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Marshall Code 50 1x12" 50-watt Digital Combo Amp Reviews

50-watt Modeling Guitar Amplifier with 12" Speaker, 14 Digital Preamp Models, 4 Digital Power Amp Models, Speaker Emulation, Onboard FX, LCD Display, Aux Input, and Bluetooth Connectivity

The Marshall Code 50 packs decades of classic Marshall sounds into a travel-friendly combo amp. Browse over 100 presets for instant inspiration at home or on the road, or mix and match digitally modeled Marshall preamps, power amps, and speaker cab emulations to customize convincing tones for the stage and studio. With 50 watts and a full-voiced 12" speaker, the Marshall Code 50 is right at home onstage for club gigs and worship services. And for some quick stress relief at the office, a silent headphone amp delivers signature Marshall crunch right to your ears without disturbing coworkers.

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Highest Rated Reviews

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Code 50

By Sweetwater Customer from CO on September 26, 2023

This amp exceeds all of my expectations it's awesome

Great giving amp

By Sweetwater Customer on June 9, 2023

This amp sat in my studio forever without use cause I didn't have a foot switch. I was able to acquire one unexpectedly and programed four very usable standard all purpose sounds and I am glad I did. I have been giging with it now and love it ...great sound and is lite to carry around and yes I use a stand to raise it from the floor.

Great giving amp

By Sweetwater Customer on June 9, 2023

This amp sat in my studio forever without use cause I didn't have a foot switch. I was able to acquire one unexpectedly and programed four very usable standard all purpose sounds and I am glad I did. I have been giging with it now and love it ...great sound and is lite to carry around and yes I use a stand to raise it from the floor.

This is the coolest amp I have ever owned

By Charles Faust from BURKBURNETT, TX on November 4, 2022

I've been having so much fun with this amp, it is extremely versatile and sounds amazing

Pros:
Easy to use
Easy to setup
Looks Great

Cons:
None

Additional Notes:
It is a little tedious getting to work with Cakewalk or Audacity via USB audio. Also you can choose to output your PC/Mac sound via USB, and if you have your phone connected via Bluetooth, sound output will go to the Code if you don't set your phone otherwise.

Friendly Amp

By Arthur Baugh from D'Iberville, MS on January 17, 2022 Music Background: Back Yard Player

Sweet sounds and easy to use. Nice amp for someone who's looking for a certain sound without pedals. Presets are nice. Thanks Marshal and Sweetwater for a valued amp.

Marshall code50 amp

By John DeBono from Algonac,mi. on December 21, 2021 Music Background: Just play guitar for fun now

Marshall always makes nice stuff,owned marshall stack n head back n day,dont gig no more but like to play for my own well being & for family get togethers,didnt want anything to big or bulky so i purchased the code50 & ive only played with it a lil bit so far but im em very impressed with all the features & effects this amp has for the money,if your looking for an amp for most bang for the buck this is it,cant beat the marshall name.

Great Multi-purpose amp

By Richard from Ohio on November 25, 2021 Music Background: Pre-Covid Pro

I've been using the Code 50 for a few years. I've played multiple "bar" small venue gigs and also big stages at several blues festival.
Adding in the footswitch is really needed to get the full power of the amp. Also, make sure to READ the instructions and understand what you are trying to do.
Absolutely raise the amp. I use an amp stand and the tone really blossoms. I have played it side-by-side w a Bluesbreaker. Certainly not the same tone but it gets to be a close emulation and complements the analog nature of the BB.
As with any accessories, try to make sure that you understand what you are getting!

Practice or Bar gigs

By Sweetwater Customer on November 4, 2021

The pedal is a must for giging if you take the time to learn all of what it does it's one of the finest amps on the market whatever your style it'll do whatever you want it to

Great Amp!

By jesse jones from WA on June 7, 2021

I play guitar as a hobby and this is the best amp I have ever owned! It has amazing sound quality and is so versatile, it has everything one could want for building chops and dialing in tones.

Best mid range amp money can buy

By Harrison Daines on May 22, 2021 Music Background: Guitarist

I got one of these a little over a year ago and I love it!!!! It sounds amazing and has so many cool presets. Great effects! The website with tones and presets that you can download to the amp is so useful. I love everything about this amp except for the app. It's okay but it needs an update.

Great Features

By Scott on April 6, 2021

This amp over delivers in all areas. The value for this type of sound is one thing , but the features for home studio are amazing. The Bluetooth capability alone solved a major issue for me. I cannot think of a better combo amp to meet a variety of needs. Every level of musician can benefit with this amp at this price.

Marshall Code

By Sweetwater Customer on February 24, 2021

I'm in love with the Code. The effects are endless. Decent price for it as well. Leave it to Marshall to get it right. I also have the footswitch. A must if you play live. My friends are beside themselves. As any Marshall go's. I rule. Love it. Best money I ever spent

Fabulous!!!

By Sweetwater Customer on September 17, 2020

Great amp for the money! I had the Code 100 which was just too big and too loud for my apartment so I downsized to the Code 50. Love it. DO not need any pedals with a bulky footboard. For how I play this amp is perfect

Marshall Code 50

By Mike from Wisconsin on August 4, 2020 Music Background: 40 year hobbyists

This amp is AMAZING. I am so impressed with how easy it is to navigate through this amp. I've read mixed reviews on the app, but so far I haven't encountered any problems. I also want to say thank you to Dennis Konicki at Sweetwater for such EXCELLENT customer service.

Awesome

By Neal Nordahl from Northern California on July 24, 2020 Music Background: Professional

This amp is the real deal!!!!!Some of the presets are amazing, the #44 Bluesbreaker reverb is phenomenal. Plenty of power.True
50 watts of 50 years of Legendary Marshall tone! At your grips!!!!!5 stars all day

Wicked

By Sweetwater Customer on July 9, 2020

Before buying this amp I read just about all the reviews carefully. I have to say I was a bit intimidated as I've only had simple Marshall amps. 72 100 watt, & JCM800 Half stacks, and a 2000 valve state combo. Once I got the iPad hooked to it, it became much easier to get started. I love this thing. You do have to know your marshal preferences to make it sound right, but they made it super simple. With a good guitar this little amp is the perfect practice amp. It has plenty of power. The only thing so far I'm not digging is the way the music from the iPad sounds, the 12" doesn't work for that as far as I can tell. It's hard to mix the volumes of the guitar with the music.

Excellent Amplifier

By William McQueen from FL on June 29, 2020

My sales engineer Brian Sheehan came through for me again. Great advice and a fantastic price. I have two other modeling amps. A Line 6 and a Fender GT. I found myself looking for a fuller and more robust sound and after some research I decided on the Code 50. What a great versatile amplifier. I do wish it had wifi connectivity for updates. Peter Nelson made a great point in his review about the default noise gate setting. This is annoying but can be corrected fairly easily. Other than that I'd reccomend it. It's still 5 stars.

Great bang for your buck

By PDP from CA on May 20, 2020

great amp. My first Marshall amp and I'm so happy I went with the Code 50. So many different sounds and so many connectivity options. Dont think twice if you want a great solid state amp.

Great Sounding Amp With A Quick Tip

By earl staggs from Hampstead, MD on April 24, 2020 Music Background: amateur

First off let me say that Patrick Weaver is a great Sales Engineer. He kept me in the loop through out the whole process. The Code 50 is somewhat complex at first but after about an hour I got the hang of it and discovered so many tones I'm already logging presets. Just a quick tip....raise the amp off the floor about 3-4 inches. I've seen a lot of vid's of people placing 2x4's underneath which works however it's kinda ugly. I purchased casters to raise the amp and any muddiness that was there is now gone and the amp is more mobile now. No more sliding or picking it up just roll it across the floor. I play a Gibson Les Paul Studio with the stock pups and the combo sounds great. The Bluetooth feature is a lot of fun, using a tablet to dial in selections and boom, you don't have to stand over the amp and manually press buttons. Oh, and lastly, this thing is loud and at high volumes doesn't break up whatsoever. This is a great amp, and I'm glad I made the purchase. Marshall scored a touchdown with this model.

Great amp

By Don from Ypsilanti mi. on February 11, 2020 Music Background: Play at home 50 years

I love all the pre sets
Amp sounds great

HOWDY SWEETWATER TEAM ; I am GLAD 2 B a customer! MY environment has enriched to complete content. Have assembled some-what of a small studio , & moving forward in MUSIC ACHIEVEMENT. New equipment is always a THRILL & very INSPIRING !!! A FAN

By Sweetwater Customer on January 24, 2020

Excellent in every aspect , I'm GRATEFUL to B a part of U'r PROFESSIONAL WORLD , although I am not a professional myself . ME & new CODE 50 entertain VERY EFFICIENTLY. I will stick with a GREAT TEAM !!! " THANK'z A G A I N "

10/10

By Jonathan on January 11, 2020

Wonderful amp. I bought it for personal use and it honestly has a little too much power but id rather have too much than not enough. Could easily do a solo performance with it (something i wanted in my amp). Its easy to figure out how to use. The app for phone is a little funky sometimes but i havent had a single issue with the amp itself. And it sounds great too! Definitely recommending this amp to my friends.

My first real Guitar Amp

By Angel Diaz from Arkansas, USA (North Central of nowhere) on November 29, 2019 Music Background: Newbie guitarist, Heavy Metal fan

I really love it. Seems like a lot to learn at first, and it is ha, but is amazing. I'm not the smart phone everything person but, having the app on the phone saves time for setting things up. Is easier than dialing through all the setting trying to find one on the amp itself. On the app, you can easily see what you looking for. I also got the foot pedal so I can preset what I want. Having a website with custom presets is freaking great and that you can download them into the amp is so sweet. Getting ready to try the amp with my own pedals to see how it works. And above all!!!! Is a Marshall! Louder than loud! It doesn't go to 11 but, I can live with it. Ha ha

Marshall code 50

By Randy Allen from Arkansas on June 16, 2019 Music Background: Hobby

I love it , I"m just a hobbyist and for what I use it for it"s great , it has many different tones that are cool , it"s not a 3,000 dollar Jim 800 or 900 and I didn"t expect it to be . But it has great tones on my les Paul and for just practicing here in my house it"s a great value , if your looking for a great practice amp , here it si !

Marshall Code 50

By Ricky Nichols from Georgia on September 7, 2018 Music Background: 30+years

Exchanged a Vox Vt100x for a Marshall Code 50. The Vox was a good amp, but kinda hard for me to navigate on. The Marshall is much easier for me and sounds great. Great sounds on the presets too! Thanks again to Ed and Sweetwater, their no hassle return policy puts the customer first. I'm impressed once again! Thanks! Ricky

great amp

By al deal from Pennsylvania on August 27, 2018 Music Background: played when younger forgot alot but at 61 making a come back

Im just getting into my guitars after along lay off.I talked to Dereck at sweetwater and he gave me some great advice.I had many amps to choose from and he pointed me to Marshall code50 have not used pedal yet still setting up my presets on amp.Seeing how I just play at home or with a few friends the code 50 is awesome 100 presets you can dail in to what you like and this amp is loud.I have a Gibson Invader35 tube amp and did not want to buy a mess of pedals Code50 has all the sounds you want with out all the pedals .I really love all this amp gives me .Im suprised at how real this amp sounds to a tube amp.Marshall has always been up there on my top amp list and this one rocks .Great rock blues funk and clean tones for many amp models.I have not gone through all the features yet still setting tones .Next thing I buy will be a good set of headphones so wifey wont get mad lol .check this amp out if you get the chance alot of extras for your dollars.

Love this amp

By Michael C from San Jose, CA on June 13, 2018

This amp has been very very good for me. the sound and the loudness are just fantastic. i had to wait weeks before the speaker really settled into it's own. before that i was really concerned about the sound, but after a month or more of regular playing it really came into it's own.
the user interface is probably the industry's best. the way it works just as well from the phone or cabinet is incredible. the way they remind you where the knob was before you starting screwing with it, should be mandatory on every programmable device or software/plugin.
now i added a Boss GT-1 in front of it, which i love. i'm not using the built in modelling so much but expect to for certain distinct functions. But its still a great Combo Amp, super LOUD and under 30 Pounds!
i just can't gig with a tube amp anymore, my back can't handle that.
this CODE 50 really fits the bill for me, for a long time to come.
thanks sweetwater. you set me up again.

Noise Gate setting

By Peter Nelson from TN - Tennessee on May 15, 2018 Music Background: Classically trained violinist

Hello!
I want to pass along something that took me over a year to realize. The marshall Code amplifiers have a control under "Amps" called "Gate" (noise gate). It this threshold is set to high the amp will always, for every note you play the amp will have a mille second stumble/delay as the noise gate activates and does its job. The gate is set in every different preset. It was holding me back from giving the amp a perfect "5.0" rating!
I got tired of this unusual sound as it ruined the feeling. So today I trusted my instincts and figured it was the (noise) gate setting. In the past I had revised Peset channel No. 23 "Virus" to my own taste. It is now a fender clean channel -perfect for Jazz and Blues. Yet it always had that momentary stumble as I played, almost a delay but not exactly.. It was the "gate" setting, as it was factory set to 4.5! I reset it to 0.0 and now for the first time since purchase the amp it is behaving like every other amp I own. Pluck a note and the note is reproduced perfectly like all your other amps.
Get it? You absolutely need to set the gate to a lower value than stock. Maybe not in every channel. But I would do so in the preset channels that you like. Remember you can change the setting and not save it to see if you like the change. Then when you set it to the sound you actually like then you save the setting. After saving you can always change it as many times as you like and save those changes. It's a computer.

Great amp!!!

By Bob W from Florence, Ky on May 6, 2018 Music Background: Played since 1968 playing high schools, clubs, studio, Worship music and teaching guitar

I have been playing guitar since 1968. I have played several amps over the years, Peavey, Traynor, Fender, Marshall. This is the best amp I have ever played. Great Marshall sounds. I have always been a huge fan of the Plexi, and this has great Plexi, Silver Jubilee, Bluesbreaker, and other Marshall sounds. The chorus, phaser, flanger, delay and reverb sounds good, also. With 50 watts this is a great amp for gigging. I use it playing 2 services a week with a Worship Band, recording, and playing other projects. I am a former guitar instructor over 10 years, played several situations. Dave Snow at Sweetwater always gives me great service and always recommends the right thing.

Oh, it’s a Marshall!

By Keith M. from Phoenix AZ on May 3, 2018 Music Background: Sound Engineer/Production

I haven"t bought an amplifier in 18+ years.. I"ve always been a believer in two brand names, Gibson for guitars and Marshall in amps... I went in with an open mind (looked at many brands along with Marshall) searching for not only good sound, medium power and versatility but ease of use too... While it took me several hours to set it up to my preferred sounds, once there, WOW! I purchased the four switch pedal for this amp and it"s proven an invaluable asset... if you don"t have it, get it! I also downloaded the Marshall Gateway app for this amp on my iPad and that too made for seamless use of this amp! I have the CODE 50, but I"m toying with picking up the 100 half stack at some point... I like it that much!

Marshall code 50 combo amp

By Steven Shane from CA on April 25, 2018

Just love it... every thing I need and more...loud,, clean,,clear..... easy to use......no comparison for the price.......

2 Years Later, My 2nd Review after 2 years of Owning, Code 25 and 50

By Anthony Knutson from Austin, MN on February 20, 2018 Music Background: 40 years of guitar playing and collecting

This is my 2nd review after 2 years of Owning the Code 25 and 50. I have no complaints at all. I have this right next to the couch. When I wanna play, I grab a guitar and plug it in and it's just that simple. I messed with some of the presets only to go back to the original presets. This is one of the smartest purchases I have made for this type of combo. Some of the tube junkies (myself included) might have that feeling in their gut, " It's just not a tube amp!) but when you turn it on that feeling fades pretty quick. I have and still buy cabs, lunchbox amps, you name it, Dan R. My tech guy can vouch for that, anyway, I am still lovin and recommending it for whatever you need it for. Alright, gotta go and order another guitar. Cheers and Good luck to you all.

Awesome amp

By Clifford Rayford from Mobile Alabama on February 8, 2018 Music Background: Beginner

I Love this amp..!! It has a lot of features only more expensive amps have.. it's user-friendly!!! It's plenty loud and the speaker emulation is great !! I only wish it came with a manual for instructions on programming it.

Desert Island Guitar Amp

By Todd Dowell from Washington State on December 24, 2017 Music Background: Old time amature guitarist

If I had to choose one electric guitar amp to take with me on a deserted island forever, this would be it (assuming that island provided 120v on tap of course). I'll spare you the long explaination. This amp kicks @55 period. Sounds incredible and so much versatility.

I plan to get the 100 watt head haf-stak. This is flat out an incredible value... Of course it's never going to out punch a $4k custom boutique tube monster with another grand in effects hooked up; but for the money it's going to out perform many amps and racks 5 to 10 times its cost. You can't go wrong. Best modeling amp under a thousand bucks. I give it 5 stars. This is a best buy for 2017-18.

Crushing Diversity - Marshall CODE 50

By Sweetwater Customer on November 26, 2017

Blown away by this amp. I was looking for home/small gig amp, diverse tones, and Marshall crunch as needed. This easily fits the bill.
I had the privilege of visiting the Marshall factory in Bletchley UK in early 2017 and just awestruck by the passion all the employees have for their products and it continues in this non-tube modeling amp.
Even though this amp is all digital, the diverse sounds and resonance are amazing. It breathes like a tube amp (former MB Mark II C+ / Silver Jubliee owner), and it's so easy to dial in tones.
I love the functionality of the amp, ability to update firmware and the sharing/using tones from other users on the My.Marshall site.
Many folks complain about the presets, and I say, simply don't use them, dial in your favorite tones and rock out!

Marshall code 50

By Sammy Houston from Mississippi on November 18, 2017 Music Background: Hard rock metal

Fantastic amp you have everything you need in one package.

Codie is the man

By Bob M on November 1, 2017

I was looking for a practice Amp for use at home but was unsure which amplifier to buy. After speaking with Codie he convinced me that given my style and equipment that the Marshall Code 50 was the Amp for me. I couldn't be happier, the size and power is perfect for my practice room! the tone is rich and full and goes perfect with my Les Paul. Between the Amp/cabinet models and the on-board effects there are infinite combinations to choose from. From soulful Blues, to rock, to the heaviest metal this amp does it all. The Marshall Gateway App allows me to select from a huge list of patches and load them onto the Amp easily and quickly.

Marshall Code 50

By Brian from Santa Barbara on October 29, 2017

Great amp for the money, Many good presets that you can tweek. Very pleased, If you play a lot of metal you should check one of these out. Super customer service..

Code 50

By ShawnR from Lubbock, TX on October 27, 2017

This amp kicks butt. I think it sounds amazing. It can definitely get loud. It’s very easy to use. Some of the presets need some tweaking but if you’re a Marshall fan I think they did it right. It’s my first Modeling Amp and it does everything I wanted it to do. You won’t be disappointed.

Marshall Amp

By Sweetwater Customer on October 11, 2017

Awesome Amp!

Just perfect for me

By Noor on September 21, 2017

I've had this amp for a year now and I love everything about it. The JCM 800 simulation alone is worth 250$. There are some other great sounds too, like the clean JVM channel which is my second favorite in this amp. It is compatible with all voltages between 100 and 240V which means you can plug it into any power socket around the world, an amazing feature for someone who lives outside the US like myself. Great thanks for my sales engineer Mason who helped me a lot with the purchase.

Badassery

By Mark Duke from AR on August 25, 2017

Best Amp I've ever owned. It's got the Marshall tones, the look, the ease of changing settings.

CODE 50

By Patrick from Bakersfield on August 11, 2017 Music Background: beginner

Let me start off with this is my first amp, I wanted a nice amp to learn on and felt after reading most every review that this would be it. I have been learning now for a month or so and really love this amp, it really helps me with the blue tooth and I am able to use it with my phone and can hear what the instructors are doing and what I am trying to do. It was really funny the other day as my wife heard my playing and came into are den and said your sounding great and I had to explain it was only the instructor. All the cool sounds this is able to produce will allow me to continue on process of learning the electric guitar. The app for the phone to adjust on the fly, was something I felt really made this something special as well as the 100 preset. Really happy with this amp and with my Epiphone SG 400 pro, man I have a long way to go.
Love the Marshal put so much sound options in this little amp.

Marshall code 50

By TK from Fort Wayne Indiana on July 24, 2017 Music Background: Lead you tar lead vocals and keyboard player getting for over 30 years

Traffic amp with versatile quality. Very light for small gigs and practice. I love it! Purchased at gear Fest and demoed by the actual Marshall dude seen in all of the YouTube videos! Absolutely wonderful chap with lots of info. As always my sales engineer took care of all of the details! Excellent service and great time!

Code 50 Rocks

By Freebird197719 from Louisiana on July 13, 2017

The Code 50 is amazing its a Beast Great sound,Powerful

Great Modeling Amp

By Matthew from California on July 5, 2017 Music Background: Songwriter/Multi-instrumentalist

1. Buy Amp 2. Get Code footswitch 3. Connect to Marshall Gateway via bluetooth. This amp will blow you away and you will wonder what to do with all of your pedals once you connect to Marshall Gateway and start shaping your sounds. The Code 50 serves as a computer too with the footswitch serving as its controller. You can design sounds by selecting from 14 preamps, 4 power amps, 8 speaker cabinet models, and 24 different effects (using 5 simultaneously). The MarshallCode.Tools/ website is a community of patch creators that allows you to download and/or create and share your sounds with other users. I love this amp, I just wish that Marshall were promoting this amazing amp better by showing how the connection of their Code footswitch and a bluetooth device makes pedal boards nearly obsolete.

First Marshall

By Bryan from Southern Indiana on June 28, 2017 Music Background: Hobbiest/Intermediate Skill

I was looking for a mid-size amp that I could use around the house and possibly take and use for gigs as needed, but didn't want an 80lb. 2x12 monster. Went out on a limb after reading reviews of this one and LOVE IT! The Marshall Gateway app connectivity is handy when needing to make adjustments to settings on the amp. I haven't gone through ALL of the settings, but the ones I have used work great! Nice, cool cleans; great, heavy crunch.
A great purchase!

Elegant Simplicity of Design

By Matthew from California on June 7, 2017 Music Background: Songwriter, performer, ProTools nut...

I am glad Marshall waited to get into the modeling amplifier game - because they did it 100% right. The amp can be connected via Bluetooth or USB so that you can you can utilize a tablet or your phone to modify nearly every parameter imaginable. Gone are the days when you have to dial in your sound settings while standing directly in front of your amp: now you can step as far away as your Bluetooth will allow and change the volume, tone, pre-amp, amp, cabinet, etc - all from your phone or tablet via the Marshall Gateway application. You can hook up the amp to your PC via USB and download patches created by other users. The community is not as large as Fender's Fuse application, but it seems to be growing. Marshall seems to have included every conceivable pre-amp (15 pre-amp choices alone) power-amp and cabinet combination from way back in the 1960's. You can then adjust delay, reverb, modulation type, and multiple effects with an incredible number of adjustable parameters. The app is great for controlling the amp and I have not founds any software bugs. If you plan on using this as a bedroom amp, go with the smaller Code 25, because the 50 is incredibly loud at even the lowest settings. I am very, very happy with my Code 50 and can't wait for my footswitch to arrive.

My Favourite Amplifier!

By Jimmy on May 27, 2017

After spending some quality time listening, editing, and programming my brand new Marshall CODE 50 Combo, I have to say that: One, the Marshall-Softube (MST) modelling sounds are absolutely stunning, fantastic, and phenomenal! Two, the look is über-sexy. Three, the ease of use is almost a no-brainer. And four, this is now my favourite amplifier! Marshall-Softube ― a match made in the hard rock heavens! Thank you, Marshall and thank you, Softube. And a special thank you to Justin and Sweetwater. Cheers!

marshall code 50

By james gates from winter park fl on May 17, 2017 Music Background: part time player

this is probably the best amp i've ever owned its ability to mimic any kind of marshall amp i am going to buy
the code 100 soon

The Marshall Code 50 does its Job and More

By Rev. David E. Hamm from Maryland on May 17, 2017 Music Background: 30+ years in the musical hobby

I'll admit that I initially was looking to get the Line 6 Spider V 120 Modeling Amp since it was the smallest amp in that group that had a 12 inch speaker. The downside was the cost and it did not have Bluetooth capability. Then I noticed the Marshall Code 50 Modeling Amp that also had a 12 inch speaker, has Bluetooth connectivity and the cost was significantly lower. That is the amp I settled on.

The Marshall Code 50's 50 watt output was plenty for me and still loud enough to do a gig within a smaller venue. The amp has Bluetooth connectivity which allows you to control the amp from your SmartPhone. The amp's USB connection to a computer enables DAW connectivity. The amp also has 1/8 inch phone input for connecting to an iPod or similar device for music playback. The cabinet design with a closed back is typical of Marshall's excellent sound quality reputation. The modeling presets are awesome and one can modify and save any of them. Don't be afraid to try different configurations to find the great sound that you are looking for. The presets model 14 preamps, 4 power amps, 8 speaker cabinets and has 24 different FX settings. Finally, the LCD display is large enough to be easily read when configuring the amp directly from the top panel controls. And did I say that the sound quality is next to none which is Marshall's strong point.

The Marshall Code 50 is an excellent primary amp or great as a backup amp. Its smaller form factor and weight are easily managed when lugging this amp along with you to your gig. Fantastic amp all around!

Marshall Did a good job.

By K.H. on April 25, 2017 Music Background: Semi-Pro

Great Amp for the Price! It does every thing it said, just don't be afraid to change the settings on the presets. Loud enough to GIG with. Easy to use.

New Amp Day!

By J.R. from N.C. on April 20, 2017

So, let me start by saying I'm not a beginner. I've been playing guitar for 20 years and have owned multiple amps and guitars through the years. I was initially turned off by digital amplifiers due to a bad experience with a Line 6 spider back in 2008. Anyway, I needed a backup amp in case my Fender Blues jr bit the dust. I purchased this because I've always loved Marshalls, I had a class 5, Master Lead, and at one time, an MG. So for $, i wasn't expecting much, just something to get me through a show. I was wrong. This amp is versatile and lightweight, and it sounds good! Does it sound as good as what its modelling, no. However it sounds good enough that I am planning on using it at my next gig instead of my Blues jr. Add in the convenience of the app and being able to stream music through it, it is awesome! The factory presets are over the top, you need to spend some quality time tweaking it, but once you get it right its an awesome amp!
And many thanks to Sweetwater for getting it here earlier than expected!

Code 50

By H on April 20, 2017 Music Background: 40 years plus dragging amps around

What more could you ask for the money?
If you are a tweaker of knobs ( and what guitarist isn't?) you will love this amp. As we say, it's the dogs bollocks of an amp.

Marshall Code 50 - BUY THIS AMP!!

By Brad from Shreveport on April 13, 2017 Music Background: 35 Year player, attended Atlanta Institute of Music

Tried to think of some things that others haven't said already to describe this amp but only one word comes to mind, INCREDIBLE!!!!! If you haven't already ordered one of these you might want to do so because I truly think they will be going way up in price in the near future. Seriously, one of the best amps I have ever heard straight out of the box.

Marshall Code 50 - awesome amp

By Aaron from Colorado on April 8, 2017

I got the Marshall Code 50 for blues and right out of the box the tones blew me away! The presets sound fantastic. I can get a number of great tones for blues or jazz. The metal tones are great too, so this amp meets all my musical style needs. The closed cabinet makes thw amp sound huge, even though it is kind of small and much lighter compared to other 1x12 amps. I gotta say, I used to think that Line 6 was the king od modeling... Now it is apparent that Marshall is going to give all other modeling amps a run for thier money. Speaking of money, you will not find a better (or even equal) amp at this price. Period. My one complaint is that this amp does NOT have a loop feature.

Excellent product

By Lowell from Indiana on April 2, 2017

I actually boughr this amp for my son. He is still learning, but this amp is awesome and is everything he needs.

Great Combo Amplifier

By Don Garcia from Florida on March 13, 2017

Wow!! This is a great amp with lots of bang for your buck!! The Marshall Code 50 not only packs a punch, but has a myriad of tonal voices and amp modeling choices for the beginner or the advanced guitar player. The Digital preamp models, power amp models and effects give a new range of choices for gigging, studio or performance options. I recommend this amplifier for addition to your performance arsenal!!

Good amp

By joseph S mccarthy from SC on March 10, 2017

This is a good amp. Lots of sounds to play with. Thanks to my go to sales report Patrick Dennis..

Take control of your tone with the Code50

By david Mobley from California on February 16, 2017

The modeling controls on this amp are just out of this world. I have never had so much versatility with tone adjustments. With the use of the smart phone/tablet/computer app I can strip everything down to nothing from every angle and build it up exactly the way I want it this thing is just incredible

Epiphone guitar with Marshall amp

By Larry Owens from Virginia on February 12, 2017

Together it works great. Lots of cool features. Still waiting on foot petal for amp.

Breaking The Code!

By MarshallMan50 on January 16, 2017

I have had other amp modeling amps and processors and i would say the code 50 is now my favorite combo amp,but many tube heads and nay sayers just do not know how to set up a modeling amp for the best sounds they can produce.You first have to ignore the factory presets,most are bad and this is why there are a lot of negitive reviews of some modeling amps,i just do not understand why the manufactures of these amps do not do a better job of creating good sounding presets?

The marshall code 50 and all other modeling amps are not plug and play,you have to dig in and change the parameters in the amp and create user presets that sound good to you! If it sounds good then it is good! If you want your amp model to sound just like the tube amp it is modeled from,then buy the tube amp.

Like i previously mentioned i have other modeling amps and my peavey vypyr 75 recto model that i like very much does not sound just like a mesa but i tweaked it to sound good for what i like,i think the marshall code amps sound very close to there own tube amplifiers that there modeled after and that is how good amp modeling is getting.I just want to mention a some things you can do to improve the sound of your marshall code,first break in your amps speaker for about 100 hours by playing your amp fairly loud a few hours a day,about two months or you can play MP3 music through the AUX input.

This will smooth out the harsh higher frequencies and break in the speaker for better low end without the speaker farting out.Here is a great tip for the bluesbreaker and other amp models that have too much low end,when i first heard the bluesbreaker model the low end was muddy and had too much bass even with the bass and resonance turned down to 0! I tried my behringer PB100 pre amp booster pedal with the bass control turned down to a 7 o clock position and that did the trick,the low end mud was gone and the mid frequencies stood out like i never heard before! It just sounded great now! I then tried my behringer TO100 tube overdrive pedal and i could not believe that the bluesbreaker model even sounds better then the pre amp booster! The TO100 overdrive also cut out the low end mud and the mid frequencies were smoother and the higher E and B strings on my guitar had a nice round tube tone without thin soundind harshness! I also tried the marshall codes internal OD and GVR pedal effects but the behringer TO100 sounded much better! Sorry for the long post but i hope that everyone who bought the marshall code 50 will try there own OD pedals and post a review to let everyone know if you think in improves the sound of your marshall code?

Marshall Code 50

By Michael from Houston on January 3, 2017

It's awesome, I love the Marshall sounds in particular the Silver Jubilee OD tone. The clean tones are great as well. I compared the American clean sound to my Fender Blues Jr and the Marshall's clean tone was very good. The price is great and as usual Sweetwater's customer service was awesome (shout out to Jake!).

best gift ever!

By bill price from virginia on January 1, 2017 Music Background: guitar, bass, tenor uke, chromatic harmonica (pop standards)

i never got to see it, but it arrived (as promised) on my son's doorstep on his birthday.

according to him, it is the best amplifier short of a more powerful marshall.

and he can control it thru his iphone!

very, very happy player!

(and adam c. is great!)

WOW is all I can say!

By Scotty Graves from Milpitas, CA on December 29, 2016

I have always wanted a Marshall, so the Code 50 jumped right out to me. The fact that I saved a bunch of money not having to buy a ton of pedals is awesome. I did buy the Marshall pedal recommended to go with the Code 50 it always me to run 4 presets with my foot. I also run a Slash Crybaby Wah for some extra tone control. I have a totally pro sounding rig all for under $! The Code 50 has so many different sounds and tones you will definitely find what your looking for. Of course I can't forget Sweetwater's amazing customer service, something I thought was almost dead. As long as they keep up this excellent standard of service, I will be a customers for life.

Positive update

By Peter Nelson from TN - Tennessee on December 24, 2016

Just an update. I am now at times using my Marshall Code 50 with it's abundance of controls as a pre-amp for my tube amps. It's actually better than my Wampler Plexi Drive Deluxe pedal that cost less than the Code 50 amp.

So I am saying at times I am using my Code amp as a "Pedal". I can now add Tremolo, different kinds of reverb, chorus, distortion, cabinet emulations, it also has a built in noise gate on the pre-set settings, etc., etc.
So in essence I have now a tremendous bunch of guitar "Pedals", probably a few thousand dollars worth - in this Code Amp. The amp modeler's such Bias Grid costs over a thousand dollars as do the other amp modelers. I paid $ and got a computer amp modeler, a 50 watt power section, a 12" speaker and a cabinet. If you spent only $ for the 25 watt Code amp you could be doing the same as I am.
If you only use it as an amp well just remember they are very loud for 25 and 50 watts. Very loud!

Code 50

By Scott from Wisconsin on December 10, 2016

Shipped quickly and arrived in pristine condition.Solid yet light weight.I have only had time to run through the extensive presets,but already found at least 10 presets that are superior to any sounds coming from other amps anywhere near this price range.Through my Les Paul,I almost feel guilty getting this kind of tone for this price.I truly don't get it.I almost feel like it should self destruct after a month for this price.Its like Marshall wants to crush the rest of the industry and gave away all their sounds cheap to do it.
Imagine your half stack sound cranked up,but because its digital...no hum or feedback.I can't wait to record with it.They already took the headaches out of that process.I will very likely be after the half stack version,and keeping the 50 in the studio.Like I said,just presets used so far.I have yet to tweak them or dig in.
Very cool amp,unbelievably priced.I have owned Peaveys,Randall,Fender,line 6,bugera 333xl, and this Code is easily better sounding than any of them.

Pleasantly suprised

By Peter Nelson from TN - Tennessee on November 27, 2016

I prefer the tone of tube amps and I have had around a half dozen of them. Lately, I have a personal problem that I always feel anxious when playing trough a tube amp because I feel that I should only use them for performing and not for practice. I practice all day long , every day so you can see that I worry about the tube life in all my amps. So, that leads me to Solid State amps. I have no problems leaving them on all day long, day after day. I also admit that I can enjoy the tone! I can practice as much as I wish with no worries. That's a good thing.
Anyway I thought I would try a "Modelling Amp" and I selected the Marshall Code. Honestly, I hated it at first! I thought it came with a broken speaker because it made that torn cone sound. Sweetwater was very nice and sent me a replacement. It had the same sound. So I realized that there was something going on here that I was not understanding. I still hated it. It turned out that there is a "gate" built into the pre-set channels and you can adjust it for each and every channel to control the "noise"-"feedback". I never had an amplifier with this feature and so in the beginning I hated the sounds coming from every channel.

I began to tinker in earnest with all of the settings on the Pre-set Channel No. 23 "Virus" mostly because I could not stand that channel and it would not bother me if I failed to make any improvements. It took a few day's but I finally got a real good tone. Now I am very glad that this amp has so many different adjustment parameters. I look forward to mastering as many of them as I can. I doubt that I will ever feel this Code 50 is holding me back musically. It sounds good too. I have a tone that I really like and this has made me happy about my purchase. Sometimes I look at the new Roland Cube Amps. I think that my Marshall Code 50 can sound just as "tube" amp like but it has a lot more going for it. The Code Amps can sound like many of your favorite Marshall amps and when it get's down too it, if you work at it you can get any tone you desire. What can possible be better than an amplifier that can do that?
I also find that I really like many of the pre-set channels. I had a Marshall JCM 900 with a Full Stack of 1960 A & B Cab's. That JCM 900 was hot rodded and I loved the 35 foot high wall of Marshall Rage it could unleash when run "dimed" at full volume! I used to turn around, and look up because it felt like I was at a Hawaiian Beach during a monster surf wave crashing around me. It also had incredible distortion and violin like sustain. I sold it for 2 reasons. It was making me lose my hearing and also I suffered an injury that actually prevented me from even holding a guitar for around 3-4 years. Worst mistake of my life. But, the Code 50 has pre-set no. 51 that is JCM 800 and Holy-Cow it reminds me of my old Marshall Rig. Loud and Proud! It's a keeper based upon that one pre-set channel in my book. But it has many, many more and a lot of them sound very good.
It's also nice to be able to have reverb, tremolo with a good set of control parameters. I think any possible "parameter"/control/effects that you can think of are already built in. You just need to set them to your personal taste.
You must understand I am a 66 year old guy who never had an amplifier with this much capability and I was avoiding learning about it. But I persisted and now I love the tones I can get from this amplifier. A complete 180 degree turn around on my part.
I very highly recommend the Marshall Code series amps if you are willing to do your part you will be rewarded with a tremendous amplifier.

Wonderful Amp

By Byron Strickland from CO on October 5, 2016

This amp really surprised me with its accurate emulation of so many of the classic amps. I've always been a Fender and Kustom amp man. Now I'm able to have so many of the great amp tones at my fingertips. Make that Cell Phone fingertips. So Cool..!!! The factory presets are to extremes for me. But there so easy to mod and save, that it's fun customizing each one. This is the best amp purchase I've made in a very, very long time. So well worth the killer budget price..!!!

Wow

By Ed from South Carolina on September 10, 2016 Music Background: Amateur musician

The Code 50 is one very cool and LOUD amp.
Thank you Sweetwater!

Best amp I have played

By Sweetwater Customer on August 28, 2016

Marshall did their homework for sure. This amp is great!!

Code 50 1x12

By David from Nashville on August 15, 2016 Music Background: 35 years of playing guitar

First off I want to say Thanks to Scott for the AMAZING service that he provided, I have been dealing with Sweetwater and Scott for several years and they are top notch when it comes to customer service.
I have had this amp for a few weeks now and it has exceeded my expectations, the presets are spot on and the FX are terrific, I have had several more expensive modeling amps over the years such as Vox, Peavy, Orange etc... The Marshall is the most accurate by far at recreating the actual "voice" of a particular amp, FX, cab, etc..it's response to pick attach is great as well as the ability to control all the parameters of the amp from my Android phone. You will not be disappointed with this amp.

Very Very Nice. Insane # of Options.

By AMK from Mn on August 13, 2016 Music Background: 35+ years

I bought the 25 code when it first came out and really liked it. The sounds of the presets are dialed in really close to the real thing as you can get or what you are looking for.. 100 presets, fury, plexi, jcm you name it it's on there and some. The best part is you can tweak it to your liking from the BT phone app or the controls. It's a closed back which I personally like. Sitting on a hardwood floor you get a nice tight bass and still get all the reverb /whatever you want to dial in. On a stand it's just as nice. The seller for me is you can get as close to the type of amp your trying to get, jtm , jvm, plexi, jcm, blues breaker. It's there. You should hear it miked up. I've been playing for a long time and I have owned them all. 35+years. The switch has yet to be shipped so hopefully that will make it one he'll of a unit. I have both amps on the phone, just turn it on and it connects to the amp that is powered on. You gotta respect peoples opinion, some aren't going to like it but for me this is exactly what I expected and wanted. These things scream and get soft and mellow a few clicks away. I really like the way these are going. Tube sound is there along with many more and you can change every little detail and lock it in to 1 of the 100 presets. Have the mustang. This one goes a step further. $250.00 for all of the tweaks and sounds is a great deal. 50 loud watts, downloads of others ideas on the way. Hey Dan I'm happy, Thanks.

Great amp but it’s not a 50 watt

By Lourens vd Berg on September 18, 2019 Music Background: Nova Baby

It"s a real great amp - I love the tones and it sounds great with my hollowbody. I did struggle with the low ends (but I had an old cheap low e string as a quick replacement on) and when I replaced my strings the problem solved itself ... haha.. I also had some issues with the mids, but I sat with it for a couple of hours and fixed it on all my presets.

Then..

This is not a 50 watt amp - at the back of mine it says 75 watts - I blew the stock speaker (50 watt 4ohm) within a week of purchase (without going past 40% in master volume + Volume + Gain) - and just ordered the Celestion Century Vintage 60 watt 16ohm ( I know the 16ohms will mean nothing to me because the Code 50 is a 4ohm amp - but I didn"t have any other choice than that, seen that I live in South Africa and don"t have many Celestion choices)

Overall I"m still very very happy with the sound - I"m not one for pedals, so I like the built in effects and I get a lot of compliments for my tones.

The amp keeps up real good in volume and strength with the Marshall Haze 40 and the Fender Champion 100.
The app works great for when I"m in band practice (I stand and sing in a booth and my amp is with the rest of the band) so I can set and change my effects without leaving the booth.

I just don"t understand why they would put a 50 watt speaker in a 75 watt amp..

Great Amp for $...

By Sweetwater Customer on June 24, 2019

For the money you can't go wrong with this amp. I've had this amp for a little over 3 months and love this thing. I play Blues and some Rock it been great for both and I'm sure would work for more than those.

My new Jazz Amp

By Peter Nelson from TN - Tennessee on May 15, 2018 Music Background: Classically Trained Violinist

Ha ha! I have had my Marshall Code 50 for a year and a half and never use any stock presets. I have been on the market for a new Jazz Amp. I already have a Fishman Loudbox Mini designed for acoustic guitars. It only has a 6-1/2" speaker and a 1" tweeter. I would like a 12" speaker. I have several Archtop Jazz Guitars that are electrified acoustic instruments and they sound great through that amp even though it's a 6-1/2" speaker. My Fender Jazzmaster also sounds great through the Loudbox Mini. Still I want a 12 inch speaker cab/amp-Jazz combo.
So tonight I tried setting up my Code 50 to sound exactly like the Loudbox Mini with my Jazz Archtops and also my Fender Jazzmaster. It only took me 5 tries, 10 minutes to get the exact same tone. Since I have owned the Marshall Code amp for a while I have learned a lot about making tone adjustments.
Ha ha, I have no need to spend any money on that new Jazz amp I wanted! The icing on the cake is that the Code 50 has built in Tremolo, Reverb and Delay-all with many, many adjustment parameters.
My Marshall Code 50 can be ANY amplifier I want it to be! It is that versatile.
Oh and it is the lightest weight amp that I own-like a feather! It says Code 50 but on the back it says 80 watts RMS. Plenty of power to play PLEXI tones for Jimi Hendrix or Cream (yes I'm older than you) and loud enough to rattle windows.

So far so good

By Ronald Dykman from Carthage, MO on March 19, 2018

I got this amp yesterday afternoon and messed around with it for a couple of hours. So far, I really like it and all the different settings. I haven't quite figured out the phone amp yet. As usual, my rep, Cassie, got it shipped out quick. Thanx again!

The Number one reason you should buy this amp, probably.

By Brian BOHN from San Mateo, CA on March 7, 2018 Music Background: Heartbreaker. Dream Maker. Don’t ya mess around with me.

Full story, I originally bought the Code25. Loved the high gain tones I got on presets 6 and 13...yet the sound—the tone wasn"t quite right. My #1 is a Vox AC30. I wanted something inexpensive, that would allow me to go from chicken picken Fender to J 800 heaven, yet be portable enough that if someone wanted to jam, that I didn"t need to build a pedalboard and hire a van. After talking to my SE Brian Hughes I realized...I loved the EL84"s and wanted that full saturated Marshall/Orange tone. Which can only come out of a 12 inch speaker. So, the answer is, "Yes, the price difference between the Code25 and Code50 is absolutely worth it " I don"t care if you are playing Metal, Bluss, crazy Johnny Marr Fender tones, or praising the Lord on Sunday. The Code50 is the real deal, and worth ever penny.

Nice modeling amp

By David Rubright from Solon, IA on January 22, 2018

Nice studio and practice amp. Works with bluetooth and your iOS or Android devices that also has bluetooth. I think it was worth the price. There are youtube videos to show you how it works. The interface on the iPhone is great. The tuner on the iPhone is less easy to use and less accurate than the one built in to the amp. There is a community of online users that share their presets. It has a mini 1/8 inch headphone jack for when you want to practice in silence.

Great!

By Graeme Swallow from Kansas City on January 17, 2018

Great little practice amp I bought for my wife and I to both be able to use. It's light weight so she can move it around the house when she wants. It's got plenty of options for dialing in good sounds for both her and my guitars, and plenty of preset spaces to save the adjustments we make.

On the negative side, the mids do seem rather harsh and difficult to dial down at times, but I bought it for a practice amp, not for my stage rig, so it's fine.

I'm glad I let my Sweetwater sales rep talk me up from the 10" version I was originally eyeing. I think that would have been too small. The bass response from this 12" version is good -- a little sloppy on the 7th string, but again it's just for practice when I'm too lazy to hook up my main rig, and my wife plays 6-string anyway.

Great Amp

By Tom Fowler on January 9, 2018

This is a great amp I really like it. So many options for sounds. The presets are just a starting point some are good as is. Most all need dialed in but that"s amps and music everyone has different tastes. I use mine for worship service and it"s the perfect size for gigs in medium large size venues. I call large 200 plus. I run mine through a condenser mic into the board. I thought about buying the 100amp Code but I"m glad I didn"t. The 50 is rather large it"s self and carting it around is all I would want. Oh by the way it"s loud it"s almost too much for a bedroom amp but I love it. The price is right, looks awesome, well built etc. The only beef I have with it is the on board tuner doesn"t work that great, at least on mine. It"s too slow and sometimes doesn"t even pickup the string. Idk what that"s all about but I"m ok with it. I use the Code App on my I pad which is awesome it changes to my presets quick and it"s very easy to use while playing on stage. I"ve had no problems with Bluetooth disconnecting or anything like that. Overall I think it"s awesome for what all you get and can do with it. Good job Marshall! Also Sweetwater is the only place to buy musical equipment. I ordered my amp on Thursday it came the next day free shipping can"t beat it. My sales engineer Dave Snow is always helpful at getting things expedited when you need them. All around great company! Thanks Seeetwater!

BREAKING THE CODE AND THE LAW, PRIEST STYLE

By Brett Warnelis from Orlando FL on August 27, 2017

I've been a rock guitarist since the 1980s. This is a fantastic digital amplifier and Marshall took their time with this very "musical" amplifier. I can understand some issues other players have with it. For me, I truly care about tone and value for the dollar these days. The Code 50 has both. With headphones it sounds amazing too! My sales engineer Chris Kress once again assisted me with a great deal. Thank you! I had my girl make me a black alligator skin amplifier cover for this baby too! Being able to adjust EACH preset is great fun. Don't be over analytical about it all. It's only $249 but my God, for the money it's a blast of hard rockin' fun. Be sure to reference youtube for "Marshall Code presets" from various players which I've enjoyed seeing. Many players sharing their excitement and knowledge in this digital age... Really happy with this purchase!!! BW

Great Amp

By Dwaine from OH on August 14, 2017 Music Background: since the mid 60's

Great amp.
Lots of different modeling sounds.
Fairly simple to navigate the different menus.
The cleanest sound isn't quite up to what I expect,
otherwise I would have made this a 5 star.

Great little amp!

By Patty on May 16, 2017

I have been playing for 26 years and have used lots of amps.This thing is great! Some of the presets are a bit muddy sounding, but once you figure this thing out you can tweak any of the settings you don't like and create new settings. There's a bit of a learning curve if you're used to pedals. Overall this is a great value if you don't want to break the bank and want a solid amp for home use or club use

Wonderful!!

By johnc from wesatern mass usa on May 9, 2017

Initial usage..very disappointed..most presets sounded buzzy..came close to returning, but then sat down and setup a few of my own presets. turned it into my favorite amp!!.BUT...there is a glitch...when holding down the save button to save a setting, sometimes the amp will go into "silent mode" and the only way out is to turn off then on to reboot...not a big deal as the amp comes back instantly with the setting saved..so once you have all your tones set and dont need that save button...no more of that..just great tones.
.I added a dual 110v outlet on the back to power my pedal board. Then pulled the front spkr board and trimmed all four edges with a table saw. remounted the grill cloth, then mounted a pc of sheet metal that was painted with textured black paint to resemble the tolex near the top to look like the bluesbreaker amps. final touch was white vynyl pipping all around and Voila!...my very own, one of a kind "CODBREAKER 50"...i want the code 100 combo when its out....because they keep moving bak the available date..i assume they are working on that glitch....no matter i'd buy one with the glitch these are just that good..

New Code 50

By Sweetwater Customer on April 16, 2017

Great for home or live gigs , has many options too list ,
Marshall app to run this Code 50 w/iPad -iPhone is Spectacular!!!

Marshall code 50 amp

By Dave Kubasiak from Grand Rapids. Mich on April 4, 2017

Great amp. It cranks. Does all it said and more. Clean all the way to mass overdrive. Still learning All the stuff it can do. If anything it does to much. But I'll be learning for a long time. That's the way it is. The more you learn. The more you realize how much you don't know.

Marshall Code 50 - 50-watt 1x12" Digital Combo Amp

By Todd from Louisiana on February 9, 2017 Music Background: Jamming strong for over 20 years

Awesome Amp. Marshall continues to impress. I've been playing Marshall for 20 years. This was my first stab at a modeling amp...and honestly I'm glad I took the leap. Awesome Service as always from the Sweetwater Crew. Thanks to Sean who has been and continues to be a professional. I'm not sure why anyone would choose to shop someplace else.

Marshall Code IS AWESOME

By Ben Larson from Myrtle Beach SC on February 5, 2017

What a great Amp, technology has come a long way! Lots of amps to choose from and very easy to select to make your own sounds and preferences. Very Loud as well, great for practice and small shows.

Hate/love it

By Frank C Deitsch from South Carolina on January 19, 2017

When I first got this amp at my customer reps recommendation I hated it, and wondered why in every review I watched or read everyone was gaga about this amp. Then I started going through the presets via the app tweaking here and there to my tastes and likes, and low and behold I started to see why those that love this amp do. Yes it takes some patience and experimentation to get it and the sounds to your own personal tastes, but what guitar, amp, effects pedal or rack doesn't these days? Then there's the real bonus you save your tweaks into your device and your ready to go gig. Also the money this amp saves you in effects is just the icing on the cake. So needless to say I now definitely love this amp, being a blues musician for more years than I care to admit, this amp has added new dimensions in my sounds and tones I'd have to spend thousands of dollars to get. Thank for recommending it Chris Neyman.

Love It

By AJ MAAHS from Wisconsin on January 8, 2017

Great Amp in a a small package. Thur the years I've played just about every amp from big amps with stacks to small combos. This amp with it's modeling and built in effects has all I need from clean tones to dirty and everything in between. Suitable for any type of music from clean country, nice jazz tones to rock and blues with just a flip of the switch. Very powerful, Think you need more then 50 watts then go for the code 100 and Rock On !!

Super Impressed

By Cuzo from NJ on December 16, 2016 Music Background: Pro 30+ Years

I have been a tube snob for some time. I have an 82 JCM 800 2204, JVM 205h, JVM 410HJS, Blackstar HT60 2x12 and a HT20 Head. Different rig for most places.

I am currently in 3 bands 2 do heavy stuff. One is true Classic Rock. The drummer has an electronic kit and the 1960 4x12 with any of the Marshall's or the Blackstar stuff is out of the question because I can't turn up past 1 or the room get's unbalanced and quite frankly, all sound thin that low. This band tends to play lounges too with no room.

I took a chance on this amp because some of the clips I saw it sounded decent. Out of the box the presets IMHO stink. I am not sure who programs them, but they make the amp sound like crap. My guitars are pretty high end, mostly Gibson and once you turn down all the gain, reverb and delay on the preset you get a decent sound. I am really crazy about the Bluesbreaker and JTM45. I tried two pedals in front and it works well with them. I tried a Tube Screamer Clone and a BossSD-1. I cant stop playing this thing.

I am not crazy about the JCM 800 or JVM models because of the over-the-top gain. Even with the gain down they sound thin.Your mileage may vary.That is just my take. The Bluetooth connection is finicky with a couple android devices i have but I can live with it just to get it programmed.

At this price point I am stoked I can get a couple different tones. The Bluesbreaker seems to have that sag and gets creamier when you roll the the volume pot up. The American cleans have plenty of headroom and sound pretty **** good. I bought the foot switch with this but it is on back order.

I think any band that has this kind of setup where you don't need the power of a valve will find this amp more than adequate. I guess it would do well in a worship band too.This thing cleans up nice. I guess it is a Class D power amp like most stuff these days. It gets pretty loud.

I do have to add that I have a floor tilt back stand and if the amp is sitting on the ground or carpet it tends to make it sound like ***. On the stand it sounds amazing. I can't believe it. Glad I took a chance.

Excellent!

By Greg Landstrom from Sky Valley CA on December 11, 2016 Music Background: Semi-Pro Working Musician

I got this amp to replace my 25watt pracice amp, it sounded ok but had only one sound. The Marshall CODE 50 is super flexible and is loud enough to do any gig with a house PA. I am drawn to preset 00 EL 34Heaven, and preset 69 Silver Jubalee Delay. Both sound outstanding,and give you a real Marshall amp tone and experience. Even my wife says I sound better playing through this amp than any other. the effects sound great and the tones sound REAL. for the money there is no better amp out there

Awesome Amp

By David Pinkerton from New Jersey on December 2, 2016

As Uncle Ted would say..."Just what the Dr Ordered" !!! Sweet amp, fantastic service (Thanks Aaron)!

Very nice package of versatility

By David J from Houston Area on October 25, 2016 Music Background: 40+ years of playing

First off it's a Marshall, that sounds like many different amps. This thing will get plenty loud for an average gig. It is light weight and easy to transport doing just what I was looking for. The controls are easy to use with so many options that you can fine tune any sound to be just the way you want it. The many options can be utilized while taking time to "dial in" just the right effect you desire. I have only had it for two weeks, which is not nearly long enough to try out every mind blowing adjustment. The demonstration videos that Sweetwater has provide very useful needed information on how to set up this amp to be your own. I hope they keep this information available on line for quite some time because the written instructions that come with are not as clear, Don't let the Sweetwater low price scare you away, this thing really rocks. There are a few minor details I would wish were different such as no amp cover is available, no corner protectors are provided for durability, and the control knobs are located on the top of the unit. Sweetwater as always, is straight up the best on line music gear provider out there, with the best most helpful staff!

Marshall Code

By David Hughes from Willits on September 27, 2016 Music Background: Jamming Man

Cool little amp...Many effects...You can't buy a pedal for 250.00 what this little dude does...Light weight and loud...Fun...needs an speaker out and a direct out.

Remarkable performance and value

By Dave from Denver on September 22, 2016 Music Background: Professional touring musician

I ordered this and a VOX VT100X at roughly the same time as I was looking to get a different sound for practice and small gigs. Both are fine but I find myself coming back to the CODE 50 more often. The Marshall models are dead on, the smartphone app is easy to use, and the amp kicks out plenty of air while being surprisingly lightweight. It's not going to provide incredibly high-gain models, but if your genre involves utilizing models of Marshall products, you're not going to do much better than this for the price. I knocked off half a star only because the combo does not come with a speaker out for use with a cabinet - which is a shame, as some of these models really deserve to be heard through a 2x12 or 4x12. Otherwise, a highly recommended product.

Great for practice/rehearsal

By Kerry from New York on September 15, 2016 Music Background: Living Room Rocker

Now that I have spent some time with the amp I really like it. It's perfect for the family room as being a modler the tone stays the same regardless of how low you have the overall volume and you have the headphone jack for those late nights when everyone else is asleep. The bluetooth connectivity is great for jamming along with iTunes or many other "practice" based apps such as Jam Tracks or Beats. There are also many backing tracks available on iTunes as well. It's much louder than I anticipated and could probably hold up in a rehearsal setting or small gig. As for the tones the majority seem spot on. I really like the Plexi and JTM45. Very dynamic and touch sensitive for Digital. The JVM, JCM & Silver Jubilee are great ballsey rock/metal monsters. Even the American tones hit the mark really well clean and dirty. The DSL however is somewhat brash and fizzy and the british class A power section is very boomy and bassy to the point where you have to dial back the bass almost all the way to get the lower strings to ring out. Otherwise I'd have given it 5 stars. The effects selection is good and they all have enough depth in parameters to really dial them in. The interface is very intuitive and I was able to master making changes and dial in tones quite quickly. The app is very easy to work with as well. It really works well for what I wanted as a family room amp always there to fire up whenever the mood strikes. I am now realizing its potential goes well beyond that.

As for Sweetwater I give them 10
Stars. I originally ordered the discounted demo unit which arrived quickly and on a Saturday, but DOA. A quick call to customer service that day and a brand new unit arrived in a couple days more with a return lable for the dead unit inside. Kudos to Sweetwater and Lucas for there great customer service!

Code 50

By David Buyarski from Wyoming, PA on August 29, 2016

I have my code 50 for about a month now and here are my thoughts so far.......
When it arrived and I took it out of the box, I thought it felt like a toy due to its lack of weight. Not sure how this would fare in a gigging atmosphere, but I bought it as a practice amp so I could leave my Mark V in my studio. Using it like this I can't wipe the smile off my face for such a small but loud amp! Factory presets have way too much of the noise gate dialed in. Once you dial it down, and make your own adjustments, WOW!!! Really. This thing sounds fantastic. The 800, the Jubilee, the JTM45........... Instant grin. No idea how they did this for $250. Still some bugs to work out with the Bluetooth, but most issues I had were when the amp was near another Bluetooth device. When I moved the amp, all was good. The only reason I didn't give this a 5 star was simply because its so light, I'm not sure how durable it would be in a gigging scenario. But if you're looking at this for what I was, a practice amp, you will be very pleased. And I keep thinking "I paid more for my Bogner Red pedal"!!!! Incredible bang for the buck. It's not as 'in your face ' as a tube amp, but when you're just wailing in Madison Square Basement, it sounds GREAT!!

marshall code 50

By jimmy on July 8, 2016

very nice amp but some of the presets you will probably never use it does take some time to deal with, with all the settings when you have to do some tweaking but for the money you can't go wrong very loud amp
again thanks to matt and all at sweetwater

Good value in the right usage

By Thomas from Maine on October 3, 2023 Music Background: Professional guitarist for 48 years.

I've played for 42 years in bands and carried every answer to think of from the heaviest combos to Marshall stacks. 95% tubes. But in the last five years in the band I'm currently in (where we run everything through the board including miking my amplifier), I got a little tired of carrying around amplifiers that weighed a hundred pounds. First of all for me the good news is that 50 watts is more than enough power. Having a closed back speaker enclosure took a little getting used to. When I first got the amp I sat down for 2 days and tried every preset and also tweaking them. My pedal board is so well tuned to my Telecaster and my Stratocaster that I'm spoiled. So the last four hundred gigs, I've used the amp with totally clean channel, with my pedals. I change effects on the fly including during a song and it just took too long to use the foot pedal and change the presets. Pros: very inexpensive amp and it plays well with my pedals and the clean channel is plenty loud and even our female singer will carry it and put it in the trailer because the weight is very reasonable. Lastly, if for some reason this thing breaks or falls off the trailer and is destroyed it's only about 300 bucks no big deal. Cons: just my personal taste but not one of the presets sounded good to me. Using a foot pedal to scroll through them just takes too long for my shows.

Playing gigs

By Jamie from NC on December 6, 2020 Music Background: Professional

I have the Code 50. At first it was a little hard to use at gigs. Then I bought the programmable foot switch that goes with it. I LOVE my code 50. The band I'm with opened for Stryper and their guitar tech came on stage to check it out. I had a SM57 in front of it and it sounded fantastic. So,the answer, yes. You can use it to play gigs....

Noodlin round

By Glenn Meyer from White Haven, Pa, US on May 20, 2020 Music Background: Drummer, bass, and guitar.

Picked up this amp used, pristine condition, with fs for 200. Im 55 and was tired of luggn around 100 pd amps. Im totally impressed with this amp. My only complaint is the screen is to small to see. A larger screen, maybe in front of the handle, for us sight challenged, would be a plus!!! Ide buy 2.

Marshall Code 100 Combo wow!

By Rayray from . on June 22, 2019 Music Background: Extensive

I've been playing guitar for 47 years. My first gigging amp was a Peavey 400w Musician with a Flying V.
Loved the guitar but the amp wasn't what I wanted.
Got a 100w Carvin full stack tube amp and found my tone and style. My last tube amp was the Marshall 50w Vintage Modern 2-12" Combo.
Fast forward to today, sold my tube amps a few years ago but kept 7 guitars and wanted another amp to let me feel the sound. Looked around and saw a lot of talk about the new CODE amps.
Intrigued, I watched all the YouTube videos I could find and was impressed with the versatility of the CODE as well as the tone.
Lots of modeling amps out there will give you a Marshallesque tone, may be a Plexi or a JCM but not much more, worse they aren't very dynamic, touch sensitive unlike the CODE. The code kinda reminds me of my Vintage Modern with my old 59 LPJr.
Roll the guitar volume back and those KT66 tubes cleaned up like a Fender, dime the guitar and wham, creamy tube distortion that was to die for
While the CODE can't replicate the VM amp, it's close enough for me to enjoy my style of playing.
The separate preamps and power amps are sheer genius! The effects are gig worthy and not sloppy at all. The amp Bluetooth gateway is way cool and works great with my iPad.
I prefer the tone of a two speaker combo and the 100w combo doesn't disappoint plus you get a Footswitch included and an external speaker out plus a real effects loop.
I was pleased with many stock presets, others are nothing useful but you can tweak it all you want or go download presets made by others.
Don't forget to experiment with the cabinet Sims. I think they are pretty good with headphones or USB out but I often disable the cab Sims when playing the amp.
I got a crazy cheap demo deal on the 100w combo. now that I have it, it's worth the list price. Sweetwater was the best, Musicians Friend jacked me around for over a month with the same amp on sale, never could deliver. Sweetwater hooked me up with a full factory warranty plus their two year warranty. I love it and this is the last amp I'll likely buy and don't regret it a bit

Great modeling amp for the price

By Sirena from Denver on August 6, 2018 Music Background: Guitarist, and EDM producer

It's a great amp, but I wouldn't say I'm blown away by it. I love the portability and versatility of it. It's very loud, sounds great, but I wish it could be connected to another cab, and maybe had an FX loop, but it being a modeling amp with built in FX I can see why there's no loop. This amp is great for a small gig, or bedroom practice, but beware that it can be very loud.

Code 50

By Sweetwater Customer on March 14, 2018

This amp has great tone. Great for studio recording or just jammin with or without friends. This amp gets loud so it would definitely work in a gig situation. I really love the different pre and power amps. Plexi sounds amazing!

marshall code 50

By Bill from Missouri on December 5, 2017 Music Background: playing for 20yrs

nice amp, loud, many effects and settings, great for practice and gigs

Marshall Code 50

By Lefty from Oregon on August 10, 2017 Music Background: semi retired bar band pro

I give it 4 star,s because it is great for what it,s intended to be. After hearing almost everywhere how it sounds like farts , and should be sold at Toy s R Us , I went and tried one myself. You wont be blown away by how good it sounds, at least , if you are, well , I wasnt. But what I did find was , like any other low end modeller in it,s price range , you can acheive some very realistic , and usable pre-sets , and combinations with it. The JTM45 model is really quite good , more than adequate for a grab n go amp , for practice , or , what I mostly use it for , back yard jams. Heres a thought.........if you already have a little combo , tube or SS, run it in stereo along with one of these.....you will be happy. I ran mine along with an old Vox AD50 VT I ,ve had for years at my buddys Anniversary party this last weekend , and both he and the other musicians were really impressed with the sound of it , especially what it added to the already good Vox sound. One last thing, if you can , listen to just about any guitar gods ISOLATED Marshall track on any song.......it,s really not all that "pretty" is it? high mid bordering on ice pick land......thats what Marshalls do best, and this lil guy is pretty darn close for what it is.....a low buck practice type amp..............I could easily gig with this and the Vox and only be carrying two small suitcases in, at the same weight as one tube combo , ....I,ll take the stereo mix for 500 Alex. Dont be fooled by the factory pre sets (which like most in this price range, ) arent all that and a bag of chips. Footswitch is pricey tho, and , like most of these , you need it for playing on the fly...it does function well however. This one has a forever home , and she,s in good company (my tube amps have grown to like her.they get more breaks now \m/ :) \m/ Thanks again Sweetwater!

Great Amp!

By evelio valle from New Jersey on July 21, 2017

I replaced the speaker with GSW Veteran 30. Love this amp more.

madmike

By michael anderson from Wisconsin on April 11, 2017

ive just gotten my marshall code 50, and at first i wasnt sure, the presets didnt sound all that great. So i started to mess with sound and i got to say this amp sounds great. i now have some awesome tone and the amp works great, shout out to Will at sweetwaters thankyou very much, im happy with the amp. I did notice if you put this amp on amp stand it vibrates really bad but when i put it back on the floor it sounded great. I also wanted to download the gateway app and it told me i needed a newer android phone which was a bummer i paid good money for my phone, but considering all that the amp is awesome sounds great and a little power house. IM dead serious people if you havnt ordered from sweetwaters you are missing out, these people are by far the best in the business hands down. thankyou so much and until the next time take care.

Pleasantly Surprised

By A. Swisegood from Indian Lake Estates, FL on March 29, 2017

For Marshall's first modeling amp I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised at the tones and features packed into the Code 50 for the price. Most of the presets are vary usable. It is not overloaded with effects, nor does it have the infinite tweaking capability like some modelers. What it does have is the majority of good sounding tube amps and cabs that you need. The onboard effects are usable, but not overwhelming in number. The Gateway app is incredibly flawed and lack luster. It is not even close to say the Line 6 Amplify app. This is offset by the fact that the amp controls are so incredibly simple to use. It does nor have an output option, nor a separate effects loop. Furthermore the foot board is limited in presets and lacks an expression pedal. These things can all be overlooked because of the impressive price and great tones that this amp can help you produce. With a few improvements the Marshall Code line of modeling amplifiers could be far superior to any other amps of this ilk.

code 50

By jeffrey johnson from Washington on December 16, 2016 Music Background: just a jammer...

for the $s its very cool, seems to have glitch once in a while but what do i know. i'm a truck driver. seems to clear itself by turnin off the power and turn it right back on. looking inside of it is really interesting, theres hardly anything in it. which explains the price...

the code is cool

By monte meade from Oregon on June 16, 2016

I can't believe the quality sounds I'm getting out of the code. Some of the presets are kind of gimmicky but for the price point it is simply amazing. The display screen on top is a bit hard to see when the amp is on a amp stand or elevated above knee high but being able to adjust and dial in presence, resonance and the other classic Marshall tweaks are nice. If you are on a budget, a beginner or not ready to dish out big bucks for an amp, the Code may be the way to go.

Hmmmmmmm.....Not Sure

By Bruce from North Carolina on August 13, 2020 Music Background: Amature

Overall I like the amp. Love that I can connect and make changes via Bluetooth. I'm a novice player, and to me the amp sounds muffled. I bought a amp stand to put it on and that seemed to help a bit. My son loves it. Myself, not so much. Other than sound, I don't care for the controls on the top. I knew that going in though, so that's on me. I don't like that the front can't be removed. I like looking at the raw speaker(s) in amps/speakers/etc.

Hindsight being 20/20, I wish I would have went with something different. Thankfully, my son enjoys it, since he will use it a lot more than I ever will.

Price(decent)
Sound(a bit disappointing, I expected better being Marshall)
Controls(need to be on front of cab)
Looks(panel needs to be removable)

Good for what it is

By Joe from New York on January 6, 2019

This is a nice amp for the living room. It looks nice and is great when it comes to its wireless controls using the Marshall Gateway app on your phone or tablet. Where this amp falls short is in its speaker. The sound gets muddy pretty fast. I also don"t like how the volume is controlled or uncontrolled. Each setting has its own volume setting. There is a master volume but it"s not much help. This amp needed to be a bit more like a classic solid state amp with some of its controls. I don"t hate it but I"m also not satisfied with it 100%. I wish I went with the Boss Katana in hindsite but I wanted a better looking amp because it is always on display in my living room.

Cracking the code

By Nigel Trueman from Florida on June 16, 2017

The Marshall Code 50 is a lot of fun to play with and the Amp itself (albeit not a tube amp) seems to have the usual Marshall quality finish. I do have a few issues though:
1. The USB is not man enough, its a tiny socket (as used on cameras) that will surely break and leave the owner with an expensive repair. Also for some reason most of my existing usb leads will not work with it and many people have reported similar issues.
2. The way the AMP interfaces with the website to change downloadable tones is absolutely useless. A 5 year old could have done a better job. This would be easy for them to change without any change to the AMP at all, so why haven't they done it? I was going to buy the CODE head unit when available too but will not now do that because of this basic problem. Test this out before you buy. Anyone out there want to write an after market application that does a better job of this?
3. Watch out if you play music on your PC because it can automatically switch to the CODE Amp for audio output via the plugged in usb. Unexpected music out of a Marshall while it was on loud is a real shocker.
Having said all that once you have your tones how you want them it seems to work fine and sounds good. I'm deducting 1 point for useless tone administration.

Great Value

By Tom from Bangor, Maine on February 23, 2017

Have played every amp type in my 40 years of playing. I play Telecasters, Artcores and a Strat. My amp for the last three years has been a Bugera Infinium tube amp,100 watts RMS, 2x12", a loud kick*** amp. But HEAVY. I wanted something to take to smaller club gigs, since we mic the amps through the PA. Even the drummer will pickup my 38 pound Marshall lol. What a relief!

I hated it the first few days, the presets sounded bad with every guitar. Scratchy, high end, distortion, and low end thump/mud. I was discouraged. I began to tinker with a few presets, but am busy and didn't have time to fool much with them. I watched endless Youtube videos for tips. I then decided, for now, to make the cleanest channel I could, and use my pedal board. So I run this amp with NO presets, amps, preamps, nothing turned on. Clean and turned up to 10. It's JUST enough to work onstage with my 5 piece band.

I have distortion, overdrive, chorus, reverb, digital delay, tremolo, and wahwah pedals. All sound great through the amp. I also use a LPB-! EHX booster pedal, for lead, to be able to be heard above the band.
I am too busy to keep turning around trying to find presets, buttons, and other FX on a dark stage. I did order the foot pedal 6 months ago. Still back ordered. So for me, the amp is useless other than leaving it on clean and using my pedals, which is what I have done.

The amp has survived 100 gigs since I bought it. For the money, it's fine. It's light. I still use the Bugera for BIG jobs. But once I found a nice clean channel, this thing actually sounds great.

CON: NO line out, FX loop, or other bells and whistles, but I work around those.

Good bug buggy

By Tom Swanson from Bloomington, MN on October 25, 2016

The sounds of this amp are very good. Surprising number of good presets right out of the box.
It is loud and pretty easy to use from the panel.
Reverb sound great.
Not a big fan of the sound of any of the modulation effects other than the flanger.
The noise gate is really nicely done. It works and you really don't know it is there. Doesn't feel like it is choking the guitar.
Limited distortions and you can do a compressor or an OD pedal but not both.
No fuzz pedal emulation.
Works well with distortions and boosts in front of the amp. (The mustang I had would clip easily.)
Fairly sensitive to how you play.
No desktop app to control it.

Some failings (with my amp at the time of this review)...

Bluetooth app likes to disconnect. This was a problem with both android and ios.
Bluetooth app is twitchy and not particularly intuitive.
Make enough changes (either via the app or via the amp interface) and the amp can stop outputting until you power cycle it. All the controls continue to work but no sound.
USB was a problem for me. It would work on one machine but not another.

Net...

Sounds great and is cheap. Get the pedal it makes it better.

Marshall has a long warranty so I'm not terribly concerned about any teething pains.

Jack of all trades and master of none.

By Carlo Balboni from Alameda, CA on March 22, 2024 Music Background: Been in local bands my whole life.

This amp has all you need and can give you a simulation of almost any amp tone with a dozen built in effects. It works well if you don't want to buy pedals and want everything you need in one amp. It a good beginner amp if you are comfortable with a some technology. I laughed at changing settings on the amp by using my phone but ended up finding it useful. I spent hours designing my own custom sounds. In the end I returned it because it was good but not great. I ended up buying a simple tube amp. No screens, no scrolling through menus, no bluetooth and only 3 tones instead of 100 to use live. I will take 3 great tones over 100 mediocre tones. So one star if you want to use pedals and need the perfect warm tube tone and five stars if you want to have everything you need in one amp.

No What I Expected

By Thomas Williams from Perkinston, MS on June 7, 2023

I've owned quite a few guitar amp combos in my lifetime. Needless to say, knowing good sound is not an issue. This unit is great for a beginner but, for a seasoned pro, I would not recommend. It's an ok amp but, not for me.

Nice..but

By Chris Hess from OH - Ohio on February 3, 2020

Love the punch,but if old school and technology impaired,hard to figure out,lousy directions included, I have to you tube to figure it out, especially the effects and program into footswitch

WAY Too Much Tweaking Needed

By ajbstrat from MD - Maryland on April 19, 2017 Music Background: Amateur, past gigger (in a previous life)

THE first thing I expect in any modeller is for the inventory of presets to be basically usable right out of the gate, with of course various degrees of tweaking for some of them. The Code 50 i had was loaded with about the worst set of patches i've ever worked with. 75% of them required immediate EQ'ing just to be playable. With the various other options in the amp, after a while i just gave up because if you have to work this hard to make this thing sound decent, it ain't worth it. I did like the "Bluebreakers" patches (in the 40's i think) .... the underlying model was actually pretty nice. Also the JTM45 patches were decent. And of course, there were the requisite patches that are "fun" to toy around with, like that Steve Stevens patch, or one or two funky sounds with an envelope filter effect. But overall, this amp was pretty much a disaster for me and a waste of my time. I will say that i was very impressed with the build quality of the cabinet/speaker, and the loud bottom it could support for the heavier patches, with NO flub, rattles or buzzes at all. THAT was surprising, so kudo's to Marshall for designing and building a high quality cab. For the price of this amp, you really can't "complain" .... even if you end up with only a small handful of usable patches, i suppose it's still a bargain.

Code 50

By James Wilson from SC on December 17, 2016

I would rate the Code 50 higher but for the Wifi. Wifi connection is terrible in any platform. It just won't work right consistently, spotty at best. Can be trusted for gigging that's for sure. The amp patches are all adjustable to need and quality of the sound I'd great. Throw the Wifi out or fix it Marshall! Iam going the the foot pedal when they come in.

Incredibly realistic tones, but ...

By Mike from Paducah on October 6, 2016 Music Background: Professional amateur

If you want incredible digital recreations of popular Marshall amps without having to pay the big bucks, the Code series of combo amps will do the job quite nicely.

Easy enough to tweak new presets at the amp, but if computer connectivity is what you want, don't bother. Even Peavey's Vypyr series has better connectivity, and compared to anything Line 6 ... these amps are extremely low I.Q. Terrible.

Do your homework. There is a list of legitimate technical issues/complaints. Some have been addressed, some have not. I find Marshall to be one very incompetent company when compared to virtually everything Line 6, and especially their modeling amps. The Code series of amps were obviously released too soon and with little regard for existing design inadequacies and technical defects. The name Marshall carries a lot of weight ... and disappointment for some new owners of problematic amps.

If you want the most realistic Marshall tones, you will not find them in any other modeling amp/device. This is THE one!

Could be better, but has lots of customization

By James U from Oregon on November 9, 2022 Music Background: Returning Guitarist

A main selling point of this amp is the massive amount of presets, but unfortunately they are almost all unusable and feel comedically included. A huge amount of them are the same preset but with things such as reverb or compression added, which you could just add yourself in the app. There is no TRULY clean preset with 0 effects unless you create one yourself. It's been a truly difficult experience getting playable tone out of this thing. I will say that the Bluetooth connected app works pretty well but does crash occasionally.

I bought this to replace a broken Katana but sadly wish I had just purchased another one. I threw out the box and cannot return this amp.

Not for me

By Mike from RI on June 28, 2016 Music Background: Amateur musician

I received the Code 50 and played it for a couple days. I know everyone is very excited to get their hands on them, and for the price, it's difficult to complain. But I really was not that big a fan of this amp. First off, the presets sounded quite terrible regardless of what guitar I used. No big deal since people end of tweaking them anyways. Well, the interface for making adjustments also doesn't really flow very well. There are so many things to adjust (which some may view as a positive), but diagnosing and then fixing the tone issues takes a long time. I ended up playing with the settings far longer than I did playing guitar. Another thing I didn't like was that it would occasionally freeze and have to be restarted. This usually occurred when saving a new preset. I've played a Mustang III and the VT40x and prefer either over the Code. I'm sure most Marshall and non-Marshall fans will be satisfied with this product, but it does have its shortcomings. It does get loud, so you very well could gig with it if you wanted to. I do not think I would because I do not like the tones and do not really trust it to perform. The service from Sweetwater was second to none however and this review/rating in no way reflects them.

Review after 2 1/2 years

By TomJ from USA on February 13, 2023 Music Background: Guitar player

I had Line 6 experience and wanted a simpler all-in-one modeling combo with a bluetooth app that could do hard rock. The Katana looked like a toy so I bought this.
PROS: Solid construction. Looks great. Good range of amps and effects. Bluetooth app is very good and can tune every parameter. Tones can be downloaded and backed up to/from Marshall site. Amp can sound very good (after a lot of tweaking). The Plexi, American OD, JTM Crunch and Acoustic amps are good. The Guv'nor, Compressor, Chorus, noise gate and all the delays and reverbs are useable. Marshall has done sufficient software updates to correct early issues (bluetooth, tones, bugs). Can be used at bedroom volume with Master on '1'. Optional footswitch gives good control. Documentation is good. Updater software on PC works well.
CONS: Other than those mentioned above, all the other amps and effects are bad. This includes the JCM800, JVM and Silver Jubilee. All the cabs are bad. None of the stock patches are usable. You have to make your own. There are user uploaded patches you can try but very few are usable. Learning curve is significant. The amp is too loud. When you turn up from bedroom level to louder, the sounds change and become very boomy which should not happen with a modeling amp. No effects loop. The 'out' is a mini USB. Connecting to a computer requires a mini USB to USB or Lightning cable, which is not included. I tried to use the USB to record to Garageband and sound came out but I couldn't make it sound good.
ADVICE: Don't buy it. I bought my Code 50 new from Sweetwater for $ and now the same version of the amp is $. Katana and Catalyst cost less.
If you must, upgrade all the firmware immediately. You need to connect to a computer to do this, but first you have to find the cable on Amazon. Also, get the 25 instead. It is cheaper and still stupidly loud. The higher volume available in the 50 is useless. It is stupidly ridiculously painfully loud and sounds horrible turned up.
BOTTOM LINE: I have spent too many hours tweaking the Code. This is what I hated about Line 6. I never got a good JCM 800 sound out of the Code, after hundreds of hours of work. It's only "great" amp sim, oddly, is the American OD. Marshall's own Classic Metal patch uses this, not a "Marshall" sim! The Code is marketed as Marshall technology with amp sims created by Marshall, but it is not. Softube created the software and tones. This is not a Marshall amp.
I have now bought a tube amp. I am keeping the Code because I have mastered it and can practice on it but I would not buy it again, certainly not for $.

Review - Good and the Bad

By George Salas from Madison, WI on August 17, 2018 Music Background: Professional Session Guitarist / Public School Music Teacher

I've had this amp for about 3 months now and I'm going to be 100% honest about how I feel thus far.

I am a session guitarist. I've written music with Khalid (Pop Artist), John Karpowich (Producer - Carlos Santana) and many other rising artists as well as writing my own solo album. I also teach music in a local school district.

The GOOD things:
-This amp can record direct
I LOVE the fact that I can lay down tracks from where I live and send them anywhere in the world SILENTLY. It sounds DECENT enough to pass for a demo although I wouldn't say good enough to be on a final product.

-Saving Presets on many channels
Pretty cool idea for those who want versatility! Get the footswitch to unlock all the capabilities though!

-LIGHT, LIGHT, LIGHT
Did I mention this thing is light?

-Loud enough for a gig
Yes, it's crazy loud.... I don't think I've ever gone past 12 o'clock on the volume

Now the BAD
-It just doesn't sound that good
I have tweaked and tweaked... It's just not convincing me. I love Marshall amps. This one just has a weird frequency that a tube Marshall does not. I've heard better sounding solid state amps. I can't find a good rhythm...

-Bluetooth and USB connections are always going in and out
I always have one problem or another when editing my sound via bluetooth on the phone (btw, that is a neat feature if it would work better).

-Footswitch is cool but just couldn've been better.
Looks and feels kind of cheap. It also goes in and out when connected via bluetooth and/or usb

-Live use sounds different than bedroom use
This is kind of obvious and happens with all amps but I've never experienced it as dramatic of a change as I did from the CODE. I played ONE gig with it and the tone was so bad, I had to completely edit everything as fast as I could via the unstable bluetooth app...

OVERALL
This is a good amp for an average guy. I wanted to try it out but, if I could, I would have just gone with the DSL or JVM. Don't let all the bells and whistles fool you, save a bit more and get the DSL or JVM. It's a cute amp for a bit but, if you want a pro sound, save a bit more!

Remember you get what you pay for

By G Birch from DC on April 3, 2017 Music Background: over 40 years of playing all over the US

First thing I did was get rid of the crappy speaker that comes with it. REMEMBER you can only use a 4 ohm speaker. The sounds are close and if you really want to spend a ton of time tweeking everything it may actually sound like a decent amp but as for me it will never leave the bedroom for just practicing with myself.
I use a Line 6 Flextone III for stage and this amy cant even come close to that.
I see Marshall has delays on ordering their 100 watt systems and there's a reason for that.
They will be looking at the reviews of this amp to decide if they even want to continue this amp

As someone said

By Whitey Marsh on December 19, 2016 Music Background: Long enough to know better

The Code 50's price and name is alluring but that is about it.

If you are interested in these types of products be sure to check out competition.

Current flaws with this product include:
Locking up while in Edit Mode and no Firmware Support for Mac users. Window users seem to have their own complaints.

Marshall's support blog claims to be aware of these "known" problems and they are working on them - since at least October 2016.

Be aware - all 100 Presets are editable but you must over write an existing Preset to save the change.
If you "reset" the amp - your changes are lost.
The Code 50 is not as flexible as some of the competition.

The Gateway App (iPhone, iPad) worked as advertised.

On the Positive Side - easy to configure, loud, light, affordable and my cat likes to sleep on it.

Not Completely Baked at this time

By Robert Birch from Orlando, FL on October 12, 2016 Music Background: Guitar/Bass

I have been using Fender Mustang Amps for past few years. I really enjoyed the amps and their supporting software (Fuse) which ran on both Windows and the Mac the software is very functional and complete. Though as the Mustangs aged the software feature set was not improved. Fender did fix software and firmware bugs, but practically no new features or new applications for mobile devices and the foundation of the software is getting very long-in-tooth.

I decided to buy and try a new Marshall Code50.
Currently, very disappointed with the software and timeliness of firmware bug fixes.

At this time there is no way to update the firmware if you have a Mac. Marshall has been promising a solution for the Mac since at least June of 2016 and still there is nothing, not even a Beta.

The firmware has bugs and according to the support email I got from Marshall the firmware hasn't been updated so I haven't missed any updates since my amp arrived on August 2, 2016. I can't believe there is still a USB-noise recording bug since at least June 2016. It happens to me when recording.

The software feature and functionality is nowhere on par with the Mustang (Fuse) software.
There is no way to backup or share your customized presets if you do a reset on the amp you lose all your customized presets.

I use the iOS app it is very nice, but compared to the Fender(Fuse) software it is lacking in features.
I like the hardware but the software is not complete and updates are slow to be released.
Perhaps the software will improve. If things change I will try to update this review.

Warning: do not buy this amplifier ...

By dennisnv from Lake Tahoe area on August 5, 2017 Music Background: Composer, musician, audio engineer ...

This software in the Code 50, and I presume the entire Code series, is buggy. The system "freezes" during preset saves; about 19 out of 20 times when using quick save and about 3 or 4 times out of 10 when using the full save sequence. The amp does recover using a cold boot (turn it off and on) and the changes do get saved. I apparently did a poor job researching the Marshall Code series because the problem is well discussed on multiple internet forums. The issue is readily reproduced so I also assume that Marshall must have known about it when they released the product line. If they haven't corrected it by now I am thinking they can't.
IF YOU CAN LIVE WITH THAT PROBLEM then I offer the following added information. Most of the presets are pretty bad but if you have tweaking skills you can get the Code 50 to sound good. If you like the Marshall "sound" it does have that general character although it tends to sound "boxy". The dynamics are good all the way up to maximum volume but at the very bottom of the range the sound just drops off; not good for low volume "bedroom practice" type stuff. The noise gate is excellent. The effects are pretty darn good, let's say more than adequate for small club gigging. The amp models differ significantly from each other so it has 14 distinct choices rather than, pardon the expression, 14 different "brands of chocolate". While the Code 50 comes with very limited signal chain options the choices do represent typical stage rigging. The quality of the build seems more on the poor side of the line which is a strange departure from Marshall's usual offerings. Overall it seems like Marshall didn't put their A team, nor even their B team, on the project and regarded the code series as a novelty item rather than as a serious amplifier. The choice of CODE for the model names is ironic for sure.

Beginner Amp Only

By PATRICK MEISTER from OCONOMOWOC, WI on April 15, 2024

What an absolute piece of digital trash. Marshall should be ashamed to have this amp under their label. The 50 watt speaker is MUD. Way too much bass. The amp sounds like a 1990's car drive by with hip hop music blasting while the windows are closed. Highs are tinny and screechy. Just a sonic disaster with it's only use being for beginners, cheap digital direct recording or those who want to say they own a Marshall, but don't have money for a valve amp. A 10 year old Vox Valvetronix has 10x better sound despite early 21st technology.

Code 50 is a big disappointment.

By Tim B. from Florida on December 11, 2023 Music Background: Playing for about 6 years.

I have been playing electric guitar for a few years now. I use standard amps that have a couple of effects, reverb and delay, and dialing in a specific sound is easy and straight forward. Right now I'm using an Orange 30R. An excellent amp for the money, $, and I am always pleased with the clarity of the sound even when dirtied up a bit.
I bought the Code 50 simply because it's only $ right now and to say I'm disappointed is an under statement.
It's impossible to find any preset, 100 of them, that has any clarity whatsoever. No matter how much I edit, the only words I can use to describe the overall sound are THIN and TINNY.
I think the amp is trying to do so much at once that it can't focus in on any specific tone. It's always throwing a few different tones at you at the same time. After hearing the clear tone through the Orange, the code 50 is lacking in every way.
I read that modeling amps are for beginners so they can play with the amp and have fun finding new sounds. Now I realize exactly what the author meant.
Instead of PLAYING with your amp you should be concentrating on learning to PLAY the guitar.
This one got sent back and I will never own a modeling amp again.
I'm fairly sure that my review could be about any modeling amp out there. An amp is a tool to find a sound then PLAY your guitar instead of PLAYING with your amp.
I have no idea why an iconic company like Marshall would be making these TIN BOXES in the first place. Take the Code 50, get rid of the modeling crap and have a beautiful sounding amp that can still be affordable to beginners. If Orange can do it I'm fairly certain that Marshall can figure it out.
DON'T BUY THIS AMP. You will be waisting your money at any price.

Very Disappointed

By Robert from USA on July 14, 2021

The sound produced by this amp just isn't very good. As well, the 100 presets are mostly horrible too, and many are ridiculously loud with the volume set way down. Move to the next preset, and you can't even hear it. This is equally ridiculous. Want customer support? Don't make me laugh. I even tried to register it after buying it, but it wouldn't work. So I mailed it in and it came back to me. I should have returned this amp immediately, but keot it for a year.

I also prefer using only dials rather then having to first press buttons and then use a dial. It's just a royal pain.
If you want to use Marshall Gateway from your laptop, as many of us would prefer, you can't. I don't want to have to use a mobile phone for this. I want to use my laptop. I strongly suggest you look at other amps because there's absolutely no reason to buy this one.

Ridiculously Loud

By Jack Demers from Pasadena, CA on September 14, 2020 Music Background: Slightly above beginner

I've gotten one clean tone to sound decent at bedroom levels but all of the other presets start at absurd volume levels so you're forced to use their app to dial it down to reasonable levels and most are still too loud. If 1.5 is slightly too low, 1.8 is you're going to get evicted loud. This is a known problem. Marshall knows about it and will not fix it.

The panel controls do not matter. When you dial a volume down to 1.5 and save it to memory, the next preset you try will override the panel even if some maniac put the volume at 8. Who thought this was a good idea?

Considering there are 100 presets, I've been spending more time screwing around than playing. Which is frustrating since I'm paying for lessons and have not been practicing as much. Play a game and have fun or fight this amp for 20 minutes?

You're supposed to be able to organize your tones in the order you want them on the website but I've not been able to get it to work. Have tried Firefox and Chrome. Newest firmware.

If you play in a corn field this amp would probably work but for anyone in a city it's WAY TOO LOUD.

Can't recommend this

By Sweetwater Customer on December 27, 2019

I had this for a few months and found that the speaker in this amp is extremely underwhelming. Very difficult to dial in a descent tone also. The clean tones sound ok and the app is nice. At this price range there are much better alternatives.

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