Guitar Amp Volume Fades Out For Sale (2024 Update)

Supplied with the incorrect power cable (EU not UK) and after 2 hours of home use only, the volume on the gain channel failed. Apparently a common fault !?!?!Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Purchased an HT40 about 3 years ago from Andertons but the weight was making it difficult to gig with for me. Moved to H&K for a while but an A+B test of this recently against the HT40 convinced me to go back to Blackstar for my gigging amp and getting the separate head and cab keeps the weight down (which I could say same for me)Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Perhaps a bit surprised, but this is a really versatile head and sounds good with a variety of cabs /guitars too… a lot of thought has gone into the design so it's not a 'one trick pony'. Only criticism is that it is larger than it needs to be for a 20watt, which might suit some folks better than others…singingbowl777

Overall: This amp is the "cats meow" it rocks. It plays clean or dirty. I modded my SG and the out put of the guitar is so hot the only pedals I use in front of the amp is my korg tuner and my 5 band eq pedal. I run an old DOD analog delay ( I know its a dinosaur lol) through the effects loop. All I can say is be ready to fall in love all over again I plan on buying a second one just because I love what this amp does. 60s or 70s rock players this is the amp you need. I took one of my old amps and sold it today. Thats how much I love this amp. I just cant say enough about it.Ricky

When I saw this amp on EBay I had to have it. I played Southern Rock and Blues for a good 15 years in my band Steelhorse from Reading Pa, also with Shotgun Blue and Chucky (the guys named the band after me). I had to have it because it looked exactly like the 1972 super lead that I sold on eBay a few years back.what caught my attention was the 3 switch set up consisting of on, standby and to me the most important one, Polarity. People may smear at that and say use a grounded plug but! That doesn't always work. Sometimes you get lit up and u have to use s cheater plug. This is also one of the reasons I love the old Fender alps. I was skeptical at first since it was a re issue but then I thought, it was the first line of repro's of the exact amp that shared stage with me for a good 17 years and that Marshall would probably had put a lot into making it sound the the Hand wired original. Turns out they did. To my ears, i could barely tell the difference. My amp was growly and yet creamy on the leads. This sounds the same and unlike the new Marshalls, it doesn't sound sterile or brittle. I took the bright cap off of mine and I'll do the same to this amp (yes, the bright channel) since for me, it's way to bright even with my Les Paul. It also sounds great with my American deluxe Telecaster with the tone rolled back a hair. These take pedals extremely well and have a clean sound to kill for. I only sold mine due to unemployment at the time, I did have other back up amps. These are great main amplifies, if you have a chance to get one, do it!! It's well worth the money and besides that, it just looks way too cool on stage!! Hope this helps any amp buying decisions!!chuckysstuff

Not only does this 5 watt lil' monster have enough power to rattle the windows, it also has class! At only 9 lbs. the Bugera T5 Infinium has enough "UMFF" to push your favorite 4X12" cabinet into the stratosphere! It's better having this reverb built into this lil' madman than not having any at all. Just like 9/10 of the other amp heads in its class. The 1 channel, "all tube" head has warm cleans. Push in the PHAT switch and crank the volume and gain and you get saturated distortion that will blow you away! All of that in a 9 lb metal cage like package for only $200! You won't find another 5 W head with all of that for this price. I love my T5 Infinium from Bugera!brmul-8207

What it's not: Not a $1k boutique tube amp. Not a mid-size club amp (unless you have great monitors and a good sound guy). What it is: A well designed, very affordable little monster that will give enough stage volume at 5W for rehearsals in a full rock band or small club, and will also allow you to drive the output stage at that 1W or 1/2W setting for recording at home. The amp sounds best at 5W and driven into either a 4ohm cabinet or two 8ohm cabs. If you use it to drive an 8ohm cab, you are getting only 70% of its potential. I only use el84 based amps. i love their dark, throaty sound, and while this amp doesn't have the punch or snap I get from my 15W custom built el 84 amps, it sounds great for rehearsal or recording. I am a little bit worried about long-term build quality. The input jack is plastic. I have a hard time seeing that surviving a year of rehearsals without breaking. This is a great supplemental amp for rehearsals and recording. Very smartly designed. Good feature set. And if you like the el84 style sound, it delivers it above expectations at this price range. I'm thinking of getting a second one.klktrk

In these days of small solid state, practice amps, this little amp gives you tube tone and more at a very affordable price. A 12ax7 preamp tube and an EL84 power tube provide the tone along with built in reverb, 2 band EQ, gain and a "phat" overdrive switch for added crunch. The three stage attenuator is a nice touch. The stock Bugera tubes are OK but I switched them out with Tung-Sols which provided a rich creamy overdrive more to my liking. Great sound when plugged into my Orange 8" or 12" cab plus headphone jack for late night playing. Great amp for the price!Isom

This is a great high gain tube amp head. 40 watts is all you need for gigging out and with the wattage reduction setting it makes a great amp to play at home. I upgraded from my boss katana 100 and let me tell you this amp is way more powerful and responsive. You can get some awesome cleans as well as a killer metal tone on the lead channel. It's nice to have an independent clean channel to adjust the EQ from the crunch and lead. I paired this with the 2×12 matching cab. The head is super lightweight/compact and very versatile. The only downside is I wish it had a built in reverb. Aside from that I see no downside to this amp headAlex

Was really looking forward to adding this amp to my collection, as it is perfect to use straight into my audio interface to record. How ever the TSC system showed damaged tubes on the 1st day after unboxing, then the next day it completely shut down, no sound on any of the power soak settings. I was using a brand new speaker cable into a brand new cabinet. Extremely disappointing. I would not buy or want another H&K after this experience and after reading that this problem has happened regularly to other people globally. But i have to say the staff and service from BetterMusic Canberra was 1st class. Very very much appreciatedDarren B.

Endlich Röhre mit Gate! Endlich Röhre mit Delay!! Endlich Röhre mit IR Output!!! Mega fexibel! Ob singende 80er Sounds oder "Englbrachial" !!!! Gut gemacht, ENGL!!!!!Andreas

Overall: I bought a VT40X used this summer and I've been floored. I have Mesa Boogie and Frenzel tube amps so I can compare sounds anytime and don't have to play solid state if I don't want to. When it's evening or late night and I want to be nice to the neighbors this thing comes out and I don't have to feel deprived at all. The Dumble (Boutique OD) in particular gives beautiful rounded bell tones at all volume levels and reacts naturally to increased gain. British 800 sounds like what its intended to mimic. I expected to hate the speaker but it seems fine. The software is needed so that you can tweak the amp to get exactly what you want. It's a bit of a pain but worth it. The user interface on the amp is pretty terrible but once you're set up you won't need to change it very often. Overall this is a gem of a small amp that could stand up to small gigs with no problem as long as you can get it up off the floor on a chair or stand. I'd buy another one of these anytime, and highly recommend it for beginners who need to find their sound and decide what hardware will be best for them. Buy one of these, figure it out and then go spend on pro gear later. You'll keep the VT40X, it's a great bedroom or livingroom amp.Rick

I have played the acoustic guitar for years and played in pubs and all sorts. I’ve never had an amp at home so have been looking at the right one for ages. You don’t need effects peddles to get started with this one – save your money it has many settings built in with the Tone Room app where you can save the effects not only within the Amp but within the app too. I have a Telecaster and I tried it on a few amps. Yes the Marshall CODE is excellent too so you won’t go either with either in what you finally choose, but this is just so much fun. The Valves – oh my, so when I was at school there was a dusty valve amp that I played on and I LOVED it turns out it was a VOX so obvs going back to what I played on at school. A lovely lovely piece of kit and amazing value for money. You can play it really loud and I bet great for a small gig or practicing, playing with others. Don’t know what else to say I am very happy with itCharlotte K.

Did lots of research. Went for this after a Fender Mustang I bought crashed twice the day I got it. First off this thing is loud if needed. Sound good at low volume too. A little tricky to program online but after a little practice it gets easy. 8 presets is plenty too. Only drawbacks are: no line out (just mic it), not Bluetooth capable for streaming in your tunes and programming the channels, and to connect to a laptop it needs a mini usb which is not too common these days. But overall very satisfied with this purchase. Oh and not made in China too is a plus.Steve

This little amp is quite amazing in sound and features. With the Guitar input, Aux In, and headphone jack it nails the features desired for practice. EQ/Gain control and volume can make a huge difference. I read the one critical review below about no bass or treble/AM radio sounding, etc…I don't get that? Probably doesn't understand the gain/vol/ and boost…or his was pre-owned and maybe had issues. Hey, if you're expecting the Fender tube sound of a Princeton or Vibrolux or Deluxe…get real, this is a 10 watt practice amp. For the money, it's a quality Fender product and does everything needed to practice.madillac09

This is doing the job I wanted. It doesn't have fancy effects like reverb, but it produces a nice sound for practice. I don't do public performances, so can't say how well it works in that environment. For the price it's a winner.lndi2007_yrggd7or

Im really disappointed with this amp. I know its not supposed to be super loud because its only 10 W, but I was hoping that the sound quality would be better. The sound reproduction frequencies are all mid range. Sounds like cardboard. Color is grey. Bass and treble tones are all but nonexistent. The eq is useless because speaker cannot reproduce bass and treble frequencies. The sound is very cheap and does not give a representation of the Fender vibe whatsoever. You are better off just playing your guitar with no amplifier at all rather than using this, because it make a good guitar sound bad. I equate the sound to that of an a.m. transistor radio. Its really bad. I actually read some of the favorable reviews on this amplifier before I bought it, and Im seriously starting to think that none of those reviews are actually real. There are better practice amps with better fidelity out there, and I would avoid this one if your ear demands quality sound.mrmarksiii

I did countless hours of research watching sound demos of various amps. I wanted an amp that gave me a lot of versatility and would be a good platform for pedals. This amp delivers! A quick note about some complaints I've read/heard about: Yes, there is a volume boost when you hit the lead/boost channel. Some people don't like that. I, personally, don't understand why. If you're wanting to jump into the boost then chances are you're doing a solo (or something similar) where you want to cut through everything. It's really not a big deal as some like to say. Some don't like the aesthetics (i.e. blue lights). You either like it, or you think it's gaudy. Personally, I like it. I think it's tasteful and I enjoy the warm glow of the tubes set against the blue light. Now on to the good stuff! It has tons of clean headroom but breaks up nicely when you roll the gain/master up on the clean channel. This is actually something I don't hear people talk about enough! I was fairly impressed with the sparkling cleans this amp produces and it's one reason I think it will take pedals exceptionally well! The lead and boost channels make this amp scream with sustain for days! The built in DI box is fantastic (I run mine through a Scarlet Box into Garage Band and it sounds superb). This is an excellent choice if you want to record your playing for home studio work or just as a practice tool. Especially considering you can turn the speaker cab off and run everything directly into your computer! Silent playing for the win! Bottom line – H&K did a fantastic job on this one. This amp can do everything from jazz to country, blues to metal, and everything in between. If you're wanting an amp that lets you be versatile then this is an excellent choice.Dusty

This is my first Tube Amp. The reason I really decided to go with this one, was the powersoak feature. It is great for a home studio guitarist. I live in an apartment, and the powersoak feature has saved me a lot of criticism from my neighbors. You can just go straight from the Red Box into an interface, and then you can record completely silent. The audio quality even on low power is really good! The blue lights are really nice, at least for me. Very small and portable. I just purchased a Hughes and Kettner 2 x 12 to go along with this as well. If you're looking for an entry Tube Amp, go ahead and buy this one! I have 0 regrets about this purchase.the-music-dude

I like the little Amp. Bought it to be a back up and it has become the primary. Amazing how loud 1 Watt can be! Nice tone. Super clean sound but can be gritted up nice. Does not loose tone in grit. It is new so i cannot speak for long term reliability, but like what i see so far, Looks on stage are stunning. Drew C Little Rock ARDrew C

Just wanted to reply to the comment regarding the scratchy presence knob. If you read the Runt 20 manual the presence knob is supposed to be scratchy. Nothing wrong with amp. Great amp!!!!!!Steve

I accidentally ordered this amp instead of the 50 watt as originally intended. I discovered the mistake only after it shipped. I intended to exchange it for the 50 Watt at my local Guitar Center. A few days later it arrived at my doorstep and I decided what the heck, I would take it for a test drive. I'm absolutely blown away by this little 20 watt and have decided to keep it. I'm pushing a Friedman vintage 412 cabinet with ease. This small amp is portable, lightweight, extremely feature friendly and has a huge variety of tone. This 20 watt amp can push my 412 cabinet with adequate stage volume with ease. I use a combination of 412 cabinets along with another EVH 5150 amp via ABY switch and will often bounce between the 2 half stacks. I've had numerous Fender Marshall and other Boutique setups in my 45 years of playing but never a Friedman setup until now. The Friedman lineup seems to be popular for a reason. I'm absolutely blown away by this little Powerhouse amp. It's also at a very friendly price tag for what you get. Lots of tone in this little guy. I would absolutely recommend anyone to try it out and take it for a test driveJay

This amp is versatile and easy to use stand-alone. It has a great selection of amp models built-in, along with enough effect and delays so that you can find something that you like fairly quickly. I like the clean and boutique models with some reverb. Then I played around with the other models, adjusting settings and effects. You can adjust everything on the amp, not necessary to connect a computer. I did find it confusing initially due to all the different methods required, i.e. "press a button", "press and hold", "press for 2 seconds", etc. That's why I read the manual a few times! Line6 puts a nice 2-sided "cheat sheet" on top of the amp around the carrying handle which is a lot easier than flipping through small pieces of paper staring at small font printing. So don't remove the amp-topper sheet and toss it in the box with the rest of the packing material :-). The best feature of the Catalyst amp is the manual channel. This is WYSIWYG. Adjust the knobs and controls just like a "regular"amp. You can then save the settings once you get something you like. In the future I will connect the amp to the computer and see what else you can do. Right now I am quite happy with the Catalyst amp and I highly recommend it. Go get one!Gene

After suffering a disabling back injury I needed an amp that was easier and lighter to move and set up than the tube amp combos I was used to playing through. I never cared much for the solid state amps as they could never duplicate the warmth a tube amp provided and was considering retiring from live performance altogether. Then I heard about the Catalyst series of amps and decided to try them out and was amazed! My bandmates were as well, telling me how much more clean and clear my sound was. Programming channels was a snap ( just follow the "cheat sheet on top of the amp and read the manual) and the manual button provides the familiarity of a regular amp, and at a third of the weight of my Blackstar 40 watt tube combo I can continue to perform without dealing with debilitating back pain from moving a 70 pound amp. I was so impressed I went back to GC and got the 60 watt Catalyst as well for home and playing at open mic and jams. I couldn't be happier with these amps and am grateful for the help and guidance the folks at Guitar Center in Concord Ca. always provide.Stephen

I have a few amps that I'm selling and a couple that need work – I picked up this Catalyst 60 on a whim so I'd have something reliable and portable while I'm moving amps around my local used market – but I'm super impressed with this amp and am probably going to upgrade to the 100w model! (In fact, I'll get two because I play in stereo!) I found it impossible to get a bad sound out of this, I plugged in direct with my Vox Virage DC and tried all the possible pickup combinations and did not want to stop playing. Great cleans, great crunch. The higher gain amp settings had me revisiting the metal riffs of my youth, haha. I haven't dived into the software editor because: I haven't needed to. This thing sounds great out of the box.FitzG

I bought the amplifier based on sound clips and others reviews. I love the amps clean channel with OD, Eq and delay in the signal chain for my driven sound. It gets a very articulated, clear, deep throaty sound that is intoxicating for rock sounds. I only have to turn it up to about 4-5 to be clearly heard in the mix. I don't care much for the OD channel as I find it a bit harsh for my taste, even when I dial it back a bit & Eq. it. The only comparisons I have are to my VOX AC 50 and Mesa V mark 25 valve amps. This amp is a great, inexpensive alternative that is ultimately portable – glad I bought it!Dr Crusher

This is a good amp that will give you different results based on your pickups and speaker cab. The tone stack is a bit dark so I like it less with humbuckers than with single coils, but it's still very useable either way. Depending on how you set it, it may or may not have trouble cutting through a band mix. I haven't had that problem, but my amp is always mic'd and we don't play super loud. The dirty channel is – from what I understand – more like an OD pedal overlaid on top of the clean channel. It sounds good and has its own lo/hi EQ and can go from a semi-clean boost to about as much gain as a tubescreamer or the like. Sounds very good, IMO, to the point that it would be possible to use this amp with no pedals for a gig. And it does take pedals well – I haven't run into anything that doesn't sound good. Overall this is an excellent lightweight amp that sounds great and is very giggable. I don't know that it's "better' or "worse" than "a tube amp" (as if tube amps are one generic thing). It just sounds good. I've never felt it lacked anything. I run it through either a 1×10, 1×12 or 1×15 cab and all sound great.Al

Love the clean channel – sparkly without ice pick highs. I don't care for the OD channel, it sounds too harsh for my style. I get the sound I want through an old GenX 2 from Digitech fed into the amp & out to 2 single 12" speakers. I'm blown away by how loud this little amp can get. It gives a full, thick throaty sound that is very articulate and gives singing highs when needed. The portability and sound delivery is amazing! I bought the open box model and couldn't be happier. My main amp is a Boogie & this sounds close – quality sound.Dr Crusher

It is a great amp. Very good sound and options for the price. It is not heavy which is a big deal to someone who has had back surgery. I gave it a 5 in spite of one big complaint. When you turn it off you hear a loud "POP!" Wow, is that loud is what I thought the first time I heard it. I read about it online and there is a simple fix. Find an old set of ear phones or ear buds that you would use on a cassette player or a Sony Walkman. (Yes, these are ancient electronic relics from the past for you younger people. You might ask your parents if they have a cassette player and borrow the ear plugs.) Just plug that earphone jack into the "PHONES" input BEFORE you turn it off. THEN you only hear a little blip when you turn it off. THEN just pull the jack out of the "PHONES" input before you start it next time.chasmigu

This amp is better than I thought. I've had it for over a year. I use it for practice sessions (classic rock mostly), and I haven't gone over '4 1/2' on the volume (it does give good feedback if you want it). I did upgrade the speaker to a 12" 'Celestion' Vintage 30 and am absolutely happy! This could easily be mic'd for larger venues. Lightweight, powerful enough, and the effects are a good assortment. One small glitch…when using the footswitch, there is a short, instantaneous volume boost when the pedal is pressed for distortion. Could possibly be a problem for recording. Besides that, 5 stars for me.Myk

After playing acoustic guitar for 15+ years and rarely plugging in, I finally decided to make the plunge and try out an electric. I was advised by a buddy to not buy too big, that 15W-20W would be plenty to practice with. So, I found this little Champion at Sam Ash, and so far it's been great! I bought the display model and have had no issues at all with it. Great sound, enough presets and effects to play around with, and sounds great clean too. Having a blast and loving it.Nate-O

I wanted to give it 3,5 stars, because 3 seems a bit harsh and 4 is too much. The overdrive channel is great! Excellent and defined sounds from moderate overdrive to modern metal and postrock stuff. The clean sounds from the clean channel are beautiful, but I never use 'clean' sounds. I want my cleans dirty! I was expecting the amp to break up much sooner in the 1 watt mode than it does. I have to turn the volume almost all the way up to have the natural overdrive I want but then it is way too loud. I 'm sure no P.A.-guy will allow me to turn up the amp this much on stage, so unfortunately I will again be stuck with an overdrive pedal 🙁Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Espectacular amplificador. Limpios Blackface y con el atenuador puedes tener un tweed cranckeado en tu cuarto sin que venga la policía a tu casa.Fernando

Like the other reviews, I don’t really know where to start…Playing through this amp is otherworldly. The tone is 3D. The bass hits you in the chest. The highs are creamy and never harsh. It encourages you to play with touch and feel responding to the sonic milkshake that envelops you.

It’s extremely versatile, and is useful across cleans, grit, edge of break up, etc. Pedals are breakfast for this thing but it honestly doesn’t need them. The attenuator is unbelievable. It’s like playing through a modeling amp on low levels, retaining all touch and feel at extremely quiet levels. Aesthetics are top notch and build quietly is second to none.

Worth every penny…all 250,000 of them. I would highly recommend.Andrew Bell

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

I bought this as a practice amp along with a 108 cab. My live rig involves a lot of pedals including using an fx loop and there are very few practice amps out there with a loop. I love the twin volume switches for boosting, and it sounds great clean as well as driven. Having a DI out makes it more versatile but bear in mind you’ll need a longer than usual speaker lead (I found out after that Orange make a 20’ speaker cable: worth buying. I should point out that this can get very loud so good for small gigs too. Only two issues, I would like an extra switch to turn the loop on and off (like I have on my Marshall origin) and I have found it gets quite noisy with the fx loop connected. This may be down to my cheap power brick on my pedal board but never had this issue with my Marshall. There are other pedal sized amps out there but this is one of the cheapest and definitely worth the money. Slightly more than a tiny terror but that doesn’t have the fx loopDaniel C.

Great sounding clean tones for playing at home, which is why i bought it – my beloved Mustang 1.1 started having issues and I MUST have a great clean tone to relax. Wanted a tube amp and did my research. Decided on the Blackstar. I must say I'm extremely happy with it. The reverb is KILLER to my ear and does a great job at adding shimmer without destroying the tone. No external effects are needed to get a gorgeous clean tone – I use my Zoom G3Xn into the front end to get univibe and compression. The effects loop is very functional. The amp can be very bass heavy, depending on your instrument, but if you run a 10 band EQ (go with MXR) in the loop you amp can achieve any tonal result you want. My best sound comes with everything at 12, with some of the bass rolled off with the MXR EQ – but its just a matter of taste i guess. This amp moves a lot of air when you use the drive channel, and if your not pleased with the amps distortion it does respond really well to distortion pedals. I'm mostly in the clean blues zone but must brag on the amps darker side: it can get very loud and stay rich. I haven't tried any of the direct recording features. The 2 selectable characters of clean that the amp offers thrill me and ,again, the reverb is classy and a bit different from other amps ( I read that is a room reverb). Highly recommended.Tim H.

This amp out of the box sounds fantastic. Crystal clear clean tones and a snarly gain channel that lets you choose between a more American gain tone and a British gain tone. I would say ‘cater for everyone’. But, I received my first amp and within an hour of playing I’d noticed a loud ‘POP’ when changing channels. This pop occurred if a note was being played at the same time as the channel change. (Footswitch and Amp buttons) So, of course I returned the Amp to PMT. they arranged DPD next working day collection for me, completely hassle free. I awaited my next amp, as a direct replacement. A few days later the next Blackstar HT-5R mkii arrived, box fresh like the last. I plugged the amp in, let the tubes warm and away I went. Within minutes of found a great tone again, but the loud ‘POP’ I heard from the first unit was there again on this amp. I tried 4 sockets in the house in case there was any kind of interference/static, but to no avail. Absolutely gutted, I called PMT again. The amp was returned for the second time. Apparently this hasn’t happened to anyone else, I may just be unlucky or the amp may not get along with the electrics in my home. Just check this out as soon as you buy one. I’ve tried two other valve amps on my house since, including a Blackstar Artist 10 AE and an Orange terror with cab, and there’s absolutely zero noise with these. Very important to note here, this is not a slam of PMT, they’ve been absolutely brilliant throughout this whole thing. Customer service is second to none and they are very easy to contact. Used these for a very long time and I will be returning once stores open to try out a new amp.Jack H.

I got this to play at gigs and fill in to gaps for 60s and 70s classic rock numbers. It sounded great mic's with just enough stage sound for sustain. I especially liked the foot switch layout to flip between clean and dirty numbers when covering Stones, Bowie, Mott The Hoople, Doobie Bros and stuff, but needed help with a pedal with early metal sounds. Still, found it a very flexible amp overall. About eight months in it got a hissing sound and was useless as a mic'd amp through the PA. It was still under warranty, and – long story short – they repaired the hiss by replacing some circuit components, but after a few weeks it came back. The is the one time I wished I got the replacement warranty. I ended up giving it away to a friend who tinkers in electronics. Do and internet search and you'll see this amp has a long history of hiss and other noise problems that are hard to isolate. That said, I know of some players who liked this amp very much and it never let them down, so I'm not hating on Fender. I like the Fender sound and own a very reliable 65' Twin two Blues Deluxe Issues. If you really must have this amp, I'd recommend getting the full replacement warranty.RJ

Just purchased this beautiful blond amp. The clean channel is perfect. Decent gain. Reverb is adequate. Highly recommend purchasing the amp head and the 2X12 cab because you get two Clesetion Vintage 30's vise the single Eminence in the combo. Sound great out of the box even before the tubes are burned in and the speakers broken in. I'll say this again, the clean channel is perfect, Les Paul, Strat, Tele, ES 195 with P90's and effects never sounded better. Gives this bad boy a test drive, you wont be disappointed. If you have never used a tube amp, 22 watts is quite a bit of power compared to solid state, possibly two to three time the power. Yes! this amp can get quite loud. Perfect for small gigs. Highly portable and easy to move and transport.Karl