Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962

From the first notes of John Mayall's 1966 album, Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton, it was clear rock guitar would never sound the same. Clapton's aggressive approach and singing, thick tone introduced the world to the glorious, cranked Marshall amp sound. When Eric Clapton used the Marshall Model 1962 on the John Mayall & The Blues Breakers self-titled album in 1966, the performance in combination with this amp was such a distinctive contribution to music history that the amp came to be known as the "Bluesbreaker".

The Bluesbreaker's amp section is warm and crunchy, and the use of alnico speakers in an open back cabinet adds an unusually chimey and three-dimensional sound for a Marshall, which has contributed to its status as a genuine workhorse far outside of the blues genre too.

The Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962 plug-in is a super accurate software version of the real thing, produced in partnership with Marshall from a Series 1 Bluesbreaker Model 1962 combo amplifier kept in pristine shape in the Marshall museum since 1965. The plug-in was component modeled down to the smallest details, resulting in flawless sound quality that will make you feel wonderful tonight and every night.

The Bluesbreaker is of course one of the most iconic of the Marshall amplifiers and the example Softube was privileged to work with was very special indeed. It's the subtlety of the tones that the amplifier delivers that we set out to capture and thanks to the quality of the plug-in modelling every aspect of this iconic amplifier as available. Both of us were delighted when suddenly the "ghost note" appeared on a long sustained bend and the access to that very special tremolo guarantees that this amplifier will get used on more than just guitars.

Tony Platt - Producer/Engineer (AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, Foreigner).

Developed by Softube, the Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962 plug-in is the first emulation of the legendary 2x12 combo used on this landmark session. Not only is it an expert emulation of this nearly unobtainable British classic, it also offers powerful multi-mic sounds to dial-in studio-perfect amp tones. To model the legendary Bluesbreaker, Marshall loaned Softube's engineers an original, all stock, Series 1 1962 combo — the exact type used on the historic Blues Breakers session. Valued at over $30,000, Softube thoroughly emulated the amp's alnico speakers, tremolo circuit, and dual KT66 power section.

Classic Marshall Tones and More

With its open-back cabinet and ability to "jump" the inputs to dial-in a wealth of high-powered tube tones, the Bluesbreaker plug-in is capable of more than Clapton-esque grind. From chimey clean tones to rich, on-the-edge of breakup textures, the Bluesbreaker thrives in pop and country settings.

Mix Between Three Expertly Placed Microphones.

Open up the plug-in's Channel Strip section, and easily dial-in your sounds with Panning, global High/Low EQ, and Level control over each microphone, allowing precision fine-tuning — during tracking or mixdown. No matter the genre, or type of guitar, you're afforded tons of tweakable options, from pin-point single miked tones to roars of glorious room ambience.

Amp Room Ready.

This plug-in can be used within Amp Room, Softube's pro audio guitar & bass platform. Click to learn more.

A Groundbreaking Collectible With Marshall Heritage

Guitarist lore claims that the idea for the Bluesbreaker actually came from Eric Clapton himself, because he wanted an amplifier that could fit in the trunk of his car. Great story, although the truth is that Jim Marshall simply wanted an amp that could compete with the very popular Vox AC30. The Bluesbreaker's amplifier section is identical to the standalone JTM45 Tremolo amplifier head, which was Jim Marshall's first amplifier model ever.

The Model 1962 was the first combo amplifier by Marshall, with an open back combo cabinet that features two of the 12" T650 speakers by Celestion. The fact that the Bluesbreaker had an open back cabinet with alnico speakers set it very much apart from most other Marshall cabinets, which are usually closed designs equipped with ceramic speakers. The Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962 has since become one of the most collectible and valuable vintage guitar amplifiers of all time. Now you can have this legendary Marshall sound as a native plug-in and as a module in pro guitar and bass platform Amp Room.

Engineered by a Legend.

Producer and engineer Tony Platt, who recorded some of the best Marshall tones ever committed to tape on some of the most rocking albums of all time – AC/DC's Highway to Hell and Back in Black – masterfully recorded the original combo 2X12"speaker cabinet, Celestion T650, at the legendary Strongroom recording facility in London.

Platt recorded the cabinet with 3 types of microphone combination settings, each with 4 sets of microphones, all carefully selected to give a wide variety of tones and positioned to sound fantastic when used in combination with each other. Nothing comes close to the mix-ready magic of these sounds. We built a world-class engineer right into the plug-in.

Precision Fine-Tuning of Your Microphones.

Click the wood panel on the right with the green Channel Strip sticker, and a channel strip appears with options to help you blend and tweak your sounds until they're mix-ready. The Main Out Volume sets the overall output level of the plug-in without affecting the sound. Choose between Valve, FET, or Dynamic mics in the near field with Cabinet Microphone Select.

Use In to activate or deactivate each microphone channel, use Pan to place the microphone channel where you want it in the stereo panorama, and use channel fader to adjust the volume a microphone channel. With all of these options, you can mix your ideal sound right there in the plug-in.

Perfect for Amp Room

Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962 comes with modules that are fully integrated into the Amp Room ecosystem and sound exactly the same as the native version of the plug-in. If you already own Amp Room, you definitely need this amp.

Amp Room is the pro audio guitar and bass platform, designed with sound quality as top priority. It's just like having a real amplifier with a miked up speaker cabinet in a high-end studio – with the added convenience of more options to patch in any kind of studio tool you need anywhere in the chain.

The 1962 Bluesbreaker in general terms needs no introduction of course, and even 50 years after it was released still proves incredibly popular for players. The original unit from the museum we used for this plug in is a pure piece of history and heritage which exudes bags of amazing tone. It's always been a little frustrating not being able to share with people how great this particular amp is... thankfully now there's a way.

Chris George - International product demonstrator and new product co-ordinator, Marshall Amplification.

Softube & Marshall: A partnership based on sound quality.

Softube's first prototype was a hardware DSP box running a Marshall amp model and a loudspeaker model. This attracted Marshall's interest and led to a successful long-term partnership between Softube and Marshall. Softube is Marshall's exclusive software partner, and Amp Room comes with the only amps and cabs available in software form that are officially licensed and endorsed by Marshall.

In short:

• A careful emulation of the legendary Marshall Bluesbreaker 1962 amp.
• A true blues and rock & roll legend and one of the rarest and most expensive amps there is.
• Cabinet speakers recorded by engineer/producer Tony Platt of AC/DC fame.
• Both a native plug-in and a module for Amp Room, the pro audio guitar and bass platform.
• Component modeled down to the smallest details.
• Flawless, authentic sound quality.
• Amazing microphone combinations and options with classic dynamic, FET, ribbon and tube condenser microphones.
• 'Jump' the inputs to use both of them for tone shaping the sound, just like the real amp.
• Endless creative possibilities in Amp Room.
• A rare and valuable collectible with Marshall legacy, now available as software.
• Use the channel strip to fine-tune your sound right there in the plug-in.
• Officially licensed and endorsed by Marshall.

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