Epiphone Valve Junior Combo

One volume control. One very small speaker.

One playing volume, and if you don't like that volume and turn it up or down the tone will change ... basically only suitable for recording where you can then later change the volume in the mix.

There is a 60 cycle hum and you have to *try* to see if you can mask it in a recording ... or treat this as a kit amp, and fix the hum by your own mods or send it to an amp tech.

Now the amp isn't a $120 amp, but $200 or more after the bench fee and parts.

And if you need some classic brown bass tones you will want a 12" speaker and extension cab ... well, now the cost is $300 to $400 for a kit tube amp with limited flexibiility.

I would recommend taking a listen to some of the newer tube or modeling amps that already have a beefy vintage 12 inch speaker and can be used at any volume practice-recording up to live performance volume. Check out the sound clips at,

http://guitar-mentor.blogspot.com/2005/08/high-yield-gear-for-guitarists-then.html

Either the Peavey Valveking ($350) or Behringer Tube Amp modeler both have vintage voiced 12 inch speakers and fantastic tone. And by the time you mod the little epi valve jr, you are paying less for the Valveking or LX112.

Once you investigate, you will find each of these amps have much more than just a volume control and much more speaker / cabinet engineering.

One volume control means one tone matched to a non-variable volume.

Change the volume and the tone changes.

The amp doesn't work with headphones (in a practice mode) nor does it work in a live setting (it can't keep up with a drummer or other live sound).

I'll still rate it a 4, because if all you want is 'brown tone', then that's what you get. No reverb or effects loop just brown tone through a thin 8 inch speaker.

If it runs for 90 days, it is probably going to run for a while, like other inexpensive electronics. Tubes will have to be maintained, based on how often you play. Budget $20 or so per year for tubes.

The good news is that there are only two tubes to replace. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

Not required (yet or ever, I hope!).

Any part you may need (except for the transformer) probably can be found locally.

If lost or stolen, I might not replace it. I have evaluated amps from Dr Z to Epi over the years, and prefer a versatile amp vs. a single function amp (or collection of amps). I am a player, and try NOT to be a collector of infrequently used gear.

For $99, on sale, it is a fair deal, as long as you know what you are getting into.

EVALUATE THE VALVE JUNIOR BEFORE PURCHASING

TRY BEFORE YOU BUY SO YOU ARE NOT DISSAPOINTED.

This is not a 'first amp' a beginner-student would want. It can't be effectively used at a practice level, and the dry sound (no reverb available) leads you to the expense of effects pedals. By the time you add pedals (for the tone flexibility), you could have purchased the ValveKing or LX112 (which has a very flexible tone stack and some effects built-in or line-in, not front-ended). Front-ending pedals is becomming a less desirable option these days for several reasons.

I might purchase it again, if I could save another $30, and just get a 'head version' for $70. I would much prefer to run this through one of my 2x12 or 1x12 combo amp speakers rather than use the 8 inch speaker.

I hear the terms thrown loosely around, Class A, Class B, Class AB and though I'm no new student to tube amps I forget alot so I went to the bible of self promotion and tube amps, The Tube Amp Book by Aspen Pittman and read " an amplifier operating with the grid bias adjusted so plate current flows for the entire 360 degrees of the input waveform." Exactly what I thought.....

So here we have a brand new Class A amp from Epiphone, 5 watts, 1 12AX7 and 1 EL84 with a 4 ohm 8" speaker which may or may not have been designed by Ted Webber.

There is an input , a volume knob and a 3-prong plug.

I wish, oh how I wish it had a tube rectifier as my Prosonic does and makes the amp.

I play Gibsons more often than not, P90's, PAFs and Burstbuckers. The amp has soul. Just like the literature says, down low beautiful blues clarity, louder a subtle breakup full of brown warmth.

There is a 60 cycle hum and you have to create enough noise and attitude to forget it.

For the money and tube quality it is a ten.

Brand new.

Don't know.

I've been playng for 10 years or so, played some in highschool before that. Have a couple of Sunns, Prosonic, '57 tweed, Sound city and the like, recently sold a Blues Jr to a friend who needed an amp and I wasn't using it. I like music and the tonal qualities of tubes, speakers, strings and wood. This is cool. I'll keep it

Brand new Valve JR. One Big Fat Knob. Channel switching via MIDI.....just kidding.

One thing that a lot of people have missed here is that the speaker (if I am not mistaken) is actually manufactured by webber. I think it is fine, I AB'd it with some other 8's practice amps and found it quite pleasing, with its own character. I am using this in stereo with a VOX pathfinder 15R. The two compliment eachother well. I have backed up a singersongwriter band with a drummer who plays with brushes and bundlesticks, and it held up well, just don't expect it to be super clean.

I run the standards through this, strat (MIJ), Tele, and LP. They all retain their special voice with this amp. This thing has a sweet clean tone at about 10:00, and a wonderful OD at 1:00. Things are raging at 3-5:00. Great rock sounds, dirty, gritty, farty, wonderful. I own a classic 30 that sounds similar to this on the clean channel, just twice as loud. I wanted this for low(er) volume recording of power tube distortion. However, don't get me wrong, this thing will still piss off the neighbors if you crank it. Don't expect singing saturated sustain and scooped mids, this thing sounds like a turd, a big fat brown wonderfully rock'n roll turd.

I have also noticed that it takes to distortion pedals quite well.

If you like tube amps, you will like this tone, however, if you are upgrading your practice amp, you might be in for a suprise. Tube amps sound different alone, but they are a much better sound for group playing and recording. If you are used to tube sound, this is for you, if not, skip this amp and go straight to a slightly bigger tube combo and join a band.

At $119, I will be happy if it makes it past the 5 year warranty. However, it looks fine, the outside cabinet build seems strong. I just worry about some of the components inside.

I wouldn't know.

It is worth it to own this. $119, come on. Hold off on your 18th delay pedal or your new boutique megafuzz and get one of these. I can see this getting a LOT of rehersal, recording, and practice use, and maybe even a few shows.

I think by now, we all know the features of this amp..1 input, 1 chickenhead volume knob, 2 tubes, and a speaker. As far as features I wish it had, one would be some sort of onboard spring reverb to add a little airiness to the overall sound, and two..I don't know why they didn't just do this, since the taps are already there on the output transformer...a hardwired 8 ohm output jack for a little more flexibility in hooking up outboard speaker cabs. But the basics for pure class A tube tone are all there.

Hmm...this is the subjective part...I've already done some minor mods, so I'll rate this on stock, and repost when all my mods are in place. Right out of the box, I found it a little, well, blahh...it broke up very early (11 o'clock) and I found the tone to be very muddy and boxy, especially with humbuckers. Stock, what I found it to work best with was P-90's and a wah, for some very honky midrange funk vamping. But I was unable to get very much top end sparkle or bite. I like the overdrive, but once again found it to be very boxy sounding and muddy. It seems like the places where Epi cut corners for value pricing were tubes and speakers. (more on that later) Also, there is audible hum, but I guess that just comes with the tube territory.

So far it seems solidly built, always carry spare tubes, kiddos. The construction is quite nice. 5 years on everything except tubes and speaker which are 90 days, but I splurged and spent the 12 bones for Musician's Friend extended warranty.

Well, I haven't dealt with Epiphone yet, but registering online was a breeze.

Alright, stock...for the same money, my Vox Pathfinder 15R is a much more versatile amp, but I don't dig the SS gain on it much, so I thought, "What the hey...120 bucks for a tube combo", which leaves me money for mods. So far, I've followed others lead and replaced the Sovtek 12AX7 with a GT12AT7, which gave me more clean headroom, and drastically improved treble response. I will soon be replacing the stock Weber Special 8" with either a Weber or Jensen 8" alnico, and replacing the Sovtek EL84 with either a JJ/Tesla or comparable NOS tube and maybe messing somewhat with the circuit, which is similar to a Champ. Once I'm done with my Mad Scientist bit, I will chime back in with a tonal update.

One Input, One Knob, Power switch. All you need. I sold my Peavey Classic 30 and bought a tweed deluxe amp kit. I have yet to complete it, so when my wife wasn't looking I went out and bought this little mp to keep me occupied until I finish it. Just got it outta the box and I love it. I have never trusted epi amps in my price range, but this little puppy was ridiculously cheap and sounds great! I may swith the tubes with some that I got for my deluxe to see how that sounds and maybe take back the Jensen alnico I put in my Father-in-laws practice amp. But I am happy with this deal. The only feature I would add is a standby.

I have a Mexi strat modded with a tele bridge pickup and modded 5 way switch for tele bridge and neck. This little amp sings. I may not have the trained ear to pick up what other can, but the word sweet does come to mind. I does breakup a little earlier than I might like, but I will see what the tubes and speaker do for that.

Just got it outta the box, but it took the ride home in my truck.

Not need yet. 5yr materials and workmanship. 90 tubes and speakers on warranty card.

I am an at home hobbyist considering doing a little home recording. this makes me consider it even harder. I think it would record great! With a few mods this could compare to a nice Champ. But 120 bucks as is - is a deal!

In the case of tube amps, more often than not a lack of features is a good thing. The front panel of this amp has just 1 input and a volume knob. I'm so glad it doesn't have tone knobs and other circuits that eat away at your guitar and amps true tone. On the back panel, it's great that the power cord is removable and there's a 4 ohm speaker output which you can plug in other speaker cabinets if you disconnect it from the built in speaker. It looks pretty nice too; touches of retro design on the front. And wood, covering, and corners appear to be of a nice, non-cheapo, quality too.

The amp has a suprisingly great bluesy tone and breaks up very nicely. My Les Paul, Tele, Strat, and Talman all sound great in their own paricular ways. Often i put a tubescreamer, wah, and a digital reverb (a Yamaha MagicStomp) in front of the amp and they sound great with this amp.<br><br>
My main amp is a 68 Fender Bassman, which is a joy to play and makes every guitar sound great. However, it can be hard to get a good sound at a low volume. The Valve Junior, being just 5 watts, has a nice sound a low volume. And when you turn it up, it sounds even better. I thought the stock Sovtek tubes made the amp sound kind of harsh and a bit dark, but still sounded pretty good. I had some extra EI 12ax7's, so I put one of them and it helped the amp's tone some. I had to order an el84 for the power amp and decided to try the new jj tesla ones. That change made an even bigger positive impact and now the amp sounds great. I highly recommend spending the $18 or so to upgrade the tubes as it's more than worth it. <br><br>
It does that low level hum that others have, but my Bassman has its own hums too...it's just how tube amps are. The stock speaker sounds suprisingly good. If you want other tones, I'd suggest connecting different speaker cabinets rather than replacing the speaker.

So far, two weeks, so good. It's new so I will trust taking it out.

I've never had to deal with them yet.

This is hands down the best value for a new tube amp. This would still be a great deal at twice what i paid. I don't how they make any profit on this. As much as I love my Bassman, I've been playing this little amp a lot the past two weeks and am loving it. I'm looking forward to taking it to shows and it's plenty loud, as long as you don't have a hyper amphetamine drummer which i don't. And this should go without saying; this amp is not for hard rock/metal. It's a great old style bluesy amp with a nice bitting clean sound that gets pushed into a pleasing overdrive.

Sorry, but I disagree with the guy who said he couldn't bring himself to give a high grade in this category, because, come on, there's only one volume knob. Yeah, well, that's what I happen to think is great about this amp. There are so many misleading options on so many pieces of equipment i've used over the years. Tone should not come from filters and gadgets and controls that just screw with the natural character of your playing. Volume on a tube amp means more than loud or soft, it influences the degree of distortion and gain, and that's the way it should be. This amp is exactly as versatile as your fingers are and doesn't sugarcoat your limitations. I love that.

I worked in a coal mine for 85 years to buy the beautiful THD Univalve. I also sold my soul, so I could afford a vintage Marshall 4x12 cabinet with Greenbacks that Jesus himself used to play. With this rig, I had the most wonderful single ended Class A tone in the world. There was NO reason to pick up that Epiphone. But it was so damn cute and so affordable! Less than half the price of that fancy Fender Pro Junior with its garish two controls! It was a crazy thing to buy, but since I have all the Manolo shoes a girl could ever want, and I didn't feel like splurging on Ice Cream that day, it had to be the Epi. Oh, those Chinese people have such a sense of style! And since I haven't adressed any of the issues this category is about, let me just say: It sounds good. A little buzzing and hum, but it sounds really sweet.

Had to return one because it buzzed like someone standing next to a TV with a single coil guitar, and this was before plugging in! The second one I got hums a little, but nothing out of the ordinary. So... I wouldn't use it on a gig without a backup, but it IS my backup from now on. I wonder how long the tubes will make it without a standby switch, also, I hear Class A is kinda hard on the valves. If anybody reads this who is tube-enlightened: Could you let me know if I can replace the tubes myself of does there have to be rebiasing? I was thinking a GT EL 84 might be a good thing... my email is jlab@bluewin.ch

Well, this is not about Epiphone customer support, but the good people at Guitar Center Manhattan replaced it without any stupid questions when I returned my first one which started to emit an ugly buzz, even without a guitar being plugged in, after an hour or so. I had taken it to the bathtub with me, but don't tell them that. Here's my real question: Why do postal workers run amok on a regular basis, but these poor dudes who stand next to 12 year olds experimenting on Marshall stacks all day seem so calm and easy going? Is there something about sex, drugs and/or rock'n'roll I haven't fully understood?

I've been playing for 25 years, with interruptions of course, since I like breakfast and stuff. I'm not telling what other gear I own, cause I find that to be the most unreadable part of any of these reviews. I am a compulsive guitar stuff buyer, I am way old, you do the math.

I wish this amp ran its speaker at 8 Ohm, so I could use my existing cabinets, just to find out if different speakers would make it sound even better. But what the hell.
If I had another 70 bucks to spend, I'd consider a Jensen speaker like the ones in the Bassman.
If this amp was stolen or lost, I'd steal it back. I did compare it to the Pro Junior, sort of, which I have considered buying for years, but I could never justify the 300 bucks. The 120 for this thing are a joke (not to the sweet little children in China, but hey. I wanted an amp so screw my conscience. I'm sure it beats the hell out of sewing sneakers. Or does it? We'll never know.)!

The feature list of this amp start with "tone" and end with "tone."
No other features are required of an amp!
One input jack
One Volume Knob
One 12AX7
One EL84
One 4ohm, 8" speaker.

This class A, albeit Chinese, five watt wonder shares the same basic topology as the $600. Gibson GA-5 Reissue...right down to the solid state rectifier. I purchased the jr at GC and immediately brought it home and mated it with my Ibenez Artstar hollow body. In a word...incredible. Not for useless DSP effects, poorly designed "modeling" circuits, or foolish "Drive" buttons, but just a simple and tried experiment in the effects of electron clouds within a vacuum. Sure, this amp hums a bit, but would you listen to Communication Breakdown and bitch about Jimmy's noisy rig? Really, now. This amp is not intended to give you "distortion" in the normal, transistor sawtooth wave crap. It breaks up gracefully as you increase the volume in predictable, soft knee clipping. The only thing that would add to the delicious tonality would be returning the 5Y3 rectifier. I suggest building a 4ohm Power Soak to allow for private, overdriven practice. Search the net for a circuit.

As I stated, I bought the amp at Guit Cntr and was given a "demonstration" by a salesman. He said, "It really doesn't sound worth sh*t until you crank it like this and get the power tubes to
overdrive." He then struck an E chord and about took my head off.
You gotta love those big box guitar store moments.
I took the amp home and soon realized the EL84 tube was microphonic and after checking to see if it might just be loose, determined it was defective. I think this was a fluke, since the amp is very solid and expertly built (unfortunately by underpaid chinese children, very likely). Some corners have been cut such as the power switch (it's not very sexy, looks modern and out of place) and the speaker is soldered right to the 1/4" output plug instead of using molex connects. Not huge issues, just minor details.
The cabinet is MDF, but very solid and expertly covered with tolex.
You wouldn't want to get it wet....but why would you?
Based upon the construction I think the reliability is obvious.

I have dealt with Epiphone in the past and they honored a lifetime warranty on an acoustic I bought. They were very efficient and
took care of my claim without any drama.
The Valve Junior carries a limited 5 year warranty with all the normal exclusions such as tubes, speakers, cosmetics, etc.

I have been a performing musician for over ten years and own quite a bit of gear including Gibson and Vox amps, G&L,Epi, Fender guitars...I know a thing or two about gear.
I love the Epiphone Valve Junior for the simplicity and tone...as well as the rediculous price! The designer's nod to nostalgia is nice as well. I cannot find anything bad to say regarding this amp. My final point would be that building your own single-ended class A guitar amp as a DIY project just became impractical. I love to build amps but I can't even buy ONE quality OUTPUT TRANSFORMER for the price of this whole amp!!!! Yes, it's a shame...Thanx Walmart!

Very simple. Input and volume control. Straight forward no bells and whistles or DSP effects. The only thing that may be a good addition to this amp is to add a standby switch. Other than that this amp is just right.

I am using a Ibanez JS1000 with Dimarzio Fred in the bridge and Pro PAF in the neck. A versatile enough guitar to find out what this amp can do. I play whatever sounds good that day, but mainly blues, and rock. This amp sounds great, and at $120.00 is well worth the money especially for a class A tube amp. You get some great clean sounds at lower volumes 1-4 and it gets some great natural but subtle tube overdrive at higher volumes 5-10. I think with the 1 volume control this amp generates a variety of great blues tones. This amp is mainly for practice, but with some creativity could be used in other applications. The greatest thing this amp does is it responds to what you are doing on the guitar. Not that this amp does that and all others don't, but that this amp falls into that class. Just by changing pick attack and strumming technique along with adjusting the volume or tone control on the guitar opens up more tone possibities. It does hum a little bit but tube amps do that. I was surprised by this amp.

I have only had it a couple weeks but it's built great. Metal corners are a great addition. Tubes are positioned well and protected well. Manufacturer warranty is 5 years from defects, and 90 days on tubes and speaker. I can live with that.

N/A Hope I don't have to.

I have been playing guitar for about 10 years. I would replace it if necessary. As I stated above this amp or really any amp reacts to what you do as a guitar player. If you are creative and play well you are going to like it. It probably won't make you a better guitar player unless it inspires you to study and practice more. I compared this amp to other new and used examples in the same class, and thought this was the best buy for the money.

Brand new 2005 Epi Valve Junior amp, 5 watts through an 8" Epi speaker with a Sovtek 12AX7 and EL84 tube in the guts. Class A single circuit, but not hand-wired (at this price, are you kidding me?) Nice touch with the detachable power cord and metal corners. About 13" tall, so it won't tower over your Stonehenge setpiece. Sorry to burst the features rating bubble, but c'mon, it's got an input, a knob, and an on/off switch. Bare bones if there ever was one; the amp equivalent to a Telecaster.

I tested (and yielded to) the charms of this little lump of Chinese Class A amplification at the local big-box-retail-guitar-o-rama-center the other day and couldn't help but be impressed. I knew while plugging in that there was no reverb, no EQ, no headphone jack, nothing but an input, a knob, and an on/off switch. But I've been keen to get an amp I could easily move around, didn't have a ton of knobs to reset when my 2 year old daughter would decide to be my engineer, and most of all something with tubes and tone that wouldn't cost me more than a car payment. Sure, I would've loved that Victoria 5 watt amp or Bad Cat Mini Cat unit, but that's $700+!

I plugged a maple necked American Strat, humbucker equipped Paul, (which third guitar would best complete the holy trinity of electric guitar: Discuss.) and a DeArmond loaded Gretsch hollowbody into this baby at the store. This amp takes a few minutes to get warmed up, but once it's toasty and purring, this amp begins to reveal it's subtle charms. Between the 7 and 11 position, it's just a straight forward amplification of the wood, strings, andd electronics of your guitar. Rolling past 11 until 2 begins to bring out nuances of your picking, attack, and fingers. From 2 to 6, it's time to break out the liquor, put the kids to bed, and just groove on the overdriven break up that comes with juicing tubes at maximum power. While not subtle enough to max out each guitar's individual characteristics, I could enjoy the hollowbodied thump of my Gretsch for some roots rock, my Strat's single coils danced a bit more, and my Paul was a little more soulful than through the hybrid Vox I've had for the past three years.

Don't kid yourself; this amp is an awesome practice model, or mike it up and record some killer tracks, maybe even a small, quiet gig where you're 50% of the sound. But don't buy this amp thinking you're taking it on the road or to compete with a drummer. That's why they make 50 watt heads and 4x12 cabinets.

Okay, I just bought it yesterday, so I can't rate reliability just yet but I will say that it looks tough enough. Pop off the back and swap in new tubes if they burn out, otherwise, just go buy another one while they're this cheap. Unlike most things made in China, this is not a complete peice of cheap crapola. If someone could make an amp in America this nifty and not charge 4 to 5 times what Epiphone sells this one for, I'd buy it. Wait a minute, they did! Back in the 60's, and now guys on eBay want you to drop $100+ on old no-name Champ clones that went for $30 a few years ago. Thanks, free market!

Cannot comment as I have not contacted the gigantic-behemoth-corp that is Gibson/Epiphone regarding this product. If you can't fix it, parts it out or use it as a step stool.

5 year warranty on the cabinet, 90 days on tubes and speaker. (Disparity if I've ever seen it: they'll care for a box twenty times longer than the pieces that make it useful?!)

For the money, this is an insanely good deal. Sure, you could buy the aforementioned vintage cheap-o 5 watt Champ clones that now sell for as much as the Epi Valve Junior, but this is brand new, at least has a warranty, and it won't be DOA. This is precisely what I wanted: something I can just plug and play without dragging around a larger, heavier amp. My house is small and I have a wife, a 2 year old girl, and assorted animals that aren't that as keen on guitar, so I need something that won't cause domestic duress but isn't a laughably poor mini amp ("Dude! My battery powered Marshall mini stack just roars! This thing is coooooool!" Okay, Grasshopper, time to put down the Mountain Dew and stop listening to Creed).

If I need more power, I'll just disconnect the speaker line, use it as a head and drive it into the Vox Cambridge with a 10" Celestion Bulldog that is now tucked away in a closet until I get my guitar room.

Little wonders like these were the amps your dads cut their teeth on after the Beatles landed in America. Turned up and miked right, these babies cut the blues on lables all over the land. Paired with a great guitar, it's easy to just cut loose and spend some time getting acquainted with how well you can play music.

As another reviewer stated, this is tone boot camp; if you can't play well with just a guitar and a little class A 5 watt amp, nothing will help you. And if you're like me and can barely play well with a guitar and just this amp, this Epi will make you a better player.