Marshall was sold... again

[Guitarbilly]

.... to the parent company of TikTok and AliBaba.


It's funny, I want to care about this because I love Marshalls, but when I look around my studio.... my favorite Marshall is almost 50 years old (77 Super Lead), and even the "modern" Marshalls I have here (2009 DSL JCM2000 and 2013 DSL100H) are 16 and 12 years old respectively.
So the fact is that Marshall has not made anything I'm interested in for over a decade.

Even the amps they still make that I like (2203x, 1987x and 1959HW), I'd rather buy them used anyway.

So I don't know, I want Marshall to do well, but when I really think about it, I haven't been a customer for their new products in well over a decade. Maybe it's time....

[turbopablo]

Yeah, I find it hard to care at all. Just another brand changing hands. Again.

[Spaced Out Ace]

Lol. Watch the new company sell non Marshall badged amps out the back door from their same manufacturing plant, and the prices go back mostly to where they originally were prior to Marshall ending their US distribution deal.

[zozobra]

Marshall have always been kinda stiffed by having to sound like a marshall otherwise people will bitch about it. That doesn't leave them much room to play in. Nothing they sell is something I'd pay new prices for. Laney have at least kept a pretty diverse portfolio of amps over the years. Marshall not so much because it had better be able to cop an 800 or jmp tone or there will be hell to pay. Maybe this is the kick in the dick they need to break out of that a little?

[Guitarbilly]

Marshall have always been kinda stiffed by having to sound like a marshall otherwise people will bitch about it. That doesn't leave them much room to play in. Nothing they sell is something I'd pay new prices for. Laney have at least kept a pretty diverse portfolio of amps over the years. Marshall not so much because it had better be able to cop an 800 or jmp tone or there will be hell to pay. Maybe this is the kick in the dick they need to break out of that a little?

Actually, Marshall already broke out of that almost completely. Their revenue was 394m last year, out of which only 18m were amps. 376m were headphones and Bluetooth speakers. That's 95%.
Chances are this is the end of amps altogether. They no longer need them as a company.

[Spaced Out Ace]

Actually, Marshall already broke out of that almost completely. Their revenue was 394m last year, out of which only 18m were amps. 376m were headphones and Bluetooth speakers. That's 95%.
Chances are this is the end of amps altogether. They no longer need them as a company.

How much of that had anything to do with the lack of availability in America for basically the entire year? They were taking a step in the right direction with the reissue pedals and the modded amps they released (prices aside). Then this, which very well could be the end as you stated.

[Guitarbilly]

Actually, Marshall already broke out of that almost completely. Their revenue was 394m last year, out of which only 18m were amps. 376m were headphones and Bluetooth speakers. That's 95%.
Chances are this is the end of amps altogether. They no longer need them as a company.

How much of that had anything to do with the lack of availability in America for basically the entire year? They were taking a step in the right direction with the reissue pedals and the modded amps they released (prices aside). Then this, which very well could be the end as you stated.

Clearly the previous owners didn't see US distribution of amps as a priority. Marshall products are available in the USA, you can buy Marshall headphones everywhere, best buy, Amazon etc . It's just the amps that weren't available.

With the new owner, who knows. But amps are no longer a significant source of revenue for the company. So it could go either way.

But again, Marshall always made gear for the music that was popular with young people, which from the 60s to the 90s, was guitar based. Now that's no longer the case. So maybe the DJ headphones of 2025 is the guitar amp of the 60s-90s.
I don't like it, but I'm 50 so

[I'MAPUNKROCKERDAMNIT]

Those pre-AliBaba Marshalls are going to quadruple in price!!!

[I'MAPUNKROCKERDAMNIT]

Here's an article about the sale...
https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/ ... -1bn-deal/
Apart from my Jube increasing in value... I am not really happy about this. :

[RaceU4her]

I didn’t even notice that company owned tiktok, that does kind of just seem wrong lol, it’s like toys are us or whoever it was that owned death row records for a while there