Victoria Amplifier Co. 50212

Everything you need for a tweed 2 x 12.

Fantastic. A 50 watt twin, who new these existed. Love the look of the tweed. Love the more compact design with speakers at an angle compared to blackface and silverface models. No need to deduct points for lack of reverb-this amp has a natural echo of it's own!!! Mine came with the Emminence Legend speakers, non Alnico Jensens and I much prefer these.

Top quality, if only Fenders were still built like this.

Mark's fantastic! Always answers your calls and takes time to chat.

I would replace this model anytime and definitely consider others.

Made in 2001
The most versitile tweed amp by miles providing one can turn it up.
If you are considering buying a tweed twin then you must already know about its features. The mojospeakers sound more like oxfords than V30's, Real V30's give the amp bulls, think Keith Richards. Real not reissues Jensen P12Q's sound magnificiant and make the amp very versitile. JBL's make the amp a little treble spiky, more like a blackface twin.
The amp sounds spectacular recorded. The amp also sounds spectacular live. reasonable volume for clean sounds. Will be too loud for you if you want dirt and do not play Madison Sqaure Garden.

Everything but super cheesy highgain sounds. Everything is tastefull. This is a remarkable trebly amp. Jazz clean, Country clean - Keith Richards, Blues, Blues Rock, Classic Rock, Sanatana fusion, Hard Rock. I have used just about all Fenders and Gibsons, they all sound different and fantastic through the 50212. It can mimic the sound of a deluxe but the deluxe cannot mimic the twin. Set it how you like.

No noise. Build like tank. It is a faithful reproduction of a Fender Tweed amp.

Life time warrenty call the owner direct.

This is it. It is all that I need personally.

This is a typical Tweed amp, 4 inputs 5 knobs set up as described by other. It is very versatile, in his own right, can go from Fender clean to serious growl, think ZZ Top, will cover that in the sound quality section.... Very well built by Victoria Amp. Co., indeed a serious manufacturer that put attention to all details

Well, look at this not as your regular amp... rather as an Instrument per se, you need to take the time to learn how to play with it and when you do, you will enjoy the tonal range, the percussive response and incredible nuances of sounds you can get with this amp. From jazzy lines to serious rock riffs through pick attack and finger dynamics. Sheer beauty ! This, in my opinion, is not an amp for beginners.

Very Well built!

No Opinion

I have been playing for several moons, mainly rock & blues and any combinations of the two.
One more thing if you want to have this amp pushed to his best, couple it with a Klon
Centaurus "Golden Era" and you will be in Tone heaven! Ciao

This amp wasn't made for the "techno-retro-all-kinds-in-one-box" type of player. This beautiful piece of handcrafted joy was built for true PLAYERS who are seeking THE TONE! It doesn't have a million bells & whistles, but it gets the job done in ROYAL fashion! It's got just what every growing guitar player needs, two channels, some equalization, and speakers to put your sound out there. Unless you happen to be related to someone in the late "Dr. Leo Fender's" family, or you own three or four record companies, you'll not find a closer representation of the "Vintage" vibe anywhere else on earth!

The sounds that come out of this sweetheart have to be heard to be believed! It does country clean, mid-rangey blues, classic rumbling jazz runs, and then it veers off into the overdriven bliss of rock, not too much mind you, just enough to be remembered! I play my brand of blues / rock with a Squier Stratocaster, with Seymour Duncan APSII Pickups (RW/RP Middle position!) that goes to my pedal board (not one of those "Bradshaw" switching things, much more simpler than that!) It's actually a Boss carrying case that holds 6 pedals, I have a DOD Fuzz, DOD Compressor, DOD Phaser, DOD Noise Gate. DOD Metal, DOD Octave and a Chrome Plated Wah Pedal. Everything I throw at this amp comes back at me with twice the power & tone! I LOVE this amp, and I would rather give up my Buick LaCrosse before I gave this baby up!

As far as I can tell this amp is built pretty solid, I've had mine now for about 2 years and I've never had a problem with it. Not even after it fell from the back of the U-Haul truck it was riding in! I got it to my new apartment, plugged it in and it worked just fine! (To me it sounded even BETTER than before it fell!) I'm planning on trying to start my own guitar amp company in the not too distant future. I won't even TRY to create anything like this, as anything and EVERYTHING else pales in comparison! Kudos to the Victoria Amplifier Company, for making "The Best" of the best!

Since I've never had to deal with customer support, I'll give them a 10, for being the "silent strength" behind my amplifier!

I've been playing now since I was about 120 years old, (I'm almost 35 now!...Yipe!) So I guess I've had my share of cheap, inexpensive, trashy amps that server no purpose on this planet, and I've also had the pleasure (sometimes the DIS-pleasure!) of owning amps that cost about the same price as my car, only to discover that none of them can hang with this baby! I've gonew through a LOT of different amps Crate, Rocktron, Marshall, Yamaha, Kustom, Soldano, Line 6, Tech21, Ashdown, Peavey, Hughes & Kettner, Ibanez, Mesa Boogie, you name it, and I've probably owned one at some point in my life! But for the money this amp is the best one I've ever played and owned! I can't think of anything I would wish to add to it, (maybe a free logo t-shirt when you purchase one?...or a coffee mug? LoL!) Everything I'VE ever needed in an amp is already in there!

I love this amp, I play blues, country and rock, its great for all of it. Maybe not metal, though it does overdrive and get real nasty ( in a good way) if pushed. It is non channel switching, with bright and regular channel. A cool thing is, the bright channel is nice and crisp, and stays very clean. The regular channel is warm and tweedy, and breaks up more, think Chess blues. So you get a good variety. Its very no frills on the features, which I like. Remember, its a copy of an old 50's tweed amp. Dont be afraid of the 50 watts, its tweed circuitry, so its not as loud as a screaming Marshall. For me, its the perfect power for bar and club gigs. I had the 35 watt, and it sometimes would get drowned out at loud gigs.

I play a strat with Lindy Fralin vintage hot, or plus, whatever, and I just got a Gibson ES137 with P90's, both sound awesome through this amp. It loves Fender's and Gibson's equally. It is a very quite amp. I use a Z VEX SHO for a clean boost,though in the normal channel it will give a fantastic natural overdrive, especially with the Gibson. It stays fairly clean in the bright channel. I use a Clark Gainster for the heavier overdrive. They both sound great on this amp. The SHO really brings out a nice high end shimmer, which is great for the tweed amps. It stays fairly clean even at high volumes, especially in the bright channel. Though the Gibson will get some nice push in the normal channel at higher volumes.I use both channels at different times, they both sound great. Depends what your after that night. It overdrives very nicely, not nasty or fuzzy or ratty. Stays nice and tight on the low end, which I love.

the amp seems very well made. Mark will repair them, as long as you dont void your warranty for as long as he's breathing. Knock on wood, I haven't had any problems.

Never needed repair, called a few times and harassed Marc with questions, he was very helpful and obviuosly knowledgeable. Lifetime warranty,as long as you dont void it.

I've been playing for 29 tears,(frightening thought), if this were lost or stolen I would get another (after I sold my daughter to buy another). Its fairly light weight, 44lb's, and has the perfect amount of power for me. I play bars and clubs. Stays clean if you want it to at high volumes. Wish it had reverb, but its almost not missed with the pine box. Marc likes keeping them true to when they were made, and they were made without reverb. I got a Little Laniei reverb unit to wet it up for some old Chess and jump blues sounds. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for, and they're cheaper than Clarks. I got my Vic, and I aint lookin back. I'd actually rate it a 9+.

Two channels, one normal and one bright, with two inputs each. The input tubes are JAN NOS, with a 12AX7 for the bright channel and a 5751 for the normal channel. These are followed by a few more NOS 12AX7s doing whatever it is they do (sorry, I don?t have a tremendous amount of technical knowledge), ending with two Svetlana 6L6GCs and a Chinese GZ34 rectifier. Each channel has a volume knob and they share presence, bass and treble controls. It does have a ground switch. The speakers are the stock Jensen reissue C12Ns and it is housed in a Pine cabinet. The previous reviewer?s comments about weight are true; it seems much lighter than, say, a ?65 Twin Reverb. The real features on this amp are the sounds it can produce, so let?s move on?

Victoria?s web site does a pretty good job of describing this amp?s tonal abilities. I have a Les Paul Jr. style guitar with a P-90 pickup and that?s all I?ve been able to use through the amp as it is all I have. Basically, the twin is an aggressive and loud amp with a sweet top end. With the volume right at about 12:00 or so(depending on which of the channels you are plugged into), it is very touch sensitive. Pick soft, it sparkles, pick hard, it howls. Certainly, there are many other tube amps that are dynamic this way, but I have never played one that demonstrated this amount of sensitivity. I have owned or played various models of Matchless, Fender, Dr. Z, Orange, etc. and none were this sensitive.

Turn the amp well beyond 12:00 and it gets very saturated, but still retains a nice sparkle on the top end. It really doesn?t get mushy and this is what I like about the amp. I play in a really loud band, yet I favor a more Fender kind of overdrive. Many of the better sounding blackface Fender models are not loud enough for me; on the other hand, the models that are loud enough (e.g., the Twin Reverb) don?t really overdrive the way I like. This amp seems to pull off the amazing feat of being loud enough; distorting in a way that is sweet, yet not overly saggy all while retaining a nice top-end ring.

I have a Dr. Z Route 66 (32 watt head) that, on certain settings, sounds very similar to this twin. The main differences are that the Victoria has more sparkling highs and greater volume/headroom and the Route 66 may have a slightly tighter bottom-end. However, the Victoria?s bottom end is extremely tight and my playing style demands the greater highs and volume, so the Victoria wins for me. That is not to say that the Route 66 is not an excellent amplifier. It may be the right choice for many other players. I definitely would put Victoria, Dr. Z and, possibly Top Hat (based on the dealers that carry it, as opposed to experience playing one) at the top of the boutique amplifier world.

The owner of Victoria has spoken quite a bit about the importance of the pine cabinets to the sound of his amps. He is absolutely right. This cabinet is very resonant sounding. I have tested other Fender 4 Ohm models, as well as the Route 66 through it and all of them sounded beautiful. As a result of the cabinet?s resonance, you really don?t seem to need reverb with the amp. Thus far, I have encountered very little in the way of cabinet buzzes, which, as you can see in these review pages, can be a problem with tweed amps. The C12Ns sound fantastic; they are very aggressive brutes, but still seem a bit sweeter than Celestions. I would like to try P12Ns through the amp at some point as well.

Finally, I would like to point out that this circuit is great for trying out different tube types. I put a Mullard 12AX7 equivalent as the input tube for the bright channel and it really made it even more aggressive, while retaining the sweetness. My amp tech and I tried other power tubes in it as well, settling on a NOS pair (I can?t remember what they are!) that increased the headroom and brightness a bit. The Svetlanas sound great and are a great deal for the money though; they seem to soften the amp just a hair from the ones I have in it now. The amp really reacts to different tube choices, so it?s great for increasing your knowledge of their tone enhancing capabilities.

Apart from the obvious unavoidable issues like tube microphonics or failure, which will certainly impact this amp more than a modern, casacading gain type of amp, it looks to be very reliable. The circuit is simple and good quality components are used, so it should do fine. Since the cabinet is less heavy duty than most amps out there these days, it probably pays to treat it gently when moving it, to avoid banging it up too much.

They are clearly busy and won?t talk you?re ears off like the wonderful Dr. Z will, but my experience with them has been excellent. I found several tubes in my amp to be microphonic soon after I purchased it and Victoria replaced them quickly and without question or complaint. It appears that it is easiest to deal with them by phone or snail mail as opposed to e-mail. I would also like to note that I purchased the amp from Scott at Fat Sound Guitars in Cary, North Carolina. Scott did a great job of guiding me toward this model based on my description of the tones I like.

Ok, I?ve tried to hold back, but this amp F*&%$ng rocks! I?ve gigged about 5 times with it and have been extremely happy. I?m no guitar genius, but after a few years of playing you know what works and what doesn?t work. This one works for me. Does the sleazy rock and roll sound, from rockabilly and gnarly drunken rhythm and blues to Exile-period Keith Richards, New York Dolls and Seventies punk rock beautifully. Probably not the amp for Vox lovers, but I believe The Victoria Double Deluxe model lives in that world to some extent. I?ll bet the normal channel would work great for a jazzer. It is expensive, but still a good deal to me since I can gig loudly with no extra cabinet and really don?t even need any distortion pedals to achieve any of the sounds I want. Of course, the usual ?metal heads need not bother? warning applies, but they?re not going to be reading this and it probably can do it with a bit of a boost (or maybe even a humbucker equipped Les Paul), anyway.

This is a copy of a late 50's Tweed Fender Twin. The controls are true to the original; very basic with a ground switch, purple pilot lamp, power switches, presence, treble, bass, and volume knobs for the normal & bright channels. There are four inputs, two normal & two bright each offering slightly higher & lower gain. There's no channel switching, reverb, or effect loops; this amp is made to deliver tone, and does so without having to study an owners manual or turning/tweaking/pushing/pulling a dozen knobs & switches.

Most reviews list only the knobs and controls under "features", but there's more to discuss here... This amp is entirely hand built using point to point wiring and top-notch electrical components. The schematic is true to the original, so any amp tech could fix / diagnose problems without needing to contact the manufacturer.

The preamp tubes are JAN NOS, and power tubes are new Svetlana 6L6's. They sound very much like the NOS Phillips 6L6's, which are also available from Victoria. The amp has a bias adjustment pot, so with a volt meter you can set your own bias and save the $$, time, and hassle of taking it to a shop for bench work. Victoria will send you an instruction sheet on request that explains the biasing procedure. I can't imagine paying someone to do this; I bought a set of backup tubes, installed them, and re-biased the amp in all of ten minutes.

My amp came with Jensen C12N reissue speakers. The power cord is unusually long, which is nice, and the amp is unusually light, which is great. Don't get me wrong... your arm will get tired fast, but I'm used to hauling around a Boogie Mark III with an EV speaker. This thing is downright portable by comparison.

I had my heart set on buying a Victoria Bassman copy when I bought this amp. I sat in one of the demo rooms at Makin' Music here in Chicago with three Victorias to test: The Bassman, Double Deluxe, and the Twin. I already owned a Victoria 20112 (Single-Deluxe) model, and and was using the Double Deluxe as my point of reference because it's basically the same as my existing amp, just louder. The Twin was there just because they had one, and I was curious. BTW, I play two guitars, a Drop-Top (strat-copy), and Hollow T (Tele copy with hollow cavities in body) both manufactured by Tom Anderson.

The Bassman was all I expected it to be. It had the rich, full tone, the whooomp of the sound board as you strike a full chord, the smooth speaker breakup, everything. I was sold. But what about this Twin? I plugged in, struck an open A chord, and listened. The tone was similar, but that BASS! The walls shook. I struck a low E chord, with the same result, then went back to the Bassman. The Bassman broke up on the E chord and didn't shake the walls. The whooomp was there, but it didn't have that rock-solid low end that nearly blew me off my chair. I think the low-end breakup had to do with the fact that it had the Mojotone speakers - they break up earlier than Jensens.

So I went back to the Twin, and started making adjustments to see what else it had to offer. The tone controls were very effective, and a number of very usable sounds could be dialed up easily. I found a sweet spot with all knobs at about 2:00, then concentrated on my guitar. The amp was very responsive to my pick attack, and I had fun running riffs by plucking the strings away from the pickups with my bare fingers. I've used this technique for years, but the tight, dynamic low end of the Twin delivered the snap of the strings with a full range of tone from low bass to a spectacular, glassy, shimmering high. This was serious fun.

I rolled back the tone control on the guitar to soften the bite on my attack, and found something unexpected... a whole new, very useable tone. In all my playing experience, I've always looked at the guitar's tone control as treble-limiter, but here was something new - a punchy, round, and clear tone that didn't sound muddy at all. That solid bottom end kept the tone intact after the high end was removed, so rather than sounding dull, the guitar sounded, well, different, ...and really cool.

I think the ceramic magnet speakers had a lot to do with what I was hearing. They have a very well defined mid range that, combined with the amp's oversized output transformer (actually designed based on two Bassman transformers combined) held everything in place after the high end was dialed off. What a great combination.

Like many amps I've played, the Twin's transition from clean to overdriven is very smooth and is best controlled with the guitar's volume pot. Once you're in the sweet spot, the intensity of your pick attack will take you from clean to singing. This amp is an instrument that adds it's own character to your playing, and with practice it can be used to great effect.

I own two Victoria amps, but both are only a few months old. Judging by the quality of workmanship and components, as well as the simplicity of the design (no relays, computer circuits, etc.) I'd guess this amp will be very reliable. As I said before, the schematic for this amp can be easily obtained, so any amp tech should be able to fix it should a problem arise. All Victoria amps also come with a lifetime guaranty, too.

I've read the reviews where people have had trouble contacting Victoria. Having been to the shop a few times and talked at length with the owner, Mark Baier, I think I can understand what went wrong. Mark is basically a one-man band, playing owner, laborer, receptionist, phone operator, and customer service roles all at the same time. Not to make excuses for him, but I'm sure if the phone rang while I was sitting there wailing on one of his amps, neither of us heard it. He's a very busy guy, so my best advice would be patience and persistence.

But what do you get in return for your patience? The type of service only an owner operated company can deliver. Honest advice on speaker, vintage tube, and modification choices, for example. When I took my Deluxe model in with questions, Mark sat with me for over an hour and a half swapping tubes and speakers out of the unit until I found my tone. Larger companies may have more service reps and phone operators to field your call, but in my opinion there's no substitute for the time and attention I was given.

Hey, to get a 10 it would have to do the Fender thing, the Marshall stack thing, and more, weigh next to nothing, and cost a lot less. This amp does the Fender thing, with a few tricks of it's own, doesn't break my arm to carry, and although it's expensive, I'm confident I got my money's worth. If it were lost/stolen I'd call Mark for another one with exactly the same components; this amp's got the groove that inspires me to play at a higher level just as is.

This amp is a very straightforward, no-thrills tone-machine. As a replica of a '55-'57 Fender low-power twin, it has no modern features such as an effects loop, channel swithching, reverb, etc. It does have 4 inputs, 2 each for the bright and normal channels, each of which are very different and provide a variety of tones. The amp also has presence, treble, and bass controls, whose settings have a significant affect on the amp's tone. Each channel has a separate volume control, which are supposedly interactive. I have tried different settings with the volume controls, but have found the effect to be minimal. Since I'm a blues/rock player who rarely uses effects, this amp had everything I need.

This amp was designed to do one thing -- unadulterated, pure-tone -- which it does amazingly well. I use it with an Eric Clapton Stratocaster, a custom Fender Strat with texas specials, and a '76 Gibson Explorer. It is perfectly suited for a blues/rock player. One drawback is that at 50 watts, it is a bit loud for smaller clubs. In smaller environments I much prefer to use the EC strat, which has active electronics and a mid-range boost, because the amp breaks up faster (at about 4-5) than with the other two guitars. To my ears, the mid-range boost is much better than any overdrive pedal, it doesn't color the wonderful, fat and round tone of the amp. I have a TS9 but hate to use it because of the way it colors the amp's tone. One solution would be a high quality overdrive pedal like the Klon Centaur. Being that it is essentially the same amp currently used by Eric Clapton, if you want "From the Cradle" tone, this amp nails it. It can also get very authentic SRV tones, and with a Danecho pedal and humbuckers you can definitely do a rockabilly/swing Brian Setzer-type tone. I am also impressed by the U2 Joushua Tree era tone it gets with my Boss DD-3 pedal. I used to own a Matchless Clubman '35 with a 2X12 Matchless cabinet. Both are great amps, but to me the Victoria just has a more authentic, bluesier tone, and in back-to-back comparisons its low end thump and fat, round clean tones put the Matchless to shame. However, if you want a more overdriven sound without using a pedal, this amp probably isn't for you unless you're playing in very large clubs or bigger. With its master volume control, the Matchless has more available overdrive at all volume levels and is really more flexible. To my ears, though, the Victoria has the "magic." It has wonderful, creamy and dynamic overdrive, but it needs to be cranked to about 6-8 before it really starts to get saturated, again depending upon the guitar. I've never owned an original tweed Fender but I've played through several and I have no doubt that this amp authentically reproduces that tone. Mark Baier has done his homework well. Almost too well, because the amp's only real drawback, like the originals, is that it buzzes at higher volumes (about 4 on, depending upon the guitar). I've remedied the worst of the buzzes by tightening the chassis and placing a matchbook between the back panel and the chassis, but a few minor buzzes and rattles remain. If this is something that you can't live with, you may want to think twice about a tweed-era amp. For me, though, this amp is the holy grail. I wouldn't trade it for anything else I've ever heard.

I've only owned the amp for two months, but am very confident in its construction. All parts are heavy-duty, first grade, and made to last a lifetime. I've had no problems and certainly don't expect any in the future.

The biggest issue here is minimal dealer support. I live in Tucson but I bought the amp out-of-state (because I got such a great deal), so if I want it fixed I have to pay someone locally or pay to ship it back to Victoria in Chicago. The amp comes with no paperwork or warranty information, but supposedly has a lifetime warranty. A good amp tech, though, should have no problem servicing it.

I've owned a variery of amps, most significantly a Fender Vibro-King and a Matchless Clubman '35. For my style (influenced by Clapton, Big Head Todd, Edge, Robert Cray) this amp is by far the best I've owned. If like me, you play primarily blues/rock in small clubs, and prefer a crunchy/semi-overdriven tone, this amp is ideal--in larger venues the amp can also get an singing, bluesbreaker overdrive. Its clean headroom would also be bery suitable for jazz players. If you lean more towards heavier rock, you might want to look elsewhere. If it was lost or stolen I would definitely buy another, even at the the more typical price of around $1900 -- it's worth it. I'm completely satisfied with this amp, so much so that I've got a Victoria Champ on order to use for practice at home.

This is a brand new amp driven by a pair of sveltana 6l6's,it is a single channel 4 input setup. No loop, no reverb.Speakers are a pair of Mojo vc 30's. It puts out roughly 45 watts.
The amp is fairly loud, but I wasnt overcome when the volume was set to just about max.(9). But it still has a whack to for sure.

I use either a Les Paul or Strat with this amp with contrasting results as you would expect. Both sounds are good, thick fat and warm. Creamy high end is beautiful, you will need a pedal to drive it over the top, a lot of headroom here.
I can honestly say I have a love hate relationship with this amp. I as many others out there had waited a considerable amount of time to obtain this amp, and paid top dollar to boot. Now there is nothing wrong with that, but I had some disappointments that were not anticipated. First of all, after comparing the Mojo speakers against some others it was apparent that almost anything would sound better, at least to those listening to it at the time. I compared it to a victoria 20-112 with a Weber p12-n , the little deluxe sounded huge compared to the 45 watt twin. Switching back and forth with an a/b box made it "feel" like the difference between lunchmeat, and meatloaf.
Also, the cabinets that were apparently causing much of the holdup in victoria's shipping problems, leave a lot to be desired. They are a nice burnished tweed, but the interior of mine has at least three knots in the pine. Now I don't know if this will affect tone, or eventually cause any other problem, but it looks like hell and I expected more from an amp commanding this kind of dough.
Back to the speakers, you can upgrade to Jensens for about 200 bucks apiece, but they sounded a little thin and papery to my ears, and the upcharge was considerable enough to make me pass just in case they didnt work out. I was glad I did. I am going to put some sort of Weber's in it and if it has the same outcome as the deluxe that it was a/b'd with it should be unreal. But therein lies the dissappointment. I was expecting after all the hype from the dealers, and guitar player's september review, that this would be great right out of the box.
d
s you drive it up higher without the bite of a lot of other amps.

The amps are built real well and seem solid enough, but reliabilty really hasnt been an issue at this time

I have not dealt with Mark Baier personally, but I hear mixed sentiments regarding his helping out with any problems. I dont think this is a difficult amp to repair it is very straightforward. Finding any good amp repair person wether authorized or not is difficult.
I have no idea how long a warranty there is on this amp, or any specifics to what the warranty covers. There was no documentation of any kind when it arrived at the store. I was there to open it so I am sure that there was nothing in the box. No certificate, ( it isn't really necessary, but it would have been a nice touch to a boutique amp.)

Ive been playing for over 30 years, blues, rock, and jazz. I currently own several boutique amps, Naylor, Kendrick, and the Vic's. Each has its own sound so its hard to compare. If this amp was ever lost I',m not sure if I would run right out and replace it. Not because of the way it sounds, but the unavailability, and the recent price increase, make it a concern when youre faced with another purchase. I know that there are other amp manufacturers out there that deserve a look if I was faced with this situation. (Dr.Z comes to mind right away)