Marshall JTM45 & 18W Circuits: Is The 1974 Really A "Baby Bluesbreaker"?

There's been a huge amount of love for my Tube-Town 18W kit amp that I showed you a few weeks ago - a circuit that has become known over the years as the "Baby Bluesbreaker". The original Bluesbreaker amp that moniker refers to is the JTM45 (the combo specifically, thanks to Mr Clapton - but the head was the same circuit). But - are the JTM45 and the 1974 circuits really all that comparable? They're both essentially copies of other amps - the JTM45 starting life as a Fender Tweed Bassman clone, and the 18W circuit being adapted from the Watkins Westminster - and they both use different tube sets with very different tone shaping EQ options. But despite those differences, and the obvious wattage variation, how do they sound?

Today, I'll be comparing my JTM45 clone to the 18W kit build, with both heads running through the same cab, mic'ed identically, and the mic blend remaining constant throughout. But I will be normalising the levels so that we can better compare the fundamental similarities & differences between them, rather than simply proving that an 18W amp is quieter than the JTM45.

What do you think? How close are they? Which do you prefer? Comment below!

Guitars:
- Gibson Les Paul Jr w/ Monty's '54 P90
- Fender Partscaster Strat w/ Fralin Real '54s
- Gibson SG Standard w/ OX4 Low-Wind A4 PAFs
- Fender MIJ Tele w/ Monty's '53 bridge & Bare Knuckle Flat '50 neck

Amps are a Vajra JTM45 clone and Tube-Town 18W TMB kit build - both running into a Zilla Studio Pro 2x12 cabinet loaded with Scumback S75-PVC AlNiCo and Celestion AlNiCo Gold speakers. Recorded with Aston Spirit Condenser, '70s Sennheiser MD441 and sE RNR1 ribbon mics, with a Schoeps CMC6 room mic.


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0:00 Intro
4:50 Real-World Volume Difference
5:20 Clean
7:23 Crunch
9:24 On 10!
10:50 Outro

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