Following a return to occasional gigging in my middle years, I bought this amp as a replacement for the compact digital modelling amp I have been using for the past decade. It wasn't until it arrived that I realised how much I had missed the tube/valve amp of my youth on which I first cut my guitaring teeth. What follows is not a summary of the detailed specs of the amp (which are available on various websites), but rather my own observations of using it since it arrived.
The DSL40 reissue is sweet! Its clean notes are not quite as sparkly as my friend's AC30, but they are more than sparkly enough. Where Marshall amps have always been at their best is on the higher-gain, dirtier, and overdriven sounds--and this is no exception. It is the versatility and response of this that impresses me--the results are uniformly good whether I am playing for vintage notes on a hollow-body with hand-wound P90s, or looking for a more modern sound on a HSH super Strat.
The benefit of this model is that it is possible to use it at 20W (home) or 40W (stage), and there is line out facility for larger stage use. That was one of the reasons I bought it. Perhaps the only downside is that the cabinet is fairly heavy. Whilst the 20W setting gives a good practice amp volume, it is a chunky piece of kit to lug back and forth to a practice. But maybe I am just getting old! Since most users will want to use the amp's own gain for dirtier sounds rather than use a pedal or ME unit, the effects loop is essential as this allows some flexibility in the placing of gain, modulation and ambience when crafting a tone.
Overall, this reissued DSL40 is, in my view, a classic. The slightly 'nostalgic' 70th Anniversary model is slightly sleeker in appearance, though identical in dimensions and performance to the more usual Marshall branding. I bought the anniversary model as it was slightly better value at the time. I am glad I did. I think this may well be the last amp I will ever own!!
