VK5MV

The VK5-MV is one of a range of valve amplifier kits designed and produced by Aston Electronics.  It is a head unit and has 1 ECC83 preamp valve and 1 EL84 power amp valve and produces about 5 watts.  This amplifier was made in 2007.  This particular model has a single tone control, a volume, a master volume which allows for loads of natural overdrive at very low volumes.  There is another 5 watt kit which does not have the master volume but has separate treble and bass controls.  It is a single channel valve amplifier, which has on the front panel: 1. volume 2. tone 3. master volume 4. On/Off 5. Standby 6. red jewel light.  On the back panel it has: 1. mains socket 2. 8 ohm speaker socket. 3. 16 ohm speaker socket 4. Headphone socket.  I use this amplifier at home but for 5 watts it is very loud soo the master volume control is very useful for me.  A friend of mine used this amp to finish a small pub gig through a marshall 4 x 12 when his JTM 45 reissue broke down.  This type of amplifier does not have loads of features, it's main features are the fantastic tone an simplicity of use.  It has all the features I need, I never use effects loops and control the overdrive with the volume on my guitar.  A reverb would be good and is an option in some of the other kits Aston Electronics produce so Ill give it 9.

I am using this for practise sessions, rehersals and teaching lessons through a marshall 1x12 cabinnet loaded with a celestion G12M.  I use mainly strat type guitars with single coils and humbuckers.  The sound can go from clean through to extremely saturated overdrive.  Mark knopfler to Billy Gibbons.  I use it just on the edge of breakup to do my fairly average SRV impersonations.  It is not noisy at all.  With a compressor and a Rat I can get anything from shimmery clean to full on hard rock distortion.

I have had this amplifier for about a year.  I built it myself.  It has not broken down yet and it gets used most days.  If it breaks down I hope to be able to fix it myself.

Geoff Pugh the guy behind Aston Electronics designed the kits and supplies any replacement parts required.  He answers any questions personally either by email or phone call.

I have been playing 30 years.  Still occasionally gig.  Own JCM 800s, JCM 900s Fender Deluxe Reverb and too many guitars to list.  This little head sounds fantastic for practise and recording.  If I lost it I would build another one and in fact may do a kit with an eight pin and nine pin valve bases so I can try loads of different power amp valves out.