Carvin V3By Art Thompson

It’s human nature to want more of a good thing, so it’s not surprising that the advent of the guitar amplifi er quickly led to the desire to be able to plug in as many instruments as possible.

The most advanced rock/metal amplifi er ever to roll out of Carvin’s Southern California factory, the V3 (a combo version called the V3212 is also available) im-mediately grabs you with its 23 knurled, chrome-plated knobs—which appear slightly recessed into the black cutouts created by the slotted gray faceplate. The blue jeweled pilot light and trio of mini-toggle channel switches look sweet, and about the only thing that doesn’t entirely work for me are the fi ne reference lines that are etched into the face of each knob—keep a fl ashlight handy if you plan on dialing-in precise settings on a dark stage. The three channels feature independent controls for gain, volume, and EQ, and can also be selected by an optional footswitch or MIDI. Each channel has a 3-position Drive Mode switch that changes the gain structure. For Channel 1 and 2 the Drive Mode choices are Intense, Classic, and Thick; for channel 3 (the “clean” channel), the selections are Bright, Classic, and Soak. Each channel is also equipped with an EQX switch that broadens the frequency range for the Bass and Treble controls (as well as the Mid control on channel 3).

At the upper left side of the panel are Master, Boost, Bright, Mid Cut, and Deep controls, along with a pair of Smart Loops switches that can be used to recall series or parallel loop settings for each channel. Up to 100 combinations of channel selection, Loop 1 and Loop 2 on/off, and Boost on/off can be programmed via MIDI.

Among the most signifi cant rear panel features are the 100-watt/50-watt switch, the Bias selector (which makes it easy to change from EL34 to 6L6/5881 tubes), and a Tail switch for each loop. When activated, the Tail function allows delay and reverb tails to decay naturally rather than being abruptly cut off when the loop is switched off.

Inside the V3’s folded-steel chassis we fi nd the circuitry arranged on fi ve PC boards, which are interlinked with ribbon cables. All of the components, aside from the power and standby switches, are board mounted. The ceramic power-tube sockets are stoutly anchored to both the board and the chassis, and the pots have metal shafts for added strength. Less inspiring is the way the ribbon cables are haphazardly bundled together, and the method of twisting some of the leads in mid span to shorten their length. Also, the use of fastener-type screws to secure the chassis doesn’t inspire the confi dence you get from heavy-duty machine bolts.

Though designed to produce the high-gain, heavy-bottom tones that metal players crave, the V3 is a highly fl exible amp that can work well for lots of different styles. Channels 1 and 2 seem to be identical in terms of voicing and gain, however, between the various Drive Mode settings, the tone and gain controls, and the EQX, you can confi gure them to sound as different as night and day. Some of the best distortion tones were derived on channel 2 (though it could have just as easily been channel 1) with the Drive about one-third up and using the Thick setting with the Mids at zero. With the Drive control all the way up, the V3 delivers endless sustain—even at very low volumes. The tones are quite bottom heavy, however, and with some guitars it proved best to keep the Bass control at zero, and just use the Deep knob to dial in the lows. This produced a clearer sound overall—one that even worked better with single-coil guitars. The highs could also get pretty intense with some guitars—including models with humbuckers—and it seemed better to keep the Presence controls at zero and just use the Bright and Treble knobs to tweak the top end. Channel 3 produces a good range of clean tones with excellent headroom, but you can get a fair amount of grind here when you max the Drive control—especially with the Soak function active.

The V3 is extremely loud, and while the half-power switch does help make this amp more civil in smaller rooms, it’s still a raging beast when you crank up the masters and let it rip. As with most tube amplifi ers, the V3 benefi ts from the distortion contributions of the power tubes. All of the tones sound richer and have better dynamic feel when you turn up, and when you are in situations where more volume is needed to make a solo stand out, the variable Boost function will push the output by up to 9dB. Unfortunately you can’t access this function unless you buy an optional footswitch or MIDI controller. The V3 offers a lot of value by providing most of the key features of the higher-priced amps at a price that is hundreds of dollars less than many of its competitors. Its over-achiever bass response may not be to everyone’s taste, but for an American-made amp with multiple channels and MIDI, it’s a solid deal.