Gibson GA30RVH Head

The amp is a 30Watt (pseudo)Class A. It has the following features:
- two preamps with separate controls (volume, treble, midrange, bass, reverb for pre1 and volume, gain, treble, midrange, bass, reverb for pre2);
- a common master volume;
- a tube-driven effect loop with input-output controls and a serial/parallel selector switch;
- gain boost;
- inputs for a two-button footswitch and for a five-button footcontroller;
- the possibility of blending the two preamps.
The only problem I had was to found the footcontroller that is necessary if you want to use all the beautiful features of this amp (e.g. only with the footcontroller it is possible to blend the two preamps). Fortunately, since the amp is actually manufactured by Trace Elliot, there is the footcontroller of a Trace Elliot (bass, I think) amp that is really the same and is easier to find.
The footcontroller has 5 buttons:
- channel switch,
- boost on/off,
- channel blending on/off,
- effect loop on/off,
- reverb on/off.
I don't use effects like chorus, delay etc., so I actually use the effect loop as a pure and clean volume boost: I connect a single cable in send and return, select the serial loop and set send and return's volumes quite high... fantastic for clean solos!

I use a Gibson Les Paul and an assembled Telecaster-style guitar, I play mostly classic rock/hard rock and blues.
This amplifier is simply wonderful. The clean channel (first pre) is almost identical to the old Vox AC30 Top Boost and it start crunching if you crank up the volume. The second channel has got an incredible range of distortions: it goes from a light overdrive to a very high gain sound if you set the gain high and use the boost. However I prefer to use a medium/high setting for gain control because there is pre1+pre2 that gives you a great bluesy overdrive sound. Moreover, if you set the two preamps at different volumes, it sounds like two guitars (one clean and the other one distorted); this features can be useful in some live situations.
Again: the sound is awesome. I use to have an AC30TB head but I prefer this one; I never played with a Matchless but I suspect that even such an incredibly expensive boutique amp would have a hard time if compared with this jewel.

I never changed its tubes but I'm not playing very much in the last years, but it look very dependable.

I never had any problem, so I don't know. By the way I was tempted to give them a bad rate just because they discontinued this product: idiots!

I have played for 15 years and changed a lot of stuff (guitars, effects and amps). I owned a Vox AC30TB, ranked second in my personal ranking, a Yamaha VR5000 solid state, a Fender Blues Junior, a Vox Cambridge, a Vox AC1; moreover I tried hundreds of amps, and no one sounds like this. It is my ultimate amp.
I play it with a 2x12" custom made (in Italy) cabinet with a Celestion Vintage 30 and a Celestion Greenback.
If it were stolen or lost I would probably sell all my gear and quit playing. As I said, this amp has been discontinued and I don't see it around, so it would be hard to buy another one.

PLENTY OF SPECS IN THE PREV. POSTS.
IT VERSATILE ENOUGH FOR PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING SHORT OF METAL, AT WHICH POINT YOU USE A PEDAL.
THE THING IS A THING OF BEUTY.

WHOOOOOWEEEEEE!!!! I LOVE THIS AMP!!! I HAVE HAD IT ABOUT 5 YEARS AND IT SOUNDS GREAT WITH ANY GUITAR. THERE ISNT A BAD SOUNDING BONE ON THIS THING. I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO GET THE 2X10 OPEN 2X12CLOSED BACK STACK (ALL CELESTION V'S). BLOODY THING SOUNDS LIKE A DREAM!! WITH THE MASTER VOLUME I CAN DRIVE THE CLEAN ENOUGH TO GET ME A NICE CRUNCH. THE LEAD CHANNEL IS LUSH AND RESPONSIVE. TWEAKING THE GAIN CAN GIVE A LARGE SPECTRUM OF SOUNDS.I DIDNT HAVE A 5 SWITCH PEDAL AT FIRST, AND FASHIONED ONE OUT OF AN OLD POLYTONE PEDAL WITH A LITTLE WIRING SHE WAS GOOD TO GO! I EVENTUALLY FOUND A TRACE PEDAL ON EBAY. THE BOOST FUNCTION USED TO SCARE THE SHIT OUT OF ME WHEN PLAYING ALONE, BUT WHEN YOU HAVE THE BAND GOING THE VOLUME JUMP IS JUST RIGHT. I SOMETIME JUMP THE FX LOOP AND USE IT TO BOOST THE VOLUME WITHOUT BOOSTING GAIN.
I PRIMARILY USE IT WITH A GIBSON 3HB CLASSIC EQUIPPED WITH PHAT CATS (P90'S). I GIVES ME A NICE CRUNCHY TONE KINDA LIKE A VOX... BUT BETTER.
THE CAB WEIGHS A TON AS DOES THE HEAD. SO I FASHIONED A 1X10 CAB OPEN AND A 1X12 CLOSED CAB BOTH LOADED WITH CELESTION V'S, I WOULD RUN BOTH CABS AT THE SAME TIME TO GIVE ME THE FEEL OF THE STACK. WORKED GOOD FOR ME.. DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF THE GIG, SOMETIMES I WOULD BRING JUST THE SINGLE 12.
SHE IS CURRENTLY LEADED WITH JJ TUBES AND IT SOUNDS WAY BETTER THAN THE STOCK TUBES.
I OWN MANY TUBE AMPS AND GUITARS.. TOO MANY TO MENTION, BUT WHEN IM IN MY STUDIO, THIS IS THE AMP I GRAVITATE TO. IF YOU CAN FIND ONE.. GET ONE. LIKE MOST GUITARISTS, I AM CONSTANTLY IN SEARCH OF OF TONE. BUT IN MY OPINION IF THERE WAS A TONE TO MATCH TONES AGAINST. IT WOULD BE THIS AMP THRU THE GIBSON CAB... ITS THAT GOOD.

SHE HASNT FAILED ME YET. GIGGED IT CONSTANTLY FOR 2 YEARS 2 TO 3 TIME A WEEK.

NA

I HAVE BEEN PLAYING ABOUT 23 YEARS, IF WERE STOLEN I WOULD HUNT THE BASTARD DOWN AND TORTURE HIM. I DONT THINK HE WOULD GET FAR WITH THE CAB. THE ONLY THING I WISH IT HAD WAS AN ADJUSTABLE BOOST KNOB.. BUT WE CANT HAVE IT ALL. OTHER THAN THAT.. THIS THING IS THE S**T.

my gibson super goldtone head is a 1999 model made in england with the brown leather-like tolex. i go through amps quite often and found this head for a great price so i bought it 6 months ago. the effects loop is all tube studio quality, finally an amp that will seamlessly integrate my lexicon with adjustable send and return levels. the reverb is nice but i hardly ever use it. i only have a 2 button footswitch so i can switch channels and turn boost off/on. optional footswitch is not availiable since gibson does not care to support musicians that spend their hard earned money on their amps and then discontinues the line and then fails to stockpile needed parts. the designer paul stevenson is currently designing the hiwatt custom 30 so when the transformers go out will anyone at gibson know the specs or care? this amp has a killer 3-d rich clean channel and a british flavored distortion channel. this amp should of been equipped with a fan, use as a room heater in the winter

using with my lp custom and carvin ct, all humbuckers. finally an amp that gets a great liquid rich clean sound,(not a sterile fender clean and not a crappy marshall clean and not an icepick hiwatt raspy clean)with my les paul custom. my 4x12 cab loaded with fane alnicos covers alot of ground and makes my supergoldentone head sound better than with my 4x12 celestion vintage 30 loaded cab. the distortion channel sounds marshally with that crunch tone with upper-mids that the jimmy page zeppelin era brings to mind. also smooth high gain progressive rock or even iron maiden to gary moore madness can be had with a few turns of the knobs. the clean channel breaks up beautifully when master is dimed and works well for the classic rock tones. TO SUM UP THE REASON I BUY AMPS: TONE. this one delivers, i guess that is why i can't find a used one of these for under 1 grand. no amp is a 10 for me because they all have a certain voicing and no 1 amp can cover everything sonically that i want. this aint' a marshall, the tone knobs actually work. a few mullard 12ax7's and jan 12at7's really improve over the current new crap tubes gibson puts in these amps. no distortion pedals needed here, this amp is the best marshall/matchless crunch i've had with a great clean channel. that said my mesa mk4 does things this gibson cant do. the 30 watts of power is just right for clubs and still sounds good at home practice levels.

power tubes plates lightly glowing red with #3 ruby teslas, power transformer running H O T. these amps as well as the overpriced ac30 are biased hot as hell and it is no surprise that they break down more than a sterile fender. i removed power tube board and increased the bias resistor value and 1 the tubes no longer red plate,2 slightly less power(good thing) and the power transformer runs cooler. reliability is questionable since any class a cathode biased amp runs the power tranny hot enough to fry eggs on after amp is on for 2 hours. leave this amp on overnight and it would probably self destruct in a meltdown. i'd recommend using a fan on that pt. all tubes are mounted on pc boards of questionable quality(thin boards showing the accountant is the executive amp designer). this amp is still a few knotches above a dsl marshall in electronics parts quality. the head case is made of easily broken particle board, an inexcusable sign of cheapness for such an expensive amp. my amp is working fine but one drop and the head case would crack like an egg on concrete, an uneasy feeling. i had a burned 1/4 watt resistor on main board i replaced. several resistors on main pcb are jumpered onto each other and schematic does not show this so good luck if you dont fix your own amps. you could be looking at a pricey repair if you get one of those idiot techs that can't work without an exact schematic. sadly this amp will not last forever and parts to repair it will have to be custom made$$$

gibson stands behind their products, so far back you can't see them. no 5 way f/switch availiable. no schematic availiable. you guys dropped the ball with this amp. i've emailed gibson asking for transformer specs and 5 way f/switch wiring and NO REPLY 2 DIFFERENT TIMES.

the bottom line is this amp sounds alot better than: marshall jcm 800 4104,2205, jcm2000 tsl,dsl jcm 900 2100 vintage ptp 1972 head i previously owned, 6 hiwatts 100watt,50 watt, 20 watt, harry joyce custom 30, dozens of fenders, bedrock, laney, budda stringmaster, tophat club deluxe, and kittyhawk amps that i have owned over the years. this gibson is more useful with the tube driven reverb and effects loop with 2 killer footswitchable channels. this amp is like an old vox, sounds good but you never know when it's going to crap on you. if you like to live on the edge buy one and have killer tone but always wonder where you'll find parts when it goes down. if the particle board head case breaks i'll make one made with tongue and groove jointed plywood. overall i feel robbed since gibson does not support this discontinued amp. i know my mesa mk 4 will be supported my the most professional company around that backs their customers. this amp is a vox ac30 killer.

Follow-up on earlier review, after having owned the amp for a few months.

Awesome. Wanted to allow the amp time to grow on me and then provide a follow-up review.

Tubes play an integral part of obtaining "the sound" with this amp. This amp seems to be much more sensitive to tubes than the Marshalls I used to own. It sounds good with decent tubes of any type, but I found that playing around with different brands of tubes makes a difference, and finding "the" combination is just "magical." Seeing that you can swap out tubes without biasing, its worth a little swapping here and there to make sure your tube choices are optimal for the amp and the sound you want. If you find a great combination like I have, you'll know it. I look at this amp and I want to turn it on, because I know how good it sounds.

After playing it for a few weeks as-is, I ordered some new tubes to use in it, power and pre. I tried EH and JJ preamp tubes, NOS Jan 12at7's for the reverb, fx loops and for a brief time V1 (nice clean, but the lead channel suffered), GT and Tesla el84's, and EH, GT12ax7m's, and Sovtek PI tubes.

I ended up switching back to the Groove Tubes 12ax7m "Mullard" reissue 12ax7's for the preamp tubes, they sounded the best (and what was in the head when my wife bought it for me). I use GT EL84's rated 7 for the power amp tubes, after trying JJ's, which were very similar, but just a tad darker (think it had more to due with the rating of the tubes, since I've seen it reported that GT el84's come from the same factory as the JJ's). I'd like to try Ei EL84's, but honestly, the amp sounds incredible as-is. Maybe I'll spring for some NOS tubes one of these days, but right now, I've got an unbelievable tone, goes from crunchy, deep and complex to the best warm and ARTICULATE fuzz imagineable (yes, articulate fuzz, go figure).

I put a GT 12ax7m in the phase inverter, sounded okay, but then I started getting some popping and futzing sounds upon power-up. Infant mortality? Shame, replaced the GT with a 12ax7 Sovtek, which had a positive effect on the midrange of the tone, but seemed to dull the responsiveness and character of the amp as a whole. Just in the last couple of days, I pulled the Sovtek and put a EH 12ax7eh in the phase inverter, and voila! Every time I play the amp now, its at least a good couple hours before I even want to take a break, it sounds fantastic. To be honest, the clean sounded a little better with the Sovtek IMO, but with the EH in the phase inverter, Channel 2 is off the charts, while Channel 1 is very warm and clean with my Les Paul in rhythm pick-up mode. I never knew a PI tube could make such a difference in tone.

So here's a suggestion to everyone, take a little time playing around with tubes with this head. There is magic in this box when you get the right combination. My recipe right now is GT 12ax7m's for all preamp slots, a EH12ax7eh for PI, and GT el84's rated "7" for power tubes. Nothing too fancy or expensive, but it sounds and plays better than anything else I've laid my hands on. Honestly, I don't remember the reverb or fx tubes, since I don't use either with this amp. The clean is SO GOOD and has such sustain even at moderate volumes with a LP, it sounds like what chorus and reverb are trying to add to the tone in most other amps...life and character. I guess its true what many have said--a great tone is one where you DON'T want to add effects to it. This is that type of amp.

BTW, the Super Goldtone speaker cabinet with 10's open and 12's closed still sounds amazing, and if you can find one, is an integral part of the magic I find in this amp. The cabinet is and its unique speaker configuration is probably about half what attracted me to this amp in the first place. Really, the midrange response of the 10's and 12's combined gives a complexity to the tone that needs to be heard to believe. For lack of a better description, its somewhat similar to the effect of hearing a guitar part blended with a bass gui

So far so good. Like I posted, I had crackling and futzing noises when I replaced the PI tube, but thanks to suggestions on the Harmony Central Amp board, I didn't make a run to the shop, I just switched out the PI, and the problem went away. Those GT 12ax7m's sound great in the preamp slots, but I was suprised a new tube had reliability issues out of the box, especially since they charge a premium for the tube. But, they sound AWESOME in the preamp slots.

So, like all tube amps, I'd keep extra tubes laying around. Since you don't need to bias, tube swaps should be the first choice before running out to a tech if there's popping/cracking/dropouts/etc. Its probably not the amp, rather, its the tubes.

And again, try out some tubes to find the combination that "breathes." Like me, you'll know right away when you find it.

Sent a couple questions to Gibson, got a detailed email completely answering my question with 24 hours. Great.

Not a lot IMO to worry about with this amp.

A definite keeper. A familiar yet more refined and complex tone. I have yet to hear better. Fender and Marshall RI's or vintage pieces? Keep them.. Warm, deep, expressive, responsive all come to mind with this amp and cab. The distortion on this amp is incredible if you're looking for something in a vintage vein. Give it a try.

30W, class A, 4xEL84 trace elliot amp made after Gibson bought T-E. this is a NOS unit, made circa 1998 (I think), purchased from British Audio Service (great guys!).

The amp is very versatile especially with the 5-way foot controller. Two channels, swithcable and can be combined (w/5-way controller). effects loop serial or parallel with send and return level controls. Three speaker outs. Separate reverb levels for each channel (nice) and a master volume. This has everything I want in an amp. A little chorus or delay in the loop and a wah in front. Good to go.

The weird: british controls that have the setpoint at 6 o'clock. hard to get used to, and hard to see. And the british toggle switch convention (if you ever had an old brit car you know this already) toggle-down is on, toggle-up is off. Left hand driving and upside-down switches... no wonder the british empire declined... but I guess eccentricity has it's charm.

Did I say be sure to get the 5-way foot controller? Hard to find but worth it. There is a Trace Elliot 5-way controller that works fine although a couple of the LEDs are counter-intuitive if you use the TE model.

I use this with a jazzmaster, 335, a tele, strats and an acoustic. sounds great with each one, preserves and enhances each guitar's character. I use it for surf, blues, and danny gatton material plus originals. It's fantastic on all. It has more distortion than I need or want, it could probably cover almost any type of music with the right speaker config. I use it with 2 ported closed-back 1x12s so I can control sound placement and dispersion live (also easy to carry) and I really like this setup.

This amp has an incredibly full but not boomy low end, thick and sweet mids, and a very chimey top end. The reverb is very good but not totally wet and splashy, no big deal.

The clean channel is full and bright but isn't shrill, even with the strats, very nice. It breaks up with a good grind when you let it all loose, and you can control it with the guitar volume pot.

The distortion channel is pretty versatile. YOu can take off from where the clean channel winds up and go to full-out grind. I especially like both channels combined with the 5-way controller. Too bad you can't do that from the front panel or the cheap footswitch. The EQs are all very effective, great toneshaping at your fingers.

There's a boost button and foot control that works on either or both channels that is perfect for soloing.

I wish I could convey the beauty of the sound... it's different from the standard fender shimmer, in a good way. It's rounder and more "dimensional" is the only way I can describe it. It's easy to just play and play, the sound really envelops you. Noise level is very low. Oh, and it's got plenty o'balls for any setting... if you need more stage volume I wouldn't want to be at your show... for really huge venues you're going to mic anyway.

this was an NOS amp from British Audio Service, the authorized service folks for this and I would assume Trace Elliot too.

I used it for about 3 hours and it went blat-fizz-smoke. sent it back to British Audio Service and they carefully looked it over, determined it was infant mortality on one of the EL84 tubes, nothing more. I believe the amp's design is sound, but I always carry a set of four el84s with me in case that damn smoke signal goes up again. I don't gig without a backup of every key component on hand. why risk embarrassing yourself?

I'd like to give a plug for Shane and British Audio ... first-rate folks, really stand behind their gear, smart and careful. Highly recommended.

I can't really rate reliability yet. the dead tube thing can happen any time, so I'm not sure there was anything Gibson or Trace could have done to prevent it. We'll see how it holds up from here.

This amp is out of production, sadly, so Gibson support is irrelevant. But British Audio Service, the authorized guys, are great. Check 'em out.

Playing 30+. Tried and owned lots of gear. Currently use a '64 jazzmaster w/tom anderson pups, two strats (usa2000 and japan85), a bill lawrence tele, a dillion 335 clone with lawrence pups,an alvarez ad80 acoustic, and an el cheapo lap steel. Besides this supergoldtone, use a Fuchs ODS modded bandmaster (righteous!), a '65 Ampeg Gemini I (surfs up!), and a Crate VC20R (very good!) for practices. I either play thru a TS808 and old Vox wah into the amp with an old roland rack delay in the loop, or a digitech gnx3 all-in-one board. This amp is a great experience... after getting this I'd say everyone who's a tone junkie should have a fantastic balls-out class A amp. The supergoldtone is one of the best I've ever heard at any price. Spend the money and get the 5-way foot controller!

Gibson Super Goldtone 30W head, black tolex, made in England, with the Gibson 412 cabinet, 210's open back on top, 212's on the bottom. See other reviewers for more in-depth specs on the head's features. I've been intrigued by the idea of an "old school" Class A amp like the Emery Superbaby for awhile, but didn't like the lack of tone shaping controls, lack of power, or lack of built-in reverb on many of these designs. I just happened to find this amp in Guitar Center Pasadena, after trying out Bogners, Diezels, you name it, I played it, looking for a great amp to replace the Marshall combo I've been getting by with for the past few years. I give this amp a 10 on features, it doesn't have a bad sound in it, and the controls are very responsive to small changes, so its easy to dial in what you want. At the same time, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out all the options. Only problem I have with it is its so tweakable since it doesn't have just one sweet spot, it has a whole range of great tone, I'm always playing and tweaking away, finding new voices. I have yet to track it, but I'm sure it will sound absolutely fantastic on playback, and the fact it is so sweet across its range, it will make my parts sound awesome, as I won't have to mangle them as much to make them fit in the mix, I'll just dial in the proper voice for the song up-front.

The Super Goldtone cabinets you don't see too often, and they are just amazing. I was going to get an Avatar 212 and a Marshall JCM800 head, simply because I like the mismatched speakers and airness of the open-back sound of the 212 cabinets, but this 412 is like the best of both worlds, combining open-back Celestion 210's on top and closed-back Celestion 212's on bottom. Very, very nice three-dimensional sound, lush, complex and organic.

I play a limited edition Les Paul Studio that I've had for 10+years. It has the best resonance of any Les Pauls I've played. You find a good guitar by playing it unplugged and loving the way the wood responds to your playing, then you plug it in to make sure that sound is conveyed through the pickups to your amp. I play classic/hard rock.

This is my first Class A amp. I plugged into this beauty at Guitar Center and fell in love with it. So responsive and British in tone. The nuances of playing style shine through so much more than with all the Class AB amps I've played for years. It also is very responsive to changes in Volume/tone controls on the amp and on the guitar. With the Gibson cabinet, like I said above, the sound is lush and 3-dimensional. This amp perfectly mates with the Les Paul.

Like another reviewer said, the Goldtone series growls more than yells on Channel 2. In addition, it has an amazing top end that sizzles in comparison to similar amps. Marshalls have a harsher, raspier top, the Bogner Shiva has that hair on its top, this amp sizzles like bacon cooking around a campfire. Love it to death, cuts through great without cheapening the sound. Don't get me wrong, this is a British-voiced amp. I love that classic Marshall-esque crunch, and it was the sound that won me over, because up until I played this amp, I thought I'd have to go with a Marshall head to get close to the ultimate British tone I was looking for. This amp nails that sound, with far more expressiveness and range than any Marshall, modified or otherwise, or any boutique maker has been able to achieve. The one bad review of this amp I saw complained about the "goose" tone. To each their own, that "goose" in the tone is a calling-card of the great British crunch sound. Its that horn-sounding midrange frequency response of the amp that stands out on great guitar tracks. You can enhance that range or subdue it somewhat, but a huge amount of the life in the British tone resides there. Suck it out, you end up with a very sterile, fake-sounding track. If you want a more saturated, American-sounding distortion, look into the Mesas or similar, but for me, I find those amps lacking in depth and character. This amp is LUSH in comparison. This amp's tone is such that I wish a lot of the most classic rock songs I remember could be re-recorded with this amp, and I wish that the rock stations nowadays would ban all tone-deaf, whiney nu-metal stuff and get back to playing truly dangerous, reckless music with soul and something to say.

How about the clean? How about it--finally, a two-channel amp that has a great clean! Again, well voiced for my Les Paul, has some of that chimey Vox sound that's just beautiful, while still having the dark and complex sound I love about humbucker guitars. I don't want Buddy Holly cleans, or SRV cleans, Strats don't do it for me. This clean is deep, while being sweet at the same time, again, largely depending upon your playing style and changes in volume/tone controls on the guitar. And again, the tone controls on amp and guitar are amazingly responsive, so you can find not just one sweet spot, but the sweet spot right for the part you're playing. Push this channel hard, it goes into a nice break-up. In comparison, I read all about the Bogner Shiva's awesome clean. This one is MUCH more my taste, much more alive and organic.

BTW, there is a switchable boost you can use on both channels. Its very good. I do sometimes throw a Boss DS-1 in front of the amp for its boosting, but the built-in boost is generally better. Sometimes with the OD2 channel on higher gain settings, I find the amp's own boost comes on a little too Voxy-overdriven sounding for my tastes, in which case rolling back the guitar's volume just a little on-the-fly makes it ohh-so-right. Amp really doesn't need pedals, and there's plenty enough gain for all but the most saturated heavy-metal sounds, and IMO most o

This amp will most likely stay in my studio forever. I don't play out, haven't for years. I have a THD Hotplate to use to get the power tubes cranking without police intervention. I do record semi-seriously, soon to be totally serious, due to the love of playing this amp brings out, plus the realization that my destiny requires me to bring rock'n'roll back to the masses once again. Like a lot of guys, I'm just a tone hound, and I lucked out finding a great amp out of the blue, after looking and looking for a year or more. I'd heard these were great amps, and boy, the guys that said these were good weren't kidding. Glad I got mine.

Being Class A, tube swaps are a breeze, so I don't see too much that can go wrong with this baby. And I will baby her. I'm sure I'm done with amp purchases after finding this amp and cab. Its so unique, and its easily the best amp I've played through in over 15 years of playing.

Contacted Gibson on my guitar before, they're great.

This amp was used, so obviously no warranty. If something did go wrong (and see above--I doubt I'll have any problems besides swapping out tubes every year), I'll take it to my usual amp repair shop. I don't imagine there's anything under the hood that will suprise them, its a tube amp, basic designs haven't ever changed that much that a good tech can't figure them out.

Overall, this is an old-school amp that does all I want it to do. Great cleans, great overdrive, very responsive and lush. Sounds like I always wanted my Marshalls to sound, and I've had a few over the years. I was sold on the OD channel alone, when you add in the awesome cleans on this baby, I advise tonequesters to keep this amp on the down-low until you make damn sure you have one for yourself.

Again, I've been on a tone quest for over a year. I just happened upon this half-stack by accident. My wife, kids, and I were down in LA coming back from a trip to LV when I stopped in Guitar Center Pasadena and found this beauty. We had to leave to go home (we live up the California Coast), but I wouldn't stop talking about how great this amp was. I looked online for the smaller combos (10" and 12" speakers), but Musician's Friend and elsewhere had discontinued and just recently sold out of their remaining stock. The 30W combo version of this amp was going for $1K clearance before it sold out, which is a steal for an amp this good. I was down. Then my wife told me I should call up Guitar Center and just ask them if the half-stack was still available. The sales person told me flat-out they'd just sold the half-stack a day prior. Said it was a hell of a cool amp. So I told my wife I was going to sell off my Marshall combo and some other effects units to have cash-on-hand, then I was going to wait for a Super Goldtone to come up on Ebay. I knew I wouldn't find another half-stack.

Well, my wife stayed home the next several days, pretty much refusing to go out, saying she was waiting for my early Father's Day present to arrive. Well, it arrived alright--she had called Guitar Center and someohow convinced them to sell her the amp AND ship it up the coast to her (they usually don't like to ship used items, esp. halfstacks!) I got to tell you, I lucked out when I met her, and I remember that every day, especially now when I'm playing this amp and nothing but the greatest British tones come out. She's a keeper, so it should figure if she picks out an amp, it would be a keeper as well.

These amps were originally quite pricey, well out of the range of what I'd consider reasonable for a guitar amp, if you're fortunate to find one, whether combo, head, or halfstack (especially lucky if you find a halfstack), do yourself a favor and try it out. I'm going on record now, just letting eveyone know that I'm in the process of recording the "great missing rock'n'roll album of the past fifteen years" with this amp in my home studio, so once word leaks out that this amp was the secret to my tone, y'all are going to be paying Matchless or possibly Dumble prices to experience its magic. Serious. In the meantime, snatch these babies up, because since Gibson discontinued them, I've seen some floating around for very reasonable prices considering the amazing sounds that come from them. Highly recommended for connisseurs of great British tone.

You must get the optional 5-way footswitch for this amp, then you have essentially 3 channels each with a boost, all at the end of ya foot and switchable effects and reverb. effects loop is valve too so it actually sounds good.

i totally agree with Mr Anon below, if you put an overdrive pedal in the front too it becomes a monster sounding setup, its quite fantastic without but with my DOD Yngwie overdrive its awesome and cuts through like no other amp I've heard/owned. I dont think its an amp for extreme metal but anything else is there, especially good for Funk/Country/Blues/classic Rock/heavy metal/malmsteen/Satch/Vai/Gilbert/Timmons etc etc. Its so quiet too for an amp that can really give it some distortion.

I own at present a Marshall JCM800 (love it), Laney AOR 50 MK11 heads (kick butt bargains) and a cheapo Laney TF200 for teaching and I've sold Soldano Decatone/Mesa/Rack setups/Peavey Classic 50 stack and lots of stuff but i must say the Gibson is the best to my old ears. I cant find a fault with it maybe the label aint trendy, but hey Gibson are cool, but sod that I'm not into posing on stage just love playing and if you get a great sound too life does nt get much better does it??? I've got a babe wife and 2 great kids and i make a living playing/teaching guitar, just wish i could play like Andy Timmons. I'm done now, just buy one.....Last thing RIP DIMEBAG, bloody guitar god, god bless ya mate.

Tons of features. Two channels, active effects loop w/ series or parallel switch, gain boost, reverb on each channel, overall master with a volume (in addition to a gain control) control for the dirty channel, Class-A EL-84... AWESOME

Superb for a two channel amp. Cleans are beautiful and chimey like Vox. The dirty channel is where this thing shines. You can get awesome crunchy overdrive. It doesn't do the scooped mid thing very well, but I hate that tone anyway. The high gain sounds more like Slash than Kirk Hammet. More of growl than a yell if that makes any sense. Put a mild overdrive in front of it and it will really scream.

No problems yet and I've owned it for a year.

Terrific amp for the price. I love Class A and I love EL-84's. There is something about overdriven sounds with 84's that really appeal to me. It is different than the Marshall tone without sacrificing any gain.

2003 gibson gold tone head:
this 30 watt head is simply a monster when unleashed! the more you crank it.. the better it sounds. ive only used the distortion channel a handfull of times. its sounds the best when you have it on the clean channel, with the boost activated. its very very punchy and articulate. it will make any single coil guitar sound huge. its all in the cab you use with it. very very versatile and stable

i use a gibson sg standard and a sg juniour with this amp. the junior has a p-90 and and this head makes it sound bigger than the standard at times. for distorion, i use a hughes and kettner tube factor along with the clean channel boosted, and overdriven a bit. it really starts to break up nicely around the 8 1/2 to 9 range on the master volume. but the clean channel is the best ive ever herd. and the looks and very very classy too. love the gold with the leather.

like everything gibsons... this head is like a rock. i dont think anything could stop this head. it will do anything i put it to. im in a touring rock band and i put this head to the test night after night. its seen about 100 rock shows and has never ever skipped a beat.

never had to work with them. but im sure, like everything else, that its great.

this head will probably be the only head i will every use. i love plugging into it every show.

2004 Gibson Super Goldtone RVH30 Class A Amplifier. wonderful great job guys. the only things i would change is to make the loop in stereo (by the way it has a series, paralell switch which is very nice). the other is when you engage both amps at once there is a little too much of a rise in volume. they have provided a volume knob on the second channel to balance the two. but i guess im being really picky on a perfect amp. o yea and as an added bonues it just so happensto be the most beautiful amp design i have ever seen.

i could go on in this catagory for hours but let me say. if you are a MUSICIAN you will love this amp. there are no words to describe the sound. just get a good guitar and plug it in you wont be able to walk away its that good. best amp i ever played ever.
current inventory:
gibson les paul standard 2000
gibson es335 -not sure but its old
fender fat delux strat
tele nashville
martin d-16gte
martin d-15
marshall avt 275
fender twin
goldtone ga30rvh + cab

built like a rock..
im confident i could throw this off a bridge an it would still work. if you have ever had a les paul or a martin its kinda like that. its on another level of craftsmanship thats hard to come by.

no problems, dont expect any.

i have been playing for a few shy of 20 years. if someone stole this the judge would agree that it was temporary insanity and drop the manslaguter charges. it would be like someone stealing your child.
on a last note to all of you rocking those small bars basments and bedrooms, keep on playing that sweet music that sets you free.