Carvin SX-300 212 Combo

I ordered this amp a few months ago and have already played a few gigs with it. I play a variety of styles, mostly "progressive metal" which ranges from a super heavy chunky sound to more ambient kinds of sounds. This amp has three channels: 2 distortions and one clean. At 100 Watts, it's super loud, almost too loud! At a couple shows I've had to turn it down to 1.5 so the PA wouldn't overload.

I'm pretty picky about my distortion and got this amp in a pinch. On saving up for a good rig, my practice rig broke and I had to buy something in a hurry. After reading all the glowing reviews I decided to give the SX-300 a try. The clean is awesome! Absolutely quiet even at high volumes. The orange channel (aka the blues channel) is fairly decent too. It can get a fairly solid chunk out of it. But the "Extreme" channel, the red channel, was very very disappointing. The distortion is not quite brutal enough for my metal needs. I'm sure hard rockers will find ample distortion, but not me. I've experimented with both EQ and distortion with nothing doing. The worst part is that I get this really really annoying throbbing sound. I don't know how else to describe it, but it kills my tone and prevents me from playing quiet parts. Even with my guitar turned down, it sucks. I no longer trust this amp for gigging and am only playing through it until I can buy a better amp.

Hopefully I can get a better amp before my band hits the recording studio. I would not rely on this amp due to the weird things that happen. Sometimes the channels switch by themselves.

I have not dealt with Carvin. I'm still trying to decide if I should call them up and raise hell, but their policy is that you have to pay for shipping back to the company. At almost $100 for a $400 amp, I don't figure that's really worth it. I'd rather just sell it to someone who doesn't need good sounding gear.

I would not buy this amp again, and I'm fairly wary of buying Carvin again. I live in a fairly isolated outpost in Middle America. The music stores around here cater to old men and young kids. Very little metal gear and almost no pro gear. I've been playing guitar for 15 years now and really trying to step up my game. This was not the right amp for that direction.

This is a follow up to my 2/07 initial review posting. I have now had eight months of gigging with it under my belt. In a nutshell, it has exceeded my expectations for mobility(very light in weight), power(puts out a lot of sound and rarely turn it over two on volume settings), tone(audience members talk shop with me between sets and they think it is a tube amp), channel switching(no pedals needed. On board effects(it has the four most popular effects built in so no pedals needed).

We record our shows and when played back, the guitar has the following clone sounds. Clean channel sounds like a Fender twin. Blues channel sounds like a vintage Fender Bassman with drive. It has the mojo factor. Dirty channel sounds like a turned up Marshall. Real rock sounds. All channels have tweakability to get your unique sound. I play with humbucker guitars and the amp handles them well. I find each guitar's sound unique so have to tweak the amp's knobs a little to handle each of five rotating gigging guitars. The amp is not noisy, nor tempermental.

I had to replace the input jack, which other prior reviewers pointed out is made of flimsy plastic. Jack was about $10 including shipping and installation $25. The blues channel volume knob needed replacment when I bought it used. Same price for part and installation. Since then, it has gone up and down steps, subjected to very high summer temps in a van with windows open a crack for several hours, moved around a lot, etc. No problems. No hassles.

Customer support was right on the money. They dealt with my two part needs right away and shipped in timely manner. Carvin takes care of business.

Started playing in mid 60's with Beatles, Rolling Stones, British invasion and old time rock and roll. I have five gigging rotating guitars-Fender Tele, Gibson LP special, Peavey T60, Heritage Prospect, Robin Artisan. They all take a shine to the Carvin. I just have to dial in each guitar's sweet spots. I bought the channel switching and effects off/on pedal-necessary and very helpful to go from the clean channel for rhythm to the blues middle channel for lead and back again to the clean channel. This amp replaced my Roland JC120-another great amp! However, with the Roland, it was heavy with casters, and you needed some pedals to get effects. What drew my attention to the Carvin is it is about 45 pounds, still gets as loud as my Roland and you save the weight and space to not need effect pedals. You can still use your special special effect pedal with the I/O input in the back.

This combo is THE 80's hair combo for sure.We have 3 channels here,1 for all out rockin',1 for the blues,and 1 for the cleanest clean you'll ever get.And I like the fact that it has seperate volume for each channel.This amp is amazingly small and light for what it is but it sure can belt out the sound.

This amp does it all tone wise,it sounds very close to a full tube amp combo,I don't even need an OD pedal with this and the on board effects are perfect for my style,it is very precise in sound,I almost can compare it to my Mesa Mark 3 head in the unforgiving part,and the tone.I was looking for tubes in the back when jamming this amp.I have tried alot of SS combos and this one is hands down the closest I've heard to a tube.

I don't gig and it has never broke down yet,woulsd I gig with it?Oh sure but I'd always use a backup.I have used tube combos to gig before in small venues and I think this one could keep or exceed in some points.

Haven't had to deal with Carvin so I'm gonna give it a 9 here also.

Been playing over 2 yrs. and I don't know if I'd get another if it were stolen or lost,I'm leaning towards a new head right now anyway.I would compare this to a Marshall DSL combo,it also has the Mesa Nomad sound also.I have many different amps from Marshall to Laney to Ampeg and Mesa,and this combo surprised the hell out of me,stick a wah on it and solo,whoa!

Three channel combo amp, with 2x12's. 4 effects onboard, foot switch is extra but well worth it.

I bought this amp because of the price. Carvin at one time has a great deal on them and I took them up on it. There a three channels and let me tell you that all three are very different. Channel number one is the hottest of all. This thing is extremly loud with tons of distortion. The second one is a much bluesy distortion. The last channel is the clean and man it is really clean. I use this channel alot when playing my jazz box and acoustic/electric guitars.

I have been using it for the past year or so and it has not let me down. It is solidly built, strong and rugged.

The people over at Carvin are great to deal. The folks I talked to where friendly and helpful.

I have been playing for over 25 years and have a few other amps besides this one. I can tell you that if it were to be stolen or lost I would replace it.

Carvin is known for fine craftmanship in all areas of guitar and sound. From their PA Systems to their outstanding guitars as well as outstanding amps. I myself was a skeptic of Carvin for sometime just because of the fact that you can only buy their equipment factory direct and if you can happend to find Carvin products in a music store be expected to pay significantly more than if you purchased it from Carvin. That said the Carvin SX-300 is the cream of the crop in the price range and can give more expensive amps a run for their money. Features for this amp are wide and versatile. 5 effects are provided giving you a wide range of different sound and styles to pick from. I've read hundreds of reviews stating that the sound effects provided in this amp are little to be desired but the fact that they are offered is well worth the price of admission. One fantastic feature is the fact that you can preset different effects for each individual channel. This eliminates the hassle of having to change the effect each time you switch the channel. As well it keeps the effect at the same volume and level for each channel. Even if you increase the level of the effect on another channel. Complicated enough??? To make a long story short the features provided in the amp are fantastic and should be considered if purchasing a new amp in the future.

The sound of this amp is the selling point obviously. As some may readers may notice the new SX-300 now comes equipped with two Celestion speakers. My amp happens to be almost two years older which is equipped with Carvins GT12 Pro Series. Since this is a 2x12, both speakers are rated for 100 watts each, however the amp is set for a combined power of 150 watts. Plenty of power for any setting.

As far as sound differences between the Celestion equipped and GT12 equipped amps, to put it bluntly, I don't know. Celestion is a prestigious name among Amplifier speakers but I cannot see how the sound could improve between GT12 and Celestion. One listen to the Clean Channel would convince any player that this is a well built amp. The general consensus among guitar players I have noticed is that Fender Amplifiers have the best clean setting out of any amplifier in the market. I have played many Fender amps and I believe that Carvin has left Fender in the dust. One listen to this channel would make any guitar player buy this amp just for the clean setting alone. As a matter of fact some guitarists actually have.

One thing I should point out is that each Channel is configured differently from each other. Meaning the two distortion channels sound completely different from each other, giving the player all the versatility he or she would ever need. Channel 1 is more distortion orieneted. A distortion boost is provided for that extra little kick that you may need. Channel 2 is a more toned down version of Channel 1, providing more of a smoother distortion suitable for blues. In fact a Blues button is provided that, once switched, will try to emulate the sound of the old blues guitarists. However, this is one of a couple qualms I have with this amp. The option is somewhat worthless in my estimation. I play blues and blues only and I don't even use it. The sound coming from the amp is incredibly piercing with too much treble. Turning down the treble makes it sound too washed out, giving this effect no enjoyable characteristics. There seems to be no happy medium with this setting. It is either to bright or to bassy. However, playing with just straight distortion from the amp I think sounds excellent. Some may find an extra distortion pedal suitable for a better range of versaility but in my estimation I believe this distortion to be good enough. The amp also contains Carvin's Tube Emulation which does a decent enought job but of course it doesn't sound exactly like a true tube amp. But for all intensive purposes, the Tube Emulation comes pretty close to the real thing and it's great not having to mess with tubes in the first place.

Also, Channel 1 tends to be a bit more noisier than that of Channel Two. As usual high distortion yields more noise but that would depend on your guitar setup. I own a Fender Stratocaster that is equipped with Lace Sensor Hot Gold (highly recommened by the way). These pickups are somewhat noise cancelling so the buzzing isn't as noticeable but with those with the generic single coil pickups may need to get their pickguard shielded or purchase different pickups.

So would I gig without a backup? Never. This is not a reflection on the amp by any means. Every guitar player should have an extra amp on hand, no matter how expensive or great their amp may be. Crazier things have happened, especially on stage. However one thing that I will mention is that the input jack has known to have some issues and I unfortunately have had to experience some of those issues. For sometime the input jack had been known to strip out and come loose. Not fall out of the amp completely but the threads that keep it held within the amp for some reason strip. Apparently this is a common problem among the first generation of the SX-300 such as the one I own. I've had to replace the input jack on my amp 3 times but do not let this sway your opinion. This is only for the first generation of the SX-300. I have heard from the Carvin factory themselves that they have addressed this issue and have fixed whatever was faulty among these jacks. Again don't let this enter into your thought process if you ever decide to purchase one. NEW SX-300 RARELY, IF EVER, HAVE THIS PROBLEM.

Because of my ordeal with the input jack, I have dealt with Carvin Customer Support and they are fantastic! I was easily connected with the department I needed to address my problem and was sent the input jack overnight. I imagine this would go for any product, if not overnight I would assume two business days.

As you can see the price of this amp has gone down considerably. I believe now that you can purchase this amp for around $300.00. If you are in the market for an affordable, great sounding amp this amp is for you!!!

3 band EQ was extremely touchy. 3 channel, 2x12 guitar combo with celestions. footswitchable channels and built in effects (echo, flange, delay and chorus). Solid state.

obviously, it was never intended to be a practice amp! (translation: it was very loud!)

i plugged a usa hamer semihollow with p90s, a usa jackson rhoades with duncans, a custom made zion with duncans, an esp with emgs, a korean peavey wolfgang, and a japanese esp with duncans into this amp. i was able to get a decent sound for blues and classic rock, but that killer metal tone proved to be elusive. the amps eq was hyperactive and i couldn't boost the treble past 7 without summoning a horde of locusts (it buzzed really bad, okay!). it didn't seem to distort well at low volumes (i had it below 4 always because my neighbors don't like me already).

i definately expected more from the distortion. it was not thick,beefy or capable of producing cutting lead tones. due the the hyperactive eq, i was not able to use my eq pedal to boost the signal for solos, like i can with my marshall. when i tried this trick with the carvin, it buzzed horrendously!

N/A: i didn't have it long enough to really say (i returned it before anything could break).

Carvin's customer service people are great; only reason i docked them is because the guy i talked to about returning the amp was thoroughly confused about whether or not they we gonna pay for return shipping (they didn't; rats!). the bad thing about carvin is you have to ship it back to them to get it fixed (btw, i had to pay $78 to ship the amp back to carvin! yikes!)

i've been playing guitar for 14 years and bass for 8. my other amp is a marshall valvestate that is on its last leg. the carvin couldn't come close to it as far as distortion. i tried this amp (man, i paid $100 to try this amp! yikes again!!!) because i have a carvin bass that was cool and i thought that, if it worked, it would be a steal. well, something about this deal was a crime!!!

i really dig my carvin bass, but this amp was a very expense bust. between what i spent on the amp and what i paid to ship it back, i could've bought what i really wanted.

the moral of the story is don't order from carvin unless you live in san diego or know beforehand you will absolutely love whatever you're buying!!!!

this amp has 3 asume chanels and ill start with the clean it sounds amazeing and alot better than some of the tube amps ive played through

chanel 2 is the blues chanel but its good for so much more it can take on classic rock and low gain settings for power ballads and sounds and acts verry tube like whith or with outt the blues switch and the eq is verry versitile and is a great contrast to chanel 1 and with the bles switch activated and a low gain setting you can have a second clean chanel.

chanel one is the high gain chanel this sounds relativly modern and i like it it can go from a clasic punk sound with tons of mids to a smooth silky screaming medal tone with scooped mids and all

the blues switches and high gain switches are a real treat they take your tone to new hights with the highgain switch on it scoops the mids and ads more bass and gain alowing even the most inexpierienced player to get a good tone so just imagine what you could get if you new what you were doing and the blues switch pumps up the midrange and lowers the gain and is great for not only blues but softer rock styles to were sheer marshall style gain is not nesasary

the fx are interesting and usefull i just wish that they could add more but thats ok

i use this amp with me band ReALM and our style of music verrys greatly we play everything from regea to punk classic rock and power balads and i am dependent on a versitile amp and guitar for guitar it comes down to my 96 jimmie vaughn sig stratocaster with tex specials and this amp reacts verry well bringing out the true color of the strat and it is the cleans are clean and the distortions are distorted at any volume the only concern i have is that the volume on chanel one is touchy and sensitive so a tap could make it shoot off with volume.

this amp does what you want and is amazeingly versitile.

it has never broken down and it has TAKEN ABUSE its sturdy and reliable and i can stand on it without it feeling like it will break

there verry nice and helpfull and they take the time to talk to you and let you voice your concerns ide give them a 20 but the rating system only goes up to ten

i give this amp a 15 out of 10 its asume and versitile ive been playing for several years and it sounds the best that i have ever used i have friends thatr drool over it.

i also own a marshall valvestate 212 combo but it has nothing on the overall great quality of the SX300

ide buy the halfstack vertion if i had the money or space or the will to bust my but moveing it and if you need a smaller amp the have a 50 watt and 100 watt 1 12 combos with 2 chanels clean and blues

CARVIN is asume and they make reliable and great gear.

The amp has three channels - One high gain, one with a blues switch (which I use alot), and a clean one. Three very different sounds.

I use a Fender Highway 1 strat and an epiphone with it, but the epiphone has since broken, so now it's just the strat. On the neck pickup on the clean channel, it sound beautiful, better cleans than on some tube amps, or at least to my ears. Channel 1 (distortion w/ high gain switch) sounds great when you listen to it at an angle, but when you stand directly in front of the speakers, it sounds harsh and thin - no problem there, just put the mic in a different position. Channel 2 has a blues switch that alters the type of gain. There is deffinitely alot less, and the eq changes slightly. I love this channel alot, because it allows me to play blues with good tone, without sounding like everyone else (that SRV tone, it's good, but overused). The effects are great, i just wish there were more, but this is sound quality, and it all sounds great, so 10

My only concern is the input jack. It's made out of a very cheap feeling plastic, so i'm going to get it replaced with a sturdier metal one (hopefully, but i'm not sure how). Otherwise, built very sturdily. The outside is very strong, but i'm not sure how well the amp and speakers are attached to it. Oh well, it'll take a beating, it's reliable

never had to deal with them, but i hear great things

I love this amp, the only problem is the noise. I'm getting a noise filter soon though, it's gonna take care of that. Otherwise, this is an awesome amp. I've been playing for around 2 years now, had the chance to play on some vintage tube amps, some modern tube amps, and i like this one alot when compared to them. Good distortion, GREAT cleans, awesome rythm channel. Overall a great amp

* 100 watt 2x12 solid state combo
* Made In the USA
* 3 Foot switchable Channels (Drive 1 w/high gain and presence switches, Drive 2 w/ Blues and Presence Switches and Clean with Presence switch)
* On board "smart effects" that are remembered when you swith channels (Reverb, Chorus, Echo, Flange and Independent Reverb that can be used with all effects)
*Effects loop
...foot switch sold seperately though...lame.

Very well suited for just about any musical style. The cleans are crisp (and remain crisp at high volumes) and the Distortion is thick and heavy. High gain switch isn't really needed since the amp has plenty of gain to begin with. If not set properly the drive channels this amp can be a bit noisey but as is the case with all high gain amps. The distortion really opens up at higher volumes so you dont need much drive to get a heavy distortion sound without feedback. One of the best sounding amps I've heard.

Built like a tank. Plywood construction (as opposed to particle board). No tubes to worry about.

Carvin has great customer support.

Can't say I have any complaints. Carvin is quality stuff made affordable because of the whole factory direct thing. I still think it should have come with the foot switch though.