Carvin AG100

2008 Purchase - Very versatile features-wise, everybody mentions the specs., so why repeat them... One feature not working was supposed phantom power (per the sales guy), that's a crock of doo-doo. If there's voltage in that, it might equal static electricity!

Ok sound quality when it works. Tweeter came scratchy (the attenuator thing vibrated and would make those noises with thumpy bass notes were hit).

Play 10 minutes, click, no sound, lights still on... Turn off, turn on, play 15 minutes, click, no sound, lights still on... Turn off, turn on, click pop! Turn off, turn on, play 15 minutes...

This amp was well-cared for and never shipped (picked up in their factory). Supposedly no warranty because the little man sales manager for the company said I got an extra discount on a clearance item (yeah, $30 bucks off or something like that...). When he left, I mentioned he was a jerk and I would write a letter to the president of the company... I was then told he was the son of the owners...

Last Carvin product I will ever buy.

I'd rather die than rely on a Carvin.

Features as mentioned below. 100W of clean headroom. The ported 12" bass speaker gives me all the bottom end "thump" I have been looking for. I play in a Ceilidh band , we dont have either drums or a bass guitar, so its down to me and my Larrivee to provide the rhythmic drive needed for dancing.

I play a Larrivee L-03 equipped with B-Band A2.2 AST/UST. This amp reproduces the full detailed sound well, with the option to really beef up the bottom end without it getting muddy. In fact it has made my GE-7 redundant.Each of the 3 channels is optimised for a different group of instruments eg accoustic guitar on channel 1, bass guitar on channel 2: electric fiddle sounds good thru channel 2. Channel 1 is the best for accoustic guitar with a very powerful eq section to dial in the sound you want.

I have only had this amp since march so cant really comment yet. earlier models have a really bad record of reliability, i took a chance in buying it as it suits what i have been looking for for the past year or so.

Again no comment

Carvin are difficult to get hold of in the UK (see www.carvinworld.com for dealers). But, if you are looking for a mini pa that will double for bass amp as well then this is worth considering. In my search for a combo with a 12" bass speaker, I have come across others who believe you need a big speaker to get the bottom end thump, if you are one of them, then give this one a trial.

Has three channels. One best for guitar, one for bass, and one for vocals. Has a 12 incher so it has a good bottom. Tweeter has a volume control, which is needed because is gets a bit "hissy" at higher volumes.

This part is sad because it gets a great sound. Good bottom, at lower volumes it is a good bass amp, nice mids, and with the tweeter down, good highs.

Basically, the sound is excellent.

This is the sad part. I had one AG 100 that started cutting out within 14 months. After sending it in, getting it back, and it doing it again. I finally had a "phone fit" while talking to some costumer relations wank.

Well, they sent me a new one. All ends well, right? Wrong. The new one started doing the same thing in about 14 months. I called in a "pissed mode" and the first questions they asked me indicated that it was, of course, my fault.

They told me that there was not a problem like I was having with this amp(I guess they are unable to use the internet to read revies.) And, of course, it was really my fault that it wasn't working. After some more gripes, in their ultimate genorisity, they offered to pay shipping, but told me that the minimum repair cost would be 165 dollars.

I hung up. Took it to a local guy, and he fixed it for a less than a hundred. I asked him about the amp and he said, "Well, the design is good, but the execution or assembly is not well done." I asked him if he would recommend Carvin based on his observations and he grinned an said no.

This is a bit sad, because, when it works, it sounds really good.

I will never buy another Carvin product in my life.

They were phone jerks. They knew and know that this amp has consistent problems, but on the phone they act like you are the only one in the universe who has had this problem.

Also, they try to figure something out that you did to mess things up. I play mine at home at low volumes, and they still tried to come up with a fabrication that indicated that it was my fault

This amp is a crap shoot. Read the reviews. If you get one that doesn't have probs, fine, you are happy. But check out all the people who have stories a lot like mine.

Has fairly good features like 3 channels, one for guitar with EQ,
one for mic XLR, one for other instrument. Has master vol & reverb.
also mic chan & guitar chan have independent reverb controls.
Headphon jack Extension Speaker Jack and line out jack. These features
cover many situations like connecting to a bigger system (line out)
and using as your "controlled" personal sound including vocals.
I have played in bigger places as a solo player using this amp practically as a monitor and connected to an in-house P/A.
Perfect for the solo artist. mine is the 12 inch speaker & horn,
100W RMS. I did add some casters to roll it easier. The AG100D includes digital effects but this model still has lots
of stuff for the money, I really wouldn't desire much more features.

--Reasonable sound for the money.----------------
Sounds, sounds, the main thing uh? Well I would have to say in a
nutshell: it ain't that bad. You know this is not the finest brand
and this is not really an expensive model amp say as a SWR Blonde
which costs much more or a Marshall acoustic Tube amp. But it replicates the acoustic sound at a decent acceptable quality level.
clean, "hi-fi", a little dry I would not say completely lifeless but
not "high definition". The reverb as others say is not very great but
better than nothing.
--good volume, reasonable headroom------------
But I do have to say it has satisfied me in volume in a P/A situation say 50 people audience, sounds "big" enough
to make your voice and guitar be heard clear.
I have used it straight without other effects and sounds good enough
(volume/tone/low-feedback) and also with external guitar effects.
--Equipment Setup-------------
My setup with effects is as follows :
AEG10 Ibanez Elect-Acous guitar--> ART Tube-MP tube preamp-->
Ibanez 305 MultiEffects box---> Boss AC2 pedal---> Carvin AG100.
As mentioned, has a good volume eficiency, mic volume sounds strong
at level 3, guitar at level 3.5 at most (from 1-10). It will feedback
at higher settings at least in a small to medium room size.
I have also used it with an auxiliary external cab (Crate PE12 1-12")
which is a perfect choice as an added speaker used as monitor for
the musician. I use the Crate cab facing me and the Carvin facing the
public (mounted in an amp stand). That way you get a good audition
and the crowd also does.
--competes Ok Vs. small P/A----------------
Just as a comparison with other equipment, I also have a Yamaha
EMX640 6 channel(powerd mixr) which I have used also with my
acoustic guitar setup and 2 JBL cabs (15" and horn each) and it sound
better of course but needless to say it is a much better
system, better brand, bigger, etc.
--works Ok with mics----------------
coming back to the AG100, Works just great with an MB-2000L Audio
Technica mic. By the way these mics are awesome, nothing to envy an
SM57. I got the amp around 1995, first batch probably.
--music I Play-------------------
in regard to acoustic music, I play christian pop/traditional
English also spanish tunes, and original christian pop praise/worship
also some secular pop scarcely.
Usually voice/guitar in a solo situation. I do play electric guitar in a group setting but that's another story. I have other amps but
acoustic amps, only this one.

When I initially got the amp, the power indicator did not light
although the amp did work. Believe it or not, the LED was connected
backwards, I fixed it myself. Since the amp was brand new, I was
going to send it back but the shipping was on me I guess, so I looked into repairing it myself. From this simple experience I can judge
that the QA is not the best at Carvin or at least was not at that time. I've read the previous reviews explaining that the amp quit after 3 years which is a dissapointing situation.

I can say my amp has worked good and is still ok but I haven't used it very much, not in a continuos manner. I would say rather sporadically, so, the reliablilty has not been demonstrated. Also i do take good care of all my equipment I never abuse volume or run an amp in a very hot climate without the proper ventilation, etc.
All this is worth mentioning because there's people who abuse equipment and belive me folks, transistors are reliable but they are
prone to fail at higher temperatures without the proper heat dissipation. So, if you run the amp 5 or 6 hours without a break
standing in the sun or a very hot saloon at volume 10 then bad things
can happen. I was taught in school (Engineering) that any device that
is run at 100% duty cycle or near that figure say 80% is prone to fail
and shorten its life, be it an gas engine, electic motor, machinery
or an electronic power transistor. the recommended usage of a device
is 50% duty cycle, that means don't use your P/A at volume 10 all
night.
If you need more volume, get a bigger amp, etc. Of course someone is
going to say "Marshalls are ran at volume 10 to achieve the "power
tube distortion sweet spot" that you get when the plates of the
power tubes are saturated but my friends that's another story, also
that is why Marshalls are burn very often, too.
--conclusions
But the impression so far is that it does deliver good service. Considering the not-extensive testing even after 10 years I will give it a 7.

They do respond to phones and emails, so I guess the service is not too bad. But if the customer pays to return a brand new defective
item, then the overall service which involves warranty is not very generous. I did have another experience with another Carvin amp
which i bough used, i requested the diagram and guess what, they sent
it to me quickly (older tube model) which speaks good will in their
favor.

with 100 Watts RMS in a lighweight but acoustically-efficient enclosure, including an acoustic/electic guitar switch that cuts
or connects the horn, extension speaker jack, headphones, graphic
Master EQ, Reverb, parametric Eq for channel 1 and XLR mic input
which actually sounds good with voice, I think you can't go wrong.

www.carvin.com - see the specs

I was using a Martin DCM, an Alvarez Fusion series and a Taylor 612.
As far as an acoustic amp, it is good - not the best but comparable to Fender and Crates acoustic amps. The real reason I went with this amp though was the ability to gig with it as a PA/acoustic amp. WHEN IT WORKED, it was great - loved it.

READ CAREFULLY!!!

I researched acoustic amps before buying this one - tested it alongside some of the others and the only negative was the Reliability ratings.

I took a chance - said it wouldn't happen to me - after all - I'm lucky! I was wrong - don't take the chance that I did - Go buy the Roland 60W little cube amp that you could stuff in a backpack and gig with - cause the Carvin went dead, you guessed it, right after the warranty went out. It occasionally works until you plug up for a gig and then it goes out.

They are very helpful if you are willing to pay $100 shipping and then continue to pay for the same amp twice in parts and labor.

Yeah, I contacted them to get it fixed, told them I would like for them to do the right thing and at least pay the shipping - no go.

Carvin, that is my correct address if you ever change your mind and want to make it right.

Been playing about 10 years. I own a Fender PA 100 - classic tube PA - cool stuff, Behringer Vintager, Peavey Express 112, Taylor 612CE, Epiphone Les Paul, Alvarez Fusion, Fender Strat - and a number of pedals for my electric rig.

DON'T TRY TO BEAT THE ODDS ON THIS AMP - go get something else !

Same as all the others: 3 Channel, 100w, 5Band Eq, mine has a 12" speaker, blah, blah...
Like everyone else I bought this for it's versatility when Carvin first came out with it. Being at that time a solo performer I needed an acoustic guitar amp and a PA. So when I found this, I thought WOW 2 for the price of one and the price was right, so I bought it. I am currently in a band and we play mostly acoustic rock and blues. However, I've plugged in everything and anything you could possibly play into it. This amp has been through a lot I've got to say that I have this amp now well over 5+ years and have had my fair share of problems with it. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones because they all seemed to work themselves out.

If your looking for a clean amp by a true tube amp.
This amp can be a times very muddy and distorted - you need to learn how to tweak it to suit your playing. Like I mentioned earlier I play everything through it (of course at different times) the only thing that is constant is my shure 58 mic.
I play Alvarez acoustic, Ibanez semi-hollow Artcore electric, Fender PBass and Casio 518 keyboard.
I'm currently doing a duo with a friend and believe it or not we're both plugged in. Him on Martin HD28 and me on Fender p Bass, we're both sharing the mic since we both sing and the sound is not bad.

It has never been serviced, I do occasionly air spray the inside board. This amp has been to many a gig without a backup.
At this point I know I can trust it.

I've only had to deal with these guys once and once was enough.
Do yourself a favor if you buy any Carvin product. Find yourself a repair person or learn to fix it yourself.

My overall is if it were lost, stolen or unrepairable I'd buy something else.

I bought this amp 3 years ago. This Amp quit on me within the first 6 months. There was this clicking noise and it would shut off. I took it back to Carvin for repair. It worked for another 8 months and quit on me. Same thing, I took it back. 21/2 Years it did the same thing, I took it back. To this day Carvin has still not given me an Official explanation as to why it Quit. I have had many embarrasing moments with this Amp quitting on me in the Middle of Gigs. I,m not sure I can really trust this amp again without having a backup. It is lightweight and thats what I like about It. It is quite loud and has more power than most amps its size, and the price is affordable. Effects are great without having to have an effects box extra. This acts also as a portable PA system. Great for emergencies or practice gigs. I just wish Carvin would let me know what is the technical problem that causes this amp to click off and shut down.

I use a Acoustic Larrivee do3 with an Active Fishman pickup. I've been playing fingerstyle guitar for 25 years and when I'm whaling up the neck with all fingers (No cheating with a Pick)the sound pulls out the simutaneous notes evenly especially when four fingers are playing different notes at the same time. Distortion is okay, but that does not effect me especially if I dont need a Pick. Why use a pick when you have four fingers to play with.

Reliability, I'm not sure I can trust this amp.But I'm a glutton for punishment.As far as neglect, I treat my toys like Gold.

Customer Service, the Covina store has the best service

36 years playing guitar. I started at 7 yrs old. I recently bought a fender Acoustasonic and that also quit on be the first weekend I bought it.(Another story)

2004 or 2005 model. Not as versatile as ad describes, I play mostly pub type Jimmy Buffet music ,solo act in different bars and restarants. I was looking for an easy rig though veratile for voice and guitar without having to lug around chorus pedals and reverb equipment for the mic. I had tried all the fenders and genz benz and on a wim tried this one. I am writing this as my first reveiw mainly to help anyone avoid the mistakes I have and save money

Using a acoustic electric Alvarez with 600T $600.00 model
Shure mic pg58.

The controls and the so called parameters are not as versatile as you would expect. I must tell you that in three environments I put it head to head with my $150.00 Ibanez ta25 (both mic channel and guitar channel, and could hardly tell the difference if anything the Ibanez mic channel was better and certainly easier to tweak because there are very limited tweaking on the Ibanez, In fact i could walk into a bar blindfolded with the Ibanez, hook up my rig in 8 seconds turn it on and immediately start singing and playing with no anxeity.
Is it ok, yes but not for the price. In fact pound per pound the Ibanez blew it away cause it wieghs and cost 1/2 as much. I settled on a roland.

Who knows I sent it back and lost $29 shipping one way and $40 on the way back.

Maybe I got a bad sounding unit. Feedback at the drop of a hat!

A little cocky.. what a joke dude! All that said .. they will honor their policies,.

Ok not worth the price tag. They have a good idea with separate effects for both channels maybe if the effects were better and the speaker was of a greater quality this would be a homerun.

Versatile amp that can handle three different inputs. I use it for acoustic guitar, harmonica mic, & a vocalist mic.

I use either an acoustic guitar with onboard electronics, or a Carvin DC 127 electric that has a Fishman bridge pickup for acoustic use.

This amp went dead 13 or 14 months after I purchased it. It now has a broken potentiometer, but that's due to stage trauma.

Worst customer support I've ever had, for any piece of gear. Big hassle to get parts back when the amp crashed just after one year warantee ended. More recently, it took me over three months to even get the repair dept. on the phone. They sent the wrong potentiometer. Finally got them on the phone again. They said they no longer stock repair parts for the AG100. I will not buy any more Carvin gear. They made no effort to help me.

Anyone know where I can get a tone pot for my Carvin AG100?
I've also got a Trace Elliot acoustic amp that I bought used. These guys are easy to get on the phone & very helpful. Excellent Customer support at Trace Elliot. Carvin should learn from them. I've got a Fender ProSonic amp too. Never had any repair issues with it. Love the sound. It's my main stage amp for Blue Newt Band work.

mini pa. 4 channels 1 of 'em takes an xlr. Nonetheless after 2.5 years the power transformer died and Carvin refuses to send replacement parts to repair people. Carvin expects everyone to ship stuff to them for a flat rate repair of 135. Now combine that with shipping to and from California and you see if you wanna deal with that.

no sounds cause the power transformer died

well it died after only 2.5 years of once in a while use so I'd have to say no it's not all that reliable

they expect you to send it to california for a flat rate repair fee of 135 no matter how small the problem is. Carvin will not let a repair guy anywhere get replacement parts for anything. If you have a carvin get ready to look for a really good repair guy because Carvin is of no help.

I would never deal with Carvin again.

This is a 98 bought on ebay 3 years ago. Honestly, I love it. It is great for a band to own one. Our band plays 60's thru 90's rock. Very versatile...we use it practicing, running two mikes and a guitar thru. It will sound Ok for our keyboard player, for guitars, for bass so it is the perfect one backup amp to own. We can even run mikes thru it if the PA dies but it never has. I use it myself with acustic guitar and line out to the PA for more control and also with a few tweaks I run my electric thru it. Very treble sound so great for rythmn guitar players but I crank it with pedals for my leads and it cuts thru and defines well.

I play either Carvin AE185, Strat, or Michael Kelly phoenix HT. Acoustics? I play either my Martin J40 or Ovation depending upon the venue. Sounds great with all. Great clean sound...effects are OK, and thru pedals, sounds clear and defined even with distortion.

Never any problems..we throw it all over town with never any problems. Light weight and easy to deal with also.

I have had good communication and service from the company. They helped me thru minor amp problems (needed fuses) evn though it was second hand. They sent me free parts and agreed to pay for some minor concerns with my warranted guitar so I would not have to ship to them.

Been playing since age 8 (pushing 50 now) and with the band for 4 years. Also have, and use, Peavey bandit 110, Crate 212. I would buy another in a heartbeat if for no other reason than the great backup value for all instruments and the use for practice. Tube heads want an amp that's 75 lbs. Trust me,,,the audience could care less and this thing is 30 some lbs and sounds just fine.

it's a mini pa with inputs for microphone, bass or keyboards or acoustic guitar. Doesn't matter how many features it has though because the power transformer on it went after only 3 years and Carvin will not send you another one even if you want to buy it. They want you to just buy another amp. They will not ship out another power transformer to you.

Does not make any sounds at all since the power transformer went after only 3 years of use and they will not ship me a replacement part so I can't fix it either. I refuse to buy another one because I don't trust that another amp from these guys will last either.

The power transformer went after only 3 years of use. I didn't even use it often at all.

They refused to send me a replacement power transformer even though i wanted to pay for it. They only wanted to try to trick me into buying another amp. I wouldn't buy anything else from these guys ever.

Don't trust Carvin. They have horrible customer service and shotty made amps.

My amp is an older one, I think I got it the second year they made them, maybe like 5 years ago. Its got a 10 inch speaker and spring reverb, they don't make those any more. Its got plenty of features which is why I got it. Three channels, one for guitar, one for bass or CD, and best of all one for a microphone. I mostly use it for vocals at practice and for a powered monitor on stage. It gets a lot of use.

Acually, I'm not too impressed with any sound this thing makes, even though I use it all the time. Its a decent bass amp, but not very loud. For vocals its good. For guitar, I'll have to say it sucks. I just don't like it for acoustic or electric, all those EQ knobs don't do me any good.

I've fixed it myself. It acually didn't take long for me to start taking the thing apart. Right out of the box it had rattles, just screws to be tightend, the reverb tank was a little loose. The pots and jacks are attached directly to the circuit board and once an input jack came loose. Also the plastic shafts on the pots break off easily, definatly be extra careful handling this amp. The reverb hums a bit. This amp works all the time, an average of one rehersal and one gig a week for a few years.

I've never called them

I've been playing for over 20 years, in a working band for the last five. If I lost this amp I would get another one. It does everything alright but nothing really good. Its a tool. At gigs I don't bring a backup for it, its the backup for everthing eles. Every band should have one.

Received amp from Carvin yesterday (2/9/01). Amp is primarily designed for acoustic-electric guitar, or as a mini PA for small solo act gigs. Features are why I bought it. Channel 1 is for acoustic-electric, Channel 2 for instrument or line level (bass gtr.,drum machine, etc.), and Channel 3 has an XLR for mike, or another instrument/line level. There are 2 digital effects channels (pick delay,reverb,chorus,or flange), either of which can be assigned to any of the 3 channels(chorus on gtr., reverb on voc., for example). I bought it for the very occasional solo gigs,and for fill-in low volume bass gigs. However, there's another use that so far Carvin hasn't thought of in their ads: it's a powered monitor. I play mostly electric gtr. in a classic hits trio, and the bands PA will only allow 2 house speakers, and 2 monitors. but the Kawai powered mixer we use has a line out, which I plugged into channel 2 of the Carvin. With the 5 band EQ to help tame feedback, I was able to not only have a monitor, but a monitor that reflects what the house mix is. The amp is 100 watts RMS into a 12" woofer and a tweeter, but I wouldn't call it a loud 100 watts.

Gig-wise, I've only used it to monitor vocals, and the electric-acoustic I occasionally use (plugged into house PA). I have a fill-in bass gig coming up soon, so I'll know better how it works as a bass rig. In trying channel 2 at home with a bass, you have to turn up the channel volume pretty high (because the input can accept low level instruments all the way to line level CD players). And on channel 2 there are bass boost and mid cut buttons, and it sounded better with the bass boost on with bass gtr. On Channel 1 (the acoustic-electric channel, there are mid cut and high boost buttons...and the midrange knob can be boosted or cut, and you can change where the midrange is centered. Trying channel 1 with my Washburn EA-20, I boosted the midrange, and moved the frequency knob until I got the most "honk". Then I turned the midrange knob down, effectively getting rid of the honkiest part of the sound. I also tried the mike channel (channel 3) and even though there's only low and high controls on the channel, and 5 band master, I was able to dial in a decent vocal sound. Although I haven't tried a drum machine or a keyboard thru the AG-100, I suspect they'll sound good. About the only instrument that wouldn't sound good is electric guitar, and for that I've got several other amps, but none of them make a decent bass amp or PA !

Too early to tell. Presuming it's well made to begin with, there's not too much that can go wrong with a solid state amp with some headroom.

Warranty is for one year. Ordered the amp on a Wednesday evening, it was here (from San Diego to Massachusetts) 9 days later. I did get the cover with it...should help keep the amp looking nice for a while.

Been playing for over 30 years. This is kind of a specialty item...an acoustic-electric amp, solo small room PA, small bass amp combination.
I think it could be a little louder, but the versatility, light weight, built-in effects, relative ease of operation, make it a great deal (under $500 inc. shipping and a cover). If it were stolen or lost, I'm not sure if I'd get another one...I made it through life so far without one...but I know I'm going to find lots of uses for it, and I'll probably begin to rely on it.

This amp was really easy to use and I was able to get a great sound right away for my Washburn D10 and for the vocals. The 5-band EQ is a really nice touch to round out the desired sound.

The amp always sounded great for the over 3 years that I used it. I usually play between 3-4 gigs a week and it was always a reliable source to insure that my sound would be good. After 3 years of use, it totally bailed on me - and I was always so careful and delicate with this amp. At a gig one afternoon, it just started making a terrible static noise and would not stop even when I turned down the volume of all the channels. Needless to say, I have not used the amp since and can't find anyone who can fix it because it's a Carvin and no one says they know a thing about Carvin.

Refer to the earlier paragraph - definitely not a good investment for only using it 3 years!

Never delt with the company.

It just was not worth the money to invest in an amp that served me well for 3 years then totally cuts out.

I bought this amp in 97. I wanted an acoustic amp with a xlr mike input that i could carry around and that I could afford. I mostly play with friends at partys and can get treated pretty rough around a bunch of drunks so if somebody wreaks it Im not out a lot of cash. For this application its pretty much ideal. By the way, I use it for acoustic guitar only with a bass pluged in the second channel sometime and a sm58 mike on channel 3

I mostly play a Yairi DY 70 with fishman matrix at these so called get togethers and at home I play a HD-28 with a LR Baggs ribbon. This amp has no clipping distorstion built in which is good for an acostic amp/ pa. I have tried electric guitars with distortion but you really miss the tubes in that application. I never have turned and channel up all the way. Never needed to where I play. I can annoy people at a little more than 1/4 to 1/2 volume. The only problem is when you change guitars you half to retweek the two acoustic blend knobs for just about anything you plug into it. I guess its good to have such a wide resposive band but it does loose some of its simplisity here. Keep note or mark your knobs

I do use it without a backup. I have never had any trouble with this amp. Its starting to look a little rough but its still fine. Problebly a little better because Ive learned to get the best out of it over the last few years.

Have not delt with Carvin. I have gotten mixed reports from other people.

Ive been playing about 6 years. I have a strat, tele, sure mikes, stompboxes and a small rack I use with the AG-100. People compane about the reverb on this amp and most others for that matter. Do yourself and buy a Lexicon MXP 100, a BBE sonic maximiser and run it through your effects loop on your AG-100. You will have all the reverb you can stand plus many other effects. It works on your vocals channel too if you want it too. The BBE adds the sparkle that a lot of cheap acoustic amps cant reproduce. Its not top of the line by any means but neather am I, as I get better, so will my equitment. I could not bring out the best of a 2500 dollar amp right now.

Got mine the first month they were out. Bought it primarily for practicing with a mic and found out it works great for duets with a line splitter. Haven't used the Bass channel but have loaned it to a friend who said it worked fine. As with the rest of the reviewers the reverb is weak. Mine has the 12 inch speaker.

Playing a Takamine sc325 w/onboard graphic EQ you can turn it completely off and dial tone in on the amps EQ. I found it easier to do that to get a more even balance than tweeking both. Vocals dial in easier than the guitar. This amp was big enough to do any venue and I've used it alot. I've lately compared my amp to the latest acoustic amps out there and with the exception of the lack of chorus the AG still holds it's own.

Hasn't quit on me yet.

Had one of the knob centers fall out. Called to get a replacement,(one), and the dude from Carvin told me you had to buy a sack full of em,(12). Other than that I haven't dealt with them.

Been playing 25+yrs. and I like my AG 100 just fine. I have yet to hear an acoustic combo that sounds as good as running a guitar through a PA but with a built in PA this unit works great. I don't know if I'd buy another acoustic combo but I plan on purchasing one of Carvins guitars the next time I take the plunge. They advertise "biggest bang for the buck" and I'd have to agree.

1998 Yes, rock, pop, and blues. 3 channels. No. Yes. Yes. Overdrive and more tone knobs on channel 2. To get better sound. No. My house. Yes. Solid state, has external speaker jack, and has equalizer.

Acoustic Martin thin line pickup and Yamaha bass in channel 2. It suits it well (rock, pop, and blues). Yes. Channel 2, by a large sterio system. Revrb. Not much Yes. Channel 2. Pretty bad.

Yes. No. No.

I haven't dealt with the company. No. Not really. 1 year.

8 months 7 days. None Get something else. The tone. It picks up radio signals. No. None. It seemed like a good practice amp. Overdrive and more tone knobs. No.

10-inch speaker model with compact cabinet, otherwise identical to the 12-inch model. Three channels: 1. Guitar, acoustic/electric with 3- band EQ & effect send; 2. Bass, drum machine, or other second input with bass & treble control; 3. XLR mic input with bass & treble and effect send. Internal spring reverb which can be bypassed by external effects effects loop. 5-band graphic EQ for the overall amp. Switchable piezo tweeter which adds a nice top end for things like a drum machine. Solid state rated 100 watts; surprisingly loud for such a little box.
No channel switching: all three inputs are always on. It's designed as a "one-man-band" amp and works well for the classic setup of guitar, drum machine, and mic.
I'm rating this an 8: not as a guitar amp, but as a do-everything amp.

This is basically a clean, hi-fi amp; no distortions. You wouldn't want this as your main guitar amp because it doesn't have any real "tone" of its own. But with an overdrive pedal in front of it, it makes a decent backup or secondary amp. And you can use the EQ controls and acoustic/electric switch to get a decent clean tone. The internal reverb is a dull sounding little spring tank---nothing special. You won't get "surf" with this setup!
I've used this amp to play bass when practicing with a power trio --- with a loud drummer--- and actually had to turn it DOWN. Amazing for a tiny box with a single 10-inch speaker. You'd swear that little 10- inch would fry putting out so much volume, but it just keeps going. They say the 12-inch version plays even louder.
I use a Shure SM-58 for vocals on the XLR input, and it works great. The EQ means you can get some pretty high mic volume before feedback, and it stays clean. Bringing the AG100 along guarantees that I'll have a working PA for vocals. My regular guitar amp is a Super Reverb and sometimes I don't want to lug that beast around, so I bring the Carvin instead. It's not unusual to have all 3 inputs operating, and everything stays nice and clean---even with vocals and bass coming through the same speaker!
By the way: don't expect to get much more sound by adding an external speaker. The ext speaker jack is in series with the internal speaker, so the amp will see a higher impedance and produce less power. This protects the amp, but it also means you need to be satisfied with the volume the AG-100 produces on its own. The AG100 is a compact little powerhouse, but not something you're gonna drive a 4-by-12 cab with.
Points off for the crummy reverb, but a big spring tank wouldn't fit in a box this size. Considering its purpose, I give it an 8.

I've had this amp for a year and a half, and I take it along every time I play out. Never a problem. The cabinet is really solid, yet surprisingly light. The amp chassis sheet metal seems kind of thin, but it's recessed into the cabinet so it's not really exposed to damage anyway. This amp has never let me down. On general principle, though, I wouldn't gig without a backup.

Never needed any support on this amp. But I returned a Carvin Vintage 33 amp after a week (because I hated the sound) and they took it back with absolutely no hassle at all. They actually apologized for their product not being satisfactory to me! I've bought a bunch of stuff from the Carvin Hollywood store and they've always been respectful and helpful. So I've gotta give 'em a 10 for excellent service.

I've been playing over 30 years, have several Fender guitars and others, a couple other amps, a bass, keyboards, drum machine, etc--- all the usual stuff. I play with a couple different bands and I always bring the AG100 along, regardless of what else I take. It's so useful: in one tiny box I have my PA, my backup amp, plus an extra if somebody else needs to plug in. Anybody who jams or gigs should have one of these. If it were lost/stolen, I'd have to get another. Which is a problem, because they've discontinued the 10" version. The 12" would be good too, just not as compact.

This is the 10". All the other user comments are accurate on the features. I also like the effects return (on back) for use as a PA amp line-in.

Using a custom wired Fender dreadnaught with stereo endpin for bridge (piezo) and mag (Dean Markley soundhole with removable inside plug.) I use an ART FX-1 effects unit which is pretty minimalistic, but really better than the onboard verb which is a waste. Carvin's 100D comes with the effects, and were that available at the time I purchased (over 1 year ago), I may have gone that way. Anyhow, with this set-up, when it's good, it's absolutely great.
I have found many problems with ambient electronic fields and possibly less than great cables. I still believe that if all outboard attachements were immaculate, the amp might me less of a problem, but I've found so many wierd situations that I've not been able to pin down the causes, nor lay it firmly at the feet of the amp. (Carvin, if you read this, HELP!) I've upgraded and sanitized a lot, and used other than my axe without the FX-1, but still wonder what I'm going to run into at the next site.

My cats are not attracted to the Duratuff, so it's still immaculate. I have a dog that prefers vinyl, so I'd probably stick with this cover.
See the Sound comments for reliability, but it seems physically bulletproof.

Unfortunately, I've not contacted them.

Been messing around most of my life (35 years of playing), but am new to amps. Did have a Carvin 450 and Alesis Q-verb, but sold it to buy the 100 because of compactness. Now I'm with other folk doing contemporary and rock Christian/up-beat music. I chose Carvin because of the 450 and their fantastic catalogue. Compared to Roland and Peavey chorus amps in shops. Also own a Peavey TNT100 bass amp. Love everything except the noise problem. They should skip the on-board reverb and wire in a gate, instead.

This is THE "Working AMP". 100W solid state, it can be used for anything, a one man band amp, a bass amp, a PA, a back-up, a monitor and (oh yea) an acoustic guitar amp. I play contemporary gospel, R&B and some original stuff. It comes loaded with alllll the necessary stuff 3 channels (no switching), effects loops, line out, external speaker, headphones, selectable tweeter/horn, selectable piezo pick-up compatability and a 5 band "master" graphic EQ. This amp is quiet, and powerful. Channel 1 shapes acoutic sounds very well with sweepable midrange and a very tight, punchy and controllable bass tone(best I've ever heard). Channel 2 pretty basic, I use this for my personal monitor from the main PA. Channel 3 is XLR in only, a great vocal channel or mixer input if used as a portable PA. I use every feature on this amp and I use it everywhere, church, home recording, on the road, etc. I do wish it had a better reverb. I usually use a processor (Digitech Studio Quad V2) for digital reverb and other effects, but it would be nice if the stock verb was deeper.

My mainstay guitars are Ovation Custom Legend w/ OP24 pickup and a G&L ASAT "tele" w/ soapbar single coils. The amp sounds pretty straight forward. This is a replicating solid state amp. It does not flavor the sound of your instruments, you need effects for that. It definitly suits my style which is 80% clean. I have never turned this rascal up all the way, and probably never will since it is loud enough under 4, I honestly think this amp exceeds 100W. Either that or the speaker is running cleaner than 8 ohms, it is very loud. It maintains clean sound all the way too. The Horn/tweeter, adds clarity too arpeggio styles of picking and twang to the single coils. Can't complain about the sound, except it is a liitle dry without a good on board reverb.

I have used it every where for shy of 3 years, without a backup. It still performs flawlessly. I do take care of my stuff though. I feel the dura tuff stays "new" looking longer than any other amp material I've ever owned. Since its solid state, I feel very confident with this amp.

Friendly and knowledgable folks at Carvin, I did return a tube amp to them once after I used it for a couple of weeks, no questions asked, except to see if the amp was malfuntioning, I told them "no it just wasn't what I was looking for"... no problem! No repairs needed yet and the warranty was 1 year (expired). Mail order does have some distinct advantages, 1- no taxes makes up for the shipping, 2- you can get the product in your home for a couple of weeks and really check it out, which is hard to do in a store. Its very difficult (impossible?) to bring back a store bought amp after 3-4 weeks. That piece of mind is definitly worth the $25 return shipping, think of it as a 3-4 week cheap rental!

I have been playing about 25 years. besides the equipment already mentioned I own a 1980 Yari Acoutic (nice), a Proco Rat, old Ibanez CS-9 stereo chorus, Tascam 564, Peavy mixer and PVM mic, Carvin CM68 mic, Cerwin Vega PA, MusicMan 112/65 tube amp. I would replace this amp, no doubt. I am planning on buying another one anyway since I would like to get a Mackie VLZ 1402 or the Carvin SM162 and will use them as powered speakers for a mini PA system. I owned a 1983 Peavy Nashville acoustic guitar amp which died on me about 3 times in its last 2 years, but it was getting old. So far, this amp performs better and is much cleaner/louder and lighter. I bought it for the price and Carvin quality and kept it for the form and functionality it gives. I just wish it had a better reverb!

Three jacks (acoustic guitar, bass/keyboards/etc, and mike), reverb, effects loop, more power than you'll want probably. No built in chorus or other effects -- Carvin now has an AG100 model with built in effects, buy this one if you prefer to run through effects pedals.

I use this amp with a Martin D-1E and a Takamine G series, with a Boss super chorus pedal. There's a lot of versatility in the settings, you can get a very true acoustic sound. The vocals sound terrific through this amp, which is basically a mini pa system.

I've had it for a year, no problems except you've gotta use top quality cords or it'll pop and crackle like hell.

If you're a soloist, it's probably too heavy to gig with easily. Also the covering is like perfect cat scratch post material so my cats have scratched the hell out of the thing and I have to shave the fizz balls off of it. The AG100 with built in effects that Carvin now has come out with has a vinyl cover, thank god.

This amp promised everything I was looking for in an acoustic guitar amp, and delivered. I didn't want too many "bells & whistles" -- I'd rather use effects pedals for chorus, reverb, etc.

The vocals were great (I used a Shure SM-58 plugged into the XLR input). Unfortunately, I had to send the amp back because I got a persistent, deep hum whenever I plugged my acoustic guitar into the 1st or 2nd guitar inputs. (I play a Martin HD-28 with a Martin Thinline Plus piezo pickup.) However, whenever I plugged my rig directly into a sound system, there was no hum whatsoever. The problem, in my opinion, was in the amp, not in the rig.

I can't say because I had to return it. Carvin's service people told me that the amp worked perfectly in their shop. I can only suppose that there was some kind of incompatibility between the Carvin AG-100 and my guitar rig.

Carvin treated me well enough, although I was annoyed that I had to make all the phone calls to find out the status of the amp after I sent it back. Also, it was a pain in the neck to pay two-way postage on an amp that just didn't work out. It makes me very cautious about buying mail-order again.

I took a chance on the Carvin, relying on positive news I gathered on the Internet. But I've learned an important lesson: take your rig to the music store and listen to it played through an amp before purchasing.

Three channels: one with sweepable parametric EQ for acoustic guitar, one for bass or keys or drum machine or nose flute or what have ye, and one with XLR lo-impedance input for microphone.
Other controls include reverb and 5-band graphic EQ.
It's plenty loud. 100W rating, solid state.
One 12" speaker and one tweeter, which is switch-defeatable.

I bought this not for acoustic guitar but for Chapman Stick. It is, in essence, a mono PA with pretty broad frequency response. In that capacity I would say it was merely adequate. With my acoustic guitar (a Yamaha 12-string) however, it sounds GREAT--the parametric EQ is brilliant for getting rid of the "boomy" sound of a miked acoustic guitar, and for improving the acoustic qualities of an acoustic guitar with a mag pickup.
There is no distortion. It also sounds like crap with a distortion box. Maybe a SansAmp or processor like the GX-700/GP-100 or Digitech 2112 would give you that, but I haven't tried it. This amp is optimized for clean playing, even more than, say, a Polytone Mini-Brute.

I would never use any gear on a gig without a backup, and this is no exception. It's never broken down, and I've had it over a year. The only damage this has sustained was at the hands, er, paws of my cat who frizzed-up the Duratuff (tm) covering so it looks like a bad 'fro.

I've always had great relations with Carvin--I've heard other people with horror stories, but I take those stories with a grain of salt. Carvin has always delivered the goods for me, including spending time on the phone (on their nickel) discussing different options and features..

I would buy it again if I needed an acoustic guitar amp, which I basically don't. The new ones have vinyl instead of Duratuff (tm) which is a great idea. The poplar plywood makes it much lighter than comparably-sized amps.

Don't know where to begin...It has three channels. One for guitar ( acoustic or electric ) one for Bass ( or keys, another guitar, drum machine, etc, and another for vocals. All have indipedent reverb controls and EQ. There is a master 5 band EQ. The guitar channel also has a notch filter to fine tune the mid range. In the back you can run a line out, add another speaker, effets loop, turn off tweeter, and use a headphone jack. The amp is a 100 watts, solid state, and runs to a 1X12 plus a tweeter.

The acoustic sounds very, very nice. I'm running a Ovation with a Fishman Matrix pick up. There is a lot of controls to work on the tone. I wasn't expecting to be able to use my electric but it sounds great. A few days ago I did a gig in a big club with about 250 people useing a 335 and vocals to do a solo jazz thing and the amp did great. Volume is not a problem. I wasn't expecting that many people other wise I would've brought more gear but in the end I didn't need anymore. I had some one sit in on guitar so I had all three channels going and it still put out. Just for fun at home I ran Tele into a RAT distortion into it and it was very cool. For my full band we're useing it as a PA with another speaker for smaller clubs. It's got a lot of great sounds and many uses.

So far so good. It's solid state so I expect it should stay in good shape for a long time to come.

Carvin only works via mail and telephone and they've got it down.

It's a sick deal. I've got so many friends that are buying them now after checking out mine. If your doing a solo act you'd be crazy not to have one.