Marshall AVT50X Combo

- The amp is made in 2007. Just like reviewer 'ikhabot' I also used a Marshall G30R CD amp before. This one's more powerfull and sharper sounding a la Valvestate. By the way, I must say I pretty much agree with almost all what 'ikhabot' says so I'll review in addition to that.

- For me the amp is versatile, but it takes some time and tweaking the knobs to get different sounds. My favorite sound is a Rolling Stones type of sound, a combo between country clean and Marshall distortion. I also play some blues, surf and reggae. It's got nice distortion but I usually don't play with that much.

- It has two channels: Clean and Overdrive and channel switching is possible by both on the amp and by a foot pedal switch that's delivered with it (when you buy it new that is). It also has an FX loop, Headphone jack, CD input and DI out.

- I'm satisfied with the features, it's not a big issue but it would be nice to have 'Middle' EQ knob on the Clean channel. I never use the FX loop, CD input and DI out, the headphone jack just once in a while and it's good.

- I use this amp in my bedroom where it's maybe a little to loud for it and when jamming with other people once in a while, it's good/powerfull for gigs. It's a nice recording amp.

- I'm currently using a Epiphone Les Paul Custom and a Epiphone ES-175 reissue. Before the ES175 I had a Epiphone Wildkat, but traded it in for the ES175 cause a) That one's more hollowbody and b) Cause I found it's P-90 pickups didn't sound that great on the amp, to sterile sounding not warm enough. On the Les Paul it sounds great and on the ES-175 just awesome.. all my guitars are stock btw.

- I'm a big fan of former Guns N' Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin and I prefer his guitar sounds which is like a mix between GN'R and the Rolling Stones.

- It ain't noisy, when I use the ES-175 I can get some nice feedback but that's cause of the guitar. On the Les Paul there ain't much noise at all.. which is good cause I'm recording alot.

- This amp can deliver more then one sound but you have to take the time for it, tweak the knobs a little. The best sounds are kinda hidden with weird knob settings if you know what I mean. The overall sound is very Treble-ish so therefore I mostly use it with the Treble rolled back on 5/6. I'm sure there are more versatile amps out there though, eventhough this one has a better sound in all ranges the G30R CD I used before was maybe a bit more versatile in the Overdrive section.

- The clean channel's distortion depends mainly on the use of the Gain knob there.

- The distortion is brutal, but like I said I don't use much that much distortion. I usually have the Gain on 5/6.

All the Marshall's I have had right now (two since 2001) have had no problems at all.. It's now July 2008 and I bought the AVT50x in September 2007. I'm taking good care of it though it the sense of ain't bumping it at everything. I'd use it on a gig without a backup for sure.

- Never dealt with the company itself, but I know the stores were I bought all my gear have good customer services and will handle everything just fine. I have a one year warranty but the guys at those stores won't give me a hard time.

I'm now 24 years old and playing since 1999, I've had several guitars and amps but at the moment it's steady cause I'm pretty happy with it, I own:

- Epiphone Les Paul Custom
- Epiphone ES-175
- Marshall AVT50x
- Yamaha Spanish acoustic
- Volcano bass & amp

And some home studio gear, I write/play and record my own music.

- If it would be stolen or lost I know I have a good base where I can go back too, but probably would try some other amps / sounds first. Maybe a more expensive Marshall DSL401 or a Fender Blues Deluxe. If I'd like the sound of it I'd go for one of them and ifnot I'd go back to the AVT50x

- I compared it with a Fender Blues Jr. but that one had way too much volume and little diversity and distortion on lower sound levels. Plus I don't wanna use pedals. I also tried other Marshall AVT's, I think the 100W version and the 20W version, but they sounded a bit different and I liked the sound of the 50W the most.

MAP VERSION>

AVT50X Combo is a new Valvestete amp built on its predessecor VS2000 AVT50X. The old one has a "VS2000" mark on front panel while this new series have furnished mask with some decorative spot design on the right.

FEATURES>

- 50Watts of (RMS) power, preamp section is driven with one ECC83 tube, poweramp i solidstate
- 2 channels clean-overdrive
- Sepparate Bass, Treble for clean EQ, Bass, Middle Treble for Drive EQ
- Sepparate Pre-amp sections (using the same tube though..)
- Accutronics spring reverb
- FX Loop (+4dB)
- Footswtich (1 button)
- CD Input, Hedaphone Jack
- Emulated DI Out
- Custom Celestion 12" speaker

WHY I BOUGHT IT>

Works very well for me, this is my second amp, used G30RCD before and bought this one for gigs. This is around minimum wattage amp that you can gig with, and it does it fine. Not to heavy or robust, ideal for small clubs. It has only one tube but that can be an adnvantage sometimes.. (see reliability)

VERSATILITY>

I gave it 8 because there is a bunch of amp in this price range that have bigger versatility BUT that doesent` always needs to be an andvantage. FOr my purposes this baby has 10 as it has all the versatility I need.

THE TONE>

The amp is cappable of emulating that classic marhsall tone. Yes that is what is does. It EMULATES. Don`t get me wrong, this little thing does it pretty good, after all it is A Marshall, not some third party emulating FX bunched amp.

THE CLEAN CHANNEL>

It nas nice and twangy clean, little muddy in comparison with fender but hey.. Fender doesn`t cost this much and it does`n have THAT kind of distortion. The sound is starting to crack at maybe 3o`clock because of the solid state poweramp, but everything behind that is great. Like I said, the preamp pot is sepparate for both of the channels so you can make clean also very dirty if you want. On the other had if you want a good sparkly clean on HIGH volumes, this amp can`t do it, it can get crunchy as soon as you drive the poweramp beyond 12o`clock. ONLY when preamp is at 9oclock and poweramp is at say 2-3 o clock you can get a deacent clean but that is to quiet for gigs in my opinion since the OD channel has much more loudness.

OD CHANNEL>

OD channel is very good, again only to the point of poweramp`s 9 o`clock setting when tone quality drops because of solid state transistors. You can use mainly this channel for distortion but it is NOT ekstra brutal - if you play heavy metal or similar variantes you need an ekstra pedal like MT2 or something. I use SD1 to spice up the OD channel and it works great with this amp.

MY SOUND>

I play mostly blues, funk, classic rock, progressive rock and jazz music. I play Peavy Generation EXP with Piezo guitar pickup nad HSS magnetic pickup configuration. I have some pedals in setup but the most importang thing to mention is DD20 which is FX Looped and output set to +4dB which is the return output signal rating of the amp. The second importang thing is a distortion pedal which i mentioned and that is SD1. You sometimes just NEED that ekstra push and this pedal does it great for the styles i`m in. I have many friends players who recommend Boss MT2 for Heavy style based music.

NOISYNESS>

The amp is a little bit noisy, but i notice it only when i`m at home practicing. Altough noise is not that big of a deal, when switching from OD to clean channel (and if clean channel is on bigger volume that OD channel) you get a terrible "wump" sound. I tried this on several AVT50 combos and they all have the same problem. I think that it has somethig to do with the fact that preamp sections all use the same tube. Again, it si not that big of a deal, expeccialy on hig volumes, but i can sometimes get in your way when switching at bedroom or medium volume.

RATING>
-1 for not having a little better reverb
-1 for having little low-end at high volume
-1 for having that "wump" sound when switching between channels

This amps reliability is EXCELLENT! My local radio travels with two of VS2000s 2-3 times a week on gigs for years now and they go trough some severe conditions but has NEVER failed. I guess that this new serieis just as good. It is robust and i think very reliable. I would always gig with it without backup.

Marshall company is great and strong. I bought mine new and never had any problem but i called my dealer regarding one small issue and they were ready to make an amp exchange ASAP. Marhsall has strong connections and dealers and it is very famous brand. Almost every amp technician that you can find knows to work with Marshall.

I`ve been playing for more than 8 years now, I have played over 40gigs and owned mainly strat-type guitars and some explorer copies. I use some pedals mostly the basics> wah, drive, delay some chorus etc. Playing mainly blues, funk, jazz, rock, progressive rock, little bit of heavy also. If it were stolen or lost i would get another because i NEED IT FOR GIGS. I love that Marshall concrete and satturated distortion and for the money it`s WORTH IT beleive me. WELL beyond the products in its price range.