Valvestate AVT 50 question

[Sunflake]

So recently Cherrysunburst00 and myself have been talking about different amps for me. I’ve kinda decided on the AVT 50. Because I love that 70’s Ace Frehley sound. I know 50 yr old guy that grew up loving Ace. So talk to me about this amp. We both thought this would be a good one. So we’re trying to locate one.

 

[Mike_LA]

Absolutely one of my fav Marshall amps.
50 watts
12" speaker
2 channels
FX loop
real spring reverb
Real 12AX7 preamp tube goodness
line out
AUX in Headphone out

Great sounding amp

 

[Sunflake]

Absolutely one of my fav Marshall amps.
50 watts
12" speaker
2 channels
FX loop
real spring reverb
Real 12AX7 preamp tube goodness
line out
AUX in Headphone out

Great sounding amp

So jealous!! LOL

 

[colchar]

Some of those Valvestates are great amps.

 

[circles]

I only sold my AVT200 only as I was moving at the time, it worked for me. Tracks available.

 

[SkyMonkey]

It looks to be the direct update of the MkII VS65R.
Mine is a '97 example, still going strong and I love it.

There's a near mint AVT50 going on UK Gumtree for £50 !!!

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[Sunflake]

What’s the difference between VS65R and the AVT 50? Which is better?

 

[SkyMonkey]

The main differences are:

VS65R has V,B.M,T controls on the Clean channel + Tone Shift
AVT50 has G,V,B,T

VS65R has G,B,Contour,T,V on the OD channel
AVT50 has G,V,B,M,T

VS65R is 65W into 8 ohms
AVT50 is 50W into 4 ohms

VS65R has Series/Parallel FX Loop with FX Mix knob (Full Series or Parallel)
AVT50 has Series FX Loop

Only AVT50 has a CD In jack and a cooling fan

The MkII Valvestates seem to be all open backed combos, while the MkIII ones like the AVT50 are closed backed.

Both have onboard Spring reverb

One thing I would say about MY VS65R is that the Bass controls on both channels are pretty weak.
After 12 O'clock the Bass knobs have no effect, but it is still enough for my needs.
This could be a VS65R thing or just my amp. They are getting on a bit.

As for which is better would be a subjective question, but there is a moderately general opinion that the Valvestate series of amps became slightly inferior with each new revision.
Too many added bells and whistles?
Some of the bigger AVT amps have a slew of digital effects onboard that many do not use.
Decent MkI Valvestates are becoming harder to find in useable condition but can have a generally higher price premium.

 

[Mitchell Pearrow]

@Sunflake

To The Forum
Loved the AVT50H’s my grandson and I had, but we sold them on to new rockers so they would get used as intended.

Cheers
Mitch

 

[Sunflake]

I’m pretty sure the AVT 50 will give me that Ace Frehley sound. Any others you’d recommend?

 

[Sunflake]

How does a VS65R compare to the AVT 50 as far as quality of sound?

 

[Mitchell Pearrow]

How does a VS65R compare to the AVT 50?

The only member I know here with one is @SkyMonkey he may check in and answer you since I mentioned him in my post.

Cheers
Mitch

 

[Sunflake]

Here’s my other question. Looking at used Marshall amps and GC the valvestate 2000 AVT 20 and VS65R are within $40 of each other. Which one is the better value. The avt50 are $239. So right now that’s not happening. I can’t get the sound I’m looking for out of the Crate 30 I have now.

 

[scozz]

I’ve got a AVT20, I’ve had it for 22 years now, it sounds ok. Years after I stopped gigging, I wanted a small amp to play at home with.

It’s been fine all this time, but it’s lacking in overall sound quality, maybe a different speaker would help, (10”), I replaced the stock speaker with a G10 Vintage years ago.

It’s a 10” version of a Vintage 30, a little better, still not great though. I was thinking of maybe trying either a G10 Greenback or a G10 Creamback, but economics prohibiting this transaction.

 

[Leonard Neemoil]

How does a VS65R compare to the AVT 50 as far as quality of sound?

The main differences are:

VS65R has V,B.M,T controls on the Clean channel + Tone Shift
AVT50 has G,V,B,T

VS65R has G,B,Contour,T,V on the OD channel
AVT50 has G,V,B,M,T

VS65R is 65W into 8 ohms
AVT50 is 50W into 4 ohms

VS65R has Series/Parallel FX Loop with FX Mix knob (Full Series or Parallel)
AVT50 has Series FX Loop

Only AVT50 has a CD In jack and a cooling fan

The MkII Valvestates seem to be all open backed combos, while the MkIII ones like the AVT50 are closed backed.

Both have onboard Spring reverb

One thing I would say about MY VS65R is that the Bass controls on both channels are pretty weak.
After 12 O'clock the Bass knobs have no effect, but it is still enough for my needs.
This could be a VS65R thing or just my amp. They are getting on a bit.

As for which is better would be a subjective question, but there is a moderately general opinion that the Valvestate series of amps became slightly inferior with each new revision.
Too many added bells and whistles?
Some of the bigger AVT amps have a slew of digital effects onboard that many do not use.
Decent MkI Valvestates are becoming harder to find in useable condition but can have a generally higher price premium.

 

[SkyMonkey]

I have to be honest, I am no KISS fan, so I wouldn't be of any help with an Ace Frehley tone search.

Also, I only have experience of the MkII VS65R (currently owned) and the MkI 8080 (had in the 90's).
Never had a MkIII Valvestate 2000

Both are great amps, but are getting on a bit, especially the 8080.
Finding MkI Valvestates in good condition is getting harder, but worth the search.
I'm still on the lookout for another 8080.

I am into Slayer/Metallica tones, and I can get Kill 'Em All from the VS65R without any helping pedals.
That said, I do run my VS65R with a 4CM pedalboard that has a wide range of OD tones, including the straight VS preamp.
So, it takes pedals very well.



I changed the speakers to 16 ohm G12T-100s and 'jumped' a speaker lead off the speaker tabs to run a 1912 cab in parallel (8 ohms total).
More speakers is the way to go!