Peavey Classic 30

I just read through the other reviews here which sum up the strong and weak points of this amp (Clean channel sounds nice, OD channel sounds like crap, boost switch is useless). I'm not sure if this is appropriate in this forum but I did some extensive mods on my Classic 30 which I posted on my website including: -Redesigned boost circuit (more like a Boogie shift switch) -Added relay board so that boost is footswitchable instead of reverb -Capacitor replacements to improve the tone of the OD channel -Master Volume and Presence controls added -Bias adjustment pot added (with jacks to measure bias current) If you already have a Classic 30 and know how to solder, some or all of these mods can make your amp a lot more usable and versatile. (If you don't have a Classic 30 but can pick one up for cheap it does make a nice project amp.) With these mods, my Classic sounds like a fairly nice Mesa Boogie or Marshall combo amp, with a very usable OD channel.
The URL for my site is http://www.techaccessinc.com/blueguitar/

Mainly strats w/ Van Zandts and Fralins playing blues and blues/rock.

The amp is constructed very cheaply with a folded light-gauge chassis, and a 3 section circuit board that is folded over with "hinged" jumper wires. If you plan to work on the amp at all, the pot bushings can be easily stripped as can the knurls on the pot shafts.

I ordered schematics for Classic 30 and 50 amps, which were received within a week. Classic 50 schematic was missing all-important board layout drawings. When I told Peavy about that, they promptly mailed me the full set for a different amp (Classic 50 w/o FX loop). Well, at least they try hard.

With the amp modded as outlined in the Features category above, it is a real killer. While the OD channel sounds a lot better than stock, it is more like a Marshall or Boogie than an old Fender. However with the Master Volume mod you can get the cleaner overdriven sounds from the Normal channel. by turning its Volume up all the way, and setting the overall volume with the mv control. Retubing the amp helps a lot, too, if you'd rather skip the mods: V1: Sovtek 12AX7WXT+ (like a vintage Telefunken) -or- Yugoslavian EI 12AX7 (like a Mullard- warmer and sweeter than WXT+) V2: Sovtek 12AX7WB (lower gain than WXT+) V3: NOS GE 12AX7WA or Ruby Tubes 7025STR (use a very clean & powerful tube for the driver) EL84's: Mesa Boogie Note: the ratings I listed here are for the amp as stock. With the mods several of the ratings would be 2 or 3 points higher.

EZ to use, but where's the standby switch? Has channel switching but the switch is extra. Come on Peavey, include the switch!

The clean channel is pretty good and can get mild overdrive when cranked(if you don't blow the cheesy speaker first, like I did). The distortion channel sounds like sheet metal being sanded on a belt sander at low volumes, but at higher volumes it sounds pretty good (if you don't blow the speaker first). Take the original seaker out and make it into a bird feeder and replace it with a Celestion or a good quality Jensen clone speaker. This made a HUGE difference in the tone of this amp when I switched to a Celestion. This gave the amp a warmth and crunch it didn't have before, but still sounds good when in the clean mode. Noticed some crosstalk in the distortion channel at low volumes. The boost switch is pretty worthless, as it adds so much flubby midrange goo to the tone that you can't really dial it out with the tone controls. I never use it. The reverb is pretty good, like a fender. The amp sounds pretty cool when hooked up to a Marshall 4x12 cab (16 ohm only). Try this out at the store when testing out the amp. Never used the loop, so I can't comment on it. Overall it gives a good, workmanlike tone for a reasonable price.

Shitty speaker, otherwise no problems except for bad preamp tube.

The speaker wasn't covered under warranty, so.......

Replace the speaker and put good tubes in it and you'll have a decent amp at a reasonable price. If it were stolen I'd probably shop around and explore my options. I think the innards could be more solidly built for the long haul. The chassis is made of flimsy, bent sheet metal, not real heavy duty at all. I wish Peavey would beef up the construction on all their amps. If the amp is used at home for practice, then I would recommend it, as it is a decent amp at a reasonable price, but for gigs, I would like somthing more ruggedly built.

This amp is fantastic for a practice amp. Switching between the clean and dirty channels is smooth and precise. The effects loop is a little noisy. No headphone jack. The spring reverb unit is perfect. I wish it had a stand-by and a fan, but it's only a 30 watt amp! I had to trade it in b/c I needed more volume. The tubes that came with it are crap Chinese deals, but I replaced them with some Groove Tubes and it was amazing.

This is the strongest feature of this amp. I bought a Fender Dual Showman after I owned this and have subsequently traded it in because I couldn't get the Peavey Classic sounds I loved so much. The amp is noisy, a noise gate could help. The clean channel does get dirty at higher volumes, but again this is a 30 watt amp.

I had to replace the tubes, but I was glad I did. Never had to send it in to be worked on though.

Never had to deal with Peavey.

Great tone, end of story. This amp isn't meant for metal, but if you love that "cookin' the tubes" kind of sound - this is it. I ran a Marshall 1960a cabinet off of it and got some killer sounds when I recorded it by miking both speakers (the Peavey and Marshall) and mixing the two signals.

This amp was made mostly for rock and blues. I play mostly metal like music so it was kinda limited in sound. But very versatile for Rock and clean, bluesy stuff.

I use a LesPaul with a PAFPro in the neck and a DimarzioSuper3 in the bridge. I love the sound especially w/a pedal but I have since changed the preamp tubes w/ some german 12ax7's. I actually got those tubes from my fathers friend, I accidently put the tubes in backwards and blew a capacitor. But the Preamp tones have a very Hardrock almost metal sound now. All this in a 30 watt combo. But I'd like to try out some higher watt heads like the 5150,VHTPittbull.

I'd use this w/ out a backup I've dropped it off of a truck tailgate, fired it up and worked flawless, this was prior to my wanting to take a peek inside see above for details on blowing a capacitor.

Haven't had to deal w/peavy except I visited their site and requested some info and got it within a week and a half. Pretty cool in my book.

If it were stolen I'd probably go with a 5150 or a Laney. But as long as I live I'm not going to sell it. Great amp I just bought a Laney 4x12 cab for it. I couldn't believe how loud the amp was before with just a single 12" now I have to wear earplugs when I crank up to 6 w/ the cabinet. I love this amp but I will probably buy a 5150 since it has monsterous gain. The clean sounds are wonderfull and w/my alder bcrich warlock I can get a Eric Johnson clean sound. I have carvin pu's in that guitar. I couldn't belive how much you can do with this amp and since it was my first tube head I know know what kind of amp I'm looking for. . But I'd like to keep it simple so thats why I want to get a 5150 head.

The Classic 30 has all the features I need in my "alternative" band. It has treble, middle and bass Eq's, as well as a boost button. I t also has a distortion mode, and great reverb. Did I mention it's a tube combo? I also has an effects loop, which I never use. I use this amp when practicing with my band. It's loud enough to be heard over bass, drums, and vocals, so I'm happy. It also has a speaker extension if you want extra juice.

This amp sounds pretty good. I use it with my Jaguar, which has standard single coil pickups. Since the distortion on it is terrible, I use a Boss Metal Zone for distortion. The two get along well except for some feedback. I use this amp for our hard songs, as well as soft. It has a great range. The clean and reverb are among the best I heard in this price range. After playing it for a while the sound does get muffled though. And it rattles when you turn the volume up loud, so if your Megadeth, stay away. But if your Stone Temple Pilots you should enjoy it.

This amp does take a beating when I take it places, but it has survived. But it does rattle which can be annoying. But other than that it has been very reliable.

never had a problem

I would buy this amp again. It's done the job. If your in a high school rock band, buy it. If you playin' with heavy metal guys with monster amps don't buy it if you wanna be heard. Rock on.

This amp is all-tube, except maybe the rectifier, but what can you expect from something in this price range? It has two 12AX7 preamp valves, one 12AX7 driver and four EL-84 output valves. Peavey has fitted these amps with their own specially-designed speakers. It has some nice features: three band passive EQ, spring reverb, a mid-boost switch ( not footswitchable ), and footswitchable channel select and reverb. It's second channel, the lead channel, has PRE and POST volume controls, whereas the clean channel has one volume control.

Let me make this clear: this is not made to please everyone. The distortion isn't totally brutal, it looks unappealing to most guitar players I know, it's not loaded with features and built-in effects. It is, however a great amp for blues, classic rock ( it's not very suitable for hard rock, or punk, etc. ). It's tone can get pretty muddy at high volumes, but I suspect that my pickups are at fault ( cheap Epiphone stock on Flying V ). I don't care for the mid-boost; it muddies up the natural tone of the guitar. The tone controls are nice; they don't give overly dramatic boosts or cuts or act too subtly to be heard. The reverb is also quite nice. It's not noisy, it's not really twangy like a Fender F.A.T. series reverb. Personally, I don't like the overdrive channel. It gives a harsh biting tone that I don't like. I use a Danelectro Fab Tone instead. It sounds great! I plan to change the output valves to Mesa/Boogies, because the stock valves ( Sovtek ) aren't the greatest quality in the world. I think one of them has a loose plate, because I hear a rattling from my amp when I play a hard chord at a high volume.

These amps are very reliable. Despite my problem with the rattling in the back of my amp, it hasn't broken down or anything.

Never dealt with Peavey.

For the price, this a great amp. It can last a long time and sounds great next to other amps in this range.

This is an update of a previous review... 2 channels. share eq, spring verb, 12"bin, blah blahblah Note... it has a mid boost/shift button... it was the supposed saving point of the classic 20, needless to say if it is the same as the one on the classic 30... leave it out! maybe add an extra gain stage or something the mid shift really mudds up the works
the reason for the re-review... I bought mine, I liked it (not as much as the classic 50 212...) and then I lent it to a buddy, he killed it, it sounded like shit. just bought some Sovtek 12ax7's and I now remember why I liked the amp in the first place!

It rocks... the new tubes especially has cleaned up the clean tone... and the distortion finally sounds like it should!
I a, finally ready to say I am "almost" satisfied... it rocks, but can't do the metal thing... I formerly used a DOD thrash master and an EQ for my metal tone, but I just got a zoom pedal and.... actually, adding the eq in the fx loop, I can give it a little extra edge...

Rocks... stock tubes suck , but other than that it is cool, never had a problem witha peavey...

never dealt with them before, told their tech department about the tone problems I was having, they emailed me back in less than 2 hours... very impressive.

Love it, really like the thing, and witht he new tubes, I am no longer looking at smaller/used marshalls!
Stay loose, and keep the thing smokin!

Dual channels sharing one eq (bummer...) mid boost and spring reverb (HOORAY!) 1x12 speaker and 30 watts RMS, I think it has 4 12ax7's and 4 el-84's... but don't quote me on this...

My musical tastes range from crystal clean, to Bluesy distortion to Shred... needless to say this amp CAN NOT do it all... But it can handle clean sounds well and the distortion rocks, but not up to that "METALLICA" level of crunch. (Note: I was playing mostly SRV blues and classic rock when I bought this amp...so I knew what I was getting into...) I like the footswitch (Mine was included by the dealer) and the amp blows away the Stereo Chorus 2-12 I had before... It is a little noisy in the distortion channel, but that is probably because I play a 70's squire strat with a Seymour Duncan Humbucker in the lead, and a piezo electric guitar... (I'll see how it fares when I get my Ibanez RG565 and my Yamaha RGX back from my cousin...) THe clean channel does distort at high volumes, but since I am both a blues player, and mostly an at-home player, this doesn't bother me..

It was really reliable... until I lent it to a buddy... He needed it for a "week-end gig" which stretched into 2 months... He was a country player, but was used to a hundred watt fender custom, so he cranked the snot out of my amp... 3 nights a week, in a smoky bar. (and broke the logo plate) needless to say it doesn;t have the same kick anymore... But he REALLY abused it... I guess if you don't run it at ten for 4 continous hours though, it'll probably be okay...I figure that it's just the factory tubes crapin out.

Don't deal with them, Don't think I'll need to...

I bought it because I had just wanted a new "Real" amp. I've had a Yamaha Budokan 20 watt (Good first amp) a Rexx 100 watt solid state rackmount (shades of Triumph... but I used it with a SHITTY! cab, a 212 traynor from 78... with original speakers... and got discouraged) an original Ampeg Jet trem model (I had it cleaned up and restored by a friend... my first tube amp and WOW! the best blues tone I have ever heard... it blew up when my buddy left it on for like 8 hours one day) a Peavey Stereo Chorus 2-12 (A horrible amp to begin with, and mine needed a new speaker basket (bad voice coil)... good clean, bad distortion, traded it to get the classic 30.. But the ampp is fairly vesatile, You just need a good distortion box for super Metal Tone, and a 7-band eq pedal for dialing in that extra little bit of contouring all in all, I'd definitely buy another one, though I'd probably go for the 50 2-12, mainly because it's distortin was a little harder...

The Classic 30 has three channels: the clean channel, a mid-boosted clean channel (push the "Boost" button) , and an overdrive channel. Right now I'm not sure I like how the EL84s are doing in my Classic 30, and I may or may not change them: I put Mesa Boogies in in November 1996, and they sounded better for two months than they do now. There is an effects loop, and an extension speaker outlet: the manual says you have to connect it to a 16 ohm load, which is a little limiting of one's choices. The amp doesn't come with a footswitch: you can turn the reverb on and off, and switch from the non-mid-boosted clean to the overdrive, if you buy the $20 footswitch. The Boost function is by pushbutton only. The overdrive channel can be set for very subtle overdrive to raging British blues, and you can make a difference in the overdrive channel by pushing the mid-"Boost" button in and out. Like other Peavey amps, there are overdrive channel controls labelled PreAmp gain and PostAmp gain to control the overdrive saturation, and total loudness, respectively. The controls are labelled with white silkscreened paint on a chrome panel, which makes for more than a little difficulty reading them: I think they're also upside down when you're looking at the amp from the side with the speaker. Other reviewers have commented on the potential for breakage of the tubes. The circuit board might be flexed up and down--which risks the integrity of the printed circuit board connections--if you change the tubes without using a little manual restraint.

. The clean channel isn't as warm as my Hot Rod Deluxe: by "warm" I mean that desirable quality of harmonic richness, as opposed to clinical simplicity without overtones. The clean channel doesn't like low frequency sounds very much. According to Musician magazine, a lot of the clean sounds on the country/soul anthology "Red, Hot and Country" (? 1994) were played on Peavey Classic series amps. Check this out, if it's still available: you haven't heard full-bore southern sentiment till you've heard George Jones and B.B. King share vocal duties on "Patches" ("I'm depending on you, son, it's all up to you....") The midboosted sound strikes me as sounding like a Marshall would when playing through its nominal clean sound: I've not owned or played a Marshall since 1981 so maybe I'm not too reliable a source about Marshall sounds. The overdrive sound is pretty cool: it has a certain organic midranginess, a crudeness, that I like, without being always 25 decibels louder than the clean channel, which seemed to be the necessary case with my old Boogie .22 Caliber (see comments on my Boogie in my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe review from 8/24/97: I've since sold the Boogie). My Classic 30 has a little cabinet rattle at moderate volumes, which can be annoying if you concentrate on it. The sound is very directional: it sound a lot louder when you listen on-axis to the speaker, than when you are more than 30 degrees off-axis. I play a rosewood-neck 1982-American-made reissue 1962 strat, a 1995 maple neck Am Std Strat, and a 1994 Tele Custom, the Mexican-made guitar with with a humbucker in the neck position. I like blues/jazz. I don't get up in the morning hoping to sound like the Rollins Band I saw on a Saturday Night Live rerun last night.

No problems: I'm only a bedroom player, though, so I wouldn't know how it would fare in the gigging world. I'd be very careful about preventing objects from banging into the tubes while the amp was in transit: they are quite exposed.

I got a an answer quickly by phone when I called Peavey about the impedance requirements for the extension speaker.

. I just like the clean sound on my Hot Rod Deluxe better than on this amp: I will probably sell the Peavey one of these days. I did like the clean sound on the Classic 30 better than on my Mesa Boogie .22 Caliber when I had those two amps to choose from.

like the other classic 30

I use this amp with a stand.strat and an Hoyer ES335 with DiMarzio pickups. I play all styles from blues to Hard Rock and this amp does it all. For an hard dist., i use a self made distortion because the drive channel sounds sensationel for Blues but as an Hard and Heavy Dist. it's a little bit warm. The clean channel is clean and with my ES335 it sounds very brilliance.

Never had an problem

Never dealt with them

Yes i would by it again

Though only a two-channel amp, it offers amazing tonal flexibility. The effect loop is very handy. I wish the controls were in front, because I usually prop it back when I play. Sometimes, I set my processor on top, and that makes accessing the controls very awkward. The mid-boost control completely changes the character of the amp, making the tone raw and creamy when engaged. Lots of features for a small amp, though a headphone jack would be nice. Reverb is very sweet sounding, but not as good as an Accutronics unit like Mesa/Boogie uses.

This amp is a real pocket rocket! Somewhat limited tonal flexibility, though; it won't do extreme metal or hi-volume crystal clean. It provides the sound your looking for about 90% of the time. A guitar with P-90's in it sounds absolutely incredible through this amp! The high end limitation is apparent with a Rickenbacher or a Tele, it doesn't have the headroom to do a loud, clean, bright sound. (country players steer clear) However, this amp is loaded with personality, and is great for Blues, most rock, and Les Paul type clean stuff. This may be the loudest 30-watt amp around; it blows away a 2x130 watt solid state amp I once had. The clean channel gives an incredibly ballsy sound when cranked up to very high levels (8-up); think 1959 Plexi. Sounds best with a hardwood bodied guitar with humbuckers (Les Paul style). The extension cabinet is a sealed, one 12" affair and really extends the low end depth of the amp while tightening the sound. With my Hamer Special with P-90's, it comes alive. Lose the factory tubes, get Groove tubes, Sovteks, or Boogie tubes.

The unprotected tubes are scary and fragile, but mine is going strong. You just have to be careful, and don't store your wah pedal in the back of the amp!

Peavey's large customer service network handles calls quickly and professionally. Peavey dealers tend to be less helpful than the company itself.

I would definitely buy this amp again. Its soulful tonality is right up my alley, though the Delta Blues has a little more of an SRV sound. I wish Peavey would put their new, 5150-style logo on all their new products. The disco-era, lightning Peavey logo has got to go. This is probably the best value in a smaller tube combo amp around. Fender Twin users will miss a sparkling brightness on the clean channel. For 90% of the time, this amp will satisfy. For a certain range of blues-oriented sounds, this amp is almost indescribably wonderful.

All tube 4- EL84's, 3- 12AX7's, reverb, bass, mid, treb, pregain, postgain, normal, FOOTSWITCH IS NOT INCLUDED

This amp kicks some blues ass!! Clean stays clean, not quite a Fender clean but for $200 less than the Hot Rod Deluxe, I can deal with it!! The gain channel absolutely SCREAMS a great tone for blues this channel blows away the Hot Rod Deluxe (which just blows...), it starts to sing just past 4 with the preamp cranked.

I have used a variety of different amps over the years but alway find my way back to Peavey. It just gets the job done without fail.

Never had a problem, but they happily answered my questions.

If you are into Blues/rock/funk, buy this amp. If you are into metal, but this amp and a BOSS Metal Zone . Nuff' said.

All tube design, 2 channels - a clean channel with separate gain and a drive channel with pre and post gain adjustments, spring reverb, 3 tone controls, boost switch, FX loop, ext. speaker jack, footswitch jack, 30 watts into a 12" speaker. Tremolo which would have been a nice addition although its available in Peavey's Delta Blues model. I ended up buying a Voodoo Lab tremolo stomp box to use with it. Since I use it only at home a headphone jack would have been handy. Having separate tone controls for each channel would have also been useful. It's plenty loud enough for my needs - loud enough to hear over my son's drums, which I couldn't with my 20 watt Fender solid state. I bought the footswitch ($24 Cdn) which switches between the clean and drive channels and turns the reverb off/on. In general I prefer amp controls on the front, not the top like this has but its part of the "classic" look. I play whatever I can, which is mostly blues or rock/blues. The features of this amp are fine for this.

I like the sound of this amp. It is my first tube amp so I'm pleased with the tone after using my little solid state. I use it with a Strat Squire with Gold Fender Lace pickups. The clean channel is clean, at least at the volumes I generally play at, and I've had it cranked. The drive channel is very versatile, you can get just a hint of distortion or a lot. I sometimes use a Boss Blues Driver for distortion since I can control the tone and it gives a different sound. The amp is very quiet. The reverb sounds great and has a wide range of adjustment. Overall I find the sound to be bright (trebly - but you easily control this with the tone knob) with good bass response - it sounds great with my strat. It's easy to get a great blues tone, and of course it has that tube sound that's hard to beat. With the Lace pickups I can get a good jazz sound too. The clean channel is different from a vintage fender (no surprise). I've played through a friend's Fender Hot Rod Deville (4x10)and it's similar, although the Fender does sound better (but it is twice the price - and why just a couple of buttons for drive?). It is more different from another friend's '63 Princeton which sounds really warm and smooth. I've never noticed any rattle at high volume that others have reported.

Once developed a case of what can best be described as a case of laryngitis - resocketing the tubes cured this. This thing's three years old - still has the original (Chinese) tubes in it. As others have noted the tubes are exposed in the back. If I were to move it around a lot I would add some grill to protect the tubes.

Never called them so don't know.

I was looking to buy a tube amp when I came across this one used. I was looking at a Fender Blues Jr. (too basic), Hot Rod Deluxe (nice), as well as the Peavey Classic 30, Delata Blues and Bandit 212 as well as used vintage fenders. The market around here seems pretty knowledgeable so that finding a vintage fender for a good price is challenging.
For the money I feel that it was a good value purchase - tube sound, good features and in excellent condition. I probably would have bought a Fender tube amp if I could find one with similar features near the same price.

This amp's features are decent - See other submissions for details. I wish this amp came with a footswitch. The 30 watts is pretty loud.

This amp is very mediocre. When this amp worked it sounded ok. Clean channel is fairly clean until you crank it up. Drive channel sounds ok at moderate drive but sounds horrible when cranked. The speaker in this amp is cheezy and distorts at high volume.

I used to like Peavey. After owning this amp, I HATE PEAVEY. This stupid amp has cost me more time and heartache than any other amp I've owned. About 3 days after I bought it, it broke. The volume sounded like 1 watt and was all distorted. I took the amp back and they sent it in for repair. About a month later I got the amp back and it worked for about a week, then notta. No power. Nothing. I took the amp back to the store and they sent it off for repair. I got it back, opened the box and the tubes were smashed. The store replaced the tubes for me for free. I got the amp home and guess what?!?!? Same tinny 1-watt sound! ARGH! I marched the amp right back to the store and demanded a refund. The store manager sympathized with me and gave me a full refund.

All repairs were handled through the store I bought the amp from so I never dealt with customer service. I think the amp came with a 1yr warranty. I don't know

I don't know about Peavey's other tube amps, but this one REALLY sucks! I've owned Peavey solid state amps before and they never gave me a problem. I guess Peavey's reliability has really gone downhill with their new amps. I would never recommend or buy one again.

30 watts into 16 or 8 ohms, 2 channels (lead and clean), shared passive tone controls, Reverb, easy to carry.

I love this amp. I've been playing 20+ years, tried all kinds of stuff etc. and have to rate this amp a 10. I'm a rocker (evolved classic rock I guess!). The clean channel is clean (until you hit the mid-boost switch!). The lead channel leads. No doubt about it. It's a little rattly sometimes, peavey has a fix should you desire it but I think it helps color things. This thing delivers. Blows away the tone of the Fender Blues Deluxe that I mistakenly bought.

2 years onstage - no failures, blew a tube at the one year mark. that's all.

The support by Leon and Aubrey at Peavey is superb. Every year or so for the last 6 years I've called about something or other and one of these guys has been there. Really good work guys.

I'd buy it again, except that I'm gonna get it's brother the Delta Blues. It's the same amp but with a 15" speaker and vibrato. Cool Deal. Cut's past most 50 watters out there. Get it's extension cab and unless you other guitarist is REAL good his 4x12 is gonna be shamed.

No tremelo or built in FX. Has a (non-switchable) FX loop, which is useful. Channel switching, mid-boost. I like the FX boost and the master volume on the dirty channel, which gets nice distortion at low levels.

I like the distortion, pretty good "edge of distortion" sounds. Clean sound is noticeable inferior to my Deluxe Reverb--not as much give and compression to the sound. You can put in lower gain (12AT7 and 12AY7) tubes on the dirty channel to reduce gain and get more control over the distortion at low levels. This also lets you turn the volume up more and get more power amp tube distortion. Wide range of sounds, most of which are good. But there are specialized amps out there that do some sounds better. Changing the stock (chinese) preamp tubes for Groove tubes improved the sound considerably.

No problems, except for one preamp tube that broke while changing it. Slight rattling on some notes; tightening all the screws helped.

Schematics are available for $2.50; they answered questions before purchase when I phoned.

Good sound for money, versatile. I like the clean sound on my deluxe reverb better, but it can't get distorted sounds at low volume. I use the FX loop for a Quadraverb; I also run a Sansamp PSA-1 into the other channel of the quadraverb and then into the Peavey's output stage and speakers--that gets great heavy sounds, and gives me the flexibility to send either the Sansamp or the peavey preamp into my mixer.
I might try some of the Fender Blues models as well and see which I like better. For me the Peavey had the right mix of features, sound, and low cost. The versatility is why I'm keeping it even though I like the Fender's sound better.

This amp is a nice practice amp- It's loud enough to cover the drummer and bass player I think the reverb goes up too high-it just turns to mud

I use it mostly at school as a practice amp (Jazz combo) It's nice and clean and quiet enough, but I find it has too much treble, and always end up cranking the lows and mids so it sounds better I use a Gibson 135 or Les Paul This amp sounds great as a blues amp with my Strat, though

The exposed tubes in the back are scary-I already had to replace a broken one-be gentle with the tubes, but the rest of the amp is real solid- I once saw someone drop a (solid state) Peavey amp down a flight of stairs, and despite a little cosmetic damage-it still worked fine....

I've never had any problems with getting manuals and stuff but they really can't help you in the tube department

I like this amp, I'd buy it again for it's portability, price, and value

This amp has SOME good sounds, and with an amp of this size, you don't need many more features. It's a BASIC tube amp, which many manufacturers are going back to producing nowadays.

The one I am using, which is on loan, is very noisy when I turn it up. Especially in the gain channel, the thing starts whistling, and there is A LOT of feedback on either channel if the amp is turned up fairly loud and Reverb is on. The sound is OK. Maybe the tubes are bad on this one, but the clean channel isn't all that clean. At least not compared to some of the Fender stuff I've played.

It's reliable, although I REALLY don't like the fact that the tubes in the back aren't protected. I would always have extra tubes on hand JUST in case.

It's on loan, not mine, so what can I say?

For my money, I might buy one of these used as a practice amp, but the sounds aren't good enough to play in my country band at gigs.

I'm well pleased with the features of this amp - the volume rises smoothly, the tone controls provide a really wide range of sounds. I play mainly at Church, using a Yahama acoustic and a strat, both through a Digitech rackmounted effects unit.

Can't fault it, really - it my opinion it blows the Marshall 8080 valvestate out of the water. It makes my strat sound beautiful. This is my first valve amp and I really noticed the difference - it really seems to make the guitar sing, bringing harmonics out beautifully. The only problem I had was that it couldn't handle the extremely high gain on some of my presets - it squealed so much, I couldn't hear the guitar at all! (I'd had no problems using these sounds through a Yamaha tranny head). Once I turned the gain down, it was fine...
The overdrive doesn't really scream, but what the heck - I suppose it's aimed at the blues-y guitarist, and it sounds great.

It's never let me down - my only complaint is that the valves are totally exposed (I suppose they have to be, more or less) and it's easy to knock them or damage them if the amp is in the back of your car. That happened once - a valve dislodged itself and the pins at the base of the valve got bent, but it worked OK once I put it back in.

Never needed backup, but the warranty was only 30 days, which isn't much use...

No complaints - great tone, really versatile. I have a friend who is a music teacher / pro musician, and he says that tonally, it's more or less the same as his boogie amp. He was really impressed.

Extremely versatile little tube combo.No need to repeat the specs that others have already talked about.Effects loop seems well buffered.Quiet channel switching with footswitch.Very loud 30 watts.I use the amp for gigging and practice.The mid boost makes it sound like a different amp.

I play blues/rock/jazz/country/alternative/whatever.This amp excells in everything except for heavy metal and then external effects can be used. Background noise is exceptable compared to everything else out there.Tried everything from ADA to Warwick.This little thing is remarkable for the price and size.Very tasty blues amp when used clean or overdriven.Reverb is among the best I've used lately.Plenty of overdrive unless you need extreme metal.Very warm overdrive.Mid boost makes amp sound completely different. best I've used.

Dependable.Would gig without backup.No problems so far.Tubes other than Chinese would probably add some extra security since they seem a bit flaky in other amps I've owned or tried.

Good support.Never needed repair but have dealt with them for manuals or documentation.Lots of dealers for Peavey everywhere.Have owned Peavey products for years with no problems.

Probably have this amp forever.It's loud enough to gig with a band.Sounds better than most that cost much more.Light and small enough to save your back.Compared it with most Fender,Marshall,Crate,and Mesa products.Choose this amp at the advice of other owners and on sound comparisons.This little amp will fool you.It's built well too.

I played classical guitar for the last 15 years so I finger pick on the clean channel. The reverb is nice, although I am presently shopping for a chorus. On the other hand, I really like to wind the thing out with some Page type blues and have made some Frip-like bazare sounds as well. I wish I had gotten the foot switch right off the bat. I've had it for 3 months and I am still learning new sounds from the very few controls.

Very loud on the clean. Distortion very managable to bed-room, kids sleeping level. Very curious to hook it up to 4-12s just to see how it would whine. I have a friend in the country I think I need to visit to try this thought. 30 watts?? Oh, by the way, I've heard a set of Sovtek tubes will improve the sound. I can't wait till the new factory tubes start to die so I can find out!

Built like a brick outdoor bathroom type house. Metal chasis like our old 68 dodge polara. Don't drop it on your foot on weekends or holidays. New meat works the ERs on these occasions

Amp is practicaly new

I think I'll always keept the thing. It doesn't take up much room and people can't believe all the sound that comes from the little devil. It looks nice as well.

Very small tubecombo with: - reverb - two channels - effects loop - external speaker connector - footswitch - 3 tone controls, reverb control, preamp & poweramp & clean channel volume controls - 30 very loud watts, power seems to be no problem.

- very loud one, especially with an external speaker cabinet - three, if a preamp/fuzzbox like RAT is used. Clean, sharp & distorted - very well, I play Jazz/Soul/Funk/Rock - yes, but luckily rather nicely - rather, but also VERY musical with loads of harmonics. Like flexible railroadtrack...

- hope so, I have only used it for 3 months and one preamp tube has broken - yes - once, one preamp tube was faulty and started to act like a microphone

- very helpful - yes, it was easy - 1 year, 3 months for the tubes

- yes, absolutely!! - love the size & sound of it - compared to Mesa Boogie Caliber 22, Ampeg 60 W combo, Fender tube combos, Marshall 100 W head and some other combos - a tremolo would be nice - seems to work really nice with Stratocaster. Tried it with Les Paul too, did not sound as good.

2 channels, all tube (4 x EL84 power tubes). Channel 2 has preamp volume which allows distorted tones. Amp has channel switching, effects loop, no headphone jack. Also has mid-boost button that I don't like and nevver use. Power level is just right for me. Able to achieve power tube distortion without going deaf.

Amp is perfect for clean or fuzzy blues tones. Really sounds nice with my strat in the neck position. Only warm distortion is available. For nasty metal distortion, use a pedal with the clean channel, which works pretty well. Wire tube retainers rattle a little, but I don't usually notice.

I've had this amp for about a year and a half and play it a few times a week with no problems.

This amp is perfect for me and I got it at a decent used price (off the 'net). I will probably keep it forever.