Marshall SC20C Studio Classic 1x10" 20/5-watt Tube Combo Amp Reviews
The Marshall JCM800 2203 is a certified beast — it’s the tone that defined heavy metal. The Studio Classic takes that incendiary tone and packs it into a 20-watt combo. It conjures up everything from rich and full cleans to high-gain mayhem, but in an amp you can carry with one hand. The Studio Classic is loaded with all the player-friendly features you need, including a master volume, 3-band EQ with Presence control, preamp volume, effects loop, and DI output. You also get a power reduction circuit for attaining cranked-up tones without violating a noise ordinance. When you want JCM800 tone but aren’t rocking in an arena, reach for the Studio Classic — it delivers the goods.
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Highest Rated Reviews
Like honey butter on top, if my Les Paul was a biscuit
I should have bought this sooner. I wanted a JCM 800 Studio Classic as soon as it was announced a few years ago. But I talked myself into trying cheaper amps first and wound up struggling to get a sound that I was happy with. So I finally bought the SC20c combo and as soon as I plugged in at home it was instant love. It is effortless to get great sounds from this amp, from cleans to crunch, and into higher gain leads.
It can do 80s hair band tones easily, though what I usually play is more like 90s alt rock (Pixies, Breeders, Dinosaur Jr, Pavement). I usually dial in the amp to go past the edge of breakup with my guitar's volume knob at full, then I roll it back for a cleaner tone. It's inspiring to just be able to plug and play, and have the amp give my guitar the "voice" I hear in my head instead of having to fight it with EQ and pedals. The SC20 does take pedals well, especially using the Low sensitivity input. It just doesn't NEED pedals to sound good like some other amps do.
The stock 10" speaker in the combo (Celestion VT Jr.) sounds WAY better than I was expecting. I chose the combo for the convenience of having a small, lightweight piece of kit for my modest-sized home studio, and I have no regrets at all. I can still plug it into a bigger 2x12 cabinet if I want to, but it's rare that I have the opportunity to move that much air. I'm mostly recording at home and mic'd up, the stock speaker sounds exactly like a Marshall should.
The FX loop works great. The direct output on the back is passable if you absolutely need it, but I've heard better direct circuits than this one. A real mic is streets-ahead better sounding. Build quality seems to be great, at least from the outside. I haven't opened it up to check out the guts.
20 watts of JCM 800 is very loud, and 5 watts is...still pretty loud. If I want to play the SC20 at lower volumes, I leave it in the 20w setting but I plug into the Low sensitivity input instead of High. The Low input bypasses part of the preamp gain stage. You can get excellent low-volume clean tones this way, then just add an SD-1 or Tube Screamer for gain.
Overall, I think this is an excellent scaled-down tribute to the bigger original JCM 800 series. It's not going to sound like a 100w stack, but it easily punches above its weight for a small combo that can be tucked away in a corner. I think this is a "keep forever" amp for me.
10 stars!
Wow what a great amp.
More versatile than I thought it would be.
Add a good boost up front and you can get any tone you want.
Very easy to dial in and get rocking.
Though it's no bedroom amp; it can still be played at pretty low volumes and sound good.
JCM 800 Studio Combo
Lightweight, loud for 20 watts, and has tone like the big one.
Studio Classic 20 Combo
Great amp. First and final upgrade from a starter amp. First tube amp. About 3 months of research. It has not disappointed. Great tones, plenty loud and absolutely beautiful. Pricey, but I think it's a value.
Pure Marshall Rock n Roll tone!!!
Awesome amp. Loud for a 20w amp. Even in the 5w mode this thing rocks. Minimal set up for me, tube screamer, reverb and a bit of delay. Perfect tone!!!
Love it!
I have the SV combo also these JCM800's rock you will never know there is a 10in speaker in them!! great tone you can even max the master volume and still stays tight. Very dynamic and loud! My favorite amp and I owned many over the years!
Best Marshall Tone available today
I have bought and sold several DSL, Origen, 18 Watt Reissue, Bluesbreaker and many 1Watt Anniversary Marshall amps in the past ten years. This new 2019 model is the hands down best and most versatile of the lot! A little pricey but worth it. I have tried mine with humbuckers as well as single coils. I highly recommend this model..which is also apparently still made in England. Brilliant!!
Great little amp
I was missing the iconic Marshall tone from my studio equipment an this fits the bill nicely. I'm able to get great tones and harmonics at decent volumes without using an attenuator. I haven't figured out good amp and mixer settings for the direct output yet but it mikes up very well.
