but it's now made in Vietnam (to use the Marshall example) and is nowhere near the quality it once was and hasn't changed since 1990 except to come out with a 3-cylinder version.

It's just sad that one of the giants is on the verge of extinction. If somebody bought the amp company, it could be saved, but such is progress and I'm too sentimental.
 
It’s a sign of the times. Marshall rose to prominence by fulfilling a need for amplification in the 60s, around the birth of rock and roll. The late 60s and guitarists like Hendrix rocketed the brand. Exponential growth each decade between 70s and 90s. MTV, record companies investment in band longevity, the guitar scene in general absolutely peaked in the early 90s.

THEN, into the 2000s, everything started changing. MTV goes hip hop and reality shows. Rock is getting phased out. Music business changes to find volumes of one hit wonders and rare “brand” artists to sink everything into. Commercial guitar-oriented music promotion falls off the cliff.

Look at any Guitar Center in the 80s vs now. It is shell of what it once was.

Marshall is a victim of a greater failure that is the lack of priority of promotion and investment in rock bands and music in general, all dictated by the commercial music labels.

Marshall grew too big and had to stay afloat somehow. They are like the Harley Davidson of the music world. It’s sad it has come to them be by owned by a Chinese capital firm, but, the Marshall family likely had to choose between that or a complete shutter of the business.
 
Sounds to me the family made the right financial decisions.

I don't see much of a future for tube amps. People will build them as long as people are willing to buy them.

Who is the worldwide biggest builder of tube amps ? Fender ?
 
Worldwide about 1.5 million tube amps are made annually.
The big two are Fender (28%) and Marshall (18%).
The majority of tube amps are made in Asia.
 
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BABMusic said:
Was this just because they were struggling to stay afloat on amps alone? I just wonder if Marshall had to resort to being a different company because they could no longer expect 1 new amp series to pay the bills for the next 5 years. I am curious if they are facing the same broader struggle that boutique amps face, but the expensive brands always put out something new every year. Marshall doesn't really do that, at least most years.
Click to expand...

I think Marshall would be doing ok on just amps, they would just be a smaller company with lower revenue. The company that made bluetooth speakers and headphones that licensed the Marshall name, and has other products, was making billions vs the millions that Marshall made every year. Instead of paying to use the Marshall name, they bought Marshall; now they can use the name and logo on anything without additional cost or needing permission.

I think the family inheritors of Marshall after Jim died decided it was easier / worth more to let another company run the amp business, and they just cash their checks vs running it themselves and actually working.

In the video, they talked about Jim working almost to his death; he refused to sell Marshall while he was alive because it was his name; only took his family 3 years after his death to sell it...so they probably started negotiations before Jim's body was buried....company acquisitions can take many months or years to complete. Jim also said he would never make amps anywhere else but England, and his heirs ended that quick too. Hard to think his heirs didn't value money over the company.
 
Tube amps for any brand weren't even in the top 10 sales on Reverb for 2025; maybe if they combined all tube amp sales not by brand/model, it would be more.

New Marshalls are going to compete with vintage Marshalls. I think we're going to see a lot of vintage gear hit the used markets as older guitarists die, and their families unload gear which will put even more pressure on new tube amp sales, which are declining already.
 
rsm said:
In the video, they talked about Jim working almost to his death; he refused to sell Marshall while he was alive because it was his name; only took his family 3 years after his death to sell it...so they probably started negotiations before Jim's body was buried....company acquisitions can take many months or years to complete. Jim also said he would never make amps anywhere else but England, and his heirs ended that quick too. Hard to think his heirs didn't value money over the company.
Click to expand...
Honor and pride in workmanship and carrying on a family legacy is lost on most people these days. So is people paying the kind of money for goods that reflect that commitment. The whole world went for cheap shit goods.
 
VonBonfire said:
Honor and pride in workmanship and carrying on a family legacy is lost on most people these days. So is people paying the kind of money for goods that reflect that commitment. The whole world went for cheap shit goods.
Click to expand...
I've often regretted going cheap vs quality on many products. I learned this lesson decades ago.
 
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