The Marshall 1959 Modified is a fantastic amp. I've been through all the boutique copy's and never could get what I was after. Well I plugged straight into the 1959 Mod and there it was the sound of all those killer recordings I've been chasing forever. I'm so glad I bought it and it has become my favorite amp I've ever had or played. Kudos to Marshall.

This amp paired with Vintage 30 (8ohm) can sound like Back in Black, or Nevermind the Bollocks, or Dookie, or JailBreak, the list goes on as it is versatile. The true test is when I put an SM57 in front of the cone and recorded it into my DAW…no pedal or processing and it sounds like a record! Love this thing. I'm selling my JCM 800 (moded in early 90s) sounded good, but this 1959 sounds stellar and meets all my needs for punk, metal or classic rock! Also, a quick shout out to my sales rep, Tomir. Always in top of things and one of the reasons I will remain a Sweetwater customer.

Really enjoying this 1959 SLP Modified!

I love that this is a top shelf hand wired Marshall and can give you a "stock boy" 1959 100W sound if all the toggles are off. Then, the toggles extend the range of the amp, in exactly the right ways: more gain, tight control, bright cap control, master volume. IMO it's all one could reasonably want from this reissue / mod, without any needless adds or painful misses.

Note: I do use an attenuator (IronmanII or ReloadII) with this and most other 100W+ amps; you may find an attenuator either needed or preferred (for more control). That said, I was able to use the amp okay with just the master volume mod at low settings; I just prefer having an attenuator in line so I have more control and options, and am less nervous about fumble-fingering a dial leading to extreme dB. Also FYI, I'm playing this through a Marshall 1960A 4x12 and enjoy that pairing a lot.

Other amps I've had get into the territory, but don't touch what this thing can do. It has more sonic command, transient response, touch response and sonic range than the alternatives, including the well respected hotrod "british" versions from American makers (which I also own). Those American hotrod versions sound great too, but IMO have their own sound, and a softer playing feel, particularly on transients. Regarding other Marshall versions, I much prefer having these mods vs. a stock 100W model, and the Studio version was not a fit for me, as I always had to do something to manage its volume and/or brightness.

Not to get lost in the mix, this amp (or at least my amp) has a premium hand wired response that IMO gives a subtle but real added sense of 3D space, where the tone moves more with your playing. I only have heard that from a few amps, including the outstanding current Vox AC15HW.

A prominent YouTube guitarist that I like gave this amp a harsh review without having tried it, saying basically "too little (improvements) too late" and mentioning how this amp doesn't have an FX loop or power soak built in. I disagree with his sense of "too little too late"--I love the "stock boy plus mods"--and the FX / power soak point I think is less relevant in 2026, where people in the market for a loud high end amp use (or get) their backline solution of choice from Two Notes, Boss, etc. Additionally, I've heard several knowledgeable folks discuss why an FX loop is problematic to include inside this type of design--I'm not an engineer so I'll defer to their expertise. Summing up on this front, rather than pay more for an amp with a half baked FX loop or power soak just to keep up with competitor specs, I'm glad to get a superb core amp and support it with other best-in-class peripherals.

All considered, I REALLY like this amp, am glad Marshall put it out, am glad I got one, and I would embrace similar offerings across more of the Marshall line. Yes I also have a JCM 800 Modified.

Bottom line, IMO this is a great amp, and the best currently available version--from any manufacturer--of this classic design. I don't write a lot of reviews, but wanted to drop one in here to be supportive of this wonderful release.

Read More Show Less

Thanks to my longtime Sweetwater Associate, Cameron Mcmullen, I just picked up this amphead, from the Fed-Ex Store he had it delivered to. I have to say that a while back, I bought the Marshall Studio Series SV-20 Amphead (a Mini 20 watt 1959 SLP Amphead), with impressive tone. I got to love it so much, that I decided a while after, to buy this amphead, after I saw a few demo videos of it, that blew me away. It's amazes me, how much of a tone difference Marshall gets out of this new amphead, with 3 mod switches and one master volume. So far, I've just played it through my Gibson 1962 SG Standard Reissue, and through an Ernie Ball Music Man AXIS, through my Friedman 2x12 with 2 UK Made Greenbacks, attenuating it through a Rivera Rockcrusher..and the quality of distortion tone just blew me away. I have quite a few other guitars that I look forward to playing through it, as well as playing it theough my Friedman 4x12 with the Greenback/Vintage 30 speaker combination. No doubt that I will love that too. I'm very happy that I bought this new amp, and have 0 regrets. Marshall hit the ball out of the park with this new amphead. If you're thinking about buying it, assuming you love modded plexi tone, Don't Hesitate! Thanks again Cameron Mcmullen.

Read More Show Less