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I have had my AV30 for over a year. Mostly I use the clean channels, and chiefly Clean 1 or 2, and occasionally the crunch channels. Mostly for blues, jazz and Atkins styles. When playing clean I find the ambience comparable to my Princeton RI in many ways. Very nice with an ES 175 or Fender solid body. I am not qualified to assess the quality of heavily distorted tones, but I like the amp a lot, at any price and especially at this price. Looks cool and light weight. Friends recognize it as a tube amp when they hear it, without inquiry as to its hybrid nature. Definitely does not sound sterile. I utilize only a small amount of reverb and occasional delay, but it produces a very satisfying echo at moderate levels. The speaker/cab produces a strong tight bass. Compared to a Princeton, it is quieter and perhaps slightly more immediate, and it depends on my mood as to which amp I prefer. It lacks some of the open-back character of a Fender tube, but is more versatile. The cabinet feels very sturdy and it seems well crafted. I expect the Princeton cabinet would take more abuse while the innards of the Vox would be more reliable without large vacuum tubes rattles/damage. The separate knob for total power is extremely useful, as is having a completely separate but identical channel to switch between with nuanced differences in the clean / dirty tones. Of both the tube and solid state amps I have owned, this is one of my favorites. I am also a fan of Roland, and would consider this amp comparable in quality, with a more traditional tube-like tone. The chorus-type modulation is not as nice as a Roland, but good, while the amp, to me, is warmer than any digital modeling amp I have played and definitely has an analog feel. Hard to find anything negative to say about it. I do wonder whether porting the back a little would improve the “surroundness” when playing a room but am not inclined to find out. I would always prefer a ply-wood build, though it would add weight and cost. If handled reasonably, however, I expect the cabinet would hold up longer than most musicians. Definitely recommend it for those who enjoy warm, clean tones. I cannot speak to manufacturer support - have had no issues, but it (sillily) is a required field im the review. Finally, I read an early magazine review stating the digital effect levels are set and cannot be changed. This is incorrect, they are easily changed and the manual instructions are clear.

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