Rory Gallagher’s Marshall 100-watt Bass Head

This amp was used by Rory during the 80s, usually in combination with a Marshall 50W combo, and Rory’s trusty Vox AC30.

But even though he used it somewhat extensively, the amp wasn’t actually Rory’s but was borrowed from Gerry McAvoy.

When it comes to amps I tend to vary things about every six months. I started with a Vox AC30 combo, and that model is still in my set-up, but I go through different phases when it comes to the other amps I use. At the moment, though, I’m still using my Vox AC30 with a Vox 50-watt combo as my third amp. My second amp is a 4 x 12 Marshall speaker cabinet with a converted 100-watt bass amp, on loan from Gerry McAvoy (Rory’s longstanding bass player). I really only use the Marshall to give my sound some body because I usually hear myself through the Vox for the most part.

POWER TOOLS SOUND ADVISE PURE GENIUS… by Phil Alexander

I still use an AC30 with a treble booster, plug into the Normal channel, I also have a 100W Marshall with 4 by 12 and a 50W Marshall combo. The Vox counteracts the harshness of the Marshall sound.

John Perry for International Musician & Recording World – February 1989