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EVH 5150III 1x12" 50-watt Tube Combo Amp with EL34 Tubes Demo

50-watt, 1 x 12" 3-channel All-tube Guitar Combo Amplifier with EL34 Power Tubes, Resonance Control, Effects Loop, Headphone Jack, Preamp Out, and MIDI Input
Rated 5/5 3 Write review Item ID: 5150EL34112BKd1

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EVH 5150III 1x12" 50-watt Tube Combo Amp with EL34 Tubes
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EL34-injected Tone in a Convenient Combo

The EVH 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo gives you three channels of EL34-injected tone in a versatile, sharp-dressed package. Whether you’re chasing modern high-gain tones or the old-school Van Halen brown sound, the 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo tackles both effortlessly. This little amp is a beast — it punches well above its weight with arena-filling volume and monster tonal attitude. Enjoy all the updates of the 5150 III along with a British-infused voice, thanks to the EL34-based power section. What’s more, a custom-designed EVH Celestion G12H speaker yields tight lows, punchy mids, and sparkling highs. You’ll also love this amp's in-your-face black-on-gold motif. For serious volume and monstrous high-gain tone in a compact package, look no further than the 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo.

EL34s for the brown sound

The 5150 III is a standard for high-gain guitar tones and achieving the modern Eddie crunch. But when you need that thick, sustaining tone that Ed made famous on Van Halen’s 1978 debut, you need to turn to this 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo. What really sets this amp apart from the rest of the range is its EL34-based power amplifier. EL34s are much of the tone of the great British rock amps of the ’70s and ’80s. This amp nails those timbres with ease, adding a level of sag and saturation that feels and sounds great, and it will still get dirty with the best of modern metal machines.

Celestion G12H — the sound of rock

The 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo comes loaded with a custom-designed EVH Celestion G12H. This speaker bathes your playing in classic British tone with a warm body and distinctive growl. Featuring a heavier magnet than the original G12M Greenback, the G12H redefined the sound of modern rock guitar from the 1960s on. This 75Hz-resonance speaker model perfectly re-creates the sound of an original high-resonance G12H, giving you tight low-frequency response, punchy upper midrange, and sparkling highs.

New sound, new look

The bold sound of the 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo isn’t the only update to the legendary amp line: the combo was also given a distinct and assertive look. While it shares the famous Van Halen stripe theme, this amp will look sharp in your backline with its black stripe on gold grille design. One look at this amp, and you’ll know exactly what you’re in for when plugging in. It stands out at Sweetwater, and we’re sure you'll instantly fall in love with the amp’s appearance and tones.

EVH 5150 III 50W EL34 Combo Features:

  • High-gain combo amplifier with EL34 power tubes
  • 12" custom-designed EVH Celestion speaker yields tight lows, punchy mids, and sparkling highs
  • EL34 power tubes give the amp a British tone
  • Channel 1 offers a sparkling compressed clean tone
  • Channels 2 and 3 (crunch and lead, respectively) are dark, highly compressed, and saturated
  • Resonance control dials the amp into different cabs
  • Global Presence control and shared 3-band EQ for channels 1 and 2 with an independent EQ for channel 3
  • Effects loop for integrating your pedalboard and other processors
  • Headphone jack for private practice
  • Preamp Out jack for connecting to another amp's power in for multiple amp use, or to a mixing console
  • MIDI In jack for connecting a foot controller for channel selection and effects loop bypass
  • External bias adjustment and test points
  • Special internal baffling ensures ample, yet tight, bass response
  • In-your-face black-on-gold motif

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Note: While demo items from EVH do not include the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation warranty, you can shop with confidence knowing that this item is backed and covered by Sweetwater’s 2-year Total Confidence Coverage™ warranty.

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Tech Specs

  • Type: Tube
  • Number of Channels: 3
  • Total Power: 50W (power level control)
  • Speaker Size: 1 x 12" Custom Celestion G12H Anniversary
  • Preamp Tubes: 7 x 12AX7
  • Power Tubes: 2 x EL34
  • Reverb: Yes
  • EQ: 2 x 3-band EQ
  • Inputs: 1 x 1/4" (instrument)
  • Outputs: 2 x 1/4" (speaker out parallel), 1 x 1/4" (preamp out)
  • Effects Loop: Yes
  • MIDI I/O: In
  • Headphones: 1 x 1/4" (mutes output)
  • Footswitch I/O: 1 x 1/4" (channel, reverb)
  • Footswitch Included: Yes, 4-button footswitch
  • Bias Type: Adjustable Fixed
  • Construction Material: 7-ply 5/8" Birch Plywood with Black Textured Vinyl
  • Power Source: Standard IEC AC cable
  • Height: 22.5" (amp), 25.5" (with casters)
  • Width: 24.5"
  • Depth: 12.5"
  • Weight: 65 lbs.
  • Manufacturer Part Number: 2255010000

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Customer Reviews

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Rated 5/5

EVH 5150III 1X12 50 Watt Tube Combo EL34

MONSTER TONE, incredible controlled feedback that we just LOVE at any volume!!! Caster's a plus and resonance control really adds to a big cab sound. Built like a tank. Sounds awesome. 50 watts is perfect for performing with preamp out to board. LOUD or super quiet with power level knob, extremely versatile! Channel 3 has it's own EQ for lead work, very nice, well thought out. Lots of extras as well, FX loop etc. Highly recommended if you are into high gain amps with easy portability. Just perfect! Thanks Sweetwater for your excellent service over the years!!!!!
Music background: Professional guitarist
Rated 5/5

This amp is a beast with some history.

TL/DR- great amp, great price.

Well hey there heavy metal amp. This is an interesting thing, as the evolution of technology fascinates me. This is an excellent example of evolution of an amp circuit, the internet has a ton of info on how these came about. This amp circuit started out as a Peavey Butcher in the mid 80's, which quickly evolved into the VTM. Both single channel lead amps that were Peavey's 6L6 answer to the Marshall Plexi and Marshall JCM 800 both EL34 based. They called them Mississippi Marshalls. Peavey at the time was known for durable and affordable amps. Like everyone had one at one point. It was what you bought when you couldn't afford a Marshall and you wanted loud tubes that got the job done.
Then they evolved into the Ultra/ Triumph series and added 2 and then 3 channels. Similar tone stack with the improvements to the VTM and Butcher sounds. And then Eddie Van Halen, who had been playing heavily modded Marshalls decided to design an amp with Peavey based on the circuit, thus the first the 5150. All 6L6 powered. Van Halen left Peavey when his agreement was up (they renamed the 5150 to the 6505 series and kept making it), he took the amp to Fender and the ultimately produced the 5150iii, which like the older Ultra series has 3 channels (at least the current iteration- so you can have a clean channel, a crunch channel, and a lead channel) which was his final iteration. This on has EL34s instead of 6L6s, and sounds more like the Marshalls that inspired the amps that lead to this in the first place (the modded Van Halen JCM 800's). Clean is really good, with range from crisp to warm gainy bluesy. Crunchy shares eq with the clean channel, and sounds crisp and very much sounds like its VTM/Ultra forbears but with refinements of repeated tinkering. The lead channel is a lot of gain. Like noise gate gain if you are using active humbuckers and want it at more than 5 or 6. But even with the gain up, it is defined sounding. The EL34's make this a bit more British sounding, as intended, mids are rounder and a bit softer. With an eq box that can be dialed out (but really if you want the tighter hiagh and low and scopped mids, get the 6L6 one) just as you can dial them in on the other model. Overall its very versatile in terms of the tones you can get out of it, with an emphasis on high gain, but also decent for classic rock, etc. The digital reverb is fair. Its nothing to go crazy over, but it is way more pronounced than the reverb on the DSL Marshalls, so you can jack it up and have it be very present in the tone. Overall, this is a great amp and well worth the money.
Rated 5/5

EVH EL34 5150 III 1x12" 50-watt Tube Combo Amp

I concur that this Amp delivers the goods and the customer service was awesome. Highly recommended!
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