6100 LM

[Mats A]

Is the LM version not as good as the first? Is there any differencies in the crunch channel?

[surfnorthwest]

Been debated a lot. The later LM models had the 5881 .vs the early LE model that came with the EL34s, so yes there will be a tone difference. I have the LE and have played the LM, both very good amps.

[longfxukxnhair]

I owned both at the same time. I found that the LM, with the 6l6s had a sightly better clean channel and a little more of a modern tone. The models with el34s have that traditional British crunch.

[Mats A]

When converting other Marshalls from 5881 to EL34 i havent heard any big difference in the tone. Doubt you without knowing wich could tell just by listening.

[Anitoli]

Basically the only difference is in the appearance. Many people have claimed that the LM moniker means lead modified but I have yet to see anything different in the circuits, and no one has been able to provide any info to what could have been changed so I call BS on that. What does LM mean? IDK, Love Marshall???

There is one change that I do know was done between the LE's and LM's and that is the removal of the signal grounding mosfet circuit on channel 2. Why, I don't know but it was removed so there must have been a reason.

During production the factories will run out of parts and will find suitable suppliers from anywhere. It's not uncommon to see in the same model many different brands of parts. This can to a slight degree change the tone a little but it's really no big deal. The tubes will prolly have a bigger impact on overall tone than the other stuff.

LM's are good stuff. And there are way more of them out there than there are brassers and blue models so the price is generally lower. Just keep in mind ALL of the 900 series amps are getting way beyond 10 years of age. So factor in at least a filter cap job. The amp AND your ears will thank you for it. Trust me, these things really like a healthy set of caps.

[LiveFreeOrDie]

I owned both at the same time. I found that the LM, with the 6l6s had a sightly better clean channel and a little more of a modern tone. The models with el34s have that traditional British crunch.

Very true, but the LM still distinctly sounds like a Marshall.

[donnyboiler]

My LM sounded very similar overall. A shade sweeter and chimier on the middle channel vs. the EL34 punch and snarl, but it still had plenty of those things too. The lead channel seemed to reveal a bit more modern top end through the 5881s but you could do the same thing with the presence dial.

I recorded my old LM pretty extensively next to a DSL and it wasn't like you'd listen back to those recordings and say "ooh, is the amp on the left driven by 5881s?". No way, it sounded like a Marshall. Yes it sounded better than the DSL, but that's because it was a 6100 ;)