Ashton GA-80 112 Combo

Two channels, but the dirty channel has two gain stages (one of which has its own shape/contour control) so you can have three sounds. I guess most people will have clean, rhythm and lead boost but I actually prefer the sound of the lead boost side with the contour putting a modern/American EQ scoop in so I only really have two 'patches'.

Three-band EQ on each channel, 80w, 12" Celestion speaker, reverb and master volume. It's a modern-looking thing with metal knobs and a kick-proof grille.

It's actually quite a versatile arrangement for getting your different sounds and volumes set up!

Superb clean sound - responds well to a lot of different guitars. I'm using Strats, Teles, LPs and various modern H-H guitars and each guitar retains its own sound as well as getting the tone of the amp. If you're using loadsa pedals and the amp is just a loud clean box then you'll be absolutely fine.

The distortion sounds are high-gain and modern. There is NO bluesy overdrive in this amp ... but if you want that then this is not the amp for you. What you DO get is face-melting modern drive perfect for modern metal and rock. The gain is ok with a Strat but really it's all about humbuckers ... plenty of sustain and good feedback. Drop-D stuff and palm-muting sound superb too.

Well it's solid state and there's no digital nonsense so it should be ok ... !

No idea! Buy from a good shop. Ashton seem to only be sold through smaller independent shops which probably means you'll get pretty good service.

The thing about this amp is that it's crazy cheap but has a proper Celestion speaker and superb high gain tones. It's very giggable.

I find the knobs a little annoying because it's a bit tricky to see what they're set to, especially in low light. It's pretty forgivable though - a tiny niggle on an otherwise very sound product ...

If you're after your first gigging amp for rock or metal, or you just have a lot of pedals, then this is the thing for you. For what's it's good at I'm giving it 9 out of 10. A Strat player might not be so generous but I think that they may have bought the wrong amp if they want blues!

Its got everything i was looking for when i got it: 3 footswitchable channels, line out, reverb, FX loop etc. The only thing i realise it doesn't have is a line in or tape in (which woul dhave been handy on rare occasions), but it has the awsome bonus of two speaker outs. We played a gig last week and this baby ran a marshall quad box no worries! Sounded really cool too...

I was looking at a Marshall 50W combo at the time, but they were too expensive and to be honest, the crunch on this one was far better than the marshall MG50DFX in my opinion.

Its only solid state, but it is LOUD... Never ever had it above about 3/4 including gigs, and we are often the loudest band at a show.

We play original rock music, but in our set we throw in a couple of covers to break things up a bit. This amp produces good sounds for everything from Offspring and Greenday to Smashing Pumpkins and Radiohead.

The dirty channel is good for grunge etc, but can sound a bit hollow sometimes. Boost is good for power chords etc and for lead. The tone is a bit.. i dunno... It kinda sounds like it lacks balls sometimes.

Hard to explain.

Its like its chunky but not fat, if that makes any sense. Your notes get lost in the fuzz sometimes... Oh and there is no way to get just a little bit of distortion. Turning the gain to minimum just cuts all the balls out of the sound.

Im planning on getting a boss MT-2 pedal soon. Tried one out at banding tonight and its sounds great through this amp.

Clean channel is nice. Doesn't distort at high volumes and a bit of tweaking on the EQ yeilds a good result.

Had it for about a year and i've never had problems with it in any way. The knobs are solid and smooth to turn and the switches dont stick or anything.

Played a few gigs with it and its been great.

Havent dealt with them. But its an Australian company (Which suits me nicely!)

Its no marshall JCM 800, but for 400 bucks its better than a kick in the teeth. I play a Maton Mastersound MS-500 through it and it sounds cool.

If i had to replace it, i'm pretty sure i'd get it again unless i had the money for a valve stack.

Basically, this amp rocks. If i could just get a more subtle crunch out of it for thge times i want it, i'd be laughing.

This new pedal is gonna clear all that up anyway!

Oh the only other problem is that its fucking heavy, so moving it is a pain in the arse, but on the upside, it stays where you put it :P

Oh this is my band: http://listen.to/miraclehat

This amp was made in 2002. It's a 2 channel 80w Solid state amp (Clean & Dirty w/ an extra 'Boost' on the Dirty channel to give you extra gain) + Reverb. 2 separate EQs for both channels (this is excellent), plus a contour cnotrol for the Boost channel to give you more mids. There is a Level control on each channel plus a master volume. One input, headphone jack, effects loop, two speaker outs (8 Ohm minimum). It has a Celestion 70/80 12 inch speaker in it.

I purchased this with the footswitch and it's excellent. You've got the options to change channels, add your boost or add reverb.

There is one handle on top (one of those kinda flimsy but thick pieces of rubber). I trust it, but not totally to carry the 23kg of this amp.

Overall, the features on this are excellent compared to most solid state (and alot of tube amps) out there.

I'm using 3 guitars with this amp - a Peavey Raptor Plus (w/ 3 single coils), an Epiphone Explorer (stock pickups) and a Jackson Kelly (again, stock pickups). The Peavey sounds a bit thin through it, but that's to be expected. It's really nice, clear and crisp on the clean channel, but on the dirty it sounds very weedy. The Epiphone has a really nice crunch and low end to it (it'd tuned down a whole step to D) and the Jackson sounds absolutely perfect - a brilliant balance of low end, mids and highs. I'm mainly playing Metal (Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, Machinehead) and Hardcore (Shai Hulud, Hatebreed, Poison The Well). It's great for these styles of music. The distortion is brutal on the Boost channel. That's the only way to describe it. I don't have it all the way up, only around 6 or so. I don't need it any heavier. The Dirty channel is more classic rock tones for those of you who like it. I use it for a lo-fi sounding thing when i need it. Rarely. The clean channel is REALLY nice for a blues style as well i've found. It stays clean ALL the way around the dial. Quite nice. With humbuckers, it sounds very full and rich.

One thing i noticed with the amp when playing around with the controls is that to have the clean and dirty channels at the same volume when switching between them, the level for the dirty channel needs to be on around 4, where the clean channel can be on 1 (and subequently when you increase it). Once you get them level, crank the master volume. On around 2 the neighbors 2 doors down were having a fit. That's the only problem (i doubt it's a problem) with the controls on the amp.

The EQ is really good on this amp. Apart from having the separate EQs for the channels, on the Boost channel, you've got a Contour control - this makes a big difference to your mid-range sound - turn it all the way down for a very scooped mids kinda sound, or turn it up and have the amp cut through the mix well. Bass, Mid and Treble controls work well. You shouldn't need an extra EQ (like the BOSS GE-7) to make any tonal changes - it can be done on the amp really well.

The sounds on tap here are as many and as varied as you like. The effects loop is really good. I usually put a DOD Phaser in there (some really old one) and use it on the clean channel - sounds great. The Reverb is noticeable, but i'm not a big fan of it, so i don't use it. It's there, and it works, that's about it for me.

This amp is built like a tank. So damn heavy. The front speaker grill is metal, so if someone throws something at it if you're on stage, or you're transporting it, you shouldn't have to worry about the speaker dying by something puncturing it. Only qualm i did have was when i was first using the Reverb button on the footswitch - it needed a firm stomp on it to change - perhaps it just needed to be worn in, because it works okay now.

Never had to deal with it. I can just take it back to the place i brought it from and they take care of anything in around 3 or 4 days. Which is pretty cool i think.

I've been playing for around 4 years, and i decided to migrate from a small 15w Peavey Rage 158 (which is damn loud for a 15w amp) i borrowed to something larger and more easily heard over drums. This amp does that no problems. I run through a BOSS TU-2 tuner into the amp, and have a DOD Phaser (as mentioned above) in the effects loop. I'm happy with the setup that i've now got with this amp.

It sounds much better than the other amps i've tried out (a Peavey Bandit 112, Marshall Valvestate VS65R, assorted Fender combos etc.) and the price was about $300 less than most of those amps new. The Marshall was $450 used with a one button footswitch. Bah! If you're not playing big shows yet (where you NEED a head and 4*12 cab) but you need something loud for rehersals and just small gigs and a nice sound... get this Ashton amp. Don't be put off by the name - this thing owns. Brilliant sounds on both channels. Great distortion, great clean. Great great great!

If it were lost or stolen. I'd buy another one. And if i found the one that was stolen, i'd drop it on the head of the guy (or girl) that stole it from about 6 feet up. Cause that would hurt like shit.

Even though i didn't give any of the other sections a 10, i love this amp - it's the bomb. My friend has one, and they sound awesome together. It responds to your playing well (so... if you're having a bad day - you'll know about it) and it's just excellent value for money as well. That's why it gets a 10. And cause it's a damn long review.

This amp is brilliant. It has 2 distortion channels. These are the best distortion sounds I've heard on an amp and possibly anywhere, from slight distortion to a nice mean sound. The reverb is beautiful and lush. The clean sound is clear and crisp. All the channels are footswitchable so hook this baby up to a 3 way foot switch and you'll probably only need a wah pedal as an additional effect and possibly a delay. 80 watts is plenty of power as a rehersal amp and its good live. This amp has headphone jack, effects loop and the channels are easily switched. I use this to play metallica, tool, pink floyd, SOAD, blach sabbath, eric clapton etc. Compared to other australian amps such as Jade this is 10 times better...way more features.

Brilliant distortion...best I've heard. beautiful clean and reverb channels. It gets LOUD with out distorting or sounding bad.

Buy it....best amp for the price....possibly best amp ever....

2001 Model.
The amp is great is has two different gain settings Boost and Dirty each of which is useable. hence i would use these over most other distrtions sounds. There is also a clean channel that feels very chrisp. The amp is 80 watts and when I am at home i reckon i use it at about 0.1. It has a channel switch button and works with a footswitch. There is the usual other gear, effects loop, head phone jack etc.
I use it for practise at home and with rehersals, ie drummer and vocalists. It does not need hooking up at small gigs it sounds great.

I own an LP standard and play rock, alternative prog-metal...no thrash crap. Stuff like Tool to Pearl Jam to Led Zeppelin.
The amp is awesome for this gear. When load on the gain channels there is a sligh buzz,, but as if i care about that. The amps three channels plus reverb setting makes it a very versatile amp for the price. At high volume my amp does no distort on the clean channels.

The amp looks real strong. I've only had it a week or two so i cant speak in longetivity terms,

not yet..sorry.

For what I need (parctise, rehersal and smmal gig amp) thios thing is great. It has such nice sounds it is crazy. My guitarist friend heard it and is now going t buy the 100watt version. I compared it basically to same wattage amps in range but amps like Crate were 150 dollars more. This thing is awesome for the price.
This is an Australian brand i think...go and get it.