Peavey Classic 30

This is a nineties model as I have had it since 98. The features have been thoroughly stated elsehwere. I play classic rock and blues which this amp suits quite well. As others have stated, one improvement may be separate eq for "each" channel but that is not that big of an issue.

I use sveral guitars mainly an American strat with Van Zandt pickups. I also use a Washburn with p90's. The amp works quite well for classic rock and blues (although I prefer my Delta Blues specifically for blues). I finally made some changes due to advice seen here in the reviews and have replaced the stock speaker with a Weber Blue Dog and replaced the tubes with JJ's. I feel that this has greatly improved the sound "quality". I would like to experiment with a 1x12 cab just to expand the sound and move a little more air. I have found the amp fairly versatile as you can use the footswitch to utilive both the clean and overdrive channels. Plus, I use an Ibanez tube screamer inbetween on its own with the clean or combined with the overdrive to get more "drive". Personally, I like the overdrive channel as it has a nice tone. I used to have a Marshall JCM 800 combo and I actually got rid of it in part because the Classic 30 had a more desirable tone (for me). I guess beauty is in the ears of the beholder.

I have had this amp now for 11+ years and have had no problems whatsoever. Please realize that I treat my gear very well (I have a 30 year old ovation that looks new other than the frets are worn down). Take care of stuff and it will take care of you.

I can't answer this because I've never had to use them.

I've been playing 33 years. I also own a Mex strat, Custom Carvin, Taylor 514, Larivee D05. As I stated earlier, I also have a Peavey Delta Blues (another great amp). If this amp were stolen I would be sick but I would look for another and set it up the same way.

OK, I'm the guy, aka dweeb, in the previous review who said the Classic 30 has EL34s. I meant EL84s. What's worse, I typed it several times and didn't catch it. It was late - what can I say? By the way, I gigged out with the Peavey - sans backup - last Friday night. Honestly, I think the distorted sound was one of the best I've ever had. BTW, I leave the boost button down at all times. I have some nice pedals, but its hard to beat hot tubes for a classic blues or rock sound. For cleans, well . . . nothing beats an older Twin Reverb, but the Peavey sounded pretty good. It sounds better on the clean channel if the boost is not engaged, but its too much trouble, so I just leave the boost on. Also, I found that if I use my reverb pedal, the amp reverb needs to be off, especially if I'm using the distortion channel. Otherwise, I get this awful feedback. So, I won't be using the amp's reverb unit again on stage.

Like I said, the distortion channel is great, but the boost button must be engaged for my taste. Otherwise, it sounds thin and artificial, like a cheap pedal. I played my Les Paul for most of the gig last Friday and I was smiling a lot. Sounded goooooood.

So far so good. Even though I say I didn't have a backup, I kept my Twin in my van - just in case. You never know with tube amps. I still have memories of a gig we did in Jackson, TN about 25 years ago using my Twin. My butt was to the audience most of the night 'cause I was busy trying to get the noise out of my amp. It was a burned out 6L6. Live and learn. Tubes are worth the effort, but there will be problems from time to time. Be prepared.

I will say that I'm enjoying the amp more and more as I use it. I especially like the fact that I can lug both it and a guitar at the same time. Try that with a Twin! Actually, I can still do it with my Twin, but my chiropractor will hear about it. In fact, she did - today. I used it on a gig Saturday. Should have used the Peavey, or carried the guitar separately, or USED THE DANG WHEELS! Yep, wheels are a good thing. Should use them more often. You gotta love Twins.

I think mine was built in the late 90s - I got it used a year back, so I can't say. The amp is very versatile and so is my band. I wouldn't own it otherwise. It has an effects loop and a distortion channel. Here's where the other reviewers have lost me - they say the distortion channel is useless. Monkey see, monkey do. I thought the same thing when I got mine until I actually tweaked around with it and found out what it can really do. I've mainly used this in my practice room and sometimes on a gig (but that's about to change). 30 watts is plenty of power because we mic everything anyway. After working with it I now feel I can use it on any gig with minimal effects - an echo, tremelo, chorus and wah. Keep reading.

I use Teles, Strats, and Les Pauls depending on my mood. I played in a large arena on Friday night up near Nashville and brought my '72 Fender Twin Reverb, my effects board and my guitars. Last night, I played at a small local club and brought my Twin and my Peavey Classic. I had purchased a two button foot switch off eBay for the Reverb and to switch between my clean and dirty channels. In playing around with this amp at home, I found that by engaging the boost button (to the far right) and turning the post to about 3 and the drive to about 6, I get a sweet creamy distortion I had previously thought was only possible with pedals. In fact, I've gone through a lot of pedals and never quite found this sound. Well, last night I found it. I played the first two sets with my trusty old Twin, then I plugged this baby up (sans effects pedal - just a foot switch) and just let 'er rip. And boy did it ever rip. My bass player and drummer couldn't believe it; it actually sounded better than my Twin. The clean channel with the boost button pushed had just a little dirt so that when I rolled the volume off, it sounded clean. We cover 'Runnin Down a Dream' by Tom Petty, so I used the distortion channel and fell in love with it. Next, we started pulling out some old ZZ Top and Zeppelin. It sounded fantabulous. Like I said, if you can't get a good sound out of this, you're doing something wrong, or you can't play and no amp in the world will fix that. Don't believe everything people post here. One guy apparently got pissed off at his incompetent amp tech and rated this at a 1. Peavey likely would have fixed his problem, but from what he posted, the retailer, not Peavey, dropped the ball. They never sent it back, so Peavey never got a chance.

Case in point: My bass player bought a pro-series 450w Ampeg head and it farted out on him, so he took it Yarbrough's Music here in Memphis and they jacked it up worse - then tried to charge him $200 for repairs. They had it 2 weeks and it didn't work PERIOD when he got it back, so now its at a REAL amp tech's shop. It's not Ampeg's fault. My point? Don't blame a manufacturer for an incompent dim-wit at a repair shop.

I bought a tube damper for my amp right from the git. I replaced the tubes and it hasn't failed once and isn't microphonic IN THE LEAST. Absolutely zero tube rattle. It was a simple fix and Peavey really should buy the patent from the guy who invented that tube damper and use it on every amp that leaves their plant. Since I've only had mine for a year and have just started gigging with it, I'll use a second party's experience to rate reliability. Steve Jones (not his real name) is a professional player here in Memphis and has supported himself making music for the past 30+ years. He has owned his Classic 30 and played live with it on every single gig for 15 years without any problems (He says he's working his way through poverty; actually, he's doing pretty good now). He knows good tone and can likely play rings around most of the players reviewing on this forum. This guy is that good. Anyway, he's the reason I bought mine. He carries it around in his trunk, the tweed is all tattered and torn, but it still sounds great. It is his ONLY amp. He said if it gave out on him tonight, it would have still paid for itself 100s of times over. And you guys who think the newer Fenders are the way to go - have at it. Unless you get a hand wired one, be ready for some down time. They're not 'point to point' wired anymore than I'm an astronaut. Steve has worked as a luthier in several music stores and will tell you that the Classic 30 is far more dependable; Fenders were constantly being returned for repairs, no Classic 30s. Like I said, that's why I own one and I feel it was a great pick.

I've owned other Peavey equipment and they seem committed to honoring their warranty. They usually sublet their repairs to 'qualified' techs in your area, but they don't personally oversee who that is. They let the retailer find their own techs, like most everyone else does. If you have problems with the work the tech does, call their 800# and let Peavey know about it before coming to a review forum with your soap box and negative attitude so you can downgrade something other people are raving about. Their guarantee is they will either repair OR REPLACE faulty products. I've called them about a problem with a powered mixer we use on small gigs and they were friendly and very helpful. The tech talked me through the 'repair' which was simple.

Another 10? Yep. Been playing for 45 years, 32 years semi-pro. I own a couple of hand built boutique amps, a heavily modded Fender Twin Reverb, and this Classic 30, plus a few nice guitars (as if that matters on an amp review). If it were lost or stolen I'd look for a used one on eBay or Craigslist, but I would definitely get another Classic 30. In fact, I'm watching for another one to come up on Craigslist right now. Its small and packs a big punch, looks cool, and sounds as good or better than amps costing several times more. The components are not the greatest, but they're on par with other amps using printed circuits. I'm really surprised Steve's amp has held up as well as it has, so maybe mine will too. As far as I'm concerned, it has everything I wanted in an amp and it will now be my go-to for future gigs. I always bring a back up because tube amps are notorious for frying tubes at the worst possible time, but you gotta love 'em for the tone. If this one ever goes on the blink, I'll have to see what repairs would cost, but I'd likely just buy another used one as reasonably as they're priced. I'll cross that bridge IF I get to it.

30 watt tube amp with 2 channels but only 1 eq for both channels. Has an effects loop. Comes stock with blue marvel 12 inch speaker.

I will have to admitt the amp sounds good. I play mostly single coil teles and strats but occasionaly run a les paul or prs thru it. It is a good amp for country, southern & classic rock, and blues. If you play anything heavier you will need a stompbox distortion. I am not a big fan of the blue marvel speakers I recomend changing them to your speaker of choice.

THIS IS A PROBLEM!!! I have an older model classic 30 and the biggest flaw of its constuction is there is NO protection for the tubes. The tubes are the most delicate part of the amp! They are made of glass for crying out loud! I do not feel comfortable transporting this amp to a gig for that very reason.

I contacted peavey to see if they made an after market guard for the tubes and it turns out that they do. However I tried numerous times to contact their parts department to order one and can get no response. Its bad enough that you have to order an aftermarket tube guard for a $600 amp but when they won't even return an email about purchasing one that sucks!!!!!!!

I have been playing almost 20 years. I own marshalls, mesas, egnaters, fenders, and peavey amps. Including a peavey classic 30 2x12 halfstack wich is constructed much better than the combo I'm reviewing. I love the sound and portability of the amp. 30 watts is plenty for any gig. If you need to be louder you need to be miked. However not having a guard for the tubes and the ****** customer service make this amp a liability to own.

You can read all the features from previous reviews. As it's been stated this is not "true 2 channel" but the technical reasons don't interest me. I personally think the shared EQ is a good thing! This is the first amp I've owned where I've been happy with the settings switching between the lead and clean channels. This is also the first amp I've played where both channels sound good. Usually one channel is vastly superior to the other.

I play blues, classic rock, etc. and this amp can cover it all (except metal) without pedals. After experimenting around a bit, I've added an OD-3 pedal to boost volume during solos.

The "boost" button is interesting, most players seem to hate it. For single coils it sounds ok to my ears, the main reason I don't use it is it's not accessible via foot pedal.

I've used this amp recently playing with a small group, and this amp has plenty of power. The other guitar player has a solid state head with a big 4X12 cabinet and my amp with the single speaker not only holds its own but could blow him away if I would turn the volume past 5.

Not a lot of bells and whistles, but I like things simple.

I use humbuckers mostly, though single coils sound good too. I think it's a rather bright amp, sometimes a little too harsh for me. I usually use an amp stand, but with this amp I can hear it fine with it flat on the floor.

The reverb was humming on me at higher settings. That was cured by moving the reverb pan just at little.

Someone already described the amp as a "one trick pony". I think that's accurate, but it's a good trick.

I don't think it's a good idea to ever gig without a backup, no matter what amp you use, particularly if you're getting paid. I think with tube amps it's even more important to have a spare.

I would say this is probably not an amp that would take a lot of abuse, but if you're responsible for carrying your own stuff (I dream of having a roadie someday!) you will more than likely take care when loading in the vehicle and carrying it in to play...

Can't really rate it since I've had it less than 6 months.

Not dealt with Peavey. Bought it from a music store. It was $50 cheaper than musiciansfriend.com. Will take it back there if I ever need it worked on.

OK, there are other tube amps that sound better, but they are also a lot more expensive. I compared this to other models before I tried it out in a store.

Main thing that I think reviews like this are helpful with are people's experiences. I appreciate the negative reviews too, I hope my positive experience with this amp will continue.

Trying an amp in a store is important, but you don't learn much about it until you play with others. In that environment, it hasn't failed me yet.

I am writing this review after have a bunch of Peavey Classics over the years. My main amp is a Peavey "Blues Classic" which is like a Classic 50 with a 15" cab. Great amp. I've had and sold a bunch of Classic 30s but just purchased another one this week to use as a 'grab and go' amp to replace my Crate V3112. Anyway, after many years a of playing the Classic 30, there seems be a few problems that myself and many others have had:

1. The OD Channel doesn't have a seperate eq and gets 'lost' in the mix. Solution: Buy a $28 Danelectro Fish 'n Chips and put it in the effects loop. Boost the mids and output level and now you will 'pop out' of the mix rather than lose volume. Best $28 you could ever spend. Do this BEFORE you swap speakers, tubes etc.

2. Tubes/Speakers - save money and try to get some vintage or NOS tubes. Unlike most of the retarded bubbleheads on the internet, I'm not blindly advising the "JJ/Vintage 30" swap. JJ preamp tubes are horrible at best and their EL84s are just average. Plus quality has gone waaay down as of late. To demonstrate the quality of JJs, well, my cat buries them in the litter box b/c he mistakes them for something else. I would recommend any number of vintage or NOS tubes... I am currently using a Tungsram in V1 (fantastic) an RFT in V2 (great 'crunch' tube) and a Sovtek LPS or Tungsol RI in V3. With power tubes I would just go with regular stock Sovtek EL84s or better yet, get some older Russian EL84M 'military' power tubes also known as 6p14-EB. They are similar to regular EL84s but can take a beating and rattle much less. If you want to spend big bucks on a quad of El84s, go for some NOS Tungsrams (IF you can find them.... good luck).

And please don't put a "Vintage 30" speaker in this amp. I put Vintage 30 in quotes b/c the current made Chinese Celestions are nothing like a real older Vintage 30. But either way, they are a horrible match for this amp. Break in the stock speaker first. If you absolutely hate it, spend your money on an 112 extension cab. If you MUST change the speaker, about the best you can get for the Classic 30 is a Weber Blue Dog or an Eminence Cannabis Rex. But breaking in the stock speaker and then invested in an extra 112 cab will be money better spent.

3. Replace the Output Transformer. I replaced the output transformer on my Peavey Blues Classic with a Mercury Magnetics unit and the difference is amazing. Expensive, but money well spent. I can only imagine that replacing the OT on a Classic 30 woud bring about the same improvement in tone. This last option is only for hard-core tone freaks 'cause it's expensive and you can get most of the way there by just using the $28 Fish 'n Chips and putting some REAL tubes in there. (Not JJs). I challange anyone to prove me wrong.

I got mine used, so I can only guess from what the previous owner told me that its about 5 years old. I've had it for a year. The tone of this amp is its selling point - clear and articulate. I can generally tweak around with any amp and get a tone that I can use, but with this one its very easy and it sounds good on a lot of different settings. It could be used strictly for rock, or country, R&B, blues and even jazz. I play all those styles to some degree (still can't quite get the hang of jazz even though I took lessons a few years back.)It has plenty of power - I have amps with a lot more power, but even this one is too loud for most venues if I really crank it. I mic it anyway, so volume isn't an issue. The amp has everything I want in an amp - dual channels, reverb, remote reverb switch and channel switching with a footswitch, an effects loop, and 3 band eq. Great little package.

I use Gibsons primarily, but I've also played my Tele through this a lot and it has such a sweet tone through those EL34s. As much as I like Les Pauls and SGs, I think this amp is better matched to my Telecaster. The amp is surprisingly quiet. I turned it on tonight, went to the kitchen and came back and forgot I had it on until I picked up my guitar and unplugged it - AROOOMPH! Yep, it was on all right. I usually get at least a slight hum. Is that the norm for these things? I've only played through one other but I didn't pay attention to how it sounded when the guitar wasn't actually being played.

So far so good. I replaced the tubes right away when I got it because one of the EL34s was microphonic. I put Ruby EL34s in it and EH 12AX7s in the pre. I play it all the time around the house and have used it a few times on gigs. My friend Steve has one that he's used for about 15 years on every single gig (about 5 nights a week in Memphis plus Las Vegas tours on occasion) and its never been to the shop. If it quit on him tonight, he would feel he definitely got his money's worth. I'm sure he would get another Classic 30 instead of blowing his money on a boutique amp. I've read on this review that some people haven't had the same experience as Steve, but I think a lot of it has to do with how you treat it and being able to differentiate between an amp problem and a tube problem. Then again, not all Peavey 30s are created equally. Any amp can have a bad component or two that makes the whole thing sound bad. Anyway, in my case it has been dependable and hopefully it will stay that way.

I think with any company, customer support in the eye of the beholder is only going to be as good as the person you speak with. Some people don't like their job, they don't care if your amp doesn't work don't want to do anything about it. The only time I called Peavey was concerning a PA head and the guy was helpful. Otherwise, I've never had a problem with Peavey gear.

I've played for about 45 years and have owned a plethora of amps and guitars. Overall, I've personally been very satisfied with the Classic 30 and would recommend it to any musician looking for a great tone without shelling out a lot of dough. The amp looks cool, sounds great, and is easy to carry around. I wish it had a birch plywood cab instead of the particle board, but I can deal with it.

I've got two of these, I'm guessing they're around ten years old. They are the older style, with the silly-looking Peavey logo removed. Most people assume they're old Fender amps when they see them. You know the features by now, nothing fancy. The boost button is useless, don't push it. I have no problem with the shared three-way EQ between the two channels, sounds great to me on both. I use the FX loop, very nice. These things are easy to tote, plenty loud, and after upgrading tubes and speakers, have tone, tone, tone. The only thing missing is a standby switch, but it's no biggie. I point a small fan at the back to keep the amp cool. Depending on the gig, I'll use one or both of the amps, sometimes one with an extension cab, just depends. They work great for laid back jazz gigs, rock shows, everything in between. I use them a lot on worship gigs where it's a very critical environment. I probably spend too much time listening to the playbacks, but then again, they sound great.

I mainly use a very old Strat, sometimes an old Les Paul custom, sometimes lap steels. On the clean channel, the Les Paul sounds nice and round with great sustain on chords. Works great for jazz gigs. You can get a very nice R&B tone with the Strat, very well-balanced with a fat bottom and bell-like top end. I just like the way these things sound. Unless it's a really load gig, the Ampegs and the Boogie stay home. To me, where they got things right with this amp is the way both the clean channel and the lead channel sound. Warm and sparkly clean, that "Mississippi Marshall" tone on the lead channel. Both very natural. When you crank up the clean channel, the grit starts a-comin'. I've set both amps up the same way, JJ tubes all around and Celestion Vintage 30's. It's just the ideal match. I generally use SM57s for mics, a little off-axis from center, but I've also had good results with Sennheisers. Reality check time - this is a small amp, so it's not going to sound like a Marshall stack. It doesn't have the transformers of a Matchless DC-30. Does it record well? You bet. Is it loud enough for most club gigs? Absolutely. Can you play anywhere with this amp when you mic it? It's up to the sound engineer. Very easy to get my sound, pretty much plug and play, with an old MXR Dyna Comp and a Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive before the input. This gives me plenty of tonal options. I'll use the Sparkle Drive set fairly clean to fatten up clean solos, and to drive the lead channel over the crest. In the FX loop, I generally run a Rocktron Xpression followed by a Rocktron Intelliflex, so I've got any effect I want covered, in stereo when I want it. Too cool for words. I use an expression pedal with the Rocktron Xpression, so I can add post-distortion eq for the lead channel. The basic tone of the lead channel is ripe for the picking -I just add some midrange in the FX loop after the distortion for solos to fatten up the sound. The Rocktron HUSH noise reduction is outstanding, so it's dead quiet for the worship gigs. It just works for what it is that I do.

One of the amps has never failed on me, the other one has had a couple of issues, both my fault. I found out the hard way that if one of the top handle screws comes loose, the nut can fall into the circuit below, cause a short, and you'll have to replace an internal fuse on the gig. No fun. The other time - you'll like this one. I'm pushing a hand truck with the amp on it for the long trip from the parking area to the gig at Opryland Hotel in a driving rainstorm. I hit a bump, the amp falls in a muddy puddle. I get inside, turn it on, and it sounds like an outboard motor. I turn it on its side, and dries out just in time for the show and has worked great ever since. That was three years ago. These things are American-made and tough as nails. Oh - one thing you must do. Buy and install one of the commercially available rear tube guards!

Never dealt with Peavey customer support, never had to.

I've been playing for 35+ years, so I'm pretty picky about sounds, and I like gear that's easy to move. I've had these amps for a while, not planning on parting with them. Is there better gear available? Sure. Is it more expensive? Very much so. For tone/price/performance/reliability/weight, you really can't go wrong with the Classic 30. For that, it gets a 10 in my book.

Tube Amp from 2004. A "not really"2-channel.Reverb.Nice Outfit.Tone controls work for both settings.12" speaker.Footswitch for channel and reverb.

I work with Fenders and Gibsons and all kinds of pickups with a
favour for P90s.The amp responds some kind of "couloring".Clean is NOT
Fenderclean.Okay its a Peavey.Crunch is good. Too much gain causes
problems.Played several gigs and the amp is powerfull enough for that.
For bedroom rehearsal strongly not recommended.All in all i'd like to
say, good for Rock and Blues, less good for Country as there ain't no
really clean, nothing for Metal.

I'm a lucky guy to have several warhorses from obvious brand,and so
must not rely totally on this one.Better is that.My experience is a
letdown.Crap tubesockets and a terrible serviceable U-form printed circuit are the main suspects.I know now why these go new from the
dealer at about 700 and within 2 years you find many of them used at about 300 and less.I can service a tube amp but I'm not in soldering
I'm in playing.Besides my amps go only where I would go sleeping,I'm
an "tubeamphugger".This beast eats tubes like I drink beer, cheap ones
and expensive ones alike.Noises,blackouts all things you don't need.

Never dealt with them. Amp was used when I bout em.

Been playing about 30 years now,my other gear is not matter of this.
Yeah he got lost,I sold him. I can only hope that guy don't hunts me
with his axe. I will never buy one again. Have you ever looked into the eyes of a servicetechnican when you brought that one in and saw
how he wants to leave the room "PRONTO"?
May all you others be lucky with em,I'm glad mines gone!

This is a modified classic 30 they have been available to the gp since 1996. It has a 2 channel thing going. I honestly don't care about the how it comes up with the channels. It has really nice cleans and nice distortion. The only flaw is if you get right on axis you get ice pick highs. I am going to try the fizzy lifter for that stay tuned on that. One of the biggest problems I had was it was too loud by the time you hit the sweet spot. Enter Jim at Amphead in Portland. He performed a cool little mod that cut out 2 of the tubes creating essentially a classic 18. Finally I can hit the sweet spot without complaints

Currently I play a Washburn MG122 with 2 humbuckers and a Schecter C1 EA with 3 GFS Memphis Ricky tones. The amp handles these guitars really well. The Piezo pickup sounds rich without too many mids. The GFS are bright pickups that yield any thing fro a nice strat tone to a pretty good classic rock tone beautiful cleans. The Washburn has a Seymour 59 and a pearly Gates standard. The amp loves these guitars but you have to dial it in. I find the treble set on 4 bass on 10 mids on 8. I play a little of everything from pop to old hard rock to country style. I push it with an ME 50 Boss and the normal amp switching. I like the distortion especially in the low watt mode.

I use the amp to gig and use a moddler as a backup. If I need more volume I can go to th 30 watt mode. Its reliable.

Peavey is a good company. They will actually send tech data and help. But with this amp I rally don't need their help.

I have been playing for 35 years I own the 2 electric guitars mentioned above as well as a Breedlove acoustic and a schecter Stilleto studio 5 bass.I also have 3 pianos and a drum set. Those are actually the wifes' Yeah how lucky am I? I have also used various pods and currently a boss gt 8 with a graphic eq in the effects loop. Makes the fizz go away and gives it a clarity that is almost tube. None of actually get all the way there. If the amp were stolen I would be unhappy but would probably go amp shopping and try a couple things.

Everyone is aware of it's features, so let's talk about what it doesn't have...

Controls on the front, like it should
A tube guard on the back
A metal vs plastic channel switcher
An Eq for the each channel
A light to indicate which channel your on

I play out, it's a one trick pony...

I will will admit at loud settings past about 6 on post, people like how it sounds, but at lower volumes, it sucks. It's also really dependent on which guitar you use...for me, humbucker guitars seem to work best...the boost switch just adds mud at lower volumes.

I bought it to get the tube tone. Not impressed.

Under the right conditions I have gotten close but as I state latter, with the controls the way they are, it's so hard to get.

Tubes are exposed, so if you store stuff in the back, then your just asking to have the tubes get bumped. It's happened to me. It's a bad design.

Had problems where the tubes got bumped and had to leave the stage to get the tubes back in. Not Peavey's fault that my tubes got bumped but it's kinda like walking around without pants, your ***** are unprotected, not smart, they will get bumped too.

Amp has always turned on.

Never used them.

If you gig, the first problem is find your tone on this amp.

First because there is only one EQ, the boost just adds mudd at low volumes, the amp is supper bassy, so cleaning it up is hard, the controls are on the back, tough to get to, no channel light. Tubes exposed, so they will get bumped. All of which has led to my gigs, where I spend the whole night trying to find the tone, the volume, the right channel, pushing tubes back in, taking out the mud, and less time playing..I have a wall of guitars, some of them sound like crap with this amp, some are better...if you buy this amp, buy a wall of guitars.

The only saving grace to this amp, is that at loud volumes, some people think this amp souds good, and with the right guitar, I have actualy had amp techs, looking into the back to see what I got inside there. Honestly, I got lucky, it never sounded right to me, right song, right night, right room, right volume..is there magic in this amp, maybe but it's hard for me to find. Spring reverb works fine, plenty of it, if you like that heavy stupid tremelo effect, but if you move the amp, then it sound like an earthquake. Spring reverb is silly, ...I am not a solid state guy, but if you move the amp a little the solid state reverb doesn't crash, bang like a spring reverb does, and they sound just fine, and don't break.

For me an amp with controls on the front, channel switching light, metal not plastic foot switch, with light, eq for both clean and dirty channel, distortion that is tight and clean not muddy is a required, not just something to have. This amp just gets in my way, because it's the kinda amp you have to figure out, rather then turn on, move some things around, done.

I would rather play on stage, then play with my amp all night. I give this amp a 7, if you figure it out, find the right guitar, play loud it will work, but it won't do much else. It's easy on the back to move, and it always turns on. Buy it cheap and you won't feel hosed if your gig goes south, but honestly there are better amps used, for the money.

If someone stole this amp, I would buy something else.

I picked up my Classic 30 from a friend in '99, a few years after he bought it new. I think the features the amp has have been pretty well covered by other reviewees. The amp is simple and effective, just how I like it.

First, I use an stock American strat with a humbucker in the bridge position, and single coils for the neck and mid.

I'm going to break this section up into two parts: premod and postmod.

premod: The factory setting of the amp had full mids and warm highs, pretty great for blues and jazz. The clean channel was beautiful. The overdrive was weak, and the amp really needed to be cranked to get any growl out of it. I only had two complaints: 1) the lack of low end presence & 2) the treble boost created an entirely different, awful sound which did not function as a 'guitar solo button'.

postmod: I made a few changes to my Classic 30. I switched the capacitors for the mid and low equalizer circuits (low: .022uF to orange-drop .047uF; mid: .022uF to orange-drop .022uF). And I wired in an L-Pad attenuator between the amp and the speaker. The result: my little Classic 30 now sounds like my cranked Marshall TSL tube amp! Seriously.

This amp went through a decade of heavy use on the original tubes! It has been knocked over several times and survived a ten foot drop without barely a scratch.

I had one which I'm sure is common with all amps: at some point, the volume would drop down randomly, or the high end would disappear and return, etc. I bought a $7 can of electronics cleaner from Radio Shack, then opened up the amp and sprayed the hell out of the insides of the pots. The issue was instantly resolved (I think this is called maintainence).

I've never attempted to contact Peavey.

This amp has the guts for almost any occasion. It can be ear-splitting loud, and if you're playing a gig that requires even more volume, the amp will probably be miked anyways. The Classic 30 does great on its own (especially after a few mods), and handles effects well. I don't know of a better value.

Serial number states 2009 so I would say made in 2009.
Suits my Classic Rock/Southern Rock tastes great.
2 channels normal and lead. Switchable by button onpanel or footswitsh not included, luckily I have an old Bandit 65 I use for my electric/acoutsic guitar and the pedal works perfectly on the Classic 30.
Effects loop to be played with later.
No headphone jack but seems to be adjustable form pretty damn loud to bedroom levels and still retain some credibility.
Standby would hav ebeeen nice to have and boost I find just seems to muddy things up.
Use this amp in my guitar room(spare bedroom) of my house and to take along to jam elsewhere. Has plenty of power and so much easier tolug around than a half stack.
Basic guitar amp with basic amenities.
Others here have made comments about lacking amenities but the current model seems to have heard a few cries such as the tube holders in place, metal screen covering the back of the tubes, JJ's allaround both pre and power stages. Heats up quie a bit but nothing a small fan won't cure.

Used with an Epiphone LP standard plus with SD Seth Lover pickups, an Epiphone G-400 SG with a SD Custom 78 in teh Bridge and Alnico Pro II in the neck, and a Peavey Patriot Duncan JB in Bridge and SD Jazz in neck, both coil tapped with the flick of a switch.
Suits me fine for AC/DC, Aerosmith, Skynyrd, Sabbath, Van Halen you get the nint.
Somewhat noisy at times but old wiring inj house is more to bame than the amp I am sure.
Two good tones from normal and lead then use the guitar pots to do their jobs and create a greater pallate of sound.
Starts to break up at higher volumes on normal but thats the nature of the beast. Can be brutal when boost added etc but to each his own.
Allready has JJ's all around from the store so may try a speaker swap with an Eminence Private Jack I have handy.

Only had it a day so still breakling in etc . Honeymoon is sweet so far though.
Seems solid , always bring back up gear for a gig. If you ar egetting paid shouldn't you do it automatically.

Haven't called for anything on this one but with my Valveking 100 Head and Bandit always got ptrompt info an danswers

Playing as a hobbyist fsince about 1981. Guitars Peavey Patriot, Epiphone LP Standard Plus, Epiphone G-400. Valveking 10 head, valveking cabinet with cros pattern Private Jacks and VK Speakers. bandit 65 amp, Norman acoustic and Ibanez electric acoustic.

This is a two channel tweed amp. It has an effects loop and boost switch which I use frequently. Only draw-back is it has no standby switch. It's been good to me (tone-wise) for indie and country/rock.

Good warm distortion. Not a tone of clarity but I'm sure that could be improved with a new speaker. I really dig the clean, it's full and rich for a little 1x12.

Man... this is why I wrote this review. I hesitate to do this but I have to be honest with my experience because I want others to know what happened to me. Let me first say this amp came HIGHLY recommended by serious pros who I trust, but unfortunately this amp has been an absolute nightmare for me. It's been in and out of the shop for the past 5 years solid. I've paid for the amp over twice for repairs. I should've have just immediately gotten rid of it, but the tone and the cost of getting a new amp kept me from upgrading. When I bought the amp I was in a band that played about 40 shows a year. It gave me problems. By now my band plays 150+ shows a year and this amp can absolutely NOT handle it. It has betrayed me at big shows and repeatedly crapped out when I needed it (like going to Nashville to record debut album). Every amp tech says the tube sockets are absolute crap and that's usually the problem. Even when the tubes are working fine there's a god-awful rattle. There was a nasty short in the reverb tank (is that what it's called?) that took techs forever to find out and as I'm typing this there a disgusting low-end buzz that cuts in and out every few minutes. I'm done with it. Thank God I spent 300$ for a back-up Fender Blues Jr. a few years ago. I haven't even changed the tubes on that thing and it's never given me the slightest problem. Ah well, I'm in the market for a Deluxe now. Sorry if this discourages, I just had to let people know. Cheers.

While it was under warranty they were pretty decent about the first few repairs. It was still a pain to have it gone for 1-2 weeks at a time.

Like I said, great tone, great look, and very light gig-able amp BUT... if it doesn't work it doesn't work. I've grown to hate the thing and I don't think I'll ever buy Peavey products again (unless I take up steel guitar and want the workhorse solid state amp). This was a bad decision. Go Fender (or anything else) if you want a 1x12 combo amp.

I have a 2004 Classic 30. It worked well for about two years and then started making a snap,crackle, pop sound. Under warranty, It has been back to Peavey four times. Every time, according to the paperwork, the tubes are bad. The longest time it worked correctly was two weeks after receiving. 1 rating for poor dependability.

I mainly use a 77 Gibson Les Paul and if the amp was working well it was killer. If not, a trainwreck.

I never used it without a backup. Has it broken down?, that is all it seems to do. As I said, it's a 2004. The first one I bought new was a 2003 and it made the same snap, crackle, pop sounds after a year. The sales person gave me the 2004 new in the box ( THEY SHOULD HAVE KEPT HIM) as a replacement. KK's music in Manchester, TN SUCKS !!!! and so does Peavey after sending it back four times. Gimme a break, I replaced all the tubes myself before contacting the authorized dealer!

Peavey obviously doesn't care. Allegedly repaired four times, the authorized dealer, KK's, Manchester, TN, gave me a lot ot smartass runaround just to get them to do anything about it!!! The last time it was allegedly sent to Peavey it wasn't, some local yokal who said again, tubes.

I have been playing 40 years. Mainly a 1977 LesPaul, 1965 Gibson ES-335, 1978 ES-175, 1973 Fender Stratocaster, 1989 Telecaster, Peavey Wolfgang, (which I like),and several other intruments. I have Fender, Marshall amps as well as an old Bandit 65 (which never gave a problem). I will never buy another Peavey product as they and their dealers will not service the products as the warranty demands.

I own 3 of these babies (1992 Tweed, 1999 Tweed and a 2004 Black Tweed) and have seen little change in their build quality or parts selection. All 3 were purchased "pre-loved" on eBay and all 3 had minor problems because they had been used and abused for years before I got them. I work on my own equipment so this was not a problem for me (I could also get them cheaper if they had known problems as well).

They lack separate tone controls for each switched-channel (Clean & Dirty) and have no Standby switch (my biggest beef with the design). The Boost function (selectable by push-button only) boosts level AND mid-range content and I have found this only to sound good with a Stratocaster using the Bridge pickup and then only in the "dirty" mode. It sounds honky and weird to me on any other pickup combination or with Les Pauls on ANY pickup combination!

I love the size, lightweight and basic design otherwise. It has a great basic tone (reminiscent of the Vox AC30 it was no doubt designed to emulate) but I enjoy them even more with a few changes (see below).

For my use in small clubs and outdoor events I have found them to be loud enough (with a speaker upgrade and used with the matching Classic 112E external cabinet... also with the matching speaker upgrade).

I primarily play Rock and Pop in small-to-midsized clubs and I standardized on a Peavey Classic 30 "stack" because of their small size, relative light weight and their tone (when set-up properly). There are 5 changes I have made to my "stacks" that have transformed these amps from good to great:

1. Matched set of JJ tubes from Bob at Eurotubes (using EL83S tubes instead of 12AX7 types to help prevent microphonic noises, a very real problem in small combos like these).

2. Factory tube cage with dense foam "shock absorber" for output tubes (to prevent tube damage, rattle and minimize vibrational stress).

3. Small fan to promote circulation and keep everything cool.

4. Weber 4" Beam Blockers on all combo speakers.

5. All factory speakers changed to Avatar Hellatone 60L units.

If you primarily play a Les Paul with Humbuckers you probably don't need the Beam Blockers but I play most of my gigs using a Fender Stratocaster as my primary guitar and the Beam Blockers help smooth out the high-end on those single coils.

In this configuration, the Hellatone 60L speakers are very smooth, efficient and dynamic. I love the way they sound in this amp! There is a dynamic "body" in both clean and dirty channels (heightened when used with the Classic 112E extension cab) but not at the expense of "sparkle" and definition. The amps sound well balanced and smooth. This makes the lack of separate tone controls somewhat moot and with the 5-way pickup selector on the Strat it covers a lot of sonic territory!

Notice that I do not modify the amplifier circuits in any way, I just embellish the amp with creature comforts and carefully chosen accessories that make it a little more reliable, louder and better matched to my primary guitars.

I have been regularly gigging with the Classic 30 for almost a year now and I have yet to have a show-stopper sort of problem. I respect the amps and am careful not to bang and shock the amp while loading, unloading and setting up. If I notice a problem (like a noisy tube or loose hardware), I fix it before the next gig and I don't let the degradation accumulate until a failure results (this is called "maintenance").

The biggest aftermarket accessories made for this amp are "Tube Tamers" and "Tube Guards" because this is the source of most failures and problems in my experience with multiple units. This is a small combo amp and this puts the tubes right at "Ground Zero"... they are simultaneously being directly bombarded by the speaker's rear pressure waves and subject to additional mechanical abuse when power cables, speaker cords and footswitches are shoved in the back. This can result in abused tubes and broken tube socket receptacles.

It took many years before Peavey designed a "Tube Cage" for this model (it looks a bit like the tube cage that has always been standard on its big brother the Classic 50). Unfortunately it is an optional part that you must install yourself. By adding some high-density foam to act as output-tube "shock absorbers" (similar to that used in the Classic 50) you protect the tubes and prevent tube degradation and audible "rattle" due to sonic pressure waves with better efficiency and lower cost than using those third-party screens and "tube bars".

I protect my Classic 30s and 112E cabinets with covers from BS Covers (BSCOVERS.COM) as I have found that these work to prevent abrasion wear, damage from minor bumps and protect against moisture (it drizzles a lot in the Pacific NW so this is an important accessory for all my amps). These covers are very affordable, lightweight and top quality as well.

These amps are not built heavy-duty but if you respect them and treat them like a passenger in your vehicle they will repay you with good reliability. Just maintain them and don't abuse them until they exhibit problems!

Check this link for a photo of the rear of one of my amps so you can see the Tube Cage, Foam, Speaker and fan additions. I put the cables and footswitch into a "ditty bag" and that fits in the back opposite the fan and does not damage the speaker or tubes:

http://www.pacair.com/Reference/Classic30_Tweed_1.gif

I have never had to call Peavey with a question. Their manuals and schematics are easily found on the Internet and my only contact with them has been to order parts when I first rebuild them to my liking. I found the Parts Department to generally have knowledgeable and pleasant folks who have yet to screw-up an order. They have gotten it right every time and have called me back when I asked a question that they couldn't answer directly themselves (once).

So far so good!

I've been playing guitar and bass for over 40 years (since I was 10 years old) and I have a lot of equipment (over 30 amps and cabinets) at my disposal. At this point in my life, I wanted to standardize on smaller, relatively lightweight equipment that was loud enough to gig with a 5 piece band in local venues and small outdoor events. I was not prepared to give up tone, however.

In the Peavey Classic 30 I have found an amp that meets all my size/weight/reliability criteria AND sounds great! They are a really good amp stock (especially considering what I paid for mine) but can be improved dramatically without doubling the price tag.

I didn't wait to have a problem or get one stolen... I have 3 of these Peavey Classic 30 stacks so I have all my needs covered (home/backup system and multiple gigs covered). I think that about says it all from my perspective!

I have a tweed 30 head with 2x12 marvel cab, plus a 30 combo with a Vintage 30 Celestion. Won't waste time preaching to the converted.
A few tips if I may, to get this beast howlin'. Effects loop: run a 2, 1/4" jack rig with a volume control in between for another master volume pot, any old volume pot should do. Then you can run everything on the amp at 11 if you wish, and you have a final volume knob, works on both channels! Great for playing at home! I run a sraight in Boss ME50 and use the amps in stereo, big sound.

I use a few guitars with this setup. Mostly Fender and Gibson stuff.
Sure amp is noisier with single coils, but when you turn on the playing who can complain about any tube amp, they are tube amps!
More advice, play with the tubes! JJ tubes will make the amp come alive. Have JJ's in the combo, with Celestion classic 30, and Groove tubes in the head. JJ's are dirty and Groove Tubes get singin' tight punch. Perhaps I shall put some emminence redcoat speakers in 2x12 cab. Allways playing with sound. Have a Marshall and a Hiwatt, but I kinda' like what is going on with the peaveys.

Never used.

Been playing 40 years. I have 8 amps, 2 of them Peavys. Why would I buy 2 if they were crap? I have no bias, just a love for good amps, even have an old Garnet, made in Canada. But if somebody stole my old Hiwatt, I would hunt them down and kill 'em. Be true to the roots! Tubes rule!

Made around 2004,mint condition,very versatile combo,blue marvel speaker and valve guard.You all know the deal by now.
I hade mine moded which improved the tonal midrange and did away with the mid honkey sound and also made the boost switch usable,but for me when I put in a Celestion Greenback was the icing on the cake.I also have the G12H which gives a cleaner slightly toppier sound to the combo and added 3DB to the sound level,but I prefer the Greenback probably because I have been using them professionaly for 40 odd years with various amps and gives it a smoother break up like the speaker is renown for.An 8 for features,it does what the controlls say.

Fender Tele and Gibson Les Paul Deluxe,for Rock and Blues and Shadows!!!Suits everything I throw at it,I love the creamy saturation.
Clean Channel is chimey and breaks up when pushed to 5 or 6.
OD Channel I use mostly especially since the mods and speaker change,from mild break up to quite a nice saturation.Check my link for some sound bites from some of my recordings with the amp www.george-nixs.co.uk
Amp is well loud enough for rehearsal and medium gigs and miking up at bigger venues.Amp cleans up well with volume control on guitar.I use this for recording as well.
Reverb is not the best but still good to add a taste of space.
Not a brutal distortion so metal heads steer clear.For me it has to be a 10.

Have had no problems with the amp,or valves which are JJ's

I had to contact Peavey about my PA mixer head way back in 1993 and they sorted the repair no problem or questions asked.No problem with anything since.Still have the PA Head mixer and Pa speakers in use still

I have been playing for over 40 years,and own marshall heads carlsbro pro head and an old late 60's carlsbro 100 plexi type head,no master volume very very loud.2x12 cabs with greenbacks.
If this little beauty was lost or stolen I would get another usa model and mod and change the speaker again.It suits me after all these years of finding a small tube combo amp.

Tweed, 2004 version.
Quite a few features for a small amp; reverb, dual clean/drive channel switching, boost switch, treb/mid/bass.
loses a couple points for no standby switch.

I'm using mine mainly with a Telecaster, into a BD-2, Rat & a DD-3.
lots of crunch and pretty good cleans. Mine is all stock.
Overall the Classic 30 is great little work horse for the working musician who's after a fair amount of clean headroom and good tone in a small combo.

I know guys who've used the Classic 30 for years with no problems.
They have a reputation for reliability.

I really like my classic 30, it's served me for a while with no problems and great tone in a portable, fairly lightweight package.
It's no wonder that it's been a big success for Peavey.
Excellent value!!

Made in 2004.
Versatile amp for many styles, but one major drawback - there is no separate EQ for the overdrive channel. Also does not have a standby switch, and does not come with the footswitch - you have to buy this separately. No presence button or knob. Easy access to tubes. Was able to tame tube rattle with teflon tube dampeners. Boost feature is pretty much useless as it only boosts mids, and there is no button on the footswitch for it.

Use various strats primarily, plus a custom made Carvin with humbuckers. Play rock/alt, and christian worship music. Good cleans, but not quite enough sparkle - could use more presence? Reverb is just ok. Have tried many tube types - find that certain tubes such as Sovtek, EH and JJ's make the overdrive sound a bit brittle. Settled on good old Groove tubes which smoothed out the brittle overdrive a bit and has given it a Vox AC30 type sound with natural compression. This was my go-to amp until I got a Crate V32 Palomino- better sounding cleans and smoother marshall sounding overdrive, less noise, plus a standby switch and presence button. With my Classic 30, I prefer using an Ibanez TS9 tubescreamer or Marshall Guv'nor 2 (Marshall for heavier distortion) as the first level of gain (can EQ them), and kick in the amp overdrive (with pedal engaged) for screaming leads since it gives you a treble boost also.

built like a little tank. Tubes are exposed, so always a challenge to transport without damaging them.

Never had to use support

Overall I would give this amp an 8 - Easy to set up and dial in a decent sound, lightweight, plenty of volume, ok features, good reliability. Probably would not replace it if stolen though since I don't feel they are worth the new asking price of $550 to $600. I bought mine for $400 which was ok. For $500, I would get another Crate V32 Palomino if available, or look with something else with better features .

My amp is about 4 years old - I'm the 2nd owner and bought it about a week ago. Very versatile; I even cranked out some Wes Mongomery on it using an arch top and it sounded good. I just bought the amp and used it for practice with the band recently and it did a fine job. The bass player looked at it after hearing how good it sounded size and mumbled "it just isn't fair". He has to tow a lot of speaker to cut through the mix like this thing (plus a 400 watt Ampeg amp!). I wish it had an 8 ohm load feature, but a friend of mine said he used a dummy jack in the external spkr. out to trick his into thinking it had a load and it worked. I'm going to try a Celestion vintage 30 in it and see what that does, but the factory speaker doesn't sound bad like some have said on this forum, just a little too mid-rangey for my taste. I'm used to older amps, Fender mainly (Deluxe Reverb, Pro Reverb, Twin Reverb, Princeton, etc) which sound great but are feature poor. Just having an effects loop is good enough for me, so I give it a 9. Kaa-ching!

I'm guitarded in the worst way. I'll buy one to re-sell and wind up liking it and keeping it. But I still only have one too many guitars: American Std. Strat, Baja Tele, Les Paul classic, Gibson CS356, 50s Tele, and an older Washburn J10 jazz box. That makes 6 electrics - oh wait! I still need one more to have one too many. What was I thinking? The amp is quiet with humbuckers and noisey with single-coils, like all other amps. I don't like or use the distortion channel although the boost button looks appealing. Haven't fiddled with that one enough yet, but I see possibilities. The clean channel sounds great at the volume that I use, but it gets a desirable tube distortion at about half way. Its really too loud for me to use at that point because I mic my amps. I ran the volume at about 3 for rehearsal and it did the job. I use pedals to get the overdrive. I have a SF Fender Twin Reverb to compare it to as well as a Dr. Z-28. They both sound great and this doesn't have the same tone as either one, but it sounds great in its own right. I had to run the mid down almost all the way and the treble up to 7 and the bass up to 8 to keep it from sounding too twangy with my strat, but to each their own. I like it so far and plan to gig out with this one next.

I can't speak for mine since I've only had it a little over a week, but a friend of mine (who turned me on to this little jewel) has had his for 15 years, played out 30 hours a week, and has never had a moment's trouble - just usual tube changes.

I've been playing for a good solid 44 years now and have owned my fair share of vintage gear in the past from Traynor, Marshall, and Fender to Silvertone and other old tube amps. I like this amp well enough to say it has a permanent home. Heck, I may even sell my Twin Reverb now that I have this. The twin sounds great but is a bear to haul around. Nah, then I would have one amp too few! Besides, I still use the Twin for recording and for calming my nerves at the end of a long day. Plus, its like my link to the past. This little Classic 30 can do the same, but its NOT the same, you know? I'll just keep 'em both . . . . along with my DrZ and my Dumble. Its a great little amp, very gig-worthy, and easy to haul. Plus, it looks cool and won't break the bank.

Classic 30 Vintage Tweed 1x12 combo (cool looking amp!!)
Styles of music: Rock, Classic Rock, Roots Rock, Blues and Rock-a-billy. This amp has the ability to cover them all.
This is a two channel amp with the clean producing some real nice bell tones when humbuckers are used. The overdrive channel is awesome and breaks up nice at lower volumes (this thing cranks too!)It's got a standard effects loop and an external speaker output too. I use this amp in my cover band and it has plenty of UMPH! to stay up front for the leads. On the outdoor events, I drag out my 2x12 open back extenstion cabinet. I have to give the features a 1 as it is limited, but it is all you need! Volume, tone, a little bit of verb...

I primarily use a Les Paul Special with P-90's, Les Paul Standard, PRS and a Tele for the pickin' stuff. Playing the straight up R&R it suits the music style great. This amp is fairly quiet, but has the typical tube hum. The clean channel with a distortion pedal tapping in and out give you a great jazz/country/rockabilly tone. the dirty channel with a compressor used for leads is awesome! I do not use my distortion pedal for the leads as the amps own break up is nice. The Blue Marvel speaker that came with it has been replaced a couple times. It was too brittle for me. I first tried a vintage 30 (kind of the same result, but muddier), but settled on a Scheffield 5150. This speaker really beefed the amp up and gave me a much better hitting bottom end that it needed. I didn't really care for the spring reverb that comes with it, so I run a sep. reverb and delay pedal through the effects loop. I also replaced the power tubes with J&J's. Stock amp I'd give it a 6 for sound, with Mods, I'd give it a 10+...

Peavey USA,....What can I say their stuff is bullet proof and lasts.

I've never had to deal with them

I've been playing for 27+ years and over the years I've become somewhat a guitar/amp/effects whore! I have many vintage amps that serve certain types of music beautifully. I've got a few modeling amps that sound great, but just don't give me the tube amp response to string attack. I wanted a small tube amp that I could easily drag out to gigs and not care to much about beating it up. This thing is awesome and cuts through the mix with authority. For the price, you can't beat it.

Don't wanna post the features again. (Read the manual on the Peavey homepage!).

Because 'less is better' I give it a 10. Who needs amp modeling anyway when the amp itself is sounding right?

The sound is crystal clear and could turn to crunchy. Typical american tube-amp sound known from THD or Fender in my oppinion. Lot's of dynamics!

Because of the fact that this amp is sounding sweet with my Hofner 4579 (LesPaul-Copy) and my Fender Rhodes Mark I Stage Piano, I give this amp a 10 again.

Well, althought the fact that this little amp feels sturdy, I hope that it never breaks. The amp is not wired point to point and the el. parts are on 3 connected PCB's. This is done for cost efficiency and not for serviceing. If a potentiometer has to be changed, the whole 3 boards must be squeezed to remove from the chassis. This is definitely not the best way...
For this i give it only a 5

never needed it but the schematics can be found online.

Although the amp may be hard to service it was a good deal for me and it sounds very good with my Fender Rhodes Stage Piano

Okay, first of all I own the Peavey Classic 30 Head. I figured id add to this review to you can get an idea what the head is like versus the combo. The head is about 2 yrs old now. I bought it new. Features are explained well in all other reviews. This amp is very versatile for what i play, which is mostly blues and rock. Ive tried the mid boost switch maybe twice, and i don't really see any use for it, IMO! Im sure it could fit great into someones style, but not mine. I honestly don't really use the "2nd channel" often at all. I find the best way to get a killer tone from this amp is to crank it! All the tone you will ever need is secretly hidden in the "volume" control. Play light and get cleared up chimey notes, but play hard and you'll get what you ask for, plenty of smooth output tube saturation. It's really nice! I rate this 5 only as i don't use anything else but the clean normal channel and the eq with a small amount of reverb.

I play this amp with a custom strat with fender texas special pickups, an epiphone les paul with humbuckers and a godin sd with 2 SC's and 1 split coil Dimarzio DP161 humbucker. As for my cab, i custom made a pine cabinet with 2 12" Celestions, actually "Hellatones" which are broken in celestions. 1 speaker is a vintage 30 and the other is a G12H30. You can get all the info on this particular setup from avatar or steamcomusic. One speaker is 30 watts and the other is 60 watts. I have this wired in series to get a 16ohm load, speakers are 8ohm's each. My cab is open back. This setup yields great results. These speakers are nicely matched for this amp. They have a higher dB level, about 100dB's each, which would mostly likely be about 5dB higher than the Marvel's you would get stock. Celestions are very efficient speakers and a must for this amp. I play with the pre-amp tubes here and there, swapping them around to see what i get for sound. It's a fun way to easily change the dynamics of the amp. Currently ive tried JJ's, Electro Harmonix and RCA. I've tried almost every combination i can get this what i have and the results are great. My next test is a balanced Tung-Sol for the Phase Inverter with 2 JJ's in V1 and V2. I'm currently still using the stock output tubes (SOVTEK) and they seem to work fine, but im going to swap them for JJ's and keep the stocks as a spare set. I've heard great things about the JJ's, and i mean for $40 bucks, you cant really go wrong. All of my guitars sound mint through this amp. I play SRV, Zeppelin, AC/DC, Dire straits etc. I've found that if you really want a different sound from the "2nd channel", run an overdrive pedal with that channel but only set the gain up to halfway at the most. I find that with the channel gives a kind of compressed signal which is cool for picking dynamics.

When i rehearse with my band i can get away with the volume around 4. It's easily loud enough with drums and bass etc. At home, i usually play around 6-7. It seems to really be the sweet spot for me personally. Playing a 12 i find you hear more of the EQ settings.

No issues here!

Don't have any stories for this as it's never been repaired. I find you can get all the information you need for this amp online by doing searchs for what your intent is. A lot of people play this amp and there's a lot of good information out there as far as settings, speakers used, tubes, wiring mods etc. Take a look, its fun to experiment.

Also, for most who complain about the Tubes rattling, i see that in other combos as well. With a head, you wont have to worry about this as long as your cab is tight and doesnt vibrate too much. But even if your cab vibrates some which can be good as well tonally, you can set the head beside the cab or buy a stand which puts the head on top of the cab without setting it directly on the cab.

14 yrs ive been playing, first peavey amp. Ive had a fender solid state (JUNK) and an epiphone valve junior head which was fun to play with. Ive used traynors, fenders, marshalls etc. My father in law uses a 71 fender bandmaster with 2 12" jenson alnicos, a 59 reissue bassman with 4 10" jenson alnicos and a marshall JCM800 head with a 2 12 avatar cab with Celestion G12H30's. When i come home from his place i can always count on my peavey to deliver what i need, even though ive just played through some remarkable amps and cabs. I wish this amp had more speaker inputs for 4ohm and 8ohm. You are limited to 16 ohm and i find most used speakers for sale are 8 ohm and it would be nice to try those individually without taking out 2 output tubes.

2 Channels tube amp (clean, crunch). A "boost" (I don't use it). Reverb, etc... just the basic stuff but still just what is needed, nothing more or less... maybe a standby switch would have been useful, maybe not after all. Clean may lack a little headroom for big venues in my opinion but for normal use, volume is pretty much just right.

I have to add that it is super easy and fast to dial a great sound out of this amp, which may be the reason why I stick with it.

Clean channel is pretty good. I play clean mostly and use this amp as a practice amp. As I said, I think it may lack headroom for super loud gigs, but I don't do that often so for practice, this is just right.

Crunch channel is very good for rock and funk. It is a bit midrangey which is awesome, it just cuts through the band so well.

The amp is a bit "boxy" and directional, so it may be better to mike it or at least, tilt it during a gig. I ran it through an extension 2x12 once but it was too bassy for my taste.

My amp is super quiet (which is good since I am used to a Jazz Chorus).

Allright so far (about 8 years), changed the tubes a couple of times.

I have never been super-anal about tone compared to most people here but I am a pro musician and after all these years, I tend to stick with what sounds good. Other amps I have right now are are a Mesa Boogie Mark IV (main amp) and a Roland Jazz Chorus (JC120). I usually play with a strat or some sort of archtop.

I use this amp for personal practice and small band rehearsal (I'd rather gig with the Mark IV if I can though). Considering its size and versatility, I think this amp is amazing for what I do with it.

Everybody is talking about the mods on this amp but I don't see the point of that so much as I think it is fine as it is (instead of spending $300 on a replacement speaker/tubes/etc, I'd rather just sell the amp and buy something else). If I need something specific soundwise, I'll just get my Mark IV, but for practice or band rehearsal, this is just perfect: sound great, easy to dial and doesn't look like the dash board of a space shuttle (like my Mark IV).