Marshall Mg Series 250 Dfx Guitar Amp For Sale (2024 Update)

If you're expecting an amazing Marshall sound, you might want to invest in some of the bigger amps Marshall has to offer. If you think you can get a concert level sound out of this little guy, you will not be the happiest person. However, that level of "high" expectation would not be very reasonable or even realistic for such a little amp. This is a very cute, small amp that will help you plug your guitar so you can practice quietly in any room in your house without annoying your wife. It will distort if you crank the volume all the way out, and if you're used to the full sound of a bigger Marshall (like I do) it might make you feel like you're hearing your guitar over an old telephone (just my opinion). However, if you calibrate your instrument volume & tone you can find a happy medium. With that said, for the price it is a very nice solution to practice and if the sound seems too weak for you, you have the choice of putting headphones. I personally use it just for practice on the fly, it serves it purpose, but then again I was not expecting the best sound output. So I am happy with the purchase.BeeZee

It's basically a toy amp. I can see it being used as a portable amp for non-serious performance. Personally, I like it for a quick jam and for (relatively) quiet practice in my apartment setting. Won't disturb my neighbors but it does get noticeable at the highest volume. That and the overdrive knob are the two main controls. By default it just does a clean sound but overdrive lets you toggle in some gain for that distortion. It has a good look that definitely models after its bigger brothers.Rick

I don't know what some of you guys expect from this thing, but be realistic: it's an inexpensive 5 inch tall, 1 watt amp. It's not designed for anything but sitting in a chair and entertaining yourself or a couple of people. Within that context, I enjoy this thing and sometimes get it off the shelf and play around with it for awhile. Also, when I owed somebody a 1 minute long riff for his podcast and my main amp was getting some regular tech service, I plugged my American Standard Strat into this thing, mic'd the amp, used the OD channel with the volume and tone both on 10, played the part, then added tons of bass, reverb, and chorus to it in post, and it sounded great and nobody ever knew that I recorded the part using a 5 inch tall amp. It is what it is as long as you don't expect the world.Steve

I've owned this amp for a few years. With the clean channel engaged, it sounds great with pedals (mxr super comp into boss od) and gets surprisingly loud for a small apartment. I dont think it would be loud enough for most band practice settings as far as volume. The biggest gripe I have with it is that it defaults to the distortion channel, which is useless for any application. Muddy, buzzy, no low end, no smoothness… just rigid cold distortion that muddied your notes even with the gain at the lowest settings. It's in fact the worst distortion I've ever used. Whenever I turn it on, I immediately switch the channel to clean.Alan

Bought this for practice when lower volume is required. Looks great, Sounds great. From the research that i've done, this is the best sounding solid state amp of is size and class and i feel like the research really holds up!Tony

This amp is perfect for the practice I have. The clean has amazing clarity and the overdrive has enough grit to fool around. I can experiment with any pedal as well. Sounds great. Great purchase.EDGAR

I've owned several Marshall combos over the years, and they've never let me down, until I bought this piece of garbage. I couldn't get a decent tone out of it!! Very low and bassy, and barely present at all. Definitely wouldn't be able to punch through a mix, and playing live would've been a nightmare.CoopDBomb

Overall: Bought this at a great deal.I had it for 30 days and sent it back for a refund.I could not for the life of me dial in a sound with my Fender Blacktop Strat with humbuckers.Marshall should be ashamed of themselves for putting their name on this horrible POS.Went and bought a used Peavey Vypyr 30 for $135.00 and had great sounds in less then 24 hours.Blows this marshall away.Very underrated Peavey Vypyr amps . Great tube sounding amps and also feel.Frank

The Marshall name alone speaks for itself. There is no brand that creates a better sound than Marshall. It's not just my opinion, it has been the most used amp by some of the most famous musicians that has ever played an instrument. This amp in particular is absolutely perfect for use in the home use or in front of a small crowd. Perfect sound and perfect size.Michael

I have a Marshall 412 cabinet with a 100 watt Marshall head. I needed a smaller amp to practice at home and for small jam sessions. I picked the Marshall MG15FX because I know and like the Marshall sound and quality. The Effects features sound good too. I bought the footswitch for it too. This amp sounds good and powerful enough for any small jam or studio work. Marshall makes a MG30 if you need more power.Max

I really like this amp. I don't have to turn up the master volume very much for it to get loud enough. I plan to hook up a Line 6 Pocket Pod for heavier distortion and more effects options. I'm a big fan of delay and am happy with the delay that comes with this amp but I did get a Boss DD-8 digital delay pedal and it works well with this amp. I previously had a cheap 100 watt amp but it only sounded well at low volume. I feel this Marshall amp is better quality and I am glad I got this one.Ferdad

i use this fun little amp at home to practice and jam. sometimes with friends. i've have owned fender and peavy practice amps and this Marshall is just as good or better. i like the clean and various overdrives..the effects do a good enough job and really like the two different reverb effects. i like the headphone option for keeping the neighbors and girlfriend happy when playing late night. i play a Epiphone Les paul traditional pro iv and the combonation sounds super for hard rock and blues but i needed to get a heavy metal pedal for metallica songs. wish it had a longer plug in cable. but over all it sounds really good for what i payed.. ;owned it for two years and keeps on rocking.rob

The big plus with this MG30 is it doesn't have the static noise on the overdrive channel like my MG15. The reverb and foot switch are nice features too. Solid construction on these Marshall MG line. Good value on a 30 watt amp.keanul808-us

Going back and forth between the LT25 and LT40s to compare identifical presets, both sounded good and similar even with the differences in cabinet and speaker size. A subjective impression is that the LT25 sounded a bit more distant or maybe dispersed. The LT40s sounded a bit more focused. It was a tough call as the LT25 is less expensive but I walked out of there with the LT40S. For desktop placement and low volume practice, the LT40s sounds great and with plenty of low end. I don't need loud volume but this amp can fill a 16'x24' loft with sound. The USB connection to my laptop was initially a no go. After deleting and then reinstalling the application, it has sinced worked great!Wally

I wanted an amp for practicing that gave me a massive range of options for a reasonable amount of money. I have to say that I am very impressed with the 30 included presets and I've not even branched out into the additional ones you can add. The quality of the LT25 is fantastic, not super heavy and all the switches feel robust. I've found the sound can vary depending on the preset you choose though that is to be expected with those that have high gain. I mostly play clean and blues and this amp is fantastic for both of those. If you want a more classic rock sound there is a preset for this which I think needs a bit of tweaking. All in all very impressed and as this is my first Fender amp, I will definitely be getting another in the future.Alex G.

Unbelievable. This is NOT my Vox AC30, and nor is it my 100W Katana. However, for a package that is powered by batteries and can, quite literally, fit into the palm of your hand, the Katana Mini is simply fantastic. The amp models are brilliant and the delay (reverb) function is an excellent feature. On "clean" settings the volume of the amp is perfectly adequate and will fill a room with no issues, and on the "crunch" and "brown" settings, the amp was more than loud enough to fill a large room at 2/3 volume. Whilst I personally think that this is not quite enough for an advanced/intermediate players sole amplifier, I would completely agree that for a beginner, they would need no more than this. Having tried options from Yamaha and other brands, this is firmly my favourite battery powered micro amplifier for any level of guitarist and equipment, the tone is simply that good! The best way I can describe it is this – when I first plugged my PRS McCarty 594 into it, I was vaguely aware that I wasn't playing through my Vox. However, after five minutes or so, I had completely forgotten this wasn't a "real" amp, and had to keep looking down at the tiny box on the floor to believe it! Well done, Boss!Mr I. F.

I use it primarily as a practice amp at lower levels, but I'd feel confident doing coffee house gigs with it, and maybe smaller clubs too. It sounds warm and rich at low volumes, and the EQ is effective. All three voices are useful and I'm not left wanting. I have to make special mention of the delay. I adore reverb (including and especially spring reverb and gritty, trashy reverb of all kinds) but a simple delay circuit is way more useful in this amp. Doubling, slapback, echoes. The treble roll-off and fixed feedback are well-tuned. If you're using this for busking or other guerilla performance, you will suddenly realize that a single delay is worth more than a thousand reflections, because those reflections sound godawful* against naturally-occurring surfaces. *maybe awesome in a sound design way thoughChesterfleet

I have owned several amps in the last 40yrs. Always looking for "that tone" and never quite found it. Peavey's a Marshall and a Carvin. The last being a 100W head. And with all of them and a line 6 floor pod, was never happy. I am so happy with this head on my 4×12 marshall cab that all I have used the floor pod for is the tuner. I'm sure at some point I will probably use the pod for some effects, but for what I mostly play its not really needed. Of course there are many things that can effect this so ill just give a short list of the main guitars I use and the pickups. Gibson Les Paul with Slash Seymour Duncan's, wired 50's and a Gibson 137 all stock. I no longer play out so the 100w Carvin was just not good in my basement. Couldn't push it to the point of natural breakup in a confined space. This amp goes from almost crystal clean to a beautiful natural saturation. And the dirty channel picks up where the clean leaves off and goes to the verge of metal. Throw a overdrive pedal in the mix and there isn't much you couldn't play on the fly.Brad B

I have had it for a week and love it. It goes from super clean to full on metal overdrive. Price was good—delivered quick. Seems well built enough. The only thing I would change is to give the clean / classic channel some crunch so i could go from a light crunch to a heavy lead sound when switching channels because the clean channel is clean even when fully cranked. The DSL100 has a crunch option on the clean channel so it would be nice to have it here as well. But you can use the ultra gain channel and use the guitar volume to clean it up etc. I assume the clean channel would take pedals well from other reviews I have seen. Overall it rocks and gets really loud. Gig-able I think. Highly recommended.Tuckerman

I bought 2 of these heads to drive Marshall MX12 cabinets. I was previously using 2 Marshall DSL40CR combo amps. I thought I could save space by having the small heads instead. I was wrong. FYI, the DSL40CR amps sound great (mine are upgraded with Creamback speakers). First off, the amps both had horrific white noise when you turned up the reverb. 2) one amp made some weird static noise when you moved your hand around the face plate, touching the face plate actually changed the tone. I have never in my almost 30 years of using guitar amps had this. 3) The amps sounded thin and tinny. To the point they were unusable. I returned them for a refund and when both amps arrived at Musicians Friend, they stated that they only received one amp (although both amps arrived the same day). A day later the 2ne amp was marked as received. I received one amps refund on Saturday, and now I guess I have to wait till Monday for the second refund. What a joke. BTY, I also ordered a brand new EHX pedal when I bought the amps and they sent me a used one instead! Musicians Friend is such a joke now a days it's sad.MLM

I bought a Fender Champion XL 50 for a small light weight amp to bring to local jam sessions. I have to say I am not disappointed. I know there's no comparing solid state to tubesl when it comes to filling up a room with sound but this little amp cranks. It's closest competition is the Boss Katana and those are really nice. I like the ones I've played, but I'm really into that clean Fender sound and this amp has it in spades. You get the full range of cleans, from black or silver faces to tweeds. There's overdrive and high gain models in there too but as I said it's the cleans that sold me. It is a two channel amp, but I'm not sure why anyone would use the first channel as tall the digital goodies are on the second. That being said, the digital reverb in this amp has a bit of a whistle I don't like. Instead I used the chorus on the amp and a Boss Fender Reverb pedal. If your playing on a stage lugging around a forty pound tube amp may be the thing to do, but for sitting around a garage with friends this amp will save your back and please your ears.ADarkBard

I usually don't leave comments, but feel I must let the frustrated AMP user know, yes Jessica there IS a Santa Claus! Was looking for an AMP that was "SIMPLE" – On channel 1 ONLY the volume is usable, I didn't check but probably the Bass & treble too! On Channel 1 the gain control is set and turning the knob does nothing, and none of the FX are accessible! I was so busy checking out Channel 2 that I didn't check to see if Treble & Bass could be adjusted. You have 12 "Voice Settings" and 13 FX Selections. So I checked out all 12 Voice Settings combined with all 13FX settings – add this to checking these out with a single coil Strat and a Jazz/Full Shred Charvel DK24. I feel this is one of the BEST choices I have made in electric guitar choices! The AMP sound CLEAN!!!! I Imagine Channel 1 would be great with an Accoustic as well! Don't have one though! Channel 2 is GREAT and I don't need any more than it has to offer. It is so uncomplicated & stress free! If you are an expert guitar player and can concentrate more on AMP settings, rather than playing, then go for the Katana 50 MKII, or the VOX Cambridge. I was thinking hard on all three. When I got to GC I had pretty much decided on the Fender Champion 50XL. The VOX Cambridge is $150 to $160 more, with only $10 between the Fender & Katana. Since what is on the AMP is all my mind can handle, I decided to go with the Fender 50XL. It has to be on of the simplest AMPS to operate. I do have an Ibanez Tube Screamer, and if I have a need I can look at other pedals down the road. I do plan on getting a Cry Baby! Latter down the road I might get more pedals, but for right now this AMP has all I need. The Celestion Speaker sound GREAT! I couldn't be happier – it is as loud as I need – It's EASY to learn – NONE of the settings sounded muddy, muffled, or shrill. If I was going to get an AMP that needs a lot of downloading, I would have gone with the VOX Cambride. Glad I traded in my old AMP!Karl, M

Great overall amp. The obvious comparison is the Boss Katana 50. I tried both and I found I could dial in a sound I like from the Champion easier than the Katana. The Katana has way more features and the connect-ability. I prefer just plug in and playing which was far easier with the Champion. One of the largest selling points for me was the headphone jack feature for silent playing. The Champion has it right in front of the control panel and it's a 3.5mm jack. The Katana has one but its on the back and it's a 1/4inch jack which would require an adapter to 3.5mm. The location and the fact that it's 1/4in jack gave the Champion the edge. I also preferred that taller design of the Champion. It made it more comfortable to reach and adjust. Some of the cons are the knobs. especially for the "voice" and the "fx-select". A rotary knob would make it far easier to select the presets. Fender does provide a 3 color LED light that changes when you reach the next model or effect. However, a rotary knob that stops at the preset would be a better. Another con is that the reverb effect is combined with chorus and delay. I would much prefer it to be on it's own rather than combined. This is something that the Katana has. Overall the Champion is great for home use and I would recommend it to someone that wants a good amp that is easy to just plug and play. If you want more effects and enjoy experimenting then the Boss Katana would be a better choice.E. Bran

This little amp is quite amazing in sound and features. With the Guitar input, Aux In, and headphone jack it nails the features desired for practice. EQ/Gain control and volume can make a huge difference. I read the one critical review below about no bass or treble/AM radio sounding, etc…I don't get that? Probably doesn't understand the gain/vol/ and boost…or his was pre-owned and maybe had issues. Hey, if you're expecting the Fender tube sound of a Princeton or Vibrolux or Deluxe…get real, this is a 10 watt practice amp. For the money, it's a quality Fender product and does everything needed to practice.madillac09

This is doing the job I wanted. It doesn't have fancy effects like reverb, but it produces a nice sound for practice. I don't do public performances, so can't say how well it works in that environment. For the price it's a winner.lndi2007_yrggd7or

Im really disappointed with this amp. I know its not supposed to be super loud because its only 10 W, but I was hoping that the sound quality would be better. The sound reproduction frequencies are all mid range. Sounds like cardboard. Color is grey. Bass and treble tones are all but nonexistent. The eq is useless because speaker cannot reproduce bass and treble frequencies. The sound is very cheap and does not give a representation of the Fender vibe whatsoever. You are better off just playing your guitar with no amplifier at all rather than using this, because it make a good guitar sound bad. I equate the sound to that of an a.m. transistor radio. Its really bad. I actually read some of the favorable reviews on this amplifier before I bought it, and Im seriously starting to think that none of those reviews are actually real. There are better practice amps with better fidelity out there, and I would avoid this one if your ear demands quality sound.mrmarksiii

For classic rock lovers looking for those delicious, Super Lead Plexi-type tones (think classic rock from the 60's and 70's–Hendrix, Zeppelin, AC/DC, Aerosmith, etc.), this amp is for you! I am totally blown away with this amp for the price. I'm glad I pulled the trigger when I did because this amp is now $150.00 more than what I spent. I had a hard time deciding between the 50W and the 20W versions. I went with the 50W to have more clean head room, but would have been just as happy with the 20W head. And who plans to play a Marshall clean anyway? 😀 Most who purchase a Marshall are planning to crank for crunch, although you can get some nice clean tones and all that jazz :-D. The only downside with the 50W version is that you will have to bias the amp if you ever replace/swap the tubes. The 50W is not cathode/self-biasing like the 20W head, so plan on $30-$60 to bias your amp with a tube swap unless you have the equipment and know-how to bias yourself. This amp is extremely loud, even with the mid-power setting! Oh my heck is it loud! I'm running this head through an EVH EL34 2×12 with Celestion G12H 30W Anniversary speakers. Holy wow, awesome, and loud! 😀 To save your ears and keep your family and neighbors happy, I'd advise using an attenuator or power soak. With the Marshall Origin, to get those nice, crunchy, classic Marshall tones, you really have to crank the master volume to around 6-8 to saturate the power tubes and then also dial in your preamp gain to around 6-10. We're talking loud, loud, loud without an attenuator! For a very affordable power soak option, go with the Bugera PS1 (under $100.00), which will allow you to crank (even dime) this Marshall to get all those classic Marshall tones without blowing your brains out. Note–this is not a high gain Marshall amp. It's a classic rock Marshall, but it takes pedals extremely well for those wishing for more high-gain territory.AJ

This is an amazing amp! Not only is it affordable, but it's so versatile! I like to dial in an edge of breakup tone so that by rolling back the volume pot on my Guitar I have pristine cleans, roll it up for that classic "crunchy," biting clean. This amp also LOVES pedals, so when I want more gain I can step on the blue channel of my Friedman BE-OD Deluxe. Even More gain = the second channel on the BE-OD Deluxe with the mids ever so slightly cut back (now we're getting into the hard rock/metal territory). And if that's not quite heavy enough to serve a particular sound, well the internal foot-switchable boost adds a nice extra oomph. The EHX Metal M*ff is great for those extreme levels of gain (contrary to other reviews, this amp is perfectly capable of doing Metal if you utilize your favorite dirt pedals). And the effects loop is wonderful! Reverbs, Delays, Modulations…they sound great through the loop! Even on the lowest power setting, this amp is very LOUD, because that highly sought after power amp distortion that makes a Plexi so desirable demands to be heard!! Is this a Plexi? Of course not, but that magical characteristic of genuine Marshall tone is quite convincing in the Origin! IMHO, for the price, this is as close as you will ever get, and it is fantastic! If you want a good, reliable, LOUD amp with the versatility to cover all your needs, and don't want to spend 5x's as much, well this IS what you have been wishing you could find!Shasal

I'm a big Marshall amp user. Played through half stacks forever. I've sampled and bought a few Marshall Amp modelers and modeling amps for practice over the years, but never thought that they captured the Marshall sound very well. When I heard that Marshall themselves were finally going to put out a modeling amp, I was intrigued. It was love at first sound when I tried one out. I bought one at GC and took it home. Dialed in the perfect sound for me and my practicing sessions suddenly leveled up in pleasure and accuracy to my stage setup. Also there's a cool USB interface that sends the sound digitally to your laptop and sends whatever sound your recording software outputs back to the amp, also digitally. Very addictive. I have and have had lots of different models of Marshall amps for practicing, but this one is by far the best. Does a good job of capturing the Marshall tube sound. You probably wouldn't take the 25 watt version to the stage and the speaker is only 10 inches so it bottoms out when you crank this little thing. The sound coming back from the laptop isn't the greatest through the single 10 inch with no tweeter, but it's fine for practicing IMHO. The mobile app for fine tuning the sound is cool. I played with it for awhile, but there's not much that you can't do by just twiddling with the knobs on the amp itself. The effects are really good and it's fun to dial in different amps, both preamp and power tube sections. Highly recommended.Marshall amp lover

I don't always feel up to setting up my pedalboard and Vox AC15C1 for bedroom practice, so it's really nice to have something like this around that I can just plug into and play whenever I feel like it. It has plenty of cool sounding tones, and can be controlled from your phone, tablet, or computer through Bluetooth. It also allows playback through Bluetooth or through an AUX cable if you want to play along to songs or backing tracks or just listen to music. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for a live setting or recording (which it wasn't really made for to begin with), but for a beginner or the average bedroom guitarist, or for practice, it's all you should really need. Definitley comes in handy. A lot of reviewers are honestly pretty harsh on it, and hold it to some of the standards of the average tube amp, such as a Vox AC, a Fender Deluxe Reverb, or a Peavey Classic 30. Standards it was never meant to live up to. If you're looking for a practice amp, or if you're the average bedroom guitarist who only plays occasionally, or a beginner, I would recommend checking it out. You might just like itBrandon Johnson

I got this amp to practice. I liked at the features it had (amp models, effects, headphone, blutooth, etc). It can seem a bit overwhelming at first but once you delve in to the amp, it makes sense. It is easy to change the presets. You can change all sorts of parameters per effect. Which is why I say it can be a bit overwhelming but that helps you create the sound you want. I liked the sounds of the amp models with the exception of the '50s British. Good clean and Overdrve tones overall. I used the blutooth for audio and had no problem connecting or reconnecting (Samsung Galaxy 10E). I downloading the Gateway APP just so I could review it and not really thinking of using it. It connected and reconnected with out issues for me. Once I used it, though, I saw how useful it is. It tells you exaxctly what amp model you are using and what the setting are. Same for effects. You can check those things on the amp control panel but you have to check one at a time. You can change preset, amp, effects, cabinet/speaker, tube model with the app. I am really happy with my purchase and knowing that I will not have to buy pedals for this amp.SValdez

Upon purchasing and fiddling around with the settings I was not completely sold on this amp. I had trouble finding a sound that I liked. However I now am finding cool sounds and fully enjoying the amp. In my experience, it starts to sound way worse when turned up on high volumes. Overall great practice amp and it keeps up when I jam with friends.Guitarist

I bought the MG30gfx to use as a practice amp. I don't know what method Marshall used to rate the amp at 30 watts, but it is nowhere near that number — at least not by the RMS method, which is really the only true measurement of an amp's output power that I'm aware of. Some companies use the term "nominal power," some use "peak power" or "maximum power." There may be other ratings as well. In any case, out of curiosity I decided to see how this amp compared to my Fender Deluxe Reverb, which is rated at 22 watts RMS. That's how I discovered it's nowhere near 30 watts. The Fender volume set at "2," is considerably louder than the MG30 volume at approximately two-thirds full. I was shocked! I didn't really expect it to sound as loud (or as good) as the Fender, but the volume difference was unbelievable. The difference in speaker size (10" vs. 12" in the Fender) could not account for that much difference in volume. Nowhere in the manual that comes with the MG30gfx does it state how the wattage was calculated. The other big disappointment is the white noise emitted by the MG30gfx in the clean channel. I bought a solid state amp just for practice expecting that it would be quiet, but the white noise emitted by the MG30gfx is actually louder than the white noise emitted by my Fender Deluxe Reverb. These are the reasons I gave the MG30gfx a two-star rating. Otherwise, it will do as a home practice amp. Overall, though, it is a big disappointment.Robert

This amp is so good. The clean channel has a lovely full tone and the overdrive settings are fantastic. In addition the tone controls actually give a good range sounds which is not something common to all amps on this price range. The 5 effects cover all the most common sounds . I have paid 4 times as much for less versatile amps. Just great valueGavin E.

Upon purchasing and fiddling around with the settings I was not completely sold on this amp. I had trouble finding a sound that I liked. However I now am finding cool sounds and fully enjoying the amp. In my experience, it starts to sound way worse when turned up on high volumes. Overall great practice amp and it keeps up when I jam with friends.Guitarist

This amp is so good. The clean channel has a lovely full tone and the overdrive settings are fantastic. In addition the tone controls actually give a good range sounds which is not something common to all amps on this price range. The 5 effects cover all the most common sounds . I have paid 4 times as much for less versatile amps. Just great valueGavin E.

I bought this amp to use in a limited space and at a low volume for very low cost. It obviously doesn't compare to a normal size amp in quality but for being a practice amp it is perfect. Many reviews across the web say it loses power or sounds bad after a short time, but its literally as simple as changing the battery in my case. The manual even says to change the battery if there is an issue with sound, and the battery that comes with it isn't really the best and doesn't last long. It has great sound at a low and mid range volume for the little power it actually has but when you ramp it up it does sound a little distorted but not bad at all for $23-$29. Hopefully my review helps someone get a decent product!Lucas

While you certainly could use it in the studio for certain alt/auxiliary tones and/or layers and achieve fantastic results (producer/artist discretion advised), It's not meant for that. It's meant purely for being able to enjoy playing electric, untethered, while wandering about randomly and/or practicing. …Whether outdoors or indoors. …At home, in the park, around the neighborhood, at a camp site or a BBQ, wherever. Perhaps even during your breaks at work. It's not meant for playing in a full band situation (especially with drums), nor is it meant for getting a half-stack sound (or even normal combo-amp sound), for a fraction of the price, during a high-end studio session or full-on concert. It's a fantastic tool, meant to serve a single purpose. Choose and use your tools accordingly.Cristyn, E

mini-amp works great as a travel amp, or playing early in the am when ppl are sleeping lol it fits perfectly inside my hardcase, along with my electric guitar, headphones, tuner, cables, etc. performs as expected.. dont look to be amazed at its performance lol but for practice/travel its the perfect amp. has a heavy grind for chunky metal riffs. doesnt pick up the p[inch harmonics that great, but they do come through. the clean setting is great, too, and for a tiny little fkr it really kicks pretty good! had my finacee yelling at me to "turn that fkn thing down!" so, lol, it hits pretty hard for a small little guy.. but like i said, dont expect it to put out the tones of a line 6 spider IV or a Marsall half-stack cuz it aint capable for that. it isnt designed for gigs lol so dont expect that kinda sound. but, i love this mini-amp; its my new best friend!da.davc.mcoumykeiu

I have nothing but great things to say about this amp! Perfect for the solo acoustic artist. I've been a solo acoustic gigging musician for years and this is the best amp I've played through. You get a nice rich sound from your guitar and I love the reverb effects on both the vox and guitar. The chorus is a nice touch, though I don't use it much. I've played Marshall amps almost exclusively so I knew they'd handle my guitar well, but I was really surprised with the vocal sound. A very warm tone with minimal knobs for a quick set up. It sounds great mic'd or you can run a line out to a PA for further EQ if you'd like. It's light enough and compact enough to throw in your car for a last minute gig. Great for small to medium rooms, mic it or line out for a larger one and get rocking. You won't be disappointed.CT

If you've been reading (and watching) the reviews, then you know this is likely going to be a great amp. However, even after researching it, there were 4 unknowns for me. These are now clarified, now that I own this amp. 1) Bass. Yes, it has more than enough bass. 2) Clean sound. Yes, when reverb and chorus are off, the clean (natural) sound is fantastic. As good as the chorus and reverb are, I think I'm going to be playing it "clean" a lot. 3) Weight. As you know, it's heavier than most amps in this category; don't worry about it. It's not bad. You can always put it on a small self-made dolly if need be. 4) Plug-In for the Footswitch pedal — what is it, and how does it work? The one that's made for this amp has two buttons: one for reverb, and one for chorus. Yes, you have to pay extra for this (and the amp is also a bit more expensive) — but worth it. Very happy with this amp. It is such a warm, fantastic sounding amp.B

Speaking from experience with various sound reinforcenent systems. There are many options here with the phantom mic power and even an rca input for devices (drums or other audio.) Other reviewers note the solid build and good looks. I have one in white. Marshall knows speakers and this closed back box provides wide range good definition, and good projection. Not box like. I have run electric guitar or bass straight in. I would think it fine for jazz guitar. Or use your choice of pre amp devices/emulators. Acoustic electric guitar and condenser mic for live app and you are ready for the coffee house.Michael Eastin

Extremely versatile amp. I play a lot of electric blues but I grew up on hard rock/metal. Today I also play a little bluegrass, country, classical, pop and whatever suits my mood at the time. But at the end of the day, I usually revert to a heavier sound. Now the Marshall has a nice clean sound, although not as clean as my old Fender Pro Reverb. You can't have everything. Where this amp really shines is in its ability to generate anything from mild overdrive to extreme high gain. With this amp I can get high gain harmonics that I could not get from other amps, even with heavy gain effects. The only negative really is that the amp is quite physically heavy.Fuzzy

Firstly, I am in a bar/party cover band of older (>30 years to nearly 60) musicians with day jobs. We are not all Recent Hits, but do mostly songs people have heard of in all years from mid 60s to this year. The flexibility of this head is its big feature for someone like me. This is not a prescriptive review — this is just how I use it. Some of the skeptics have wondered why you would need 4 channels with 3 tones each. They have a good point, but not one that applies to a cover band. If I had to have one amplifier, it would have to produce the tones that this amp can do on channel 2 (crunch) green and orange, and channel 3 (OD1) green and orange. Crunch orange and OD1 green are quite similar and are the tones of the classic plexis and old Marshalls. Crunch green is what you would want for "clean" tone with a Marshall level of compression and just a little breakup for an electric guitar. OD1 at orange is what you would do for distorted classic rock — adding an overdrive in front of a plexi or a very saturated pickup, for example. For every song I really like, and everything I would do if I wasn't doing covers, those two channels at those two colors would cover it. For gigs, I can set channel 1 (clean) and Channel 4 (OD2) to be more extreme. The clean channel is actually what i use to be my acoustic guitar and occasionally as my hollow body electric emulating an acoustic. It is not perfect, nor is as good as having a specialized acoustic amp or clean tone jazz amp. However, it is good enough, and it simplifies the signal path to not have separate amps, and there is enough separate EQ to make it work. Channel 4 can be used for dirtier, more distorted stuff, and the weird thing is that now I use it entirely for country. My band doesn't do any metal, and the heaviest guitar sounds we do are the likes of Carrie Underwood. Getting the hiss to go away is not that big of a deal — put an MXR Smart Gate or any other gate I've tried into the _serial_loop_ and twist the knobs — it will take care of the problem. The JS head might be better and I haven't tried it. I do appreciate that you can't use the OD channels on this without a noise gate, but it isn't a big dial to fix. The reverb is good but nothing special. Reading this review before submitting, I realize that the oddest thing is that I personally have no use for any of the red versions of the four channels. That is probably a classic rock attitude — this thing has a lot more metal tone than I will ever use, so you should use other reviews if you want that.Iceandsnow

This is just and amazing head… I can't complement it enough. I wanted so many of the iconic Marshall tones but couldn't afford to go out and buy a JCM 800, 900, Plexi…etc. This head truly does a great job of getting all the tones your looking for. It does take a little dialing in with all the different modes in each channel to find what they all do… but once you have it kind of figured out its a tone machine. the included foot switch is a pleasant surprise also. It's programmable and works like a charm with just a normal guitar cable. I have also used the midi switching capabilities and they are also wonderful, though not as easy to use as the foot switch. If you are a gigging musician or just want a lot of options…..get one of these!Tony

The amp is built from a good quality plastic. It's pretty cheap, it's Marshall and it looks like a reduced copy of a real Marshall stack. The clean sound is not bad but I couldn't manage it to make a good distorted sound like I've heard on YouTube videos. Compared to other similar compact amps, the sound is not really great.yurersho_4

OK I will write something none did about use of this "amp", at least I didnt notice so sorry if someone wrote that : I checked on some gear forum question from a guitarist–he tried to connect this MS-4 to his amp as preamp boost, he said he got no sound, sohe got advice to mod thing(you have to open back of amp and solder certain jumper to get direct out–but headphone is not usable after that !)And one guy told that he got sound through headphone to another amp but it was nogood sounding ! So…both was wrong, first of all I quite intensely play and practice guitar every day, now some about sound…So :1. You have to put jackin just a half cause headphone out is stereo, 2.I have plugged thing to my Bugera 5V–5watts tube amp-which have excellent sound just lacking little push…so this MS-4 have provided that push, it serves excellent as a preamp boost and gives to your amp (specially good if you have dark sounding tube amp) Marshall caracter, so amp turns into Marshall and rally sound as you are playing tube Marshall amp–no kidding here, crystal clear strong punchy cleans and also with this you can overdriven tubes really nicely, great also to give you lead channel! So you dont need boost predal if you use this for an amp ! And you dont have to mod this amp, just use this headphone thing ! You can use micro cube roland in same way–rec/hedph out to another amp ! Then you dont need effect pedals and sound greeeeat ! The same with this MS-4–your amp becomes Marshall !! Is that good enough ?Kailash soundz

This is a great little amp. The sound is clear, and it fits in my son's backpack for when he needs to take it to school.ktw1050

It arrived earlier than expected. Just what we needed to have our son practice His Bass playing for school . At home . Thanksjistilwel-5

I was impressed from the moment I hooked this small tabletop amp up. It’s got big sound for such a small package. The app is decent too, but could use some more songs to jam with. I think that overall this is a fun way to work on your music late at night or when the mood and inspiration hits. It’s loud, but not so much as it would bug any neighbors or house guests. I use it just as a Bluetooth speaker as well to jam out to my favorite tunes. I would highly recommend this little beast of an amp for its tight bass response and it’s amazing functionality. Cool AF!DJ Lewis

Good for busking and practice with nice tones. The wireless and drums are nice features . Good size for traveling and no need for outlet with rechargeable battery. The jam tracks and artist's songs are limited but you can stream any songs you want via Bluetooth. The price was reasonable as well.Doug