Carvin X100B

Yeah, another review full of 10's for this vintage amp. Mine is a 1985. Just bought it on E-bay for $330. The exterior is clean and the electronics work perfectly. Seller was a used musical instrument shop.

The clean channel is loud. The tone controls are extremely versatile. Even without using the graphic equalizer the clean channel tone can be tweaked from tinny plink-plink to bodacious rich full and warm. I love this channel. I never crank the volume beyond 5, as even at this level driving 2 Celestion GT-75's in a closed box is super loud.

Now the distortion channel with either single coils or humbuckers on it's own does NOT light my fire. I need to put pedals in front of it to make it sing. A Seymour Duncan Pick-up booster is really effective here. This amp distortion to my ears has a sucked out mid-range and spongey compressed tone. Tweaking the graphic equalizer here is absolutely necessary. Bring up the treble sliders for more note definition.

Accutronic long Reverb tank is "hot". I think it may a bit too overdriven. I never turn the reverb past 1 as I do not like a long tail reverb that rinnnnngggggssss the note structure into oblivion. But with just a light touch of reverb, the tone is luscious.

My 30 guitar collection includes the major guitar models and then some real esoteric stuff. The Carvin X-100B sounds great with Strats or Les Pauls. I actually play an old Ibanez George Benson with classic clean & mellow jazz tone. I can keep that tone at LOUD volume levels without distortion, amp compression, or wolf notes.

My custom made all mahogany Lap steel sounds great thru this amp. Hawaii tone!

I've owned lots of Carvin amps. They certainly are better made than anything from China, but Carvin amps are not vintage Fender reliable. Usually something has gone wrong with most of my Carvin amps that required shop time. I own Fender amps that are 35 years old that have never been in the shop.

I have met really nice sales people at many of the Carvin Stores in California. I have called the Carvin Tech desk in San Diego several times and talked with Not-So-Nice-People. The Carvin Factory employees seem unhappy & stressed out. But the Factory people will do what you need to get parts, manuals, or warranty service, they just won't be cheerful about it.

I have owned many Carvin amp models. This one is my favorite. It's got the tone that I love. I have not auditioned the 2008 Re-issue. Next time I'm in Sacramento, I'll visit the Carvin Store and listen to the new one for comparison.

The features of this amp are great for getting about any sound you want for any type of music.I have been playing for 20+ years and this is THE amp.Owned many brands,used them,loved them hated them,but this is MY amp.If you cant afford a Boogie,you need this amp.

I use a 4x12 w/celestions and it sounds awesome.Nice and quiet even on high gain,the only noise it makes is the noise I make.I play Carvin guitars,because they rule,and also have a Hendrix Tribute Strat and an 86 Gibson SG.My Martin DM even sounds great through it.These things are known for their excellent clean channel.Like I said any type of genre is good for this amp.Just live with it a while and get to know it.The overdrive is great and the gain boost is just enough,not too much.You can still hear strings hitting fretboard instead of like the line 6 solid state high gain that sounds more like a synthesizer.If its not enough you can change a few resistors and really get it sizzling.I tried this but it was a little much.

I play a variety of music,metal at heart,I work in a rock cover band that does all kinds of music so Ive run this thing for its money and its all I need.

Sometimes I cant believe it still works after I have put it through.

I bought this used so no need for support on a 15 year old amp,but I have bought from Carvin and their customer support is an icon of what it should be.

I have had this amp for 5 years.I wanted one of these since I started playing in the mid 80s.I have a 1x12 version of this that was also great until I blew it up by a shaky hand grounding out the bias ground to the EQ switch.oops.

Its a really good amp.One of the best,especially for what they are selling for on Ebay.Get a Boogie Mark 4 for 400 dollars and probably wont have a chassis in it.

If I could change anything it would be a tube driven reverb.The reissues may have that.Havent played a new one.

Mine is one of the last of the 90's models with the fuzzy carpet covering. Has two channels, but the overdrive channel has a toggle for rhythm/lead. I have Groove Tube el34's in it that were ther when I bought it second-hand. I had missed out on this amp originally and it took me 15 years to find one that someone would part with. The adjustable wattage settings from 25/50/100 watts was a big deal at the time but is standard now. The 5 band eq makes it capable of sounding any way you want it to. The reverb is as good or better than Fender (which is the standard for reverb). The effects loop has a db boost that you can set and the ohms output can be varied if you are playing a half or full stack.

The clean is what knocked me out in '93 - headroom that you have to hear and experience to believe. You have to crank it to about 115 decibels to get the slightest breakup. You can dial tones that sound angelic. The dirty channel is a rock monster. If you pull the knob to Hi Lead, it gets gritty for perfect rock sounds. It truly is capable of pulling out classic EVH, Aerosmith, Zakk, AC/DC...all by adjusting the eq and gain. The matching Carvin Cab is the secret to this beast - it is a 400 watt enclosure with 4 100 watt speakers, all set to 8 ohms for the cab. This is why it will bury a marshall head-to-head. The large wattage allows the amp's headroom to stand out and you get a well-defined distortion with the volume being used to just make it as loud as you want without coloring the tone. I have only used it set to 2.5 outdoors because it kills the PA to keep up! Awesome power and killer sound from clean to raunchy to driven.

I have had no problems whatsoever from the head or the cab. I have the back panel off to let the tubes get air.

Carvin is incredible at helping you over the phone. My questions were answered without a condescending tone like some other companies who have failed musicians who act like you're and idiot for asking a question that they are paid to answer. Their customer support is peerless!

No matter what style you play, I GUARANTEE that this amp is for you. The flexibility of adjusting the wattage from 25/50/100 watts makes it appropriate for all situations. The clean channel is the best (the old standard, Fender, is not close); the gain channel lets you dial up ANY sound; the eq is a fabulous feature; the overall headroom of this amp is unmatched. No need to buy some billion watt head that this thing can go toe-to-toe with.

You probably know the specs so I won't go over them again. This is an old-school classic, reborn. I have to say, as an owner of 2 originals, the new X-100B is every bit as good, if not better, and even better made.

The amp is pretty intuitive and simple, though it has a couple unique features that might throw guitarists at first. The EQ is active, not passive like most amps. As a result, you can get a truly transparent sound, with great fidelity, OR, shape your tone to get whatever sound you have in mind. You can also easily make adjustments for the venue you're performing in, without worrying about the soundguy messing up your tone. ;)

The Graphic EQ is another great feature: learn how to use it and it will become a great tool for shaping your tone. (It also makes a great tool in the studio to craft unique sounds that fit the mix perfectly.)

This isn't a Swiss Army amp, but it is very versatile. It's very simple and straightforward, but it's got incredible cleans, beautiful overdrives, powerful EQ, fantastic reverb, a boost, and handbuilt, American construction: what more do you need?

Carvin makes some of the finest guitars, basses, and amplifiers in the world, easily comparable to the best in the business. I'm a professional guitarist, and have had endorsements with PRS and Mesa/Boogie. I've got a ton of vintage and boutique gear, because guitar isn't just my profession it's my passion. ANYWAY, the Carvin X-100 is one of the all-time classic amplifiers. IMHO, it's a perfect halfway point between the "do-it-all" Mesa's, and the bare-bones, rockin' Marshall's. Unlike almost any other serious rock amp, the Carvin's have an INCREDIBLE clean tone, with one of the best onboard Reverb's you'll ever hear. I play jazz, and country, and the cleans on this amp, (or the Legacy or MTS series, for that matter,) are easily comparable to vintage BF Fenders, or boutique amps like Dr. Z. But the lead channel packs a beautiful crunch, and with the boost, a searing lead tone. If you like classic rock tones of the late 60's through the early 90's, you'll find that tone in the X-100B. It does the fat & squawky Allman/Gibbons/West type of tone, as well as a wonderful "Brown" sound like the first few VH albums. With the 5-band graphic EQ and active controls, you can get the most out of any guitar, while the amp itself is very transparent to the type of guitar you're using. Randy Rhoads fans will want to check out this amp, as should any fan of Zappa, McLaughlin, or Santana: the tones really are that incredible. Keep in mind, the X-100B is a primo, classic rock-style amp. It gets old-school gain, and great cleans, so Country, Jazz, R&B, Blues, and Classic Rock and Metal are covered: if you want super down-tuned modern mayhem, you'll need a pedal, (or better yet, check out the Carvin V3.) For everyone else, the X-100B is one of the most toneful amps on the market, incredibly well-built, and offered at a very generous price. I used to swear by Mesa's and PRS's, but now I swear by Carvin guitars and amps, and I've got the best tone of my career.

Incredibly well-made amps: on par with smaller builders like Mesa/Boogie easily. Heads and tails above Marshalls made in the past 20+ years, (sorry to say, Marshalls aren't made like they used to be...)

Top quality pots, caps, handwired components, everything isolated and ready for a lifetime of use. I've got 2 X-100B's from the 80's that still perform beautifully and look almost new: I'm expecting my new X-100B, (which is even better constructed,) to last just as well.

The guys at Carvin are great. Give them a call sometime. They're eager to help, and if they can't, they'll find someone who can ASAP. I called to ask about special wiring configuration on a guitar I ordered. The guy on the phone wasn't sure if it was possible. He had his boss call me later that day and not only give me the info, but gave me some references of other players who had the same setup. First class guys and gals.

A classic amp, reborn and better than ever. I'd strongly advise any player looking for a versatile amp with a great clean channel to check it out.

Anyone interested in the new Vintage Modern Marshalls should DEFINITELY check out the Carvin first: it's heads and shoulders above in quality, tone and value.

Anyone who's after great tone, and likes the idea of supporting an independent, US company that offers great value should get the Carvin catalog.

For the record,I don't have an endorsement or affiliation, (maybe in the future, ;)) but I just want to help them get the word out on their incredible musical instruments and tools. Keep Playin'

Looks like you guys have let the cat out of the bag. I have been buying and stocking as many of these away as I can. But now you guys have ruined it for me. Now I see these Vintage amplifiers going for no less than $800.00 to $1200 The upgraded carpeted version is going for the most money. Because it just has better tone with the El34 tubes.

The sound quality of these amplifiers are awesome. They get a fender blackface clean with more punch than a fender and marshall tones, no problem. I have collected tube amps my whole life, and this amp blows away any amplifier I have played other than a bogner or orange amplifer. you can't get those tones from this amp, but soldano, mesa boogie, fender, marshall, hughes & kettner, Rivera, VOX. You get all these amplifier tones with ease These amplifers will go from Country to blues, classic rock to metal and the gain still goes up more for thrash metal.

Built like a tank. I run mine four nights a week fours hours a night and have never had a problem. I have changed the power tubes out once in three years just because I thought they needed it.

Only had to use them to get some manuals. they sent them to me for free.

Purchased in 1983. Two channels with 5 band EQ. 100 watts. Plenty loud.

This is (was) a tube amp yet sounded like a transistor amp. Absolutely brittle high end and very sterile. The distortion was grainy and just horrible. The clean channel did not distort. A friend and I both bought these as they seemed to be a great value compared to a new Mesa Boogie (my huge mistake in passing that up). The ads made the X-100 seem like the best thing in the world. He sold his X-100B first and I then sold mine later. These have active tone controls which makes me believe it had a lot to do with the awful tone.

Didn't have it long enough for problems to appear. The build quality is excellent as is most things from Carvin.

Never had to use customer support.

I had been playing 11 years when I bought it in 1983. If I had insurance for it, I would have somebody steal it then get something better such as a Boogie or Marshall. My idea of great tone is Marshall, Boogie, and Rivera. If you want a very loud, grating Death Metal tone, then this is your amp. If you want a smooth and creamy tone, stay away.

5 band graphic EQ, Dul Channels-Clean and Lead, 25/50/100W out-put switch, 4-EL34's and 3-12AX7's.

THE BEST OUT THERE...DUH!!! the clean tone on this amp is SOOOOO crisp and clean. it like god just gave you TONE IN A CUP! dood you can have your 4 year old kid move all the nobs all over the place and plug it in and you have TONE for Years.

Nothing has Stoped my MONSTER X100B YET.

IDK

If you want tone the best way to go is the Cravin X100B. Plug this bad boy into your Stomp Box of any kind and man you got tone that will make any dood ***** his pants. Trust me it happend to me!XD

Others have already run down the features ad infinitum, so I won't go into that terribly much. Mine's an '89/EL34, with Electro-Voice power tubes and no-brand (best as I can tell) preamp tubes, purchased summer '08 for $320 (used, obviously), complete with original footswitch (and in mint condition to boot - not even any dust inside to speak of).

I find the graphic EQ to be useful for recording using the clean channel - helps to get the crystalline, bell-like highs that I like out of a strat or other single-coil. I use the active 3 band for EQ on the overdrive channel, finding that just nudges above 50% for bass, treble, and presence give me precisely the sound I'm after (with the gain dialed at about 8 or so).

Have noted a few people on here whinging about there not being enough power. I can only surmise that their amps are in dire need of retubing/rebiasing, as mine - with the seemingly-new EV EL34s - seriously threatens to blow my 4x12 Carvin cabinet with the volume anywhere above 3 or so. I play in a very LOUD band, opposite a distortion-soaked bassist jamming on an Ampeg through an 8x10 cabinet, and can render her completely inaudible if I so desire. LOUD.

I typically play a Gibson SG and a Kramer Focus 3000 onstage, occasionally using a strat as well. the X100B sounds magnificent with all of them; both the Gibson and the Kramer sound massive through the O/D channel (the fender significantly less so). The amp appears to be 100% hum-free, which is a damn nice change.

I am especially impressed with the X100B as my other amp is a '74 Hiwatt DR103, which I have been in love with for the last seventeen years. Now that the Hiwatt prices havve really gone through the roof, I can't justify taking an $1800 amp around to crap bars, what with the risk of theft/accident/deliberate vandalism/spilled beer, etc., hence my purchase of the Carvin. To my unmitigated delight, it sounds very nearly as good as the Hiwatt, and occasionally (when I need that marvelous Accutronics spring reverb) even better. Count me amazed.

To my ears, the EL34 x100B does an excellent job - especially considering the price - of performing on a par with the DR103 in a live setting. Nuances of the Hiwatt's tone come out in a recorded context, and the Carvin can't live up to that, but pumped through the typical venue's PA system, the two are indistinguishable for all practical purposes.

Rock solid, like all Carvin stuff. Haven't had it long enough to say for sure, but my expectation is that I won't have any reliability issues.

Never dealt with 'em - never needed to, over the course of owning three different carvin heads and two cabinets.

I've been playing professionally since 1988, through a series of Ampeg V4s, Marshalls (blech - got over that quickly), Carvins and my trusty Hiwatt. Loved the V4s (will get another sooner or later), and the Hiwatt rules uber alles, but the Carvin takes second place in a walk. Were it stolen, I'd buy it again ASAP. Can't imagine getting by without it now.

I bought mine new in 1983, 6L6 tubes- Series III X100B,,,WOW. More power than anyone needs, and I know because I've A-B compared side by side with every thing out there and it is LOUD ENOUGH!! Not a hi-gain head on the lead channel,, medium at most. Clean channel is the most deceptive thing on this amp. Smooth, warm and rich or hi-end, bright, and crisp with bass response that never gets flabby or muddy. Until you have turned active tone controls like these, you'll never understand what I mean. Anyone that thinks this amp has no balls and dumped it, lost out from not knowing how to use this amp.

The lead channel can be dialed in to make a wide variety of great sounds if this is all you are willing to do, BUT the clean channel is how this amp destroys others in its path. I play a strat with a Duncan Distortion in the bridge position and a Floyd Rose. Plug in a killer distortion pedal or like me a multi effects board ---digitech, Line 6, ADA-MP1 or any good pre-amp. My Digitech GNX2 with my own amp settings through the clean channel completely blows every one away that has heard it. These amps are dead quiet in comparison to most anything out there, with thick articulate distortion and a bottom end thump that Ive only heard from big-dollar heads. This amp moves air,, lots of it,, through my 2 4x12 cabs,,,,1 with celestions and the other with eminence speakers. The lead tone is fat and violin like, with single note bass strings having that Zakk Wylde agressive thump that breaks up beautifuly!!I am having a tough time plugging in to anything else at a music store because I can't find this kind of response, even at bedroom volumes.I am now hunting down more X100b's to buy because these are still gonna be killer sounding in 2028.

Never been on the bench since 1983 for anything but tubes. No scratchy pots or EQ sliders. I cannot ask for anything more from this amazing tube head!!

Carvin is a great company to deal with.

If it was stolen,,,I would find them,,, and wait till they were sleeping,,, and hurt them real bad!!

This is the 6L6 power tube version. Built in mid to late 80's (not sure what year). 2 channels, effects loop, switchable from 100 to 50 to 25 watts, switchable from 4, 8, and 16 ohms, 5-band EQ, active controls..pretty much anything you would want in an amp.

Most folks complain that the 6L6 version of this amp has less gain than the EL34. I wouldn't know, I haven't played on an EL34 powered x100b. I play punk/thrash/metal and this suits me fine. I use two Epiphones, one with stock humbuckers and one with a Dimarzio Super 3 in the bridge, and also a BC Rich with stock pickups. All sound uniquely like their own, this amp has a way of letting your guitar's natural tone shine through. This amp has plenty of creamy distortion, I'm talking Marshall JCM 800 to Mesa Mark Series. If you play something a little harder, might I suggest a slight boost pedal in front of the gain channel? Just enough to give it a kick in the a$$, I wouldn't want to ruin the already awesome distortion this amp creates on it's own. Tone to boot! Very easy to dial in "your tone" with the active controls, every millimeter on the knob changes the sound. I never use the clean channel, but have messed around with it: Sparkle, sparkle. No trouble with noise at all on this amp, quiet as a mouse and it's almost older than I am!

Have had absolutely no trouble what so ever. I carry a backup amp just in case but have never had to use it.

Never had to call them.

I've been playing about 9 years. I have own solid state after sh!tty solid state amps, a Sovtek MIG50, and came very close to buying a Marshall JCM 2203. This amp has more features, is more versatile, and is less noisy than all of them. I am very pleased with my decision. If this were stolen, I would buy two more! Ha! You can't beat these things.. and CHEEAAAPP! You don't have to pay a grand for awesome tone!

I just want to point out that "X100B" is the model name for a series of amps Carvin built for over ten years from the early 80's to the early 90's. You'll find lots of all vintages on eBay and elsewhere, selling for around $300. The earlier amps, identifiable by a cursive, curvy Carvin logo, and covering that looks like Tolex vinyl, use a quad of 6L6s for the power tubes. The later ones, with an italic Carvin logo, usually "carpet" covered, are EL34 based. Most need adjustable bias added for best sound.

All of them share the same basic schematic. They have many op-amps and FET switches in the circuitry for the graphic eq, tube drive/receive, and even in the main signal chain of both channels. These are used for transparent switching and buffering. The distortion sources are all tube circuits.

The footswitch is a three-button affair with a DIN connector. Most used amps don't have the footswitch, which appears regularly on Ebay for lots of money, or you can get something compatible at tonejones on the web.

There are also cute combos available, with a 50W(XT), a 100W{XV)112, and a 100W(XV)212 made in most years. I really like the fuzzy grey 112s.

See carvinmuseum on the web for more details.

The 6L6 based amps, like most 25-year-old amps, usually need a good overhaul. Control pots, tube sockets, and reverb connections usually need cleaning. Once restored, these amps have an amazing Fender-like clean channel that can run at full power without break-up. It feels like infinite headroom. HV sag is moderate to low. The result is a really good amp for your tele or pedal-steel. The high-gain channel is less appealing. I prefer a tube-screamer up front driving the clean channel.

The later EL-34 based amps are still 15 years old, and can usually benefit from an overhaul. These amps give a more Marshall-like tone, with overdrive that gets really carried away if you turn the lead drive past 3. Again, the clean channel is still the high-light. These amps are good for blues and classic rock.

The circuitry is basically reliable, but these are vintage amplifiers with lots of connectors and knobs. They do need a bit of love.

You can find all the schematics at www.carvinmuseum.com.

Hey, what do you want for $300? If you like to mess with amps, and know enough to avoid getting killed, these amps are great fun. I've got 5, plus an X50B, an XT112, an XV112, and two XV212s. I guess that makes me partial.

i bought my x100b used at a local music shop. it's a carpet-covered later model. same features as previously mentioned in other reviews. the guy at the shop told me it was a metal monster. like mesa or marshall at less than half the cost. all the features were a little overwhelming at first, but i've had an easier time since downloading the manual on the carvin website.
he was right about the metal monster part. i don't know about the other reviews contradicting this fact. they probably don't have the right axe and cables, and can't dial-in the right settings. totally don't need any external effects. it's got everything covered. unless you want your axe sounding like a synthesizer.
this thing can get loud and sound like a freakin' chainsaw. setting the graphic eq and pickup selector to rhythm, pulling the rhythm channel to bright, and turning up the lead drive to like 9 produce face-melting deathgrind tones. the rhythm and master channels and presence control don't even make it past two before i can feel the immediate tremors on the hardwood floors!!!!
i'm really a one genre kind of player. but when i'm dialing in my tone, i can hear the other possiblities before arriving at brutality. for metal, this thing is friggin' awesome!

this thing does heavy and loud (my two favorite things) clearly and perfectly. although, i guess it helps playing a les paul with a pair of emg-81s run through monster cables.
turning up the lead drive produces gain that feels like a drill running through your ears to your brain. i recommend wearing earplugs if you value your hearing. also, the pull bright on the rhythm channel produces crazy mesa tones at (can't emphasize this enough) less than half the price. just gotta make sure everything is set to rhythm and all your pickup and eq settings are turned up.
you can get about any sound considering the multitude of controls on the amp and your axe. and with active circuits it doesn't take much knob turning to alter your sound.

i've never had any problems with it. but i've only played once in public at a local park amphitheatre. worked great for me. everything else is confined to home. i get it looked at for tube replacements etc. every couple years. so that probably helps too.

only used the website to download and print a user manual so i can't say much for their customer support

i've been playing for about fifteen years and owned the x100b for ten years. it was my first "real" amp and i've never had the desire to replace it. mainly cuz of the performance versus value aspect. it's always worked fine for me, and i can get the same sounds as other high performance amps for way less money. so there's never been any reason to change. not to say i wouldn't play the "high-end" stuff. i just ain't paying for it....

My model amp is an 89 model which i Bought new - with the "carpet covering", "EL34s" and "hotrod 1b factory mod".
As already indicated this amp has 2 channels, and for me the amps only problem is that there is no preamp control on the clean channel.
The result is that the clean channel stays very clean even at high volume, at times a slight bit of overdriven sound on the clean channel would be nice.
All the other features that others have already mentioned are very good (and useful).
One point on carpet covered amps - some people hate them but i love them, sure it does look a little ugly but its far more practical than Tolex. I must have played hundreds of gigs with this amp and it looks as good now as it did when new (however it is always transported in a roadcase). Carpet is hard to tear unlike tolex and velco sticks to it very well - Therfore, I have velcro under my wireless transmitter, tuner and anything else i sit on top of the amp while playing and never worry about things vibrating off.

I have read many reviews and couldnt be bothered writing one myself until now, as i had recently gone through a process of trying to replace this amp.
I simply could not find anything that was exactly what i wanted and did A~B testing with this amp and others including TsL100, 5150, Marshall 6100 and Mesa MkIV as comparisons.
I found that i could make the Carvin sound so close to every other amp (but with only very slightly less gain)and without having the 2 amps side by side i dont believe anyone could tell them apart.
The reason for this is the EQ sections on the carvin, - no amp came close to the control of its active tone and Graphic EQ functions.
The Carvin has more than enough gain (And i do like lots of gain) for myself so i couldnt justify spending thousands of $$ to get an extra channel or gain on the clean channel. As others have stated if you want a loud clean sound this amp is hard to beat.

As i have already said, i have done hundreds of gigs with this amp, i have replaced the valves a couple of times and had no problems at all.

never needed them but their website is good and you can download manuals and schematics.

Ive been playing for 26 years, and always plug straight into amps (no effects) and have many guitars of all configurations, all sound good (and different) through this amp.
My biggest revelation is how i have been setting up my tone more recently (since i decided not to buy another amp).I generably keep the tone controls reasonably flat (equal) and boost the mids and lower mids on the graphic EQ.
Like all tube amps, they just sound better when the power amp is turned up. Here is where the carvin trully excels.
Turning up a 100watt amp can be way too loud for certain venues, however as the carvins EQ is so powerful you can run the power amp to nearly full and drop all the tone controls down to about level "2" or less.
In other words you can get that highly sought after power amp overdrive at low volumes by using your EQ controls to control volume.(maybe at the expense of wearing out valves quicker).
Running the amp this way I now can also have that overdriven tone on the clean channel too. Yahoo.

I've had 5 of these things: 2 combos, 2 6L6 heads, and currently an el34 head. I don't like the el34 head nearly as much as the 6L6 versions regardless of a supposed hot rodded circuit. Either version needs a good boost pedal to get the distortion channels to kick @ss, anyway, though the cleans seem great on both. The graphic eq plays a major role in why I've had a number of these amps. From using these, I've learned that putting a good eq pedal in the loops of other amps can make a huge and great difference, as well. Due to the distortion being pretty lame without a boost and not having 3 channels like I'm currently used to with the Peavey Ultra Plus, but at the same time having a decent active eq and a great clean channel, I'll give this category an 8.

I may have found a solution to make the el34 version sound fairly good (using a Bad Monkey as a boost), but it's still not the same as the 6L6 versions boosted with a good tubescreamer. The X100B el34 version that I have now I might mess with a bit more and then possibly trade off for another 6L6 version if I can't get it up to par with what I'm used to.

To the reviewer a few posts down who said his 6505 kills the X100B in volume when the graphic eq is being used, all I can say is I don't know what he's talking about. I had a 5150 for a year that I also boosted the volume with a graphic eq in the loop and still can't say the amp all the way up is as loud or louder than the X100B with the graphic eq scooped, though admittedly I didn't also have every other control at zero, either. Playing too scooped takes all the tone and cutting ability out of about any guitar amp, anyway. Not knocking the 5150 here but rather am defending the Carvin where I don't think it was given a fair shake.

Anyway, I've used the X100B's to play everything from clean strat sounds to Stevie Ray Vaughn and Hendrix style blues-rock to classic rock and metal such as Rush and Iron Maiden to Slayer and Metallica tones when using a decent pickup such as active EMG 81/85 set or nice Dimarzio and Seymour Duncan high gain pickups in addition to using a tubescreamer as a boost. A nice chorus in front of the amp in addition to the onboard reverb can make the cleans sound exceptionally good, IMO.

I'll give it an 8 for tones considering the clean is great but the distortion channel is fairly lame without a boost but gets it done with a tubescreamer or other similar pedal.

Very solid amps, though I had the reverb mess up on the combo I had a long time ago; I was pretty ignorant regarding matching Ohms up, though, and likely messed it up by just plugging it into different cabs all the time without verifying the Ohms matched up correctly. I've played these amps for well over a decade with no other problem that that and played at high volumes with a heavy hitting drummer, and that includes playing the combo after the 'verb messed up for at least 5 or 6 more years with no other problem.

I like the carvin museum forum and the regular carvin forum, though I liked the older version of the regular forum better than the new one. I also like that they at least have a schematic of the old fs-36 footswitch available on their site, but I've never had any direct contact with the company, so I'll leave it at no opinion but feel likely the customer support would be very good.

Again, I've owned 5 of the X100 series amps altogether, and there's a reason I've bought more than one; first, I traded my first combo amp for a JCM800 amp back in the early '90s thinking it would be a better amp, but I wasn't really into the Marshall like I thought I would be and so got an X100B head that I found at a pawn. I used that head for a good while but ended up needing money pretty bad and didn't need a loud amp for a short while and so sacrificed it. It didn't take long to miss that, and then I got another combo. I played that one for 6 or 7 years and then found another head that I thought sounded better and bought along with the current V412 cab I currently have and love (that also has sounded great with the 5150 I used to have and the Ultra Plus I currently use).

Overall, the Carvin's a great workhorse of an amp, and when paired with a boost and decent pickups on the guitars can get some great rock to metal tones as well as very good clean tones. I'm not as keen on the el34 versions, but then again I've only ever played through one of those and that's the one I have now; maybe it needs rebiased or something. But the 6L6 versions are sweet, IMO. When I simultaneously owned the 6L6 head and the 5150, the band I was in liked the variety when sometimes I would show up with either of the amps, and they loved how thick and powerful the Carvin sounded as well as the 5150 with the eq in the loop. I know they liked the cleans on the Carvin more. ;)

I'll give this category a 9 due to how useful these amps have been to me over a long period of time. 8)

2 channels with a high lead on the dis. side. rythm, lead switch, and a bright switch for the clean channel. basic rock amp, can get a decent metal sound if you play with the knobs. only one warning not a plug and play amp. you will have to search for your sound, but it is probably in there somewhere, just have to know what to do.

you can get just about any sound you are looking for exept metal. for that just get a good pedal and you'll be fine.never had a problem with clean headroom, but ive never had it louder than 4 or 5 on the clean side, and that was to loud.distortion is not brutal at all at best you get a guns and roses or metallica black album sound without pedals. i retubed the head with jjel34s and ecc83s and now ive got a decent zack wylde sound. i play a prs custom 24 stock and a strat. overall amp is ver versitall does anything i need. but i dont play alot of metal. for that run a od pedal in frot of the dis.

never had a problem, but it is a tube amp. never play without a backup.

n/a

been playing for 7 years. i own a prs custom 24, les paul, and a strat. amp sounds good with them all.i would buy another if it ever blew up. i chose this amp over the marshall dsl 2000, and a jcm 900. the marshalls just aren't worth the extra $600 to $700. plus the carvin has a better straight up rock sound, and the clean channel is better than anything else ive heard period. you cant beat this amp for the money.i would recomend this amp to anybody, except maybe a metal player, you nedd a marshall or soldano.

1984or1985 black tolex covered head, with the 6L6 power tubes,no "hot rod" cirquitry.Two channels, reverb... All the features are covered in the other reviews, so i wont go into all of them.More than enough power for anyplace ive ever played!As a 100 watt all tube head, it is extremely LOUD!, and very heavy, as in weight.I run mine at the 50% power settings,and i don;t notice any loss of tone as opposed to the 100% power settings, as some people suggested.Maybe the gray carpeted version acts differntly at the 50% power, but mine sounds just fine, and i can open up the master volume more, and you can really tell when the power tubes kick inat around 3 on the master volume.THe bottom end of the sound really fills in and the louder you turn it up, the better it sounds!

I just got my carvin out of the shop 2 weeks ago, and had it totally gone thru, re-tubed with all new JJ tubes, some jacks and swithces replaced, and the amp bias set.I had;nt played this amp in at least 6 years.The clean channel is very good, but it;s not the warmest clean I ever heard,sounds like a early fender type sound, but it;s a little raw around the edges at times, almost a little bit of a brittle sound at times,I like the reverb alot.The pull bright onthe clean is really nice,really sounds fenderish.the distorted channel is a difernt beast altogether.At low gain settins, the amp nails the 70;s and early eighty rock sound.THere is definitly a british influnce to the sound, even with the 6L6 tubes,also as my friend pointed out to me, the amp has a certain honkeyness, or nasal about its general tone, that you can;t completely get rid of.At higher gain settings,and the amp has plenty gain, the sound gets kinda fuzzy/ raspy/muddy.And this is my point, the amp actually has a good amount of gain, it;s just not a smooth/singing/sustaining kind of distortion.The tone, or shape of the distortion is not that pleasing, and theres not much you can do about it, it;s just a characteristic of this amp, but it;s not bad at lower gain settings. This amp is very chunky sounding, and has some great rhythym sounds, thanks to the carvin 4x12 cabinet.As a stand alone amp, this wouldn;t cut it for me, because the distortion just isn;t very good, So heres how I deal with that,I run into my trusty ADA MP-1 tube preamp[ also with fresh JJ 12ax7's]first, and then.. into the clean channel of the Carvin.This changes evrthing, and now this anp breathes fire.I play a Parker Nitefly guitar, thers also an Alesis Midi-verb2 in the effects loop of the MP-1 for some delay.I play everthing from blues to mowtown,classic rock. to progressive.This amp is pretty quite,if it;s plugged into some clean power.

Had this amp for 20 years, did have it die on me once, were it needed some work, but all in all it's worked fine for most of the time i've owned it.

Always very helpfull

Iv'e been playing 32 years , and own a flextone 3 plus amp, a parker, and a kramer pacer deluxe guitars,and asst. rack gear.I wouldn't replace this if it were lost or stolen, as it's just too old, and too heavy!I love the look of this half stack, it;s most impressive.I love the fact that it;s 100 watts of all tube power for me to use however I see fit, weather it be with a distortion box, or my MP-1 preamp,WHen used in this fashion, this amp kicks butt! The louder you turn it up, the better it sounds!My 2 biggest gripes would be it's just to big and heavy for the places my band plays at, and the slightly honkey/nasal character of this amp,which isn't as bad when used with the ADA mp-1.

In regards to the reviewer below me, allow me to quote exactly from my original review:

"I have all Jackson/Ibanez guitars with either Duncan or DiMarzio p/ups. These are all very hot p/ups so it helps a great deal. I play this through its matching Carvin 4x12. I put JJ EL34's in the power amp, JJ ECC83's in the preamp, otherwise comes standard with Groove Tubes.

While this amp can produce massive WALLS of tone that really hit you in the chest, it simply will not give you a scooped high gain sound that can cut through enough to make a difference in the live situation. This is a moderate gain midrange amplifier well suited to hard rock and 80's metal. I play 80's metal with a bit of classic rock and heavier metal. It absolutely shines in the first two categories - extremely clear sounding and has a great "chunk" to it. I would say avoid this amp if you want a scooped/high gain sound because again, the amount of distortion while very distinct and clear, loses that "cut" when you scoop the mids. But if you're willing to accept the fact that 90% of tone comes from your fingers and the midrange frequencies, you will be delighted.

I haven't even mentioned the clean tone yet! I remember first powering this up, and thinking how amazing that clean tone sounded...but once you pull the "Bright Switch" - incredible! It is almost as awe-inspiring as the distortion, just so much to work with on this gem.

Rhythm/Clean Tone: Warm, bassy, very versatile.
Bright Clean Tone: Crystal clear, Fenderish.
Distortion A (un-hotrodded): Punchy and articulate. Think AC/DC and Led Zeppelin here. Underrated!
Distortion B (hotrod switch engaged): Very unique to my ears. It's like Gumby - you can shape it any way you see fit! Moderate distortion sound elevated by the incredibly sensitive tone controls. Superb."

In regards to the reviewer below me stating that my youtube video demonstrated less than satisfactory volume, please keep in mind that it was a small club and that when you're actually playing in a band you don't need to crank the amp that loud in said venues. I guess a bedroom's acoustics are a bit different.

Oh and by the way, here's the link to my youtube video:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=XsGlp7SUdTQ

In regards to the reviewer below me, please understand that I recommended this amp to you on a couple of occasions, yes - but I also said that it will not match your digital amps in terms of zero dynamics chunk. It ain't gonna' happen.

It was nice knowing ya' man, I'm glad to see you're doing the same.

I bought one because people told me it was one of the greatest amps ever made - WRONG! I later found out that they were just Steve Vai fanboys. This amp lacks a WHOLE lot, everything sounds like you would expect from a 20 year old amp, unstable and poor. The distortion is not hot compared to anything you can buy today, the cleans are its strongest point and they are good - but not great or awsome. The 'output' is pathetic at best, I was told this was a REALLY loud amp, if you think so then you desperately need to introduce yourself to a REAL loud amp, don't compare it to your 16 ohm stereo. Most of the volume is in the EQ, try to scoop the mids and you're done. It has no thunderous, wall shaking power. If you want it loud and bassy you dime the bass, if you want it loud and trebly you dime the treble, the volume is entirely wrapped in the EQ and even with everything dimed I have never needed to wear ear plugs, Someone who urged me to buy this amp talked about how he thought it was so incredibly loud, then I saw a video of his cover band playing live on youtube (unfortunately after I bought it) and I immediately noticed that I could hear people in this bar talking over what they were playing, thats not loud at all. Compared to my 6505, this amp is a joke in all categories and upon some further research Steve Vai hardly used it and flooded it with OD's, ext. preamps and effects when he did. This amp is far from worth it's hype. It was one of the cheapest amps on the market in its time for a reason at $440-500 brand new, I wouldn't suggest that anybody pay more than $50 for one if they plan on using it, it's nostalgic at best.

Horrible, it took me 3 weeks just to get my serial # dated.

Best suited for beginners and undevoted guitarists looking for something better than nothing, I gave mine to my 9 year old nephew, he likes it.

I bought one because people told me it was one of the greatest amps ever made - WRONG! I later found out that they were just Steve Vai fanboys. This amp lacks a WHOLE lot, everything sounds like you would expect from a 20 year old amp, unstable and poor. The distortion is not hot compared to anything you can buy today, the cleans are its strongest point and they are good - but not great or awsome. The 'output' is pathetic at best, I was told this was a REALLY loud amp, if you think so then you desperately need to introduce yourself to a REAL loud amp, don't compare it to your 16 ohm stereo. Most of the volume is in the EQ, try to scoop the mids and you're done. It has no thunderous, wall shaking power. If you want it loud and bassy you dime the bass, if you want it loud and trebly you dime the treble, the volume is entirely wrapped in the EQ and even with everything dimed I have never needed to wear ear plugs, Someone who urged me to buy this amp talked about how he thought it was so incredibly loud, then I saw a video of his cover band playing live on youtube (unfortunately after I bought it) and I immediately noticed that I could hear people in this bar talking over what they were playing, thats not loud at all. Compared to my 6505, this amp is a joke in all categories and upon some further research Steve Vai hardly used it and flooded it with OD's, ext. preamps and effects when he did. This amp is far from worth it's hype. It was one of the cheapest amps on the market in its time for a reason at $440-500 brand new, I wouldn't suggest that anybody pay more than $50 for one if they plan on using it, it's nostalgic at best.

Its strongest point.

Horrible, it took me 5 weeks just to get my serial # dated.

Best suited for beginners and undevoted guitarists looking for something better than nothing, I gave mine to my 9 year old nephew, he likes it.

I own the 80's-style fuzzy carpet version. I believe it was made in '89. It has treb, mid, bass, pres, and also a seperate 5 band graphic eq. Having the different eq's allows different tones to be achieved. You might find that say a cut in the mids on the 5 band sounds better than the mid cut on the standard eq, and vice versa. Also the graphic is assinable to either the clean or dirty channel. This allows you to set your standard eq optimized for say your dirty channel and use the graphic to compensate for your prefered clean sound. It has a 100%/50%/25% power switch, footswitchable effects loop and spring reverb (also footswitchable). On the dirty channel, the gain know pulls out and adds more gain. The clean volume pulls out for a bright switch. It has 2 inputs. I has a preamp output on the back. Also has a switch for 4,8, or 16 ohms and two cabinet out puts.
I use this amp in a metal/rock band. This amp is very versatile and able to achieve the cleanest sounds and has a good deal of gain, considering its age. Many newer amps have more gain, but I find that this has all the gain that I really need anyhow. If I ever want a tad more, I would use a overdrive or booster to give it a bit more. The only thing that I wish the amp could do is footswitch between gain and more gain. This amp is extremely loud. I usually use the half power setting.

This amp sounds amazing both clean and dirty. The lead channel sounds a bit like a Marshall JCM 800. When I plug in my Les Paul the amp sounds perfect even with all of the eq knobs set at 12:00. However, each eq knob, being active, offers more cut and boost than you'll ever need. In fact, the manual recommends using only subtle movements away from 12:00 under typical uses. The graphic eq offers an entire different set of tonal possbilities. For instance, you might prefer the way a bass boost sounds on the graphic and the treble boost on the standard. You might use a combination of mid cut or boosts. The clean channel is first very clean and second very warm and pleasing as any fender, except with more eq versatility. The reverb sounds great as well.
This amp is by far the most pleasing amp that I have ever owned, for dirty and clean. I have owned marshall, fender, and mesa. In my opinion, they sounded great with some tweaking. The carvin sounds even greater before I even touch the tone controls. I never give something a ten, but in this rare case I will. Nothing even close in price compares to the sound of this amp. Actually, I like it better than anything I ever plugged into.
* I use this amp with an inexpensive B-52 4x12 Cab, not the carvin cab.

I haven't had any problems. It's a tube amp. It's never a bad idea to have a back up of some sort for gigs.

I contacted Carvin about getting an the long-ago discontinued pedal. They quickly got back to me and explaing how one of their current pedals could be easily modded (a couple solders to the cable) and sent me a diagram. I found an original one on ebay. I think that they should carry replacement parts, such as the footswitch for discontinued amps. But this might not be very cost-effective from their side. Any increase in expenses on their part will require them to raise their sale prices, which we don't want

I've been playing for 12 years and have 2 music degrees. I've owned more equipment than I care to mention and find this amp satisfying in every way. Tons of power, plenty of features, and unbelievable tone and flexibility. For the 300-400 this thing typically sells for on ebay, don't waste your money on anything else. (I got it at guitar center for $150!) The only thing that I would change would be to add a forth footswitch that goes from gain to more gain. However, the push in knob is simple enough when say a less distorted sound is desired for a certain song. Beyond this, the carpet-like covering is a little cheesy to look at, but I could always buy Tolex cheap and recover it. Another benefit, this amp isn't as heavy to lift as many other all tube heads. This is because Carvin uses ligher materials, I want to say Plywood? In any case, it's very light and still seems very strong.

100 tube watts, active tone controls, bright switches, 2 channels, reverb, effects loop. etc. etc, if you're looking at this review you know what this amp has. Simply put this am is amazing. For the prices they are going for right now, it is an absolute steal, I sold my mesa boogie 2 months after i bought this, because it simply wasn't getting used. Regardless of what type of music i play through this, there is enough for everything, ska, raggae, classic rock, hardcore, screamo, blues, jazz, and the most amazing clean tone i've ever heard. The only drawback i've found with these amps is the lack of available footswitches, i've just wired my own with a schematic i got from carvin.

perfect with every guitar i put through it. fender cyclone, strat, schecter omen, les pauls, even acoustics, it all has it's place that is easily findable on this amp

Never so much as a tube crack. reverb can be a bit noisy when travelling with this monster in the back, but it has yet to let me down sound wise

The people at Carvin are amazing, they emailed me the wiring schematic for me to make my footswitch. All they do is make amazingly quality instruments and products for even more amazing prices.

I have submitted a review of this amp before, but I have recently purchased the V3 so I am giving a quick little update review on why going up against the behemoth V3 the X100B still stands tall in my book.

Compared to the V3's features, the X100B does fall a bit short. But what the X-amp offers is plenty enough for me and having reverb is a plus (it is an exceptional reverb at that).

The 5 band EQ and ACTIVE tone controls also help to seal the deal for the X100B.

I will start out by saying the X100B's clean tone truly is the best I've ever played - while the V3's is more versatile via a "voicing switch" and drive knob, it just doesn't feel the same to me. It's not a bad clean sound by any means, it simply can't compare to the X-amp's.

The V3's distortion is massive and brutal, which is exactly what some people are after - I'm after tone, and I have it right here in my X100B. Any sound you are thinking of can be found in it, and as I mentioned before, the active tone circuit will get its hooks in you to the point that you will never want to go back! Both the clean channel and the distortion sound much more direct to me, and having that kind of control over the EQ is incredible. Truly a magnificent sounding amplifier!

I've never had anything other than standard tube amplifier issues. It is dependable.

I have always loved this amp - from the moment I first fired it up to recently when I thought I would "replace" it with the newer, hipper V3 - I just had to go back to the X100B! It has plenty of distortion for whatever it is I need (any type of 80's metal, prog rock, or more laid back stuff), the clean tone is truly something to behold and the ease of which I can dial in whatever sound I need is comforting to say the least!

It is really cool to know that I have an amp that I can depend on for years to come. I can't stress enough how awesome a deal one of these is...$300-$400 for it? Don't pass on it! I have a feeling in a few years they won't be going for a measly three hundred bucks anymore. ;-)

This is the grey fuzzy cover, and I haven't found out exactly, but I'm estimating it's a late 80's/early 90's version.

As far as features go, it was awesome in it's day and is still good, although if you're comparing it to the Marshall TSL heads or some of the Fender/Line modeling heads, you may not find it has 'features'. It's perfect for me. I play 80's/90's rock, blues, and metal and it meets all of my needs well.

It has two channels, clean and dirty. Duh. However, the dirty channel can be either an overdrive, or a distortion channel by simply pulling out (or pushing in) the knob that controls the level of distortion. So you can either have AC/DC crunch or ball busting distortion by pushing the knob.

Channel switching is controlled by the elusive FS-36 footswitch which controls the channel, the effects loop, and the reverb. I bought my amp used 5 years ago (and got a heck of a deal - $450 for the halfstack from a guy who needed cash fast) but it took me two more to find the footswitch.

There are two eq's - a parametric and a graphic, and a selector switch controls which eq controls which channel. I set my clean to the parametric and the dirty to the graphic.

It is rated for 100 watts, but you can select either 25%, 50% or 100% power, which changes when the clean channel breaks up, the gain to some extent, and the sensitivity of the master volume control.

It has two impedence inputs, which is the only feature I don't use. It has an effects loop, 4, 8, or 16 ohm speaker output.

I use a Carvin DC127T with dual Carvin humbuckers and an ESP Explorer with EMG pickups.

The sound of this amp is phenomonal. The clean channel is the best in the business (well, unless you spend $5,000 on a boutiqe amp - maybe). Fender wishes it's cleans were as good. The distortion is a little mid-dy, even with some of the mids scooped, but is on par with any Marshall, Peavey, or Mesa. The only difference with some of those amps is that it can't get quite as saturated as some of the newer Marshall/Mesa heads, but it still has plenty of distortion for just about anything. The use of the eq's and presence knobs allow for a huge range of sounds.

Up until recently, I just used the amp's distortion for all my distortion needs. I've recently added a couple of pedals (Marshall Guv'nor 2 and Scott Ian Black-13 by Digitech) because I like their sounds through this amp. The distortion is awesome. 'nuff said.

The reverb is exceptional and on about 3 is plenty. At 6 or higher, it has so much depth you could dive into it.

This amp is LOUD! On 50% output and the volume on 4, I can fill nearly any small to mid-sized club. 1 is as loud as I can go to practice in the garage without destroying the neighbor's and drowning out the rest of the band. I don't think I've ever needed to turn it past 5 - if you do, you need a BIG PA system.

Had it for six years. It's never broken or given me any problems in any way.

The only thing I've noticed that I don't care for is that some effects can be noisy in the effects loop. Not a big deal.

Dealt with Carvin on my guitar and my amp. Excellent customer service, very helpful. Just wish they weren't in CA....

I've been playing for 15 years. I've recently been considering buying a newer Carvin head (Legacy or V3) just because I want to, but I will never part with this thing. It is great!

People who talk all day about their Marshall's and Mesa's (both are great amps) don't understand what they're missing and how they got ripped off by paying $1500-$2000 for their head when they could get a Carvin head (even the newer ones) for under a grand. These X100B's are on Ebay for $300-$400 all day long. They are perfect for all musician's but especially those who don't have a lot of cash but want to get a tube head. Look no further!

Quick true story. My bass player owns a metal club here in town. We practice there all the time so I left my gear set up most of the time. One night a few months ago he had a 6-band show booked. One of the guitar players for one of the bands had a crappy Crate 1/2 stack and had been saving up for a new Mesa. He asked if he could use my 1/2 stack so he didn't have to set his stuff up. I said "Sure". He ranted and raved about my 'old' X100B. They played again last week and he had taken the $1400 he had saved, bought an X100B half stack, a new axe, and a couple of new pedals. Yes people, it's THAT good.

Most of the features have been listed already so i wont waste alot of time here. I havent dated mine quite yet but its an el34 modern logo carpeted version so im guessing late 80's early 90's?

TONE oh dear god TONE! I have played through marshall jcm800 2000 and jtm45 heads and this amp has all them beat. such a wide variety of tonal choice this amp is amazing. The EQ comes in really handy when your looking to find "your" tone or when trying to math some one elses. I play mostly newer hard rock (nickel back, Metallica, Alter birdge, etc.) Some punk( blink 182, the offspring, etc.) and some classic rock ( AC/DC, Fog hat, hendrix, cream,etc.) THis amp has it all, and when i cant get that ultra smooth sound (this amp has chunk there's not alot that you can dot to smooth out good ol fashined chunk) i flip on my tube screamer or Big muff Pie, or DS-1 and i can get ANY tone im looking for. I play it through two matching carvin 4X12 cabs.

Alot of guys complain about not having a seprate boost, well i bypassed this problem by putting an Ashly SC-40 In the effects loop, hello boost! now its like having three channels and the effects loop is accesibe via footswitch.

I play a Gibson SG, an epi Flying V, and a Guild burnside, crossbow headless with seymour duncans all three guitars offer amazing sounds ouut of this amp and i would say its the most verstial tube amp ive ever heard.

This thing is a tank! I cant telll you how scary it can be when you gigi a tube amp... tubes being fairly expensive to replace this amp does a good job of protecting them, the amp is indestructible and the cabs are as solid as a brick wall. The only complaint is i blow a fuse about every couple of months but i guess its better the fuse goes than the amp fry.

Never had to call them!

I got this bad oy on sale from rumble seat music in itaca new york, they gave me the best deal for a full stack ive ever witnessed. With tone to die for and rliability, what more can you ask for?

I have the 1988 version(Modern logo but not furry) And I have to say I've NEVER been this impressed with an amp before, its more versatile than any marshall or peavey I've ever played(Not saying they are bad amps, just saying if you want a good jack of all trades go for this amp)

Its pretty basic, 2 channels, graphic EQ(Which honestly can shape your sound into almost anything you could want) One of the best onboard reverbs I've ever heard also.
It also has a selectible power switch on the back which gives you the option of playing at lower volumes and still getting some of the distortion, I personally love 50% power because I get that extra push off the cliff(yeah spinal tap joke, sue me)

Like many people on here I wish it had seperate EQ but considering how good this amp has been to me I wont complain too much.

I use seymour duncans and I've never used anything else on this amp although I bet EMGs would make it scream.

I play classic rock and '80s metal and this amp is very good for both, its distortion is strong enough although it benefits from pedals very well(MXR distortion+ in front of it and BOOM you have Randy rhodes)
Plus its clean is great for slower songs and even folk stuff.

The clean is able to stay clean alot longer than most amps and guys I know with marshalls and 5150s cant even TOUCH clean after low volumes.

The distortion is great for classic rock right off the bat, give it a boost from a pedal and you can cover any band, with a big muff you get the fuzz and with an mxr D+ you get the extra distortion needed for metal.

I have had it a year without any problems, I havent even replaced a tube yet although I can sense its coming(spiritual connect....DUH)

So far so good, its built like a tank so I doubt anything could stop it.

It saw heavy usage before I got it and sees heavier usage now and it hasnt given be a single problem(I dont even keep a spare with me)

I havent needed to call cavin although for an amp that was made in the '80s I think they would only tell me to get one of those MTS series amps.

I've been playing 5 years,
I own a couple basic guitars and enough pedals to insulate a 2 story house.

If it were stolen I'd hunt the person down and make a nice new leather amp cover...........
Of course I'd TRY to buy another, only so many left out there!

I love its ability to cover alot of sounds, I needed something that could give me marshall crunch but awesome clean.

I wish it had a million dollars stuck in the back of it but after many months of looking, I still cant find it.

UP THE IRONS!!!

I have modified my amp since my last review. It has two channels, clean and overdrive. 20db hot rod boost on the overdrive, five pre amp eq, 25/50/100 watt switch, 4/8/16 ohm switch, xlr preamp output, effect loop, reverb and tolex cover. I believe mines was made in the early 90s. I wish it had a headphone jack and two separate indiviual channels instead of sharing the control knobs. The clean is very loud and the overdrive has the 80s hard rock sound. You can get early Metallica scoop tones by adjusting the preamp eq. The best thing about this amp is you get very clean fender sound and a modified Marshall JCM 800 plexi crunch. This amp is straight forward and idiot proof. This was Carvin's top of line flag ship for a long time.

I had my amp modified. It is biased to 160ma which is the sweet spot for this amp. I recently had JJ E34Ls but switched to JJ KT77s. My preamp tubes are the high gain JJ Ecc83s. I am running a Legacy 2x12 cab loaded with Celestion Vin30 and a Carvin 2x12 Cab loaded with Carvin GT-12 (OEM from Eminence). I get the mids and highs from the Legacy cab and the lows from the Carvin GT-12. The KT77s made this amp into a fire breathing monster. The overdrive is very think, round, fuller and balsy crunch. The sustain is nothing short of amazing! It gets better when you turn up the amp. With the E34Ls, it gets a bit harsh on the highs. The KT77s does not do that and screams to be played. It is absolute tone heaven! The clean channel is very loud and thick with a lot of headroom. It will not distort. It out cleans a fender and out crunches a Marshall. This amp can do anything (yes even country) except nu metal. But you know, it was not design for that. Classic rock (50s, 60s, 70s) and 80s metal is where it shines. If you want nu metal, just plug a Boss Metal Zone 2 through the clean channel and it will be out for blood.

It also helps that I am using a Epiphone Les Paul Standard loaded with a genuine Bill Lawrence (from Bill and Becky at www.billlawrence.com) L500L on the bridge and a Dimarzio Air Norton on the neck. The L500L makes the amp sound like it is on steriod. Single coil pickups also sound fatterI got the tubes from Bob at Eurotubes. He is a great guy and his service and knowledge is first rate. If any Carvin X100B (EL34 power tubes version) owners want more out of their amp, I suggest loading them with KT77s and bias the amp to 160ma. I had to use a tube screamer to give a bit more edge on the overdrive when I was using the JJ E34Ls. With the KT77s, no boast needed. I am speechless on the transformation of this amp. I found my tone.

Last thing, you cannot hide your sloppines on this amp. You have to play clean or else it will amplify your mistakes and slap you silly.

This amp has been a trooper. I got it last year and it has never broken down on my. Plus this amp is built like a tank.

I never had to deal with Carvin. I have dealt with them on different issues and they have been always been very good.

I have been playing for over 25 years. I have always wanted this amp since I played one in 1988. I was at the Hollywood Carvin Store last summer and I told the salesman that I had a Carvin X100B. He wanted to hear one since he had not heard on in quite a while. I brought my amp the next weekend. He plugged the amp to the Legacy full stack and played a Carvin CT6 and Contour 66. He was amazed at the tone. He could not believe how responsive it was to his picking style. He told me that his Carvin MTS 3200 was not that responsive compared to mine. He also said this was the best sounding X100B he has ever heard. He was completely in awe with my amp. It was loaded with JJ E34Ls back then, he would be blown away with the KT77s.

I would be sad if I lose this amp. I absolutely love this amp and would not trade nor sell it for the world. I would definately get it again.

Price paid: $350 used.

Features: 9

100-Watt tube head, 80's, tolex covered, 3ea 12AX 7's, 4ea 6L6's, 5-band EQ, 100/60 W power switch, 4 or 8 ohm to speakers, original footswitch.




Older version, Tolex covering, 4 6L6"s
100 & 50W switch
Original footswitch, equalizer

I play Jacksons with Seymour Duncans--pearly gates, and have two custom builts with Seymour Duncans--Custom Custom & a 59. Quite literally, there is a ton of sound from these amps. When I received it used, it came with 6L6 Groove tubes. I have since changed the pre-amps out to a G.E 12AX7A white label, and 2ea 1960 RCA 12AX7's. I dumped the Groove tubes in favor of new Tung Sol 5881's and put a double set of tube dampers on all the tubes. I've owned a Fender Showman, Crate Blue Voodoo, and a new Marshall 100. They aren't even in the same class as the Carvin. I admit the tube changes really woke the amp up, but even with the Groove tubes it still rocked.

Absolutely not problem 1.

Never dealt with Carvin. If I have a problem, I have a great Amp tech I can take it to.

I've been playing 20+ years. If It were ever stolen, I would not even hesitate to buy another.

Gray Ozite carpet covering which leads me to believe it is a late 80's/early 90's version.

The black tolex version has 6L6 power tubes (cleaner) while the Ozite versions have EL34 power tubes (sooner break up, very middy).

The most attractive feature - the 5 band EQ is extremely sensitive and with some experimenting/tweaking can give you quite a wide range of tonal palettes. All the tone controls work together.

This is a two channel amp, though the distortion and clean channels both have push/pull knobs that will drastically change the sound. This is a great feature though it is too much of a hassle to mess around with them when playing live. An impressive variety of sounds nonetheless.

I have all Jackson/Ibanez guitars with either Duncan or DiMarzio p/ups. These are all very hot p/ups so it helps a great deal. I play this through its matching Carvin 4x12. I put JJ EL34's in the power amp, JJ ECC83's in the preamp, otherwise comes standard with Groove Tubes.

While this amp can produce massive WALLS of tone that really hit you in the chest, it simply will not give you a scooped high gain sound that can cut through enough to make a difference in the live situation. This is a moderate gain midrange amplifier well suited to hard rock and 80's metal. I play 80's metal with a bit of classic rock and heavier metal. It absolutely shines in the first two categories - extremely clear sounding and has a great "chunk" to it. I would say avoid this amp if you want a scooped/high gain sound because again, the amount of distortion while very distinct and clear, loses that "cut" when you scoop the mids. But if you're willing to accept the fact that 90% of tone comes from your fingers and the midrange frequencies, you will be delighted.

I haven't even mentioned the clean tone yet! I remember first powering this up, and thinking how amazing that clean tone sounded...but once you pull the "Bright Switch" - incredible! It is almost as awe-inspiring as the distortion, just so much to work with on this gem.

Rhythm/Clean Tone: Warm, bassy, very versatile.
Bright Clean Tone: Crystal clear, Fenderish.
Distortion A (un-hotrodded): Punchy and articulate. Think AC/DC and Led Zeppelin here. Underrated!
Distortion B (hotrod switch engaged): Very unique to my ears. It's like Gumby - you can shape it any way you see fit! Moderate distortion sound elevated by the incredibly sensitive tone controls. Superb.

Solid.

I have been playing for seven years, I own various Line 6 goodies and a 60w Peavey Solid State. This amp is a tone monster - incredibly versatile, clear, tight - defined. It has become a hot item on Ebay and rightfully so. The best of both worlds - easily manipulated distortion and beautiful, singing clean channel(s).

Not best suited for certain types of metal, but for those who are patient and have possibly had more experience with different amplifiers, you should definitely appreciate what this amp has to offer.

This is an early 80's model. Tolex w/ script logo. Same features as everyone else described. Active eq is a bit tricky. Your typical settings won't work on this amp. Keep and open mind. Mine does have the FS-36 three button footswitch(which comes in very handy). My old one did not, but I just used the overdrive channel anyway.

I use an LTD MH-400NT through an avatar 2x12, closed back w/ vintage 30s. It has one of THE BEST cleans I've ever heard. It's perfect. Doesn't break up, very pick-sensitive and dynamic. The gain channel leaves much to be desired. I had a gray carpeted one, and that has el34's, this has 6l6's. I preferred the stock distortion tone on the gray one much better. The reverb is luscious and warm. There's more than enough on tap, too. The distortion channel though, it can be flubby. You can tighten it up w/ the graphic e.q., but there's just not enough bite. I don't use tons of gain, but it seems to be an issue w/ the "shape" of the distorion rather than the amount on this guy. BUT, I just bought an MXR Zakk Wylde overdrive, and with the overdrive, the gain channel get's a 15. But I'm not reviewing that here, just the amp itself. So, perfect clean - moderately ok distortion = 8.

My gray one had the same tubes in it for about a year and I played it loud and hard. Not so much as a hiccup from either of these. Based on my experience w/ them, they are very solid. I'd gig w/ out backup. It sounds crazy, but I've already done it before.

Ok, taking into consideration that Carvin hasn't made this amp or any variation of it for a little over ten years, I'd say they do a stellar job w/ customer support. E-mails get answered by real people, w/ real solutions. I needed help locating a footswitch for my old one. They e-mailed me back the next day with schematics to convert their currently-produced 2 button into a 3 button. All manuals are available online.

I've been playing guitar for over ten years. I have a pod 2.0, an epiphone flying v, LTD MH-400NT, a Gibson ES-125, a Peavey Raptor 1, this amp, an Ovation Celebrity, and a handful of pedals. I would buy another one again. The price is always right. They don't seem to be affected by post-mortem inflation a la the Sovtek line. 300 bucks for a great tube clean, and a o.d. that's easily made awesome by a pedal. Can't beat it. I ALMOST bought a Sovtek Mig because I was unhappy w/ the distortion on this, but I stumbled upon the Zakk o.d. on my lunch break, and took a chance. Now I have the perfect setup! Lucky I got outbid! I wish it had another e.q., or really, just more bands on the graphic. I've owned at one time or another a Marshall DSL 100, a Peavey VTM 60, A Carvin X-100b(gray and black), A Peavey 5150 combo, a Sovtek Mig 30, a sprinkling of solid-state practice amps, and the Carvin is the best bang for buck HANDS DOWN. I've tried numerous Rectum-friers and other amps, and you can't beat this deal.

Mine is a Script Logo, 6L6 equipped 1987 model. This was the last year before the EL34/preamp switch, which happened in 1988.

Its got 2 channels, an absolutely brilliant clean and a lightly toasted overdrive channel. Button 1 on the footswitch switches clean to dirty channel.

Its got an effects loop, button 2 on the footswitch turns the FX loop on and off.

Its also got a brilliant Accoutronics reverb system. Really really lush. Some reverbs leave you thinkin "man, I wish I had more reverb, I can barely hear this" But this reverb is all you could want and more at about "5". Pretty cool. You can always let off if you got too much, but you aint got nothin if you dont have enough.

Its got a Graphic EQ as well, which is an interesting feature. I dont personally use it, but I ain't gonna count that against it. Some people may think its great. I just leave the sliders at the middle, and it wont effect the tone.

Its 100watts of mean 6L6 power, its loud as hell, and I do think its more than sufficiently powerful for any application you can imagine.

I use some old Ibanez RG550's and other guitars with Basswood bodies, HSH Dimarzio pickups, and Edge/Floyd roses. Yup. . .80's guitars. I play mostly 80's songs with my 80's guitars. Yeah, a PRS may have more "tonal teeth" and crunch, but that aint really what im lookin for.

Im looking for incredible smooth, clear, defined lead tones. Mesa Boogies are too fat sounding, too preamp gainy for me, I get lost in the mud of it all. Marshalls are harsh and not suited for lead tones, althought they posess a mighty crunch. A Carvin Legacy is a REALLY nice amp, but Im slighly opposed to the very dark nature of the midrange. Very smooth, very close to what im looking for, but I like a bright sounding amp. Not piercing, just a bright midrange.

Its very quiet. Its been said many times, but other than the regular AC hum that most amps make, its got none of the "gain hiss" and stuff like that. Mainly because of the gain structure. It doesnt have a ton of gain, its more than a marshall, and has better sustain the a marshall for sure, but its not gobs of drippy overdrive. Its a very nice, bright, warm, balanced smooth overdrive tone, with a very nice breakup. VERY organic and pure sounding.

The clean tone is absolutely brilliant, snappy, punchy, and detailed. I love it.

I'm totally in love with this amp. Matched with a tubescreamer, it sounds great and has enough gain for anything I want to do with it. Its got the clarity and the overdrive is just about PERFECT for me. Ive finally found peace with my tone, after playing amp after amp, and Ive played a TON of high end amps, Diezels, Bogners, VHTs, Soldanos, Matchless, you name it. Lots of Marshalls and Mesas, some Oranges (I love these things, VERY cool. and . . FREAKIN ORANGE!), Fenders, Line6 (*vomits* how do these things actually SELL? I dont understand it), Crate. The only other amp Ive ever played that is as cool as this amp is my 1985 Laney AOR Pro Tube Lead 100. Damn, THAT is how a Marshall is SUPPOSED to sound. Its my "rhythm" amp, since it has a monster, Deep, Bassy, Bright and clear EL34 crunch. DAMN, Im not biased here, it just sounds so much better than a JCM 2000 or 900, or even a split channel 800. The Carvin is a bit better for lead tones, due to the 6L6's rounded tone (not somewhat "scouped" sounding like EL34's) and the gain is clear, controllable, and sustains really really nicely. Both of my DREAM AMPs can be had for like $400 all day off ebay. That. . .is incredible. Its very nice knowing that my dream amp doesnt mean dropping $4000 on a Diezel (which. . .are pretty damn nice amps.)

I can see how alot of people are dissatisfied with the dirty channel. Its not your average tone. Some people want that fat Mesa tone. Those people simply wont be happy with this amp. If your looking for a crazy-thick gain monster, if your looking for modern tones, then you will be dissapointed with a Carvin X100B. But. . there are some, like me, who dont care much for the Mesa tone, and like old Marshalls and Oranges but wish there was a better option out there for a lead tone, then you will probably dig this amp.

If anything, its worth it for the clean tones.

The circuit is mounted on a PC board. But, so are most amps now, and only a few can tell a difference between Point-to-Point and PC board wiring.

Like anything, its completely reliable if you dont abuse it. Dont leave it in the Van to freeze overnight, bring it in the house. Thats hard on any amp, not just Carvin X100Bs. Dont run it without a speaker cabinet running. Let the tubes warm up in standby. Retube it every 2 years or so. Common sense. Sometimes, electronics WILL fail, even if nothing is abused, but thats just the nature of electronics. Nothing is 100% bulletproof, regardless of how its advertised.

Warrenty? uh. . .yeah. . .that expired in 1988 I think :)

Doesn't matter, Customer Support is very easy to reach. I posted some questions on the Carvin board and got some good help. Lots of good info.

I bought the Head, 4x12 matchin Carvin cab with Celestion speakers, original Footswitch, and original Manuals/Warrenty cards, all in MINT condition, for $700 off ebay.

Ive been playing for about 3-4 years. Not that long compared to some people, but Ive owned my share of tube amps and had my share of tube amp experiences.

If it were stolen. . .well. . .that would suck. I'd just save up another $400 bucks and score a replacement off ebay. Can't complain about that. Cant say the same about a Bogner or Diezel, they dont get replaced so easy. . .hehe. Lost? . .ain't gonna happen. It aint gonna fall into the carpet and dissapear, and its not gonna run away. Im not gonna ever leave it somewhere unattended, so. . .yeah nothing to worry about.

I did a bunch of research on these amps using Harmony Central, Ive read these reviews a thousand times trying to figure out what this thing sounds like. I actually NEVER played the amp before I bought it, I was desperate and took a shot in the dark, and TOTALLY nailed the target. This thing is great, plain and simple. Im so glad I took the chance. It was just about exactly what I thought it would be.

Man, I can now forget about finding "the TONE" and start planning out my next guitar purchases. . .YES!

Don'know year other than after 1998. Bought used, sounds great with a friends marshall 1/2stack.Ordered carvin cab 18 days ago Still han't been shipped. Don't know how this will sound with Celestions.Carvin's quick service is a TOTAL joke I've called them three times and they only say we'll get it out so can'tsay how this works with their own speakers.

See Above.

See Above.

Lousy, Lousy, Lousy. See above.

Will rate amp with Carvin cab if I ever receive it in the future.

This amp is fairly versatile for a two channel amp. Its an early 90's model with el34s. It has a switch for 25, 50, or 100 watts which is great for getting the power tube saturation at lower volumes. the effects loop also has a 3 way level select that allows -10, 0, +4 db settings, so you can use rack and pedal effects. The footswitch has channel, effects loop, and reverb switches. There is a five band graphic eq that is switchable for either the rhythm or lead channels. I wish there was a setting for both because the clean sounds awsome with the eq, but the lead channel isnt good at all without it. Both channels share the 3 band eq and the switchable 5 band works ontop of that. There is no Master volume so when chaning volumes drastically check the balance between channels a few times to make sure its right. Even though it could have these features the amp is still extremely versatile, but it is not a "plug and Play" amp, the controls are really sensitive.

I use a Parker Fly deluxe, an Esp h-1000, and a Les Paul studio with p-94s, and they all sound great. This amp is very versatile if you take the time to tinker with it. The clean channel is amazing, very fender like with Great reverb.It breaks up slightly at high volumes. The distortion is kinda like a modded jcm800, but with its own tone. This CArvin sounds like a carvin, not a replica of anything else. with the eq right and the hot rod switch on this thing can do metal, although the gain isnt as high as most would like, but it is extremely clear and defined, no muddiness. I play through a peavey 4x12 and the sound is very tight and bassy, with a marshall 4x12 but you would lose the tight bass. Great amp for blues and classic rock, it can handle low gain metal but it really isnt designed for it.

This amp is built tough, carvin stuff is always built like a tank. I havent had any problems with it. But I havent owned it long enough to see how years of gigging will treat it.

Never dealt with them.

For the money you can pick these up for used, the sound quality i phenominal, there is no other tube amp this cheap that will sound nearly this good. I play in a cover band that does everything from Lynyrd Skynyrd, to Black Sabbath , to Rage Against the Machine. This amp can handle it all, although since there's only two channels, you have to tweak the knobs to get all these sounds, which is not pratical on stage, plus I could use more gain for some of the metal stuff, so im in the market for a Diezel VH4. But for the money you cant beat this amp.

1984 6L6GC-based model. "Rhythm" and "Lead" channels, effects loop, switchable between 4-8-16ohms, graphic EQ assignable to lead or rhythm channel, reverb, multi-function 3-button footswitch (luckily mine came with the original hard to find footswitch, this thing is a tank!), 25%/50%/100% power switch, 3-pin line out, instrument and line-level inputs. 100 watts from 4 JJ Tesla 6L6GCs and three JJ Tesla 12AX7s (balanced V3 for phase inverter).

I use this amp with a 2005 Carvin CT3M, a 1963 Gibson SG Jr., a 1975 Les Paul Standard and a 1978 Gibson SG Standard. I am using this amp with a vintage reissue Marshall cab with 25 Watt Greenback Celestions. I play punk/hardcore in the DC vein although I am not limited to this style of music, the X100B can cover everything I do fairly well, but not entirely. This amp has very little noise at any volume level, it is as quiet as a JMP or JCM 800 Marshall. The clean channel on this amp is remarkable, as good as a black face era Fender Twin or Super Reverb. It loves single coils more than humbuckers in this mode and can be pushed into Fender like overdrive above "3" with humbuckers, which is also very nice and usable. The lead channel on the other hand...not so good. I have used Marshalls pretty much exclusively since 1982 (JMP, JCM 800, Silver Anniversary and JCM Slash) and I am spoiled. The lead channel on the X100B in it's normal state (no graphic eq or pull bright engaged) is a muddy mess. It sounds like a broken Rat distortion pedal, ugly...But, once you engage the pull bright switch and graphic eq it changes the character enormously. You can get a pretty convincing crunch with the gain set between 8 and 10, lower gain settings are okay but not great. The lead channel prefers humbuckers but can do justice to a P90 equipped guitar as well. The X100B does not sound like a Marshall, Boogie or Fender in the lead channel, it sounds entirely like itself, which is not bad, it just isn't very good either. The clean channel is great and does justice to any pedal (distortion or time delay) put in front of it. The reverb is also perfect sounding, as good as any vintage Fender reverb I have ever heard, it completely enhances either channel.

This version of the X100B is built like a tank, my amp is over 20 years old and the original owner (I am only the second owner!) lovingly maintained the amp. It came to me with a full Eurotubes retube and fresh rebiasing and performed perfectly out of the box. I am sure I could gig without a backup with no trouble at all.

I have only had to deal with Carvin when I bought my CT3M guitar this year and they were...okay. Not awful, not brilliant, just okay. I did not encounter some of the horror stories others have but, although the reps I talked to were very nice, the company dropped the ball several times getting my guitar to me, which has made me a tad gunshy with them. As far as them dealing with one of their used vintage amps, we'll have to see. I doubt I would ever send it to them for repairs, I have a first rate tech here in DC so I have no need for Carvin in this respect.

I have been playing in the DC punk scene since 1980 as a member of Minor Threat, Government Issue, Dag Nasty and many others. If this amp were lost I would probably not replace it, I would probably buy one of Carvin's MTS Tube amps, the clean is a good as the X100B and the distortion is much better. I love the clean sound and reverb on this amp and can make do with the lead channel. The clean compares to Fender but the lead is it's own beast and only an okay one at that. I bought this amp after reading much about it over the years and wanting to get something to replace my vintage Marshalls in my live setup. This may do the trick, it's hard to tell. For the money this amp is hard to beat, especially considering how expensive and lousy sounding most modern tube amps are!

Early 90's carpeted version, with EL34's. Two channel head, clean and lead, with a hot-rod distortion available with the flip of a switch - it's too bad you can't do this with the footswitch, but it's not a huge deal. It has 5 band assignable graphic EQ, which will either eat it alive or be put to use via very subtle adjustments. This is really the key to getting what you want out of the amp. Very minute adjustments will alter the sound completely, if you cut any of the frequencies you will end up with a bit of a compressed sound that will detract definition from rhythm playing. It's really all about balancing out the bass and treble frequencies between whatever channel you are using this on versus the one you are not. From there you have a wealth of instantly attainable tones via the mid frequencies.

This amp is just about the loudest one I have ever heard. Anything past 2 is earth-rumbling! But, it never loses it's character, in fact...it sounds even better the harder you push it (tubes!!!).

I play Jacksons exclusively - an SL4 which has Seymour Duncans, and two PS4's which I installed DiMarzio Evolutions in the bridge and Duncan PAF-Pros in the neck. I play it through a Behringer 4x12 with Jenson 30's.

When playing through the hot-rod distortion channel, this amp does not need a distortion pedal. If you play through it, try it out, and still honestly think you need a distortion pedal, look elsewhere - these people do not have the patience required to turn some freaking knobs. The majority of what I play is 80's metal and classic rock, and this amp was made for it. We also do heavier stuff like Dio, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera - with some fiddling around I can get anything I want out of this amp. The distortion and low-end can be absolutely massive, when needed. As I said before, the key to getting what you want out of this head is in the two middle frequencies on the 5-band EQ.

Crank this bad boy up, hit a power chord and feel the rock and roll pouring out of your speakers. This is it for me. No matter what sound I can manage to squeeze out of the amp, it still sounds remarkably...well, itself! Very distinct sound, and one I never get sick of.

The clean tone is remarkable by itself (make sure to pull the Brite switch!!!), but add some reverb and chorus...this is what clean tones were meant to sound like!

The un-hot-rodded distortion is something I unfortunately don't use too much, since the majority of what my band plays is pretty heavy. It is a terrific crunch sound, perfect for classic rock, mostly rhythm . Could make a great blues/rock sound, too, especially for leads.

I've had it for a few months, it was used, so I had a pro take a look at it - all it needed then was a general tune up, the tubes tested fine and they're still in there. We're not sure, but think they're the original Groove Tubes that came with it - I'm not much of a tube expert, but then again I play with my fingers, not my tubes! ;)

I've been playing for 10 years and this Carvin was my introduction to tubes. It has such a rich, lush, full, organic sound. Hit a note and just wait with confidence for that beautiful feedback to swell up. I've played it next to Marshalls, stock and modded, a 5150, an old VMT head...maybe I'm just stubborn but I am simply in love with the sound this amp provides me. I'm happy with the setup I have now, but I can't imagine how much better it will sound with "better" tubes, and more especially...a much better cab.

This amp really IS a sleeper. I hope this one lasts. From what I've heard, it will. The only pedals I use are an Arion SCH-1 chorus, and an MXR Micro Amp for lead boosts. This was an incredible find, you really can't beat it for the money. I'd take one over a Marshall, modified or not any day of the week.

1988 6L6GC-based model. "Rhythm" and "Lead" channels, effects loop, switchable between 4-8-16ohms, graphic EQ assignable to lead or rhythm channel, reverb, multi-function 3-button footswitch (I don't have one yet), 25%/50%/100% power switch, 3-pin line out, instrument and line-level inputs. 100 watts from 4x 6L6GC power tubes, 2x 12AX7 pre tubes, 12AT7 PI tube. Big and heavy!

Purchased this used for an unbelieveable $280 plus shipping. Thanks goodness everyone's sleeping on this amp - it's a great sounding 100-watt tube amp available for peanuts as a write this.

Using it with two S-73s (SG-style) with GFS Fat PAF humbuckers, and a custom made (by a friend) bubinga/zebrawood (Strat-scale) guitar with a neck single-coil and bridge filtertron-style. Mostly play the S-73s...

Running it into a 2x12 loaded with Eminence Wizards, but I've also litened to it through Emi's Stonehenge and Blue Tick Hound speakers.

I guess I would call my style progressive, as I'm all over the place, and tend to write music that is a blend of styles. Not currently gigging, but have done loads in the past.

First off, the cleans from this amp are the best I've ever experienced first-hand, even better than the Twin I used to gig with. Sweet, sparkling-clean, with plenty of definition adn character. The kick-ass Wizards certainly don't hurt anything. ;)

The reverb is also really nice, and the tone controls/graphic EQ are well-designed and useful.

The overdrive is nasty, but in a good way! Would not be my staple overdrive sound, as it's not articulate enough when palm-muting, but a huge tone nonetheless that I can't imagine getting from a pedal. I also have a TS-9/Keeley Plus Mod, and a Line 6 UberMetal for different OD'd sounds, giving me three very nice options.

Seems to love my pedals. 8^)

Reputed to be reliable, but no marks as it's a new (used, obviously) purchase for me.

Never dealt with them.

This is a sleeper. Unbelievable cleans, great reverb, and very usefull OD tones, in one large, heavy package. If anyone reading this needs a great-sounding and powerful head on the cheap, look no further...

1989 or later X100-B carpeted amp head. The carpeted version, with the more modern Carvin logo became available in 1989. I used to use a Carvin VT2800 100 watt all tube head and 2 4X12 VHT cabinets with Celestion greenbacks in the late 70's, so I was happy to buy Carvin again. The X100-B sounds MUCH better than the old VT2800 though. All the features are listed already, so I won't waste my typing and your time. I run this head through a matching Carvin 4X12 slanted cab with Carvin British speakers (though I'm planning to replace them with Celestion greenback reissues) and it sounds great!

I play a Jackson SL1, a Danelectro reissue DC3, and a recently-purchased Agile doubleneck. I play classic rock, Zeppelin, old Stones, some Queen, etc, and the sounds the amp makes are awesome.

Haven't had it long enough to tell, but it's been around for 16 or so years so its gotta be OK.

No Opinion, not applicable.

Played guitar for over 30 years, used to play spro in the 70's and 80's

Bought w/ matching 412 Cab. Made in the 80's. Fully tube, 2 inputs, effects loop, rythm/lead switch, bright switch, standby, 5 band fine tuning eq for overdrive channel. Has 2 channels, however the overdrive has a high/low overdrive switch which is awesome. Basically makes it a 3 channel. Mine didn't come with a footswitch so I just made one. Email them and they'll give you the circuit diagram. I've played this amp in punk, metal, indie, emo, and even church. Comes in a cool fuzzy material. Main problem: weighs a ton. Go to www.carvinmuseum.com if you really want to know all the bells and whistles.

This is the best part! So smooth and clean. This amp is so versatile as far as sounds go. If you want to super dirty metal, slightly overdriven vintage sounding, or just want nice clean tone this amp will do it. This amp is much more versatile than the newer ones I think. The other guitarist has a newer one and his only does clean and metal crunch. As far as volume goes... more than you need. I've played through an Ibanez RG, Fender Strat, and Gibson SG. Never heard a bad sound out of this amp.

Incredible. I bought mine about 5 years ago used and it has never given me a problem. I've dragged it around everywhere, it's been banged around in my car and still rocks like a champ. I will hopefully have this thing for the rest of my life.

The only time I ever contacted them was about the footswitch. They emailed me back within a day and told me what to do. However this isn't enough to give a full rating. But I'd assume they're very good.

This amp was an incredible steal. I would highly recommend this amp to anyone for almost any application. It is built like a tank, sounds like heaven, and looks cool while doing it. This was one of the best purchases I've ever made. The only problem is the weight. Weighs a freaking ton. So if you're old and have a geo metro, buy something else. Other than that, grab one if you see one.

This is an update on my earlier review. Run it at full power. It doesn't sound as good at 50% power. 25% is unusable.

I put in some Yellowjackets. This improved the sound a great deal. However, another problem with this amp is the active tone controls, I feel. All the frequency peaks are squared off, it gives the amp a boxy sound. I would say avoid engaging the hot rod pot. It increases the volume, but at the expense of tone, (again boxiness). There is a living, breathing, tube amp under there somewhere, but the diodes, graphic EQ, hot rod circuit and active tone controls have smothered it. It's like trying to make love to a woman who's wearing a football uniform. That said, does anyone know of any mods to unclutter the signal path?

Behaves well, like a child on Ritalin.

Hadn't had enough experience with good tube amps to get help when the amp was still in production.

If you get your sound from pedals and rackmounts, then this amp is probably good for you. The naked, distorted tone is less than satisfying. The reverb is excellent, but is wasted on an adequate amp. Yellowjackets make it sound good, not great, because of the amp's circuitry. It's a cheap way to get into a halfstack. I would rate it higher than a Crate, but I think the new Yorkville tube amps would be a better way to go.

Late-80s head with EL34 power tubes. 100/50/25 watts. More than enough power. I can't believe some guy here said the 100-watt setting wasn't enough (can you say bullshit?).

Tons of features. I won't list them all, carvinmuseum.com has it all documented well, plus this page pretty much has it all listed.

9 rating because there's amps now with three channels which is probably ideal. For me, this amp has it all though. Where was this amp back in the day?

Great clean sound. Awesome reverb. Lead channel smokes - tone for days. Compares to Boogie in terms of overdrive/distortion. I just played a Stiletto in a shop a few weeks ago, and the Carvin sounds damn close. However, I'm going by memory, not the old side by side A-B trick. The overdrive sounds like my old JCM800 but only when I used a Tube King pedal. Even then I needed a Hush pedal to quiet it all down. The Carvin is quiet and gainy - amazing. I don't know if it's the EL34s or what, but this thing is warm, clear, and hot-freaking-rodded. Perhaps this version blows away the one with 6L6 power tubes? Do your research if you're buying one of these as to which power tubes will work for you better.

My take is, Vai loved this amp, and Carvin basically re-packaged it up as the Legacy (which also comes standard with EL34s) and put a bigger price tag on it. Given the how finicky Vai seems to be (he made his tech dig a pickup out of a dumpster for Christ's sake, and could pick his Jem out of a lineup from 20 paces away), I believe the rumors that he still uses it behind a wall of Legacies.

Haven't had it long enough, but it's built like a tank, and there's really not much to it in terms of things that can go wrong, unless I have the ohms set wrong or something, but then it'd be my fault.

This amp isn't made anymore, so I'd take it to a local shop if it broke.

Been playing 16 years. Metal mostly. Jazz and blues more recently, but I still love to make up thrash riffs. It really helps if you have a killer tone. I'd get this again - same version with the EL34s. Wish I had the footswitch. Now I'm on the hunt.

My advice - if you can get one for around $350-$375, go for it.

This amp was made between 1988 - 1993. Mines as the carpet covering. It has two channels: Overdrive and clean. Pull the lead volume and you get 20db boost. Pull the Rhythm volume and you get a bright sound just like the Fender tube amp. It also has a preamp output and effects loop. No headphone jack. It is 100 watt amp but can be push to 225 watts. It also has a 25%, 50%, 100% power switch and 4, 8, 16 ohm speaker switch. Five band preamp eq and two power transformers (heavy to lug around). The tubes are four Groove Tube EL34s and three 12ax7s. This sucker is loud and it's a tone monster! I love the versatility of this amp. When I was in college, my friends and I were searching for a good amp and found the Boogie Mark III. The problem was it was too expensive. We sample all sorts of amp but found the Mesa the best. Well we found Carvin across the street from Guitar Center in LA. We flipped because this amp sounded great! It was very close to the Mesa Boogie but without the Mesa price. I was heartbroken when Carvin discontinued this amp in 1994. Well I always wanted this amp and now I got it.

I love the clean and the distortion. I am into the 80s sound and this amp nails it. My friend has a 5150 head and loves my Carvin. It doesn't have the brutal distortion that the 5150 has, but it is more versatile. My clean channel blows away the 5150. If I want more distortion, I would use my Boss Metal Zone MT2 petal through the clean channel or use my Tube Screamer with the overdrive. The sound is simply amazing. This amp will bring out your limitation if you're a sloppy player. The natural overdrive is very warm, creamy and has bite and defination while the clean has lots of warmth and sparkle. The reverb is very good while the 5150 has none. You can go from Fender clean to modified Marshall. Again, this amp is very loud. I just love this amp! Too bad Carvin no longer makes them. This amp was their flagship amp for many years. I hope they would release a reissue someday.

I just got this amp two weeks ago and so far no problems. This amp is built like a tank.

I have not dealt with Carvin. From the reviews from other Carvin owners, they are very good.

I have been playing for 20 years. I wanted this amp since 1988 and now I have it. I would be heartbroken if I ever lose it and I would definately buy this amp again. This amp is the best kept secret in 80s (still is today) because it was so inexpensive. I have compared it with my friends 5150 and my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. This amp gives you the best of both worlds (Modified Marshall and Fender Clean). It is clean and has good distortion. If you want a versitile amp and if you love tone, get this amp! It is very hard to get a bad sound out of this amp. You can never get muddy sounds. It will make a bad guitar sound like a tone monster.

OK,
Alot of people are whining about the lack of gain and sustain, so I'll make this real easy.
If you are playing metal, get a good overdrive pedal.

There is no way of telling when these amps were made, regardless of the serial number.
I've had several carvin techs relay that to me.

Unless it has the updated logo('88), or is carpeted, you are stuck guessing!

It came with the original groove tubes 6l6GC's and 12Ax7's, but it was running super cold, so I had some ULTRA hot JJ 6l6's thrown in, and EC883's, to bring up the plate voltage pull.

I picked this amp up used from guitar center, IN MINT CONDITION!!!
They said they didn't have the footswitch, and I was out of luck.

I went back a week later and asked one of the older guys, and 10 minutes later, he walked up with the original footswitch!!!

Talk about luck!

The bias on my amp is non-adjustable (fixed), but they came both ways.
I wish I could get just a tiny bit more pull, but I am super satisfied with what I have!

Super hot matched JJ's will get you very close to the heat and distortion you are seeking.

I play an esp dv8, with a duncan dimebucker dropped in the bridge, fed to an MXR Zakk Wylde pedal, chained to a boss noise gate.

This amp is what that pedal was made for!
It brings out so much clarity and tight, punchy attack, that it'll sound like you have a different amp.

Standing alone, without my pedal, the gain is moderate.
Good for hard rock and some edgy applications, but not for the style of metal that I play.

The clean channel is definitely smooth and silky, and wakes up with a little reverb and some added chorus.

Once I step on the overdrive pedal, it's all over.

I can honestly say, that I would put this amp up against ANY Rivera, Recto, DSL, TSL, Mode Four, and beat ass.

The single note runs are smooth and pronounced as is the thuggish beatdown of power chords.

I carry spare fuses and tubes.
This amp has a fixed bias, so all I need is to drop in a matched quad, and I'm set.

It is built like a tank, but I tend to be very careful with my gear.

As with anything, preventive maintenance, is preventive maintenance.

When I called about the footswitch, they told me I would have to build my own, because they have been discontinued for over 10 years.

No problem there, a common sense answer to a stupid question!

Alot of people, especially us american's, are always wanting to get what they want, there and now.

Get used to the fact that 85% of all returns on defective equipment are due to user neglect and poor basic knowledge of electronics.

They were straight forward and quite pleasant to deal with.

I have 13 years experience with the guitar, and amplifiers.

Luckily, I have tried countless distortion and overdrive pedals over the years and know what works.

Remember that distortion, and overdrive are very different from one another, and that this amp needs a good overdrive pedal for the maximum push.

This amp clearly blows away the JCM DSL 100W, JCM 800, and the clippy blue voodoo.

I think that this amp was meant to run at hot plate voltage levels, and that you should get it suped up with a bias adjustment and some JJ tubes, and then write a review.

Your attitude will be completely different!

Oh, and this particular X100b is covered in tolex, has the old school logo, and has ZERO tears, scuffs or other blemishes.

-100 watts, switchable to 50 or 25 watts
-2 footswitchable channels
-4,8,or 16 ohm settings
-both channels share main, active EQ
-Graphic EQ assignable to either channel
-footswitchable effects loop
-pre-amp out
-footswitchable reverb (one master volume only)
-"hot rod" by pulling lead channel master
Features fit my needs well. I wish the "hot rod" feature was switchable by foot pedal. The only features I personally don't use are the pre-amp out, and the power selector. Unlike other amps I've owned/tried, the tone really seems to get dull when you try to use either the 50% or 25% power reduction. I've also read that in another review, so best to just run it @ 100 watts. Because there other amps out there now with mega features, I'll rate this category accordingly.

Very good sounding, almost awesome! The best thing about this amp is the clean and the distortion are equally as good! No need to a/b two amps on stage (i.e. Marshall for distortion/Fender for clean). Neither channel on the Carvin is as good as the aforementioned amps' strenghts, but I'll take the carvin(overall) over marshall's thin clean and fender's annoyingly middy distortion.

Clean rating:8
warm, but not the warmest;full-sounding, but not the fullest. Stays clean at pretty loud settings.

Distortion rating:8
If all you ever played was '70's rock, this channel's rating would jump up to 9.5! Great sounds for that era! This amp tends to sound best with the mids set at less than 1/2. the mids on this amp were always an issue with me. I wish the mids were a little sweeter. set @ 1/2 you get the '70's rock nailed. Turn down the mids, and you actually get a very good(but not brutal) metal sound. You just can't seem to boost the mids for a nice bluesy sound. There is enough gain for VH,G&R,'90's Grunge, and even can come real close to Metallica. Beyond that, forget it. By the way, I did replace the stock tubes with JJ E34L's and JJ EC883's(high-gain pre-amp), and that helped achieve some heavier distortion sounds.

Bottom line: very nice clean and better than average distortion.
Overall, this amp would be even better with
sweeter mids and tighter bass(on both
channels), and just a touch more gain on the
lead channel.

For anyone who wants to know the equipment I used to help judge this amp's sound,here it is:
guitars-PRS standard, Ibanez RG-something w/JB pick-ups,
Fender standard strat(stock)
speakers-4x12 Peavey w/shetfields,2x12 Avatar w/celestion
GT-75's, 2x12 Avatar w/celestion Vintage 30's,2x12
Avatar w/vintage 30 & celestion G12H(Yeah-I like Avatar)
and all combinations of above.
effects-WHO CARES!!?

I bought this amp new in 1991 and never even had to call carvin once! Not a single issue with this amp, and I've been playing this amp steady for over 13 years!

I've purchased other equipment from Carvin, and they've treated me right. I've been lucky? to not have any major problems, so I couldn't tell you how they'd be if you had a warranty issue.
Rating is based on promptness and friendliness.

I've playing since I was 12(20 yrs. now-WOW!). I've tried really hard to replace this amp(Owned dual rectifier-thin clean sound/no defination, Marshall tsl 601-crappy clean & WAYYY overrated,Carvin Legacy (kinda noisy but BEAUTIFUL tones!). I just keep coming back to my x100B. It's the versatility,quietness, and dependability that keeps me from replacing it. If it were stolen/lost, I'd be sad but I'd move on. I know there's better amps out there,unfortunately it looks like I'd be spending $1500.00+ to find it.

Update on previous review:

This amp finally died on me. It was a problem that would've cost more to fix than the amp was worth. Replaced with a Mesa Nomad 55.


All in all, I have to say that I was satisfied with my purchase of the Carvin X-100B. As a modestly priced amplifier with tone to spare, it should definitely be one to consider.
If I could go back though, I might've gone the route of an MTS or a even a Valvemaster. I guess I just need more than 2 preamp tubes to achieve some of the tones I desire.
I also wish I had the chance to throw some JJ E34L's into the thing to see if it changed my opinion on the crunch channel. As a Hot Rod modified model, it seems like it would be more inclined to this kind of power tube. Given, the 6L6's did AMAZING things to the clean tone on this amp, and given the lack of a footswitch I ran a floor model Mesa V-Twin between my guitar and my X-100B. By leaving the Carvin on the clean channel, I got crystal clear processing of the Solo and Blues channels of the V-Twin, and it only took a quick tap of the Bypass footswitch to go back into shimmering Carvin territory.
As someone who craves versatility to go hand-in-hand with tone, this budget-friendly setup influenced me to go the route of the Mesa Nomad.



Final Thoughts: For the price, it's more than worth at least experimenting with. Everyone has a different ear for tone, and you really can't go wrong when it comes to testing stuff out.
People that desire a more modern tone on a budget, I would point you in the direction of a Carvin Valvemaster or even a Carvin MTS if it's within your monetary grasp. Tweak as I might there were some modern tones I just could not squeeze out of 2 preamp tubes, even equipped with JJ ECC38S (if you don't know, do yourself a favor and find out.)
It might have died on me, but it was still a solid product that withstand more years of use and abuse on this earth than I have...there's no mistaking solid Carvin reliability.

If you can, try before you buy. You never know what amp is going to sound golden until you hear it for yourself.

This is an X-100B that dates to the late '80s, this being the version that has the EL-34s on the output and the dark gray carpeting covering the outside. It has the features that others have described well: all tube, 2 footswitchable channels, spring reverb, an active 5 band graphic EQ, a selector switch for 25/50/100% power output, an impedance selector switch, and an effects loop. With 4 EL-34s at 50% power and run through an Ampeg 4 X 12 cabinet, the sound can be absolutely, brutally loud and I have yet to try it at 100% since I'd likely blow out my windows if I did. I haven't gigged in over 20 years and I'm a bass player who fiddles around on guitar so I really can't compare this to current amp offerings by the major manufacturers. I do know the sound I like though, and the clean on this amp is bright and warm whereas the lead channel with the drive dialed up a bit KILLS! I found this in a pawn shop while I was looking for a tube amp to experiment with after acquiring a couple of Marshall and Peavey SS combos and this has exceeded any and all expectations I had. This is a straightforward amp with big tube sound, clean or drive, with no gimmicks, simple and pure.

Since the graphic EQ is active, there are a lot of sounds to be had by twiddling the dials and fiddling with the slide pots. I'd also suggest taking notes on your settings with each guitar used to minimize the search for "the sound" when changing instruments. I've gotten a lot of great sounds with this setup using a Fender Strat, an ESP M 250, and several other guitars but it absolutely sounds best when I plug in an old Charvel Model 4: the clean can be a shimmering Fender/surf sound while the drive/lead is a lovely, brutal, distorted sound that sounds better than a tube Marshall, IMO. This amp and the active Charvel are wonderfully complementary with no pedals required for a killer sound. For an old bass player who isn't much of a guitarist, they sound absolutely beautiful together, giving me a bitingly clean Ventures-type tone for surf music yet lets me sound like vintage Blackmore, too, when driven and cranked: "the most fun I can have standing up" is an apt description of how I feel playing through this amp.

Since I don't gig and haven't for many years, I can't really say much about its innate reliability. But, it's solidly constructed and I would expect it to require merely a periodic tube replacement and pot cleaning and not much more. If I did gig it, though, I would carry a backup just in case the unxpected happens, like someone spilling a beer onto it. If you gig enough, as I did many years ago, you see the unexpected happen enough times to plan for it. Having a backup amp and/or guitar is just good business sense for a working musician.

Two experiences, one good. I found the owner's manual on the Carvin website and downloaded a copy, good. Then, I sent them an email about the wiring for the footswitch (planning to build my own) but never got a reply. Bad. Think I'll just rate this N/A.

I'm just a bedroom player now, having played my last gig about 25 years ago after 10 years of being in various bands. I've only come back to playing for about 2 years now, having not picked up a guitar or bass for many moons. As I've said, I'm a bass player and I've got more basses than I care to think about and about 15 guitars and 15 amps of various kinds. The only comparable amp to this is a Laney GH50L that is a killer metal amp head but can't come close to this Carvin for clean sounds and versatility. I'm not much af a guitarist, as I've said, but I know what sounds good and this amp is the real deal. Considering that they don't cost many $$$s used, it's a lot of bang for the buck. I dislike the new generation of modeling amps since I'm just a cranky old curmudgeon who believes in keeping the shortest distance between the musician and the sound; microprocessors making virtual sounds isn't musicianship to me. Oh well, I just wish I could be about 16 again and have this amp and the Charvel together...this would be, as Bogart once said, "the stuff that dreams are made of."

This is a Very versatile amp.
It has one channel that can switch between a Clean and Dirty. It has an effects loop with a volume.
It has all the features most club bands need.
I use it in Clubs, Roadhouses, outside bike rallys etc... It has enough power to fill Any stage and Most of the big Bars I play.
It has 6L6 tubes that are just plain Ballsy!... But Sweeten up nicely too.

I, mostly, use an Eric Clapton Strat (Lace Sensors) and a Les Paul Gold Top (P-90s).
It will do all I need to get the "Marshall", "Mesa Boogie" and "Fender" sounds.
It's pretty quiet for the massive gain I can dial up with mine.
The distortion is Brutal when needed.
The tone stack is ACTIVE. This means that a little goes a Long way. It took me a while to get used to them after Years of using Marshalls and Fenders.

I don't like being without a "Plan B", but I Do depend on it. There's usually an amp sitting in reserve in case of trouble. I havn't needed to switch amps with this one. It's built pretty well.

I've played Carvin equipment for many years and they're always eager to help, when I need something. Didn't need repair... They don't let other shops do warranty work on their amps. I guess that would be a weak point.

I've been playing guitar since 1964ish... Electric since 1967ish.
I'd replace it if it were lost. These things are a steal these days.
I like that it's so versatile. Don't hate anything about it.
I've A/B tested mine with several other amps. Marshall, Fender, Mesa, Bogner. This will convince you in a blind sound test.

Purchased in 1993. Three excellent features with this amp -- (1)Power. Tons of it. (2) Footswitchable effects loop. Quiet. Works well with my G Major. (3) Reverb. Huge sound. Not so good feature -- graphic equalizer. Ruins the tone. Prevents the clean channel from overdriving when pushed. Best avoided.

I use a variety of guitars -- Les Paul, Junior, ASAT, Strat, Firebird, Ricky 12. Run it at 100% power. Lower settings adversely affect the tone. Don't use the EQ. It sterilizes the tone. There is a living tube amp under there if you avoid the overbearing EQ. The distortion is sufficient for rock 'n' roll, though perhaps not for thrash. I don't know, I haven't pushed the amp that far. The amp has potential with the right tubes. I really wasn't satisfied with the sound until I replaced the stock GrooveTubes EL 34s with Yellowjackets. These added high-end shimmer and more bottom. In stock condition, it makes a good bass amp.

Extremely reliable. Has never broken down.

I once thought I had a problem with it. It turned out the trouble was with the guitar. I would have had to ship it to them, since they had no authorized service centers. This would have been rather costly, so I had a local guy look at it.

I have been playing guitar for 20 years. This amp in stock condition was ok until I got something better. After swapping out the tubes, playing it full power, and avoiding the EQ, I now have a gigable amp for when I want to use effects. Would I get another if lost or stolen? Perhaps. They're cheap.

Same as all the others listed 2 channels, high & low inputs , effects loop , ect.

I use a Les Paul Classic and a 80's Charvel with active pups. The cleans are amazing! Crystal clear and excellent note deffinition. All you could ask for in a clean channel. Then theres the lead channel. All I can say is ROCKIN FREAKIN ROLL ! Who ever said this amp was not good for metal must have already fryed their ears! Blows Marshall JCM 800 away! Massive bottom end! For all those who said this amp sounded bad heres a hint...TURN SOME FREAKIN KNOBS! This aint no Line 6 or those other amp modeling pieces of shit! This is the real deal! And about the power of this amp, 5 is deafening. More headroom than you will ever need . And the best part--- $300 used! But you are going to have to tweak on it to find the tone, but once you do..look out!

Twenty something years old and works perfectly , no scratchy pots or funny noises. Enough said!

Any time I have called them they bent over backwards to help, which is rare nowadays.

I have been playing seriously since early 80's , have played all kinds of styles of music, been through more amps than most people been through pairs of shoes and for me this is the perfect amp. I would gladly trade a Marshall for one and know I got the better of the deal. I play 80's Metal and it nails it! Very quiet , first rate amp. But remember this is a tube amp and what tubes it has in it makes a hell of a lot of diffence. For my money its Svetlana EL-34s and EH 12ax7s.

I BOUGHT MY CARVIN X-100B BACK IN 1986 AND I SOLD MY MARSHALL,BECAUSE MY CARVIN BLEW IT AWAY. THE TONAL RANGE IS GREAT AND I HAVE NOT LOOKED BACK SINCE. THE KEY TO UN LOCK THE AMPS POTENTIAL IS EXPERIMENTATION AND PATIENTS, YOU'LL BE REWARDED WITH GOOD TONE.

I USE JACKSON,KRAMER,GIBSON AND HOME MADE GUITARS(I USE DIMARZIO EVOLUTION,FAST TRACK 1 AND 2,X2N,LAWRENCE X-500,L 250, FENDER 69 CUSTOM SHOP FENDER PICK UPS,TEXAS SPECIALS, AND DUNCAN SCREAMING DEMON), I PLAY BLUES, 80'S SHRED,80'S METAL,THRASH,FUSION,AND CLASSIC ROCK.THE CLEAN CHANNEL SPARKLES BUT GETS A LITTLE BRITTLE WHEN PUSHED, THE DISTORTION IS THICK BUT IT GETS A LITTLE CRACKLEY. I USE THE AMP FOR GIGS,PRACTICE AND SESSIONS.

THE AMP ONLY NEEDED SERVICING ONCE, BUT I'M HAPPY.

THEY TREATED ME OKAY,BUT SINCE IT'S DISCONTINUED, THEY DON'T CARE.I WISH I COULD FIND ANOTHER FS-36 SWITCH!

GREAT AMP, COSTUMIZE AND IT ALL THE AMPS YOU'LL EVER NEED. LET'S PUT PRESSURE ON CARVIN TO BRING BACK THE X-100B OR PRODUCE A X-100C!!!!.......DREAM ON BOWINKLE.

Gone over already. But my model in particular...

-100w power, all tube
-2x12AX7 and 4x6L6GC
-shared parametric EQ
-assignable 5-band graphic EQ
-selectable ohm rating (4, 8, 16)
-25%, 50%, and 100% power ratings
-gain boost and "bright" clean push/pull switches

There's some good and some bad here. As far as good goes, the 5 band graphic EQ is absolutely amazing for dialing in just the right tone, especially on the clean channel. I've gotten this head manuver through any type of clean sound imaginable, from sparkling bright to dirtier blues or jazz tones, and I attribute it largely to the 5-band graphic EQ.
Secondly, the selectable power rating (25%, 50%, 100%) is great. Sure, this feature is nothing new on tube amplifiers, but the beauty of the X-100B is, while most amps simply cut power by the tube (i.e. 50% only runs through 2 of the tubes while 100% is all 4, etc.) this head simply uses all 4 tubes at a lower level. This is one of many great ideas the people at Carvin had, as not only does it make maintenence less confusing (no confusion as to which tubes have run their course) but it just simply sounds better when 4 tubes are working to produce the output of 2. In fact, I rarely ever played this head on 100%, it was mostly kept on 50% just because the sound was that much better.
Both of these features are really great ideas from Carvin, and I often wonder why more amp companies don't take the hint. It's perplexing why we have to buy out of production, vintage equipment to get features more modern than what we find at the store. =/

Anyway, the bad parts of some of the features. This amp was big in the 80s, so of course it has the same problems of most electronics of the era; it's both ugly and huge. In size I'd compare it to a Marshall JCM900, but maybe slightly heavier and longer. It stretch past my AVT Marshall 412 cabinet (go ahead and laugh) and the edges still hang off the edges of my current Mesa 212. Also, I got one of the models with the gray carpeting, and personally I reccomend trying to find a tolex covered model that runs on 6L6GCs if you have the option. This stuff is just ugly.
The effects loops does what it should, but it's a shame that you need the (rather elusive) FS-36 footswitch for it to be functional at all. At worst you can still just daisy-chain up any of your pedals, but it would've been nice to have it functional.
My least favorite aspect of the amp is the shared parametric EQ, largely because of how much more tweakable the clean tone is as opposed to the crunch tone. Sure the 5-band graphic EQ is assignable and makes up for it somewhat, but in most cases it's going to give a boost to whatever channel it's assigned to.

All in all, the Features on the amp have their shortcomings, but the postive aspects more than make up for it.

I have played this amp through all sorts of guitars with plenty of pickup configurations, the story is always the same for most of them.
The crunch sound is..."nothing special" I guess is the word for it. It can out-Marshall a Marshall, if that's any real accomplishment. Not that it's bad, in fact if you're a solo guitarist in a thrashy band I honestly reccomend the crunch mode, since scooping the mids on the graphic EQ can give you one of the better 80s thrash tones I've ever heard, but it just lacks versatility. It seemed like everytime I tried to bring something up it become too noisy, and when I brought it down a little any real presence just kind of died off. The crunch channel can be hard to tweak, but given the value of the amp it's not a bad choice as a backup.
I said it before but I cannot reiterate it enough; the clean channel on this amplifier is beautiful, easily the best I've ever heard. There's enough features with the amp (graphic EQ, bright switch, etc.) to literally dial in any sound with almost any guitar. My primary guitar was a Spirit model Steinberger with an H/S/H configuration of EMG Select pickups. They're not the best you can get by any means, but with that configuration and this clean channel I had no trouble finding any sound I wanted. One of the few amps that with the right configurations you can get as damn close as it gets to an older Fender amp, minus the reverb.
Speaking of which, the reverb on this amp seems kind of tacked on. It's not nearly full enough and usually sounds pretty artificial, but it gets the job done.

While the crunch and reverb on this amp could've used some tweaking and improvements, I stand by the clean channel on this amp as being one of the best I've ever heard, and well worth the price of admission on it's own.
Crunch - 7
Clean - 10
Reverb - 6

I didn't have the amp long enough to take it out on the road for any period of time, but I bought it used with plenty of battlescars. I could tell when I saw it it had seen more than a few days on the road, and every aspect of it was perfectly functionable.
One good part of the heftiness of the amp is it is built like a tank. I have given it it's share of "tests" over the past couple months and I'm convinced that Carvin spares no expense when it comes to making sure their equipment can handle whatever kind of abuse you can dish out.
If it's your main amp, carry along some extra tubes (always a smart idea with even the most durable amps) and feel confidient about playing without a backup.

I give it a 5 average, I tried to contact Carvin about where I could find an FS-36 and they never got back to me. The next time I tried to get a hold of them was about replacement logos, and the response was prompt if a little informal. One positive experience, one negative one.
I think their customer service is hit or miss, as I've heard plenty of good stories, too. I imagine if you get a hold of them at the right time with the right rep, they'd bend over backwards to help you out.
I wasn't so lucky.

Definitely one of the better amps I've played for this price.
As a bit of a Carvin afficiendo I trust their products more than most companies, and I highly reccomend this head as a backup.
However, if you're running seperate heads for different sounds, I would pick one of these up immediately for the clean channel. Words can't express the versatility of it, and if you wanted a better reverb it might be possible to extend one through the effects loop, but that would also require you to go through the trouble of finding an FS-36. =/
If I had the money to spare, I would keep it just for the clean channel, but otherwise it's still a decent amplifier overall for the small price you'll have to pay for a used one. Just keep an eye open for that footswitch.

This is a small 2 channel,tube, 1x12 combo made in 1984. It has a footswitch which features a middle switch that, when activated, provides a 6 db volume boost, handy for leads.

I play all styles and use Strats and LesPauls. I use a variety of effects with this amp. I've owned this amp for 20 years and it has been great. I've played a few larger outdoor venues and have had players come up to me wondering where my big rig is and looking in disbelief when I show them my tilted back X 60 with a 57 stuffed in front of it. These are great little underrated amps. One big improvement I've made lately is to replace the supplied Celestian G12 M 70 with a Celestian G 12 75. The 70 can be a little high end and brittle,but can it ever take a pounding, like it has for 19 years.A tough speaker. Excellent clean channel and very warm,grunge gain channel.This thing sounds even better through a 2x12 or 4x12 cab.

Hands down, the most reliable amp I've ever owned. This amp has been gigged constantly and just keeps pumping out the tone. It is a true tube tone that doesn't hide much or soften up fretwork mistakes,but who cares anyway. Play the way you play and get it down on a CD the way you play it.That's what originality's all about. Fuck smooth polished,overproduced and processed pablum. Thats for the talentless ones. OK OK enough preaching.......

Good people to deal with.

This is the best small combo you can buy.Very reasonably priced used. Remember the G 70 speaker is a bit Ho Hum. Get a greenback or a Celestian 75. I also have an X60 head with the 5 band EQ. Excellent as well.Tube tone is the best and always will be, and lets face it, there's nothing better than the 'Hum' and the site of those 'Blueorange'glowers in the back.....

from chime to grind active eq and reverb
this thing does country-jazz-metal-rock-industrial-goth-you name it
i've gotten it out of this baby!!!!!
i have a 6L6 version and an EL-34 one-man they blend well-but truth be told--6L6 one into a 16 ohm cab and people get bummed cause they
just spent 2 grand on a bogner and i spent 150 bucks and i like the carvin better. zappa knew tone yes he did

frank zappa used this and next time you see vai
remember the legacy's are for show guess what's under the stage piped to the pa---hmmmmm? i did backline in vegas and guess what i saw going to the house. i will put this against anything and kick your ass. hell i've had people tell me to superglue the knobs cause it sounds so good.

all i've done is put in jan phillips 5881's with mullard ecc83's and look out bogner boy. i just spanked you for pennies on the dollar
a friggin tank

the best
they get excited when you tell then your still rockin with a 20 year old carvin
if i could have any endorsement it would be carvin and gibson

one hundred and fifty dollars
so you go get a 2nd job to pay for your triple rectiFIRE
i ain't a snob except when it comes to this guy
i will put it up against anything well except my 68 plexi--thats another story-

find one and snatch it up before they go up!!!!

Carvin, a California company, has been making great products for over fifty years now. In order to keep prices down they have always shipped direct to the consumer, thus making quality affordable to the average man in the street.

This review is for a 1984 model with the older "Big C" script logo and 6L6 power tubes in the output (around 86/87 carvin changed these amps slightly,adopted their new logo, and began using EL34's).

It is a 2 channel amp with your standard "Treble", "Bass", "Midrange", and "Presence" controls. These controls are shared by both channels. They are also ACTIVE. To people unfamilar with active tone controls: IT IS MUCH BETTER TO CUT THAN TO BOOST. If you want to add highs for example, it will sound more natural if you cut some bass and mids. Cranking the tone controls can make the amp sound very harsh because you are actually increasing db's (gain) to the preamp.

The Clean channel has it's own "Volume" control as well as a "Pull Bright" switch. On the Lead channel there is also a bright switch called "Pull Hi Lead" as well as "Volume" and "Gain" controls.

The X Amp extras include a 5 band graphic EQ (assignable to one of the channels), a 3 spring reverb (footswitchable) , an effects loop (footswitchable), and power switch to run your amp at 25,50 or 100 watts.

This amp is very simply laid out but, because of the active tone controls it can be difficult to use until you understand how it behaves.

This was the first tube amplifer I ever owned. I now own over 25 amps and I still find use for this one. I have played in the same band for almost 20 years. We started out playing Metal, then Rock, and finally Jazz. The X100B has been versatile enough to hang with my style as it has changed and evolved. It has never been noisy (wish I could say that about some of my other amps).

The Clean channel is OK. I hear tons of people rave about the clean side of this amp but, if that's what your looking for I think you could do much better elsewhere. Compared to a blackface Fender or older Vox it's pretty lifeless.

The distorted side however, is where the amp shines. If you're looking for tight rhythm where every note of a chord can be heard clearly-THIS IS YOUR AMP. You can play chords with 7ths and 9ths and it wont turn to mush.

This amp has tons of headroom until you get the volume up to around 8. It then begins to soften and become much warmer from 9 to 10. This is where you will find a rounder lead tone with less pick attack on the strings.

This amp has more distortion than a JCM 800 but not as much as a Mesa Boogie Mark 3. I always kicked in my old TS9 (another good buy in 83/84) for solos, so you will need some kind of overdrive for leads unless you can run the amp wide open (This was my prefered choice in the studio but, how many clubs will let you get away with it?).

I play traditional Strats with three single coils. I have no problem getting a thick sound for chords and leads with this amp. One suggestion I would make is to try this amp with different ohm cabs. The original Carvin 4/12s were wired at 4 ohms. This makes the amp sound a little harsh to my ears. I changed to 16 ohm cabinet and noticed a big improvement (Front and rear-loaded cabs also make a difference-try 'em both.). I also changed preamp and output tubes (5881's in the output now).

I give this amp a "5" for it's clean tone,"10" for it's (distorted) rhythm tone, and "7" for it's lead tone. I'd also give it a "10" for it's versatilty so, I'm averaging the score at "8"

I used this amp in countless rehearsals and gigs and never had a breakdown. Once, I blew a fuse-popped in a spare, and kept on going. That is the only problem I've had in 20 years.

Carvin has an excellent reputation for repair and service. Having said that, I have never had to have them repair anything!

I have been playing for over 20 years and have gone through tons of gear but, I always hung on to this peice.

For distorted rhythms where you want the ultimate in definition-THIS AMP HAS NO EQUAL. Chords and arpeggios can be heard clearly without turning to a muddy mess.

I now have vintage Marshalls,Voxes ,etc. and I still come back to the Carvin for this particular function. This is also one of the only amps I own that is not point to point wired.

On the downside, the Clean is not the best but, it's servicable. Likewise, the reverb is OK. It's not Fender reverb but what (besides a Fender)is? My biggest gripe is not being able to use the graphic on both channels instead of just one (I might have it modifed for this in the future).

For all these complaints, I would still buy this amp again. While the lower power settings don't sound the same as the 100 watt, they do provide some interesting tonal contrasts. The effects loop is a godsend, and when you use the footswitch to kick it in you can actually set a boost up to 10db (via the three position level switch on the back)! Also, the tone is different with the switch in and out so you have a couple of extra options there as well.

When Carvin changed to EL34's, the sound of this amp changed. They also tried to update their circuitry with more gain to compete with Mesa and others. In my opinion they ruined the amp. If what I discribe sounds interesting to you, look for the early logo 6L6 version.

When people speak well of Carvin amps they always mean the X amp models. There is a difference. Carvin never had the success with any of the other amps they created that the X amps acheived.

I don't currently own this amp but I hope this helps. This amp was probably manufctured in the middle of the 80's. It has 2 channels and an eq. It was fairly generic for the time but similar to an old Boogie with the eq and all. It was versatile enough to do A Vanhalen tribute band. It was a super loud amp and sounded best cranked up.

This amp could do a good brown sound on down to a good Skynnard sound. It suited our style at the time. It wasnn't really noisy. the clean was cool and always sounded best with a chorus. The clean never distorted for me. The distortion wasn't really brutal but it chugged along fine.

In all the time we owned it we replaced one tube. I think that was over a 17-20 month period.

never used them. Won't speculate.

Overall, with the head and 2-2X12's for around a thousand dollars was a good deal. I loved the amp but sold it after I got out of service to ge money for a down payment on real estate.

I bought this 100 watt head in 1986 along with a 4 x 12 cabinet direct from Carvin. It basically has 2 channels - clean and lead. Each channel has separate volume controls. The clean channel has a "Bright" setting, which is activated by pulling the volume knob. The lead channel has a higher gain setting by pulling on the master volume knob. It also has a 5 band EQ which can be used on either channel but only one at a time. It came with a 3 button foot switch for channel, effects loop and reverb. My basic complaint about this amp is that the clean and lead channels share the same Treble, Mid, Bass, Presence and Reverb controls which is somewhat of a compromise when trying to dial in a certain sound on each channel even though you have the graphic EQ. The lead channel on this amp is no where near the type of saturation you would find on a rectified boogie (I also to own a Dual Rectifier) so if that is what you are looking for save up more money and go for the Mesa. With mid level distortion it gives a pretty good dirty sound but once you crank the lead drive control the bottom end gets "flubby" and breaks apart. As far as rating this category, I have to give the clean channel a definite 10 but the lead channel is closer to a 6 so the average of the two gives this category an 8.

Like I mentioned above, I bought this amp in 1986 and at that time I was into 80's shred and thrash metal. This amp definitely excels at that genre of music, especially the lead channel with the EQ on, the mids scooped and a good distortion pedal(TS9 etc). To me though, the most impressive thing about this amp is the clean channel - very clear and powerful. It is also the reason why I never sold this amp in 17 years even though I have gone through a few other amps within the same time period. My style of music now can best be described as any type of rock, hard rock, metal or blues of which this amp can hold its own. I would expect that this amp can be used for jazz or country because of the clarity of the clean channel. It is definitely a LOUD amp but not noisy like other 100 watt tube amps.

Having owned this amp 17 years I have only had to retube a few times and resolder cold solder joints a couple of times. No major malfunctions even though this amp spent plenty of time bouncing around in cars and trucks going to and from gigs and studios and also spending many years in a smokey basement bandroom environment.

I only had to deal with them once when I had a question about impedance matching with speaker cabinets and they sent me a technical spec sheet right away.

I have been playing for close to 20 years now. Although I know there are better amps around, when you consider the price to performance ratio this amp's value far exceeds its asking price. I don't remember what I paid for this amp in 1986 but the price paid from others on this list seems to be in the $200-300 range which is a bargain when compared to Peavey or Marshall amps in the same price range.

2 channels - clean and lead

reverb - nice smooth reverb. Sounds great, but I've been using delay more lately.

active eq

graphic eq - switchable to clean or lead channel via toggle switch on the face plate.

I'm told that my X100B seems to be the one of the last manufactured before production stopped. I believe the amp is late eighties or early ninties.

The X100B is incredibly versatile. Because of the active EQ, the smallest changes have a big impact on the sound. The addition of a switchable graphic EQ adds even further to the versatility. It can recreate many different tones, but its strength is '80's or early ninties metal, classic rock/blues and possibly jazz because of the fantastic clean channel.

The amp is 2 channel with shared EQ and reverb. The channel switching, fx loop and reverb are all footswitchable.

I wish the graphic eq was footswitchable. I wish it had a bias switch for different tubes. I wish it didn't have that ugly gray carpeting!! But in all honesty, these would be more enhancements than real complaints.

The amp is absurdly loud. I play at home through a Marshall 1960a cab and I can't put it past 1.5 or 2 without going deaf. The clean has awesome headroom. I can't get it to break up on its own without making my ears bleed.

Extremely versatile tube amp. Mine takes EL34's. Can do anything from jazz cleans (yes the cleans are THAT good!) to classic rock to metal.

I have 5 guitars all loaded with humbuckers and floyds. Real shredder guitars. They all sound very different through this amp. But the X100B can be tuned to accomodate their differences.

I generally play very shred oriented stuff (Paul Gilbert, Andy Timmons, Jason Becker etc... just not nearly as well) and this amp does all of that flawlessly. If I need some more dirt, I just turn on my Boss SD-1 to push it a little harder, but I find myself rarely using the Boss these days.

The amp is incredibly quiet. I turned it up to 4 once (which almost knocked the windows out of my room) before I could actually hear that the thing was on.

The amp can easily out-Marshall a Marshall. Prior to this amp, I owned a Marshall JCM900 and this amp absolutely kills it in just about every category. Its very good at metal tones from the 80's or early 90's. I've gotten some very aggressive tones out of by scooping the mids out, but this is not the amp for that type of sound. If thats what you're looking for, get a Mesa Boogie dual rectifier. If you want a hotrodded Marshall, look no further.

I have yet to get the clean channel to break up. I imagine I would have to put the volume up so loud, it would kill small animals. The clean is one of the nicest, warmest, fattest clean sounds I have ever heard. I would say its easily on par with any vintage Fender that I've played, but it has its character. It doesn't necessarily sound like a Fender, but it can absolutely hold its own.

The amp has alot of gain, but its not modern voicing like a Rectifier or a 5150. Its like a hotrodded Marshall. It sings beautifully, sustains for days and has a voice and character all its own. But its closest kin would be a souped up JCM 800 or JMP.

I haven't gigged anywhere with this amp, but I've owned it for 2 years and its been flawless. I bought it used, so someone had to have owned it for a number of years without any problems. Its very well made. I took it apart to peek inside and retube it and its built like a tank.

Its old so they won't support it anymore. I asked Carvin for the schematics and they emailed them to me. Kind of snotty in the replies, but I gave them a piece of my mind and they changed their attitude pronto. I would assume that if I bought a new amp from them, I would probably get kinder responeses. But they were helpful.

I've been playing for almost 20 years. I've owned a bunch of other amps and I'm extremely satisfied with this amp. It sounds atleast 5 times more expensive than what I paid for it. The only amp I've played that envoked the same reaction from me when I first plugged into it was a Bogner Ecstasy 101B.

I absolutely love this amp. Even if I get tired of it and buy another amp, I would not sell it. Its too versatile and sounds too good not to keep. If anything happened to it, I would get another one. I'm actually considering getting another one to make a stereo rig. There are a couple of other amps I would like to get, but not as a replacement. I like the idea of having a drastically different feel or tone at my disposal.

I love just about everything about it. I love the lead channel, I love the clean. I love its versatility, but I've found its strengths to be in the 80's - 90's metal area.

It was an unexpected buy. I went into Guitar Center to buy an fx processor and saw this thing. Decided to give it a try and was completely blown away. I spent the next 15 minutes trying not to like it, but couldn't. I went into Guitar Center to look at a new guitar and played through a Marshall DSL100. Within seconds, I was able to get my sound. So I would say the X100B bears a very strong resemblance to that amp. I also owned a JCM900 for about 8 years and this amp really kills it in just about every category.

I wish it was covered in Tolex rather than that nasty gray carpeting, but thats a small price to pay.

Its the prototypical sleeper amp. I would highly recommend it to Marshall fans or fans of shred/80's metal.

Not quite sure when this monster was made, bought it used from atomic music in college park MD which happens to have one of the best guitar/amp techs on the east coast. After talking to the man for a while about what I was looking for -"2x12 all tube combo"- he was very excited to show me the X100B.
2 channels- 100 all tube watts- 5 band eq- reverb- push/pull bright and lead knobs- effects loop- british series celestions- and "thank the lord!" a foot switch!
Well I plugged in and gave it shot.....
I never played through a CARVIN before, after about 15 years of marshall, peavy, fender, and most recently LINE-6,......I finally found my amp!
Not to mention the fact that the wonderful people at atomic music accepted my trade-in of a ARIA proII bass(5$ at a pawnshop)an IBANEZ RG-270 w/ a scream'n deamon in it, and a crap bass floor board(DOD),and $50.00 cash..... I was very happy!

Then I took it home for the real test. I plugged in my sience project of a guitar (yamaha neck,charvelle body,duncan pickups w/ fender noise free electronics, sounds kinda funny but it plays and sounds great)and WOW! first thing I noticed was the power and warmth of the lead channel. Playing in an all wood room really brought out the bottom end. The reverb is ok, but not outstanding. The 5-band eq has alot of personality to it. You can get alot out of eq to dial in what you need and then some.
The clean channel is great w/ the reverb on about 4 or 5.
Then I plugged in my IBANEZ artcore hollow body w/ the same settings on the amp. It sounded wounderful with great control of the feedback having the gain in lead mode at about 7.
If metal is your thing, which is what i grew-up with and still like to play from time to time I recomend running a LINE6 pod in to the face of this amp and you can get any thing you want, and I mean anything. Also my tube screamer sounded great. Other then that for what i'm doing musicaly now the overdrive is perfect. Even for mic'd studio situations it does very well.

As far as reliability goes with mine all I did is replace the tubes to keep the low hum down and she's as good as new. Built like a tank, and weighs like tank the way a good combo should be. I havent gotten into the guts of the amp but considering the price I payed a $50-$100$ repair is worth it to me, at least. But I would be suprised if something freak were to happen.

Customer support is something I know nothing about when it comes to CARVIN, hopefully I won't need to. But after reading some of the letters on this site, and other sites concerning factory help, I'm a bit bothered by what I've read. For those who spend money on new carvin gear no matter what it is , or how long ago you got your gear, I hope that they are professonal enough to respect your concern, and treat you accordingly. If they don't have the answer then I hope they can at least point you in the right direction. They know this is an expensive hobby/job and their is alot of compitition out there.

If my X-100B were stolen I would cry. It sounds great and for the price I paid I don't think I could easily find a deal that sweet again.
Overall if you play heavy rock, punk, jazz, even some new country, and you need a amp for about $350 to $400 that is reliable and sounds great which is more important than anything, If you find one get it, I think you'll be happy.

Also if any one out there has a 2x12 carvin exstention cab for sale $100 to $125 please e-mail me at scott_tipton1@yahoo.com
prefer the cab with the grey fuzzy camel hair looking fabric "boy is it ugly!". Gotta have one. thanx

100-Watt tube head (early-mid 80s - Script log and tolex covered, 4x 6L6 tubes). 5-band EQ, Presence, Treble, Bass and Mid Controls, Dual channel, effects loop, %100/60 power switch, 2x4 ohm outs and one 8 ohm out, 2x 1/4-inch jack footswitch ins (I use a Crate FS70 without a problem - the older Carvin switches can be hard to find).

I'm a musical schizo - surf, punk, rock, metal, jazz, blues and country, it's plenty versatile for my needs.

I have played a Hamer Sunburst import (RIP - it bit the dust), a Fender Toronado, and a Fender Jaguar into a Boss DS-1 Distortion pedal(occasionally, for added distorted boost on the drive channel)the Carvin into a 4x12 Ampeg cab (sorry, the cab is borrowed and I'm a litle fuzzy on the specs). The only noise I get is from the pedal when couples with the amps' lead channel, but that comers with the territory. Otherwise, quiet with very no unwanted feedback (mind you this is in a small practice room surrounded by other amps, mics and PA's which would -and do- make lesser amps feeback like crazy).

This amp is totally versatile. In one jam session I noodled on blues riffs, surf rock, and Sabbath-style metal with very little to adjust. The distortion, fully cranked, is more of a vintage overdrive than a thrashy style distortion (but if that's what you need, just throw a distortion pedal on top of the dirty channel - voila! Problem solved). The clean is very Fender like - very rich, and didn't break up. The verb isn't quite as wet and slappy as a Fender though.

I would definitely use this amp without a back up, even though it's probably 20 years old - that alone says alot.

No dealings with Carvin, but again, it's 20 years old.

I have been playing for over 15 years. I've done the solid-state thing. I've Done the modeling amp thing. I'm sticking with the real thing. If it were lost or stolen, I would hunt down another one ASAP. It's a versatile amp with no frills or superfluous toys - just raw power. It's got great tone at all settings. I've played with Mesas, a Marshall or two, and a Fender Twin and Deluxe, and can't badmouth them, but most amps are one-trick-ponies, it's a fact of life. I feel that I get more versatility out of the Carvin, without the painful price tag.

I have 2 of these amps; one a head and one a 212 combo. I don't know the years of manufacture but I would guess mid-late 80s. The amps are rediculously versatile and yet simple to use. You can tweak to get any sound you want. It is the loudest amp I've heard (I've owned Marshalls). I gig/rehearse with it. Features compare with any other amp I've tried but the sound is what should sell you on any amp.

I play a standard strat (w/ Seymour Duncan screamin demon at bridge) and a Jackson dinky. The style of music we play is broad. ACDC to Bob Marley and everything inbetween. The headroom on clean is the best I've ever heard cranked loud and it's tone rivals Fender twin (I also own a Twin but havn't used it since I bought these amps). The distortion "out marshalls" Marshalls. I looked for an amp for 3 years and I've owned or tried for extended periods Mesa, Rivera, Fender, Peavey 5150, Twin, Trace Elliot, Laney and others I've since forgotten. Some of these amps (fender, mesa, marshall) I've A/B'ed with the Carvin and they simply can't compete. I can tell you I was very picky and critical about my amp sound. Remember it is as much your instrument as is your guitar. When I found this amp I was delighted. Best sound I've heard. Period. One fellow above noted that the distortion sucked. I can only say that there must have been something seriously wrong with his amp. These amps have more dirt than Pigpen. I cannot imagine and style of music that would require more great sounding distortion than this amp (this includes you metal thrashers). This amp has tone and balls. Buy one you will not be sorry. They still command a great price on resale which says something about thier desirability. One thing of note is the reverb sound better in the 212 combo than the head. That is to be expected I suppose since the tank in the combo sits in a larger "acoustical box."

Owned for 2 years and never had a real problem except tubes which are a regular maintenance item anyway. Hint; replace with Groove Tubes.

These guys have been extremely helpful; telephoned them when my amp was sounding funny (new tubes fixed the problem) and they were very helpful. Even sent me a schematic.

I would immediatly purchase another. I have not heard any of Carvin's newer products but it is a shame that this amp is no longer in production. Hope my review helps.

i believe my amp is an 86 model
the amp is fairly versitile perhaps too versatile, i play every thing from metal to noise, punk, and rootsy blues and jazz tones. Ive owned this amp for ten to twelve years and it has so many options that its taken me years to discover some of the capabilities with settings and different guitars.
I wish the eq was available to both channels or able to turn off completely
i rarely use the effects loop, ive tried but never seemed to need it. might be nice for some rack effects which ive still graduated tol
ive used this amp in live situations and regular practice for years. also used it in many studio settings. it has way way way enough power for i think anyone. My amp is of the 3 12ax7 , 4x6l6 variety. would like to try the el36 type to see the difference

i tend to use strat style guitars, ibenez, strats, old fender mustangs and broncos with my amp. want to experiment with some gibsons to see the differences. notice many options with the guitar and pickup differences. it seems to suit most of my needs especially live but ive had hard time achieving true tube amp sound i hear in classic old style amps like the ampeg jet series
the amp is not noisy at all and ive played with players of all types of amps and have been shocked by the sheer silence of my amp vs theirs at times
like i said the amp is very versitile, the tone ive been seeking may still be in their, ive just yet to discover how to achieve it yet
the clean channel is very clean and very tubey, have been trying to discover how to preamp this to achieve tubey saturation heaven
the distortion for my taste is a bit to distortiony and not tubey enough it seems to squash my tone quite abit so i rarely run it above say one and a half except with single coil strat and then ill run it hot say four or five maybe maybe more

this is, and i cant stress it enough the most dependable amp you could possibly own. I played this amp constantly for years. five to six bands worth, four or five albulms worth of recording and rigorous practice, 3 to4 nights a week and at least a show a week or so for years it has only broken down once in a live situation and that was the tubes so ive retubed it several times myself. other than that i never needed any help with it. it is by far the most dependable amp ive ever owned

never had to

ive been playing for 22 or so years. i own no other road gear. never needed it with that amp.
id want to replace it but would consider something else,but know id buy another
i bought it from a friend because i needed a powerful amp and wanted a tube head. was offered a good deal
great amp for young poor musician with want for tone

EL-34 Tubes, 2 Channels, active tone & grphic eq, reverb.

After twelve years it is still my go-to amp for sessions -- engineers and producers that I have worked with still use my tone as the benchmark by which all others are compared. Much of that is due to knowing how to choose and use equipment. I've heard alot of average tones from Marshall and Mesa users.

12 years and going...

I've dealt with Carvin many times...

Great amp at any price -- not a "poor-man's Boogie."

made in the 80s .the5 band eq,&factory hot rod switch make this a great amp for metal and the rms selector is great for recording a cranked tone at a lower level

i play an 86 usa warlock with a dimarzio super distortion in the bridge and am always able to get whatever tone i want from gutteral distortion to a crystal clear clean tone ,and its loud ive never turned it up past 3

i had to replace the tubes and have it biased two times the first time was just because the preveous owner didnt take care of it and the second because the guy i brought it to did a hack job repairing it, but since then ive never had a problem.my frirnd also plays one and with reguler servicing has never had a problem

i got it used soi havnt delt with carvin much but i was able to get a new owners manual and foot switch scematics from them without a hassle

been playing for 10 years and this is my rig.as ive told my friends if i had the money for a much "better"amp i probably stick with the carvin it has served me well ind i love the versitility of the amp

Made in 1987 with the black tolex covering. 2 channels 5 band graphic eq etc.. you know the rest

I play either an ESP vintage plus strat with a seymour duncan JB or a neck thru charvel also loaded with the JB. I used to only use the gain channel until I wanted something else from the head i just wasn't getting... so I started using the clean channel which is remarkable with a boss metal zone pedal... now i have a great tone. my settings... presence 2 treble 2 mids 8 bass 6. with a slight reverse V on the 5 band eq... ok you could say i am pushing the mids... but people dont realize the guitar is a midtone instrument and instead of making it sound like something it isn't I prefer to encourage it's natural tone... what i get is a real "tube" sound.. i play a tube head and i want to hear the tubes damnit and the only way to do that is to push the mids.. another thing is i am basically replacing the treble with mids and i get a real smooth sounding high end instead of the brittle mid scooped sound I started with. I love this amp

I have had this amp since about 93-94 and it has never broken... i was getting some static from the 5 band eq... so i took it apart.. cleaned the connection for the chips on the eq and viola... it worked great again. I am not easy on equipment and this thing gets bounced around in my car all of the time between practices and gigs.

I did get a footswitch but that was back in 94... the guys at the carvin shop gave me a manual for the amp which was way cool. all my experiences have been good.. it's never broken down so i haven't really needed any support

My X-100B came out of the factory in the mid-eighties hot-rodded by carvin. The clean channel has a hybrid power section so it wont break up. The overdrive channel is balls-out, it will give you 80's metallica tone like nothing else (with EMG pickups of course). I play everything from jazz to metal and it has plenty of feature for me. Effects loop is pretty good. It has an awesome graphic EQ and active EQ controls. Good, quiet 2 channel switching, gain boos switch (very very useful). Reverb is just a little too sproingy in my opinion. The only thing is that you can only assign the graphic EQ to one channel, and the tone knobs are for both channels.

For balls to the wall metal tones I play a USA BC Rich mockingbird with really high-powered humbuckers, an EMG-81 in the bridge and an 85 in the neck position. The metal tone is the best I've ever heard. The only amp that matches it's insanely good and plentiful distortion is the Mesa Rectifier amps, the Marshall stacks dont't touch it. For clean and slightly distorted tones I like my Fender Strat that has a medium-power humbucker in the bridge. I play some jazzy and bluesy stuff on the clean channel, or the dirty channel (gain around 2). It's pretty good, but you dont get that bouncy tube tone, but that's probably because it's a 100-watt stack. This amp only gets noisy when you use it's stupidly high gain levels at extreme tone settings. Like for System of a Down (by the way, their guitarist actually uses this amp) I have the tone controls like this: Presence=5, Treble=7, Mid=4, Bass=7, then i turn the gain boost on and turn the knob to 6 and I have plenty of distortion without the extraneous noise. At high volumes you have to back off on all the tone controls a little bit because the amp gets too loud and the bass can get muddy and the treble can really cut you. The distortion is very versatile and can get very brutal. You can get Dimebag darrel attack, or super mellow blues tones. Oh yeah, for all you real music lovers out there, frank Zappa really like to use this amp in his touring rig!

I totally trust this amp. I never bring a backup, but I really think I should (just need the money for a Mesa combo!). the amp has never totally broken down. About 6 months after i got it, I started getting tube microphonics, and a lot of feedback at high volumes while at rehearsal. But I just changed the tubes (I think it had the originals) and it has been great ever since.

Never dealt with Carvin about this amp. I find that to be a good thing.

I've been playing since I was 9, and I'm 15 now. I don't mean to be cocky at all but I think I have a pretty good amount of experience. I can go to little guitar shops and impress the veterans of the instrument. Besides my previously mentioned guitars, I have some hollowbody japanese jazz guitar knock-off, an older Ovation Celebrity acoustic-electric, and a BC Rich Warlock (my ratty guitar). I love everything about this amp except for the volume at times. So I'm planning on getting a small, all-tube, 112 combo amp so that I can really push the tubes without being in an arena. If it were stolen, I would buy another one---unless I had the money for a Mesa/Boogie or one of those boutique amps (Bogner, Soldano, Rivera...).I've played that Crate Blue VooDoo thingy, and it was quite horrible. I find the carvin to be a little better than an unmodified Marshall stack. But any Mesa would show this amp how it's done. All in all it's a good amp that you absolutely can not beat for the money.

Manufactured in the early 90's (I'm guessing) because it has the EL-34 power tubes and the hideous grey carpet covering on the case. The amp is very versatile, great clean channel, excellent lead channel. The amp has channel switching (either manually on the control panel or with the FS-36 foot switch), effects loop, 5 band equalizer, lead gain boost (20db) and a bright switch on the clean channel. Features that I do not like: Only one set of tone controls for either channel (so they cannot be equalized independently), Control switch for designating the equalizer for either the lead or rythmn (clean) channel, again the issue arises about seperate channel equalization. I use the amp in my basement, the 100 watt output power is more than sufficient to rattle the house, as is the 50% power selection. This amp also has a 25% power selection to bring the volume levels down enough that the neighbors and police are not knocking on the door (not that you would ever hear them). This amp is extremely loud! This late version of the X-100 has 4 EL-34 power tubes and 3 12ax7's in the preamp. It uses active tone controls (and that is where most people mess-up when EQ'ing this amp) so you cannot just cannot dime the the controls and expect a good tone. Small adjustments of the controls equal big changes in tone. The 5 band equalizer is also an active circuit and again small adjustments mean big changes in tone.

I use mainly a Carvin DC-135 through this amp, and it sounds great. The amp is suitable for just about any musical style as mentioned in many of the other reviews. The clean channel is spectacular most review are in agreement with this. I think the lead channel is also nothing short of outstanding. The normal overdrive has a very Fenderish quality about it, especially when using single coil pick-ups. However, when you pull the lead boost you get distortion "O" plenty. The hi-gain boost has a Mesa Boogie type sound quality when these settings are used: PRES.-3, BASS-6, MID.-5,TREB.-8 and then use the EQ. to fatten or brighten it up as desired. Marshall tones can also be extracted as well: PRES.-7, BASS-7, MID.-6, TREB.-7. These settings are right out of the manual for the amp and I find them to be pretty acurate. So that is a starting point for guys that have had trouble getting tone out of this amp. Like I said this one of the best sounding amps I have ever heard. Typically I like the preamp gain set between 6.5-7, any more than that it begins to sound fuzzy. This amp also sound at its best on the 100% power setting, 50% sounds good, but the 25% setting gives the amp a thin sound. Unlike most of the newer amps with a half power setting that shut-down two of the power tubes, the X-100 reduces the operating voltage to all four power tubes to kill off some of the volume (That why the 25% setting gets vey thin because all you have is preamp distortion and no power tube overdrive) Also I use a Sound City 4x12 bottom with Celestion speakers.

No problems yet.

Carvin E-mailed me a circuit diagram and I downloaded the orinal manual from their website.

An excellent value for a used tube amp. Prices normally run 250.00-300.00 used. If you find one buy it. you cant go wrong.

2 channel, effects loop, 100 watt head

I use have 2 jackson ( a dinky and a kelly with seymour duncan heavy metal live wire pickups), this amp is crap, it is cheap but it sounds like crap. If play heavy metal DO NOT BUY THIS AMP!!!!!!! I bought this amp thinking I could sound like steve vai but NOWAY, THIS AMP IS A POS, I HATE IT. I'm selling this amp as soon as possible and getting a 2 channel 100 watt marshall jcm 800 head,(if anyone has one please email me). But this amp could be good if you donot want a amp that distorts a lot. After playing this amp I went right back to playing with my Peavey Bandit 112, that amp sucks too, so it shows you how much I hated this amp.

It hasa broke anything but i only had it for a couple of weeks.

I been playing for 3 years. If think you'll sound like steve vai on the flexible album, you should just keep your amp and just buy a DS-1 distortion pedal. This amp sucks. I play Steve Vai type music, so I know what I'm talking about.

I bought my amp in '91 or '92. Lots of features including effects loop, channel switching, adjustable power (25W, 50W, 100W), 5 band EQ (in addition to high/mid/low knobs). It's got more power than you'll ever need in a normal gig environment. I don't think I've ever had it above 5 at the full 100 watts.

I play an Ibanez RG550 and an Ibanez Jem777. My musical style is mainly hard rock/metal. This amp is very versatile as far as the EQ goes. The knobs for hi/mid/low feature cut and boost, and you have an additional 5 band slider EQ for more cut and boost. The clean is very clean, even at fairly high volumes. You can make the clean channel break up if you really try at it, but the volume it takes is much higher than you would normally be playing at. The reverb is above average. My only complaint is that there is just not quite enough distortion for my taste. Don't get me wrong, it has a lot of gain, but not the singing sustain I really dig. Other than that, it's totally killer.

Played great right out of the box. I have only had to replace the tubes once in over 10 years. It went through a phase for a while where it wanted to blow a fuse about once a week, but that only lasted a couple of months. I have gigged with it regularly over the last 10 years, and it has never left me high and dry. Never taken a backup with me to gigs, either. That's how much I trust it.

Not really had to deal with customer support too much. The only reason for the 8 was it took the amp about a month and a half to arrive (Carvin couldn't quite track it down after they shipped it).

Overall, this is a terrific amp for the price. Like I said, my only gripe was that it doesn't have quite enough gain to suit my taste. Other than that, the X100B is top notch.

made in late 80's early 90's. I love this amp for any style of music. it has channal switching and effects loop. i never use the effects loop. the best feature it has is the 5 band EQ!

I play a Les Paul standard. The apm is mot noisy(even at high levels) You can make many sounds from this amp. The clean channal always is clean, and the distorted is juast the way i like it. (reminds me of the same kinda distortion Adam Jones uses in TOOL) I have been playing for 12 years and this amp ranks up there with some of the best ive seen!

Very reliable! No problems yet!(7 years)

I love the guys at carvin, they are helpful AND THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT!!!!!

This is a great amp. If you dont want to buy it at least check it out, Give the amp 5-10 minutes and work with the EQ on the ead channal(you will be hooked) GREAT AMP FOR THE MONEY!

This amp has a lot of great features... I love the 5 band EQ(you can get almost any sound out of it)Effects loop, channal switching pedal. I use the amp in my house or with my band. I has enough power for me.

I use a SG, 57 HUMMBUCKERS. IT SUITS MY MUSIC STYLE I PLAY A LOT OF INDIE ROCK ... NOT NOISY AT ALL. THE AMP CAN MAKE MANY DIFFERNT SOUNDS. THE DISTORSHION IS GREAT! AND THE CLEAN IS STILL CLEAN AT HIGH LEVELS.

vERY RELIABLE. I WOULD GIG W/O BACK UP NEVER BROKE ALMOST 9 YEARS OLD

THE GUYS AT CARVIN ARE GREAT GAVE ME A KNOB FOR FREE TO THE X100B AND THAT WAS 2 WEEKS AGO FOR FREE. THEY ALSO GAVE ME A POWER CABLE FOR FREE! VERY NICE GUYS

i LOVE IT... IF YOU CAN GET A GRREAT PRICE FOR IT UNDER 350$ GET IT!
CARVIN IS SOOOOOOOOOO UNDER RATED!

This is the same X100B everyone else here is yakkin' about - 3 12AX7s in the preamp, 4 EL34s in the power amp, 5 band EQ, three channels: rhythm, lead, and "Hot Rod", effects loop, etc. The coolest feature is the 25/50/100W power switch, which allows you to get maximum tube saturation even at (relatively) low power levels. Really, it has everything you could want! My only complaint is that it's UGLY - it has that grey fuzzy stuff on it, and not the black tolex that earlier models had.

I'm playing a Tele and a Strat through the amp - I play all kinds of music, but favor rootsy straight ahead rock'n'roll...the amp sounds great playing any and all styles. The first few seconds I played through it, I was sold - the sound blew me away, and reminded of the much pricier Marshalls, HiWatts, and Voxes. I notice a few other people who have reviewed this amp say they couldn't get certain sounds out of it - I don't believe that for a minute, because between the five band EQ and the treble, mid, and bass knobs, you can get pretty much ANY sound of it. I think those people just didn't TRY hard enough! The complaints about it not delivering enough distortion are bogus, too - this thing packs more of that than I (or anybody else) will EVER need. In fact, I think all but the lowest settings on the "Hot Rod" channel are TOO distorted! I'd also like to point out that this thing is also VERY quiet, as far as noise goes - even with my single coil pickups, I'm getting zero hum out of it. I can't vouch for the amp's ability to maintain a clean sound at high volumes, because I live in an apartment and don't dare turn this megaloud monster past 0.5 on the master volume knob!

I haven't owned this amp long enough to rate its dependability, but it seems like a very well-made amp, and I WOULD use it without a backup.

I have no experience whatsoever with Carvin and their customer support team, but I understand they're very helpful.

I've been playing for 15 years, and been through a slew of amps - this one is definitely a keeper! I love everything about it, except for the gray fuzz on the exterior I mentioned earlier! I also have an Acoustic G60T (Model 163), which I also love and have reviewed here, but I like the Carvin better - it has more features, makes less noise, and has an overall better sound. I think the Acoustic is slightly raunchier, which I like, but if I had to choose, I think I'd have to take the Carvin. Luckily, I don't HAVE TO choose, so I'll keep 'em both! And if either one ever gets lost or stolen, it WILL be replaced - both of these amps can be had dirt cheap, and they both sound absolutely fantastic!

-This is a 2 Channel 100 watt amplifier Pre-1988 w/ original 6L6GCs
-Active Parametric EQ (dedicated to either channel)
-Footswitchable effects loop w/ level switch(Carvin doesn't seem to be doing this anymore)
-Ohm switch, hi and lo inputs, 25%/50%/100% power settings, hi lead pull, bright pull on clean channel

The only feature I'd like that's not already there would be a bias control setup on the back panel. I saw this on a Fender Twin and think its a great idea.

Currently using a Gibson LP Std. Plus-->X-100B-->FX Loop Boss DM100 Analgo Delay Machine--> Carvin Legacy 4X12 Greenback Cab..

I've grown to love this amp after owning it for 2 years. It's great for hard rock, blues, and indie. It can get great 'barely breaking up' overdrive to hi gain rock. I wouldn't use this amp for metal. It can get a lot of distortion but I don't think its voiced for it. Get a Carvin MTS for that. Tough to describe sound but it has although adjectives you've heard when applied to that 'tube sound'. Organic, brown, blah blah blah...I love it and I'm using pretty good gear so its all relative.

Nothing gets a 10 even though I think this thing sounds awesome. My favorite guitar sound is Jawbox and Burning Airlines. It can get close but they use Marshalls and humbuckin' teles/jazzmasters (i think!). Distortion is Marshall-like, clean is not Fender-like. It sounds great but I finally got to play a Fender (the Twin) and hear about the legendary the clean. Well the legend is true and if I could by the left half of the Twin I would.

It's done tumbles in the back of my truck and nothing was wrong with it. I've bumped it into shit a lot, touched the tubes with my fingers, turn the stand-by and power switch on at the same time, let the amp run with no speaker load...Pretty much all the things that the Tech Heads tell you not to do...Well its got the original tubes and I gig and practice in band setting regularly with no problems so far.

I've had 3 experiences with Carvin and 2 were no good. First was my Legacy cab which arrived safe and sound, no problems. 2nd my uncle ordered a Legacy cab that arrived damaged. There was bowage in the wood on the side, dings and dents, and a large screwdriver size indention on the chrome corner which are protected by large styrofoam. Carvin claimed it was UPS's fault which it obviously wasn't (however shocking that may be) seeing as there were no intrusions anywhere on the box. It took a lot of hasseling and sending of pictures to get another cab sent without having to pay all that shipping back and forth even though it was their slip up. Thats the only major thing that I've been witness too and makes me question their 10 day money back guarantee. Where is the line drawn between 'what i just don't like about their gear' and 'hey! this thing was sent broken and I don't want it so I get screwed when shipping it back across the country'. The third instance was just when I ordered a bolt on neck for a project. I specifically asked the salesman if I could have inline tuner holes drilled the way they do (to get straight string pull) but have an unshaped headstock. I know its a weird request but he said they would do it, no problem, no extra cost. When I received it was just unshaped with no holes drilled. Nothing mentioned on the receipt that shows your order with options and special requests so the sales guy obviously just ignored me. I returned it and payed for shipping it back, and just didn't want to deal with their support after last time. I'm sure I could have got into a whining fit for my $20 back but at that time I wussed out and didn't want to deal with it. I should have!

I hate to get into a huge thing here but you also get different answers if you ask the same question to a different rep. For instance the structural integrity of 5 piece necks to 1 piece. You get the reps opinion instead of what Carvin's opinion is. If you have technical questions go to the Carvin board where the very helpful moderators answer quickly and honestly.

X100B was my first tube amp and it brought back the joy of playing guitar. Since, I've only bought tube amps and love em. I'm leaning towards building a rack set up and my Quad X can produce very close X100b sounds so I may part with this to get a 6L6GC 100 Watt Power Amp. I don't want to but how many 100 watt tube amps do you need?

I own a good amt of Carvins- a Vintage 33, Quad X preamp, DC150, Bolt w/ twinblades, and this. They're a good value and I recommend them highly even if you CAN afford a Fender or Marshall.

I Bought this head used in 1993 after joining a loud punk band and realizing my 30 and 40 watt heads would not allow me to play leads over the singer/rhythm guitarist's Marshall 50 watt w/ 4x12 cab.
I bought a new Carvin 12" speaker and played it through that (in a small wooden hi-fi enclosure) at rehearsal and all was well, a loud tube amp.
Mine was a script logo 80s model with 6L6s, 3 12AX7s. Accutronics spring reverb, push pull vol knob for channel switching, 5 band eQ, presence. 4/8/16 ohm tap, gound switch, line out, effects loop.
Really, it had every feature you could ask for. Very versatile and that was its strength as well as its downfall (read on!)

I played this with a LP Jr through a Carvin and / or Boogie 2x12, and later a Marshall 4x10 2 cab stack. I played in a punk band but also later used it in a str8 ahead rnr band, usually with the 1x12 box. I found the amp to be acceptable in all situations, but never amazing in any.
Funny how people's entries either praise the distortion or bash it to bits. I do feel it was voiced as the "poor man's Boogie" with the 6L6s, I imagine the later models with EL34s were going after Marshall wannabes. Having never loved Boogies all that much (I got my Mesa 2x12 cab used at a price too good to pass up!) my Carvin's distortion tone was okay but could not compete with my one trick pony Hiwatt. Similarly, while taken on its own , the Carvin's clean channel was quiet and smooth , all my blackface Fender heads at lower volumes kicked its ass but good!
Essentially whilst it could do just about any sound well, the X-100B truthfully didn't do any one sound fantastically. This is not a knock on the amp; for wedding bands, style pirates, cover bands, etc. this is a real plus, and it did it all at a GREAT price!! The sound was typically unexceptional, but never unacceptable. This serves in utilitarian applications, but clearly is not what you want when searching for holy grail tone!

One blow up at a rehearsal. all of a sudden, POOF! no more sound. Turns out something had burned out on a PC board. Cost about $50 to fix, no biggie as I had been gigging with it full blast for about two years! I retubed with Groove Tubes while I was at it and it sounded fine as before. I see some techs claim here that its insides are a bit flimsy; I am not surprised, because you do indeed get what you pay for. Still, the case, handle, knobs, etc. all took a beating from me and I gigged w/out a backup and it never let me down.(Again, It went down that one time in rehearsal! Does that count?)

I see also folks had trouble getting footswitches, etc. I guess I lucked out; I got a new X-100B footswitch in 1993 for this mid-80s head no problem, but I guess since they stopped making them, that's no longer an option. Still, try getting old parts for Marshalls or Hiwatts; would you do any better there? (Not that I've tried, but see my point? Carvin have done okay by me when my requests were kept within reality)

I have played for over 25 years and I know what I like/don't like. I bought the Carvin head because I suddenly needed a good cheap loud dependable head to gig with. The amp did that and saw me through a few other bands as well. Eventually I broke down and spent more $ on better heads (Soldano) and it was worth it because the overall tone was an improvement within certain applications (clean, distorted, etc). But no other amp I've ever owned has been as versatile, carefully thought out or as generously appointed as that Carvin. I don't regret selling it because I usually wished I was playing my Hiwatt or Fenders at various points during songs. But I found the amp VERY reliable and versatile and If I did again find myself in a situation where I required a jack of all trades head, I would definitely check one out again. This time with EL34s, though! (I prefer psuedo-Marshall to ersatz Boogie!!)

An all tube amp (4"EL34"'s for output, 3 -"12AX7"s for pre-amp) made in the mid 80's, decent enough to play most styles. A 2 channel sitchable (foot switch hard to find) with an effects loop (3 way output volume control for the loop +4db to -10db)The front controls have basic controls -BASS / MIDDLE / TREBLE / PRESENCE, REVERB(spring),an EQ which is too wide and not enough mid range control which is important for guitar, can only be used by either CLEAN or DISTORSION chanels one at a time.
There is a output control at the back with 3 settings "25%,50%,FULL" wich I hardly found useful since it's not loud enough on "FULL" for me. Don't get me wrong, this amp is loud but the tone and EQ set just right, it lacks the volume of a Marshal.

I use a custom made solid body with a Dimarzio dual sound and a Carvin active, Floyd Rose trem. A LANEY 4x12 with Celestion 25 green backs. This amp sounds better through Celestion 30's My style is pretty wide from Blues, Country to Metal, Jazz.. This amp has a good clean sound, the distorsion is thin and lacks a tight bass response. Gets real fuzzy with the presence control up more than 3 or 4. warm sounding at lower volume levels. Unfortunately, you can dial a good tone for one chanel at a time.
At high volume levels, the clean channel souns better, driving the output tubes.

Very reliable having dropped on the floor a couple of times.
Need a change of tubes from time to time but that's it.
I've used it on a few gigs with no backup.

All service through factory, you pay for shipping.

I've been playing for 16 years, professionally for the last 8. For the price it's alright. I bought it because I know Steve Vai used it when he was with Frank Zappa. I'm sold it as I needed a good amp. You get what you pay for in most cases as with this. Maybe Carvin will finally make a good amp.

This is a mid 80's amp head and comes with all the features I could ever want. Two channels with a push pull pot on both to add extra crunch when you need it. It has an effects loop which I don't use due to my own personal tastes and a switch on the back that lets you run at 20%, 50%, or 100% power. For myself 50% is plenty (I'm afraid I'd injure someone at full power on this amp!) It has EL34 tubes for power and 12 AX7 for preamp. Also included is a very functional 5-band eq which has allowed me to dial in the perfect tone.

I use Fender Strats all loaded with Dimarzio HS-2's in the middle and neck positions and an HS-3 in the bridge position. With these guitars the tone is incredible. I've owned Marshall plexi's, Hiwatt Custom 50's, Fender Bassman and a Hughs & Kettner Triamp all great amps but none I like as much as this Carvin. The suprising thing to me is how rich and textured the tone is for all types of music. I play everything from blues to contemporary country to slammin' metal and this amp keeps on amazing me. Very rich creamy overdrive to sweet fat clean tones. The clean channel rolls into a very nice grind when cranked and the drive channel goes from very bluesy to full shred. Definately my favorite amp to date. If you ever wanted to get that Comfortably Numb sound and not break the bank, this is the all the amp you will ever need!!!

For the past 16 years I've tubed her up every six months (I use it 6 days a week) and let her rip without ever failing me once!!!! I guess you could say that's pretty reliable couldn't you?

Carvin unfortunately doesn't make these amps anymore so they don't stock the parts for them but they did give me support when I needed to get a channel switching foot pedal for one of mine.

I have been playing guitar for over 25 years and currently own three of these amps and if anything were ever to happen to one of them I would do anything to get another! I really love this amp from its' cosmetics to its' sound it is perfect for me. Carvin makes a new line of amps now and I know they are great amps too but I think I might just have to get more X-100B's if anything were to happen to mine. Great product Carvin!!!

Two channels, effects loop, switchable eq, push pull pot for extra gain on the lead channel, push pull bright switch on the rythym channel, 25%, 50%, 100% switch, 4, 8, 16 ohm settings. I have two of these amps one with 4 6L6's, one with 4 EL34's.

I am playing through three differently setup Gibson L-6S's and occasionally a delay and a flange. I play in a punk rock, rock and roll band that occasionally veers into Motown and Garage Stomp territory. This amp has really given me a sound of my own. Others have complained that there isn't enough gain on this amp, which makes me wonder if they are smoking crack, or if I just have the two x-100's with the most gain. If I turn the gain preamp to 10 the amount of gain I get is absolutely unuseable. Between seven and eight, I am able to get gobs of distortion, chest rattling palm mutes (due in part to a very thick cab loaded with 2 ev's and 2 celestions) and amazing control of feedback. If there is anything that gets me down about the distortion channel, it is that it often sounds too modern, and it is hard to get a more old school stonesy crunch out of the thing. The clean channel is pristine to a fault. I wish I could dirty it up a bit and am currently looking into moding it to get some gain. However, I think that for many people, that really clean sound could be the thing that they love about this amp- it just doesn't really suit my band's style. The amp is louder than god. I compete with an 800watt bass amp & a Marshall JCM 800 and I am always the one who has to turn down for them. My usual stage master volume on the gain channel is between three and four.

I generally depend on this amp. Of course the reason that I own two of them is that the first one died on me in the middle of a tour. It was one of those awful intermittent problems that never wants to show itself in front of a tech. However, the one that broke down did several hundred shows in fairly wretched conditions. I never had a case for it, it just sat in the back of the van, or later the trailer and got bounced around. The new one has never had problems and I was finally able to fix the old one- so I have a backup now. Other than that, regular service keeps it happy.

Most people have complained about the difficulty of getting a footswitch out of Carvin. I had this problem too, but I found one used. However, in many other aspects they have been very helpful. I lost a piece of the fuse assembly and a knob on our last tour and the guy I talked to at Carvin was nice enough to send both pieces to me free of charge. They also have put schematics for the amp on their web page. This is a good thing to know on the road, as many amp techs don't have a schematic for these heads.

I have been playing for ten years and have been on tour constantly for the last four. I really like this amp and think I would have to buy another if I lost both of them. It is pretty versatile, but there are things it just isn't- say a hand wired point to point masterpiece. But, for the money, it is an amazing deal. I see these on ebay all of the time for pennies and they make a great amp for a first timer or an old timer.

I Bought this amp new in 1985.Its a solid well crafted head.I originally bought it for the great clean tone,with lots of headroom.Its a two channel,100 watt RMS amp with variable power selector(100,50 & 25%).Great Hammond reverb,Effects loop and many other pro features.The componets are top quality and noiseless.

I currently use the dirty channel with the drive turned up just enough
to get a little hair around the edges.It has a wonderful warm growl,that is easily coaxed into any thing from warm and southern to bright and screaming.The EQ brings up more than enough of the three separate tones.This amp has BOTTOM! I play through a marshall 4x12 and
it sounds good.The distorion is unique,not like a marshall or a fender.One of the reasons I bought it was that it had a sound of its own.Kind of a thunky,choppy grit.I A/B this amp next to a JCM 800 and went home with the carvin.The clean channel is one of the best I've heard.Lots of tone variation there.Overall,a well designed amp.

This amp has been extreamly dependable.I have used it everyday for 16 years and nothing has gone wrong,not a thing.It has never needed service.Original tubes still sound great,I did replace the tubes with groove tubes just to see if they sounded any differant.The G/T's sounded a little darker.( I called Carvin about replacing the tubes) and they were very helpful.Even recomended the G/T's.Every once in a while I just spray some contact cleaner on the pots and EQ sliders and they have been silent and working smooth.

Good People,very helpful.(not like Gibson!)

I have been playing guitar 29 years and use A gibson les paul standard and a 62're-issue fender strat.I like both guitars through this amp.I can get a spanky strat tone and great warm smooth les paul sound.Amps were made to be tweaked! Its all about sitting down and experimenting.My tastes have changed over the years,and this amp has been able to keep up with my changing tone demands.

Amp had GT tubes and I bought it in 1994. Two channels, but floor pedal not available. Plenty of knobs but the basic sound cannot be changed... X is very loud MF. Enough for club gigs.

I use manly Ibanez RG7-612 with custom DiMarzio Blaze II's. My playing style is metallish, music ain't though... Not optimal amp for metal sounds. Distortion isn't fat or thick enough. 5 band EQ helps a bit, but the basic crunch isn't good for metal. Good basic rock amp. Clean channel OK.

One power tube's socket short circuited and burned a hole to circuit board and melted a lot of wirings. Two power tubes out of use now. Repairing costed about 200$. One year after that the amp died again. I unplugged preamp tubes and put them back and now it works again.

N/A

I've played for 10+ years and Carvin was my first real amp (after solid state Marshall 100W). It was OK for a while but it never suited to my playing style.

I use Rocktron VooDoo Valve and Rocktron power amp live, I have Line6 Spider at home. Wouldn't cry too long if that Carvin was stolen, insurance company could give me more than guitar shop...

This a great sounding tube amp. I'm not a histroy major on guitar amps or a tech wizard on guitar amps, but I'm guessing that my Carvin amp is a 90's model because it has EL34's and 12AX7's. This cool amp has two channels that are simple to use, but it can have many different sounds if you play with it long enough. The controls from left to right are: Rhythm
(pull for bright, lead drive(pull on), Master(Pull Hi lead), Bass, Middle, Treble, Presence, and Reverb. Then there is the really cool 5 band graphic eq. Three toggle switches: one for lead or rhythm, another for standby, and on and off toggle switch. The rear panel has an FX Loop(which I rarely use), Full, 50%, and 25% three-way switch, Footswitctch jack, and a speaker configuration switch for running different types of cabinets with different ohms. This is amp is way too versatile, simple to use, and sounds awesome. I never use the footswitch jack though because I bought it is used without a footswitch, and I hear that they are hard to find nowadays. I normally run my Zoom 505 and I normally just play with the eq on the amp. My band doesn't play too often, just practice once a week. This amp has all the power you need and the pristine tube sound you'll ever want!

I play in a punk band and an alternative band, and the distortion on the amp is great, but I solely prefer my Zoom 505 because of it's limiting effect and the disortion on the pedal sounds more compressed. You can get many different sounds on this amp ranging from blues to hard rock, however heavy metal purists may stray away from this one if they are looking for that seering and tight sound. It could be possible to get that heavy sound, but it'll take time to get used to the eq. I play with a stock Epiphone Les Paul Standard. The clean channel without my Zoom pedal is totally awesome. I never turned up the clean channel louder then 3 or 4 because those are very loud settings. The clean channel never sounded distorted at those levels. Nice, pirstine, brassy, and just the right amount of oomph.
When you are in a very loud band(we have three guitarists in my alternative band)of course there is going to be noise. Feedback is always going to be there, you just have to be smart and not face the amp. However, there is a crackiling static noise when I turn the rotary treble and bass eq, but it still gets my desired sound. For recording, it is descent and has very little noise. Overall, the sound is just prefect for me. Lots of tube tone and bottom end.

I've had this amp for more than a year. I bought it in Sept. '99 used from a friend who was moving away and he bought his new in '97. I'm not sure if he replaced the tubes since he got it. it sounded awesome when I tried it. So I bought it cause I was desperately craving for a tube amp and a big stack sound with tight bottom end for gigs, which I couldn't achieve through my tiny Fender amp. I have had no trouble with this USED Carvin X-100B. It's solid as a tank, but like any other tube amp you must handle it with great care.

Never dealt with them.

I've been playing for about 5 years now. When my friend used to own this amp, he would bring it to our local shows and it sounded so great, according to my ears. I had to get that amp. It also looked very intimidating besides the awseome, ripping sound. This amp was very loud and cuts through other sounds at those open area shows. I played a strat copy through that amp once when it wasn't mine at one of our local shows and the incredible sound just knocked me down. I also own a Fender Deluxe 112 Plus combo amp. My Carvin stomps that little amp in every way. I bought the Carvin cause it was a super deal, and I wanted a real tube amp. I never had a chance to compare it with other amps except my own Fender, but I trust my own ears, and my own ears said this amp has everything you need: Tone and Power. The only thing wrong with my Carvin amp, just like all other tube amps, is it's maintainence. I have to buy new tubes for it when the time comes. Right now I am recently looking for a used soli-state head, cause I don't want to waste the tubes during practice, but still have that tight bottom end sound. I recommend this amp used or new because it's simple, powerful, and gives a perfect tone for my playing style, but trust your own ears when looking for a good amp. All is said and done.

Made in 1980's
Not Versitile
It 3 Channels, Effects Loop, No Headphone jack
Used it for gigs, enough power.

I've tried many different guitars, including an Epiphone Les Paul Custom Flametop, a 1962 Fender Stratocaster, and a stock PRS at Good Music Co.
I took it in, and the guys at Good n Loud Music said it was an ok amp. It tends to distort a lot on clean sounds when you play your guitar with a pick. The Distortion is not good, it sounds a lot like a 60's fuzz turned up way too much. The EQ doesn't help it much. I play music from Incubus to Taproot. It doesn't fit my likings.

Its a sturdy amp.

I called Carvin to get a footswitch for it, they would not help at all. They said they don't make them anymore, and they said go find a custom technicion to do it.....click. Called them back, and they got very impatient.

Amp is Ok. Kinda Sucks.

This amp was made in the mid/late 80s and pretty much sucks for anything modern. I still respect carvin, this just wasn't made for modern punk or hard rock. It's pretty versatile however...Great for blues, classic rock and jazz. I wanted to play punk and metal/rock but it just couldn't hang. The EQ knobs plus sliders was a great plus for tone! Also, the 25/50/100 watt switch is way ahead of its time, a great feature, it allows you to get distorted sound at low level. I just wish it had crunch! If you're looking for a good classic tube amp, go for this one though. Beware though! If you buy one, make sure it has a footswitch that works with it! Those old 3 prong ones are hard to find.

I played it with a Les Paul copy and humbuckers...Like I said, it doesn't have the modern distortion i was looking for, but it was great for classic styles using that les paul tone. It doesn't suit my band's style however. It also fed back like crazy using a DOD GS-30 mult fx, so that sucked.

Never had a problem with that...I only put about 4-5 hours on it before i sold it.

N/A

Don't pay anymore than $250 for this amp...I made that mistake! Make sure, if you do, that you have the footswitch and try it a lot before you buy it!

I just wanted to submit an update to an earlier (positive) review of this amp. In that review I stated that the amp sounded like Marshall and Boogie. After playing this amp with a different guitar than the ones I had at the time of that review allow me to clarify. This amp is basically a Boogie knock-off (push pull knobs, five band slider EQ). It is basically the clean channel from a Mk IV and the Lead Channel from a Mk IV. However, the tone is a little less pure (not as well made as Boogies). I like this however...that's where the Marshall comparison comes in. It gets a little more overdriven/saturated than the Mk IV does with that same guitar. Some folks would call this buzzy pre-amp noise, to me it sounds like a little gainier, looser feel like a Marshall (I have EL-34s in this X-100B). This is where the Marshall comparison ends however....you do not have the loose, growly distortion of a good old Marshall (I call this ass tone like 1980s VH, Ratt, Randy Rhoads, etc tone). Tighter and brighter than that (again like Boogie).

I have 2. A 1987 with 6L6 tubes and a 92 with EL34 tubes. The EL34 is a spare backup.

I hot rodded the lead channel with a Torres kit, added a master volume, and added an input jack on the back. I use the amp for rock leads (I have a GCX audit switch that switches amps in real time). It is LOUD. I sometimes use the clean channel in place of my 65 Deluxe Reverb. The head is very versitle and is solid.

Two mods I wish ALL manufactures would do is a MASTER vol on the power amp stage and rear inputs that makes cabling from a rack easier. Once you understand the purpose of a master volume you'll never go back!

I bought a new Carvin 4x12 cab and it's great.

I use a hot rodded Tele mongrel and the X100B rocks with it. I play rock and blues and the amp cuts through when I need it.

I bought it out of a pawn shop with no tubes for $150. Re-tubed and sent it back to Carvin for a tune up. They replaced some small stuff that was broken (a slider on the graphic equal.) and tweaked it. So far no problems (7 months)

I found Carvin's customer support to be good! Prompt service and resonable rates for out-of warrenty units. BAse on my expierence I bought a Carvin PA, a rack power amp, and two 4x12 cabs.

I've been playing over 20 years. I have a Fender Deluxe Reverb '65 reissue, a ton of rack stuff, a Roctron Chamelleon powered by a Carvin HT150.

Th X-100B head is heavy! I would buy one again (In fact I have a backup on hand should this one stop!)

The foot switch uses an XLR connector and is very hard to find now that Carvin doesn't make them anymore.

Late 80's model. dual channel w/reverb + lead boost. 5 Band EQ and knobs. Selectable power out 100/50/25watt. 4/8/16 ohm selector switch. xlr preamp out. foot switch

Sounds like a hot roded Marshall! But better. Real fat and hot. I like that alot because my style is heavy riffs and single note phrases-the newer style metal. The clean sound is decent. I play through a straight front Marshall 4x12. One thing that I was'nt to happy with, was that it was'nt as LOUD as a Marshall. I lacks that 'put you through the wall' volume of the Marshalls. Dont get me wrong, it's loud, just not as loud as Marshall.

Just bought it used a week ago.

Ive heard mixed results here. I dont know, I havent dealt with them yet.

I've been playing for 15 years. And I've played Mesa's and Marshalls and this amp is just as good as them. I'd buy it again. This is a good head for the money absolutly. I would recommend it.

Basic 2 channel guitar amp. I run 6L6 power tubes in mine. Bought used about 10 years ago.

I play original hard rock/funk and this amp gives me good versatiliy for the price. In agreement with previous reviews the lead channel doesn't quite get over the hump as far as having that true singing characteristic. But running a TS-9 in front does the trick. I can get the Neal Schon-Santana ultra sustain that really cuts through. I also run the graphic EQ on the lead channel in a V curve, but I run it below the flat line so it compresses the sound. This does cut the overall output but I think it adds to the smoothness of my leads.

The clean channel provides a snappy response also. Great with my crybaby for that seventies Parliament funk sound.


Overall, you can do quite a bit of tweaking with this amp to shape your tone but you do need a little help if gain is where its at for you. It's not a triple rec. after all.

What can I say. I havehad this amp for about 10 years and it has never left me hangin'. It has been re-tubed at regular intervals.

My original channel switching pedal did crap out on me and the replacement I ordered was wired differently. It required some re-working to operate properly.

Carvin as a company has been a bit of a pain to work with. I guess when you only distribute yourself the distance provides a cushion for bitchy customers. They were little help when it came to the foot switch I bought from them.

Overall, I like the amp. It will do until I can afford that much desired Triaxis that I want. Luckily, I still have the original operation maunal with the techincal bits should I need to get it fixed. I am sure that Carvin would be of little help in that department.

It's like the 80s all over again. On amp EQ, and all the standard features you deserve in an amplifier. Came with an excelent footswitch to call the gain channel, FX loop, or reverb. 25%, 50%, and 100% power settings, good lovin'. A fun all around tube amp.

Em...'94 Hamer Chaparel and a '97 Strat Plus. This thing is all about sharp, clean tone. Cuts through your soul like a knife but if you're not careful it'll cut through ears as well. Don't think you can make a mistake and get away with it. The gain channel is pretty weak compared to the clean tone. I have sound guys yelling at me during sound checks to turn up my gain or turn down my clean but it just doens't happen...the gain doens't punch through. Even when it does it comes out muddy and it almost sounds like I'm playing clean tone through blown speakers.

The beast is like 13 years old and still works. when I push the button the light comes on every time. the imput jack is kinda sliding on me but it's cool 'cause it has two of 'em.

people suck. I'd rather buy a new amp.

it's a good amp to start off with if you're short on cash and think you're pretty rad with your fingers. I like the outer covering, it's fuzzy.

I bought this new from Carvin about 15 years ago (it was just a couple of years before they changed the Logo, but after the 'slave' feature[x-100?]. I bought the ampainly for playing very loud very hard stuff. I had two very comfortable channels, clean and wicked dirty, great hammond reverb, output selector (100/50/25)very nice eq layout (both graphic eq and very active tone selectors), and had an ohmage selection switch on the back that was a bit ahead of it's time. Also includes a boost/cut' switch you can set for the footswitch which is a very nice feature for leads, whithout having to hop around channels.

Two changes I would have liked would include the graphic eq being able to be used for both channels, you could only use it for the clean OR dirty channel, but there are some obvious reasons when you are using the amp why that was designed that way. The footswitch tended to be a little tight as far as the switch displacement was, at least for me, I tend to be a bit animated on stage and jump around abit so possibly chalk that up to my 'ham-footedness'

I used this amp almost EXCLUSIVELY for HARD stuff, (hardcore punk-rock) and all I wanted this thing to do was scream, and I was never disapointed. I almost always played pretty close to 8 1/2 or above and ran this head through a 4 X 12 Marchall cab with 4 Mesa Black Shadows. This amp screamed, I never used a distortion or overdrive effect and had just a Gibson SG and this amp overdriven to the sky. The clean channel also was very nice tight and bright at high volume.
I would dhose this amp every day of the week over any other head at my disposal for hard overdriven music. Can't say enough.

I have heard alot about the design of this amp, and it's vulnerability, cheap components etc....maybe I got lucky with mine but it has been all over the country on several US tours, and spent seven weeks with me in Europe on tour, and I never had a problem with it - and I am VERY hard on gear. For example at one show I took a misguided leap off of the stage misjudging the length of my guitar chord, I had the chord rapped aroung the head's handle as a strain relief and had my cabinet ontop of another Marshall cab. The head fell the full 6+ feet onto the stage and spilled the tubes everywhere. As it was the last ssong of the set and we were in the company of another band I didn't worry too much. Put the tubes back in the next night just for a lark and turned it on and didn't have a single problem, not even a new hum or buzz, and managed the nest 2-3 years with the same head with no doctor visit. So, I share this anecdote [and I promise it's true] for relative measure.

I had some sort of transistor burn out in it one time and the local shop replaced it for about $60. That's the only problem I had with the head in 10 years of heavy regular use.

Never had a need for customer support.

Been playing about 22 years, and used this amp with a stock 84 Gibson SG exclusively, to play Hardcore punk rock in a touring band.

I chose this head because I have always been attracted to the more 'renegade' gear that was out there, stuff you didn't see too often. Mesa Boogie was out of my price range, but everyone had a Marshall, I liked the graphic EQ, ohm selection and lead boost and was very pleased when I bought this amp new from Carvin.

This is a great head for very HARD overdriven music. Can't speak to it's other possibilities as that was all I ever used it for, but I will say that I kept it (and have loaned it out to younger musicians) because I like the OVERALL sound of the amp.

If you can find it at a good price, put in some GT 6L6's and a hot set of 12AX7 and I don't think you could possibly be dissapointed.

I wanted to update my reivew of 3/9/2000. The last two weeks I have been plauged by "gear/tone neurosis." Freaking out over how perceivedly buzzy this Carvin's gain sounded. Our rehearsal room is mostly cement, so things always sound brighter there than at a venue. Even factoring this in the amp was sounding way too buzzy...shitty. At rehearsal last night it was awful.....struggling to be heard over the drummer and just generally weak. I should mention I was using the lead five band EQ....note this works WITH the three EQ knobs. Finally I did a little tweaking....all I did was dial the bass knob from just under 5 to just over 6 and it made all the difference in the world. Added balls to the tone and smoothed out the buzzy character that almost had me trading this in for a JCM 800 2205. What you have to remember is that while this amp's gain is like a hot rodded Marshall, its eq section is wired like a Boogie...VERY SENSITIVE. This allows you a wide vareity of tones but this, plus the fact it works in conjunction with the five band EQ, means you have to spend some time tweaking. You can't merely dial up your scooped mid/smiley face on the five band and go....after you do that you must then go back and tweak the three knobs (including presence I have it on about 3) to achieve your ideal tone. Ideal EQ for gain will not be ideal for clean but the end result is worth it....hotrodded Marshall gain (assuming you have EL-34 which mine does) with Boogie EQ sensibility. You can easily compensate for this by adding a good EQ pedal in the loop for the clean channel. Take as much time with this amp as you would with a Boogie...I have had it since March and am just now getting the EQs set where they need to be.

I have had it for six weeks a pre-amp tube (Groove Tubes 7025) fried on my but I replaced it with a Sylvania 12AX7. Also the volume knob for the clean channel has busted....when you turn it to maximum or minimum it clicks past (like your locking gas cap). The Carvin combo I had did the same thing....could use better QC on the control knobs I will get this repaired it doens't impact use of the clean channel.

Dual channel, 100 watt all tube head. Effects loop and switch to allow you to run the amp at 50 or 25 watts. Separate EQ for each
channel...five band slider EQ for distortion channel. I bought mine used and it had three 12AX7s and four EL-34s (all Groove Tubes). Accutronics spring reverb. Unfortunately you cannot switch EQs when you switch channels so that's why I give it a 9.

This thing flat out rips. I have played some other X-100 heads that didn't have the quantity or quality of gain...I also had the XV-212 combo...very similar design and it didn't get half this gainy. I don't if it was modded or what...maybe it's the Groove Tubes or perhaps like Marshalls everyone of these is different. I run it through a Marshall 4x12 with 25 watt greenback reissues and it smokes...I was going to buy a late 1970s Marshall JMP MastrerVoluem and run a TS-9 in front of it, but this sounded better and was cheaper. The clean tone is great too...very full and articulate but it will break up with strumming at 25 watt setting. Reverb is nice and very lush. Overall gain is similar in characteristic to a higher-gain Marshall, but not quite plexi-ish. A bit more modern sounding...not quite like a Boogie, but. Definite has its own heavy vibe going on.

Just got it....the Carvin combo I had was fine. Some other people here on H-C have had problems with Carvin reliability I know where there are a couple of more used I might pick up an extra just in case.

n/a....I did call them for a footswitch they informed me they no longer made one for this amp but that I could have one made.

I have been playing for 13 years..most hard/progressive rock. I have had Marshalls, Boogies, Hiwatts, Ampegs, Groove Tubes. My favorite amp is the late 1970s Marshall JMP II Master Volume with a TS-9 in front but I needed something a little more versatile and cheaper. Like I said I have played other X100s that didn't sound this good...they didn't sound bad, they just didn't get this kind of gain. This one is special. A lot of thump and singing leads through a Marshall 4x12 with 25watt greenbacks (don't underestimate the importantce of speak/cab choice!!!). No this is not hand-wired like Boogie or Hiwatt but for the price...plus I like the gain better than any Boogie or Hiwatt.

loaded with features, eq, effects loop, channel switch, power switch. Wow what great tricks

Good clean sound, muddy reverb, wanker distortion

I don't own this amp, I repaired it for a friend. If I were a good friend I would have removed the board and hand wired a good all tube preamp for him. But he liked the amp as is so I fixed the problem.

They sent a schematic to me no questions!!!!

I woulden't hit a hog in the butt with this crappy low grade amp. The board is thin solder joints crappy, wire leads are too short to service the amp easily, cheap tube sockets, pots, jacks, not a heavy duty design.

i would guess that the amp is from 80s.two channels + lead/rhythm mode.tubes are (gt) EL34 and 12ax7.5-band graphic eq.pretty versatile unless you want to play heavy metal.

i have charvel guitar (i will get new guitar very soon...) and boss dual overdrive + super chorus pedals and i play rock music from progressive to blues (very badly...).even with poor guitar like my charvel, the amp has a big sound with nice low end. the clean channel is excellent and reverb is fine (maybe little muddy).amp sounds "soft" (in a good way) and does not have lot of distortion so heavy metal players should propably buy marshall...i use laney 4x12 cab with stock h/h speakers.

no problems at all. this amp is made to last...

no answer here im sorry...i live in finland (really far from the carvin company!!!)

i could recommend this amp to anyone that wants a big-sounding, versatile amp without pantera-distortion. i am happy with this amp, but if someone would steal it, im not quite sure what would be my next amp...

I think that I have one of the early models of this amp. The switch pedals connect via 2 1/4" jacks. Has the 5-Band EQ, two channels, two inputs (one of which isn't working on mine).

I play with a mid 70's Epi EA-235 with the factory pickups(very worn and warm at this point), and the sound is what I was looking for for Chicago style blues, and a little bit of heavier stuff. It's a little bit noisy at times, but after warming up a bit it quiets down. I haven't had this thing up too loud, so I can't speak for the higher volumes, I've cranked it and it sounds better and better as it goes though. The distortion gets me to that fat raspy blues that I was looking for.

I can't speak too much here, b/c I haven't had this amp very long. I have other amps that I do rely on, so only time will tell. As it stands, it works when I've needed it.

I have 2 opinions here:
1)I called Carvin looking for a manual, the guy was really friendly and got my name and address, then said that I'd be getting it in the mail. COOL!
2)I got an invoice saying that it was out of print (permanently). I sent them an email just trying to find out how I could get one, and got a reply that said something to the effect of "Badgering us won't make the manual appear, and besides it's easy to use what do you want from us?" Thanks guys.....

I've been thrilled wiht this amp. I looked for a tube amp for about 2 years (I always used solid states) and this had the sound I was looking for (and a nice price to boot). I recommend it.

The Crvin x-100B is a 100 watt, two channel, tube head with reverb and a five band graphic eq. It uses the same bass, midrange, treble and presence controls for each chanel. The eq is switchable between the lead and rythm chanels. It uses 4 6l6GC output tubes(curently sventlanas) and 3 12ax7 preamp tubes. Power is switchable between 25-50-100%. I have put a mullard in the predriver position, which improved the tone.

The only guitar I have used with this amp is my Epiphone g-400(SG), with the factory humbuckers. Lately I have been tuning down a fifth. I use a Carvin 4X12 with Carvin speakers. I play Hardcore Punk and Sluge Core. I have not played this amp for more than 10 minutes with out the either full distortion or the use of a pedal. With the right eq I can get a very thick, brutal tone, that works great for bar cords. I have had problems EQing out an undesirable "poping" distortion in the upper bass. I have also had poor luck getting a good sound with a distortion or multieffect pedal. By the time I have the amp EQed to sound good for what I play(almost full midrange cut) it is just barly loud enough to play with a moderatly loud drumer.

I have replaced all of the tubes with in the last 6 months and can depend on this amp.

I e-mailed Carvin to ask for a schematic because I wanted to give the amp a good check up and consider some modifications. They where friendly and sent me a photocopy of the manual, but they left of the page with the schematic(I got doubles of anouther page). I have not goten around to asking for another copy

I have played for abought five years. I traded in the Peavey transtube studio pro that I was using as a head to buy this. In some ways the 65 watt Peavey actualy outperformed the carvin. I am looking for a solid state head with very high power output, I would like to have two half stacks

This was an early 80's head with the script logo. The same head that was used by Frank Zappa and Steve Vai during this period. My head had EL-34's in the power section, some have 6L6's. See the previous reviews for the rest of the features.

I've played A Jackson Dinky Strat with Hot Rails in the Neck and Jeff Beck in the Bridge and a G&L S-500 with the magnetic single coils and then after I upgraded hot rails in the Neck and cool rails in the Bridge. It's hard to classify a style of music that we play except ORIGINAL. We hit nearly everything from blues, jazz, funk, fusion, rock, metal, no pop or country. Anyway, the amp is very versatile with a wide variety of FAT tube distortion sounds on the lead channel. You can go from a Vintage Fender "clean" sound to Marshall easily, but not quite up to a Soldano distortion.If I had to pick the closest, it sounds much like the new Fender Pro-Sonics distortion. The Clean channel is almost too clean (which is ironic since that is one of the reasons I bought the amp). Full and warm with TONS of bottom end. On 100% thru my Rivera 4x12 with Celestion G12L-55's it doesn't break up. With the power setting on 50% it breaks up more, and with the power setting on 25% it gets a muddy Mesa Dual Rectifier (with the tube rectifier being used) type of sound. I also played this head thru an open back 2x12 with Kendrick GreenFrames in it. In this set up, the speakers distorted even on the clean channel. This I would venture to say would be a more sought after "clean" sound for most guitarist, but the bass had to be turned way down to keep the sound from being "floppy". My opinion of this amp is that it is more suited for a rythm guitar player because of it's HUGE bottom end and FAT tone. But it does well for lead with a tube screamer.

Solid and dependable. Lugged it around everywhere for about 6 months with no problems.

I called to ask a representative questions concerning their speakers and speaker cabs. Either the representative I talked to was having a bad day or was tired of dealing with idiots all day and was rather rude and not very helpful. Who knows. I never called back.

I've been playing "seriously" for about a year. I've played on a wide variety of amps and gear and do have quite a bit of knowledge of the various tonal characteristics of most of the well-known manufacturers lines of equipment. If I had to complain or make a suggestion, I'd make it a 3-channel amp. One for the awesome clean channel and two distortion channels so you could change by footswitch from a lower distortion setting to a higher one. I tried out quite a few Fender, Mesa, Rivera, Marshall (to name a few) amps before I decided on this one. For the price, I don't think it can be beat. If you can find one, it's definately worth checking out. I just sold mine two weeks ago for money to buy a Rivera R-30 combo amp so I'd have something to play at home(Review to come after a few months). I sold it to a friend who will hopefully sell it back to me when I get some more money saved up, I already miss it.

This Head is A Series Three Carvin X100-B made in Early 80's. It has two Channels(Clean and Lead) with a bright switch and a volume boost switch for lead channel. 5 band Eq switchable from lead to Clean. It is all tube, 100 watts with a 100%/60% switch. Preamp out Power amp in slave amp out

I use the apm with a Custom Jackson and an Ibanez S series Guitar connect to a marshall 1960B cab. I play a wide range of style blues-pop-metal. I feel the lead channel has let me down. All I can get out of it is a fuzz tone type distortion. The clean channel however is one of the best I heard. When I got the head I knew I would be let down on the distortion side. I plan on using a boss metal zone on the clean channel to eleveate the crappy distortion problem. It is no big deal I used a metal zone on Marshall JCM900 50 watt Head for years. I always like the metal zone through the clean side of most tubes heads. The distortion on most amps are lacking the sounds I like. I believe the amp performs well at most ranges of volume levels. It seams to really shine cranked up. As most tube amps do.

I pretty sureI can depend on it. It has just been gone over and many caps replaced along with the tubes. But as always I have something just in case of problems.

I havent really had any problems with carvinfrom stuff I bought in the past. This amp however (x100-b) has so many changes during the years of thier production. The year of the head it had somthing like four revisions. It took several time to get the correct schematics for it from carvin and the preamp section was never the right one. Maybye this is why the distortion channel sucks so bad. They could never get what they were looking for. I have heard some late 80's ones that had a much better distortion channel but then they switched to the selling 3200 master series amps.

I have been playin for around twelve years now. If it were stolen I would probably try to look around to see what else I could find but that doesnt mean I wouldnt by it again. For the money it is a very good tube amp with lots of power. The distortion just sucks on mine. I have owned Marshall JCM 900 50 watt head before. Various rack gear.Currently I primarley using My Digitech 2112 with a Mesa 2:90 Power amp. Although I love the sounds my rack gear produces nothing gives you the sound or feel of an all tube head cranked.

There are many solid features included with the X100B. For instance, Two channels, primarily clean and distorion, a five band EQ with control over 75Hz,150Hz,500Hz,1500Hz and 3000Hz. The footswitch allows you to use the effects loop, change channels and activate the built in spring reverb. I use the middle button on the footswitch (the effects loop button) as a volume cut/boost.

I play 3 guitars 1. American Strat with the stock single coil pickups, 2. An Ibanez S Series with a Humbucker and single coil. 3. An American Strat Hotrod with a Dimarzio Humbucker in the bridge position, a Lace Sensor in the middle and the stock single coil in the top position. I use the latter primarily and play 60's 70's and 80's Rock in a Local Cover band.

I would have to rate this very high. As I stated earlier I play in a Local Cover Band and we play about 100 shows per year. Thats 3 sets per night, 1-hour per set. I have owned this amp a little over 2 years and bought it USED to-boot. It has groove tubes (ho-hum) it still sounds very good.

I have dealt with customer service 1 time and not with a problem just buying some other stuff. The service person was very curteous be did not seem to know what products were available much less any "JUICE" on there stuff.

I am 32 yrs old and have been playing since I was about 12. Wow thats 20 years. I have played several Tube Amps and some Solid State. I am primarily a 1/2 Stack Player and have played Marshall JCM-800, Marshall JMP (Pre-Amp), and Blackface Twin Reverbs. Of all of the amps in this category I have to say that the Carvin is my favorite and here is why, The Carvin clean sound is phenominal, I use slight Chorus and Delay for my clean sound and it sound great. I actally have tried celestion "greenbacks" with the X100B and I have to admit the dirty sound may have been slightly better that the Carvin "British" speakers, but the Celestions can't produce the clean like the Carvin CAB. For the dirty channel I play it straight with no pedals. It is not a crushing distorion but for those of us who know what it takes to have a "cutting" sound its just right. The only feature that is a little weak is the Reverb it tends to get a bit microphonic at times. Its a feature I don't use.

Many good features including footswitchable effects loop. This eliminates the problems many effects have with draining the signal coming from the instrument even when pedals are off. Also has power attenuator which is a good thing because you should rarely need to run this puppy at 100%, it's that loud. 5 band EQ assignable to clean or overdive channel. Effect level switch is a plus for some effect units. I don't really like the gray 'carpet' covering but looks ain't why I bought it. I can't think of any other features I wish it had that it doesn't already.This head is built like a brick shithouse and it weighs about a ton and a half so you better do a few 12oz. curls before loading it up!

I have used this amp in heavy metal bands with the addition of an effects processor for a bit of dirtiness on the distortion end. I have used it in an alternative band pretty much as is with only a chourus pedal. The clean sound it awesome the distortion is too but it's not a real hot hyperdistortion. If you want a great tube distortion this it will do nicely. The 5 band EQ is a great tool for shaping your sound. The active high, mid, low contol knobs are very effective also. I usually run my distortion with the 'hot rod' on to get a better sound.

No real problems. I had to bend a pin on the footswitch to make the connector work when I first got it but no problems since. Tube amps = maintenance. But it is worth it for the tone.

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If it where lost or stolen I may not replace it becuase I have been using a fender princeton chorus now for a whlie and it's alot easier to lug around than a half stack. If I wanted a tube head though I would definately consider the Cavin x100b its sound and features are a great deal.

It has 100 all tube watts, a EQ, 2 channels, effects loop, a switch to give you either 100%, 50%, OR 25%, a foot switch,and 2 inputs

I use a standard strat and i play hardcore/new school punk. it is very loud and is great for hardcore. i use a huges and kettner cab which give it more bass and sounds allot better than my old marshal. the clean channel has not distortion as high volumes. the distortion sounds just like a million dollar amp, it is the best i have ever heard period.

I've had it for a year and had no problems.

I've been play for 5 years and playing shows for 4 of the 5 and went trough many amps and i must say i dont think i'll ever sell it. whiel at the store i compared it to a mesa boogie and the sound very similar personally i would rather have the carvin because it sounded alot better.

To me this amp is a boogie knock-off. This is a good thing. The EQ is great for getting just the right amount of sizzle and punch without going on a tone safari. The effects loop is switchable. In -10db mode you can have two volumes for the lead and clean channels controlled by the foot switch.

I play a 1985 Gibson V with a kahler tremelo. The only mod. is an Ibanez pickup in the bridge wired in reverse. I play classic rock and blues covers while my own style resembles Smashing Pumpkins. I have no problem getting any sounds I want, but I do use a Peavey Classic in conjunction so a blending is happening. The amp does have the ability to sound good however the knobs are turned. At full power the clean channel is clean till the drummer starts throwing stands at you. At 25% power the clean channel gets a great Stones-ish break-up and the lead does the Steve Vai if you add some wah. The 50% power setting gives you everything in a club/rehearsal setting as far as volume.

This amp seems to run a little hot. I bought it used with a burned tube. I don't know the circumstances of that, but I've blown about four fuses at bad times. This seems to happen when I'm fuzz-facing the lead channel cranked. Go figure! But the Peavey never dies. So four Peavey zero Carvin. I do worry about it dropping out so that is a negitive.

I called the company once and to get some specs. No complaints there.

I'm 31 and I've been playing since I was 12. I've had a few good amps but this is the best. I'd definitely look for another one.

2 channels. Bass, mid, trebble. Assignable five band eq.(choose either lead or clean channel). Eq is active. Presence,reverb. Effects loop. 100/50/25% power switch. Foot switchable. Four 6L6 and three 12AX7A tubes. The four twelve cab is loded with Carvin British series speakers.(I may go to Celestion Vintage 30s in the future). Bought it in 1985.

I am using an American Strat with Texas specials and a Lone Star Strat with two Texas Specials and a Seymore Duncan pearly gates humbucker. I play blues, rock(50s-now), surf, psycedelic. This is a versitile amp with a tight punchy sound, the clean channel is VERY good and it can be turned up to about 8 before it starts distorting. It's a loud clean too. The distortion channel works well to. (I have assigned the graffic eq to the lead channel). I have gotten sounds simmilar to marshall plexi(EVH) and boogie. It is not a full on metal rager but could probably do it with a stomp box in front of it. The sound I go for is more of a blues or classic rock style. I have not noticed any niose that would be out of the ordinary for this type amp, it runs faily quiet for what it is. All in all I think this is a great sounding amp, it just doesn't have the big name.. A real good choice if you're on a budget. This a solid rocker. The amp sounds better using a Marshall Power Brake than the 100/50/25% power cut switch on the back of the the amp. Just for reference I do have two Fender amps I predominantly use for gigging only because they are smaller and easier to lug around.(they sound good too but aren't as versital).

This amp did burn out a resister in the power amp tube section and I ran it that way for a while not knowing any thing was wrong. I have had it repaired, no trouble since then. I haven't gigged with it much. (it's too much amp for what I've been doing recently and I'm between bands right now too). It's hard for me to be accurate in this catagory but every time I used it it worked.

My amp was long out of waranty when I had it repaired. I have delt with the Carvin poeple in person (the factory is 20 min. from where I live) and they have been friendly. As for waranty work I don't know how they are. They did do the repair on my amp, and I have no complaints. I paid to have it repaired since it was out of waranty.

It's hard to say whether or not I would replace it because at this time I don't nead an amp as powerfull as that,(if the price were right I would). I would deffinatly miss it if it were lost or stolen. I think the thing I like most about this amp is it's good tone, it can be made to sound Marshally and it can sound Fendery and the clean channel is one of the best around. I started playing around 1967 so I'm not exactly new to the game. If you are thinking about buying an amp try to find one of these they will probably be a bargain. Close your eyes and open your ears and judge for yourself.

2 channels, effects loop, 25/50/100% power cut switch, 4/8/16 ohm impedance switch, 5-band EQ switchable from clean to lead channel, bass/mid/treble tone controls, presence control, 3-way footswitch (channel, FX loop in/out, reverb), preamp out. Lotsa goodies; as versatile a setup as I've ever seen.

(3 12AX7's, 4 6L6GC's; currently tubed with Sovteks.) Nice sound for what I play -- basically rock with classic and alternative overtones. The clean channel, in particular, sounds great. Lead channel should probably be called "dirty rhythm;" it crunches real nicely, but just doesn't cut it for singing leads. Put a stomp box in front of the clean channel for "normal" leads, or in front of the lead channel for nasty-gnarly leads. Clean channel breaks up at about 8, but this is only usable at the 50/25% power settings, or else it's WAY loud. The EQ gives a nice range of available tones. The reverb is a little mushy, and very sensitive. Overall, though, it sounds great.

Warning! The tubes aren't locked in. Had one jump out of the back while loading into a club one night. The handle broke, too. Other than that, it's reliable as hell. Had it about 18 months with no breakdowns, and I bought it used. I use it without a backup.

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That $300 in the price is an estimate; I bought it with a Peavey 4x12 cabinet for $500. It's a great amp for what I do, but is probably a little overpowered. I drop it to 50% power and leave it there. Great clean sounds, but like I said, the lead channel leaves a little to be desired. (It's easy to mod it to use with a preamp, and that's what I'd suggest.) I got lucky; I bought it when I didn't know anything about amps. Dunno if I'd buy it again, but that's prolly because my tastes are changing. (Looking at a Bassman or Super Reverb now.)