Peavey Classic 30

I got this amp five years ago. I am mainly a bedroom player although sometimes I take it out to play with other people. It has enough power to get over a drum set. I lived with this amp for about four years and then I decided to do Steve Ahola's basic mods. I had given up on using the overdrive, because it was too harsh and lacked subtlety. I had been using the clean channel with a Boss Blues pedal, which has much better highs. So anyway, I had the capacitors changed, put in three new Mesa preamp tubes ($30) and put in a Carvin speaker ($44!).I choose Mesa and Carvin because they were cheap. The latter mod precluded my putting in an additional speaker, as the Peavey took up the 8 ohm jack. Nonetheless, the clean tones got much better and I have mainly been playing my strat without any pedals at all. The overdrive is still a bit fuzzy, more like a tube screamer than the boss pedal. I also got a boss reverb pedal, although the reverb is a nice soft sound; I just like surf music.I changed the capacitor on the boost, but it's till pretty useless. But, if you read the other entries, you'll see that people love this amp; 95% of the people feel that they got their money's worth. Basically this is a really useful tube amp that you can get into fairly cheaply.It looks nice and you can do a lot with it.Really, we all owe Steve Ahola a debt of gratitude because he has really made these little amps come alive.

I'm using a reissue strat with a Boss blues driver, DOD Grunge pedal and a Boss Reverb/delay, to play blues, surf and a little Django jazz. I basically use the clean setting, because I've been palying more jazz. The effect's loop is useful for all this. The amp hums frequently, but I've always lived in older homes and play a plain strat.The clean channel breaks up at about seven. The distortion is basic tube screamer.

The tubes are pretty exposed, and people complain about the crude stamps wiring. It doesn't effect my life.

I never dealt with the company, I just don't fly the amp that hard. I just always liked the idea of Peavey; making apopular amp in Mississippi is a nice thing. I saw blues players in the midwest using Classic 30's, including R.L. Burnside, although I don't know if they were hot-rodded.

I've been playing for 34 years, and I've had a Peavey transistor amp, an old Gibson, a Marshall Valvestate, Fender Champ and a Polytone. I don't foresee geting rid of this one, it fits my needs pretty well. If I lost it, who knows? I did play one of those little 33-watt Carvins at Carvin and it sounded nice and clear...I would like a standby switch, etc.; in fact, I'd like a lot of things. But this is a good amp.

Channel switching makes it work for gigging. Reverb is ok. Remote switching boost is a worthwhile mod (see S. Ahola's web site) but not manditory.

Factory sound was impressive for an inexpensive amp. But if you really want this bad boy to make magic do the following: Put S. Aholas's tone mods on, change the tubes (Ahola's recommendations are good), change the speaker (I used an old Altec but Mojo Tone, Kendrick, etc. also work well), fan cool the tubes, add an external fuse and bias pot. This done, you get clean and fat on channel A and killer (dial it up Scottie) distortion (blend equal parts Marshall, Matchless, Soldano and Naylor).

Use it exclusively for gigging - stays in the trailer between jobs. 0 failures in over two years of use. I did have the chassis and a couple of corner protectors get a little rust on them (result of sitting out in a trailer in wet weather) but it cleaned up O.K. with steel wool.

I own 30 amps many of which cost tons more than this one but it is what I use and with the mods it's all I want to use.

I used to own a Transtube Peavey 25W (lovely little object by the way). One day I decided to buy me a Guitar processor, at first I got the Digitech RP-3 super, but disappointed I returned to get an even grater trap BOSS ME-30! I was looking for a good 'ol solid massive distortion, but apparently my little Peavey was better than these "everything but nothing" processors. So Tony the shop assistant told me that he had something for my case, when he showed me the Classic 30 (1998) I sayd "no man i need a processor not an amp." But after plugging in my Guitar I fell in love and I brought it home with me! God bless horrible processors.

I was always told that it "ain't no sound" if a Gibson does not have a Marshall unit with it, well I say that is just a "leggend" I owned three different Marshall, and finally I got what a GIBSON LES PAUL CUSTOM deserves! PEAVEY CLASSIC 30. I play Blues/Rock and this babe screams hell out of it! Reliable,powerfull, Looks great and sounds Awesome! Perhaps when the Reverb is turned higher than 6, it fuzzes a little, but hey man! The distortion is a classic Peavey, I bet you to find a cabinet like this one with this price and with such great distortion. The clean channel sounds like "She talks to the Angels" by Black Crowes!

This cabinet is perhaps not to powerful to be used by itself live, but thanks to the awesome rear "Extension Speaker Plug" you can connect it to other Peavey Speakers (I did it at the shop! It sounded AWESOME!)and kick some ass live! I've been owning it for about three months now and it seems that everytime I turn it on it gets better and better (every day!)

The warranty is for one full year, but fortunately I did't deal with the company yet! Cos this thing is made to last!

Also thanks to the effect send-return plugs you can get the best sounds out of it! I connect it with a Yamaha Digital Delay, and with a Danelectro Fab-tone! This Peavey is simply GREAT! If you want to have a warm sound,a solid Amp that looks unique, and spend little money,Peavey created the machine for you, by the way it is made 100% in the USA! Peavey is like a MUSTANG 1954......a Classic.

This is an update to my earlier review (somewhere downt he list...s earch for "axe")

I just did the mods from Steve Ahola's webpage http://www.techaccessinc.com/blueguitar/c30_mods.htm and WHOAH!!!!! The tone is MUCH more responsive and thicker... blues sound is improved 100000% I was thinking about getting rid of this thing, but now I've got it for life! I still have a few bugs and changes to make, but I am 100% satisfied with the improvements!

Peavey customer support was so-so
Steve was Great whenever I had problems, though I would think he has a lot of mail to sort through....

The price reflects the money it cost for the mods I did.... If you have apeavey Classic 30 that is sitting around gathering dust, maybe you should try it.... I was a little less than impressed witht he tone of the amp, but once I modified it (there are many mods on steve's page http://www.techaccessinc.com/blueguitar/c30_mods.htm) I am VERY happy.

30-watt All tube (three 12AX7 and four EL84) two channels, boost switch, reverb, and effects loop. Also has an output for a cab (16 or 8 ohms).Footswitch controls channels and reverb(pretty cool). Doesn't have a standby switch, and there isn't any kind of guard or cover on the back for the tubes either, but the tweed covering adds a nice vintage touch. All the controls are straight forward. For only 30 watts I think this amp has plenty of kick. I noticed some of the other reviewers sounded like it was weak on power but with the master on 2 on the clean channel, it's almost loud enough to get me kicked out of my apartment. I don't play in a band so maybe it doesn't have enough power for a bar or club gig, but it's pretty damn loud. I can't even imagine how much kick it would have with a cab extension.

I use the amp with my Fender California Fat Tele, Ibanez TS-9 and Crybaby, and it definately has a very fat, bluesy tone. The clean channel is very warm and can be very bright if you tweak the settings. I haven't had the volume loud enough to see if the clean channel distorts. The dirty channel has a nice fat tone and it is very easy to dial in a good sound.

Haven't had it long but it seems pretty sturdy. However, be careful of the tubes, like I said there is not protective cover or guard on the back to keep you from bashing anything back there.

Haven't had to and hope I don't have to in the future.

This is my first tube amp combo and now I know what all the fuss is about. This thing sounds awesome. I will probably shell out another $150 to $200 to get a cab extension. If this thing were stolen and I had the same sort of money to spend I would buy it again without hesitation.

I purchased the amp along with it's accompanying extension 1/12 speaker cabinet for blues. For the money it seemed to be a perfect combo amp for my style and desired tone. I wish it had a standby switch and an accessible fuse. Other entries have highlighted this same concern but I have yet to blow a fuse. As for the standby switch I had a chance to ask about the lack of a standy switch with Joe Peavey (Hartley's son) after a trade show a few years back. It was a cost cutting issue with the amp's design that a lot of customers still as about from time to time.

After playing with the stock tubes and speakers I considered trading up to the Classic 50 4/10 but reconsidered after reading about modifications. I bought Celestion Vintage 30 speakers for the combo amp and extension cabinet. I then replaced both 12AX7 and EL84 tubes with Mesa tubes. This makes a world of difference in tone and volume. You can feel the air move in front of the cabinets in both clean and overdrive. I set clean on about 6, overdrive on 6, master on 6, and use a Danelectro Daddy-O Overdrive on my pedalboard to select an appropriate tone.
I play a early 80s manufactured Fender 62' Reissue Stratocaster with Texas Special pickups, an Epiphone Dot 335 with Seymour Duncan 59's and an occasionally my Squier Musicmaster Bass. This amp sounds great with just a few simple mods. Love it, love it, love it. As for concerns about not producing enough volume, this amp produces a very loud 30 watts. If this isn't enough in a club or larger venue, I mic it with my Sure SM57 into the mixing board.

After I bought the Amp from Daddy's Junky Music, I noticed a strange ringing noise and occasional feedback at medium volume. Daddy's replaced a bad tube which resolved the noise problem.
Other than that I have had no problems.

None issue here since I dealt with the dealer at Daddy's Junky Music.

This is a great amp for blues players. I have been playing for over 22 years and still regret the day in high school when I sold my old Fender Vibrolux, an amp that would now command a steep price. Like most young players you always think that the bigger the amp the better the sound. Wrong, wrong, wrong. If this amp were stolen or fell off of a cliff, I would probably get a Peavey Classic 50 4/10 do the tube modifications and replace the speakers with Celestion Vintage 30 10" replacement speakers.

I don't do the number thing. Instead of trying to quantify this stuff I'll tell you what I think.
The controls and doo dads have been pretty well covered by other reviews. It has everything I think I need except for a standby switch and adjustable bias. I've modded mine to adjustable bias and will be putting in a standby switch soon. A bonus would have been a half power switch. Unfortunately you can't just pull two tubes on this amp. The filaments are wired in series, so if you remove one power tube none of the others work.
I find the boost switch to be of dubious usefulness. It is a very radical change in tone and volume. If it were footswitchable it might be more usefull.
I'll clear up a few misconceptions about this amp. Just because it has four EL-84's and puts out 30 watts does not make it a Class A amp like a Vox (actually most Voxes are really running in "hot AB" but that's another story). It is designed to run in normal AB mode like most other amps.
This is NOT a self biased amp. Some Peavey dealers seem to be under the impression that since there is no bias adjustment pot, it must be self biasing. Intead it is Non-adjustable fixed bias amp. This can be a problem when it comes time to change the power tubes.
Oh yeah, one other gripe. The extension speaker jack and footswitch jack are right next to each other. It is very easy to plug your footswitch into the extension speaker jack. If you have the contacts closed on the footswitch and you play for awhile trying to figure out why your amps suddenly sounds horrible, damage could result. Be careful.

The looks of this thing certainly remind one of an old Fender Tweed combo. However, it inhabits the other end of the sonic spectrum. I would say more towards old, lower gain Marshall territory.
The clean sound is nice, albeit without alot of clean head room. With hot pickups you can begin to get just the slightest hint of grit on the initial attack of the note. Cranking it yields very pleasant power tube distortion. You have to get it pretty loud to do this though. I find it possible to acheive good clean to slightly overdriven blues tone with my Strat. My tubescreamer sounds very good with this channel.
The distortion "channel" (actually the clean channel with two extra gain stages and a pre-drive and master volume) is mediocre at best at low volume. Once you crank the master up to about 5, it sounds surprisingly nice for an amp in this price range. This defintely isn't an amp that you "can't get a bad sound" out of though. It takes some tweaking to get it right. Once I zeroed in I found very pleasent compression and a nice smooth midrange coming from the power tubes. BTW my power tubes are replacement Ruby's bought by the previous owner. This amp has a growling bark to it that took me awhile to get used to. It certainly has a different chaaracter thant he 6l6 amp I was used to. You can get a good distorted rock tone out of this channel. I would say it is even possible to approach Zeppelin territory gain wise. If you desire more gain than that, this amp probably ain't for you. At the very least you will need some kind of pedal. Interestingly, I haven't found a combination of settings that will allow my tube screamer to work well with this channel.
The unfortunate thing is, there is no setting of the tone controls that is optimum for both channels. It is possible to find a compromise setting, but to really eke the best sound out of this thing you have to have the tone controls set right for the channel you are using. PV elected to cut much of the bass out of the signal before it makes it's way into the extra gain stages. I believe this was an attempt to keep the amp from getting muddy under high gain. They went a little too far though.
The stock speaker is decent. It doesn't seem to subtract from the tone at least. I am considering a replacement. This amp is very directional by itself. Depending on where you stand it can sound very different. I was not used to this as I had been a 2X12 player previous too this.
I hooked the amp up to a 2X12 extension cab and the amp sounded very good. The bottom end filled out well and it became much less directional.
All in all, I think the tone of this amp is very good considering the price they can be had for. I am satisfied with the basic sound so I believe that attempting a few tone mods might be fruitful. The two things I am going to focus on at first are the boost switch and the voicing of the extra gain stages.
A gentleman by the name of Steve Ahola has put quite a bit of time into modding his Classic 30. His work is keeping me from having to reinvent the wheel with this amp. If you are inclined to tinker here is his website: http://www.techaccessinc.com/blueguitar/

Well here is where the griping starts. The cabinet seems sturdy enough. The chassis metal is thin and actually vibrates like a drumhead when you play with volume. Some wheather stripping between the chassis and cabinet apparently will help this.
The tubes are very exposed and mounted directly to the circuit board. This isn't a big deal if you are familiar with working on amps and can watch the joints for excess heat and touch them up every now and again.
The pots are top mounted and somewhat protected by being recessed below the level of the top of the cabinet. They are mounted directly to the circuit board.
This is of course a PCB amp. And what a printed circuit board it is! The board is in three sections and actually folds over on itself. It is a pain to remove and put back in. The three sections are joined together with solid jumper wires that are not made to be flexed. I broke two taking my amp apart to install the adjustable bias mod. The next time I take it apart I'll probably just have a soldering party and replace them all with stranded wire.
I can't rag on PV too bad though. They had to cut some corners somewhere. They did it in the construction and not the sound. The only thing that really doesn't make sense to me is that goofy folded circuit board. With reasonable care this amp should stand up to moderate gigging. Since I will be going over it, I would probably trust it to gig without a back up. If I were going to gig with it I would probably install chassis mounted fuse holders though.

I bought this amp used so there is no warranty. If it breaks I will probably fix it myself. However, a couple of years ago I bought an old PV amp made in 1976. The parts department was cheerful and helpful in tracking down a schematic for me. They sent me the wrong one the first time. However that was totally my fault as I had misidentified the amp. They didn't even charge me for the second one.

Overall I am quite happy with this amp. I can't think of another all tube combo with these features that I could have gotten for this price. It ain't a Matchless or a Boogie but if you are looking for a good bang for buck ratio you should check it out.
If you have more questions or would like an update on how the mods are going, email me.

This is a 30 watt amp which features channel switching, effects loop footswitching, and external speaker out. The eq is shared by the channels, which I have never had a problem with. The mid boost switch is useless. The amp has no stanby switch and the fuse is on the INSIDE of the chassis. Blow one on a gig and what then? The amp comes with a 16ohm 12" speaker, which sounds good to me. I would strongly advise anyone buying a Classic 30 to pop for the 112 extension cabinet. It can be operated open or closed back. Leave the back on it and it will give you a lot more bottom end. Without it the amp tends to have too much midrange honk. I really like the EL-84 power section. I bought the amp to use with my band when we began playing in a particular smaller club. I had been using my 1967 Super Reverb and a Tube Screamer, which was too much for this place. The additional amount of overdrive was a lot of fun to have at hand. The effects loop works great with my chorus and delay. I would not advise using the delay in front of the amp as the whole character changes if you switch from clean to overdrive. Our band had a large PA and the amp was miked. Always sounded good out front. i have also used the amp in large venue situations at music festivals through large PAs, blowing back at me through huge monitor systems. this really was great since I could run the amp full oput and let the power section distort. In these situations, I had the sound folks mike both cabs to get the bottom end. Sounded like a Marshall out front. Finally, its light. I can carry the amp and cab in both hands and trow them in the back seat of the car.

The overdrive is fine, but sounds better the louder you play it. The clean is good, but there is not a lot of headroom. Blues players can get some cool tones out of the clean channel cranked all the way up. The amp hs the overdrive whoosh when turned up. I replaced the preamp 12AX7 tubes with higher quality tubes as soon as I bought it. They would oscillate and hum with anything plugger in to the amp. I put in some higher quality tubes and have had no more problems. The amp does the blues thing well. I also have no complaints about the fullbore overdrive. I have used a variety of Strats, PRS's, and other quality guitars. The glassy clean strat thing will only go so loud before you lose headroom, but for the asskicking shit with humbuckers, it will do fine. One of my Strats has a Hotrails and it will kill. Overalll, FOR THE MONEY, it is pretty versital.

Other than replacing the original cheap Chinese 12AX7s, I have had no problems. I would hate to blow a fuse on a gig, since it is INSIDE the chassis. I also which Peavey had not straight wired the speaker so you could unplug it to just use the amp with another cab. I have gigged many times without a backup, but the fuse worried me.

Peavey dealers with service departments are everywhere around here, and Meridian is 175 miles away. I have never had to ask for help.

The $500 or So I paid included the extension cab and tax. I have been very pleased with the amp, but would move on to something else if I had to replace it. For the price point the amp represents and for what it will do, it is a bargain. Find a used one and you will be rocking on the cheap. The extension cab is important to me, so try to find one as well. It is a neat little tone machine if you are not a snob.

2 channel clean/dirty, fx loop, no standby, 112 combo, tweed, 4 el84's, 4 12ax7's, loud, built like a peavey but doesn't sound like a peavey.

With a strat plus (gold fls) the amp has a good full sound on both channels. My first tube amp was a Fender Twin, so the clean channel on this amp took a little getting used to. It is warm with decent reverb, and solid attack. It has great tone, pretty unique. It can get a little tinny at mid-level volumes. When cranking the clean though, I have gotten sweet natural clip from those beautiful sounding el84's. I love those tubes.
Dirty channel is good with some mids and bass. Decent sustain, but the drive gets a little dry when cranked. From playing my freinds Classic 50, I know that my 30 has a different character. It's those el84 tubes; the 50 has 6L6's. The british tubes are just tighter and sweeter, almost compress naturally, although 6L6's can compress too, from what I have seen. El84's are just buttery, but flatten out when really driven.
Overall, it's not a very versatile amp by any means. For blues or rock, it is good. Distortion defitely not brutal, but kicked ass on my Fender, because it was focused and tight, with just a little loosenes, whereas my Fender cranked was just plain flabby loose 6l6 bottom flopping around my bedroom.
Louder than you would expect for a 30 watt 112, but not at all loud enough for a stage amp.
One last caveat: played through a Marshall 410 on the drive channel, this amp rocked/punched better than any amp I have heard. Unbelievable.
My rating of 7 is only relative to other 30 watt, 112 combos. Comparing it to my Fender or Boogie, of course the rating would drop to about 5. Of course, through the 410 on drive channel, a 9.

I bought this thing used at a pawn shop. $225, plus I picked up a Marshall 410 cab for aonther 75 (yeah!). I have never replaced the tubes, they have stood up (about 2 years). Also, I used to play the 30 through the Marshall cab (8 ohms) which completely mismatched impedence. Never had any problems though. Through that 410 though, purely rocked better than any amp I have ever had, including my boogie!
Peavey's are generally built to last.
I wish they had a wooden bar in the back to protect the tubes (so I put a nice redwood one in myself).

Been playing 5 years. Owned another peavey tube amp, a Boogie 50 caliber, and a Fender Twin.
For the money, the reliability and tone is outstanding. But I say buy one used. I've never bought a new amp.

This tube amp (12ax7 pre-amp/el 84 output)is the vintage style with tweed covering and basic controls. You get one volume for channel one, pre and post gain for channel two. There is a global eq with bass middle and treble along with reverb. The amp also has a luscious boost knob that really sweetens things up. The 12" speaker is also well matched to this 30 watt output stage. There is also an effects loop. The whole package weighs in at a very friendly 45 lbs.

The classic 30 is a suprisingly simple and loud amp. At first I really wasn't sure that I like it. At the store I was thrilled with the tight reverb (two spring accutronics) and solid sound. The bass is very present but can be eq'd down. I was into jazz solidbody sounds and this amp just seemed to match that style very nicely. When i got this amp home i started to be dissapointed by the fact that it was a little hard to get cranking rock sounds...12 month later and many hours of playing and listening later I can now say that this amp absolutly rocks...The clean channel is excellent and allows my Les Paul to play very pleasant bluesy leads and when you back off of the gain at the guitar you can mix a very useful accoustic like sound. This is great when you need to accompany yourself on tunes that have a nice strummy rythmn. The lead channel is much different from the clean channel...the eq or inherent sound is more rocky...there is a hint of a sucked mid that sounds better and better as you pump the volume. Speaking of volume...I have never yet turned this amp up to anything near its maximum...like the instructions say...hearing damage can and will occur at excessive volume. This leads me back to the amp itself...it grows on you. The sound is a little bit hard to get used to...which is a good thing. The amp has a sound that is so warm and enveloping that it gives you a presence. The amp is a wonderful rythmn machine because you can establish your backbone sound very easily. The amp has a very distinct personality, it is full and charming. If you are looking for an amp that mixes well this is it. In my opinion the amp is great because you can get all kinds of super awesome sounds. The added bonus is that the amp has an inherent sound quality that is different from the usual Fender/Marshal/Whatever sound that typically dominates the lead guitar spectrum. Put it this way, when you go to play with other guitarists and musicians this amp puts you into a part of the sound that is uncluttered with other instruments. It makes you feel like you own a whole chunk of sound that doesn't get in the way of others. My only critique would be that the amp reflects it's design...it's simple. It can be difficult to really break it up or distort to the levels you might expect. The answer to this is simple...pedals. This amp really loves to be fed with a processed signal. It takes whatever you can dream up and stamps it with classic 30 identity, again, I think this is great.

I did have to have this amp serviced within 6 months. It was covered by the warranty and was repaired with no hassle of any kind. It turned out that one of the pre-amp cicuits had developed a burn-out and needed to be replaced and the reverb tank had a faulty component. Did this cause me grief and sadness...yes...but the reward was unexpected. The amp came back from the service center sounding better than it did when I shipped it off. My opinion was that the amp, like any tube based equipment, underwent the typical break-in period were all the components really warm up and cook themselves in. The amp survived this with minimal harm. Yes, the amp required service but only of the usual kind. Since then this amp has been gigged regularly to a local club as well as countless trips to the backyard and garage. It has never failed to the point were you couldn't play it. My advice regarding this amp and it's reliability is this...take care of it. I get the feeling that this amp is rock solid but you got to be careful with it. Don't drop it...be careful of the unprotected tubes in the back, especially when you go to put the cord away. don't leave it in the rain and don't loan it out.

Excellent...I have no complaints about the customer service. This includes the shop that I bought it from as well as the customer service center.

Overall this amp is a lot of fun. With a little work you can make this amplifier work any kind of music. The sound is a little intimidating because it is so beefy. The presence that the amp provides is astounding...everybody will know you are there. The beauty of this amp is that when necessary you can back off of the volume and tuck your sound inside of the mix. For example...you are playing a tune that lets other players do their thing...the amp has the ability to let you ease up and hide just above the bass and below the vocals. This could be mostly attributed to the kind of guitar you play but I think it also tells you a lot about the amp.