Dave Friedman built his brand (and reputation) by making supercharged Marshall-inspired amps, and his latest hones in on one of his personal favorites – a beloved ’68 JMP Superlead – with a handful of player-friendly tweaks.

Friedman Amplification’s 50-watt Plex head is propelled by two EL34s pushed by a trio of 12AX7s, and sports a familiar aesthetic including a control panel with High and Low inputs that feed into two channels with internal jumpers, replicating the blending technique used on vintage Marshalls. Both have independent Volume controls and Bright switches along with a shared Master Volume and EQ section. Channel 1 mirrors a Lead-spec Marshall, Channel 2 a Normal-spec.

With a Les Paul plugged into the Low input, Master dimed, and both Volume controls at 9 o’clock, the Plex delivered sparkling cleans. Push the Volume controls further and sound breaks up with warmth and just the right amount of crunch for classic rock. Experiment with blending Volumes to find a sweet spot.

The High input kicks things into overdrive with more gain, sustain, crunch, and harmonics. Dime both channels, and the Plex delivers a wall of in-your-face British crunch and low-end thump. With exceptional pick attack and tactile feel, leads, and bends sing with effortless sustain and harmonics.

The Plex reacts extremely well to picking dynamics. A light touch yields articulate cleans, while heavier attack unleashes an explosion of throaty overdrive. The onboard Variac (controlled by the H.V./L.V. toggle) lets you run the Plex at a lower voltage yielding a saggier, bouncy feel. The increased responsiveness makes hammer-ons and pull-offs a breeze, and three-way Bright switches add further sculpting for warm, round tones to bright and crunchy.

The post-phase-inverter M.V.C. control works incredibly well, allowing the player to push channel Volumes for full-blown power-tube drive while keeping overall volume manageable for thick, saturated tones at any level.

The Friedman Plex captures the raw, unfiltered punch and crunch that created the mystique of vintage Marshalls. Packed with clever, user-friendly features and soaring British tones, it’ll likely satisfy even the most-discerning Marshall enthusiast.

This article originally appeared in VG’s September 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.