Ashdown Peacemaker 60 212 Combo

I have had this ashdown combo since buying new in 2003 . It has served me well enough ( a few breakdowns) but is now at the end of its life. cheap printed circuit board is frying up all over the place . Just got a burnout fixed for the last time . Amp shopping at the moment . Probably gonna rip out the 2 celestions to make a speaker box and trash the rest .

Be very wary of 2nd hand sales of these amps.

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!

N/A

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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.

I have one of the early edition 60 watt combos, and thought I should chime in here since there are so many reports of problems.

The amp has 3 footswitchable channels, clean, OD1 and OD2. The clean is a typical British EL-34 Class A tone, like a vintage Marshall instead of Fender-type clean. But the overdrive channels are what it's all about on this amp for me.

One great feature is #1 and #2 Master Volume controls, which gives you 2 overall volume settings that are independent of the gain controls. Dial in your gain and tone, and you can keep the same settings for your solo. Great feature.

The amp has a very nice built-in reverb that sounds great and has a very useful control range. Not like a Fender where it sounds like you're in a cave at 3, with this amp you don't get to cave status until 10.

The EQ controls are very interactive, but it was my experience that if you start with all the EK knobs at 5, you can dial in great tone very easily.

My axes are the standards: Fender Strat and Gibson LP. I was able to quickly dial in great tones with both guitars for all styles of music, except metal. But for metal I've always found it's best to use the clean channel with disortion pedals anyway.

As I said above, the overdrive channels are what make this a great amp to own. The distortion on these Ashdown Class A amps is just incredible. Somehow they have voiced these amps so that they create the richest, creamiest distortion that I have ever heard.

Especially for leads, Ashdowns are an incredible sounding amp, they will give you that s--t eating grin when you play them. I like them so much that I own three! This one, a Peacemaker 40 combo, and a Peacemaker 60 watt head.

I could not get a bad tone out of this amp on the overdrive channels, and can't really understand the complaints of others about tone. Maybe they aren't used to dialing in a 3 channel EQ with EL-34's? Here's some great advice: Start with Everything at noon (mid scale), and tweak very slightly from there. Trust me, all amp designers voiced their amps to have their characteristic tone right there.

This is a LOUD amp! 60 watts into 2 each Vintage 30's makes mucho sound pressure levels, I've had no problem gigging with it. Just for fun I stacked it on a Marshall 4x12 cab, which of course was more volume than anyone really needs....

I have owned the amp for about 18 months now. I have gigged with it extensively, pretty much daily. It has hundreds of hours on it without so much as a hickup. I probably should change the output tubes soon, but it still sounds great so I will wait a while longer.

The VU meter got broken (a common complaint on these) while loading it into the trunk one night. But honestly, the meter is marketing hype anyway. A lighted VU meter, on a guitar amp? Come on...

As I said, I own 3 of the Ashdown amps from this series: this one (Peacemaker 60), a Peacemaker 40 watt combo (w/ single 12" vintage 30), and a Peacemaker 60 watt head. I've never had a bit of trouble with these amps, and they have all been used regularly, especially the combos.

I called the factory about getting a replacement VU meter, and they sent me a replacement from England for Free !!!

If this amp were stolen or lost I'd just use a 2x12 Vintage 30 cab with my Peacemaker 60 head, which is why I bought it. But after playing the Ashdowns, I simply can't go back to other amps for overdrive and lead, this is the stuff !

I think the one I initially bought saw a 2004 model. I like the features on this amp and it looks very retro and cool. Individual volume controls. Feature wise it's very good.

Now, this is where I couldn't even describe horrible this amp sounds. To be a bit fair, when I tested this amp in the music shop it sounded fantastic specially the clean channel. The music shop had a clearance and I got one. When I got home, to my dismay, the amp started with awesome clean, then to my dismay the sound started deteriorating. I mean, the sound just thinned out. It just sounded horrible and I couldn't stand it so I brought it back to the music shop to be fixed. When I got it back it had the same problem and told the music shop that I wanted it replaced with a new one. They told me they sent it back to the rep but when I went to the shop to pick up the suppose to be new amp, guess what? It's the same bloody amp. I was going to be generous and give this a rating of 4 or 5 but I just couldn't stand the bloody sound coming from this amp. To be fair, please bear in mind that I'm rating the amp the I initially bought, other Ashdown Peacemakers might sound better, but not this particular one.

I'm not sure because I don't know what the problem with the amp was when the sound is thinning out. So no real opinion here.

I don't really have an opinion here. I was going to blame the rep but I only dealt with the music shop's manager and salespeople. I don't really know whether they spoke to the rep for a new one or not so I have no idea.

Please bear in mind that this rating is for the amp that I received and sent back. Just to be fair with other Ashdown Peacemakers out there. But reading the other reviews, it seems like I'm not the only who had problems with this model amp.

When I sent the amp back the store gave me a credit because there's a no return policy, I could only exchange it. So I checked some other amps, tried some other valve amps like Traynor and Laney VC 30. I've decided to get the Laney and give it a try and boy I'm glad I made this decision. My friend told me that it sounds almost, if not exactly like a Vox AC30 (this is the Laney VC30 I'm talking about), which is more the twice as much. Even though I had this horrible experience with this amp, it worked out it the end and got the amp that I like and need.

I own a couple of Teles, a Washburn Idol, Ibanez RG 450, ESP LTD M-100FM, a semi-acoustic and acoustic guitar. Been playing on and off for around 19 years and owned Marshalls and other amps. I'm not saying that I'm an amp expert but at the end of the day, you have to trust your ears.

On a final note, a friend of mine bought an Ashdown Fallen Angel 60 and the power supply blew up. If not for the safety switch installed in his house, it might have electricuited him. We got these amps from the same music shop on the same day!!! Hmmm.......

Features well described in previous post.

Classic Rock, Blues etc...
Distortion is a bit buzzy for my taste.
Clean sound is fair, sterile at best.
Distortion reminds me of Peaveys old saturation feature.
Flextone I amps sound more like a tube amp than this,in side by side comparisons the Flextone kicks the Peacemakers Ass.

Broken down on two occasions within one year, took a couple of weeks each trip to have it fixed, I believe the power tubes were shorting out in both instances.

Repairs under warranty.
TOok weeks to recieve but fixed.

Wouldn't replace this one.
If you want a tube amp that sounds like a solid state amp then this is your amp.

Yet another update.
Probably says more about my incompetence than anything else, but I've only just come to the conclusion (at gig volume levels anyway)...to tame the 'toppiness' that so many others find disappointing, try knocking the Treble right down but pushing the Mid up (this is channel 2 we're talking about). I know some seem to swear by 'scooped' mids, but believe me with a good guitar the rock sounds you will get are fantastic - control them through the guitar.

I've already reviewed below. i had problems with this amp in the first 6 months of owning it that pissed me off with it. But slowly it is clawing it's way back into the good books. The last time it broke down was a year ago , and it's been getting fairly heavy use , so hopefully th problems have been sorted . Have always loved the tone , only the reliability let it down .

I think that these have been sufficiently documented already. I really did love the 2 volumes though...really helped for solos. I wish that there was an on/off switch for the fan too for recording. It's a bit loud.

You are going to think that I'm crazy for this next statement...I bought the Peacemaker 60 212 to replace my 5150 half stack. Yeah, I know it's a metal setup but I don't play metal (I only use the clean half of the 5150). That said, I loved the clean on the Ashdown. Both of the dirty channels seemed to be overly harsh while lacking in punch. So, I hooked-up the Ashdown to 1/2 of my 412 (while disconnecting the open back speakers) and hooked up my 5150 to A/B the two. For some of my songs, I liked the Ashdown. For others, the 5150 did the job. EVERYTHING that I liked the Ashdown for was only the clean channel. I never was able to get the tones that inspire me to create like I do with my 5150 (that's why I bought it...wrote a song in the guitar shop while demoing the 5150). But, all that said, I was able to get good bluesy tones and rootsy tones. Not what I wanted it for, though.

OK, here's where I REALLY knock it. I read other reviews on Harmony Central where people had blown-up power supplies and I was scared. So, I emailed Ashdown and they said that they knew of the problem and it was fixed. Yay! Got my amp in the mail. It had some shoddy packaging (shipped direct from factory). Got the thing out, and while constructed well, it seemed a bit frail for regular gigging purposes. Cheap plastic galore and thin cabinet. Now to see how it worked I played it, pushed it, and it blew-up within 10 minutes (after letting the new tubes warm up for 30 minutes). AAAARGH!!! So, I check the fuse and it's blown (luckily). BUT, the fuse installed was the fuse for 220V power (british) not 110V. Away to Radio Shack I went, installed the new fuze (nice little fuze holder, by the way) and it worked fine. However, I hate the fact that Ashdown's QC dept is so slack that they let a 5 cent part ruin my "new amp experience". Even with the new fuse, the thing runs HOT (thus, the cooling fan). I was never certain that I could trust it so I returned it.

Good customer support. Rapid emails received both from Ashdown UK's service dept and from the USA's sales dept.

Wish that I had tried a Fallen Angel for sound but, as it would be essentially the same circuitry, not sure that I could trust it for gigging. If you've read this far, go visit my band's website at: www.brotherlush.com Email me for any questions!

This is just an update, so N/A

See my review of 6/6/04.
Just by way of additional comment really.....
I acknowledge the points made elsewhere about the o/d channels being too trebly - this is the inherent character of the Peacemaker 60 obviously. However, with some judicious twiddling, I have found some great tones available, though always with an 'edge' I suppose. Certainly, I wouldn't recognise toppiness as being an unsurmountable problem.
On the overdrive/distortion front, I've giiged the amp a few times now and at such volumes (and woth the gain set high anyway) I consider the amp to belt out some very good o/d rock sounds, and this is borne out by others with perhaps more experience than me.
But - and here's an admission - I have just found that the addition of a good o'drive pedal (I use a Boss Super Overdrive), allows a rock solo sound to die for.
Overall then, don't be too hard on this amp. It does have versatility and is good quality. Instant gratification is sometimes shallow - persevere with the Peacemaker and it will deliver the goods for most types of rock music.

A couple of E-mails asking for advice have been quickly and helofullt responded to - so well done, Ashdown.

I only use the clean channel on this amp. 60 watts of vale power is more than ample for my needs. I have tried connecting the amp to a Peavey Classic 1x15 16ohm extention cabinet through the dedicated output jack, reducing the combo down to 4 ohms, the sound is slightly more rounder, but the volume to me hardly, if at all, increases.
It's a three channel amp, the third channel is accessable using a second footswith {not supplied by Ashdown}, 'NAUGHTY ASHDOWN', seems like spoiling the ship for a ha'peth of tar.

I normally use this amp with a 1980 Ibanez AS200 a magnificent guitar in my opinion, plays and sounds better than any 335 I've ever owned or played. I've also put Strats and Teles through the clean channel they all work well. The amp is not too noisey, perfectly acceptable in gig situations.
Channels 2&3 however are sadly very disappointing. The channel seems to be preset with an extrodinary amount of treble. This kills any chance of finding any smooth, brown tone type of distortion at all.
It begs the question if Ashdown can get channel 1 so right, how can they possiblly get channels 2&3 so desperately wrong!.
They should have marketed the amp as a single channel 60 watt amp with boost. The buyer could have saved something on the purchase cost
and all effects could be put through the front end. Another thought maybe would be to forget channels 2&3 and provide a decent digital reverb in the amp, and disregard the exsisting one thats completely non effective. They could then keep the purchase price up.... People will pay for quality.
In conclusion if your going to buy one of these amps buy it for channel 1 only it really is a great sounding channel. If you want an amp with quality sounding overdrive and distortion.....Forget it!.

I've used it a few times on gigs....seems okay...I'd take the chance
on not taking a back up amp, because I'm at that age where the money's not too important....only the amount of steps that you have to climb to carry your gear in!.....Sad isn't it.

Telephoned Ashdowns once to try and buy an amp cover. Got that 'neither for or against apathy' response....I haven't contacted them since. .... Still don't have a cover!. If anyone has one spare please contact me.
!.

I've been playing over forty years. Ampwise I own an old Vox AC15, Trace Elliot TA100R....Guitar wise an Ibanez AS200,couple of customed Strats and Teles, Godin multac duet nylon, Martin J40, a heavily customised Joe Pass Emperor which is now unique and I must say amazing, an old Hofner country flat top dating from the mid sixties, also a few other bits and pieces.
If it were lost or stolen to be perfectly honest I wouldn't buy another one, only because I hate things that don't live up to manufactures specifications.

The features are all below

I use it with Les Paul style ( humbuckers) . I can get a good range of sounds, from a good thick jazz sound to a good rock sound. The dirty channel is good with a fair amount of gain , But I tend to keep it half for general use and use a pedal to push it over the top , if I need it. Good sound. I'm very pleased with it's tone .

I've had it about a year and I've had problems . First it just stopped making noise. It had full power , and the tubes were working but no sound . At first they didnt know what was wrong ( so they say) but I got it back 3 weeks later. Then 3 weeks later smoke starts pouring out of it. At the time I was Pissed and hated the amp and Ashdown and the shop I bought it from . But I've had it back a while now with no problems . So if I have no more problems I'll be willing to say I was unlucky. But one more major problem I'll send it back to ashdown packed full of dynomite .

During my second ordeal I sent emails to Ashdown and they contacted me quickly and they were keen to help me and I respected that . I hear the dealer here in Australia is a bit of a joke though among the shops . I emailed him twice. He got back to me the first time when I said I needed help, Then after my second email explaining my situation I never heard from him again .
So I'll give ashdown an 8
And the distriubtor a 2

I like the amp . When I was looking , I liked it as much or more than amps I was playing that cost almost twice as much . I've had problems and hopefully there all behind me for a long while . I know shit happens and tube amps can be a pain , so no more problems and I'm a happy camper.

Peacemaker 60 combo - 2x12, 60w all Class A tube. I`m sure you know the spec by now.
Basic two-channels, plus extra boost switching available on ch 2
Celestion Vintage 30 speakers - great choice.

I use a Gordon Smith Graduate and a very old Aria Les Paul (heavy, beautiful and stacked with tone and sustain), playing loud overdriven blues-tinged rock from 60s/70s/80s with The Shambollix (look up the website!).
The Peacemaker disappointed me at first, as it seemed that the overdrive facilities in ch 2 were weak. Not so (see below).
Ch 1 - excellent harmonically-rich clean sound - deep and pure. It also crunches up very nicely for rhythm playing with gain past 12 o`clock. Very good string separation.
Ch 2 - At first, seems not a huge amount of gain (I was comparing to my Crate GX 212, so no surprise there). However, after a few days work, I`ve discovered a whole range of sounds, from just-breaking-up 'Hendrix', bone-rattling Humble Pie, searing Led Zeppelin, and classic Free (if only I could emulate the playing of these guys too)all in all, some superb rich, creamy and very 'British' hard-rock overdrive sounds. It`s all there, and the Class A valve set up gives loads of sustain - and feedback whenever you want it (and NOT when you don`t).
Hit the boost on Ch 2 and some great solo sounds are there too. This is NOT a `metal` amp (get a Crate!) but the impact of the thing is in my opinion much sweeter and very impressive.
Oh, and it`'s LOUD. 2x12 config is excellent, though I can`t wait to run it through a 4x12 too.

I`ve only obtained the amp very recently, so can`t usefully comment. It seems very well put together (though the VU meter housing is a bit loose, I`ll keep my eye on that) and is reassuringly heavy!
Nice to see a cooling fan (Marshall - take note).

No idea (and hopefully won`t need to).
Ashdown have a decent website - take a look. I registered my amp (5 year warranty) on line.

Difficult, as I've only had it for a short time. I am however really getting to like this amp - great to walk into the room and see it there! Nice `retro` look to it. Too soon to give a marking here.
I would still probably wish for a bit more `grunt` in the overdrive department 'just in case' (as it were - you know what us guitarists are like) but I am very impressed with the warmth in the sound. I think it will probably convert me to a less distorted sound, with more depth and authority.

2002 model, refurbished from Musicians Friend. I only use this at home for recording and this is my first all tube amp. I had a Marshall Valvestate VS265 for several years and a Fender practice amp before that, so take my review for what its worth.

Features: 2 EL34s in the power stage, clean and dirty channels, effects loop, reverb, casters for mobility, backlit VU meter and 2 master volumes. Mine came with an unlabelled footswitch with no LEDs. It seems like a weird place to cut costs, but I guess better that than tone. Otherwise, the overall features are all I need.

I have two guitars: 1989 Eric Clapton Strat with Lace Sensors, 1997 Telecaster Japanese 50s Reissue with Fralin Blues Specials neck pickup and Steel Poled bridge pickup.

My music style? My style is beyond classification...just kidding. I record ambient, rock and ambient-rock.

Clean channel is very quiet with the gain less than 12 o'clock, and has some noise at higher settings, but nothing bad. It starts breaking up around 10 o'clock and gets very dirty at higher settings. The clean sounds great at any volume depending on the gain. I don't think it's as crystal clear as some have claimed. I would characterize it as a warm-clean sound, even with the gain turned down - but this is probably due to me being conditioned to hearing the Valvestate. The tubes give the sound a slight natural compression and warmth that make it a joy to play at high volumes. I'm having a lot of fun playing around with it and I'm still getting used to playing through a real tube amp. While I don't have many hours logged playing tube amps, all I can say is this sounds great and I have a hard time putting my guitar down when playing through the clean channel. Now, the dirty channel is another story...

The dirty channel is very noisy, even with the gain at around 9 o'clock. For me, the sound is too British, too 60s, and too classic rock. It has a very narrow, mid-range sound. I think I was expecting something a little more versatile, but there are people who love this sound...the rocks-in-a-bag sound. I won't be using it very much as I'll stick to pedals for better distortion sounds. Definitely intended for the current(ly waning) garage band fad.

The reverb is not very useful. It definitely adds some color, but even with it at maximum, it's barely there.

Final word: get this amp for the clean channel.

Originally, I bought a refurbished Peacemaker 40 for $599, but the power supply blew up the moment I turned it on. The 60 Hz hum was louder that it should've been and started to get a little louder. Then it sounded like garden gnomes were frying eggs in the power supply. Then the blackest, thickest smoke started emanating from the power supply, then poof! No sound...So I sent it back to Musician's Friend, at which time the price on the refurbished Peacemaker 60 went from $749 to $599. I got the PM60 a couple of weeks later with the VU meter cover busted out from the horrible packing job. For $599, I'm not gonna complain about any of this. Besides, it looks rock n roll, all broken and thang. But from given the reliability issues reported here and my experience with the PM40, I am a little concerned about what surprises lie ahead.

Don't know about Ashdown, but Musician's Friend were decent considering they are putting every small mom-and-pop music store out of business. They covered shipping for the PM40 and its return, and the PM60. And they took it back no questions asked. All for $599. I can't complain. But since this really is a question about Ashdown, I have no opinion.

So far, I love this amp. For the price and its class, it can't be beat. I've only had it about 9 days, but I've been playing it quite a bit, and my opinion may change with experience and time.

If it were stolen or lost, I would probably get another one or something with a similar clean channel and better distortion channel.

circa 2002, now discontinued ashdown peacemaker 60 2x12 from musician's friend. many options, but i question the construction of this amp. comes with a pair of celestion vintage 30s, good choice. 2xEL34 tubes, 12ax7s in the preamp (electro-harmonix), has a cooling fan in the back. comes in a shoddy thin cabinet to lessen the sound impact, which sucks! has reverb, three channels of increasing gain with eq, dual volumes independent of the gain, which is a cool idea. also a dual footswitch for the channels, volumes, and the like.

the clean is slightly better than the thin marshall sound and the distortion takes the cake, like a marshall full stack in a box. i paired it with a greenback and a g12h from celestion, but vintage 30s sound good too. harmonics are very nice when heavily distorted with metal type sounds. a loud amp, class A with EL34s, mine mimics a matchless configuration. i use pedals to get the overdrive, i really hate stock in general............gimme a good clean and the pedals can build on it.

i question the construction, for what i paid it feels cheap. to top it off i voided the warranty becuz i'm paranoid the cooling fan is sucking tone...........so i cut it out of the loop......probly going to remove the grille so it gets more air, i'm in a cool climate so i'm not sure the thing will overheat, maybe in the summer. i prolly shouldn't trust this with a ten foot pole, have not gigged it for an hour or two yet to see if it blows. sounds great in the basement studio tho.

don't know.

the tone is phenomenal for something so cheaply built. however they designed it so you have to take the whole thing absolutely apart to do mods. speaker outs are a plus so you can bypass the shitty cab for a 2x12 or larger. it sounds bigger with a mesa 2x12 recto cab with vintage 30s. greenback/g12h sounds good on board. this is a good punk and metal amp, my favorite.....distotion tone can't be beat, it beat marshall and prompted me to sell my mesa boogie. unless this melts down like i fear, it should be great.

Amp is made in the U.K. 60 watts all tube, all you need. 3 channels: clean dirty, and a boost on the dirty channel. Effects loop, no headphone jack. Optional footswitch can be purchased to switch between two master volumes (great for solo boosts. Would be nice if there was a cooling fan because there is not much ventilation because the reverb is mounted on the back of the head, almost completly sealing it from outside air.

I use a Les Paul custom with a tube screamer. I only need the clean channel because you can get some sweet thick bluesey tone from it (it has seperate e.q., volume, and gain for both channels). Add the tube screamer an you have prefect ac/dc type tone!! The amp is pretty quiet but in a club setting with lots of lights and that type of stuff it tends to hum (as does everything) You can get VERY fat tones from the dist channel. I found it's very bottom heavy, almost too much. But the clean channel is the sweetest I've EVER heard, a million times better than any Fender amp I'm owned. The dist channel is balls out too, just like an older marshall.

I use it without a backup, it's very well built and sturdy. Never had a problem (knock on wood)

I sent a few emails to the company and they reply with a day or so. I sent a second email but didn't get a reply yet. 5 year warranty, no service centre near me so it's not very useful.

I got the amp with the maching cab and it's the best 4x12 cab I've ever used. If it were stolen I would get another in a heartbeat. I love the sound and look of the amp, my only concern is how very hot it gets. Sounds like a fender amp with marshall balls to it, like no other. You should buy one!!

all have been described.

I use a fender stratocaster and play most every type of music, mostly old rock or blues as well as clean stuff.
The amp makes the sound of the guitar be transparent, fluid, raw, whatver you want it to be.
It's just no suitable for heavy metal. Maybe the further it can go is to old van halen stuff. But... give it a try in whatever you want!!
It can really scream! I heard a bogner once and it sounded similar in the distortion channel. Whatever comes to your mind, think about a cranked vox+orange and you have this dist channel.
The clean is very fenderish, but can sound similar to a vox too.
After all, it's Class-A.
But try to see this more as a boutique amp, because it's not a copy. I't has it's very own sound.
The distortion channel is bright. And channel 3, seems to have a terble booster on. But, cut it like 9 o'clock , boost the middle and add 60% bass and it sounds very nice!
I think i will give my 1st 10. But, it just means the amp is excellent and tastes are subjective. There's always something else out there, and other fantastic amps deserve a 10 too.

People complain.
So far, i haven't played live with it.
I've used for 3 months, sometimes loud and it never went down.

However the reverb came with problems (i solved it myself. There was a misconnected plug of the input jack in there).
There was also a strange buzz coming from the transformer, which was a badly tight bolt. At least, the noise's gone.

They have answered all my e-mails.
I live in Portugal, England is far away, so waranty is worthless.
Every problem i have... i must contact a tech or solve it myself.

I play for 11 years. I also have a les paul (not working - bad switch).
I think i would buy another if this one was stolen. It matches everything i have ever searched in an amp before: footswitchable master for solos + footswitchable boost for solos + class A sound without cranking it too loud + extra out for cabinet.
Too bad it doesnt have a "line out" for recording, like line6.
But hey... this is an amp to record with Mic.
By the way... for this price, don't think twice.

This is just a hopefully helpful response to the previous poster's reported problem.

I have an Ashdown Peacemaker 40 which was having some cut-out and noise problems. What it ended up being was tubes working themselves a little loose. They must be tight in their sockets. I bought (from Crate, since they fit, and Ashdown didn't offer them) some tube shields for all the 12AX7's, which locks them down. Also, any time I transport the amp, I check all the power tubes to make sure their snug. After doing those two things, I haven't had any problems since.

I don't know if that's what's causing other peoples' cut-outs or noise issues, but it's worth a look.

i recently bought an ashdown peacemaker 60 combo and had to have it sent back. Here's the deal. I bought it and that same night, i got what seemed like love buzz. i thought it was the guitar...it wasn't. it was the amp. then it mysteriously went away. the next day i played it and suddenly it cut out heavily. imagine the sound you'd here using a terrible shorted out chord plugged into a a guitar with bad circuitry and that's what was coming out of my amp. the only thing is that the chord and guiatr are new. the amp continued to do this for two days until i finally gave up on it. it would be playing great, then the volume would drop completely and the amp would crackle and sputter. not good! im posting this not to rail ashdown because i believe they have created a stellar amp. in every group there is always a bad seed and i figure this to be the case.. however, there do seem to be circuitry issues, like that with vu meters, so be on the lookout.

As mentioned already 3 channels, clean, overdrive and boost. Comes with a 2 button footswitch which allows access to all channels. Without the switch, however, i couldn't activate the boost channel (maybe i'm being a bit thick, i mean i've only had it a couple of months). It doesn't have any of the additional DSP effects that the marshall mg series has, but then this is a valve amp and at this price digital effects will only make the amp sound duller, so no loss there. For a true vale amp at this price the addition of a reverb (which sounds nice, but i don't use) is fine. Just don't expect choras, flangers, phaser, etc 'cause it aint here.

Now this is my first valve amp and to me it sounds lovely. There's that richness that makes it instantly distinguishable from a solid state amp. The clean channel is warm and full, the overdrive and boost are very blusey (again i don't at present make much use of these) and sound very much like Jimmy Page on his more blusey riff monster Led Zep days. I am only using analogue effects at the moment and it handles them fine, i'm not quite the analogue tone purist bed wetter just yet, so i'm not quite up there on spotting just how true the bypass is on the pedals i'm using, but so far i getting a cracking noise out of the chain i'm using with this pedal (more on that later). The only downside is the valve hum which makes recording with this a bit of a pain. I bought first and foremost to gig with at it is definately loud enough and clear enough for that.

Two months old at this time, so not old enough to make a comment,

No need to get in touch but the web site looks good.

Right i'm using this with the following kit :
Twin humbucker Vintage --> Jacques Bat Fuzz --> Jacques FB2 --> Jacques Meistersinger -->Akai Intelliphase --> EH Mini Q Tron --> Big Briar Moogfooger Ring Modulator --> Carl Martin Delayla --> PM60.
It sounds cracking. I've been plaing for 16 years and this so far on what i can afford is as good it gets unless i'm prepared to go 4 figures for an amp (which i'm not). Digital modllers are fine and analogue/digital combos may well be the way forward, but i like this, i like the way you can here the springs clang when you plonk it on the floor and i love the way it sounds, though it does weigh a tonne. For the price i don't think there's anything better currently knocking around.

2002 Model Ashdown 2x12 combo 3 channel footswitchable, reverb and 2 master volumes. Hands down this is a great, versatile amp. The vol boost is exceptional - Reverb is perfect - Kind of like a very "White Strips" sound. - This thing is well built - kind of like an old Fender - it is not "Overbuilt" But built tough, light - great features. It is a real workman's amp. Loud as hell! I disagree with needind the reverb switch. The reverb is very much a set it and forget it part of the tone. The only thing this thing lacks is a dedicated line out. - It does have a send on it so?? maybe that will do. But It has more features than my vintage amp that I deemed un replaceable at one time - until this. I wanted a vox and got this due to the price. I no longer want a Vox. This is a vox on the clean and almost a marshall flair on the distortion. I have been playing much more since I got this and it is very inspiring. Add another cab and the sound just keeps getting better. This thing is borderline a one trick pony. The only other thing I found very weird was the treble on the dist. channel - way to strong - I have mine at zero! But that is were I found my tone. Vintage 30's are perfect. Puts this over the top. If I could give it a 10 I would but I feel there is room for a tiny bit of improvement.

Sounds hotroded! It is great for Clean - beatles type acoustic sound - clean chording with an edge, and pop type distortion think Vox ac30 tone or maybe slightly towards a mesa/marshall sound and the lead is moreso towards a marshall/mesa tone. Not quite a neck breaking distortion, moreover modern rock, but can push some metal tones. I ran this stock at first to come to these conclusions. Placed my pedal board in front of it with my musictoyz pedal collection in front of it and it responded perfectly. very responsive to changes in pickups and picking - and type of guitar. The amp is not vintage sounding - It sounds much more boutique than Any amp I ever owned. - (Hiwatt, Marshall,Orange, Mesa, Fender). It is a very quiet amp in regards to static. Again I feel this thing is of boutique quality. Sound is exceptional! Clean to distortion to lead tones - The Classy ClassA sound.

Built tough - Casters nice touch, very sturdy - Almost simple in nature. No problems

Ashdown responded about 1 day after I sent an email. Seems great.

I love this amp. It is really musical - Has great all tube sound - classic and modern at the same time. It doesn't "need" alot to get you playing with the built in features. Maybe a wah - Delay, mod pedal and you have a whole spectrum. It is really versital! I cannot say enough. I would love to compare it side by side to a vox. But due to the modern features of this amp and the boutique sound I feel it is slightly better than anything else out there especially for the price, configuration and looks. El34's sound amazing and ashdown engineers fine british amps. Make no doubt.

This is one great amp! It's got all the features you need for getting any sound exept metal. Two things about the foot switch should be improved: master switch volume 1&2 isn't there, as three should be a switch for the reverb as well. I take these faults easely for granted: 4 out of 5 stars.

I play with reissues of the Tele '52 and Strat '57 and managed to get all the sounds I need for blues, pop, jazz & rock. At high volumes the clean channel gives a very nice crunch although I prever it to stay cleaner just a little longer: 4 out of 5 stars.

I have got the amp only for two months, so no heavy use yet. Still, this amp is build very well and show no indications of faults: 5 out of 5 stars.

Have been in contact with them twice by email. Friendly and fast reactions, so no complains on this aspect: 5 out of 5 stars.

I am playing at semi pro level for 15 years and used to own a perfect couple of Fender amps: a '59 Bassman with 4x10 inch Jensen speakers (1990) and a Concert with 1x12 inch Electro Voice speaker (1980). I have compared it with a Koch Multitone, a Fender Prosonic, an Engl and a Mesa F50. The last amp was my favourite, but was twice the price as well. With this Ashdown Peacemaker 60 I have got myself a very good allround Class A amp for a reasonable price, just the foot switch could be improved: 5 out of 5 stars.

I bought the Ashdown 60 combo on the looks. I tested the amp in the shop and found it to 'that' sound I have been looking for. Having played trannie amps all my playing life (15 years) I won't going back now I've got a full-bloodied valve. I play in a rock band and 60 watts is loud and clear, I've had the other guys complain about how loud I am! I could bladder on about switches this and channels that, but I'd be repeating what the other reviews have mentioned.

As I have mentioned I am rock guitarist, the rhythm guitarist to be precise. I like the clean channel floor the slow rollers and the dirt on channels 2/3 is great for that British rock sound. I have always found Marshalls to be over-rated, especially when some bleat about the Les Paul and Marshall combination. I have to say that tha PM60 is a great looking sound. I have found the drive is warm with a LP standard, has a warm brittle tone with a LP Special and jangles with a Strat. Essentially, the amp reflects the guitar and ranges from sweet toned warmth to jarring glass with ease. As with all Class A tube amps it's a little hummy but that can be cleared up with an MXR noise gate.

I have only used this amp for rehearsals so far and I have managed to blow a circuit on it. I read that the meter has given up on some other owners amps, mine hasn't...yet. I had it repaired at Peach Music (UK) and the guy Derek has made a first class repair. It appears that the circuit may have blown before (again other PM60s) as Ashdown knew where to locate the problem. I jsut hope, now, that I don't blow the tubes on the set!

Ashdown are friendly and given that they are known for their bass gear their service for guitar amps is very good. However, I wasn't completely confident about their service until I chased them. They do try and considering that they are building amps for the world (when you think about, that's what they are trying to do), it is a feat that they remembered me!

I have had the opportunity to play through a number of set-ups and the PM60 is a great little amp. I appreciate the drawbacks with tube amps, but for the circuit to go was a bit of a surprise. I would suggest, if Ashdown were listening, that Ashdown build the capacity for th wiring to take the load, just about does it will break in the end. Nevertheless, if I ever get the chance to buy another tube amp, I'd go or another Ashdown and if I have the room a 50 head and cab would be the deal. I like the look and the sound.

The features on the Peacemaker 60 are excellent. I particualrily like the 2X 30Watt Celestion speakers, that give it a prescence not quite there in the lower watt, single speaker version. I agree with some that an independant 3rd channel would add some dexterity to lead sounds. Personally I use a separate pedal and use very little of the natural gain provided in such amps.

The features on the whole are fairly standard. The normal 2x channels with boost and reverb. The use of an extra master volume is a definite asset however, and the reverb channel is very smooth (and quiet in comparison to high-gain units I have been using recently).

One feature that particularily stands out is the VU meter on the front. It does make the Amp very pretty, yet the first one I tried had a faulty meter, as did one on a previous person's review, which makes me wander about the reliability of these meters, and in turn makes me question the quality of build on these amps.

Up until now I have been using a VOX AC30. Again, Celestion speakers (which I particularily like) and a great sound. As much as I like AC30's there is no comparisson. For an amp with a similar build the peacemaker far surpasses the tonal quality of the Vox, and is far more controlable. As has been mentionned before on this review the peacemaker offers high volume at the cost of practically no hum.

Definatley aimed at the deeper toned guitarist the amp provides excellent blues and heavy rock sounds, and being British myself see it as being aimed at the indie culture, which is excellent for me as it is exactly what I play.

I have only recently bought this amp and as yet everything is in perfect order. It seems very sturdy indeed on the whole there are only two problems I have. One point is the VU meter mentionned earlier. So far from three reviews, two have come into contact with a faulty meter. Not good, but to be honest a faulty VU meter will not be detrimental to the sound.

The other point is the quality of the cab. Across the back are two supports, same as in many of the combo type. Yet the wood used is very flimsy and feels like it could break with out much pressure. I believe that an amp that is perfect for gigging should not have flaws in it's housing.

Not had reason to test out yet, hopefully never will.

Fantastic amp - especially for the price. To be honest the faults I find with it are superficial and as I say are not detrimental to the sound in any way. I think these boys have got it right and I think that any further issues could do with a little more thought to material quality on the supports and VU, but on the whole I am very pleased with my purchase.

As described below and at numerous Ashdown web pages like
www.ashdown.ch or www.ashdownmusic.co.uk ...

2/3 channels, class A, 2 master volumes etc - versatile 60W

I tried Strats and Pauls with it: it sound sweet and warm and full blooded class A tube sound with a range from Fender to mesa ...

With all EQ at 9am of channel 1 and the gain and volume at 2pm
I can play forever. Reverb sounds great and rarely do you need much of it.

The noise is non-existent if all the masters are below 3pm.

Even when everything is at maximum the noise is lower than any
Marshall or any Fender that I ever used.

Channel 2 can handle metal sounds so this amp can produce any sound you can imagine; I also tried it with THD's hotplate and then it sounds as good as the very best boutique amps.

Too new to say.

They replied to my questions :-)

If I were still a rock guitarist I would have bought this one, yet I no longer need metal and hard rock sounds so I have chosen the smaller brother - the PM 40 model. It has the same range of sounds yet is much lighter and much better for my age (51) - I play since early sixties so I need great sounds but light package helps :-) I can strongly recommend this amp - use your 30 days MBG and test it: but beware as you will most likely keep it :-)

Manufactured in 2002.3 channel.2 channel volumes and 2 channel gains and 2 master volumes more control than any other amp I've played.
Channel switching with channel 2 od for channel 3.optional footswitch allows master volume channel switching.Wish channel 3 was not just a channel 2 boost. 60 watts 2x12 LOUD EL-34s nice class A sound,effects loop,plenty of power for any gig.

Use it with Gibson SG, Brian Moore, Charvel,Humbuckers single coils my different guitars really sound different. Suits my style nicely...classic Rock,pop rock. blues. not very noisy in fact one of the more quiet tube amps I've played. clean dazzles and channel 2 bite reminds me of Thin Lizzy or AC/DC.channel 3 od sings for leads Once again I just wish it were independent. lots of headroom. I havent tried it with pedals yet. I have been delighted with what I hear dont want to color it ...yet.

Too new cant say

My Peacemaker came with some delivery damage (broken watt meter) Ashdown offered free replacment meter but I may send this back because I want a perfect one to keep for a long time!
2 year warranty feels good. seems like they care more than most. When I called I got someone on the phone instantly offereing assistance.

been playing 20+ years,own manyguitars and amps and definatly want one of these in my collection. If it were lost or stolen I would steal another one ;) damaged during shipping reduced the price.
very cool amp,very versatile maybe a little tame for the new metal guys but plenty of gusto for most. Because of my delight in playing different guitars and hearing big time sweet differences I am giving this amp a 10. If I could give it a 9.6I would hold back just a little but if I am limited to 9 or 10 then its a 10