Come with us, time travelers, as we revisit a year’s worth of axes, amps, stomps, basses, baritones, and other tools of our music-making trade—all deemed worthy of the Premier Gear Award.
Marshall JCM 25/50 2555X Silver Jubilee
Produced only in 1987, original Marshall Silver Jubilee amps now fetch ridiculous sums. Marshall has heeded the clamor with the new JCM 25/50 2555X Silver Jubilee. While the 2555X boasts several design changes, in most critical ways it’s a faithful recreation of the original. Powered by four EL34s, the amp delivers 100 watts in triode mode and 50 watts in pentode. It boasts responsive EQ controls, heavenly clean tones, and a hot-rodded JCM800 vibe.
$1,899 street (head); $1,299 street (cabinet), marshallamps.com
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Come with us time travelers, as we revisit a year’s worth of axes, amps, stomps, basses, baritones, and other tools of our music-making trade—all deemed worthy of the Premier Gear Award. This year’s list is as diverse as ever: Classics revisited, shred machines made affordable, fuzzes refined and made more fiendish, amps that blast and purr, basses that boom, and time-warping delays and reverbs that mock astronomers’ notions about the cosmos. From manufacturers big and small, these delights await you in the pages ahead. Enjoy the voyage.