Peavey Classic 30

My Classic is from the latest batch that arrived at Musician's Friend at the end of May. Mine came with JJ's already installed with the exception of one of the 12AX7's that was an EH. I don't know which stage of the amp that tube is assigned to. They also now have locks on the tubes. I assume to eliminate the rattling tube problem. One odd thing is that the amp was sold without the footswitch. That is considered an extra. It would be better if Peavey made that a part of the retail package.

It stock amp sounds pretty good. When I plugged it in for the first time and took it for a spin, I was more impressed with the clean channel. It was very warm and round sounding w/ the reverb turned up about half way. Close to the sound of a Fender but missing a little of the glass. The lead channel has a classic vibe to it but on the jagged end of the classic vibe. I wanted to smooth that out a bit, so i replaced all the 12AX7's with JJs. When I did that, The lead channel was improved significantly, but some of the warmth and roundness was taken out of the clean channel.
The amp is pretty mid-heavy, especially the lead channel. I'm not sure how well it would cut through in a loud band setting. There are various things you can do, of course, to change that. It is pretty loud and does have some noise to it. The first thing that struck me about it was that it definitely has a country vibe. I can understand why country players use it a lot. It's a good amp for classic and southern rock as well. But isn't a metal amp. Not on its own. I'm sure over time the sound will get better as the speaker breaks in. I'm going to replace it with a Celestion G12H. Nothing wrong with the stock speaker, mind you, but I like modding mid priced gear and I want to see what it will sound like with a Celestion. I'll check back in when I get the results on that.

Don't know yet.

I've got a few e-mails in but haven't heard back yet.

I've been playing for over thirty years off and on professionally and as a hobby. I play everything but straight ahead jazz. This is my first foray back into the amp market as I have been playing through PODs for about ten years and just got sick of the loss of physicality. It was SUCH a great feeling to dig into a real tube amp again. I started out on a Peavey Classic 30 years ago and there was actually some Deja Vu in the vibe. Peavey amps really do have a sound of their own that alters your approach a little. They make you play a little bluesier! This is a good solid little amp. I'm not sure I'd buy it again if it were stolen. It hasn't completely won me over yet. If I played strictly country, I think I'd be happy. But I'm not through tinkering with it yet. Like everybody else, I do wish it had a stand-by switch.

you know the features; sweet and simple, though I also wish it had a stand by switch.

I got this amp from a guy who won it and wanted to make some quick cash, so i was pretty much the first person to play it. for the first few weeks the sound was pretty darn stiff, i like to play blues with just a hint of overdrive (pre amp at about 2-3 and volume with post)i found that the sound lost a great deal of its glitter in its highs and it didn't sustain too well. this all got quite a bit better after the speaker was broken in, but it still bothered me that i couldn't get the sound bright enough with out it sounding harsh and dry. i eventually switched out the stock speaker (blue marvel) for an eminence wizard from the red coat series. i got it because it sounded the most like a cele vintage 30, it costed about half as much, and i think it has a tighter bottom! the speaker swap improved the tone and sustain in the biggest way you can imagine, switching to all JJ tubes helped a bit, but not as much as the speaker swap. without the upgrades i would give it a 6 with the new stuff i would totally go10 for 10!

never had a big problem, one night i had a little rattle problem, but i locked it down

i think the warranty is a few years. i've never had a real problem with it, so i'll give peavey the benefit of the doubt.

i've been playing for about 8 years, active gigging for about 3. I had a fender hot rod before i had this amp. the problem with the hot rod was that it didn't break up where i needed it to, i always had not enough gain, or way to much. After the modifications this peavey amp was totally a better amp! the dynamics come out more with a little gain, and it has PLENTY of fender shimmer plus Marshall edge when needed! i really love this amp after the mods. without id give it a 6, with id give it a 10!

2006 Classic 30 combo. Typical volume, tone, reverb controls with Pre and Post for the overdrive, effects loop, and a volume boost button that just muddies up the tone. The overdrive is pretty good, but I love my pedals. Very good spring reverb. All the controls I need.

READ THIS, important! As is from the factory, pretty poor tone. Brittle highs, muddy bass, and REALLY midrangey. I turn the mid control all the way down. I bought this when the main transformer blew in my '64 Vibrolux and needed an amp quick. I thought this was the best choice my local shop had in a tube amp. When I got the Vibrolux back I put the Peavey away. I decided one day to pull it out and see if I could do anything to improve the tone. I replaced the Blue Marvel with an Eminence Legend I had and the preamp tubes with 2 JJs and an old Amperex. Incredible difference! It sounds like a comletely different amp. It's still midrangey but the tone is SO much better now. With the changes I give it an 8. Without a 4.

Peaveys are known for being dependable. I've had 2 and never had a problem.

Never dealt with them

Been playing 45 years. At one time or another I've owned every blackface Fender amp made except a Vibroverb. Supers were my favorite until I got sick of carrying them and got the Vibrolux, and I'd have to kill if it was ever stolen. I've had too many tube amps to remember but here are some others: Peavey Bravo 112, Mesa Boogie, Marshall JMCs, MusicMan 2X12, Ampeg V4, Dr Z Maz 38 2X12(great amp but really heavy), Carr Rambler (nice deluxe reverb type but way too expensive for what you get), etc. The Classic 30 is a good amp, especially for the bucks, but ONLY if you replace the horrible stock speaker. For an EL84 amp I'd save up the money and get a DrZ Maz18 2X10 or a British made Vox AC30.

made in early 2002 you all pretty much know the features, its a basic amp, a sort of no frills amp, I really wish it had a standby, but ive read that alot and of course its a tube amp so its loud enough for most applications as long as your not trying to play thrash or death metal.

I like the clean channel, very much like a fender, lots of reverb, I like the fact that you can get more reverb than you need instead of needing more and not being able to get it. I like classic rock and blues, im a product of the sixties seventies eighties, I like all styles of music, this amp is fairly versatile, it can do a good job with the blues, and sound like an old marshall to some degree, I dont like too much saturation, so this works for me, forget it if your look for tons of overdrive.

Ive had this amp for a while with no problems, ive seen them at open mic jams where they have been literaly kicked around and still fired up! one was knocked off stage and still worked!

Peavey was lightning quick with there respones, bought it used so there is no warranty, everyone fixes them!

Ive been playing over twenty years, ive had many brand name amps, Ive A/B this amp against much more expensive amps, saldano, rivera, I still liked this better, I use Prs, gibson G&l guitars, I would get another if I lost it, hey there affordable! I Just love the tone it gets, I have a Mesa,like that too, its a different animal though. I do wish it had a standby, for the money you cant beat this thing, and I can afford to spend more, but what for? I put in a Vintage celestion to warm it up, and im going for the JJ tubes as well. So save your money and give this a try before you buy anything else.

I have played through quite a few of these over the past few months. Early '90's models to current production. What I like is the consistency. The design, speaker, and cabinet haven't changed. (Some things internally have changed like the tube guard, and how the boards are layed out in the chassis.) A classic design doesn't need to change to still be current.

Low, middle, high freq knobs. Class A/B. Boost button. Dirty and clean channel. Could use a standby switch. 3 12ax7's and 4 el84's. Using it at home I don't have to go much higher than 2 on the channel volume knobs to get a beefy enough sound.

Oh yeah, the best feature? All the knobs go to 12. Not 10, not 11 (not just 1 louder), but 12. Two louder!

The sound quality of this amp rocks. I have gotten very good tone out of it with a '79 Les Paul KM (limited edition specialty model), a US made 1981 BC Rich Eagle, a 2005 Eric Johnson Strat, and a 2007 PRS CE 22. All stock. All with the dirty channel. No pedals necessary.

Boost on this amp sucks. I overdrive the amp itself on the dirty channel, no fuddy duddy distortion boxes for me. 2/3 to 3/4 for the pre knob, and the post knob for overall volume (just 1 to 2 for home playing). 3 tone knobs all about 2/3 to 3/4.

The clean channel is very clean, mellow, and full sounding. But I really like the dirty channel. I don't believe you can get good tone with a both Les Paul and a Strat out of most amps (and I just tried a Marshall DSL401, great with a Les Paul, not so great with a Strat), and a Fender Super Sonic (not bad with either, but not great with either either).

Music style is classic rock to hard rock.

No issues yet.

I asked Peavey about the current models vs previous models, and some questions about the speaker (there didn't used to be a Blue Marvel sticker on the speaker), and they were very helpful in helping me identify what I was looking for.

Playing for almost 30 years. My main amp is a Lab Series L5 (BB King and Ronnie Montrose). That amps sounds great with my Les Paul, but not so great with a Strat, hence me picking up the Peavey. I can't get rid of the L5, have had it too long with too many memories, but the Peavey is now the main amp I play through.

Two more things I really like about the Peavey:

1) Made in the U.S. I know it won't fall apart next week like some Chinese made amps I've seen comments on. You pay for that quality, but I believe it's worth it.

2) Very easy to modify this amp. Tube changes, speaker changes, and check out http://www.blueguitar.org/articles.htm for some more cool tricks with this amp. Very versatile and flexible design and construction.

I actually got an early used one 1st. Sounded great with my Strat, but not so good with the BC Rich (too twangy for the mids; the PRS had some twang, and almost no twang with the LP). Eventually found out the tone caps had been "upgraded". But no twanginess with newer models I played at 2 different stores with that same guitar. GC had a special on a floor model, so I picked that one up too. I actually like how the older models look better. But I wanted the stock sound quality. Although I'll probably try out a Celestion G12T-75 in it eventually. Bottom line is that I liked the amp so much that I now have 2 of them!

Single channel, dual-mode (we'll call it two-channel for simplicity sake, but the lead channel just adds another tube to the clean signal path), all tube (except reverb and efx loop), 30W 4EL84 output. Gain boost switch, remote "channel" and reverb switch (more on this later). This is my second C30, I had another one 12 years ago. This unit is a few years old, not the current version.

I don't remember why I sold my first one, and I wish I hadn't. Whenever I test drive other amps at a store, I always plug into a C30 (if they have one) every other amp for a reality check. These amps are voiced perfectly for me. The mids, lows and highs are nicely balanced on the clean channel. I just enjoy playing this clean sound so much. Comparable sounding clean amps include the Fender Custom Vibrolux (at low volumes) and the Mesa Lonestar Special 112, which takes this same basic sound to another league entirely. Not really a fair comparison, but I have to say that I sound just as much like me on the C30 as I do on the Lonestar. The C30 stays clean to a surprisingly high volume.
The lead mode is very nice, much better than any Fender I've tried, and I say this even though my main gigging amp right now is the Fender Hot Rod DeVille 410. I won't even use the lead channel on the Fender, but this Peavey would work for me. You lose some low-end on lead, but this is done for a reason, so the distortion doesn't get flabby. Most amp makers do the same thing. Try setting the lead gain at about 6.5 (straight up) and then feeding the amp a Tube Screamer clone set to mild boost and med/low drive. This lead sound absolutely KILLS! Very harmonically rich, easy controlled feedback, and NO FUZZ. A light touch, and it cleans right up.
My one real gripe with these amps is the rattling of the tubes. I recently picked up a Tom's Tube Tamer on eBay, and this did the trick. I would say that this accessory is a must with this amp.

In addition to the Tom's Tube Tamer, these amps need some sort of protection in back for the tubes. There is an after-market grate accessory that does this well, and the new models have them already in place. The previous owner of my amp did something else that worked just as well.
I haven't gigged with this amp, but I may once I get a spare set of tubes. I trust the 6L6s in my Fender more than the EL84s in the C30.

I previously mentioned the footswitch. I made my own, both for this amp and for my previous C30. The stock footswitch has no LEDs so you can see which channel you are in, or if the reverb is on. The voltage coming out of the channel switching jack just happens to be the right current level to drive an LED. You could add LEDs to your stock footswitch just by putting one in series with each switch. I used a red one for the channel switch, and a green one for the reverb. The voltage is negative with respect to ground, so the LED has to be anode towards ground to work.

They have been good for parts and schematics for me, very helpful. I've owned several Peavey products over the years, and I do my own repairs. Peavey takes care of me for parts and advise.

The Classic 30 is a wonderful amp, and it makes a GREAT recording amp, so long as you do something about the rattling tubes. Honestly, Tom's Tube Tamer is a MUST for this amp.

I bought this amp in 2007 from a musicstore.It is my first tube amp!At first i didnt know if it would meet my requirements but after all it did totally!I havent changed the tubes yet but i bet it will sound even better than now.

The sound is amazing,in my opinion.
The clean channel is totally clean and bright.With my 70's strat i get the perfect strat tone.The overdrive channel works great.You can get every thing you need from Classic rock crunch to a dirty-clean.
The Boost button just gives it a boost of volume and warmth.
Its never noisy and if you set it righ you can even play quiet.

Sadly the EQ doesnt affect it too much, but it does its job well.

Never had any problems

Never used it

Its a great amp if you need a good bluesy to classic rock amp.
Its warm its soft and just looking great with the tweed.
Im a Knopfler fan and this amp is the right decision if you need his sounds from '77 to '07.

Same features as listed except each amps has it's own tonal qualities. More on this under Sound Quality. But things that knock it down are no seperate tone adjustments and no tremolo but I do like that you don't have to switch connections for gain/clean.

All this testing was done with both gain and clean channels. This is were having two of the same amp really shows their quality control differences. I just got a black then a tweed amp with intentions on giving the black one back when the tweed came in but noticed the difference between the two right away so I decided to do some testing. The black amp has Russian tubes in all but the clean and gain channels where it has JJs (even the small V3 is Russian). The Tweed amp has JJs in everything. The black has good ice pick attacks and very deep base. The Tweed is much softer and can really can't do the ice pick attack. I tried swapping the tubes and this did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! I was hoping this would change their personalities but it did not. Where all these people say it completely changes the amp never had a side by side I guess and the time it took to change the tubes was tricking their mind into thinking it made a big difference. It DOES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING (at least with Burstbucker PROs which can get sharp but not as sharp as single coils I guess). Anyway, the black one was still very deep and sharp and the tweed was still much softer, quieter, and smoother (yes, the speaker was connected/phased corretly). Next, I jumpered the speakers over, NO CHANGE!!! The black amp using the tweed's speaker was still very deep and sharp while the tweed was softer even using the black's speaker. Crazy! Accourding to this board the tube swap should have done something but I swear, I changed them around 6 times and NO DIFFERENCE!!! Only thing is the JJ tubes kept bending their pins while the Russians stayed straight. Score one for the Russian tubes! At this point I'm at a delima (of course). The black one plays metal very well and can soften up when stroked smoothly but the tweed can never harshen up to be like the black. Man this sucks! I so wanted to have the tweed. But the moral of this story is if you don't like one classic 30 because it is too harsh or soft, try another and keep trying them till you find one you like. OH, and I even ran both amps with an MP3 connected to the input with volume at 6 for 6 hours so they were broken in (aimed them into the carpeted floor in a seperate room and played Tool and System of a down albums). I don't have any other speaker experience to guide me and I am new at playing (I know a little pink floyd, ac/dc, metallica, other). Hope all this helps someone.

They handled all this swapping without a problem.

Eeay to get on the phone or they call you back. But I haven't had to deal with a warranty issue.

I'd say it's a killer deal for the price. They are $399 at GC right now because they might be closing them out.

Not very many features as you all know. But what it does have I like. I like the gain but there isn't enough for metal but it certainly sounds good for just rock. Certainly is powerful enough as well. Has an Effects In but I'd rather just use the regular input (more on that later). There is no way to disconnect the internal speaker unless you unplug it. Doesn't have a standby switch which is rather odd. But, I love the tweed color!

I have a Gibson with Burstbucker Pros. Even with these the amp has very weak bass and anemic treble so I hooked a Digitech PR90 effects pedal straight into the input and cranked up the bass 6db (d8) and put the treble up 3db (t6) and now it sounds fantastic even with the stock speaker! I can't believe nobody has mentioned this before. Only downside to doing this is now the effects level has to be set to max (99) to keep the original volume the same. I don't know how this will affect things once I figure out how to use it all but hey, I'm happy right now. Connecting it this way also allows keeping the amps gain (which I like a lot) and reverb switches on the amp. Just having these adjustments on the amp and not on the pedal makes them so much easier to get to. Like I said, I don't know the real ramifications of doing it this way, I'm sure there is a gotcha problem in it but like I said, I'm happy for now. Doing all this certainly made the amp sound worlds better and the pedal has a huge amount of features as well. Raising the bass/treble could probably also be done with just an eq pedal or any pedal with those features (I don't work for digitech). Either way it beats buying some kind of speaker and hoping for the best. Now, I'd like to see anything beat this amps sound and features for even close to this price (amp $399, pedal $99 = $500). Before I'd rate the sound as only an 7/8 (that's an all tube rating. Most cheap SS/tube-hybrid deserve only 5 at best!). Now, I'd rate it a 9 because it just doesn't get any better, only louder!

I've had it only a few days but this is the Made In The USA version and from what I can tell they last as long as any in the business. I heard they are discontinuing production here and moving to China. Doubt those will last as long.

I think it has a 5 year warranty.

I'm a first time buyer but searched very carefully and didn't see anything within hundreds that I liked as much (tweed finish is nice). It could have a standby switch and a few other things but it doesn't so I'll have to live without. I'd say overall I couldn't find a better amp in this price range so I'll have to give it a 10. So what if it needed a pedal to bring out more bass and treble. I think most will always get some kind of pedal anyway and I don't see them discounting ratings because an amp doesn't have every pedal effect. Thanks Peavey for making such an excellent product at a great price!!!

2007 Model, the last of the "old style" front decals. As already stated time and again, it COULD USE A STANDBY SWITCH" - (Can you hear us, Peavey??)

Does have a mid boost that is very handy, especially with single coil PUs.

It can be a little noisy, but it definitely has a great "organic" sound to it. This is an amp I tried earlier in my playing career, but couldn't really appreciate unitl my playing progressed to the point that I quit using modeling effects and started playing the amp. It is old style all tube soudn with great tone. I/ve owned several tube amps (Fender evil twin, Deville, Marshall 401 DSL, Genz Benz El Diablo, etc.) and I can say that this amp sounds and plays great. Sound Quality is the reason I bought it.

This model has the tube guards and seems to be playing for the past 6 months since I have owned it without fault. That is one of the reasons I see alot of Peavey stuff in churches and with working (club) musicians. Peavey may be snubbed by most of the guitar magazines, but their stuff is bullet proof. I have owned 4 other Peavey amps and have never had trouble with any of their equipment.

Made a couple fo calls from a dealership with questions and have found them very helpful. What do you expect from a Memphis based company?

This amp is my secondary. I use the Marshall as my main amp at church, mainly because of the noise factor and the fact that there is no standby switch. However, I would use this as my primary with either my strat or tele. These guitars were made to be played on the Classic 30. I will keep this amp for life, just because of the sounds I can get with my Fender guitars (think Joe Walsh, SRV, etc.).