Ashton VP-30 112 Combo

It's a tube amp. 2 EL34's in the power-amp 3 12Ax7's and 1 12 AT7 in the pre-amp. Reverb. Master volume (every tube amp should have one). Two channels, Clean and Mean, with a shared EQ. It also has an effects loop. Overall some good features but a dedicated EQ for each channel would be nice, the VP50 has this.

So far I have only used a behringer strat copy that I got with a guitar pack and a squire bullet strat through this. The amount of distortion is great from classic rock such as Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath all the way to early metal sounds such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. Even with humbuckers I doubt this amp could give enough gain for bands like Pantera or death metal bands. Maybe an overdrive would help but I haven???t used one through this amp. If you really crank the master volume it is possible to get the clean channel to have some subtle distortion which would be good for blues playing etc but definitely not rock, that???s what the mean channel is for. Tone-wise to me it sounds like a mix between an older Marshall, a Vox AC30 and a touch of Ashton's own design. Also I often play a USA Big Muff Pi through and it takes to that pedal brilliantly. All in all it won't sound like a top end Marshall or laney amp but nor does it cost as much and you get a lot of value out of your money.

I have owned it about 3-4 months now and the guy I bought it off had it about a year and I have never had a problem with it. I have even knocked it into things by accident when carrying it, while these knocks weren't really bad tube amps are known for their fragility and yet this amp has had no problems afterwards.I am considering replacing the tubes as they are getting on and that should improve my tone but that happens with all tube amps and I have not had a major problem with it.

I have not had to deal with them.

I have been playing just over 3 years now and the only gear I own that I have not already mentioned is a cheap behringer practice amp. If it was stolen or lost I would probably look for a Laney amp or similar as for me they are my favourite amps but I can't really afford one right now. I chose this amp originally because it was cheap and I had heard good things about the value for money they offer, which are completely justified. I really wish it had a different EQ for each channel but features wise that is my only gripe. I am giving it a 7 because even though tone-wise it won't compete with higher end amps it is worth the money you do pay.

The amp is as previously described and provides all the features I need at a price I can afford, giving the unmistakable warmth of a valve amp. I play "old skool" rock and blues and this amp is perfect for that. The reverb is rich without being over-powering. I don't suppose I'll use the effects loop, but at least its there if I need it.
I bought it because my Laney LC15R melted, basically and I used to gig with that, so I don't see a problem gigging with the Ashton in all the venues we play in (pubs, clubs, colleges).
I've noticed that my amp differs slightly from the spec; my cabinet is made of ply, not MDF and although the speaker MAY be Celestian, it is not labelled. Having said that, it sounds fine, so I'm not complaining. The amp seems to be well-constructed, with huge transformers, making it quite heavy.

The richness is perfect. In recent years, I have owned Peavey and Laney valve amps and this one probably surpasses both for quality of sound. I would say the "mean" channel is a bit harsh for my tastes, but I will probably just use the clean channel and apply overdrive from a pedal, when required. I would agree with other reviewers who say this is a classic rock/blues machine. The clean channel is bright enough for country, but it is not going to cut it as a death metal machine - there are plenty of tranny amps around to provide that sound.
I use a Fender USA Strat with GFS Texas alnico pick-ups and the combination is awesome. It sounds just like a Strat should, in all pick-up positions.
The pull-out tone control gives an extra variety to the sounds available, should you need it.
As I stated, I play Old Skool rock like Hendrix, Free, Bad Company etc, together with some blues and boogie, so this amp should be ideal for the job! Come to one of our gigs and judge for yourself - Http://www.theswampsnakes.co.uk.
The amp currently runs very quiet indeed - long may it continue

I have only owned it a few days and taken it out of the house once, so time will tell. It is built in China and the components are likely to be built to a low price, so it is realistic to expect it won't last as long as a hand-wired job. But it DOES seem solid and the vales are Electro-Harmonix which ain't bad for a budget amp. I like the way that there is a grille at the back to protect the valves etc and as I said before, the transformers are beefy in the extreme.
After my little Laney melted towards the end of a gig, I will no longer risk gigging without a spare (I have a 70 watt tranny Peavey for the purpose), but this is no reflection on the Ashton, just life in general!

Haven't had cause to use them yet. I understand that in the UK, support is provided by ex-Peavey people, which should be a good thing. The website is good and I was able to download a manual in pdf format - always useful.

I have been playing for yonks (about 35). As well as the Strat, I have a custom strat I use for slide, a Gibson Melodymaker that sometimes comes out for an airing, a Framus semi-acoustic and a few other guitars. I have a Marshall Bluesbreaker pedal for mild overdrive and a Daphon tubescreamer clone for heavier OD. I also have a Daphon chorus pedal and a Behringer booster pedal I use for switching to lead. For PA, we use Phonic amp, Peavey speakers and Fender foldback.
At the moment, I would buy another, if I could get one at a similar price, otherwise I might hold out for a Peavey Valve King or similar.
I LIKE the 12 inch speaker, the reverb, the warmth and the attack/responsiveness of the amp. My only gripes at the moment are (a) the weight and (b) the slight harshness of the "mean" channel.
My main criterion for purchasing was "valves on a budget" and this is exactly what it gives. After my Laney experience, I wasn't keen to go down that route again, Pignose do a 40 watt valve amp, but it has no reverb and only a ten inch speaker (and not a good one at that, according to the reviews). My other choice would have been to spend another ??100 and got a Peavey or used Fender, Marshall.
As far as looks go, I'd say it was business-like rather than sexy, unlike me, of course. I've tried all sorts of trannies, including modeling amps etc and for blues, nothing, but NOTHING touches valves, in my humble opinion - although I think most bluesmen would agree.
If you want valves on a budget and a 30 watt 112 would do you, then this amp HAS to be on your shortlist.

2 Channel tube amp with 1 EQ for both channels as well as master volume and reverb.
It is quite versatile but not the best choice for heavy metal although it can do the job with the right pedal. Good on the clean channel (mid knob pulls out for tone change).
Has effects loop, output for speakers (4 OHM, 8 OHM) and channel reverb.
I use this amp for practice. Even though I have the smallest amp in the band it never falls behind.

The amp's sound has quite a lot of variety and is suitable for all genres.
The clean channel can get quite distorted at high volumes and the distortion isn't very mean but is suitable for blues or light rock.
I'm using it with an ESP F-10 with an EMG 85 on my bridge and play heavy metal most often and without a distortion pedal this amp can't give a brutal enough sound for my liking..

I'm continually having issues with this amp. It broke just before I had a gig and I had to borrow another amp while it was getting fixed. After playing for a while it would either be overcome with static or lose all its power entirely and only produce a very soft sound. Not even a month later I am having a similar issue with static and bad sound.
The issue keeps coming and going so when I think it's fixed itself it shortly comes back. I wouldn't use it for a gig in its current state as I'm quite sure it wouldn't hold up.

I bought it from musicians warehouse who were recently bought by Allan's music. It took a while and a bit of prompting on my behalf to get some action done.
I took it to the nearest Ashton dealer and they dealt with it well. They simply asked what was wrong, took the amp and gave it back 4 or 5 days later, no hassles with them.
Although I am concerned with what precision they dealt with the maintenance because it broke again not long after.

I've been playing about a year and a half an own an ESP/LTD F-10, BOSS MT-2, BOSS GE-7 an Vox V847 Wah.
If it were stolen I wouldn't buy it again, it doesn't suit my style of music well and is quite unreliable.
I neither love it nor hate it, at times I'm happy but that's largely because it's a tube amp.
I bought this amp largely on a recommendation and the good reviews I had heard on the viper 50 (since this model was only newly released there weren't many reviews on itself).

Enough for me, i don't mind the shared eq and i like to keep things simple. 3 12ax7 pre-amp tubes (+1 for the PI) and 2 EL34 power tubes

Sounded better turned up. Gets very loud for 30 watts maybe this is a conservative rating

Found some nice clean tones to be had and no problems getting some raunch happening on the Distortion channel

Well it is made in China so im a bit worried but we will wait and see

Great value for your dollar with this amp

This amp packs a few features in when considering how cheap the unit is. Clean & dirty channels with a shared eq.

Uses EL34 power tubes (not EL84 like the guy said below) & 3 12ax7 preamp tubes.

Effects loop as well as an ext speaker output

I liked what i heard for the price of this thing, but thats where it tops out for me.

Other amps in the same price range (Used Classic 30 for eg) definitely sound better.

Clean channel was ok, i favoured the dirty channel more but only after i had the amp turned up with a TS9 as a boost.

Contrary to the reviewer below, this thing doesn't come near a TSL or the classic 30 / 50 - or many amps for that matter & after the honeymoon wears off you feel it's weak points

Im giving it an 8, it's made in china & i don't know how well it's going to hold up. The cab is made from MDF.

Support from the distributers of Ashton is fine

Although i was impressed with how this little 30 watter handled itself, i prefered the Viper 50 over it

These are great cheap amps for the money, but don't fool yourself into thinking the cheaper amp is the better than everything on the market. It still performs well & give you that nice valve crunch for bugger all dollars, but don't make the mistake of thinking your going to have better tone than a Fender or Marshall

- Made in 2005

- Great driven AC/DC style Rock/ Blues crunch tone!!!

- 2 Channel - Clean (Level) & "Mean" (Gain & Level) drive, Channel and Reverb footswitchable (not included), FX Loop + loop boost switch, 8 Ohm speaker outputs

- 2 x Electro Harmonix EL 84 power valves (terrific valves!!!).
- 3 x Electro Harmonix 12 AX7 pre-amp valves (awesome!!!).

- 12" GT75 Celestion Speaker (same as in a Marshall 1960 cab!)

- Treble, Mid, Tone Shift (pull pot on the mid control creates narrow Q mid), Bass, Reverb & Master Volume

- Features I wish it had - a presence pot, headphone out (with speaker simulation) and a touch more bottom end.

- I use this amp at home and for small gigs. Sound engineers love me because the amp is not too loud for the venue and cuts through perfectly in the mix.

I'm using with a USA Fender strat with a Dimarzio Super-distorion (humbucker) in the bridge and single-coil Fender Texas specials in the neck and middle.

The drive sound is THICK and warm, with a tight bottom end, thick, rich midrange and sweet treble. The sound is similar to a Peavey Classic 30 with less top end presence. Just enough drive to satisfy, more drive than a Laney VC-30 and a touch less than the Peavey Classic 30.

The clean channel is un-impressive and has no character (I never use it) and only sounds half decent when it has the level maxed to produce power valve drive.

The reverb is subtle and no where near as lush as a fender reverb, but works well to add a transparent tail on the end of notes.

The tone shift button is lame!!! and creates a thin, quacky, transistor mid tone, but it might be desirable when coupled with a wah for funk staccato stuff.

I play generally Blues/ Rock stuff and a lot of lead guitar with this amp, and this is definately the amp's forte!!! The Drive is smooth, reponsive and will reveal every detail in your playing. The amp doesn't do much, but it does it WELL. Too well for its price

I used to own a Marshall TSL 100 with a 1960 4x12 Cab. And I like this amp MORE even though this amp is THOUSANDS of dollars cheaper.

I've had this amp for a short time but am addicted to playing it!!! The more I play it, the more I LOVE IT!!! Everything works perfectly! The pots are smooth, reponsive without any crackle. The valves sound perfect, there is no valve rattle or inconsistencies in tonal response.

I've played about 10 gigs with this amp at a small bar, and mic it up with a Senheiser e906. The sound is gorgeous, and I get compliments on my tone all the time.

I signed up for a 1 year warranty on the Ashton website the day I bought it, and have had only smiles since I bought it.

I have been playing guitar for 13 years. Have played through countless amps (as I'm always searching for beautiful tone), owned gibsons, fenders, gretsch, etc. THIS IS PROBABLY THE BEST PURCHASE I HAVE EVER MADE!!!

I tried out Marshall's, Fender's etc in the same price range. THIS KILLS THEM ALL!

If you want a small valve amp with a killer drive tone. You won't find anything other than this for under $500 (AU).

i tink the amp was made in 2005..it is versatle for me..though i still prefer fender clean tone....it has 2 channels..one for clean and one for mean..3 eq(treble,middle,bass),reverb and master volume and standy switch..its really loud never thought ashton will make an amp like dis..i mean its really a good amp.."mean" wise ul be blown away..clean is alright but as i said i prefer fender clean tone..oh yeah forgot to add in the "middle" eq pull it and ul have a differnt tone..

jus had a gig last night and wen dis band did a sound check and one of em used my amp and efex(korgax1500g)it sounded madddd!!!!!i was like wow i tink i dnt av to buy another tube amp!!!clean channel sounds distorted at first in high volumes..distortionin this amp is really nice!!drools..hehe..il give it a 9 for now as im still not satisfied with d clean channel..

well well jus bought it..i thought my tubes will blow last night cos of loud feedback i had with acoustc electrc guitar..u know how tubes are senstive..but it didnt..which is a good thing..il check it again jus incase..it has 1 year warranty.../il gig with it w.o a back up//

never dealt with em...

iv been playing for 5 years...il recomedn dis amp if ur budget is low..its a good tube amp..for 30watts its really cheap..dont be foold by the name..but if u want fender clean tone den i suggest buy fender i tink u can still hav d fendr clean tone on dis amp jus gota fiddle with it in which i havent done yet...orgnal price is 595 but u can still ask for discount..ish jus with me i swapped my pro jr with this as i keep having problmes with fender pro jr..unlike with this one..ish shooo quiet unlke pro jr,,thought the tube rattles u wudnt hear it if using efex..unlke in pro jr ul still hear it..