Carvin 112-Nomad

50 watt,2 channel, all tube, 1x12 combo, reverb, tweed covering, effects loop, footswitch(not included), wish it had headphone jack

I play a gibson explorer, ESP 400 strat, and ibanez artstar(335 copy) Very nice vintage sound, always loved the clean channel, the "dirty" channel was good, but not great. had to much distrotion in with the overdrive. very well suited to blues. the best thing i did was a couple of mods i found on the internet. check out this link.
http://www.geocities.com/rlhassebrock/nomaddioderemoval.html?200513

check out this link. the Clipping Diode Removal Mod and the Attitude Control Mod rule!!!!!!!!!

seems very soild, have not had an issue

i called them about the mods, and the tech on the phone said he did them to his and said just be careful "in there" very nice, and helpful

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again? in one word YES!

If you have this amp do the mods! it sounds nice stock but better modded. but my motto has always been:
"do you want the exteneded warranty?", "does it cover me modding it?" "no", then "no i don't!!"

bought this about 5or6 years ago , have gigged many times with it , recorded with it and feel i've lived with it long enough to post a review .after the first year i took a handsaw to the box and made a cool little tweed "head" out of it. paired it with a peavey 112 closed back loaded with a r.e. green back , pulled the two inner 84's and felt fairly happy with a very unique look and tone .

i play a wolfgang stoptail , i have used this amp for heavy , loud rock and for clean lounge jazz . by using it at 25 watts thru a closed back with the r.e. greenback i can get some rich and articulate distortion , for rock i have used it with soak on 3 and all tones on 7 and volume on 7 and using only a touch of danecho with the hi cut set @9 oclock i got a very classic 70's stadium rock tone,for my clean loungew gigs i set bass 7 mids 2-3 highs 5-7 and presence 7 with verb @2-3 and using the wolfies volume rolled to 7 on the neck pu i get a very warm and beautifull clean.However my main tone is a brazen attempt at ripping off the "brown sound".I set a boss sd1 with level full, tone 12-1 oclock, and dist @ 9 oclock , run it into the nomad set @ 1.25-3 on the soak bass- 3-7 depending on venue , mids 2-4 and hi's 6-7 , verb off and a danechoe in the loop set with an aggressive hi-cut , and with the two pulled tube goodness off the remaining 25 watts pushing that closed back greenie to its utmost (master volume 7-8) I get a unique tone that i can use tones that are as close to early VH as I'd want to get and still keep my self respect .The verb on mine makes very loud noises but i only use it on the clean channel set at 2-3 .i love the tone i get with the g.b. speaker , the definition and presence goes perfectly with the nomads previously muddy tone .the closed back gives me a bit of that 4x12 bottom character i was missing for rock and when using it clean some tape over the center cures the icepick hi's . The tone of this amp is well worth working with-very warm almost muddy , i often cut the soak channels bass to 3 when volume is set @7 in live situations .The very present green back does wonders in giving this amp a better definition , and at 25 watts it still is loud enough to carry over a very physical drummer .

Just updating a little info...
I solved the rattling problem some users complained about, just by replacing one tube. usually its the v4 that causes some rattling related problems.
Also replaced V1 with a 12AY7, and both channels improved.
Now I turn the soak up to 5 and still have crunch with enough dinamics to keep the tone close to the clean channel, and usually never turn the volume of both above 5.

All tube (12ax7 & el84). 12" speaker. Independent EQ for each (two) channel. 50 LOUD watts. Extra speaker output for additional cab. Direct cabinet voiced output that's good for recording or going direct.

Clean channel (Channel 1) on this thing shines! Great for jazz, also for country or rock. At 50 watts, it has good headroom.

Dirty channel (Channel 2) is great for bluesy distortion. Also fantastic with the Soak (gain) down real low for a slightly overdriven clean sound. Not great for metal on it's own. But can be more than sufficient for metal is you crank the Soak and put a overdrive like a tubescreamer in front.

Been gigging with it for 5 years so far and will keep doing so. Only 1 problem with it in which I had to take it in to replace a dead diode (I think). Otherwise, never a problem, I just regular tube amp maintantence like replacing tubes every year or so.

Call them up, they're more than happy to help. They've also emailed me a schematic with no problem.

Been playing 11 years. I love the Carvin Vintage Series amps. I've owned the head/cab version as well, but the 1x12 Nomad combo is the size for me. I also own the Vintage 16, which is the 16/5 watt baby brother of the nomad.

The Nomad is great for jazz, rock, country, fusion, jamband, etc. It's a STEAL for the price too. Made with quality and care in the USA.

carvin gt speaker, 2 channel clean and dirty 12AX7 preamp el84 power tubes

Tele riogrande tallboy neck - muygrande bridge
72 tele custom fender wide range Humbucker neck - Seymour duncan vintage for broadcaster bridge
epiphone sheraton z90 harmonic design neck and bridge

I mostly play pop/rock brtish style music and kinda of alternative pop folk music. I need a good clean sound and sweet overdrive sound that's all
The clean stay clean till 3 then it breaks up in bad way very muddy no detailed sound

dirty channel totally unusable!! very very bad

Seems to be weel built. I've gigged a couple of times everything good but yes I'm going to sell it

never dealt with Carvin

I've been playing for 15 years I've owned a trace elliot super tramp (transistor), and Laney vc30. Sold the laney to by the carvin....the laney was way better than the carvin

A very good output pannel, wich allows an extra cabinet(wich pumps this little thing to an even greater sound) nice line output, and effects loop...its quite complete to me...the only thing that lacks is that the footswich is not included...
The size versus power is amazing, its one of the lighter amps I had, with a great penetrating sound

The eq is very versatile, for any guitar altough I only use single coils normally...and the clean sound is that voxy tone I love...
works very good arround 5 on the claean volume...
On the drive channel, I like to crank it up arround 10, then soak between 2 and 3, wich gives me a lightlly saturated OD...
Responds extreemlly good with the Line 6 crunchTOne, giving the versatillitty I need...I also use a GT-3 on the loop, for modulation and delays...
Rever is a quite good low profile Reverb, that does not saturate your playing...
If it wasn't for the tube rattlling caused by the cabinet vibration, I would give it a 10.

I will try to relly on it...but I dont have it for that long to speak...and of course it needs maintenance like any tube amp
Oh...about the handle, some other review sayed it was weak...well, if you look closer, the rubber is arround a metal flexible hanlde...and the amp is very light.

Like I sayed...I use a Gt-3 for spacial and modulation effects, a Line 6 crunch tone, and my main guitar is a Nashvile power Tele, I also use an American Strat... I play mostelly Jazz-Fusion...
I really like all the features of this amp...and except for the tube rattling, I have no complaints so far... and I prefer its tone to the Hot Rod Deluxe, wich was the number 2 on my list when I bought it...so Guess if it was lost, I would buy it again...
I have to say it again...it is very easy to carry it arround, and its 50 watt all-tube! Its the best relation of tone-power-price-and size I found... and you can add a second speaker if you like...

Well i have been looking for an all tube amp for as long as ive been playing. All i need from an amp is to independent channels (as regards eq/volume) and reverb, and this model has that. It also sports an effects loop (which i have not tried out as yet) and also a cabinet voiced lineout and a socket for adding an external speaker cabinet. The speaker has been changed on this amp (i got it second hand for #225) to a clestion vintage 30 (16 ohms) and there is a switch on the back panel to match the speaker impedence to either 4/8/16 ohms. Next to this an acoustic presence control to give a bit more sparkle to the sound if you shold need it. So as far as im concerned it meets all my criteria so im marking it high because of this.

I use a Squier pro-tone fitted with di-marzio virtual vintage pickups and also a custom bulit twin humbucker guitar (also with di-marzio's but with split pickups so i can pull the colume pot for each of the pickups and go single coil mode) and play lots of different styles of music for my own amusment at home and in the limited time ive had the amp i must say for me it cuts the mustard. The clean channel chimes musically (although i have to lay off the high and mids at low volumes) and all manner of recognisable tones pop out from it. Ive never owned an all tube amp before but i know the sound im after and this amp has them. There is not stiffness to the tone just a relaxed elsatisity to the tone that just sounds better the louder it gets, you just cant help sounding astounding. The reverb adds a lovely depth to the sound, although again you dont need to much to get in the right place tonally. Onto the overdrive channel, mmm nice! It has that compressed liquid smooth overdirve that i hear on so many recordings but that i could never get with my solid state/hybrid amps such as a marshall valvestate, with the soak control up at about 3 or 4 its crunchy blusey territory time, but notch it up just a little more and we are into tube overdrive heaven, thick, defined warm all the good stuff! With a splodge of reverb this channel just sings to me. It does not do death metal though (but neither do i) but what it does do is claasic rock tones to die for.

Cant really comment on this (although the handle seems a bit worse for wear so am going to change that when i can find a suitable replacement).

Doubt i will ever have to get in contact with them as i bought it second hand and i live across the Atlantic.

I have always wanted a tube amp and now i have one and am more than pleased with the tones it is kicking out, it is very loud and musical and looks so cool as well.

3 yrs' and still rocking .Got it in 2001 and have gig from state fairs to small clubs . Two channels,reverb,F/X loop,one 12" speeker,in a nice tweed cab .

I play a 70s' fender reissue strat,a nashville tele ,335 and I play blues , rock , country. Each has its own sound stand out with this amp . I'm useing just a volume pedal and channel swicht .I was useing a Cry baby into a DOD delay into a Marshall jack hammer into a Boss blues driver into a Big muff Pi into a volume pedal and also use the channel swicht . I found I could get the same sound with better tone with just the volume pedal and channel swichter.I turn the volume up to 7 on the clean channel with single coils and 5 for humbuckers . The dirty channel changes to what gain I need for a lead .I've have change some preamp tubes and change the speaker to a Peavey shiffield 1230 . I know some pepole change power tubes but its the speaker that makes the amp sound muddy .The sov-tek EL84 are best J.J.s' will not last as long stay away from Chines tubes too.

the first thing to go was the channel swicht . The handel need to be replace because the one that it comes with is cheap .I had to replace a copacitor it was rolling around in the chasse ? and cover the reverb pan

TO HELL WITH Carvin !

I love the tone of this amp I've been playing for 17 yrs . I would replace it if something happen.

This review is for a 2004 Nomad. It is a straight-forward amp that has a nice array of features and tonal options. It also comes at a great price. This amp is quite loud, and as a result, I've pulled 2 of the 4 power tubes to reduce the volume. It enables me to turn the amp louder so that I can dig deeper into the great tube tone. The effects loop is a nice addition, although I put my effects into the front of the amp. As for wishes, it would be nice if the front of the amp included a light to indicate which channel was activated. I read that Carvin wanted to really preserve the vintage vibe of the amp and therefore opted not to include a light. The only other area of improvement would be the amp handle. The plastic handle does the job, but the great look of the amp would be complimented by a nicer handle. In summary, the vintage look (it oozes coolness) and the quality construction really make this a great amp.

I play blues and classic rock and like to dabble with some jazzy tones as well. I am using a Gibson CS 336 (smaller version of the 335) with an analogman King Of Tone boost pedal. I swapped the stock tubes for some vintage Telefunkens in the preamp and some JJs in the power section and I tweaked the bias a bit to make the amp run a bit hotter. This combination is killer. The clean channel sounds great and offers lots of headroom, but the Soak channel is my favorite. I set the soak between 1.5 and 2 and really juice the volume. This gives me a nice vintage tone (think 1970's Alex Lifeson) without lots of distortion. Every note rings clearly and the harmonics really jump off the fretboard. I can hit the string hard for a nice bite or I can lay back and coax cleaner tones from the amp. The King Of Tone provides a nice boost and really rounds out the sound. Together, the amp and pedal create the finest tone I've ever had (and I've owned loads of big named amp in the past 20 years). This amp can cover great jazz, blues and classic rock tones. Switching to the neck pickup with the clean channel has me jamming for hours! Warning: these tones could be hazardous to your social life! You won't want to stop playing.

As with all tube amps, regular maintenance and love along with common sense should keep the amp cranking for many years. The Nomad is beautifully constructed and features many appointments that similar amps lack, such as a solid cabinet and corner protectors. As I've only had this amp for a few months, I won't rate this category, as I really don't have the long history with the amp that is required to make a determination. But, I have no doubt that the fine folks at Carvin will be able to help if the amp does experience any problems.

I've been buying gear for many years and I can say with 100% honesty that nobody provides service that even come close to Carvin. They are the best in the business. The first Nomad I received had a bit of a problem with the speaker, and 3 days later a new Nomad was at my house ready to roll. I've read some of the reviews that bash Carvin's service, but as a customer who purchased a Carvin Legacy about 3 years ago, I can say that the service (which was great back then) has gotten even better. Thanks to James, Marco and Carl. You guys rock! Also, you can check out the Carvin bulletin board for loads of information. The people on the board are awesome and they always offer great suggestions and ideas. In fact, there are some great mods for the Nomad that I discovered on the board. I won't attempt them until my Nomad is out of warranty, but when I'm ready, I know that there will be many people willing to offer help.

I have been playing guitar and buying gear for 20 years. I've owned lots of different amps, all of which were good in their own ways, but the Nomad really knocks me out. The size and weight are perfect and I can add the Carvin 1x12 cabinet if I decide that I need more volume. The tone is perfect for me and it really inspires me to play. I played many other amps in my search for great tone, but the Nomad won in all categories. At this price and level of quality, you simply cannot go wrong with the Nomad.
The Nomad normally sells for $529, but Carvin frequently run sales on much of their gear. I snagged the Nomad during their year-end, $50 off any amp sale. It really was a no-brainer for me.

Features are good--in the sense that it adds modern elements like an effects loop to the 'vintage' features. Since they went to the trouble of adding a line out, though, it would be nice to also have a headphone jack. Probably asking too much at this price point, but I'd be really impressed with a parallel effects loop.

I use an early 80s ESP Telecaster copy (nice guitar to begin with, now has a Seymour Duncan L'il '59 in the bridge & a DiMarzio neck PU) and a 2002 Gibson Les Paul Special. After a year of owning it, I'm still just lukewarm on the Nomad's tone. Clean tone is good, but can't match my 1962 Ampeg Gemini II for vibe, overdrive channel still seems grating to me--plenty of dirt but a LOT of harsh overtones with either guitar. I'm glad to have the tube warmth but still haven't found the smooth overdrive I want. The best OD sounds I've gotten yet come with judicious use of a Carl Martin compressor to even out the biting highs. (And yes, I know how to use my guitars' tone knobs.)Sounds best LOUD, which makes me wish it were a lower wattage.

Hate to say it, but here's the dirt. Preamp tube 2 on my first Nomad actually caught fire. They were great about the return, however, and got me a new amp really fast. My new amp played fine for 8-9 months, then started fizzing. I took it to a good amp tech here in Birmingham and it needed one replacement tube each for the preamp and power sections. He noted that one of the screws setting the reverb unit in place was broken off (probably down into the pan) and showed me how the Acoustic Presence knob wire was twisted completely around the pot. I damned sure didn't do either in my "basement gigging." BTW, the speaker impedence switch on the second amp came from the factory set at 4 ohms instead of the proper 8. This is sloppy, sloppy shit, and makes me think if I replace this amp, it won't be with another Carvin. MAYBE you could chalk up two tubes in a year to wear and tear (MAYBE), but the rest . . . ?

As I said, great and fast on the return.

Been playing almost 20 years. My ideal sound would be Dickey Betts on the clean side and Crazy Horse Neil Young on the dirty. This is my second tube amp, and I've been underwhelmed by it. I have a pretty respectable collection of analog pedals (EH, Maxon, Carl Martin) and bought this amp looking for a good deal on a vintage-vibe amp. If it were stolen I'd file for the insurance and look seriously at one of the Fender Deluxe amps or reissues. Given that MF is selling the Hot Rod Deluxe for about the price I paid for the Nomad, I'm wondering if I should have stuck with a proven winner.