Ashdown Peacemaker 60 212 Combo

2x12 Peacemaker combo 60 watts cool UV meter - auto biasing replacable tubes, Lead channel / boost volume. I believe I have an early one.... I have have this since they came out in 2002. Options are great, especially with the auto bias tube option. Nothing beats the Celestion vintage 30's - despite what another reviewer said. If you want a different sound out of the speakers. I was originally after an Orange or Meta-amp but I was very into the boogie sound as well. This amp boasts the el-34's I don't think there are any other features that I could benefit from in an amp. Also has an effects i/o and level control in back. I LOVE the open back design.

I normally use a fender relic strat and I drive the clean channel for the most part with OD pedals. I play rock/grunge/metal and some lighter melodic stuff. Sounds great across the board. This amp has alot of pounding power. When I got it, I went head to head with a voxac30 and it slammed it. I wanted a vox - I was glad I ended up with the peacemaker - it really kicks!!
The sounds I get have a lot of versatility. The lead channel took a little tweaking to get right, but it's tone is very rich and can seem high ended which can really open your sound up. At first I hated it. Then I realized that I needed to listen to it, and realize how sensitive the bass, treble and mids can affect the distortion and crunch of this amp. Regardless of how you use this amp - pedals or use the built in lead channels, it really rocks. At beast you would need some sort of pedal to fatten up your sound. I use a Squawk pedal in front of it - sound is MINT.
I really think this amp is worlds ahead of alot of other amps on the market. I would call this the poormans AC30 (VOX). I love the sounds this amp can make. I have always been complimented on the vintage/modern tone I carry with this amp.

Never had an issue - Gets kicked around and always fires up the tone.

I have contacted the company a couple times for suggestions. They had emailed me and gave me a couple pointers. Very helpfull. They did not tell me to take a hike.

This amp is totally awesome. It is a tad lighter than the boogies, it is just as loud as a marshall and has a lot of character of many other amps out there. It has more options then I will ever use and it is a real workhorse. Maybe some of the later models were problemmatic - I don't know. I would reccommend this amp to my family. The founder of ashdown has been making amps for a million years. It is no-wonder this one has so much mojo.

OK. I've had my Peacemaker for over 2 years now. Until 2 weeks ago, I've never had any technical problem at all. Like just about everyone else here, I'm not taken with the 'lead' channel, but the 'clean' channel gives some fantastic tones when driven hard. But a couple of weeks ago, mine just fell silent. Completely. I replaced the o/put valves, but nothing. Ashdown were actually very good indeed, advising me to get a local tech to have a look (no cover for valves/fuses on warranty) but offering any help I/he needed. Its now fixed, and.....it sounds bloody fantastic - even the 'lead' channel is 100% better.
Now, it might (in fact probably is) simply the fact that I put good valves in it, but whatever, don't write this amp off. It seems cool to praise other better-known makes of amp, even if they're not spot on, just by saying "All this amp needed was a replacement set of JJs/Groove Tubes/Mullards...." etc etc etc . Well, this Ashdown doesn't have a big reputation to trade on - but put in some quality valves - I out in a set of Mesa Boogie EL34s - and I think it holds its own with others of 2 or 3 times the price. Its very Marshallesque (eh?), loud, rich, rock'n'roll all the way.
I'm dead happy with mine.

One final point I forgot to make in my 2 previous reviews (duh): there's days when I really dig this amp & days when I definitely don't. I don't think it's just me, I think the amp's just slightly erratic like that. Though it does sound good, sometimes very good, on the clean channel at least, on balance I'd have to advise potential buyers to give the Peacemaker a miss. I already consider it a bit iffy that the footswitch-selectable function of mine packed it in after 18 months, but by all accounts I'm one of the luckier ones. Based on the way above average quota of reviewers here who've had major reliability issues & mechanical f**k-ups of various kinds (see also the reviews for the Peacemaker 40 in this respect), I think it's safe to say that this entire series was slapdash & inconsistent. I say "was" because they've been discontinued, having failed to catch on with consumers.
At the very least, be absolutely CERTAIN it's the one you want before you plonk your money down, because the other thing is they have f**k all resale value. Of course, that could change if this generation's guitar-idol wank-maestro uses one & the slavish, sickly hero-worshipping copycat domino effect inevitably kicks in.
Hmm, maybe I'll keep mine for a few more years ;-)

This is a follow-up to my review of 11/03/2005. I've been playing regularily with the amp since then, have gotten used to it's quirks and have learned how to make it work for me. First up, I never even TRY to use the drive channel anymore as it sounds like 2-week old piss. Secondly, after years of minimalist austerity I finally dug out some decent OD/Dist pedals for the clean channel & now it does everything I want it to. Finally, I made good on my promise to replace the Vintage 30 speakers with G12H30s. The G12Hs are similarily voiced, but with softer, mellower mids, warmer tone and more bottom end. They also handle only 30w each and start to break up sooner. HUGE improvement overall. With these mods, the clean channel gets a 9. Stock was about a 7. I quite like the clangy metallic aspect of the Peacemaker's tone. Very original. I don't mean metallic as in metal, I mean it sounds metallic in the same way that a JTM 45 sounds woody. However, the drive channel remains the North Korea of guitar tone: it exists in a parallel world that I will never experience & it's probably for the best.

I've gigged it a few times & rehearse & jam regularily through it. Only thing that's gone south is I'm no longer able to switch master volumes via the footswitch (??). I don't really care 'cos I use a compressor for boosting, but still, that class of thing shouldn't really happen after less than 2 years of ownership. See my sage comment in earlier post about too many options meaning too many things that can go wrong.

I've had dealings with the company in the course of my work & they're a nice bunch of people

I've never gone hogwild for the Peacemaker, although I can use it just fine for what I do. It gets the job done, even if my Sovtek Mig100H eats it alive & spits out its bones (and then belches)

Features standard enough, 3 channels clean distortion one and two

celestion speakers nice and loud...fantastic projection, fantastic overall value footswith for channel change.

like the gent below i also use 59duncan loaded strat but i felt i had to write a response to the inaccurate views below.

in the clean channel there is a brisk crunch on the humbucking pickups but with the gain down and master up it is possible to get a nice clean at massive volumes. good headroom. clarity not an issue

distortion requires work...evidently the individual below doesnt know anything about tone dialing, taming the trebel is possible, just turn it down! there is a nice mid section to this amp also...perhaps the only issue is getting a heavy metal tone out of this amp...its blues to classic rock...metal heads wont be happy.

solid tone throughout. have gigged it for a couple of years now and often get complimented on the tone i can get out of it.

no problems really, had one dodgy power tube but nothing to do with the amp.

have emailed the company. helpful

this is a very good amp for the individual new to the pro tube amp arena...might not stand up to the likes of koch and boogie..but then thats why this amp is a hell of a lot cheaper. gets fantastic tone for your money...and is suitable for all styles of play perhaps save metal.

playing 26 years. played all the heavy hitters...this hold up well with amps well out of its price league
the individual below must have definitely got a dud amp either that or he cant use tone control and is dissolusioned with his sound.
this amp has served me well and is easy to recommend

the usual for the modern combo

2x12 3channels and footswithch reverb

im playinG A fender strat loaded with 3 duncaN LITTLE 59S.

To begin with channel one tends to give off a false sense of greatness...projects well thru noisy situations but the tone really is quite flat...its difficult to hear individual notes in a chord...particularly on the lower strings which tend to bellow rather than give the clarity and presence of say a marshall.

channel 2 + 3 are truelly awefull, never have i heard distortion sound so WEAK, enough trebel to blow out windows, about as much charm as a value pack of peanuts.

the reverb is overboard and fuzz intense, anything past 2pm on the dial and the sound becomes murky, in light doses its fair at best.

if i was to tie the clean down to a particular sound id say its blues...bad sounding blues at that. stick to orange or marshall for real tone!

disaster, it lasted six months before short circuiting...it turned out that 16 crimps were loose in the interior, careless engineering or bad transit im not really sure but it caused me a pre studio knightmare. when it was returned, something else wen immediately, my repair expert said it was in the power amp but didnt give details.
had to cut out the dial from the front as the unit is so difficult to take apart for repairs. either the repair guy hadnt a fucking clue or this thing is just a pain in the ass. either way iv spent e150 fixing the thing

they answer questions in fairness, briefly at that, wasnt sending the amp back to the uk from ireland tho...hassel and time.

stay clear of this one id say. perhaps i got a complete dud, either that or the other reviews havnt a bulls notion about guitar tone, the thing has been a disaster, wouldnt buy again, have played marshall dsl tsl , fender twin, orange ad30s...this proved more than inferior in all cases.
my own fault for tbuying the thing.

See previous reviews

Want a classic British rock sound? This will give it to you; just use the Clean channel, dime the gain to between 2-4 o'clock; Highs on 11 o'clock, Mids on 12 o'clock, Lows on 2 o'clock. Channel volume at 1 o'clock, Master volume wherever you want it (but above 11 o'clock). Bingo. With guitar volume lowish, you have a beautiful full yet shimmering clean; turn up and it starts to roar. Stamp on a decent o'drive pedal and the lead sound is excellent.
All this depends on having good pickups - decent output is needed, otherwise you'd have to revert to the Lead Channel - which is a shame because it's poor by comparison.

Mine is still 100% operational; no problems whatsoever.

It's a really, really good amp for classic rock and blues (Humble Pie, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC, Free etc) and also excels at slightly more contemporary sounds (Foo Fighters, Green Day).
And it looks cool too.
Sorry for those unlucky people below who complain about reliability; mine has been fine from day one (gets regular thrashings).

2002 Ashdown Peacemaker 60 2x12 combo, purchased new in 2005 (it had sat in it's box in the warehouse for 3 years. That's how roaringly successful these things've been!). All-tube, 2 channels + extra boost thingie for channel 2, effect loop (not that I ever use it or ever will), double footswitch for channel-hopping (+ my homemade single footswitch for master volume hopping ;), standard 3x12AX7 preamp w/ 2x EL 34 in the power section, 60W rms. 2 x Celestion Vintage 30s (shortly to be replaced w/G12H30s). "Features" or perceived lack thereof, is so subjective that this doesn't even get a rating. It has way more than I need, but maybe not enough for some of the more wank-infected nu-school, Line-6 enthusiasts & othersuch specimens. Who can say?

'92 Les Paul standard w/ Duncan Antiquities + similarily doctored '96 Les Paul special & Tokai Junior. Plain as Jane rockin' w/no effects.
Contrary to certain other reviewer's claims, it IS possible to get decent sounds out of channel 2. It involves maxxing the bass, keeping treble low & not going too crazy w/ the mids (Vintage 30s + P90 pups = mids galore anyway)+ volume on full & gain never beyond 12 o'clock. However, this channel doesn't hold up in a live situation. It just doesn't cut through enough, lacks bottom end & headroom. The clean channel is as good as they've all said & fares better in a band scenario, but for my style of music I could use a slightly earlier breakup on it (this bastard's loud as all fuck). That way I would never need the shite dirty channel, not least because I HATE having to deal with footswitches onstage. God, just gimme a fucking 1-channel amp that does what it's fucking supposed to for the duration of the set & doesn't need to be fiddled with!! I plan to shove G12H30s in place of the Vintage 30s in the hope that the lower wattage in the speakers gives me more dirt on the clean as well as a rounder, more Marshall-ey vintage vibe. As it is it's just a shade too bright sounding for me w/ mids that are occasionally on the harsh side.

I have a flight case for this thing. Probably just as well, as it doesn't seem the sturdiest. The wood appears way flimsy to me. I don't tour these days & just play out once in a while, so this suits me ok. I doubt it'd hold up too well on the road. Gimme a Sovtek any day. I've had it about 8 months now & it's been ok so far, though.
I've never gigged w/ a back-up amp in my life. I don't have roadies or fucking publicists either!

Still under warranty & Ashdown seem relatively co-operative from what I've heard, but I ain't had to bother them. Yet.

Been playing 16 years, sometimes on, sometimes off ;). Lots of different amps at various times; mostly Marshall or similar. If this Ashdown were stolen, I wouldn't replace it with the same model or make. Nor would I have paid full retail price for it in the first place. Don't get me wrong, it's a good amp, just too boutique for my tastes. Great for domestic noodling, but onstage it doesn't do it for me that much. Too many options = too many things that can go wrong. They should've just made it a 1-channel amp instead of pandering to modernity, or rather attempting to. I do plan to stick with the thing for now, though.

I got this amp a few months ago, bought it at a car boot style affair at a local guitar store, ex demo.

3 channel 2x12 combo fx loop n' that, very useful speaker cabinet options, gorgeous reverb and loud!

I really want to give a 10 for rating but footswitching is an annoyance with two pedals needed to access all features.

But this aside, I have owned lots of combos over the years and this is the only combo i've been happy with.(don't get me started on marshall jtm 30 ad 60's!)

I mainly use a head and 4x12(jcm 2000 and 1960bx great for 'that marshall sound' but really crap for clean sounds) and only bought this amp on reputation, never heard the amp before I bought it. Mistake I hear you cry but it was for sale at ?230 I don't know what the rrp was for it but I thought I can't go wrong for a class A amp at that price! The fella who was selling it didn't seem that happy at selling it at this price(he was some sort of director/designer at ashdown I later learned) but my wife was with me and she said to him 'i'll give you ?200 for it' he looked as if he was going to cry.(my wife is half Indian and has struck me many a happy deal in guitar shops over the years, she has that Indian 'thing' going on I don't know what that is but i'm happy!) Anyways she got it for ?210!!!

I don't tend to use fx when at home I prefer 'plug and play' but fx I do use are a Vox wah(R mayer upgrade), Eh 'big muff'(still makes me giggle and i'm 32 years old- grow up man!) boss od-3, dunlop univibe, and a boss dd3.

The clean channel is awsome I own two 68' reissue hendrix strats and no matter what pickup selection I use it does not dissapoint so clean but so dirty, bridge pickup, all settings at 12 o'clock E7#9, say no more! A certain 10!!!!! BUT a disappointing 5-6 for channels 2 and 3 too trebly for me.

However my les paul studio(which like a fine wine gets better every year) sounds, clean, blues dirt, kinda peter green type stuff(heaven). channel 2 i'm still overawed it is everything i'm not joking, then channel 3 oh my good goodnesses what did you say my name was?

My flying vee has a similar story and it makes me look kool(and it distracts from my inabilities as a player but that's not for here!)

And i'm not talking to my sg-x(she won't stay in tune, maybe a string change maybe in order!)

Because of my gibos' I will have to give a 10

Don't know, have worked this amp hard at home and have pissed my neighbors off no end!! you can't stop art I cry!!

Would gig it tonight(if I had a gig(shit business i'nt it!))

P.S. i'm not Les Mcqueen, if you don't know wht I mean you need to see the leauge of gentelmen.(a uk black comedy)Is he local?

Dunno!!

I've been playing for loads of years, had lots of amps, would replace it in a heartbeat.

You have to love the vu meter!

And in closing a valve amp only sounds as good as the player!

(Don't get me started on line6 poo(iwas going to say s**t) an a abomination to guitar and amp. I have played line sicks guitars into my setup and needless to say not a patch on a squire or an epiphone let alone my own guitars. And as for there amps. Well I won't keep you all day!

Good byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

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Still going strong, after being pushed hard at rehearsals and gigs.

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Me again. Just to say that this amp is still doing the business. I have just had a set of Bare Knuckle 'Crawler' humbuckers fitted to my old Aria - the Ashdown seems to love them; I can use the lead channel with much less gain, allowing the power of these (excellent) pickups to push the power amp harder, thereby delivering really wonderful tones, everything from shimmering cleans to brilliant rock overdrive. I simply don't understand the moans elsewhere about tone from the Peacemaker.