Best Jazz Guitar Amp Under 500 (Jan 2023 Update)

I bought this amp…… then I sold this amp…… then I went out and bought another!!! That's how much I missed it. For Jazz tones you will not find a better amp in this size (1×8"). I also have a Roland JC-40, which is also a great Jazz amp! The DV Mark is warm and clean, no breakup at all, tons of headroom. I was surprised at how much bass frequency it pumps out, which was a pleasant surprise I must say. I actually had to roll the bass on the amp back a ways to lighten it up a bit. It has an xlr out, which is helpful in larger settings – it also has an aux in, which is really cool. It's my only amp with an aux in and it's nice to be able to play backing tracks through it. Great practice amp too! My only complaint with it is the Reverb feels too "springy" to me. I know this is personal taste and some may think it's wonderful – but I'll end up using my Strymon Flint for the Reverb, which is fine. It takes pedals, like Reverb and Modulations well. Overdrive pedals have to be played with to get a sound that I like (again this amp isn't your 'break up' sound, which is okay – it's not intended for that). All in all, this is a great little amp, good for smaller (coffee shop) venues or bigger (with xlr out or mic'ed). Perfect for Jazz. I don't have any problems with the fan that other reviewers talk about. It doesn't really bother me. All the DV Mark amps seem to have fans (that I have seen) – this is just them I guess. I think it's quiet and I'm not recording with it right now – might try that later. Get it – you won't be disappointed.bill

I was skeptical about the overall quality and that small speaker, however…….tone is full and I did not have to fight it to get a good sound out of it. I wanted a small amp to move around the house. I will use this amp at low volume only. No fan on this one. Nice, warm jazz tone with the archtop. The reverb sounds a bit weird, like there's some delay in there but the good news is that I like to add some delay and I use it sparingly anyway. Not sure how this would perform in a band setting but for my needs, it's perfect.Rchtop

Just got this today and was really surprised at just how well it sounds with my archtop guitars. Digital reverb sounds great on this amp. for only an eight inch speaker it really fills a good size room with it's rich jazz tones. Was going to buy a "Henriksen Amp" but they are way to much $$$$ for me. Glad I bought this amp to add to my collection. Time will tell if it holds up electronically. Cooling fan is really quiet and mounted on the inside of the amp. Amp is only 15 pounds great for playing on my front patio. EXL – 1, T50 Slim. and AF – 95 guitars!Paul

The indio 10 amp that I received was flawless. It's construction is very solid. The clean channel doesn't color the sound but has treble/bass control for EQ. I don't use overdrive so I can't comment. That would be subjective to someone who does. It may be a sound that you've been looking for or you may hate it. I find that effects that I do not like work in certain situations. Also plug in a Mpow Bluetooth receiver and you have a Bluetooth speaker and with batteries it's portable. In my opinion this is a good value for the price.Mark

This is literally the best portable battery amp you can get. Blows away any Pignose. The sound is deep because it's a closed back, and it's actually loud enough for small shows and open-mic nights. Very happy with this purchase. Monoprice is a good company.Tom

I was pleasantly surprised by how great of a small practice amp the Indio by Monoprice 10-watt battery powered portable 2-channel amp is. The amp that I received didn?t have any cosmetic defects, all the controls worked as expected, and the construction feels solid. I use a Monoprice 6 ft. guitar amp cable to connect my American Professional Telecaster to the amp and the sound levels and tone coming out of the amp?s speaker sounds good to my ears. The amp comes with an A/C power adapter but I power the amp using Panasonic Eneloop rechargeable batteries for easy portability of the amp. I like the amp so much that I might buy another one. Highly recommended portable practice guitar amp. Fast delivery of the amp from Monoprice too.New User

I bought this amp to use in a limited space and at a low volume for very low cost. It obviously doesn't compare to a normal size amp in quality but for being a practice amp it is perfect. Many reviews across the web say it loses power or sounds bad after a short time, but its literally as simple as changing the battery in my case. The manual even says to change the battery if there is an issue with sound, and the battery that comes with it isn't really the best and doesn't last long. It has great sound at a low and mid range volume for the little power it actually has but when you ramp it up it does sound a little distorted but not bad at all for $23-$29. Hopefully my review helps someone get a decent product!Lucas

While you certainly could use it in the studio for certain alt/auxiliary tones and/or layers and achieve fantastic results (producer/artist discretion advised), It's not meant for that. It's meant purely for being able to enjoy playing electric, untethered, while wandering about randomly and/or practicing. …Whether outdoors or indoors. …At home, in the park, around the neighborhood, at a camp site or a BBQ, wherever. Perhaps even during your breaks at work. It's not meant for playing in a full band situation (especially with drums), nor is it meant for getting a half-stack sound (or even normal combo-amp sound), for a fraction of the price, during a high-end studio session or full-on concert. It's a fantastic tool, meant to serve a single purpose. Choose and use your tools accordingly.Cristyn, E

mini-amp works great as a travel amp, or playing early in the am when ppl are sleeping lol it fits perfectly inside my hardcase, along with my electric guitar, headphones, tuner, cables, etc. performs as expected.. dont look to be amazed at its performance lol but for practice/travel its the perfect amp. has a heavy grind for chunky metal riffs. doesnt pick up the p[inch harmonics that great, but they do come through. the clean setting is great, too, and for a tiny little fkr it really kicks pretty good! had my finacee yelling at me to "turn that fkn thing down!" so, lol, it hits pretty hard for a small little guy.. but like i said, dont expect it to put out the tones of a line 6 spider IV or a Marsall half-stack cuz it aint capable for that. it isnt designed for gigs lol so dont expect that kinda sound. but, i love this mini-amp; its my new best friend!da.davc.mcoumykeiu

I bought this amp to use in a limited space and at a low volume for very low cost. It obviously doesn't compare to a normal size amp in quality but for being a practice amp it is perfect. Many reviews across the web say it loses power or sounds bad after a short time, but its literally as simple as changing the battery in my case. The manual even says to change the battery if there is an issue with sound, and the battery that comes with it isn't really the best and doesn't last long. It has great sound at a low and mid range volume for the little power it actually has but when you ramp it up it does sound a little distorted but not bad at all for $23-$29. Hopefully my review helps someone get a decent product!Lucas

While you certainly could use it in the studio for certain alt/auxiliary tones and/or layers and achieve fantastic results (producer/artist discretion advised), It's not meant for that. It's meant purely for being able to enjoy playing electric, untethered, while wandering about randomly and/or practicing. …Whether outdoors or indoors. …At home, in the park, around the neighborhood, at a camp site or a BBQ, wherever. Perhaps even during your breaks at work. It's not meant for playing in a full band situation (especially with drums), nor is it meant for getting a half-stack sound (or even normal combo-amp sound), for a fraction of the price, during a high-end studio session or full-on concert. It's a fantastic tool, meant to serve a single purpose. Choose and use your tools accordingly.Cristyn, E

mini-amp works great as a travel amp, or playing early in the am when ppl are sleeping lol it fits perfectly inside my hardcase, along with my electric guitar, headphones, tuner, cables, etc. performs as expected.. dont look to be amazed at its performance lol but for practice/travel its the perfect amp. has a heavy grind for chunky metal riffs. doesnt pick up the p[inch harmonics that great, but they do come through. the clean setting is great, too, and for a tiny little fkr it really kicks pretty good! had my finacee yelling at me to "turn that fkn thing down!" so, lol, it hits pretty hard for a small little guy.. but like i said, dont expect it to put out the tones of a line 6 spider IV or a Marsall half-stack cuz it aint capable for that. it isnt designed for gigs lol so dont expect that kinda sound. but, i love this mini-amp; its my new best friend!da.davc.mcoumykeiu

I bought this amp after not playing for a couple years, been playing around with it for about 4 months before writing this review and I have to say I'm pretty disappointed with it. At first I loved it because of the on board delay effect and I still find it to be a fun addition to this amp. Onto the bad, the eq knob doesn't adjust the tone as much as I had hoped and the overdrive isn't adjustable. If you're gonna play clean this is a great practice amp but if you're looking for a cheap amp that does a lot of things this ain't it palBrandon I

Super clean tones and the built in delay is hella cool! Always love purchasing from AMS, the payment plans are the only way I can buy the gear I want/need!very fast shipping and customer service is always superior. Would recommend this amp for anyone practicing in an apartment like myself. I’m was surprised at how powerful the 10 watts sounds when I have it cranked.Evan

It's not a bad little practice amp. There's not a lot lot of range on it, but it doesn't boast to be. It has a fairly nice clean channel. The overdrive is a bit lackluster, but it offers a decent little punch. Speakers sound good. They have a good sound just using this as a speaker for an MP3 player through the AUX in. If you're looking for nice cleans and a decent little rock sound in a small form this will do the trick. The AUX and headphone jacks are a nice touch, and do their job. If you're looking for a more heavier sound I would suggest the 15e for a couple of dollars more. Definitely not disappointed.Charlie

The Ac-10not only looks the business but it has since real depth and warmth to its tone. Clean – it’s bright and has the chime you’d expect. Turn up the gain and your tone breaks up but still retains clarity. Having the gain wide open and master volume down means you can still have the saturated crunch but not disturb others . Perfect for home use but would not be out of place in a small pub gig. Takes pedals will and with a multi-fix like a GT 100, if you disable the amp sim and use like a conventional pedal board, you don’t lose any quality of the AC10’s natural tone. A masterful amp and it even smells nice with those tubes cooking.Mark R.

Ive been playing 35 years and this is probably the best all around practice amp ive ever heard. Pros- looks great, sounds very good, cleans thump and chime, distortion can wail. Its loud for its size. Seems built well. Have had no bad issues. Cons- clean isnt near as loud as w the gain cranked up. No reverb. In short if this amp was 50-100W and had reverb and an external speaker jack id never play another amp. Good job VOX.jjsrvfan

I'm a Fender fan to the core. I love their electric guitars and amps but their Amps aren't even affordable anymore. They've completely out priced themselves and either you are going to pay for a severely overpriced bare bones amp or a severely overpriced amp with far more electronics than a lot of us care to deal with. This is a great sized combo amp that's easy to use and has a great sound and plenty of power and all at a great price!!! There is no reason Fender couldn't do more of this…combo's that aren't easy to use with plenty of effects and a fair price for blue collar musicians. I used a Fender Princeton Chorus combo this same size mic'd through a sound system for over two decades and it started having issues. This was the closest amp I could get (and afford). The 100 has everything you need in a combo amp and at a fraction of the price of everything else Fender makes. Buy it! You won't be disappointed!Josh

I bought this amp because my gig amp died a cyber twin 2-12s 100 watts that was about 16 years old. I have had many Fender amps they were great. I do country and 50s and 60s rock and roll. I figured 100 watts would put it out there and it does. At performing volume, the distortion is a pure heavy metal on the clean channel. Mine is not much good for high volume for my type of music. I have an old champion 110 75 watt that I will be using It has worked for me when the others were down. Not sure what to do.stev_majo

Sound: With the second channel .First it had the twin reverb and super sonic voicing with a chain loop for pedals I was set on that alone. When it got to the house and realized I didn't need my pedal chain and it sounds amazing even though ill still use my pedals here and there. The bassman, tweeds , Princeton all clean or dirty are amazing to play . again to get those sounds with out the tubes and speakers is amazing.. You get volumes that punch against you that are clear without any nasty whitenoise or unwanted sounds. the dirty settings added with the compression build in make all that possible. Outta all my guitars I enjoy to plug into this amp .My 63 firebird , g400 s.g. and my jaguar Ease of Use: Its real easy for me to get the sounds I need .I'm well aware of all the amps they used for the voicing.For new players it might take a little to understand but with no time you'll understand how to dial it in and add the right effects to the amp models to get those amazing fender amps . Quality: Only had it for a week but as for holding it up and down 3 flights of stairs at the studio in Philadelphia id say the strap is well build . Speakers have not blown but I have not had to dial all the way up amps loud as it is half way . Value: yes it is im surprised its not another $100 more.Wish more companies would do this. Manufacturer Support: No problems yet . But in the past fender has always been amazing to me. Overall: (DON'T LET THE $399 TRICK YOU)When dialed up there are so many different fender amps you have here. First off the blackface style clean channel is just amazing. id say that its a twin or deluxe especially when you dial in the spring reverb only thing missing to call it that are the speakers/tubes but fender has made it very clear they can accumulate that sound with out the tubes . I know the tubes will make a difference but not much to this amp unless you have the trained ear for tubes you can't tell.The 2nd channel with all the voice modeling Id say every setting is 99.7 spot on with the models . I love this amp .After watching a few videos online of the 100 I decided to go with it .My friend has the champion 50 so I have already played through this style of amp. When I saw the 2×12 combo version with a double channel pedal it was set in stone . I love combos more than any kind of amp . I came on zZounds looking for an amp to hit the road to the higher states of the new England area of the states in November and December and a long ride from New Jersey to Chicago and Milwaukee in January . the amazing price for a well build and sounding amp there was no way i wasn't gonna leave the website with out another toy.So after adding to the card I headed over to guitars and ordered the squier 70s classic vibe jaguar .One of my favorite things about this amp is I don't have to change out the speakers to get that sound I want. its easy for me to use because I know how to dial in the right sounds to get the sound of the amps in amp unit.Mike

The Ac-10not only looks the business but it has since real depth and warmth to its tone. Clean – it’s bright and has the chime you’d expect. Turn up the gain and your tone breaks up but still retains clarity. Having the gain wide open and master volume down means you can still have the saturated crunch but not disturb others . Perfect for home use but would not be out of place in a small pub gig. Takes pedals will and with a multi-fix like a GT 100, if you disable the amp sim and use like a conventional pedal board, you don’t lose any quality of the AC10’s natural tone. A masterful amp and it even smells nice with those tubes cooking.Mark R.

Ive been playing 35 years and this is probably the best all around practice amp ive ever heard. Pros- looks great, sounds very good, cleans thump and chime, distortion can wail. Its loud for its size. Seems built well. Have had no bad issues. Cons- clean isnt near as loud as w the gain cranked up. No reverb. In short if this amp was 50-100W and had reverb and an external speaker jack id never play another amp. Good job VOX.jjsrvfan

I bought this amp to have a small, cheap portable amp to play harmonica through. For that, it is decent enough. I use a Shure bullet mic and the amp produces good enough tone and is plenty loud for practice or small gigs. When I plug my tele into it the clean channel is decent and clear, but the overdrive channel is junk and hurts my ears. I would rather run the clean channel and use a fuzz or distortion pedal. So that being said it is decent enough to practice licks on and it is tiny so it tucks away easy. If you look around you can find a bigger amp with more features used for the same price but if you want a new amp, this one is probably worth what they charge for it. I would only buy it if you have a specific purpose for it though.Roy

It's small, and pretty portable. However, the sound quality is trash, given the speaker is tiny, but the overdrive is just horrible. If you buy this, try returning it. If you can't return it, just get a fuzz pedal and leave it on clean. Imo, just buy the mustang lt25-50Hotdog Games

I was searching for an amplifier for my Veena. Veena is an Indian traditional stringed instrument. I shortlisted some amplifiers as my Veena has a built-in pick up. I decided to buy Joyo M'A 10E. It suits my veena very well. Output is excellentJEYASREE

I just bought this amp with the Line 6 FBV short board; they work well together of course. The amp is a lot of fun with the looper and presets and the endless ways you can tweak your tone. I love the amp but there are a few things which could be better. You must use a 2 gig or smaller SD card or it reboots if you try to save to a bigger card. So just get a bunch of small Sd cards before they are unavailable–only a few places still have them–which is kind of a pain. It does record nice but I haven't figured out how to record the mic input and the guitar input at the same time, so I always have to do two tracks. There is a switch which switches the input for recording back and forth from mic input to guitar jack. With the short board you can turn the looper and presets on on the fly, but you must put the foot pedal in the recording mode, and when the FBV is in the record mode you have to switch it back to channel mode to switch different guitar tones. So to switch to a different guitar tone you have to do another track to reset it. Anyway, I just thought these few drawbacks could have been easily figured out and fixed. Hopefully the next generation can take the more available SD cards, record more than one track at a time, and make the FVB do all the functions in one mode. However, it's nice having all the gimmicks for having fun in one package. Even thought I give it four stars instead of five, it "is" worth the low price, and I would buy it again knowing what I know now.Songwritunfool

The Line 6 spider jam changed my life in many ways. First and foremost you can save every idea that you come up with! 2nd it helped me to become a songwriter, it has everything you need so you dont have to rely on other people showing up to practice. Its allowed me to put the time into writing that I never could before, because face it most people dont want to rehearse 7 days a week, or even 5 for that matter! I thank God and Jesus for leading me too this life changing built in studio in a guitar amp!Skip Farfugnugen

If you are looking for a versatile and fun practice amp that you can record and gig with, this thing Rocks. I am primarily a bassist and just learning how to do leads on guitar and this amp fit the bill perfect. It does not have the warmth of a top of the line tube amp, but I did not need that as an intermidiate player. This thing has pretty awesome effects and tone varieties for about a couple hundred varieties and most I will never use. You can record, you can plug in a mic or a bass, you can jam tithe rhythm tracks, it has headphones so you play without waking the wife or neighbors, and a built-in tuner! That is just what I have discovered so far! The price makes this the perfect amp for practice, recording, and even small venue performances (half way up on the master and it is loud!) the only thing is it takes time to figure out and discover all the tones and capabilities, but that is also half the fun! Also the clean tones are good but not great. The distortions are fantastic! Not that the cleans are not useable, but they are bit thin for me. HIGHLY recommend!! Have fun!DFW_Bassman65

Unbelievable. This is NOT my Vox AC30, and nor is it my 100W Katana. However, for a package that is powered by batteries and can, quite literally, fit into the palm of your hand, the Katana Mini is simply fantastic. The amp models are brilliant and the delay (reverb) function is an excellent feature. On "clean" settings the volume of the amp is perfectly adequate and will fill a room with no issues, and on the "crunch" and "brown" settings, the amp was more than loud enough to fill a large room at 2/3 volume. Whilst I personally think that this is not quite enough for an advanced/intermediate players sole amplifier, I would completely agree that for a beginner, they would need no more than this. Having tried options from Yamaha and other brands, this is firmly my favourite battery powered micro amplifier for any level of guitarist and equipment, the tone is simply that good! The best way I can describe it is this – when I first plugged my PRS McCarty 594 into it, I was vaguely aware that I wasn't playing through my Vox. However, after five minutes or so, I had completely forgotten this wasn't a "real" amp, and had to keep looking down at the tiny box on the floor to believe it! Well done, Boss!Mr I. F.

I use it primarily as a practice amp at lower levels, but I'd feel confident doing coffee house gigs with it, and maybe smaller clubs too. It sounds warm and rich at low volumes, and the EQ is effective. All three voices are useful and I'm not left wanting. I have to make special mention of the delay. I adore reverb (including and especially spring reverb and gritty, trashy reverb of all kinds) but a simple delay circuit is way more useful in this amp. Doubling, slapback, echoes. The treble roll-off and fixed feedback are well-tuned. If you're using this for busking or other guerilla performance, you will suddenly realize that a single delay is worth more than a thousand reflections, because those reflections sound godawful* against naturally-occurring surfaces. *maybe awesome in a sound design way thoughChesterfleet

I had previously bought a Roland 80GX but it required too much tweaking to get the sound I was looking for. So I still wasn't satisfied. When I was playing out in the early nineties I was using an all tube Carvin half-stack which was pretty basic…clean or distorted with reverb and very loud. Great amp but I eventually sold that because it was way too much for home use, and frankly, it sounded best when cranked up. I teach guitar now and I don't intend on playing out again, but I still wanted an amp that was simple to use, solid state so I wouldn't be concerned about replacing tubes, and would be powerful enough to do a gig if I ever got swayed into that again. The only built-in effect on the Bandit is reverb which is all I want besides distortion. I've read that it takes pedals great but I haven't gotten around to trying any. The best thing about this amp (for me) is that I can stop searching for the amp I want. This one is perfect. Clean or dirty, it has great sound and can get seriously loud. For my purposes it also sounds very good at low volume.Russ

Overall: I was able to gig with the unit twice before I had to send it back for exchange. The one I got had issues that occurred,buzz started to happen when nothing is plug in and even when all the controls are set to zero,buzz is still fairly loud!and then the three way switch in the rear panel that switches from 100%-50%-25% does not engage to 25% percent. yes this amp is loud! and last of all you have to buy the peavey footswitch….The Great news is, this amp sounds very good both clean and dirty channel. The cleans can be dialed well(fendery!) and takes Overdrive/Distortion well and that's if you need a pedal. The Lead channel has great gain depending on what you use it for! I like the classic Overdrive/Distortion(aka- marshall) setting allot. I play in two different bands, the first band I'm in plays Rock/Alternative,Twang Rock,Blues Rock,Heavy Rock, Responds real well to volume knob adjustments on the guitar during live playing. The other band is more Funk,Jazz fusion,Gospel,R-n-B type and this amp does it well without any pedals! and that's what I bought this amp for! basically I don't wanna use pedals,just amp cable,guitar and the footswitch to switch from clean to dirty and solo boost when needed. And it does it very well! I dig this amp allot. All the features and especially the solo boost function is awesome! the effect loop works well. I hook up my Boss DD20 with two 15ft cables(not live just for home use!) and there was hardly any tone lost or I could not tell at all. And this is coming from an overly picky Guitar Player. This amp is well thought out by Peavey Engineers and last of all its pretty light amp!Now I just have to wait for the other Peavey Bandit to be delivered to my front door and hope its trouble free!,and thank you zZounds for taking care of business, you always took care of me when there were unexpected issues and you got on top of it fast. Thank youWb

Everyone treats this like either a country/blues amp, or a metal amp. But it does fantastic tones for bands in between. Think Foo Fighters, Jimmy Eat World, Kings of Leon, The Gaslight Anthem, Death Cab… those in-between tones…it NAILS them. The amp sounds tube. And i mean that. And i've played/owned a LOT of expensive tube amps. I love this thing. Sounds great. Is it a JCM800, Princeton, AC30, or Deluxe? No. It's not. But it can get amazing ballpark sounds. And I dont mean "Line 6, Fender Mustang" ballpark, I mean close your eyes and it would take a discerning ear. Sounds great at low volume but absolutely keeps up with a drummer at half volume. I can gig with mine no problem. If I HAD to pick something to gripe about, it's that by now the new ones should have the 3 different overdrive types foot-switchable. As it is, you can switch between clean and overdrive. But you set which type of overdrive (vintage, modern, high gain) at the amp and if you want to change your OD type you have to do so with your hands. This is an extremely minor complaint though and I'm being crazy picky. Especially considering that between a tube-screamer, Joyo AC Tone and the vintage channel, I can get every sound I'll ever use. I'm not really into the heavy stuff, but it does do that very well too. Oh also, it takes pedals like a tube amp. I've read reviews from people who say that it doesn't and they must be insane. Also..i dont know why the youtube videos comparing them to fender amps sound so muddy or dark, that is DEFINITELY a settings problem. I can get mine sounding VERY fender. And i'd put it up against a Hotrod Deluxe any day of the week.underXtheXradar

I bought a Fender Champion XL 50 for a small light weight amp to bring to local jam sessions. I have to say I am not disappointed. I know there's no comparing solid state to tubesl when it comes to filling up a room with sound but this little amp cranks. It's closest competition is the Boss Katana and those are really nice. I like the ones I've played, but I'm really into that clean Fender sound and this amp has it in spades. You get the full range of cleans, from black or silver faces to tweeds. There's overdrive and high gain models in there too but as I said it's the cleans that sold me. It is a two channel amp, but I'm not sure why anyone would use the first channel as tall the digital goodies are on the second. That being said, the digital reverb in this amp has a bit of a whistle I don't like. Instead I used the chorus on the amp and a Boss Fender Reverb pedal. If your playing on a stage lugging around a forty pound tube amp may be the thing to do, but for sitting around a garage with friends this amp will save your back and please your ears.ADarkBard

I usually don't leave comments, but feel I must let the frustrated AMP user know, yes Jessica there IS a Santa Claus! Was looking for an AMP that was "SIMPLE" – On channel 1 ONLY the volume is usable, I didn't check but probably the Bass & treble too! On Channel 1 the gain control is set and turning the knob does nothing, and none of the FX are accessible! I was so busy checking out Channel 2 that I didn't check to see if Treble & Bass could be adjusted. You have 12 "Voice Settings" and 13 FX Selections. So I checked out all 12 Voice Settings combined with all 13FX settings – add this to checking these out with a single coil Strat and a Jazz/Full Shred Charvel DK24. I feel this is one of the BEST choices I have made in electric guitar choices! The AMP sound CLEAN!!!! I Imagine Channel 1 would be great with an Accoustic as well! Don't have one though! Channel 2 is GREAT and I don't need any more than it has to offer. It is so uncomplicated & stress free! If you are an expert guitar player and can concentrate more on AMP settings, rather than playing, then go for the Katana 50 MKII, or the VOX Cambridge. I was thinking hard on all three. When I got to GC I had pretty much decided on the Fender Champion 50XL. The VOX Cambridge is $150 to $160 more, with only $10 between the Fender & Katana. Since what is on the AMP is all my mind can handle, I decided to go with the Fender 50XL. It has to be on of the simplest AMPS to operate. I do have an Ibanez Tube Screamer, and if I have a need I can look at other pedals down the road. I do plan on getting a Cry Baby! Latter down the road I might get more pedals, but for right now this AMP has all I need. The Celestion Speaker sound GREAT! I couldn't be happier – it is as loud as I need – It's EASY to learn – NONE of the settings sounded muddy, muffled, or shrill. If I was going to get an AMP that needs a lot of downloading, I would have gone with the VOX Cambride. Glad I traded in my old AMP!Karl, M

Great overall amp. The obvious comparison is the Boss Katana 50. I tried both and I found I could dial in a sound I like from the Champion easier than the Katana. The Katana has way more features and the connect-ability. I prefer just plug in and playing which was far easier with the Champion. One of the largest selling points for me was the headphone jack feature for silent playing. The Champion has it right in front of the control panel and it's a 3.5mm jack. The Katana has one but its on the back and it's a 1/4inch jack which would require an adapter to 3.5mm. The location and the fact that it's 1/4in jack gave the Champion the edge. I also preferred that taller design of the Champion. It made it more comfortable to reach and adjust. Some of the cons are the knobs. especially for the "voice" and the "fx-select". A rotary knob would make it far easier to select the presets. Fender does provide a 3 color LED light that changes when you reach the next model or effect. However, a rotary knob that stops at the preset would be a better. Another con is that the reverb effect is combined with chorus and delay. I would much prefer it to be on it's own rather than combined. This is something that the Katana has. Overall the Champion is great for home use and I would recommend it to someone that wants a good amp that is easy to just plug and play. If you want more effects and enjoy experimenting then the Boss Katana would be a better choice.E. Bran

Overall: overall – maybe the best sounding low wattage amp ever. only small difference in sound between this & a tube amp. weak point is lack of features. they really skimped. twice the price of other compared to other practice amps that have way more features. you're really extra paying for tone here.pro's – * truly terrific tones* even if you have a tube amp that sounds good at whisper volumes (i have a 15w egnater tweaker) it's so convenient to be able to play this on top of your desk.* clean and modern settings are fantastic. i don't use the other amp settings much, but they sound great as well. the only setting i don't like is brit hi.* effects sound good* tap tempo* good tuner* the features are weak* pricey – other practice amps have many more features. they sound pretty good themselves (just not quite as nice as this). so if features are important to you, get something else. digital amps these days all sound not bad to downright good.* are the tones here so much better that it's really worth double other companies' amps? honestly hard to say, but this one does sound the best* can't save settings* one knob control of all mod effects is really limiting* can use the software to tweak settings and effects, but as soon as you unplug, you lose them* max volume on delay is occasionally not enough. usually it's ok. but sometimes, you want a little more & doesn't have it* as mentioned, brit hi setting not that great* the name "modern" might be misleading. i mentioned that modern sounds good, but, it doesn't have enough gain to get you into mesa rectifier range. you're going to need a pedal for that.A

So far so good. A little hot with active pickups, def functionally. Appreciate the aux in to feed music or backing track while practicing and very portable. Worth the price.matta2z76

Had my reservations about buying this, a cheap headphone amp, as I have had others in the past and the o/d or distortion always sound awful. Don't get me wrong it isn't replacing my Marshall amp, but for a really portable and handy headphone amp it is great. I can use this, and move, whilst the kids are in bed, no more having to be 2 mtrs from my big amp….. As a practice and experimenting tool I love this!gastall1978

It's better than expected, though the design might not compatible with some guitar models. It requires an AAA battery. Works pretty well with any headphone. It also has an AUX port so that you can plug and play any songs you like and jam along. Thumbs up from me!wamin0

I picked this up for my son so he could practice around the house. Killer stocking stuffer! When the son is away the dad will now play. I started playing my Mustang Bass through this and it did the job. It's a small amp, not a practice amp. This is perfect for camping trips, rocking at the office or kicking it in the backyard. Oh yeah and you can plug in 1/4 headphones and keep the concert to yourself. It runs on a 9-volt battery or you can plug in a 9-volt adapter.SERGIO

Took a chance on this and purchased it without every playing it. Watched video reviews on it and gave it a shot. Yes, I know that it's small in size, smaller than a kids lunchbox but I hoped it'd produce quality sound and what I got was muddy sounds at increased volumes. It's not clear sounding and my goal to play through an amp is to sound good and I felt if I actually played this in front of people, the muddyness would make me sound amateurish. So, for what you pay for this, yes, you get amplified but it's not real great quality, unless you're a metal player because you don't get a clean sound from this. I rate this 3 stars because it's convenient to have a portable battery operated tiny amp that you can plug into and get sound from, however, the quality almost makes you not even want to play it.Jesse

This ain't no micro cube or vox. This less than 20$ & runs on 1 9v battery or 9v plug in the wall.(transformer not included)& Holy Friggin' Smokes does this baby perform.Monster overdrive tone & super bright, clean tone.Headphone input.Probably exceeds 60 decibels,which is beyond city ords. could get U a fine it's so damn loud. My Strat Squire sounds soooo Fender good out of this lil sucka & my electric/acoustic, sooo crisp.Ultra light to carry around.I've been using the JOYO mini,I love it,plug in,no chord,fun but this Fender mini is a bit more.More tone options and louder.I've yet to find out how quick it eats batteries. The JOYO burns them up fast.Get the rechargeables.Also the JOYO has an MP3 input.This doesn't. I run guitar strap thru the handle so the chord is like non-existent or U can old school it and have a 10 or 20 ft chord.So light it can be pulled over by the chord.These mini amps also pick up radio signals. When I turn them on I can hear radio stations at certain angles. So get 1 for the road.It's all about the fun.annoyingted1

Fender-esque tube amp. As it comes from the factory, the clean channel is borderline unusable, it is overdriven. An easy fix is replacing the 1st preamp tube with a less gainy 5751. I put a NOS GE JAN 5751 in mine. (70x gain vs. the original 100x). That yielded a very usable clean channel for me. The factory speaker is a bit harsh sounding, I swapped it out for a Jensen. It comes with a spring reverb, check if it is screwed down properly, they have a tendency to be loose and rattling. The spring reverb also has a tendency to feed back and howl. at certain settings, I have not figured out why it does that, perhaps it needs some acoustical isolation from the cabinet. That is still work in progress. You have to mess with the settings to get it to howl, does not always do it. I never noticed it, but at one time I was trying to sell it and the guitar store found the setting and demoed it to me. With the 3 changes I mentioned (tube swap, speaker swap, reverb tighten) it is a charming tube amp, sounds pretty loud for the 30 watts it has. 2 negatives: it is heavy, built like a tank, and the howling spring reverb. Do not be afraid to get a modded one, esp if someone swapped the speaker already. People usually do not ask for extra money for that, and this is something you likely end up doing anyway.code_slinger

My Classic 30 and related Delta Blues are both US built models so I'm unclear on whether the amps have changed since production moved to China. That said, the Classic 30 replaced my very nice Fender Hot Rod Deville that had been modified to reduce gain and improve the tone stack. The Peavey has a wide range of tones and can produce excellent sound at both lower and high level volumes. The pre/post channel produces a very useful range of overdrive. Finally the amp is an excellent weight and size in terms of portability. The Deville was very nice but still liked to be loud, the Classic 30 is comfortable loud or at home volumes.TomH