Metropoulos Forum

I've been lurking on this forum for quite a while. I have to admit that I'm impressed with the knowledge shared and the willingness to help others.

I've been playing most of my life, but really backed off when I got married and had kids (familier story, I'm sure). I recently had a very bad knee injury at work and have been home for quite a while. It's getting boring stuck in the house, so I'm picking it back up. I spent most of my years playing Marshalls, but all I have left right now is my Gibson J185, Les Paul and a 71 Twin Reverb. Reading through this forum has given me the itch to get another Marshall. I've done alot of research and decided to build a Plexi 50 with 70 specs. I wish I could go back in time and buy a brand new Marshall half stack for $800, but those days are gone. I think it will be much more satisfying to build it myself. I feel my schematic reading, soldering and troubleshooting skills are up to the task. From what I have read, it seems that assembling the amp will be just as rewarding as playing it. I'll be ordering it soon, and will post pics of the progress.

Here's a story that some of you may get a laugh out of: When I was 16 years old, I finally saved up enough money to get my first good amp. This was in 1978. The closest place that sold good equipment was The Music Crib in Oak Lawn, IL. The owner was an old guy named Gus that smoked a pipe in the store all day. He knew his shit though. My parents wanted to come with me to make sure I didn't get "taken advantage of", as if they knew the current prices of guitar amps...
I spent about an hour there playing through different rigs and narrowed it down to a 50 watt Marshall half stack and a 50 watt HIWATT half stack. They both sounded great and were about the same price. I couldn't decide...
I decided to ask Gus his opinion and he said that "they are both great amps and very similar, but the Marshall gets a little more dirty". My mom interrupts the conversation and asks Gus "well, can't you clean it?" Gus and I busted up laughing while my parents just stood there wondering what we were laughing at. It's a memory of my mom I will never forget.

Anyway, I look forward to sharing my build and helping out others whenever I can...

Jeff

Haha, I am a new/returning member and just posted a story about my amp hassles over the last year.
I'm also getting back into music in the last couple of years after being married and I'm also stuck at home often with the recent spinal injury.
No better way for us to pass time time than getting nice gats and amps and playing the heck out them I think. I spend a bit of time on guitar forums too and it can tend to fuel the cravings for nice guitar gear a fair bit.
I also have prefered Marshalls over the years. It's not that I don't like other amps, it's just these are my favourite sound. Just before I bought this JCM 800 1987 recently, lots of folk online were trying to convince me to instead get one of those low wattage amps that are so popular right now. I don't think they sound the quite same and I more or less got accused of being a narrow minded Marshall fanatic.
If I had to choose betwen an old Marshall or a Hiwatt, I'd still take the Marshall, but ideally I have both.
Good luck with the injury and happy new years.

Great story. I used to frequent MusicCrib on SW Hwy myself in my formative years. 1981-84. I bought my first guitar there. I remember going back a few years ago and Gus had limited inventory and was actually more into the whole buying gold and preparing for the economic meltdown of America.

I remember that Gus had a load of Gibson Les Pauls for sale for $300 - $500 bucks in 1984-85. Everyone wanted Kramers and Jacksons then.

Where did you go to HS Jeff?

I went to Joliet Central. Graduated in 80. Gus was a good guy. Always had honest prices. Not much of a talker though...

So, did you buy the Marshall? Or the Hiwatt?

I ended up getting the Marshall. I owned it for a LONG time, while other amps came and went. I wish I still had it. Funny thing is, the thing I remember the most about it is the smell that came out of it when it was nice and warm. I'll never forget that smell...