Amplifier Review Is Up: Marshall Origin 20 Combo

[burntfrijoles]

Great review.
It's taken me the better part of 3 days to come terms with the Origin 20c. As Bob stated in his review, even with the "PowerStem" feature it is LOUD. I have no issue with the gain or volume controls. You can play them against one another to get a nice range of tones from clean to crunch.

Really it's the EQ that has required a learning curve for me. If you want to balance or tame the highs, it requires working with the Tilt, Treble and Presence in conjunction with each other, which may sound obvious but not as straightforward as it seems IMO.
The Boost feature can really introduce a great deal of "woof" to the amp's tones. I actually found it of greater value at lower gain settings.
All in all, I'm liking the amp more and more and I still have tried the first drive pedal yet. Tomorrow, I'm adding a fuzz and a lower gain OD.
It's the yang to the yin of my SE PRRI with 12" speaker.

 

[mungus]

Thanks for the review.

Amp sounds really nice in the BK vid

 

[Bob Womack]

Thanks for the review.

Amp sounds really nice in the BK vid

The nice thing is that is sounds just like that in person!

Bob

 

[swervinbob]

I need to find a sound clip a buddy of mine recorded with my Origin 50 through a load box with a 4x12 Greenback IR. I had the amp on the middle power position and the master cranked, with the gain set over halfway. It is a cool sounding overdrive and fits what he wanted to play perfectly.

 

[Joe M]

I just received one of these yesterday and my first impressions are very positive. My first Marshall and it complements my DRRI and PRRI perfectly. Really looking forward to trying out all the little nuances of the amp.

 

[Joe M]

After 4 or 5 days of playing the amp, I've come up with these thoughts.....

It is loud, as several have mentioned, even with the built-in attenuation
Speaking of the attenuation, I've found that the amp sounds best, to me, in the half-power setting; I must add, I play almost always clean, with little overdrive
I added a cheap-o reverb pedal to the front of the amp, gotta have a bit of 'verb. Don't know if it would sound any better/different if I used the effects loop
Unbelievable quality/construction for not a lot of money. Got an unexpected huge discount online from one of the big-box stores. I would have been happy with 10-15% off the MAP, got much more

Bottom line; the amp is a perfect foil for my Fender's, seems like a keeper at this point
EDIT TO ADD: Forgot to mention, all my guitars are either Teles or Strats, I don't have a clue, or really care, what a humbucker would sound like.

 

[Dacious]

I think people buy these expecting Plexi tones which is where a lot of the disappointment occurs. They do a woody thunky JTM Marshall that's more Bluesbreaker. It's not Plexi, it's not JCM800 or later.

Run treble 5-6, mids 8-9, bass up to dimed, presence 3 or 4. Tilt usually slightly past noon. You're 18 year old Angus.

It sounds great with a Strat or Lester as a 60s or 70s clean, Early ACDC, Bad Company or Big Old Jet Airliner sort of way. Pedals can make it sound like anything you want. I like the stock V-type speaker which is a touch gritty and a bit transparent but a Greenback is a good upgrade for more crunch. Swapping V1 for a Sov LPS or good cleanish long plate 12AX7 works a treat. Couple with a usable DI and FX loop, and a great transparent boost. Whatever tone you've got gets a nice kick for a solo.

I don't know what Mr Psionic is on with his review. The one he worked on had some oddball issue I think. I think he's a bit too purist for it. Sitting the eqs on noon - I've never owned a Marshall that works for. Hiss with MV up? Sounds like a bad one. None of the 20s or 50s I've played had that.

 

[KingKongStanley]

An Origin 20 and a Les Paul Junior might
sound close to Steve Hunter with the proper Stomp Boxes.

 

[Joe M]

Another Update:
I’ve moved the Origin on to its new owner. Not because I didn’t think it is a nice amp, but because I found another Marshall-type that I like better. Plus, I’ve developed a one in, one out policy with my gear, and the Marshall lost out.

The new, latest, best, details can be found earlier in my thread about the Magnatone Varsity.

NUAD Magnatone Varsity *Pics Added*

I recently picked up a 2015 Magnatone Varsity amp. Absolute bare-bones; volume, bass, treble, on/off and standby switch. Also a NF on/off switch. Two EL84's, 2 12ax7's and a GZ34 rectifier, 12" Magnatone-branded speaker. Has what Magnatone calls a "cathedral" front. I'm guessing this may be the...

www.tdpri.com

 

[telemnemonics]

These things are so cheap and so good looking while even sounding really good in their niche, that it is kind of nice how the overall lack of education around all the different Marshall circuits put used ones plentiful and cheap.
I tried to buy one during that gear shortage and there was not even a new one in stock anywhere on the planet!

These earlier circuits and this interpretation is a range I love but not quite my favorite.
Way less struggle than a Bassman RI which I owned in the past, and so nice to have an affordable lower wattage amp close to that circuit.

I also dislike JCM and even late JMP but love early JMP and late JTM.
For anyone interested in earlier roots sounding Marshalls, buying one of these is just the right thing to do.

As for the whole power scaling features and whatever I have not tried them in person, but seems useful if you need it.
I used to want the cranked version of Marshall but not love them for clean to breakup range and am not playing crunch guitar, they are way more versatile than just that classic/ hard rock stuff they are presumed to be made for.

 

[pope858]

I've had my Origin 20C since July of 2023! I have replaced all the original Marshall branded (JJ's) tubes, to good effect, including a NOS Matsushita 12AX7 in V1, a modern Mullard CV4004 in V2 and a particularly nice sounding JJ 12AX7 in V3. The Matsushita especially helped to balance the sound level and provided some smoothness the original tubes lacked. I also replaced the EL 34's (JJ's) with a matched pair of modern Electro-Harmonix EL-34's. This change calmed/quieted the amp significantly. The noise level at idle and as you increase the volume went way down with the EH's and much of the treble/brittleness I heard originally is reduced. In fact, the tube swap changed my mind about replacing the Celestion speaker. Between the tube swap and some playtime to break in the speaker, this has become a fantastic sounding amp that is an absolute kick in the shorts to play! It Rocks!

 

[11 Gauge]

I've had my Origin 20H since June of 2020, and it's not going anywhere.

Does it sound like a Marshall? Well yes - it sounds like an Origin! For anyone expecting it to sound like another model, I don't know what to tell them, other than to get that model instead.

But aside from what the Origin does or does not sound like, the more important thing to me is whether or not it's capable of sounding good or great, which I've personally concluded that it does.

Whether or not the amp has plexi-like cosmetics means nothing to me. The fact that they went with EL34s (specifically) with cathode bias is unimportant to me.

I also think that Mr. Psionic possibly did himself a disservice by trying the Origin 20 with a guitar with humbuckers. I think it just absolutely kills with a Tele.

I'll end with this - I love that the Origin produces fantastic tones that sound nothing like my BF/SF amps, and I love that it won't make my ears bleed like my 2204 does.

 

[erratick]

No gut shots?

I do like the sound of the 18-20w Marshall amps. definitely the sound of rock n roll. Sounds pretty great.

 

[Bob Womack]

No gut shots?

Click to embiggen.

Bob

 

[erratick]

Click to embiggen.

Bob

Nice! Thanks!

 

[Dr Improbable]

I've been farting around here at home with my Katana MK1 and Nextone Artist, and I just wasn't satisfied. Back in the day I played all over the place in blues bands, with a Twin, and a Fender Blues Deluxe. Coming back to playing I went solid state so I could play quietly while my family slept or whatnot. I have been unsatisfied with the tones I get. Even with pedals.

My Origin 20c arrived Thursday. I love it! Even on low power and clean, a tube amp has a "3d-ness" my Katana can't quite get. Love, love, love my Origin. Plenty loud for the monthly Blues jam, whisper quiet with a drive pedal while my family sleeps. This review helped push me over the edge to buying this amp. Thanks Guys!