DC Mark DV40 112 Combo

Unlike most valve amplifiers, which weigh a tonne, the DV Mark 40 112 comes in at just under 16kg, which is unheard for a full valve amp. The DV 40 112 is a two-channel 40-watt all-valve combo with one ECC83 in the preamp and two El 34s in the power amp. The output is also modified by what they refer to as “CPC” or Continuous Power Control, as well as a pentode/triode switch on the back of the amplifier that switches between Class A and Class AB operation. In Class A the CPC ranges from 0.5 watts to 15 watts, whereas in Class A/B it operates from 1 watt to 40 watts, so think of the CPC working as a power soak enabling you to get cranked tone at bedroom to stage volume.

I plugged my Strat into the clean channel, set the gain to about “6”, engaged the “Bright” switch and set my EQ to have a lot of bass and lot of mids. The single coils sounded thick and juicy because of the warm gain, and I maxed out the “Reverbero” (how Italian!) for some delicious Hendrixy chops. The clean channel was very warm and clear and cranking the volume and gain began to produce a thick, magical drive when switching to my bridge humbucker.

Moving onto the second channel the gain, volume and EQ response were completely different. It was possible to go from low gain breakup to complete liquid overdrive by messing with the gain. Incorporating the foostwitch to engage the solo function brought out a nice wide mid boost perfect for clean or driven passages, and you could also use master level to finetune a sweet spot for perfect feedback.

The DV Mark 40 112 Combo is a great, simple to use amp for just about any style other than metal perhaps. The Clean tones are rich and sparkly and the driven tones are thick and juicy. This sort of amp works really well at beefing up single coils and pushes humbuckers into extreme fuzz territory.

For more information head to cmcmusic.com.au. Review originally published in Australian Musician.