Carvin 112-Nomad

1x12" Combo Amp. Two Channels, Clean and Soak. Bass, Mid, and Treble eq for both channels. Has efx loop, cabinet voiced line out jack.

I loved the clean sound on this amplifier. I go for a very muted, mellow tone when I'm on the clean channel, and this is the first amplifier I've tried that was able to give that to me.
The Soak channel had absolutely no bottom end. I'm talking NONE. And while I realize this is a vintage-stlyed amp and is not meant for metal, I was disappointed that the channel had no sack whatsoever.

Yeah, it deserves the lowest score in this category. I used the amp for a total of 40 minutes. Clean channel for about half an hour, soak channel for ten minutes tops. And then it died. This dry, crackling sound, much like white noise started coming from the speaker and then all sound cut out completely, so I decided to call it quits. Considering that the volume never went above '2' on the dial, I don't think I blew anything out.
When I talked to my salesguy he said that the amps sometimes get damaged during shipping and that they could send me a replacement if I wanted. No way. If it can't even make it through the shipping journey to me, I definitely wouldn't call it roadworthy.

Great. They are accepting the amp back and have given me no problems whatsoever. If you ever want to buy through Carvin, I highly recommend Sean McAnally at extension 125. They guy knows what he is talking about most of the time, and isn't afraid to refer to someone else if he doesn't. That's what good customer service is all about in my opinion.

Others have given it great reviews, so maybe my experience was the exception to the rule. For Carvin's sake I hope it is. The guitar I purchased from them is truly excellent, and I was disappointed that this amplifier was such a low quality piece of equipment.

This amp is a nice,compact practice amp--good for dragging along to band pracices, but has plenty of power for a club performance. The amp has a tone reminiscent of the 50's and 60's warm, but crunchy. It is a 50watt all-tube amp with 5 12AX7's and 4EL84's. I like the vintage tones, but ideally, I prefer the sound of Carvin's MTS series. The Nomad has 2 channels and a lot of versatility in the overdrive section. It has a good effects loop, and an acoustic presence control that adds just enough extra top end for ambiance, not harshness.

The sound is very good, though as stated before, its a little crunchy for my ideal sound, which the MTS series delivers nicely, but if you looking for a good vintage amp, I would definitely reccommend this amp or try the Vintage 33 (same with 33watts)or the 212 Bel Aire.

Seems quite reliabe-no trouble yet! I know that they have made sure to guard against many of the problems with frailty found in similar EL84 amps.

I really like this amp-it sounds great-both channels. It would probably be great for blues-or someone with lower-powered pickups to reduce some of the crunch-but hey, a lot of people love that sound and if you are one of them this amp is for you. I would definitely buy it again, it has great tube tone and is quite portable.

very versatile amp but no headphone jack. can anyone tell me how to adapt it for phones?

excellent

All tube design with two independent switchable channels. This amp captures the essence of vintage sound, while incorporating modern conveniences such as effects loop and a cabinet voiced line output. External speaker jacks have switchable impedance. Clean channel has rear mounted presence control in addition to low, mid and high tone. "Soak" channel has separate low, mid and high tone controls as well as volume and soak. Optional footswitch controls channels and effects/reverb. Only missing feature that I would like is separate "low" "high" inputs for matching "hot" and "vintage" pickups on different guitars. This amp is plenty loud for most club situations, and even more so when I drive my extension cab with a pair of 12" JBL's. Clean blues tones are clearly all tube, while the tone of the instrument used really comes through.

The tone controls REALLY work. Crank the bass knob up and you get a lot of bass, especially so for a single 12" speaker. Component placement has been optimized for minimal noise. Soak channel provides a heavy dose of distortion that is good for modern "grunge" sounds or retro 60's fuzz. If your guitar has extra hot pickups, you will get a warmer sound by backing off the volume control a bit; vintage circuits are tuned for vintage guitars. Reverb sounds REALLY good to my ear, very natural, like you're playing in a big room when you're really not. Speaker breaks up in a pleasing way when clean channel is pushed hard, but playing through an extension cab gives 50 watts of clean tube volume.

I've only had this amp for three months, but my experience with Carvin products has been that they are well designed for reliability. Cabinet is really solid. Grill cloth is thick, tough plastic mesh. The impedance switch for the speaker jacks should extend the life of the SovTek tubes. Preamp tubes are 12AX7's, and output is from EL84's like those used in the VOX AC30. Tubes are secured using wire spring retainers. Warranty is one year parts and labor.

Carvin is primarily factory direct. I've contacted the factory to ask about upcoming products and inquire about getting spare tubes. Sales reps are always very helpful without being pushy or trying to make additional sales. Even gave phone numbers for alternate parts suppliers. All products (except microphones) come with 10 day trial period where you can drag them into your favorite local music store and do side-by-side comparisons to feel sure about your purchase.

To get the features, quality and sound of this amp from any other manufacturer, you'll have to spend at least twice as much, or buy used. I plan on having this amp around 'til I die!