The Marshall Valvestate 8080 smashed all records for Marshall sales in the '90s and now its identically featured offspring, The G80RCD, looks set to continue in the exact same vein. The G80RCD combo features dual channels - normal & boost, each with two selectable modes.
G80RCD
Reviewed by:
KVX10 KING V, on january 03, 2006 2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 395
Purchased from: Jett Laundry
Features: The amp was made sometime in the mid '90s, becase of its older look and the plastic black coat on the outside is lightly faded. This amp can play every type of music there is, the manual shows you 8 settings for bright clean, bluesy rock, crunchy rock, and thrash metal. and then you can modifiy it for your own personal sounds. There are two main channels each with their own two sub channels (i.e. clean channel has clean 1 which is just clean, and clean 2 which is bluesy rock. And distortion channel has channel 1 which is heavy metal, and channel 2 which is crunchy rock). It has a footswitch, which when plugged in gives the option of looping, which gives the amp a louder more full sound. The on fault is that there is no headphone jack. But in the back you can plug in your headphones to speaker imput 2 which will give you head phones in one ear. I use this amp at home and to play for other, since it is almost 25kg I took off the feet knobs and put wheels on, because its a hassel to carry around. It is a 100watt amp so it is powerful enough to use infront of a large crowd because we use it at my school. It has a CD input so you can play along to your favorite CD's. // 10
Sound: I am currently using a Hyburn Strat with the amp but I hope to upgrade to a Jackson soon. I use mostly the bridge pickup for a good distortion sound, and the neck pickups for awesome solo's and a bright clean sound. I play every kind of metal there is (I have the death metal distortion pedal) so I guarentee you this amp sounds good for metal. I also play blues and some rock on it and guess what, it sounds like a studio recording. It is never noisy unless you are using low frequency reduction patch cords, which I don't have. The amp can make every kind of sound you can think of, just add the right effects and pedals, and rock on. For the variety there is almost no end, because of the three knob sections, there is two gain contols, and two master volume controls. The clean channel can be made to have distortion at high volumes or no distotion at high volumes, thanks to the gain control on the clean drive. If you ever listen to Metallica or Lamb Of God, you know a pretty good range of distorion, and this amp gives you the distortion of the last two bands I have named, and more. // 10
Reliability & Durability: You can depend on this amp just as any other Mashall, they are built to stand the test of time (quoted by Marshall himself), so yeah it can be depended on. Even at super high volumes, it never cuts out and there is literaly no feed back what so ever. So I would use it in a gig without back up. The amp has never broken down, ever. It is one of the biggest transitor amps out there, so it doesn't require you to replace tubes. It is play atleast 4 times a day so it is never neglected. And just make sure that you clean the inside never the electronics, because it dust gets in there, guess what you're paying for a huge repair service. Just warning you. // 10
Impression: I play everything from classical, to clean, to rock up to death metal. I have played them all on this amp, so yes it does the trick and provides for me. I have been playing for 3 years, and I have had this amp for 2 years. Other gear that I own is my Hyburn Strat, Fender Sidekick 10watt, MS-2 Marshall pocket amp, and a DigiTech Death Metal Distortion Pedal. I didn't buy the amp right from thw store so I researched on it before I did finally decide to take it. I can't see it getting lost or stolen, first of all it is kind of big to get it around, so it would stick out. But if it was I swear, I would rip the idiot apart who took it. The thing I love about it is the distortion, because it is so controlable, you don't just have to have one type of distortion. There is nothing I hate about it. I compared this amp to an MG30DFX Marshall, but I chose this one because it was bigger, better, better distortion, and when I purchased it, it was cheaper, so yah I got this one instead. I wich it had a built in tuner though, because then I wouldn't have to take out the cord and plug it into my tuner all the time, becuase I play from standard E right down to A tuning so, I use my tuner all the time. // 10
G80RCD
Reviewed by:
unregistered, on october 29, 2009 0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 215
Purchased from: Wise Music
Features: Amp was made in 1999? Not sure just read of the other peoples. Its a really good amp especially the clean channel. It has obviously 2 channels (OD and CLEAN). it does have an effect loop but it didn't come with it since its used. Its doesn't have a headphone jack. It Does Have cd input so you can play your favorite songs along with it. I wish it had a built in tuner because I go from E standard to D standard alot.( I play alot of Metallica and killswitch) I play from many type of music. Play clean bluesy music to hardcore rock to classic rock. (my favorite) though I do play those love songs that girls love to hear haha. I use this amp in my apartment room. Walls are thick so neighbors don't complain.(volume never gets passed 2 unless I'm at a friends! ) it has great power so I'm done spending money on amps. Just gotta buy effects for now. I haven't been playing for long (1 year) but I know my stuff. // 8
Sound: I am currently using a Epiphone special sg. I know its a low end guitar but I dont wanna use my strat. Too crappy and the wirings already messed up. I use stock pickups but planning on replacing it with some seymour duncans. My style of music is classic rock, metal, hardcore, sometimes punk, and those lovey duvy Acoustic ones. its never noisy and never gives me feedback. I usually just wing out my settings and move around the knobs till like it. It can make plenty of sounds from it. I wish it had more distortion to it thoe. But I can wait till I get my Boss pedal. I haven't playeed the clean channel very loud since it can get loud on low volumes hehe. Like I said... I'll just use what I got till I get my pedal // 8
Reliability & Durability: this amp can go through anything! I mean come on its Marshall. its never broken down or had any electrical problems even though its used! havent played gigs yet but will sooner in the future. I play it maybe 5 times a week sometimes more because I get busy with school. But I try to. I always sit on it. haha. Very durable. Its pretty heavy though thats why I'm planning on switching to wheels. and change the feet knobs to wheels since its heavy. // 10
Impression: overall this amp is pretty good. Solid little amp. I'm planning on buying an extension cab when I start getting into it. This amp will stay with me forever and never be sold. If it were ever stolen i would kill the person Who stole it or have him jumped :) if it were stolen though id be really sad. I would get a different amp maybe a Line 6. // 9
G80RCD
Reviewed by:
nick dixon, on august 26, 2008 0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Features: First of all, this amp is amazing as I was given it due to it having a fault. The Amp was made around 1999/2000. It's in excellent condition. It uses the same layout as the 80v amp having 2 channels and a boost on each channel, effectvly 4 channels, with effects loop, reverb and line out and CD in. Very handy little amp. Also a foot switch! It comes with a Marshall goldback 12" driver, which as far as I can gather is just a rebranded celestion. An added bonus to this amp is it dosent have daft built in digital effects. // 7
Sound: It gives a nice responsive sound, and every guitar I've played through it sounds great in any style, apart from metal. The distortion on the OD channel anything past 12 oclcok sounds absolutly godawful, so you might want a distortion pedal for the job. Suprisingly, the reverb on this amp is pretty sweet sounding to my ears. The amp is very quiet in operation with little or no mains hum, just a very quiet hissing sound. This amp is great for recording with it's 1 x 12" driver. The EQ actually effects the sound, and contour knob which acts like a parametric EQ in a way. The sound is very thick and bluesy compared to a lot of thin transitor amps. I have a feeling they recieved a few complaints about the valvestate sounding so piss poor (in my opinion). It's practically the same amp, just without a valve preamp. // 8
Reliability & Durability: Now, this amp will probably go wrong, like it did in the first place. Turned out there was a dry joint on the input which isnt a problem. The amp has a well thought out heat sink on the poweramp, it gets quite hot when working, I'm tempted to put a small computer fan in there just to get the air flowing round. it's a tough little amp. // 7
Impression: Good little amp. One of the best marshalls I've heard. Plays clean sounds excellent. Very jazzy. I'd reccomend this amp completley if your looking for a clean transistor amp sound. I have about another 15 various amps kicking around the place, this is one of the better ones for sure. Don't let the name put you off, as really, I'm sure it uses the same components as the MG series (they're pretty bad amps). This little 80 watt is great if your looking for a semi loud practise/recording/small gigging amp. Great for those cleaner 60's jangly tones. Doesn't nessesary drive like a valve amp though. // 7
G80RCD
Reviewed by:
bradwhiteuk, on november 01, 2007 0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 159.21
Purchased from: eBay
Features: The amp was made in 1999. I play hard rock, grunge style music and it seems to suit these styles well. Bands I cover: Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver etc. The amp has two channels. The first is a really warm, full sounding normal (clean) channel which allows the typical gain, treble, middle and bass adjustment knobs, but it also has a "crunch" button, which allows a slightly dirtier tone. The second is the boost (distortion) channel. This channel has the typical gain, treble, middle and bass adjustment knobs, but also has a contour knob and it's own volume knob so you can tailor the type of distortion you want. Also it has a button which switches between two different types of distortion (OD1 or OD2), and does for the boost channel what the "crunch" button does for the clean channel. Channel switching is available via footswitch or a button on the amp. There is also an effects loop but NO headphone jack. Another feature it has is the ability to link to a CD player via a jack on the rear of the amp, so that you can play CDs through it, and play along to them if desired. I would like it to have a headphone jack but I have another smaller practise amp with a headphone jack so it's not a big problem for me. I do not use the effects loop, and do not fully understand it's use, but that's because I will probably never use it. I use the amp at home and the venue where my band practices. It is 80 watts, so more than powerful enough to use at home obviously, and I use it in practice with the rest of my band, mainly with a Boss MT-2 metal zone pedal using the clean channel on the amp, although I occasionally plug directly into the distortion channel. The settings I use in practise are about %50 on my pedal, and about 30-40% on the master volume of the amp, nowhere near full power and still enough to be heard alongside the drums, a bass amp and our lead guitarist's Fender amp. I shudder to think of the potential full power of this amp. It's important to note that this is a transistor amp, not a tube amp. // 9
Sound: I'm a newb at guitar (have been playing for 2 1/2 months at the writing of this review). I use an ESP LTD M-50 with the stock ESP humbuckers. As stated above I play hard rock/grunge covers (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, blur, Queens Of The Stone Age, nirvana)but also some pop-punk kinda stuff (Blink 182, Bloodhound Gang) and some nu-metal (Linkin Park). It plays all these styles really well. The amp doesn't suffer badly from any feedback or other humming noise of any sort, and when it is producing an unwanted noise it is usually solved by switching pickups or changing settings on my effects pedal. I can only describe the sounds I have attempted to play, which are stated above, but it does a good job on all the styles I have tried. Given a bit more practice I hope to be able to play more metal based genres, but from what I know of the amp I'm sure it will handle these sort of sounds perfectly well also. The clean channel can be slightly distorted at any volume is you use the crunch button, but if you desire clean tones at a high volume this amp can deliver. An example of this would be the intro section to "Everlong" by the Foo Fighters. The distortion can be pretty brutal if you turn the gain, bass and treble up full, middle at 50% on the boost channel, with OD2 selected. You can then adjust the contour to get pretty heavy distortion. It isn't capable of as much distortion as my effects pedal but it's still pretty good. // 10
Reliability & Durability: This amp is fairly bullet proof and you'd have to drop it from a good height and be fairly unlucky in order for it to break. I have had no problems with it since I bought it, and the only problem the previous owner experienced is that the wires connecting the reverb unit to the rest of the amp came loose, and they are pretty easy to disconnect, but they can also be easily pushed back into place and soldering would solve the problem outright. Other than that this amp could take a beating. In addition it has very thick casing which makes it very heavy, but ensures that only superficial damage will occur if you bump it or smack it on something. I would definitely use it at a gig without backup, you are more likely to be killed by a stagelight dropping on you from above than for your Marshall to fail on stage. // 9
Impression: This amp definitely suits heavy hard rock genres, and I'd guess it would be useful for softer rock and other genres thanks to its many levels of boost and it's very good clean channel. I've been playing for approx 2 1/2 months and I own an ESP LTD M-50 and a Boss MT-2. It's impossible to lose something that weighs this much, but if it was stolen I would seriously consider getting another Marshall, either the same model or something similar to this. Maybe when I'm a better player I will get a Marshall tube stack, but this amp should last me several years. I love the fact that it's a Marshall and that it's much louder than I need it to be. I don't hate anything about it. My favourite feature is its seeming indestructability. The only way it could be better is if it was a tube amp and if it had a headphone jack. // 9
lol what a joke. Even if it's a good quality amp (although all mg's suck)there's no way in hell it'll get a 10 for everything. You don't have a clue m8
its not a mg series m8, also it has a custom loud speaker not an mg standard speaker, which boosts the sound quality and tone, and right now i am running a JCM 4x12 extension cab into it along with the internal speaker and i get a tone very similiar to that of Iced Earth, with a little modelling its like Dream Theater, or even Rage. If you are familiar with your metal you would understand, and also the clean channel can drive a jazz tone like that of Opeth's which is clear and powerful, m8. so yah 10s all around.
This is a horrible amp, but it is better than the MG's. Anybody that thinks an amazing metal tone comes from a 'death metal distortion pedal' needs shooting.
Sh*tPump :
so if this one gets 10 then JCM800 goes to 11?
Not everyone can afford the JCM800...
I think the idea is that it gets a 10 for it's price range/target market. The MG's aren't shit, fair enough you couldnt play Wembly with one, but it's a decent amp for bands starting on a low budget. You people have to realise that not everyone can afford £1000+ tube amps...we all have to start somewhere.
No. I have this amp(kinda old too, but its like 150 or 180 watts...thats what it said on the back,i dont remember.)I borrowed this amp from a friend that doesnt play it anymore,along with a old zoom 3030 player,and the amp has the speaker a little screwed up that i always have to tweak the input to make it sound nice....the amp was abused man,but its neat ill tell you that.
Sh*tPump :
so if this one gets 10 then JCM800 goes to 11?
Not everyone can afford the JCM800...
I think the idea is that it gets a 10 for it's price range/target market. The MG's aren't shit, fair enough you couldnt play Wembly with one, but it's a decent amp for bands starting on a low budget. You people have to realise that not everyone can afford £1000+ tube amps...we all have to start somewhere.
i agree with you cuz i bought an mg cuz i recently got a band together and needed some power but when i play with my boss distortion it sounds perfectly fine for beginners
No. I have this amp(kinda old too, but its like 150 or 180 watts...thats what it said on the back
generally on teh back of amps they give the peak power. mostly when you are talking about how powerful an amp is, you'll use RMS, which in this case would be about 100 watts.
and come on, straight 10's? it souldn;t be compared to the price IMO, because that means that we get every ****in review being 10 or 9 average because 1. people review their gear too soon after buying it to see any flaws 2. they are too inexperienced to have an ear for tone 3. they dont want to say bad things about the gear they paid money for
Thank you to sttpwn, Dean-Junkie and metal_666_man.
I agree with the rest of you that it's not going to be the greatest amp ever made (which is indicated by the fact that I got mine second-hand for £87), and I admit that i'm inexperienced, a newb, a beginner, whatever you want to call it, and I did state this on the review.
But for a beginner I think this amp sounds pretty good through a half-decent pedal, and I also believe that it sounds as good as, and is louder, than my band-mate's more expensive fender amp.
I got one of these in almost as new condition for £40 used. Lets get some perspective. It's better than my old MG15 but no where near as good as my mates Mesa Boogie or Fender twin (rich bastards). But, these G80's can be found very cheap second hand and for a beginner it's a good step up from the little 10 or 15 watt bedroom amp. Add a couple of decent pedals and you're probably gonna be ok for a year whilst you save for the real deal.
I paid a buddy about $40 for a G30RCD.
I know it's not a "good" amp, but it's something to plug into.
Just one complaint... where's the mid knob?
I've got bass and treble, but no mids.
Isn't the guitar a mid range instrument?
I bought one of these brand new back in 2001, and getting rid of it was one of the biggest mistakes I have ever made. This is a 80 watt monster which is much better than the MG series pieces of shit that Marshall has out now. If you ever come across one, nab it!
G80RCD
I am not a musician but an engineer. I have to say that this like many other Marshall’s is poorly made, nasty to repair, difficult to get parts for and in comparison to Fender, HiWatt or Peavey amps is really pretty poor. Dealing with these sort of amps on a regular basis you get to see the difference between OK and poor. This model drops its emitter resistors off the circuit board when it’s pushed hard for a couple of hours. The lack of any sort of backing on the cabinet means that heavy-handed users will blow the speaker within 6 months. The reverb is the sort of tank you fit in a baby practice amp. The controls, being those cheap miniature ones from Taiwan last at best 10 months and are not generally available spares in my neck of the woods and thus incur a considerable cost disadvantage when doing a repair. The chassis itself is a pain in the bum to get in and out the spring clips for the bolts lasting three or four removals. The PCB tucked into the chassis is not only poorly made but is not easy to remove from the front panel especially if the holes were not de-burred properly during manufacture as is the case with all the ones I have dealt with. The PCB layout comes from the design by computer and don’t worry about the outcome. Power amp is therefore less than conditionally stable as I have found when monitoring the output! A better layout for this one is all that’s required and it would then run cooler and wouldn’t drop components off the board either! Finally the PSU whilst having a reasonably good bridge has capacitors I wouldn’t fit in a 20 watt amp let alone one that’s supposed to give 80 watts. Made to a price not a quality. If all your interested in is having the Marshall name then its probably going to be okay. If you want a good amp that will last and be repairable 5 years down the line go elsewhere.
i disagree with the people that say that this amp is a piece of shit. I have been using this amp for over 4 years and it still sounds great. some say that this is just another MG, it has some differences. it is built with different components,such as the 12 inch goldback speaker, and various other components, which give this amp better sound qualities and more superior than the MG's, hence the name G80rcd, not MG80rcd. It is an 80 watt, or RMS 100 watt, so its really loud, i have done a lot of gig's with it in front of a pretty large audience. It may be true that this amp is not as good as the JMD or JVM range. However the JMD and JVM are far more expensive and are also tube amps. Only because tube amps are more expensive does not mean that they are better. It depends on what sound you like better. I have a JVM 210C, its a really good amp with some killer tones, however they have a different sound. Some sounds are better on a transistor amp than on a valve. This amp brings out some good sounds and you can produce a big diversity of sounds thanks to the different controls. Sadly this amp does not have a great variety of sound effects, so I use my Boss PH7 phase shifter, Boss DD7 delay, MXR wylde overdrive and crybaby wah-wah pedal. The amp knocks out some really awesome sounds with these affects which can be adjusted thanks to the Effects Loop. I play mainly metal and hard rock on it, some 60's and 70's rock (mainly shredding), and it sounds very good on the amp. Over-all this amp is really good, 9 out of 10!!!
ive just bought one from a second hand shop for $190, im an average guitarist but im a pretty good sound engineer and i work with one of the countrys best tribute shows so i know what a warm guitar sound is..
already its developed a bit of a hum but not too loud to annoy me, it does have good bottom end but it seems the original speaker was replaced with a pro sound speaker, warmth is good and i even felt like it was very close to a tube sound..
realistically to get a stage size marshall combo for that price isnt too bad, i play a few guitars but ive only used my gibson sg on it at this stage...
I will post more info on this amp in a month or so, keep watching for an update...
G80RCD
I am not a musician but an engineer. I have to say that this like many other Marshall’s is poorly made, nasty to repair, difficult to get parts for and in comparison to Fender, HiWatt or Peavey amps is really pretty poor. Dealing with these sort of amps on a regular basis you get to see the difference between OK and poor. This model drops its emitter resistors off the circuit board when it’s pushed hard for a couple of hours. The lack of any sort of backing on the cabinet means that heavy-handed users will blow the speaker within 6 months. The reverb is the sort of tank you fit in a baby practice amp. The controls, being those cheap miniature ones from Taiwan last at best 10 months and are not generally available spares in my neck of the woods and thus incur a considerable cost disadvantage when doing a repair. The chassis itself is a pain in the bum to get in and out the spring clips for the bolts lasting three or four removals. The PCB tucked into the chassis is not only poorly made but is not easy to remove from the front panel especially if the holes were not de-burred properly during manufacture as is the case with all the ones I have dealt with. The PCB layout comes from the design by computer and don’t worry about the outcome. Power amp is therefore less than conditionally stable as I have found when monitoring the output! A better layout for this one is all that’s required and it would then run cooler and wouldn’t drop components off the board either! Finally the PSU whilst having a reasonably good bridge has capacitors I wouldn’t fit in a 20 watt amp let alone one that’s supposed to give 80 watts. Made to a price not a quality. If all your interested in is having the Marshall name then its probably going to be okay. If you want a good amp that will last and be repairable 5 years down the line go elsewhere.
You are only talking about how it's hard to repair. Well I don't give a damn. If it sounds good it doesn't matter if it's hard to repair because I don't repair amps. If it gets broken take it to somebody who can repair it. I don't have any experience about these amps but c'mon! People here are interested about how it sounds not how it's hard to repair!
