Peavey AmpKit Link Review

I was pretty excited when I read about the Peavey/ Agile Partners AmpKit Link in last months Guitar World. The idea of being able to sit in my recliner and play without dragging out my amp and having power and guitar cables strung across the living room was pretty appealing. The same issue ranked the Amplitube iRig as one of the top apps of the year, so I was interested in comparing the two. Based on the articles, both products are quite similar. I own a Peavey guitar with which I have been very pleased, and a friend of mine swears by Peavey amps. Those factors as well as the fact that Peavey is an American company and the Ampkit Link is about $10 cheaper led me to my decision to go with the Peavey product. I called Guitar Center to make sure they had some in stock, and headed across town on my day off to get my new toy. 

First, I downloaded the free version of AmpKit onto my iPhone 3G. The free version comes with several emulators;  a Peavey Valve King head, a 1x12 and 4x12 cabinet, two microphones, a noise gate pedal and what boils down to an overdrive pedal. 

Next, I opened my new treasure, chucked the el-cheap-o batteries that come in the package, and put in two brand new, name brand AAA batteries.....Check. 

I plugged the link into my iPhone..... Check.

I plugged the guitar cable into my Ibanez AM77 (with black nebular finish!!).....Check.

I fired up the AmpKit App and chose the Valve King with 4x12 cabinet with no effects pedals..... Check

I plugged the guitar cord into the Link and got the green light..... Check

I wind up in my best Pete Townshend fashion and strum a monster E power chord ................ Nothing.

I checked the volume on the guitar, the iPhone and the amp head, all were OK. I unplugged the headphone jack and plugged it back in. Other than a tremendously horrible scratching noise..... nothing. In my frustration, I went for the users manual. When all else fails, read the directions! Only problem is there is no manual in the package. But, lucky for me, the box says there is a manual available online. So I go onto Peavey's site, but to my disappointed, there is no users manual to be found anywhere.

Next step, I email Agile Partners customer service point of contact designated for any Link problems. Now, the longer I wait, the more frustrated I become. After several hours of checking and rechecking, deleating and redownloading and changing every conceivable setting, it' stime to go to bed, back to work for me in the morning. Due to long work days, I didn't have a chance to mess with the Link much for a couple days. Unfortunately, it took Agile roughly three days to respond to my initial email.They recommended I try the Link on another iPhone, so I tried it on my wifes to no avail. I emailed them back with the results, at which time they told me it is probably a bad link, take it back and exchange it. So, it's back across town. I exchange the defective link for a new one, which I test out in the store with a demo guitar, and to save myself another 1 hour round trip. 

This time, my iPhone identifies the Link, and its beautiful music..... Well, sort of... I was getting a lot of static. I remembered reading in a forum that some users had issues with excessive static. Many blamed it on their phones. For me, I quickly identified the culprit as being low E string buzz!! So, after a few turns of the bridge screw on the low E side and a quick tune-up, any noise was virtually gone and it was back to playing. The Valve King head provides a very punchy and bright sound. I switched it to the lead setting, and it gave a gravelly grumble, but not the dirty, garage rock tone I was hoping for. I am a big fan of the Fender Hot Rod DeVille, so when I saw the "American Rebel" available in the gear store, I just had to know. For $4.99 I am now the proud owner of yet another virtual amp. I should learn to read the descriptions better. This amp only comes with the 1x12 cabinet, not the 4x10 I was hoping for. Getting past that, I readjusted my settings, picked the DeVille and matching cab and gave it another shot. At first, the sound was drowned in low end. I adjusted the equalizer, bumped up the treble, turned down the bass and tried again. Better, but this emulator sounds nothing like the warm, classic blues/ rock tone of the DeVille line. I suppose that for $995 less than the real thing, it isn't awful. 

All in all, if you are looking for a replacement for an actual amp and cabinet, this is not for you. If you are looking for a cool and affordable gadget to make practice more fun and convenient, than it's worth the $30 for this little piece of kit.