Carr Amplifiers Mercury 112 Combo

Let me start by saying that when I first heard this amp, I did NOT like it. I could not get a clean tone from it. The guys at the store did not take the time to show me the ropes. they were more interested in forcing me into a sale. Nearly $2k for a 8 watt amp? Just did not seem right. This is a LOUD 8 watts. Carr amps must be power rated quite conservatively.

Then I realized that for an amp around the home, anything above 20 watts is too much. Thanks to Jason Barker's "Steelbender.com" site, I became a fan of this amp. Jason Barker does the sound samples for Carr Amps web page.

I own a Carr "Slant" 6V and a Carr "Rambler", and love them all. So I am highly biased toward Carr Amps.

This amp is what I have been looking for...a perfect studio amp that sounds great clean or saturated without waking up the neighborhood. Classic rock and blues are my styles with a will to learn some jazz guitar. This amp covers them all.

I wish it had one more input.

Single channel, one input, no foot pedal, no tremolo...those are the negs. But, I do not use these features except for an occassional need for tremolo.
On the upside...it has 3 levels of saturation, 4 levels of power (1/10, 1/2, 2 and 8 watts) settings, a "cut" switch, spring reverb that is adjustable, and that famous Carr TONE.

Perfect for the studio or any room in the house/apaartment. Could have enough power for gigs. Very portable and 35 lbs.

You get alot of amps in this little package.

Tone is why Carr Amps are becoming famous.

I use mostly G&L Legacy (Strat) with single coils, PRS McCarty (Humbucker), G&L Bluesboy (single coil/Humbucker), G&L Comanche (single coil/Humbucker). To my ear, this amp love them all. I use the cut switch to roll of some treble for different styles.

The clean setting sounds like a Blackface Pronceton with a 12".
The second level sounds very Vox like and breaks up nicely with midrange 'bark'
The third setting is more Marshall like...quite heavy saturation at low volumes.

The clean channel at high volume 1/10 watt breaks up very smoothly

I own several Carr Amps and have had no problems yet. Always carry spare tubes and fuse. I have spoken directly to the Owner and Founder, Steve Carr and found him to be a very modest geniud, professional amp builder who is willing to give great advice.

See above...you can't get better than talking with the owner.
I believe the warrany is "liftime" to the original owner.

Been playing about 30 years as an ameteur. Been told that I have a good 'ear' for tone. Before I discovered Carr, I have owned mostly Vintage Fender Deluxe Reverb amps. I A/B these to any vintage Fender, and found Carr amps to sound better tan the Vintage Fenders on the 'clean' settings (that's my criteria).

These amps are pricey, but they are worth it and hold their price in the used market.

I wish Carr amps would include at least one more input on their amps.

If stolen, I would replace (if insured). I could not afford to buy another on my own.

The amp has an excellent combination of features that make it uniquely suited for playing in venues ranging from one's home (even late at night!) to small club settings. The attenuator switch allows you to play full volume (and thus experience the overdriven sound of an excellent tube amp up full throttle) while sending anywhere between 8 to less than 1 watt of sound power to the speaker. Also, the reverb is among the best made. A dial-in-setting provides three variations on the fullness of the overdrive.

I play a 1954 telecaster and a 1957 LP goldtop with P-90 pickups. The amp shines with both. With small adjustments of the treble and the overdrive switch (enables overdriven effects that range from mild all the way to british blues) I can get the tele to sing in that over-the-top Roy Buchannan ear-piercing way and the LP to produce full, bluesy, sustain. On the clean setting the Carr chimes -- good clear treble (though not as bright as say a Matchless) and full base.

I have had it a little over a year (it is serial number 1, so I guess it necessarily has the best clean track record of all Carr Mercurys) and not a thing has gone even slightly amiss.

I have talked with Steve Carr by phone on two occasions (for info on amp and settings) and he has been a perfect gentleman -- giving of his time and expertise.

I have been playing since 1965. I have owned an abundance of amps over the years; everything from 1950s Fender Tweeds, to 60's Marshalls (an interesting red one formerly owned by Quicksilver Messenger Service stands out in my mind), Matchless, to the truely odd (Ampeg Colossus). The Carr Mercury stands out among them. True it is not a big-gig machine (unless miked), but the tonal qualities are superb, the reverb wonderful, and the versatility exceptional (my wife cannot hear it at night. And this from a woman whose sensitivity is such that if they rewrote the story "the princess and the pea" based on her life it would be renamed "the princess and the molecure". If lost or stolen it would be replaced.

2004 model purchased off ebay. The amp was basically brand new, still in it's original packaging from Carr. Quite the deal (thanks to a friend who caught it an hour after it was posted). As mentioned in prior reviews, the Carr Mercury is a very unique amp with a couple of interesting twists to the 1x12 theme. The built-in, 4-stage power attenuator really makes this model extremely versatile and allows for exceptionally satifying tone at very low volumes. There's also a 3-stage gain control as well. Unfortunately, the gain control is not foot-switchable but is a great feature in itself.
No effects loop (thankfully), tube reverb and EQ for the clean stage only. Strangely, the EQ is totally bypassed in the two higher gain stages. While this may seem problematic, it isn't, as these two gain stages are very accommodating to both humbuckers, single coils and P-90's. There's also a Hi-Cut toggle switch that's very funcional as well. One feature that totally rules is the ability to change power amp tubes and then easily bias it with the user friendly bias adjustment. Very cool! I have to confess I haven't tried any other power amp tubes in the Mercury because the KT66 sounds so damn juicy, but there's always that option down the road. The "features" are somewhat limited in regards to the lack of EQ in the 2nd and 3rd gain stages, no footswitching and no extension speaker jack but other features like the built-in attenuator, ability to switch power tube types, convenient bias adjustment and particularly effective Hi-Cut switch more than compensate for my needs.

I play with a few friends who have a Mercury, Slant6 and 1x15 Rambler. After listening to and playing the Carrs', I knew I eventually needed to get my hands on one. The Mercury in particular caught my ear with that single KT66. The clean stage sounds like a BF Princeton, but fatter with a richer midrange and a tighter bottom end (especially when the volume is turned way up). There isn't a whole lot of overall volume in the clean channel, even with the attenuator on 8 watts. With 1/10, 1/2, 2 and 8 watts available you would think the amp is a studio-only affair, but the watt ratings are pretty misleading. It's far louder than you think but still will be the best sounding amp you'll ever hear at really low volumes. It's a big, 3-D sound for a little 1x12. The second gain stage is my favorite when I play straight into the amp without my pedal board. On the 8 watt setting with the volume at around 2:00 and the Hi-Cut swith up playing a Reverend Slingshot with P-90's, I had no problem cutting through a noisy jam session with 3 guitars a bass and a heavy-handed drummer with a full kit. That middle gain stage is magic with all my guitars - really sensitive and dynamic to your string attack and you can dial in the breakup point by simply playing with the volume. Great sustain, balance and feel - although it's a pretty quick playing amp with that solid state rectifier in there. Very little sag or sponginess, it's more of a sports car than a luxury sedan. The third gain stage I really haven't explored all that much but find it useful when I'm playing at the 1/10 - 1/2 attenuator settings. You can get ripping pinch harmonics and even a tight little chunk going at conversation levels! When I want more flexibility, I just plug my pedal board into the amp on the clean setting and use my clean boost to get the volume up where it needs to be. My pedals never sounded better than running into the front of this amp. The 2nd and 3rd gain settings seem to run on the brighter side of the fence (to my ears)and without EQ controls I usually flip the Hi-Cut swith down. However, a few of my "warmer" sounding guitars sound great with these additional gain stages. I've found that jangly Strats, Tele's and other brighter single coil guitars prefer the Hi-Cut swith down and Humbucker models like it up. Just my opinion. Overall sound is very complimentary with a wide variety of guitars and the whole package runs silently with hardly any hiss at high volume levels. This is a really inspirational amp to play and most of the time I just plug straight in and go.

Very solid contruction with a beefy cabinet. Nothing rattles, buzzes or vibrates. If there's ever a problem, I'm sure Carr would respond in a favorable manner. This amp is solid and sees quite a bit of travel in the back seat of my car. So far, so good and the KT66 seems to be a tough bottle with a longer lifespan than a 6L6's.

Haven't dealt directly with Carr but my friends have with positive feedback. The Carr website is very informative and explains the esoteric design of the Mercury in detail. There's also some good sound samples available as well.

I've been playing for a few decades now and enjoy a wide variety of musical styles from roots/surf to blues/rock and beyond. While I don't gig for money, I play out quite a bit so I've heard this amp in quite a few different mixes and rooms. This amp just flat rules for any clean to lower gain styles like surf, roots, blues, country and with a few select pedals in front rocks with authority too.

The Mercury is a well-built, versatile, fantastic sounding amp that seems to bring out tones from my guitars I've never heard playing through other amps. It's complex in regards to the sheer number of tones and volume(s) that are available and the size, weight and portability are welcome features indeed. Worth every penny.

This is the current ultimate evolution of the small Fender amp combining three versions in one box by virtue of the three mode settings. Like another reviewer mentioned, in the clean mode it reminds me of a great BF Princeton or Vibrolux while modes 2 and 3 move into brown tolex and tweed territory. I play blues, classic rock, country rock and fusion. This is a superb recording and practice amp because of the attenuator.

The bias pot and jacks for a meter for rebiasing (and revoicing within the acceptable bias setting range) a major convenience, every fixed bias amp ought to have this.

This is one of those amps that you probably will just plug straight int without ever feeling like you need an effect. I have a strat with Fender CS Fat 50's, a CS tele, and a LP Classic P+ and there's not a bad combination among them. With the strat I can get all those Clapton/Champ tones from the Layla album, Robbie Robertson, SRV(clean and dirty), Walter Trout, Robert Cray...
The tele blooms magnificently, from clean country twang to Muddy and Albert Collins, I've never heard my bridge pickup sound so good, think Angry Eyes by Loggins and Messina.
With the Paul I can get LZ, Cream, Reverend Gibbons, and not lose articulation even at extreme saturation levels.

Construction on par with the best.

Haven't needed help yet but all reports are that Steve Carr does it right.

I wish that the tonal circuitry could be switched in and out in modes 2 and 3, and that the cut control was a pot instead of a switch, but that's just me wanting more to fiddle with and does not detract in any way from this amp's ability to deliver the goods.

This is a loud 8 watter, but as has been mentioned it can get lost in certain rooms by itself. But there is an answer for small gigs that makes this amp sound huge. The Enhancer. I don't think they are in production anymore so you might have a hard time finding one. I have the medium size that I bought for use with my MAZ-18 Junior. It works great with the Z but it blew me away with the Mercury. The Mercury takes full advantage of the Enhancer's capabilities and will allow the Mercury to gig in rooms up to about 100 seats.

My one gripe is that the cabinet does not come with nor can one add amp corners for protection because of the styling and angles of the cabinet design. Granted the thought behind this amp was to be a home/studio tone machine, but amps like this are why God created microphones and PA systems. Guess I'll have to get a road case since it looks like I'll be gigging this amp next to the Z. I consider this to be a features issue as well and it is the only real fault I find with the amp for my needs, that's why I rated features an 8.

2004 purchase. Single 12" 8 watt class A amp with reverb tank and a built in power attenuator, fully discussed below. Clean and Two gain settings. Beautiful blond tolex.

I have a Les Paul '68 Custom Reissue with burstbuckers, a '60 LP special, '62 strat reissue, ES-175, and PRS custom. If you can afford this amp, buy it. Lovely clean tones full of depth and flavor breathes amazing life into a jazz box, absolutely heaven if you want to play blues and get a little dirty. I suppose it would not be a good choice for metal, but I'll never know.

Haven't had it long enough to have a firm opinion but it appears impeccable constructed and was wonderfully packed from the factory.

Called before purchase to get some info and they were very nice.

I've played guitar since 1971, had every thing from Marshall stacks, to various Fender deluxes and Bassman amps, Mesa Boogies, Riveras et al. I only play at home and with friends now and this amp is perfect, tone to impress your pickiest friends, and you can get it at low enough volume not to drive your wife and kids from the house.

Single 12" 8 watt class A amp with reverb tank and a built in power attenuator. See other's below for more detail.

I tried several Strats and a PRS Custom 22 through this amp. I also connected the Mercury to several different external speaker cabs including a 1x12 Weber Blue Dog, 2x12 Celestion vintage 30, 1x12 Eminence something (can't remember). I also had two other guitarist over to participate in this eval. The two overdriven channels did not interest me at all. Carr has shaped the tone on these two channels to tighten up the bass response and the tone controls are removed from the circuit on both. I compared both channels to the clean channel with a Keeley mod'ed Boss Blues Driver on and consistently liked the clean channel better. My perception was that there was too much midrange hump and loss of wide open power chord sound. Even the humbuckers in the PRS just didn't give enough wide open low end feel. The clean channel was definitely the most interesting. Very natural, clean tube sound. Not as icepick in the ear as a Deluxe. The highs were open without being piercing. The low end was better when using the 2x12 cab. I'd guess the built in Eminence speaker would eventually break in (as well as the KT-66 tube) and give a bit more wide open amp. I was really hoping to hear the KT-66 output tube begin to break open as I drove it harder. I ran the clean channel to about 8 and some of that output tube warm started coming through but not enough for my taste. I'm comparing this to my Dr Z Route 66 which has a pair of KT-66 output tubes where I can easily saturate the output tubes to get a thick, bluesy tone, then roll back to volume on the guitar to about 8 to clean things up again. I never accomplished this on the Carr. Again, I thought the PRS humbuckers would push the tubes to that stage of warmth but never accomplished what I was looking for.

The built in attenuator is probably what will sell this amp to many. Although there is a very big volume gap between 8 watts and 2 watts. And since I had to run the clean channel on 8 to get close to the sound I wanted I was stuck with a particular volume. For this amount of money I like my THD Hotplate better (and cheaper).

The reverb is beautiful but I run very light reverb. The best reverb I've ever heard was on a Mesa Boogie Subway Blues I owned. This reverb does not match the one on the Mesa but is still very open and natural sounding.

The amp construction is absolutely beautiful. I can't imagine a better build. Attention to detail is superb. Size, weight, component choice. I'm sure this amp will be very reliable.

I only had the amp 3 days but I did email Steve Carr and he responded kindly and very quickly. I'm sure his customer service is top notch.

I know everyone else is giving this amp 10s all over the place. I'm really comparing this to my Dr Z Route 66 (incredible amp) because it also uses KT-66 output tubes which I love. But more head to head I'm comparing it to my current favorite small combo, an Orange AD-15. When I first purchased the Mercury I hoped it would be my scaled down version of the Route 66 and would replace the Orange. Consistently, all three of us who evaluated chose the Orange. The Mercury just never had that out front, in your face punch that the Orange produced, and the Orange AD-15 is less than half the price. I'm trying to be critical here of a very fine amp and am comparing it to what I already own. For the money I definitely recommend you check into an Orange AD-15. If you need absolutely apartment volumes add a Hotplate or better yet just get a POD and a pair of headphones.

See below. This is my second review after spending more time with the amp. I typically get "new equipment syndrome" whereas I submit a good review too quickly. You have to give the equipment time to settle in and your ears to develope. Also, you have to root out the possibility of that what you think sounds great, could be just that it sounds "different" and not necessarily "better".

Ok. The sounds are even more incredible now that the tubes have broken in (power tube, I changed the preamp / drive / phase to NOS). Folks, do yourself a favor, get this amp. My brother, who is a die hard metal freak and suffers from what I like to call "tone deafness" (he likes music store amps, whereas I hate most of them), was floored by this amp. He came by to show off is Epiphone LP custom that he got at a bargain price. I cranked it up in the amp and he thought it was the best sound he ever heard. And that was semi clean ! He usually likes to hear everything in total super crunch OD mode. The more I play this amp, the more I love playing it. I look forward to plugging in, that says A LOT about the sound. The distortion / overdrive is so thick and harmonically rich with so much punch that only an overdriven output stage can develope. The Cut switch is so handy. If the sound is too forward, I hit the switch, and its so beautifully blended back to a more neutral sound. I thought that the abscence of tone in the boost modes (the tone stack is defeated to offer more gain) would be a bad thing, not so. The guitar sounds so wonderful and pure. My high end audio equipment doesn't have tone controls, and for a reason...it "mucks" up the sound and the overlaps in frequency cna sometimes sound bad when overdriven. If there was one amp I could take to a deserted Island (with electricity of course), it would be this amp...no questions asked. Trust me, this amp doesn't do a bad sound. Imagine crisp but not harsh cleans sounds that will rival any Matchless amp and distortion sounds to rival any Marshall JTM or Plexi from semi gooey crunchy to all out vicious power amp drive. And guess what? You can decide how the distortion sounds! The stock KT66 is very mid punchy and thick, change to an EL34 and you've gone totally British with more upper harmonic chime..just like a Marshall on "11" !!

Seems to be very well built but I've only had it a short time.

Steve Carr answers all his emails and is very friendly and helpful.

I've been playing over 20 years. I'm at the point now that I want high quality amps that go with my guitars and playing ability. This amp "forces" you to really play, not shred or show off...but "feel". Its such a wonderful sounding amp, it picks up all nuances of your playing. If you're sloppy, watch out. Its very tight and defined. If your into all types of music, this amp will cover it. I've used it for heavy metal (old school, Marshall style 80's) and it will do it, better change to an EL34 though, works better for that type of music. I think it has the best overdrive / distortion sound of any combo I've played. Even the semi overdriven sounds are stellar. If your lucky, you'll get an amp that has a great clean and heavily overdriven. You usually can't find an amp that does the in between sounds well. This amp does it all very, very well. As I said before, this amp "inspires" me to play. My rating has gone up dramatically since I've owened it. Who cares if it doesn't have channel switching (cleans up well though with guitar's volume), or an effects loop, or whatever. The amp makes you play and you don't miss those "frivolities", isn't that what's important?

Very simple amp but high quality throughout. I'm an avid audiophile with top of the line equipment for listening. This amp first struck me by its construction: high quality capacitors, resistors, fast recovery diodes, and hollow oval speaker wire that is mainly used in high end stereo systems!! That's quality folks and it shows up in the tone. There's volume, bass / treble (defeated in boost modes), 3 way boost, luscious reverb, power settings,high end cut switch, standby, and power switch. Class A amp with user adjustable bias. Tube switching from KT66, 6L6, KT88, 6550, and EL34. I personally like the EL34 in the amp. I can't give it a higher than a seven since there aren't a lot of features to the amp, but what it does have is top notch...including the built in power attenuator and a totally usable high frequency cut switch.

The clean is absolutely gorqeous. Better in my ears than any Fender or Vox. Its crisp but not biting, thick but not muddy, all with a slight "sponge" to the feel. Put the attenuator on 8 and adjust the volume for clean, boost on normal, reverb up, and play away. This is the first amp that I've owned in which I find myself really enjoying playing clean. I'm more of a "drive" kind of guy. Now I think its because most amp's clean sound sucks. The overdrive is killer. Not heavy metal, shake the walls, loosen your bowels type of drive, but articulate, harmonicaly rich, and thick. There is plenty of gain though, just a different sort. The attenuator allows you to vary the overall volume of the amp (after the power tube) and you can drive the amp via the volume control. The three way boost allows you to push a hotter signal into the amp, pushing it further into distortion. This isn't your typical, buzzy, thin, anemic preamp distortion, but full on amp overload. The 1/10 watt setting is very quiet. I find myself using the 1/2 more, but its still plenty loud. You'd annoy anybody in your vicinity with that setting. The speaker is very nice, but a tad too "American" for my tastes. Supposedly the speaker is modeled after the Jensen c12n but with more body and less annoyance. I might upgrade to a Weber or an Alltone. I think this amp would do good with a Reverend in it. In summary, excellent clean and amazing amplifier overdrive.

Seems to be built very well.

Don't know. The folks at IndoorStorm where I purchased it are great though.

I've been playing for a LONG time and I'm at that stage where I want a high quality amp to go with my PRS guitar. I sold off a few of my PRS after realizing its better to have several different amps, then to have several PRS guitars since they sound very similar. Amps are a different story, they can sound very drastic and feel very different.
So far the best amps I've owned and tried are:

1. Rocktron Egnater Tol100 and Vendetta - great production amps, bridges the gap between "boutique" and mass produced / corporate amps. Clean wasn't anything to write home about, but still pretty good. I little too much of the mass produced compressed tone, but better than new Marshalls, Mesas, Peaveys, etc. Lacked some punch, a little too smooth. This should be carried in all music stores since it outperforms any new Marshall or Mesa. Great amp (the Vendetta) for the money. Bogner type of distortion.

2. Fuchs OD 50 head - a great amp that will be my main gigging amp. Very versatile, lots of punch, great clean, massive overdrive, and lots of options. Small, lightweight, and built well with great customer service. I'm keeping this one, unless I know I'll never play out again and I need the money. Can go from country, blues, jazz, rock to all out metal with ease. Not Rectumfier type metal though. More like super high gain 80's type of hard rock. When amps had tone.

3. Matchless Clubman - this is a good amp, but very limited. The master volume is worthless. Too low and the amp is all buzzy. Turn it up a hair and your blown out of the room. Turn it up more, and it doesn't get louder but starts to mush out. At 35 watts, it barely hung in with a loud band. Eats tubes for lunch, not very versitle. This sucker does have tone though. Sort of a Marshall Plexi / Vox in one. This is going back to the dealer. Not my cup of tea. I need more from an amp...but it does have tone!

I can't give the Mercury amp a super high rating since its so limited, but the tone and quality of the amp ranks it high enough that people should check it out. All I know is that I couldn't stop playing it when I got it and I was late into work this morning. I did go to sleep, so I'm not that hopeless. That's what matters the most, does your amp make you play or do you make yourself play? This amp teases you from across the room to plug in and enjoy yourself.

ELEGANT SIMPLICITY.
This amp does ALOT with very few controls! It has an attenuator to bring it from 8 Watts to 2 Watts to 1/4 Watt to 1/10 Watt. This is not a VOLUME control - it actually changes the amp.Volume, 3 position Boost switch (for overdrive), Treble, Bass, Reverb, Cut Switch and Standby - that's it. What more could you really ever want?
Very tasteful design - vintage without being derivative. Mine is a cream tolex, nice silver inset trime around cabinet and round speaker grill offset from center, chicken head knobs on simple straightforward top control panel, single KT-66 Tube (but can work with 6L6, KT-88, 6550 and EL-34 with rebiasing.

This 8 Watt amp ROCKS.
Do not let the wattage fool you - yoy could play at 1/4 or 2 watts and drive your neighbors crazy.
You can go from LOUD CLEAN to SOFT OVERDRIVE and everything in between. 60's American, Surf, Warm Clean, Mild to punchy to British overdrive to all out Screaming Blues and Heavy Modern all by adjusting the Volume, boost and Reverb - then with the attenuator YOU decide how loud you want to be. The 1/10 Watt is fantastic for living room when everyone is home or apartment living without being evicted.
I have finally found THE ONE - great for at home and studio.

It is brand new and I have no long term experience, but the amp is straightforward, well built, hand wired point to point - at this price I can see where much of the money went - into the high quality of the materials. I am a tube amp veteran and, yes, tubes are more tempermental than solid state and you have to change tubes every so often, but I am old school and to me, nothing beats the sound. I would gig without a backup - no question. The amp arrived extremely well packed from the factory - and fired up right away.

This is one manufacturer to call even without a problem - just to tell him what a phenomenal amp he has designed. I am confident based on reputation that if should there ever be a problem, it will be handled promptly.

I have been search for TONE all my 33 years of playing. I have used a Mesa Boogie for 15 years and I love the Mesa sound, but it sometimes seems that every guitar I play through it has the same sound. This amp allows the character of each guitar to come through. I love it. I am confident that I could gig with it - it is THAT LOUD, but I am comfortable staying at home and getting the sound and tone I have always dreamed of getting. Is it expensive - very. But it is the last amp I will every buy, so I can amertize it over my lifetime and it makes perfect sense to me.

My Mercury was buld in 2003. I play blues, jazz, funk, and some rock. This amp is very, very veritile and can bring you some great tone from quiet volume levels to quite respectable volumes. I've gotten a THD Univalve and a 1959 Fender Champ to try to achieve the quiet power tube overdrive sound. This is much more versitle than both. The Champ is a great one trick pony and I find the Univalve nice but limited in its clean settings. Also, the power attenuation of the Mercury is more "realistic" than the THD. It's really tough to find features that are lacking in such a temendous and original amp.

I pricipally use vintage guitars from Gibson's ES line (335, 345, and 175D). Ocassionally, I'll use a vintage Strat or one of the several Gibson Historic Reissue Les Pauls. This amp sounds great with those guitars and with my Super 400! It's the first of the 15 or so amps I have that sounds great with single coil Strat and p-90 pickups as well as humbuckers. A plethora of sound comibinations are available...an there's a great reverb to boot.

The amps construction and design is top notch. I've only had it a short time though, so I won't give a rating. See also below.

I casually sent an email to Willcut Guitars (from whom I purchased the amp) asking why, on two of 24 or so combinations of drive, wattage, and cut settings I got some noticable volume drop. Within an hour and with no further action on my part, I got an email from Steve Carr himself identifying the problem (a bad KT-66) and sending me out a new tube. I've had some great service from boutique amp companies...this has to be the best.

I own numerous vintage amps (64 Vox AC30, 59 Tremolux, 59 Bandmaster, 62 Super, 73 Super Lead, 69 Park 75, 65 Deluxe Reverb, 59 Champ, Marshall Lead 20, THD Univalve, and Blockhead 18 Watt Bluesbreaker). They are all great in one way or another, at one volume or another, and/or with one guitar or another. This is the only amp that sounds great with all guitars, every day, on every setting. In a world of "vintage" and "reissue", its really nice to see "original" - in tone and design. If you've been thinking about this amp because the reviews have intrigued you, you need to get one...you won't be disappointed.