my god, this sounds way better than my dsl100h, so far, every marshall you touched sounds 1000% better

I did all these mods, but didn't have a .68mf cap laying around, so I ordered one, but got impatient and installed a .56mf and loved the results. It had a very tight bottom. When the .68mf came in the mail, I installed it and didn't like it as much. It didn't seem as tight and didn't have as much sparkle to it. Awesome job laying out the foundation, I couldn't do it without your guidance 🤘

Just picturing Ed having his hands on stock DSL100 back in early EVH days, the history the sound would make!

Wow this is sooo detailed. Thank you.

Fantastic mod, made the amp way better sounding and more like a proper Hot Rodded Marshall. I have one and already pulled C22 after this and can't wait to do all of it!! Cheers for sharing and all the wonderful detail. Let's gooo!

E-mail sent, I need this in my life! Good to see Aussie’s out there crushing it 😁 Love the technical videos & looking forward to playing with my DSL100 after hearing how awesome this is! 🤘

Wonderful bite and clarity. Great mod's.

Fantastic stuff Jason. More inspiration

It's probably worth mentioning that the Joey Mods thread shown halfway through this video is for the JCM2000 DSL amps, rather than the newer DSL100H, just in case anyone goes blindly copying what's mentioned in the thread without checking. As stated, there's many versions of the JCM2000 already and component numbering changes between even just those revisions of the board nevermind newer amps with the DSL name. It's alright for people like you or I as being able to recognise this stuff and what component being suggested to change does what and where that would be on a different amp etc etc is second nature by now

I know this is basic physics but it's still so effing cool. Completely changing the character of that amp by swapping out a couple of values. Good tone before, a monster after! I love these tutorials. Just got going on a JCM:ifying an old Peavey Windsor.

So I performed these mods to my DSL40CR this weekend. Some of the components are different in the CR, the second stage bypass cap is already .68uF, But putting the schematics side by side, I was able to make the same changes. Totally changed the amp for the better, in both feel and tone, and it is super crunchy on the Ultra green channel. it takes over where the Red classic gain channel leaves off, and the amp is a classic rock tone machine. All four modes work very well together. Thanks for putting this info out there. It completely transformed my amp into the type of sound I have been hunting for.

I did mods to my TSL 60 heads I use to own and that was my by far my fav Marshall amp i ever owned. One thing i advise anyone who owns these DSL and TSL heads, buy replacement boards because your gonna need them unless you do a lot of replacing of parts and get to those parts before they cause issues. I owned two TSL 60 heads and I had replacement boards for each one and in the end I had to use them to fix the amps. I got 5 years out of the first one and about 7 out of the 2nd amp before issues came up and caused harm to the boards. I love these amps, but damn Marshall did some cheap and stupid design choices in these amp. Thanks for the video ;-)

Great stuff mate! Really enjoyed this.

Very very cool changes you made Jason. You know, watching and listening I realised that you’re creating your own personal ‘Jason Tong’ signature vibe and tone in these amp mods and voicings! It’s super cool to hear because the amps you mod have so much bite and punch without starting to sound brittle and harsh 😊 I don’t hear that in a lot of amps these days, even from the ‘big guys’ 😉 looking forward to watching part 2 now. Have an amazing day dude!

Wow, amazing sounds from this mod. My dsl40cr is getting this.

Sounds great stock but this mods make the DSL 100H boutique tier. Amazing video in all regards. I only found missing a part where you test the gain knob of the modded amp, like 1/4 gain, 1/2, 3/4 and gain on 10 and a bit of EQ to show the sonic spectrum.

Great mods, I have one for the clean channel, adjust R2 down to about 2-3k. It is the bass control in a fixed tonestack, I find the clean channel is to different low end wise to the ultra gain channel. This makes them very close eq wise, so they play better with each other if you are a channel switcher.

I very much appreciate that you put in the time and effort to make this series of videos. I have one of these amps and was evaluating if I want to make the changes you documented based on the before and after. I noticed one thing in the 'before' section of the video. When you are evaluating the Ultra Gain channel, it seems as though the wrong gain knob is being adjusted (classic gain channel instead of Ultra). This happens a few times around 9:07. This may have just been an oversight while you were demonstrating for the video. Are you sure you were comparing apples to apples when comparing the before and after recordings? Thanks for doing this. Great video!

Excellent job bro!

Well Done! Very well explained. Instant subscribe.

that was some inspired playing at the beginning!

Im about to try out a mod on my DSL100HR that ive been thinking about for awhile. But first ill say these are great amps even stock and the newer HR versions are even better. My main amp is the DSL100HR that i got when they first came out, 2nd month they were available. Anyways so far ive modded mine with a Hammond 194G choke and a switch mounted to the top of the chassis that allows you to select the choke or the stock resistor. 90% of the time i prefer the beefy feel of the choke but it can be fun to use the resistor and really let the amp open up to get some more sag characteristics. But to hear the difference between the two you really dont need to have the volume very loud. Its quite apparent when you have the choke engaged vs the resistor. My next mod (just waiting on parts) is going to be swapping the gain pots on the Classic and Ultra channel for concentric pots. The outer dial will control the gain like normal and the inner dial on the Ultra channel will dial in the C12 capacitor (that everyone removes on the DSL100H and that was left out entirely on the DSL100HR). So on the Ultra channel the inner dial will brighten up that channel the higher its turned up and darken the Ultra channel the lower it is. On the DSL100HR's PCB they left the pads/eyelets for "C12" which is actually C74 on the DSL100HR so that you can add the capacitor back in if you liked the stock DSL100H and wanted that sound on the DSL100HR. The C12 value is 470 pF. With no C12/C74 the Ultra channel is a little too dark on Lead 2/OD 2 but with tighter low end. But with the full 470 pF cap its a little too bright on Lead1/OD1 but the low end isnt as tight. So by adding in a value around 150 - 300 pF it sounds really great as a lead/solo tone. But sometimes the Ultra channels sound better warmer with no cap if you are hitting them with an overdrive like a tube screamer or Timmy etc. that will brighten them by adding gain, mids, upper frequencys or cutting lows. So being able to dial in the exact amount of brightness for these channels is really useful depending on the situation. In other words it should make an already versatile amp even more versatile. Without C12/C74 you loose the Marshall lead/solo tone "Snarl" but i also completely understand that with C12/C74 the Classic and Ultra channels EQ dont match up as well as they do with no C12/C74. As for the other concentric pot that replaces the gain on the Classic channel it will be doing the same thing (brighten or darken the Classic channel) by dialing in (C4 -100H) / (C61 - 100HR) but im going to use a larger value in place of C4/C61 so it will be able to be warmer than stock and brighter than stock depending on where it is set on the inner dial. And of course just like before the outer dial will still control the Classic channels gain. You might be thinking why not just EQ to get these changes and theres a few reasons why that isnt as ideal as this mod. The EQ isnt something you can set separately for each channel but with these mods you can get some slight control over the EQ of each channel simultaneously. And i truly do believe that the last little bit of magic that separates the big boys (plexi, JCM800 etc.) from the DSL line can be accounted for with this mod that wil lallow control over the snarl/depth of the preamp gain. Im really excited to get these mods in place. I try to post about all my builds an mods on Marshall amp Forum so if anyone is interested how it comes out keep an eye out over there.

Well done... I wish you lived nearby! We could definitely benefit from having a Tech and Player like You around... Great job! AAA+

Great stuff as ever Jason! Made the red channel have much more of a plexi percussive attack sound, and I presume the choke will help make it a little less stiff feeling? I have one of these amps too, and I’ve found the master volume can make a pretty big difference to the tone as far as rounding off some of the ugliness that can come through on the red channel. Not ideal for using live as the levels can end up quite mismatched but it does offer some more tones based on how it’s set. Love the explanations of the different parts of the circuit, thanks so much for sharing your tweaks and making the video!

DSL40C should work with these mods too, the schematic is identical!

I like the presentation on the DSL100. Your choices for tighter brighter are not what I would do. But this is a difference in taste and your ears. You could look into EPITAXIAL diodes replacement for a spongier power supply. I am replacing that 270 ohm with a choke. I removed the bright cap on the gain control. The amp is not well biased from the factory. I re-biased. My amp is perfect and behaves. I enjoy the capability of the bottom and sometimes, if I want, I get that nice woolly bass. I can always roll off some bass. Thanks for your video on this and your astute explanations. No one else is showing this much confront.

I guess you know what you’re doing and I certainly have no knowledge of electronics, but it scared the shit out of me when you put your hand on that transformer with the power on. 😮

Please do the DSL100HR too! They changed up some things on these newer models, its a bit less harsh and flubby than the older models i have played, still i feel it could use some improvement, its a bit stiff feeling under the fingers and not as fluid as some more expensive amps, i really wonder what kind of magic you would do to it.

Another great vid mate. It makes me wonder what Marshall was thinking when changing up these drive channels...Sign of the tones of the day I guess. It seems like they were trying to reinvent the wheel when it really didn't need it. Im all for trying new things but I can't help but think it was the marketing department driving these changes, any changes! instead of guitar players. Anyway with blokes like you around it seems like an easy enough job to bring these amps back into a usable state. The clean and crunch channels still do stand up in a stock form which is the amps saving grace. the rest just seems like more gain for gain sake at the expense of tone and clarity...silly IMO. Cheers mate, another informative and useful vid.

You have the skills of a neurosurgeon in modding the PCB, I am amazed at your work. I will always wonder why the designers of these amps build them without the mods you described here! In all of your research into Marshall amps, can you recommend ANY new or re-issue Marshall that is perfect to your ears and does NOT need any mods? Thank you for sharing the details and photos of your work, you are a true master!

I haven’t been a big fan of DSL amps, but that sounds good. The transformer set on the one I played through were quite small. I was really surprised by this.

Hey there, Just did a few of these mods to the DSL, it is way tighter and I have more control of the gain. Thank you for the tips. Have you played with any Mesa amps? Be handy to get some tips for the Dual Rectifier. Thank you for your content, also glad your from Australia to👍

Hallo Jason...Does this mod work for 100 dsl HR too ? Is it the same board as in H model ? Thanks for a great video 🤘

Just loving your videos my friend. But I do have a question for you. I know this can be done and maybe you have some insight. But I have a 100h and a DSL 50 jcm 2000. And what I am looking to do is to forego the reverb foot switch and be able to add some sort of relay to change between lead 1 and lead two in the ultra gain channel.. could you do some kind of video for that and what would be needed to do it?

wow that suhr looks just like a showmaster strat

Great video man, I’m just getting into mods and wondering if these mods would work in a Dsl20hr?

I went to your website and don’t see pricing. Would be cool to know what someone would pay for this sound. These mods are EXACTLY what I like. Perfect 👌👏

I have the DSL40 and I definitely agree about the lead channels. Lead 2 is just unusable and just mush in general. Lead 1 is okay up to a certain point. I mostly stick around the clean/crunch channel as I prefer that edge of breakup plexi style tone. I've just got a question about the clean mode vs the crunch mode in the classic gain section, looking at the schematics are there any differences aside from the increased gain in the crunch mode?

Very interesting, I have the DSL 40 CR, is the scheme the same? only that yours is the 100w version and mine is 40w, tell me if what I think is correct, and also, how could I get the modified schematic that you show in the video? I don't know if I'm asking too much, but I really appreciate your great work. Cheers! 😉

That is a definitive improvement, tastefully done. What is the purpose of the 1M resistor to ground?

Works with DSL5C 😃

That's always been my problem with the old JCM2000 DSL too. The gain on ultra lead 2 is far too muddy past 6. Otherwise it's a great amp especially with a mercury choke & OT.

Thanks so much! Is there a parts list?

I got the same amp. this is very interesting. So far, my only complain for this amp is the clean. Is it possible to get a simil fender clean tone with any mod? thanks.

I am a novice at this,but I noticed on this amp,as well as the Jubilee Re-issue,they don’t have the big blue filter cans anymore….just little capacitors on the board…..Does this effect the sound of the amps??..

Big improvement with these mods...would these mods work on a jcm2000 tsl60?

Suggestion for future videos, I’ve been watching a lot of your videos but I couldn’t find anything with the Marshall DSL20h. This amp is cheap and would be nice to have a mod that turn this amp in something better than the stock version. Maybe I can use this video as a guide to mod the 20h version but its schematic is a little different. What do you think?

Would it be overkill if I stuck a Klon style pedal in front of the modded Lead 1? The gain on the pedal would be set around 10 oclock. The volume 3 o'clock and tone at around 1 o'clock.

Danke!

Hey man do you think it would be possible to turn this dsl into kind of a hot rodded jcm800 like you did with the origin? I figure it would be easy cause this amp already kind of sounds like a boosted jcm800?

amazing video, can this DSL get converted to a real ch1 pleaxi circuit and channel 2 just an 800 sound?

HI..is it the same mod for the newer version dsl 100 HR ?

you were turning the Classic knobs when you adjusted the lead 1 channel?

Dude I love what you do, is there any chance you would do a mod of a stock TSL (I know, old amp, why? They are great amps that came stock kinda shit, if Tommy Shaw can get a modded one to sound great, what could you do?))

I heard that King's X at 10:34

Do these mods translate to the dsl 100hr?

Hey Jason. Have you done any mods on the Marshall SV20? Sounds like a great amp.

Just curious does anyone know if this helps the headroom with using a boost? and allows for a little more gain? I've noticed that when boosting and trying to use like a "metal" amount of gain it gets very thuddy and the tone gets choked out. I've found you can kind of workaround this by turning up some gain on the boost and then turning down the gain on the amp itself, but you know, it would be nice to use the gain more on the amp just because it sounds good before it gets weird lol.

Hello thank you for sharing this video, anyway, my 1998 DSL 100 JCM2-60-00 rev 345 doesn't have same shcematic, in fact cap 11 isn't connect like yours, i'm going on now wiht the mod and i will know you about the result bye

Been thinking about pulling the trigger and getting one or two DSL100s to mod, I like the gain on tap but I feel that they sound really flat. I also play almost exclusively down tuned 7 strings, what would you recommend doing to make them more aggressive and what you might call more "modern" sounding, i.e. the fortin modded amps or the more recent variants of the Uberschall

Jason is "The Man" I was wondering if any of you guys have been performed this mods on a DSL- 40C?

Marshall really need to redesign the DSL circuit to make the ultra gain channel more usable…. Ive had the DSL100 and it was just painfully bright.

I have an original dsl 15h head that I love the gain channel. What is the possibility of modification to my dsl40c combo ultra gain channel to match this? Is it even possible?

If marshall ever does an updated version of this amp they should just delete the ultra gain 2 and make it essentially a 3 channel amp and have Clean, crunch and high gain. As well as tame the low end like you did and the harshness. If I were to have to use one of these amps stock I'd probably completely ignore both the high gain modes and just use the crunch mode boosted with an overdrive if I wanted high gain, although the crunch mode I'd say is pretty usable on its own for a crunchy rock type tone.

Do you know if increasing the gain to higher values causes more wear on the tubes? Cheers from Portugal 🤘🍺🇵🇹

Hi My amp has this circuit that you show in your clip. Could you tell me please which resistors are the grid blockers I want to check if mine has 220K or 5K6

I did one of these amps and it sounds so much better. I'm doing another one and just finished and now I don't have any gain on lead 1 and lead 2. It's basically like a clean channel with not much volume. You have any suggestions?

Do you guys mod the Marshall DSL 1 watt

How does it compare to jet city in terms of build quality?

I have a dsl 20 h and I'm starting to think it's pretty sub par. Unless it's just me I've had a few moments by loading up the front and loop It's just not blooming unless the gains up to around half on the high gain channel which is too much gain

Where is the master volume located on this amp? I can't understand the schematic/

Great job. Would this work on a dsl20?

Can i use 50v 1uf and 50v 0.68. Is the 50v fine i guess is what I’m asking? Or does the voltage need to be higher

wow great job on that amp. they're kind of turds. you really fixed it up nicely.

Voltage CANNOT be lethal, only amperage that it's associated with.

schematic URL is dead.

This is why Fuchs, Hughes and Kettner, and Budda. Because they are JCM style amps thar have chord clarity even at high gain, the opposite of this. If you cant play a maj13#11, i dont want it. You made it sound like a peavey.

can i put 2 4700pf in series for 2n2 ?

Aloha Jason nani mod on the amp video wish you live in Hawaii I would bring my DSL100H amp for you to mod for me i love the amp except the red channel the sound on the red channel very muddy it doesn't sound like a Marshall at all do you have the parts lists or showing where to remove parts and replacing parts on the amp I would buy those list instruction form you. Do think you can help me out on the red channel so it doesn't muddy and the speaker flubbing. The red channel is very terrible sounding. Aloha Mahalo for you time Braddah Jason

Idk how it works but when he put his hand on the transformer I got so fucking nervous

Needs more gain

What gets me is that Marshall has had how many years now to work out the sound that players want, and yet not deliver it. Like WTF. There is 15 years + of forum posts, and KZfaq videos that show what players are after, and yet make no andvances toward reaching that ? I just do not understand why nobody there takes the initiative to work toward it. I am just dumfounded that anybody that doesn't have actual amp knowledge like myself, and make their amps sound better. Let alone skilled amp builders like Jason doing it. I just dont get it.

nothing is availeble here , no schems and no paperwork

Sounded so bland stock 🤮