Matchless D/C-30

Most likely you know, the D/C-30 is a 30w, Class-A, dual channal combo in a 2X12 configuration. It features two inputs (hi and low) per channel and separate effects loop for each channel (no channel switching w/o your own a-b box). There is also a half-power switch and impedance selector on the rear panel. There is something missing, a reverb. An amp of this calibur and price should have a killer reverb in it!
Versatility is still a major part of this amps attraction to me. I know other reviews have sort of pegged this amp as the monster of medium distortion and grind and not much more than that, but I would say that it excels at much more. The D/C-30 could very well be the best "building block" amp to come around yet.

As many reviewers have noted, D/C's channel two is what it is best known for! At medium distortion settings this amp is thick, punchy, responsive, and chimey. Each string has its own thing going. Two and three note chords are huge with just the right amount of sustain and low end looseness. I primarily play strats (including a Grosh Retro-Classic) and there is no amp that treats a single coil better. Adjusting the Cut and Tone control can call up just about every cool raunchy rythm guitar tone you've ever heard or wished you'd heard on your latest recordings.
Most seem to agree that the D/C-30 smokes on channel 2, but I've seen so many negative things written about channel 1. I like to think of channel 1 as an almost entirely different amp. It's not just that channel 1 is less distorted than channel 2, the tone shaping controls are completely different. It has the classic volume, bass, treble set up. I've found this to be the most versatile channel for using external effects for getting various sounds. With the master set full (or defeated) and the volume at 2 o'clock, channel 1 comes alive. It's fat but glassy, with that cool class A sag, especially when you hit the amp hard. With strats, this amp can get a little bright but I've never had to dump even half of the treble to get a pleasing sound. The tone controls are very responsive (especially the Cut control at higher volumes) - I believe you'll find a setting(s) that will work with your guitar no matter how bright it is (ie Tele).
The DC responds to your touch and guitar volume setting, giving it limitless variations on its primary tone. I use channel 1 as my "building block" channel which I add effects and overdrive to accomplish the gamut of sounds I need. For clean stuff, I just back a bit off on the volume. Each note is defined and there is a really nice chimey high-end with plenty of sweet mid range to keep your guitar from sounding brittle and two dimensional. For rythm I may use my TS-9 or Fulldrive2 with the volume back a little. The sounds are clear but fat. Here is where I wish I could work in a switch to channel two, but I'm still working on that. [In the studio, you can monkey with every aspect of the amp to find cool sounds. Even the half power setting brings out a different character in the amp.] For lead tones, I flip my volume full tilt and maybe hit the boost switch on the Fulldrive. The tone is sweet and smooth with plenty of sustain and depth. I love how balanced the amp sounds so that low notes don't mush up and high notes don't pierce. This is the way an amp should sound!
Really what I think it boils down to is, a Fulldrive in front of a Vibroverb sounds cool, in front of the Matchless it is unbelievable. A TS-9 in front of a Twin sounds sweet, in front of the Matchless - its unbelievable. My D/C-30 sucks every bit of tone out of and compliments the sound of my guitars and effects better than any amp I have owned.
As a note, other reviewers have revealed and I totally agree, this is not a metal amp. It does not do the Boogie rectifier thing or the JCM-900 thing. You might be able to coax something fairly convincing out of it with the right pedal, but get a Marshall or Boogie if you want to do metal/shred.
I've only heard this amp with its stock speakers so I can't really comment on that aspect.

I use this amp without a backup all of the time. It runs hot, so tubes go bad quickly. Otherwise, its an 85lb tank - and I mean TANK.

I've emailed them questions and have received quick and thorough responses. I have to reduce points here because I ordered a cover for my amp and it never came. Apparently they changed contractors for the cover making and they got back ordered beyond recovery!

Overall, this amp has to be a 10. Of all the amps I've owned - Boogie, Fender, Marshall, Vox, and Hi-Watt (all of which have great things about them) this is easily the best sounding all around amp. Because I need a lot of sounds but can't drag along three or four amps and ten guitars, I need an amp that will deliver a solid, basic sound that my pedals can work with. The Matchless D/C-30 offers the tightest, most musical tone I've heard from an amp. I can't count how many times people have asked me what I'm using to get the sounds I get - believe me I don't thinks it has to do as much with my playing as it has to do with my amp. I know there are lots of great amps out there - I haven't had the luxury of trying them all. But I would recommend the DC to anyone, everytime.

The DC30 is a very loud 30 watt combo which could easily play along side of a 50 or 60 watt tube amp. It has two channels: the first channel is the "clean" channel, and is controlled by volume, bass and treble pots. It is important to note that any change to these controls greatly affects the tone of the amp. The second channel is a high gain affair with a five position tone switch. The DC30 also has a master volume and cut control. The cut is like a reverse presense control for both channels. However when the push/pull master volume control is activated, the cut control has a very subtle affect. My 1994 DC30 came with an effects loop, but I never use it. I prefer to use a tube reverb between the guitar and amp. The tone seems beefier to me.The amp has a half power switch which cuts out two of the four EL84's. This is a valuable tool, because it allows the power tube section to be driven harder rather than going for the master volume option for over drive. There is also a switch in the back to reverse the phase of the speakers. This would be another tone option when using two amps at the same time; one amp would have the speakers going back to front when the other amp has them going front to back. The DC 30 has no channel switching; one would have to use an AB box for that. There is quite a bit of difference in the volume level when switching between the two channels. The DC30 has two 12 inch Celestion speakers specially tweeked by Matchless. One speaker is rated 30 watts and the other 25. This gives you another tone option when miking the amp since the lower wattage speakers starts to distort sooner than the other. I hate to be like the other people reviewing this amp, but after searching for decades for "the amp", I would have to rate the Matchless DC30 a 10. It has all the features I need for my playing: blues, country, rock and gospel.

There are no bad tones on the DC30. I own many amps, and usually you can get two, maybe three usable tones. The Matchless has so many tone options, and it is true that there are no bad tones. Even in overdrive, the low end hold up no matter what combination of notes you play. There is a moderatly high ceiling on the clean side. You can get very playable clean mikeless volume for country (or whatever) small to medium club. But as you start to crank the volume, the Matchless really starts to do its thing. For me it has just the right amount of "flem" for blues and rock. I use the clean channel 90% of the time. I play primarily on my G & L ASAT Classic. The Matchless does a great blues thing with my American 60's Reissue Strat with Texas specials. On occasion I will play my Les Paul, and the Matchless seems to really like humbuckers. You would not use a DC30 for grunge or heavy metal and its derivatives. It doesn't do the major Marshall overdrive. To me, it has a very punchy, midrangey sound. It can do wonders on the high end as well. Being an all tube amp (four EL84's, three 12AX7's, one 6267 and two 5V4's) you will get some amp noise, especially with single coils. But certainly not enough to be bothersome.

I have never had any trouble with mine. I've played it nearly everyday for three years.

I have called their tech support with a few questions, and they have been great and took their time in answering. Once a chicken head control knob cracked at the set screw. Matchless promptly sent me several replacements. The DC30 has a lifetime warranty.

If I had to do it all overagain, I would go back to the Matchless. I am middle-aged and have been searching for most of my life for "The Amp." I think I have found it. It is fairly heavy; in the 1960's Twin Reverb category. When checking out this amp, I played the same guitar in the same area of the store through a Kendricks (Bassman clone), Mesa Boogie (Blue Angel and Tremoverb) and Vox AC30 reissue. The Matchless had the sound I wanted. Granted, this amp is expensive, but I think I have finally found an amp that meets all my expectations. It would be nice if it had reverb & tremolo.

Channel 1 of this amp does the vox thing incredibly well and then some, especially with humbuckers. Channel 2 is fat and complex, and is well matched with a strat. I'm giving it only an "9" for features since there's no reverb...but then again, why degrade the signal for a marginal little feature like reverb...if I wanted features, I would have bought a Fender "Twin" (by the way, I owned a Fender "Twin" model with dozens of features, and I spent all my time twiddling knobs trying to get usable tones out of it; take my advice and go with a simple amp that does one good tone...then use pedals for variety).

For my music styles (blues, rock, alternative), I couldn't imagine a better amplifier. This amp really responds to your touch; if you want natural distortion then just play harder; if you want clean and jangly then just back off on your attack. I use both a LP and Strat with this amp, and both sound incredible.

This amp is built like a tank (I sound like a marketing guy for Matchless!). I run the hell out of this amp and it has never failed me...I've never even replaced the tubes. I always gig without a backup when I use the D/C-30.

I had some questions about the amp and called them; they were very responsive and took the time to make sure I was satisfied. This amp has a lifetime warranty.

This amp definitely was not cheap, but it blows away any amp I've ever heard...if you're not $$$ limited, then go for this amp; it's the best...even for the money it costs. I've used nearly all varieties of Fender, Marshall, Vox, Mesa, and VHT amps, and nothing can touch it.

Two Channel

This amp has headroom! I play country and I want to snap those low srings with no distortion.

Going on three years of weekend work with only tube replacement.

My other favorite is a Fender 65 Deluxe Reverb. I own a actual 65 Twin now and would trade for a actual 65 Deluxe Reverb if any one is interested.

In case you don't already know, the DC-30 is a 2-12" 30 watt "class A" all tube combo amp. It has 2 channels, but doesn't switch. You may find some units with a factory passive fixed effects loop (you have to look for 2 jacks inside the chassis). The two channels are voiced very differently. One channel has bass and treble knobs which are very interactive. The other channel has a 5 way selector switch which dials up all kinds of great tones. You can use a AB switch foot pedal to channel switch, if you must have that option. There is bypassable overall master volume via a push/pull switch for both channels. There is also a treble cut knob a la Vox. All the knobs dial up noticeable tonal variety. I bought my DC-30 used about 3 years ago. It has the thickest rhythm guitar sounds I have ever heard. There are two celestions that are voiced differently from each other, to factory specs. the sound is fat, warm, and can be really crunchy or shimmering clean. It is basically a modernized, state of the art, bulletproof Vox AC-30 that will not self-destruct. It does not do the Marshall thing at all, but if you overdrive the front end with a good pedal, the lead tones sing and it will crank and grind pretty well. It is the loudest 30 watt amp you will ever hear. I only use it with the half power switch kicked in. I understand this will drive a 4-12 bottom with no problem. It is probably best suited to classic rockers and country or blues, but it really doesn't have a bad sound in it..

I haven't gigged this amp, but it has performed flawlessly in my home studio for 2 years.

Because I bought it used I was concerned about the lifetime warranty being voided. At that time, the company policy was: whoever registers the amp is the warranty holder. If you buy one used try to get possession of the original owners paperwork, or register the amp with Matchless as the owner. Other than tubes, it is highly unlikely that you will ever need serious service.

The DC-30 is every bit as awesome as you have heard. I wish that their new stuff wasn't so very expensive, but I wouldn't hesitate to pounce on any used Matchless product at the right price!. If you see a used DC-30 anywhere near $1000. snap it up, you won't be sorry. *Note: There is some talk in certain circles about enhanced collectability of earlier (pre-Randall) models. The original owners sold out to Randall for a time, and now have taken the company back again. You might want to look into this, if that type of stuff is important to you. My amp is a "pre-Randall. The is a great review of this amp in a back issue of GP magazine. They raved. This was the first and probably the definitive Matchless amp. I remember the reviewers at GP saying something like..."Despite our best efforts, we were unable to coax any sounds out of this amp that were not outstanding"... or something to that effect. Normally, the novelty of an amp wears off after a time, but honestly, after several years, I still get thrills from the tone of this amp. It is very musical, which for me, is what it is all about.

Loudest 30-watt amp I've ever heard. Sounds killer. It does sound somewhat like a Vox AC-30 but not exactly. 2 channels but not the most versatile amp in the world. Actually I don't care if its not a do-everything amp because it really sounds good. It is thick but not muddy and it breathes really well on the high end. All tube EL-84 and tube rectifier.

It is not feature-laden but it fits me fine for blues, rock, and country It is probably more distorted than comparable amps but it is a sweet distortion and the guitar maintains its clarity even when its breaking up. It compresses naturally and never sounds small. Distortion is not brutal at all. It gets very distorted but it won't do metal.

I'm not doing an add for Matchless but the thing is completely bullet -proof. The thing is not heavy-duty it is Super-Duty. I did break the power cord socket (hospital grade) and the company replaced it for a very reasonable charge. asonable fee. I have to say they are the coolest people to deal with in my years as a musician.

THEY ARE THE BEST !

It doesn't do that many things as amps go but what it does it does more than extremely well. Wish the accessories, (footswitches, tubes, etc.) weren't so overpriced. IT really is a killer amp. It is some -what like a bulletproof Vox with more muscle.