V55 Infinium 1x12" 55-watt Tube Combo Amp Review

After 6 years of use...

I bought my Bugera V55 amp from Sweetwater back in 2016 as pretty much a backup amp for my Fender modded HRD. After 6 years of rehearsal and gigging use, there hasn't been a single problem with the amp. I started using EL34's in it instead of the 6L6's and got an entirely new, warmer tone out of it. I don't use the overdrive channel, preferring to run a Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive… read more pedal through the clean channel. Like I said, heavy use, no problems. I wrote a review on the amp when I first got it for first impressions. Now, after considerable use, I can safely recommend it to first time buyers. It's a winner. Tight, punchy and quiet and will roar at higher volumes.

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ZZ Top Brown Sugar

Lots has been said about these Burgera amps. I've had two of the V22 versions. This is my first V55 version - which has the 6L6 tubes for that more fendery clean headroom sound. The larger cab gives some warmth to all of that. It does look kinda empty behind there -being it has one 12 inch 70 watt speaker. Consider the 60 watt fender DeVille which either gives you a 410 or a 212… read more and about the same size cabinet closure. ..Or the Twin reverb. I think Bugera wanted you to feel like you had one of these kind of amps. However at 55 Watts I would say it feels a little lacking if you compare it to those other amps. So don't do that! On its own it's great and totally nails that ZZ Top Brown Sugar sound with thick woody notes. I find the volume to be very tame on it. Plenty of headroom and takes pedals better than my Hot Rod Deluxe. The reverb on it is just okay it's not awful ..but it's nothing super exciting either. Bugera used a Hall Reverb chip on it and it does get the job done. I wish they would have used a spring reverb chip instead. Some have complained that the clean and game channel shares the same EQ, but that's no big deal to me. On initial fire up you may hear the highs to be a bit metallic and the lows a bit flubby. No worries, it just means the speaker needs to be broken in a bit. Once you do - it warms up nicely and the highs get their magic back pretty quick. I've heard it said that it takes about 2 weeks to break the speaker in real good. After that they say you won't want to replace it. Anyway Some things that stand out: Great Tube tone and volume Looks classic and super sharp .. I have no problems displaying it in my living room. Super quiet and no noise coming out of it. Concerns: You will swear this thing is bolted to the floor when you go to pick it up! lol - yes it's heavy. Bugera is known for installing crappy tubes in these. Meaning they don't last very long so you better have a set ready. These amps are known to give you rattle, hiss and static right out of the box from bad tubes. I got lucky on this one and sounded great time the get-go. Best to buy this amp from an established retailer like Sweetwater in case you get a bad one. That weight!!!

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Bugera V55 Infinium Amp

Received my Bugera amp on Thursday and used it for a big Amphitheater show on Saturday. Sound was amazing ! Super clean with only just a hint of amp noise on gain - not even noticeable during song. Super pleased with this amp!

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Novice

What was expected . Old school with options to keep my abilities growing . Best experience in years .

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Amazing amp!

I bought this amp to fill a gap in my collection. An amp that could do a Fender style clean. It does that job amazingly well. And honestly better than some of the actual Fenders I have played. I previously worked for Sam Ash for almost 10 years so I have played about every amp you can imagine. This holds up to all of them and exceeds most of them. I am currently using this with… read more the Friedman BE Deluxe and have an amazing 3 channel amp that can do pretty much anything. As always Kaleed Matmati took care of and followed up. Sweetwater has the best customer service out there.

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