The current dating system is by far the most straightforward and informative.
This very convenient method ended around 1965, when all of the white and black sandwich type of panels were used up and Marshall changed over to the cream or gold Plexiglas style.
They continued to number them sequentially in this manner until the beginning of 1964, when they started at 2001 and so on, with the "2" indicating the second full year of manufacture. Many of these amplifiers had an offset chassis.Īfter these came the first production amplifiers, starting at number 1001, which was Ken Bran's idea, so that it would look as though they were building thousands more amplifiers than was actually the case! These numbers were scribed or stamped into the back panel of the chassis, and sometimes also included the model type, such as PA, Lead, or Bass. Cosmetics are the most obvious clues here items such as the old block-style Marshall logo, vinyl, grille cloth, output tubes, type of panels and knobs, etc., are the easiest and quickest way of estimating the date. Marshall's first prototypes had no model codes or any official serialization. If the date codes differ by much more than a month (most of the original Marshalls I have seen have used speakers made within days of each other), then the chassis have probably been changed this means that the date code can only be relied upon to date the speaker, not the amp! If there is excess glue on the surround, then a recone is even more likely. If you have a 2x12 or 4x12 and the cone numbers are different, they may have been reconed. However there is a pretty good chance that speakers on the old Marshalls are not the originals or if they are, they're perhaps not in original condition. Unfortunately, unlike many American amplifiers, Marshalls use no date-coded parts other than the Celestion speakers, so don't bother inspecting the pots or other parts for dating information. Please remember, however, that the Marshall dating system only applies to amplifiers and combos, not to speaker cabinets but if you are trying to date a speaker cabinet from mid-1969 or earlier, you can always try and use the Celestion date code. From a dating point of view they fall into three groups: 1962-1964 1965-June 1969 and July 1969 onwards. For the most part it's really quite easy to date Marshalls, either by using the serial number or by studying the cosmetics.
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