Marshall has announced the Marshall x Hendrix 60th Anniversary Collection, a limited-edition range of a half stack, Bluetooth speaker and Fuzz Face pedal marking 60 years since Jimi Hendrix first plugged into a Marshall amplifier.
Sixty years ago, Jimi Hendrix plugged into a Marshall and changed what an amp could do. To mark the anniversary, Marshall has announced the Marshall x Hendrix 60th Anniversary Collection: three limited-edition pieces spanning a half stack, a Bluetooth speaker and a Fuzz Face pedal, each built around Hendrix’s sonic legacy and unmistakable visual world.
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The centrepiece is the 1959 JMH Half Stack, combining the 1959 Handwired Head with the 1960 AJMH 4×12 Handwired Angled Cabinet, handbuilt at Marshall’s Bletchley factory in the UK. It’s the same configuration Hendrix used, delivering tight low-end, mid-range punch and stunning highs. The visual treatment is unmistakably Hendrix, with black and purple in a cosmic swirl across the fret and control panel, silver detailing on the knobs, handle, logo, grill and back panel, and the all-seeing eye badge on the top and bottom of the stack. Available exclusively with the half stack, Dunlop’s limited-edition Fuzz Face Distortion pedal carries the same oil-on-water design for anyone looking to get close to those snarling, snappy Hendrix tones.
Photo by Nate Naismith / © Authentic Hendrix, LLC: Seattle Center Coliseum, May 23 1969
The Acton III Bluetooth speaker rounds out the collection, drawing on Hendrix’s love of velvet, silver jewellery and his well-documented fascination with space and science fiction. Coated in crushed velvet with a silver control panel, purple knobs and purple LED lighting, it looks the part. A silver-stamped all-seeing eye sits on the side, and the on/off sound was taken from Hendrix recordings, including a rare instrumental version of ‘Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)’ from The Jimi Hendrix Experience deluxe box set.
Marshall co-founder Terry Marshall reflects on what made the partnership so significant: “Jimi was a formidable musician, a real force of nature. He took everything to a new level and carried everybody with him. When he played, it was an emotional time for everybody because everyone was thinking, if he can do it, I could maybe do it. And he’s using Marshall, therefore we want Marshall. It was a really special time for us all and there’s no doubt that we grew with him and his fame; it was a natural tie-up.”
The Acton III is available via Marshall.com, Myer and Deus. For the 1959 JMH Half Stack and Fuzz Face pedal, head here.
