Carvin Legacy Head

This is an 06 Legacy Head that I purchased 2nd hand last week. 2 channels, reverb, footswitch, effects loop, ohm selection (4/8/16) and a half power switch. Mine has 6L6 tubes in it. I usually prefer EL34's in amps, but this is a good match for this amp. It has a voiced line out that I have not attempted to use yet.

If it had a master output pot, and seperate reverb controls for each channel I'd be ecstatic, but it really doesn't need it. It could also use a boost or solo function, but that is easily overcome.

I play a lot of hard rock, some metal, blues and pop. I can't say that this amp is a swiss army knife out of the box, but it certainly is versatile. I can get most of these tones straight jacked with some tweaking.

This amp is VERY loud. If you want loud, get this amp, if you plan on playing guitar in your bedroom of an apartment complex, get a line6.

I'm giving it a 8 even for lack of a master output and separate reverbs.

I use a LP standard with burstbuckers. I also use a Hamer Standard explorer with EMGs. I run the amp through a Vox 2x12 with Warfdale 30w "vintage" style speakers.

Like I said before you can get a lot of tones out of it, I have yet to find a bad tone. I have used 3 methods to shape my tone:

1) Straight from guitar into amp
This setup works amazingly well. Tonnes of gain, great sound, great cleans and excellent definition. Chording is great, single notes are clear and defined. Great tube dynamics. Good gain control with the volume pot of my guitars

2) Guitar>RP500>Input of amp
Can't use amp/speaker sim. Effects sound warm and complete but distortions sound bad by themselves. If you use the lead channel and the rp500 distorions, you get an extra amount of gain that sounds GREAT. The pedal does suck a little bit of the gain away.

3) Guitar>RP500>Effects return of amp
Here you can use the amp/speaker sim and with a little tweaking you can get some pretty great sounds too. Effects sound better this way. One thing to keep in mind is that there is no Master Volume on this amp, whatever output setting your RP is in will dictate the volume of the amp. The front controls aren't used at all while in this mode. I still like the straight jacked sound the best. However I will use this mode for most cover tunes etc.

I don't know anything about the reliability yet.

N/A

I have been playing for well over 20 years. I have used a plethora of equipment from vintage marshalls to mesa boogies and virtually everything in between. This amp is one of the best I've used to date. It replaced a Mesa Rectoverb combo.

I've been after a sound like this amp produces for a LONG time. I am happy to own this amp, and I would probably replace it with another if soemthing happened to it.

This is a Legacy head that I got right from Carvin on eBay. This is a factory second kind of deal - the page said it had a few superficial scratches (which I have yet to find) and I got it for much less than retail.

The features have been mentioned a lot, so there's no real need to re-cap those. Solidly built amp, all the features you'd really need.

I'm using this amp with a JEM7V, and can honestly say that there is a touch of Vai in the tone, but it really depends on how you play it. I use this much more as I would an older Marshall - gain at about 6, with an overdrive stompbox in front of it with the gain turned down to a quarter up, and the level pretty much cranked. With this, it sounds great at every level.

The amp will get more saturated and "shreddy" sounding with the volume at higher levels, which should not need saying. However, it's worth mentioning that this amp REALLY needs to open up to sound better by itself. I'm not sure whether or not it's the tubes or not, but on the 50w setting between volume 1 and 4-5, the distortion can sound... sissy. I was a bit disappointed when I first took it out of the box and found that even with the gain on 7 or 8 the distortion seemed rather mild. However, this could be the age-old problem of sub-par preamp tubes, or just me expecting too much gain. Either way, shove a box in front of it to boost it and it sounds amazing.

The clean channel is orgasmic. That's all that needs to be said. Without the presence switch kicked in, it's a fat, beefy tone that with the right guitar is great for jazz. With presence on, I just put the JEM into single-coil settings and spank it up. There is really nothing that I would change about this channel.

Overall rating without OD box in front: 6
Rating with OD box in front: 8.5

This amp hasn't broken or screwed up yet. However, going on Carvin's reputation for customer service and how they've dealt with me in the past, I would suggest knowing a really reliable in-town tech just in case something does go wrong. Again, the amp has been perfectly reliable so far, but in case something fizzles out, I would not suggest sending it in to Carvin.

Carvin's customer service is lacking. I've phoned and gotten several surly reps, they take forever to reply, and quite honestly if anything ever happens their only suggestion is to mail it back to San Diego for them to "have a look at it." Which is not something I warm to, being that I don't want to have to mail a relatively expensive piece of equipment from Canada (Calgary) to California to "have it looked at." I just go to my tech and let that be that.

Overall, I'd say that this is a great amp for what it does, but the dirty channel really needs a stompbox (or perhaps new power tubes on mine, seeing as it really seems to lack... balls compared to others I've heard) to really exploit it. But great, 80s-Marshally sounds all round, and nothing that I would grouse about at any length.

The Legacy has all the features I require. It's plug and play. Two channels with separate EQ, effects loop, bias switch, and choice of 50 or 100 watts. Just fine.

I use a strat Frankenstein with a Duncan '59 in the bridge. The band I'm in plays hard rock/classic. The Legacy is the best sounding amp I've used in years for this style of music. I've been playing in the clubs for over 30 years and have used many, many amps. This amp sounds great and is a lot of fun. The clean channel is also VERY nice. I'd say one of the best. I find the Legacy to be very quiet but then again after 30 years I find many things very quiet. Seriously, no hums, buzzes, or hissing. Even at high gain.

No worries so far but I never gig without a backup.

Hmmm. I had an unrelated issue with Carvin and wrote 5 times before I got a response. From what I can gather, their Internet customer support is hit or miss. I've had good experiences with Carvin in the past and will continue to do business with them but this is one issue they need to address. Whoever is in charge of that aspect is dropping the ball and losing customers.

If you are looking for a fantastic sounding rock amp the Legacy is perfect. Carvin makes good products at any price.

Purchased new in late '07. Two channels (clean and drive), switchable reverb on both and a totally useful treble boost on the clean that I feel would be right at home on the drive channel as well. A master volume would be a nice feature on the clean channel to give it a little breakup, but the clean boost I use does that just fine.

I use this amp for a lot of different styles, including 60's-70's punk and stoner metal/thrash. I get a sound similar to a vintage Marshall or Laney with a tube screamer up front, ala Mastodon or The Sword. This isn't a plug-and-play head and takes some patience and fine-tuning to find its sweet spots. This amp sounds great with all of my guitars, including two ESP hybrids and a Music Man Sub 1. I run Duncan SH-4's in the bridge and typically use an eq pedal with the highs boosted and the overall level up just a hair. I also play through a vintage Ampeg cab with two greenbacks and two vintage 30's in an x-pattern, which I think has a lot to do with my tone. It won't give you scooped mids, but who cares? Your guitar's natural frequencies are in the midrange anyway and scooping them sounds fine in your bedroom but you'll lose major volume and get drowned out by bass and cymbals in the mix. Settings vary on the clean channel, but for drive I keep it presence 10, bass 4, treble 6 and mids at 7.I keep it in 50 watt mode. I agree with other reviewers that the drive channel can get muddy, but with a little fine tuning and an eq pedal it cuts like steel. Definitely not the amp for everybody, but I really dig the unique tone (very fuzzy and gainy without the glassy chunk of a Mesa recto). The clean channel is amazing and with a little clean boost courtesy of the eq pedal it gets a little fender twin-style breakup. Turn the pedal off and you have headroom at full volume.

I've never had an issue, but It's only been out of the studio twice in the four months I've owned it. When I brought it home I pulled off the back panel and went to work with a screwdriver, tightening up anything loose and checking to make sure the tubes were all properly seated (common issues associated with shipping). The design doesn't allow for much venting for the tubes, and I'm considering routing out some vents in the front panel for better airflow.

I bought this amp because of it's reasonable price and unique tone. I really, really wish they put a treble boost on the drive channel. The voicing of the preamp seemed a little off at first, but playing with the settings will eventually lead you to some great sounds. The guy at the Carvin store said they're putting out a three channel version...we'll wait and see on that one.

You know the features. For the price, I give it an 8.

As everyone else has said, you know it is great for solos. The clean--- I hear it is great, but read below and you will see why I wouldn't know.

You will NOT get hardcore sounds out of this amp!! If you are looking for heavy sounds, this is not the amp for you! I never put the gain past 7. Any more than that it muddied it up. At 6 and some EQ to match whatever you are putting thru it, it sounds great for solos and regular playing... very Vai-ish---- go figure!

It is great in the lead department, so I give it a 6.

Ok, I ordered the Legacy combo... and the clean channel flat out did not work. I had to gig with this once, as I was without a back-up (stupid me thought a brand new amp would work thru the gig). I returned it and exchanged it for the VL100 Legacy head and the 2x12 cab. It showed up and the cabinet made this wicked unnatural vibration that showed itself when mic'd thru my PA. That one went back and I got a Mesa/Boogie Roadster half stack which I frickin love (different ballpark with price/options). This is not the end of my nightmare with Carvin.... see below...

So when my Legacy combo didn't work, I called and the guy said it was the tubes and he would send me some tubes. They never came.
When the 1/4 stack came and the cabinet was "broken", they tried to get me to pay for shipping until I made a stink about it.

I also ordered a guitar from them. It came with a ding in the finish, and missing a switch that I ordered. I sent it back. I was told it would be ready in 2 weeks. I called every week until TWO MONTHS had passed, and then I called everyday.

The guitar came back to me with a sheet saying "switch installed, test played OK". The switch was NO WHERE TO BE FOUND! And, to add insult to injury, the coil splitter switch that was already there was now BROKEN, and the frickin thing would not even WORK when plugged in!!!!

I called the VP of sales and told him my deal. He offered me 200 in carvin CREDIT, and I told him no thanks, I just want my money back. I got an Ibanez JEM7v like all the other copycats out there, but it is great and I love the thing--- I just look like everyone else now, which is what I was trying to avoid!

Overall, I will never say never... but I will never go back to Carvin, not even for a flashlight.


I am not a hard guy to please, either. I hope I do not sound like some others who just like to complain! I am NOT that guy!! I just want people to know my experience with the company.

Bought it used off of eBay. The guy who owned it before me took pristine care of it and "amp-ed it up" with some minor modifications to the tubes and preamp (JJ6L6; biased).

Features are pretty basic and found on most "pro-quality" amps. Dual channels (clean & overdrive/sustain, Separate Volume, Bass, Mid, Treble & Presence for each channel, Master Reverb for both channels, 50/100W output switch, effects loop. Weights in at about 40lbs. Not too heavy. The only feature it lacks that I would prefer is a headphone jack as this muther is LOUD! Even at the 50w setting, you're neighbors will complain and the dogs down the block will howl. Other than that, very nice amp. Suitable for home (use with caution!), practice, gigging, mid to large venues, you name it.

The clear channel is great! I play a few acoustic sets (Led Zeppelin, Heart, classic rock era tunes) and the clear channel is pleasing to the most discerning ear. The sustain or "distortion" channel is great too but requires some loud volume settings to get "brown sound" or "metal" sound out of it. Low volume settings are decent but hey!...who plays below 3, right?

No noise. Hum is present, but it could be due to my pedals. Play around with it, get a noise-gate, whatever, work with it, it's worth it.

I play a Les Paul standard through it and a Strat, both with stock pickups. Great sound although my Strat tends to get a little squirely at times. Typical Strat sound only gets to be a bit too "Tele" sounding for me at times. Maybe it's just me?

But get this bad boy tuned in, work with it a bit, and you'll be more than pleased with the results. Great job by Carvin and Vai on coming up with this combination. If you're looking for a real metal, classic rock sound, this is the amp for you. As one guy pointed out, it's pretty much a Marshall JCM800 "rodded-up" or on steroids.

Too early to tell. I only use it at home and play for about 2-6 hours per week on it. No problems so far. I do take real good care of all my equipment so it's not fair for me to say. I don't power it up with the volume on. I don't bang it around moving it from gig to gig. It's pretty much a set-n-forget type of setup for me. No problems here. I have owned a couple of other Carvin products and none of them have ever failed me.

I did order a CM140 guitar from them back in the late 70's. Back then, they promised to have it to me before Christmas (ordered in mid-November) and it didn't arrive till late January after several phone calls and inquiries. I guess my order got caught up in the Christmas rush. Granted, this was ~35 years ago. Hopefully they've gotten their order system corrected by now, right? ;-)

I did once order a couple of minor knobs and truss rod cover plate from them and the customer support rep mailed them to me free of charge. It should have been about a $25.00 order, but out of kindness, he just sent it to me for free. To me, that made me a fan of Carvin. It's the little things that go a long way. 35 years later, I'm still a fan of their products.

I've been playing off and on for 35 years. Mostly off...

I' just now got back into playing again (re-living my youth). I still get a charge out of the songs from the classic rock era. Good days gone by and never to bee seen or heard again. Too bad...

Overall, I'd have to say this amp is an incredible value. Sure, I could go out and spend $1500-$3000 for a Marshall, 5150, Bogner, or whatever, but for what I paid for this bad boy, I'll stick with it. I'll leave the high-dollar amps to the rich or "image is everything" crowd.

I love the look, design and feel of this amp. The logo is a bit "Jimmy Page" so I'm not sure where Vai comes off on this, but hey...whatever floats your boat. The knobs are bit old-fashioned for my liking and I might switch them out, but we'll see.

If you can find one of these bad boys for under $500...do yourself a huge favor and BUY IT! Even at $800 direct from Carvin, it's a great buy. I know some people don't like buying electronics "used" so paying an extra $300 may be worth it to some. Can't says I blame them. The only reason I bought mine off of eBay was I trusted the guy that owned it before me as he took great care of it.

If you're into Marshall's, great! Otherwise, get this Legacy model. You won't regret it!

It is a very simple amp that just about does everything I need it to.

Like everyone says, it has a great clean channel and the OD channel is great for leads. My only real problem is the OD sounds muddy to me for rythm, I am someone who is used to using pedals and a scooped eq for songs that require high gain. Now that I am in a band that plays less metal and more mainstream rock I have tried to ditch the pedals and just go with the amps od, but it just sounds to dark and muddy to me and everyone in my band. The other BIG problem with the overdrive is the amount of unwanted noise and feedback that is present. The clean channel takes well to high gain pedals though. I bought the amp because it has tons of headroom on the clean channel and I figured if I didn't like the od I could just use pedals for rythm. Thats just what I've had to do. It's a great amp but I don't get how people think the amps distortion is usable for rythm. This amp was designed for a lead player- even Steve Vai himself uses distortion pedals with this amp. .

No problems

Haven't needed it.

I don't want this to sound like a negative review. I have been playing for well over 20 years now and this is by far the best amp I have ever owned.

very basic 2 channel EL34 tube head

Clean channel is very nice and round. Could use a bit more sparkle on top. Sounds and responds awesome with overdrive pedals. I use a crappy DS-1 in the clean channel set to low drive for an explosive mid drive sound. Well, there is my third channel :)
Lead channel burns. EQ voicings are in unusual frequencies. You will not get a mid scoop metal tone out of this. Notes blossom georgeously and the feedback is superb.
I use 2 of these heads in a slave/master setup with a G major in the fx loop and the tone is ABSOLUTELY dripping hot. 2 Custom 2x12's each with a Fender Vintage and a Celestion G12t-75. Blew my fender vintage first rehearsal out...lol
I bought both heads used cause I figured used the kinks with factory issues would be ironed out, that is the previous owner already went through the return hassles etc.
Not sure the years on them but both sound completely differant and look a little differant too. One has EH EL34's (slave) and the other has Sovtek EL34's(master) The Sovteks sound WAY better in my opinion. The Slave amp is a bit louder but I use the Gmajor to control volumes on each amp.
There is a bit of a noise floor but the gate takes care of that.
This amp is fast. Palm muting is quick and explosive.
I only rate this a 9 because the reverb is a pile of shit and should just be disconnected and used as a wheel stop for your car or boat.
Yes it is that horrible, unmusical and useless. The tail is way to long for this amp. Its like a 5 second hall junk. Carvin should put a 2-3 second max in it.
And like others have said these are loud. Not ear piercing like a marshall, just friken loud but smooth. With 2 of these on 3 you'll have to mike the drums....lol
Tried with 6L6's- Bass was bigger, highs are thinner, but I didn't like it. EL34's are richer and more detailed in this head. Both switch pedals are trash but I use a switching system.

No problems yet but I'm only a couple months into these. My band plays large halls in the San Francisco area. So we'll see this coming season and I will update my review then.

I hope I never need them

reverb, reverb, reverb------ yukkkky!!!!
Been playing for along time. We do about 150-200 shows a year.
Original Progressive hard rock.
Bought 2 of these and sold my Mesa rack set up. This is much better.
Ibanez RG's- some with EMG's, others with Duncans.
For the price these are great.

I bought this amp brand new in 2007. It's a 2 channel tube amp, switches from clean to overdrive, with reverb, and an effects loop. Pretty basic stuff here...

I've been playing this amp for about 4 or 5 months and I gotta say that I love it, BUT, it took me a little while to find how to use it. I use 2 guitars. A MIM dual humbucker strat, and an American made Jimi Hendrix Voodoo strat.

When I first got it before I took it to band practice I messed around with it here at home. I never got the volume up past .5-1. This thing is LOUD!!! I first tried it with my Voodoo strat. At this low volume setting I was a little disappointed at first, but I realized "this is a tube amp, it's meant to be cranked." The reason I was disappointed was because at the low volume setting, with the single coils, it was a little brittle for my tastes. I was able to dial in a decent tone, but I had to put the presence and treble way down and the mids way up, with the gain on 8.

Next I plugged in my dual humbucker strat. With this guitar there was still some brittleness there, but not as much. I was actually able to dial in a pretty good "brown" sound with the gain at 6 and I was able to add a little more treble and presence.

Then I took it to band practice and turned the volume up to around 3. It was like having a totally different amp!! With the humbucker guitar the brittleness was gone and the distortion was really thick and middy sounding. I actually had to turn the treble and presence up to around 6 and the mids and bass down to around 4 or 5 while keeping the gain at 6.

When I switched over to my Voodoo I had to turn the treble and presence down and crank the mids up a bit. I also turned the gain up to around 8 to make up for the weaker pickups.

The cleans are top notch! No complaints here!

We play anything from Greenday to Nickelback to Godsmack and this amp does the job for me. I've read reviews where this amp doesn't have enough gain, but I keep mine at 6 and it's plenty for me! I don't even have to use a boost unless I'm going to play a solo. Speaking of solos, this thing can provide you with some liquid leads, with great sustain.

Overall I was able to get a really thick sounding distortion out of both guitars, although for what my band plays I prefer the humbucker guitar, but this is the first amp I've had that shows the different personalities of different guitars.

I've read some horror stories, but that goes for just about anything. I've been playing mine for 4 or 5 months and I haven't had any problems. The only thing I've noticed is a "farting" type noise when I turn the am on from standby, but I've read on the carvin forum that it's normal for this amp.

Never had to deal with them. I believe the warranty on the amp is 1 year and 90 days on the tubes.

What can I say. I love this amp. If you're a fan of scooped mids and fizzy distortion then stay away from this amp. If you like a nice thick and meaty distortion with great sustain for leads and an awesome clean channel to go along with it then this is the amp for you.

This review is of my 2007 Legacy. Pretty standard amp specs. two channel amp: Clean and Lead. Strait ahead setup.

I'm using the Legacy with a Les Paul Classic (loaded with a DiMarzio ToneZone in the bridge and a Duncan 59 in the neck), Carvin DC127c (loaded with a DiMarzio Fred bridge and PAF Pro in the neck) and a partscaster loaded with DiMarzio Virtual Vintage Solo set. Amp is running a Marshall 1960AX cab.

The amp is very warm and punchy. Evey though the Legacy Cab is loaded with Vintage 30s, I find the amp responds best to Greenbacks and GT-75s.

The clean channel is very clean, and I find that when using the 100 watt mode it doesn't breakup until very loud (7 or above on the master) It 50 watt mode, it will break up around 3 or so- which is still very loud. the clean channel has a unique voicing. You either like it or you don't. After much tweaking, I was able to find a tone that I really liked... and then I didn't touch the controls again!

The dirty channel is where this amp really shines. It has a mid heavy tonality overall, but then the guitar is a midrange voiced instrument... so there ya go. The tone is thick and chewy. It is more in the line of Marshall in it's overall voicing. Think of it as a JCM800 with a lot more gain. It sits well in the mix, and takes up a lot of sonic room. It is very articulate, even with the gain levels set high. I typically run the gain around 6.5, which is more than enough for my playing.

Over all, I find the amp to be quiet. Until you get really high on the gain settings. Around 4 on the master, the amp opens up and starts to really breathe. However, this is NOT a bedroom amp. It is extremely loud! I play hard rock, and the amp performs wonderfully for this application.

I gig without a backup all the time. It hasn't let me down in the past 6 months.

Carvin CS is simply the best. I have always had good dealings with them.

Overall, this is a great rock amp! It takes pedals extremely well, and allows you to sound like you. My only real complaint is that I wish the master volume wasn't so touchy. It's either off or loud! I do wish the amp had an adjustable solo boost, but I can live without it, since the amp does take pedals well. A TS9 in front gooses the volume for solos nicely.