Carvin VL2100 LEGACY II

Vai, Ben Fargen, & Carvin deserve credit for delivering boutique tones at production prices. Ive had Soldanos, Bogners (still have my Ecstacy), Carvins, Peaveys, Marshalls, etc, and the Legacy 2 is a legit big league amp with boutique tones. It does EQ differently than many amps, but you are rewarded with very impressive tones. Its a very warm and organic feeling amp. A beautiful warm clean channel, a richly overdriven "dirty clean" channel (up to tweed overdrive in general), and a very unique, true boutique caliber lead channel. Into a Legacy 4x12 w/V30s, it sings beautifully. For the $1200 to $1300 a Legacy 2 half stack usually commands (with true boutique brand half stacks would be triple the cost used), it's a ridiculuously good value. If you cant make the Legacy 2 sound good, you dont know how to play. Damn nice amp.

100 watt all tube amp switchable to 25 watts and 50: very handy!
5 lamps preamp + 4 EL34 power, we can enter EL34L, 6L6 or 6L6GC or KT77 adjusting the Bias, which leaves room for experimentation with different lamps
This amp has 3 channels clean, boost and lead, to note that the EQ is shared between the clean channel and boost
The channels can be controlled either by the three switches on the front, the FS33 foot control panel or by noon.
The impedance is adjusted to connect to any type of cabinet (2 simultaneous) 4, 8 and 16 Ohms.
It has an effects loop which can be connected pedals or racks.
There is no reverb on the Legacy integrated as original but we win on this second version of both a channel and above all a master volume control for sound!

UTILIZATION

This receiver is type plug 'n play, no need too turn around to find a good sound.
The manual is quite short: an A3 sheet! But not need more!

SOUNDS

I play mostly rock / metal prog / alternative and say I think he's doing very well! It has a nice presence. I use it on a 1936 Marshall cabinet mounted Vintage 30.
on the other hand I am not persuaded that with extreme tunings type 8 strings is the definition EADGCFAD with return to work unless the equalization of the lead channel with a pedal, trying ...
I play more with a PRS custom 24 and a 7-string Grass Roots Di Marzio pickups mounted.
The sounds I get with these two guitars are very different, I think playing the wood: mahogany / maple table for the PRS and lime for the 7 string.
The cleans are really clear regardless of the volume and sound really all mic positions together: jazz, funk, reggae: it's beautiful!
The boost channel adds a bit of creamy overdrive to clean play more blues / rock, fusion
and the lead channel continues to climb in the drive to play Rock well as rhythmic and must lead, everything sounds smooth and musical.
A small side Mesa Boogie MK4 / Bogner Ecstasy for the thickness and a little grain;
Dream Theater to play I find it really nice.
This amp is the most accurate (Steve Vai forces), it forces to improve his game (which is not bad ...) in fact.
It might seem small to play metal but I do not think so: by adding a drive or boost and an equalizer, there is much to create a sound so different and unique.

OVERALL OPINION

I bought a month ago.
Version 3 of the Legacy came out recently but I still took this one that I liked more.