VHT Special 12/20 RT Guitar Combo Amplifier

No longer available at zZounds
Play through a versatile and powerful tube combo. The unique preamp of VHT Special 12/20 RT has been design to work especially well with pedals.

The VHT Special 12/20RT adds tube-driven spring reverb and tube tremolo to the Special 12/20 platform. The 12/20RT features two power ranges with an adjustable Watts control plus a Pentode/Triode switch, a unique preamp designed to excel with pedals and multi-effects units, and an all-tube buffered effects loop with send and return level controls. It also features VHT's unique Depth and Texture controls, a convenient built-in 9-volt DC pedal power supply, and an international mains voltage selector switch.

To optimize the amp for a wide variety of output tubes, the VHT Special 12/20RT offers two output-power ranges; a special voltage range switch provides the proper voltages for 6V6 or EL84 output tubes (in 12-watt low-voltage/low-power mode). The high voltage 20-watt setting provides the ideal voltages for higher-power 6L6 or EL34 output tubes. The Special 12/20RT ships with a pair of 6V6 output tubes (VHT 6V6-to-EL84 socket adapters are required for operation with EL84 tubes). In addition, the Special 12/20RT's variable Watts control can reduce the maximum output power to less than one watt for whisper-quiet volume levels.

The Special 12/20RT's preamp was designed to bring the most out of every effects pedal and multi-effects unit with enhanced clarity, detail, and controlled tube compression. Its low-impedance buffered effects-loop send can effortlessly drive the most difficult pedals without tone or signal loss. Thanks to its variable send and return level controls, the read more 12/20RT's effects loop can accommodate a wide range of pedal or rack effects. The 12/20RT's Reverb, Tremolo, Depth and Texture controls are post effects loop, so multi-effects users can plug directly into the effect return and still benefit from the post-effects tube reverb and tremolo, while also fine-tuning the output stage characteristics with the Depth and Texture controls.

The Special 12/20RT Combo is loaded with a 12-inch VHT ChromeBack speaker.
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- Switchable 12/20 Watts Max Output
- Variable Watts Control
- 9-Volt DC Pedal Power Supply
- Tube Driven Effects Loop
- Effects Send and Return Level Controls
- Depth Control and Texture Switch
- Push/Pull Boost - Footswitch Included- International Voltage Switch
- One 12" 60-Watt ChromeBack Speaker
- 6V6 Tube-Driven Reverb with Depth Switch
- Tube Tremolo with Slow/Fast Range Switch
- 2-Button Reverb/Tremolo Footswitch

Reviewers gave this product an overall rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars. (1 ratings)
Submitted January 8, 2014 by a customer from msn.com in Fort Cpllins, CO

"Great tube amp!"

Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
I've had this amp for almost a year now and still love it. If you are looking for a small/ medium tube amp for a great price, give this one a try. There are definitely some pluses and minuses to this guy and I'll tell you what my experience has been: The clean channel is great on this and it's overall characteristic is kind of dark and punchy. It's not a scooped out mid sound like some of the Fender amps I've played. I typically play single coil pickups (Strat and Tele) relatively clean or with a blues style overdrive and this amp sounds great and will cut through a mix very well in live situations. With my band, I'm typically using the 'low power' setting and the watts control at 3:00 with the volume at 12:00 and it's enough volume to hear over a live drummer and perfect for being miked at a gig. The effects loop is very nice to run delay and reverb pedals through and the 9v power out on the back is a stroke of genius. This amp takes overdrive pedals very well and I use a TS10 tube screamer, Boss Overdrive, and EH level booster on my pedalboard for various clean boost and overdrive tones. I use the 'watts' knob as a headroom setting and then set the volume with the volume control. The amp will break up very predictably with increased signal from the OD pedals and gives a very nice, organic overdrive. The tone and depth controls are useful and the amp has a solid, well built feel to it. A few things I don't like...the preamp 'boost' which is accessed by pulling out the read more volume knob isn't my cup of tea, it's too much of a volume jump to be useful in a live/ band situation and the gain level is somewhere in between that bluesy crunch and real high gain/ metal tone...it's not useful for what I do but may be ok for someone else. The volume knob feels kind of flimsy in it's rotation compared to the others and I emailed VHT about it (mine was also crackling as I turned the pot) and they got right back to me, answered my questions, and offered to look further into the volume pot noise but I just sprayed some pot cleaner in it and it was fine. They said that the feel of the volume pot was due to the design of the push pull pot. I was very satisfied with their quick response and honest answers so great customer service there. This amp has been very reliable so far and I haven't had any issues with it. It's still got the original tubes in it as I haven't seen a need to change them yet. I also have the original Special 6 combo and that one is very similar and a keeper as well. If you need a nice, hardwired tube amp for clean/ low to medium gain tones,like to use pedals, and don't want to break the bank, I wholeheartedly recommend this one and it's little brother the Special 6. If you want to play high gain/ metal...this is not your amp.

Musical Background:
25 years experience, working musician.

Musical Style:
rock, funk, blues
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