Engl Jive

GREAT 30 Watt tube amp - I bought it around 1992 or so and have used it almost exclusively ever since. Basic setup, 2 channels which share 3 band EQ, separate master for clean and distorted channel, spring reverb, serial effects loop, footswitch, additional switches to shape sound (gain boost, mid boost, presence, EQ bypass), 12'' speaker. Very good for Blues, Rock and Hard Rock (no Metal without additional effects, I have to say). It is VERY LOUD for a 30 Watt Combo amp! Never had problems at Gigs or Rehearsals to hear me...While the combo may not be equipped with all the fancy stuff that today's amps have (like parallel effects loop or even digital effects), it delivers a sound that I do not hear in current amplifiers any more. Clearly this is not intended for Line6-users who need everything to be on board. I use it with a hand full of floor pedals to color the sound.

I use it mostly with a Squier stratocaster and the bridge pickup. All my playing has evolved around this combination of Stratocaster+Engl, making me capable to easily sqeeze tone out of other amplifiers (be forwarned, the Engl is demanding - it very clearly brings out every mistake you make!). As mentioned above, you get a basic blues/rock sound - no smooth Fender cleanness in the clean channel, and no super brutal distortion in the dirty channel. I usually turn the gain poti to 10 and then use the volume poti on the guitar to get the rhythm sound. The amp is not noisy (but since I use a single coil equipped guitar plus many pedal effects, my personal noise level is usually very high...). The sound (also the clean channel) bites it way through the mix - with this amp you are definitely heard!

Well, this amp is built like a tank...it once fell from a truck, and its (homemade) wooden case was totally smashed - but I plugged it in and it perfectly worked (up to today - only the reverb got damaged, since the elongation of the spring due to the shock broke the wire connection inside the reverb unit - very difficult to solder). It went microphonic sme years ago, but changing of rectifier and preamp tube perfectly cleared the problem. All the rest of the tubes are still the original ones...apparently the working point of the power tubes is in my case such that they don't get too much current (which is probably the reason why they last so long) - my repair man told me that putting in new tubes would improve the sound, but I liked it the way it is now and I didn't want to spend the 50 Euro...

Well, I got it repaired in the shop where I bought it. I remember when they made a little festival celebrating their 20th anniversary, they had the chief engineer of Engl walking around (I chatted a little with him), so I think they had/have good connections with Engl. I assume that in Germany (since Engl is a german company), it should be no problem to find an authorized center.

Well, I am playing for 17 years now, and apart from a first Marshall Lead20 single channel, I have almost exclusively used the Engle Jive for rehearsals and gigs (I rarely do recordings). It has something that I do not find in other amplifiers, so I would surely miss it if somebody stole it or it breaks...The way I bought it is a funny story: The guy at the shop where I bought it saw me play with a Hughes&Kettner Combo I borrowed from a student of mine. When he recognized me, he told me that the H&K did not suit my playing and immediately directed me towards the Engl (maybe he wanted to get rid of it) - and he was right! I bought it on the spot...

I don't know exactly when this amp was build, but i was told it must have been in the early nineties.
I play cover, everything from country to AC/DC exept metal and this amp meets almost everything I need.
2 channels, switching it either on the front or by footswitch, send return loop. I only had added an additional speaker jack for an extra 8Ohm closed speaker cabinet and that really rocks !! I can only advice you to do the same, you'll be surprised about the increase of bottom you'll get. You can also boost gain, mids, treble and presences by front switches, so i have no problems to set different sounds. the reverb is quiet good, though i never use it.
I use this amp on rehearsels and live and have absolutely no problems with cutting through my fellows and with backline sound. More I appreciate it having only!!! 30 watts, for it sound even better on master volume >5 ! And it is really loud !
It has an 12" celestion vintage 30 speaker - great !!

I play fender stratocaster plus and fender telecaster american standard, sometimes gibson les paul but mostly my fenders.
all picks are regular, only the les paul has SH4 jeff beck humbuckers.
I play only cover , so i don't have a real style.
it is a quite amp, compared with marshall and fender, but that is what everybody says about engls !
I like best the crunched sounds like the early AC/DC recordings with the lead gain on 5-7. but you easily get an slightly cranking direstraits sound as well. and if you need with all gains on 10 you have a nice sweet distrotion like bon jovi.
the clean channel is bright till master on 8, then nice keith richards like.
It really has a beautiful sounding distortion, no metallica or else, but if you like a round rock sound its better and more ear flattering than a marshall stack.

I take it everywhere in a case so far no problems.
I use it in small areas up to 200 people with no backline, with my additional cabinet. over that i mike it.

fast and helpfull on the net - via e-mail!

I am playing for 24 years now and had fenders, acoustic 165 and racks ( engl as well) and others.
I really like this amp, his small weight and big sound, and I got nothing to complain about. Only a serial second output jack would bee nice - it would save 50 Euro for te tec to have it added.
Compared to others and mine experience, for me it is the best sounding amp after my acoustic 165 combo ( which has been stolen a few years ago ) and I would try to get another one if something desastrous would happen to it. Somebody told me the vintage 30 speaker is not original, but for this one it suits perfect.
After all I think I will stay at engl for the rest of my playing time, not because of this amp alone but they are all great.

Full 30W tube amp with one 12" celestion speaker. Very simpel 3band eq bass, mid, treble, to channels clean/lead, a reverb knot. It has som other features as mid boost, gain boost, bypass and preferences which you can play around with and get some freaky sounds.. I dont know what year it was made but approximately in the early ninetees.. Its a loud little amp perfectly for rehersing and live.

I use a Godin LGT with Godin pickups and I mostly use the single coil neck pickup, and this is where the amp really rocks!! It has a beatiful tube sound it's a pretty pipelike sound which sounds so good. The best part is that you can really crank it up and it stays clean! The downside is that you need to have some effects pedals to get variety ind your sound,, you cannot make so many sounds with the amp only..

Feels like built a rock! Havent had it for so long so i don't really have any qualifications answering this question..

LOVE IT!! Been playing for around seven years and this is definetly the best amp I ever had!! Would definetly try to find it again if it was stolen or lost.. Compared to my other amps (Fender, Peavey)they sound like shit.. I really meen it this is German quality a amp which has the fullest and richest tube sound ever heard!! Buy it if you can find it.

It suffices the need of practicing or rehearsal completely.

Great, absolutely great little amp. Turn it up and get blown away. It's FUCKING loud for what is basically a 30 watt combo. Our drummer asks every other song run up the volume of the marshall stack which is played by our rhythm guitar player - he only can hear the Engl. Ok, let's get this straight. I don't mess with the settings much. I got the gain-boost on and the leaddrive almost up to 12. Incredible sound. It's not as trash metal as the newish Engl-tops. It sounds like a better marshall to me. NO NEED to put any effects ahead. You'd just pollute this sound. The clean channel ain't that good though. It always has kind of distortion to it.

Fuck, this thing is ten years old - still excellent condition. It's build like a tank. I know I won't have problems with it.

Never had any problems.

Well, if you can find one. GET IT! I got mine for 200 bucks, used. The guy must have been crazy. I'll never sell it. It has a place in my heart.

I wanted to add to my last review...some of my information is innaccurate...I went to www.engl-amps.com and found the manual for the Jive...so go there if you want stats. There is a speaker out after all...just not a 1/4 inch or xlr...other than that my review stands. This is one great-sounding combo.

Made in Germany. Not exported to the USA (where I live)...I guess it must have been used when I bought it...see below.

2 Channels: Clean and Lead - Master Volume, 3-band EQ, 3-way brightness switch, gain boost switch, mid-boost switch , EQ bypass switch, Gain knob for lead channel. Reverb, 3-way presence switch, Clean Volume and Lead Volume knobs. 1 12ax7 preamp tube and 2 EL34 Power tubes. 30 watts. 12" Celestion Speaker. Effects Loop and footswitch input for a clean/lead footswitch. Made in the Early nineties, I think...My music store had one in 1995 with no documentation or anything...you can't buy them in USA...but it sounded great! So I bought it. No output jack...I'd have to wire into the speaker cable...that's why it only gets a 9 for features. This is a great combo.

First of all, it's REALLY LOUD for 30 Watts. This thing really cranks, and can get pretty loud while staying CLEAN. I use a Parker Fly Deluxe and a Mexican Strat Special. On the strat I took out the piece of crap stock humbucker and replaced it with a Seymour Duncan George Lynch Screamin' demon wired to an on/on/on switch so I can choose humbucker/single coil/out of phase. Those options combined with the 5-way strat switch provide some interesting sonic possibilities. But this is an amp review. On the clean channel the Parker Fly sounds beautifully glassy with a little chorus in the effects loop. The Piezo pickups on the Parker get good definition and full frequency response through this amp, but it is not a hi-fi acoustic amp. The Strat sparkles and the Screamin' Demon's harmonics come through great on this amp. The clean channel has a great tube sound (you should know what I mean), because well, this is a great tube amp! hit the gain boost, and you get a little crunchy...switch to lead and hit the mid-boost and brightness, and you get a really hot sound. You can also get a real creamy tube overdrive/distortion if you kill the brightness and cut the mids on the EQ. The reverb sounds like reverb. The 3-way presence switch creates changes that are surprisingly noticeable - you can make your sound "further away" or something.

I play everything from beatles to metallica to hendrix to tenacious D to zeppelin to all the wacky new shit, and this amp excels at everything. Very versatile. The only sound you can't get out of this amp on its own is the super-crunch-scooped-mids-death-metal sound. It just doesn't provide the bass thump necessary. But that's why Boss made the Metal Zone, isn't it? Run the Metal Zone into the front end of this amp, and viola! You've got a Marshall Stack! Well, not quite, but you can sound just like Green Day, Metallica, whatever. But this amp is not made for metal. You can get a great variety of clean sounds, and a lead channel that can pump the gain up but not to the point of metal-mania. The lead channel is more suited to blues or hard rock leads, because it sounds great and has great definition. Metal bands use effects that turn their sound into MUD, like the metal zone. This amp does not produce any MUD. It even demuddifies the Metal Zone if you can imagine that.

Very portable, very dependable. It has never broken down on me, and I replaced the tubes a few months ago (I've had it 6 years). It could gig, but I usually leave it at home as it is best suited for practice, small jams, and recording, and I couldn't bear to lose it - I'd never find another!

Germans make reliable stuff, in general.

Ummm... The company does not exist in the USA... I suppose I could try to brush up on my German and get in contact with them, but I have had no reason to do so...

I've been playing for 9 years, besides what is listed above, I also have a ESP LTD c-304 bass and an Ampeg B-100R Rocket Bass amp...as well as a host of effects pedals. The Engl Jive amp has a grade-A sound. It is all tube, so you get that tactile, full analog tube sound, and the creamy overdrive distortion. ENGL is not a well-known company in the US, but in Europe they are apparently big (Ritchie Blackmore and others prefer Engl over Marshall).

If I ever lost it, I'm sure I'd never find another one. So I don't take it out of my house. This is the best combo under 80 watts that I have ever heard at any price! The only negatives about it are the lack of an output jack and lack of super-crunch bass response, but that's what keeps it from getting muddy! You can crash the front end with a metal-zone and pop an eq in the effects loop and you get your metal-crunch, but it turns muddy because that's what the metal-zone does. This is not a marshall stack, it is an amp for trying to find the ultimate tube-tone!

This is a great amp for getting the full tone of your guitar from its pickups to your ears. Great for recording or home jams/practice. Sounds like diamonds. Well worth the money and then some. If you can get it for less than $500 US or equivalent (like 1,000,000 Italian Lire - that always cracks me up), buy it! I saw it for 1200 (about $800) Deutschmarks online somewhere once...

Jive is a little all circuitry tube amp (30 watts R.M.S.) whit two channels and one loudspeaker (Celestion 12``). It bit a lot (i` ve killed a lot of 50 Watts owners). Unique equalization, channel switching whit remote switch, effect loop. There isn`t external speaker output. Jive is very portable, solid and durable; it doesn,t care stairs, hole,s in the floor, traumas and very hot temperatures.

My set up include: `95 AMSTD Stratocaster (three AMSTD single coil) and Jackson Stealth whit Duncan Distortion in the bridge position. The sound is great whit all My guitar. The clean channel is trasparent and reflect perfectly the sound of guitar; You can obtain all kind of clean and crunch sounds. The overdrive channel is also versatile, but the unique speaker gives You some limitation when You need punch and a lot of bass response (for example when You must use powerchords.

I will never sale it. It sounds great, it,s very portable and It have incredible size and wheight. I`ve never broken it (and i think i`m not able to broke it)

About My Jive i love everything exept: 1 - I can use him in My prog-crossover-death-metal-band 2 - I`ve paid it a lot (but nothing is a lot for the perfection) 3 - It`s a german amp (and I hate german people)