Good News....Bad News and Possibly More Bad News: My Marshall JCM2000 DSL100
Since this was a used piece of gear, and according to the listing on the guitar Center website, it was listed as “Excellent.
First, here’s the good news: my wonderful wife got me an amp head for Christmas. Our way of celebrating the holiday is to pick up to three things we’d like to receive, and then on the big day, we exchange gifts. This way, there’s some element of surprise during the festivities.
So, I selected my three, knowing very well that the odds of actually receiving one of them were slim to none (grin). Come the big day, and there it was — that one gift I thought might be a bit out of reach. It was a Marshall JCM 2000 100-watt amp, which she got at a pretty good deal from Guitar Center (online), Grand Rapids, Iowa. It even came with an ATA flight case. I was speechless, to say the least. This was going to be a perfect match with my Marshall 1960A cabinet.
Since this was a used piece of gear, and according to the listing on the Guitar Center website, it was marked as “Excellent,” the first thing I noticed was a name stenciled on the flight case: Billy Lee Janey. I paused my inspection to Google his name and search social media just to see who he is. I found out Billy Lee Janey is a very accomplished and established touring blues musician from Grand Rapids, Iowa. I spent about an hour watching some videos on YouTube, reading his bio, and checking online reviews. I’ll include his links below.
So I selected my 3, knowing very well the odds of receiving one of the gifts were slim to none (grin). Come the big day, and there it was, that one gift I thought would be a bit out of reach. There it was, a Marshall JCM 2000 100-watt amp. She got a pretty good deal from Guitar Center (online), Grand Rapids, Iowa; it came with an ATA flight case too. I was speechless to say the least. This was going to be a great pairing with my Marshall 1960A cabinet.
Since this was a used piece of gear, and according to the listing on the guitar Center website, it was listed as “Excellent”, First off there was a name stenciled on the flight case was Billy Lee Janey, of course I took a time out from my inspection and had to google his name and search social media to see who he is, found out Billy Lee Janey is a very accomplished and established touring blues musician from Grand Rapids, Iowa. I took the better part of an hour to watch some videos on YouTube and to read his bio and online reviews. I’ll throw his links down below.
Back to my inspection, and to see what bad news is hidden or obvious, my new to me gear showed heavy use of the handle, no biggie and easily replaceable. If anything, it added some character to the piece, may have been heavily toured from its previous life. The serial number on the rear panel shoed it was a 1997 model, Heck, the amp was over 20 years old, the stories it could tell if it could speak.
Next, I removed the aluminum mesh grill on the back to insure all the tubes were intact, and they were, the inside of the chassis was dusty, still, it was used gear, easily remedied. The back panel showed it was missing an 8-ohm jack input. Not a deal breaker, and easily fixable. So, all I was able to see visually was the handle needed replaced and an input jack, I finally plugged in my Gibson Les Paul and powered up the amp, strummed a few notes, damn this thing was loud even at 1, scared the crap out of my dog though.so onto the worldwide web we go.
I went through Marshall amplification for the handle, this saved me from getting a generic or fake part. The 8-ohm jack was a different story, I found a shop in Nashville, Tn. called British Audio, it actually took me 3 times to get the right part, the first 2 times I thought I knew what I was doing, the third and last try I actually called the shop, and they got me the right part, third time was a charm. Very friendly staff Nashville Audio was.
The handle I could easily install, the 8-ohm jack was another story. I called around here in my neck of the woods, and Guitar Pus in Beckley, WV gave me the name Keith fain, a retired gentleman that did work on amps.
Keith and I spoke on the phone for over an hour, discussing everything from music to photography. Keith came across as a real people person as well as very knowledgeable in amp repair. He did tell me that the Marshall JCM 2000 did have some Bios issues and the main circuit board was manufactured thin and the replacement boards were thicker and more reliable. I am hoping my current circuit board was changed out prior to myself or Billy Lee Janey owning this amp model.
Honestly my heart sank when Keith told me of the issues this particular amp had, at this point, I was just a phone call away from getting authorization to return it to Guitar Center. It took another search on the internet for see the cost of a replacement board, and I decided to keep my new to me amp. Clearly GC needs to rate their used stuff better, I would have rated this amp as in “Good” condition, would I have kept it if it was rated as such? Probably so, the fix isn’t too bad. The only big fix would be a new circuit board, that would cost me around $200 - $250, The early “2000s” had a problem with bias drift, a new board would breathe new life into it. It really wasn’t so bad after all, and the not so bad to worse news actually had a silver lining, and as promised I added all relevant links below.
Guitar Center: The Almost Rant
I really don’t expect this month’s blog to be long, in fact, it was actually going to be a rant about a purchase I made from Guitar Center in Fairfax, Va. The rant as this blog was meant to become a fast and quick resolve…………
I don't expect this month's blog to be long. It was supposed to be a rant about a purchase I made from Guitar Center in Fairfax, VA. The rant was meant to be a quick and calm discussion with the store manager, John, to resolve an issue.
In late April or early May, I was researching guitar amplifiers. I wanted something for noodling at home, not for gigging or starting a band. I was looking for an amp that wasn't too big and had a warm, bluesy tone. The Fender line of tube amps, including the Blues Deluxe Reissue, NOS, and Blues Junior, is known for their distinct sound and is a popular choice among guitar enthusiasts like me.
After hours and days of reading reviews and watching YouTube videos, I decided on a Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue, 40 watts, in good condition from Guitar Center. Although I had many amps saved in my "wish list," I was sure this was the one. I finally placed my order on May 25.
The much-anticipated day, June 2, finally arrived. The UPS app promised delivery by the end of the day. I was unsure if a signature was required, and my past experiences with UPS and FedEx, where they signed my name and left packages on my porch without my consent, only added to my uncertainty. That's a story for another time.
During late April and early May, I was on a quest for the perfect guitar amplifier. I wasn't looking for something to gig with or start a band, just a compact amp with a warm, bluesy tone for some casual noodling at home. The Fender line of tube amps, including the Blues Deluxe Reissue, NOS, and Blues Junior, fit the bill.
After spending many hours and days reading reviews and watching YouTube videos, I settled on a Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue, 40 watts, in good condition from Guitar Center. Though I saved many amps in my "wish list", I was sure this was the one. I finally placed my order on May 25.
The long-awaited day, June 2, had finally arrived. The UPS app indicated a delivery scheduled for the end of the day. I was unsure if a signature was required, as both UPS and FedEx have a habit of signing my name and leaving the item on my porch without my consent. This recurring frustration was a story for another time.
So it was no surprise to me to find a box (a huge box) sitting on the front porch. At first glance, the box appeared tattered, torn, and beaten up. No way this was my amp. It had to be something else. Maybe the wife ordered something, and my package was coming later. Nope! further inspection of the shipping label clearly showed it was from GC. My excitement quickly turned to anger, not only at the condition of the box, but also at the poor tape job on the outside of the box, as well, but UPS was not innocent in this. I initially decided to hold off, expecting the contents until the next day, as I had other pressing issues to contend with at the time, but I felt compelled to confront this. So I opened the box.
First off, I noticed the lack of bubble wrap, just one piece lying across the grill cloth; the rest of the packing consisted of wadded up paper, little to no protection for the amplifier inside.
At first glance, the amp looked unscathed, unlike the outer box (eye roll). I started to feel this situation wasn’t as bad after all until I decided to get my guitar and plug it in, hit a note on my guitar, and nothing. Well, maybe I needed to let the tubes warm up, but still, nothing— just the unsettling sound of the reverb echoing every time I moved the amp. So, after further inspection, I noticed that one of the preamp tubes was shattered completely, hanging on by a thread from its socket. Then I saw the impact point on the back left corner of the amp.
I didn’t waste any time, and soon I was on the phone with the Guitar Center. I got to the store and was transferred to someone I thought was located at the Fairfax store. I spoke to someone named Logan and told him my situation. He responded to me with a comment about the poor packing, damaged box, and broken preamp tube. “What do you expect when you buy a used amp?” What?! Are you kidding me?
After serval minutes on the phone with Logan, and me repeatedly telling him it was the preamp tube(s) I needed, what does this young Man do, well to add insult to injury, he sends me the wrong tubes, I received the two larger tubes that are in the amp, I then decided to order the correct ones myself,
Once the correct tubes arrived, I decided to take my amp to a local guitar repair shop, Alpha Music. I told them to do whatever was necessary to bring the amp back to 100%, and they did—wonderful work. There was still one thing I felt compelled to do: call the GC Fairfax store and speak to a manager about my less-than-satisfactory experience, not so much to get compensated for my trouble but to hopefully pass on what I had to deal with so no one else would have to go through the same. It was a Thursday when I spoke to their customer service manager—let's call him “He that shall not be named” (his idea before the blog was written). He then referred me to the store manager, John (who wasn’t in that day), on this matter, so I decided to call back the next day.
There was still one thing I felt compelled to do: call the GC Fairfax store and speak to a manager about my less-than-satisfactory experience. It wasn't so much to be compensated for my trouble, but to hopefully pass on what I had to deal with so no one else would have to go through the same. It was a Thursday when I spoke to their customer service manager—let's call him “He that shall not be named” (his idea before the blog was written). He, in turn, referred me to the store manager, John (who wasn’t in that day), about this matter, so I decided to call back the next day.
On Friday, July 30th, I called John. I won’t go into the entire conversation we had, but I will say it was calm. John checked his computer about my order. The person Logan I spoke to about the replacement tubes, which John told me I must have been transferred to the distribution center, which is why there was no Logan working at the Fairfax store when I inquired. This is where it gets interesting: John also told me that the amp I received was actually not the one I ordered. I noticed this when I looked at some screenshots I took of the one I thought I was getting; it had some marks and showed signs of use, character.
The amp I had in my possession was a newer one. According to John, he had two at the store when I placed my order. One was missing, it seems there was a “new” person they had working at the store, and he shipped me the wrong amp. It should have dawned on me that the amp I had was different; how many used amps come with the little cardboard info sheet that lists the features of the amp?
The bottom line is I know that retail folks always get the short end of the stick when it comes to complaints, they’re treated like crap daily, the store manager at the GC Fairfax store was very attentive, understanding, and showed a genuine concern in what I went through that led to our conversation. All I wanted or expected was to be heard, not just to be acknowledged, but truly understood. I came away from the discussion with that, and it was enough. John also refunded me my shipping, which was very generous. I will be shopping at this store in the future.
