Newb considering a Class 5 with a couple questions

[Ldpart67]

Hi all;

Ive been doing considerable research on the Class 5 amps (research which led me to discover this site).
Strongly considering a purchase but have noticed a lot a talk about the Rattle issue. Also learned they are sold in different colors.

My questions:

A) Is the Rattle issue inevitable? or just depends on the luck of the draw with what you buy?
B) I have read that different colors are sold by different regions/dealers. I know the Purple one apparently are uber rare, but was just wondering if those are sold new and if so what region should I look to track one down ( if anyone has a used one they would actually part with that would be ok too)
and finally :
C) Any release date on the Class 5 MKII combo and will they also be offered in multiple colors? If I cant get a Purple one White is my second choice.

Ok well thanks for any feedback, I look forward to joining the Class 5 club at some point.
Dave
Tampa, FL

[bluesmandan]

Don't know about the region/color thing, but as for the rattle... no, not all of them rattle, but if yours does, Marshall will send you a new three piece back at no charge, which should fix the problem. You can also do a little modding, like adding felt liners along the backboard to get rid of the rattle. I bought an older used Class 5 a few weeks ago, one with a one piece back (and a rattle). I contacted Marshall, and asked for a 3 piece back. In the meantime, I took took off the back and hotglued some felt at all the contact points, and the rattle went away. Marshall contacted me today to let me know that my 3 piece back is on the way. I don't know if I'll install it, since the rattle doesn't seem to be there anymore after the felt installation, but it will be nice to have the "real" fix on hand in case the rattle returns. Of course, everything I just said really only applies to the ones with a one piece back. As I understand it, newer models already have a 3 piece back. I haven't heard about them rattling, but I guess if they do, you just glue some felt in with them, too...

[Don]

Almost all of the rattle in my early, 1-piece back Class 5 went away when I replaced the original tube. I also removed the heat shield per the Marshall service PDF that was going around, put o-rings on the tubes and added a few pieces of felt. My amp has been fine for a while now.

I picked up this amp cheap hoping that I could quiet the rattles and was successful!

[FuzzMonkey]

After experiencing three Class 5s with both tube and chassis rattle (all with the three piece back) I decided to wait for the Mk II version and try again. I'm in the camp of it should be fault free out of the box, its Marshall after all not some cheap knock-off. Would you buy a TV and expect to assemble to remote control yourself? Sure, you could use it but it would be a pain to have to get up to change the channel all the time.

My 0.02¢.