New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

[Wattage]

Been looking at something small for recording & practicing at the house for awhile now and well I found it. The cleans are outrageous with killer Stones tones and flat out badass hard rockin' sounds all for a stupid $180 brand spankin' new. I am shocked at the bottom end I am getting out of an 8" speaker. This thing is killing me, I don't hink I hardly scratched the surface yet.

It is a modeling amp with 11 different amps and about 11 or so different effects. The small tube in the power stage really seems to do the trick because this little amp has way more body to it than the other similar modeling amps I have tried, lots of guts. I couldn't believe the price, ridiculous it could be this cheap.

Looks cool too!

 

[jeremy]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

well it is still only 15w...
that said, of all the modeling amps i like the vox stuff best. i tried the little vox next to the little line 6 and the vox was a much better amp imo. glad you like it!

 

[Young Angus]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Ive heard great things about the vox modelling amps, this confirms it. Good to hear you like it, if you get any clips with it let us know im sure others like me would like to know what these things are capable of recording wise.

Congrats

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

yeah, they're good little amps for practice

i dunno if i'd ever gig with one tho

congrats

 

[B2D]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

The only thing i don't like about them is that they sound like they got a blanket over the speaker. A co-worker of mine fixed that to some degree with a new speaker and a BBE and now it sounds way better.

 

[MattPete]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Yeah, I always wondered what sort of speakers those Vox amps have. I have a Tonelab, but I run it through a set of nearfield monitors (first through my Powerbook). I would imagine that the ideal would be a set of hi-fi speakers, but I think they have guitar amp speakers. I would imagine that that would color the speakers sims.

 

[Wattage]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Only 15w? Damn it's just for recording, it doesn't need to blow the walls down.I've got plenty of horsepower in my other rigs but they need a lot more volume to really sound right and that just isn't so practical. Gigging with a 15w amp with an 8" speaker, hee hee maybe in an old age home

B2D this thing sounds great, I don't know if they've made any model/speaker changes but it definitely doesn't need a different speaker. It is really well voiced IMO, you do need to change the bass settings quite a bit between models heavy bass works great on one but sounds muffled on another but that kind of goes with the characteristics of the amp models I think.

I am going to check out some of the larger ones if this thing holds up.

 

[Simon_F]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Sounds great! I think small modelling amps are ideal for practice and home recording - I love my little Roland Cube. The big stuff isn't too clever when the kids are in bed. KERRRANNNG!! :yell:

A friend of mine has one of the bigger Valvetronix combos and gets some great tones with it. The only other cranked modeller I've experienced is a Flextone II combo - I think the Valvetronix has the edge.

 

[Mkf411]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I have the sixty watt Valvtronix 1x12 combo and it can be a bit harsh. The distortion can sound raspy. This may be because it needs to be cranked up a bit more. But I'm using it at home.

You can hear what I'm talking about on the valvtronix site. When the Hendrix lick comes on, listen to how muddy and harsh the chords sound:

http://www.valvetronix.co.uk/

It's weird because if you click on auditon button (on the top of the page) you can listen to the Jukebox of Valvetronix clips. They all sound sweet. They're not harsh. They sound great. Maybe they were recorded on the stereo AD-120??

Maybe I should just concentrate on those Jukebox type settings and forget the rest? The problem for me with modelling is that I waste time trying to make all the amp models sound good. And I think some of them never will

 

[Ez74]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

i have the tonelab and i get all kinds of great sounds out of it... seems like vox is cutting prices on these items i wonder if they are going to be discontinuing them

 

[Mkf411]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I'm considering getting one of those. How do you use it? In front of an amp or for direct recording?

 

[Communist Monk]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I have the AD30VT, the 30 watt version. Loves it. You use the "Headphone/Line Out" on the back mkf311

 

[Mkf411]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Yes, I use the line out for direct recording. I run it into a Behringer DI box that has 4x12 cabinet emulation, then to the mixer and then to my cassette deck. Old school, but it works. I really can't tell if the cabinet emulation helps or not. I'm still experimenting. Overall I've got a few good tones, but sometimes it's a bit harsh. I don't have much experience recording, though. It's hit and miss because there's no way to monitor. :smack:

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I think I paid $420 out the door for my AD60 head at Sam Ash. I got the head version, so I could use it as a Tonelab and easily carry it with me, but also because I wanted the option of using better cabs.

I'll be honest, I play far more hours on my Vox modeler than I do on my tube amps, but only because I practice more than I rehearse or gig, this past few months.
My home practice rig looks like it was made for Madison Square Gardens, but is fully practical.
Vox head on top of Matchless Chieftain 2-12 with foam spacers between them.
Vox head powers Bogner 2-12 cabinet or Jubilee 4-12. Thats the gain amp setup
Sounds loud, but with the head knocked down to 6 or 15 watts, it's bedroom level.
When I want clean, I forget about the modeler and plug straight into the Chieftain.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Wattage, are you able to plug the little combo's speaker output into a 2-12 or 4-12?
You should fix it so you can do that, because you can have the sound of roaring Marshalls at superlow levels.

 

[Mkf411]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I think I paid $420 out the door for my AD60 head at Sam Ash. I got the head version, so I could use it as a Tonelab and easily carry it with me, but also because I wanted the option of using better cabs.

I'll be honest, I play far more hours on my Vox modeler than I do on my tube amps, but only because I practice more than I rehearse or gig, this past few months.
My home practice rig looks like it was made for Madison Square Gardens, but is fully practical.
Vox head on top of Matchless Chieftain 2-12 with foam spacers between them.
Vox head powers Bogner 2-12 cabinet or Jubilee 4-12. Thats the gain amp setup
Sounds loud, but with the head knocked down to 6 or 15 watts, it's bedroom level.
When I want clean, I forget about the modeler and plug straight into the Chieftain.

I might replace my AD-60 combo with the head version. I like most of the features of the Valvetronix. I paid $399 for it new. The other day, I ran the line out of the AD-60 to my Avatar cab with (one Celestion Vintage 30 and one Celestion G12H30 70th Year Anniversary Special 8 ohm mono) but didn't like the way it souded running with the Valvetronix stock speaker.

I might try disconnecting the combos speaker and running only the Avatar.

If I get the AD-120 head, is that stereo and do you need your cabinet wired for stereo?

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Thanks for that link to the soundclips MKf411. I'm noticing that they set some things differently than I do, like the OD model's volume is set high by them in the clips.

I think I've realized that much of what people dislike about modelers is the cheaper speakers and cabs. Afterall, how can you judge a modeler with licensed speakers and particle board cabs up against a tube amp with a top of the line cab?

I think the AD120 is a cool amp, if you need stereo, but if not, just get the AD60 since it's more volume than you need for practicing. I think if you use an AD120 into one cab, you just won't have the second side of the power amp.
The only complaint I have about the Vox and most modeling amps is that they're noisy when turned up loud. There's plenty of gain in the Vox for any type of music, but the tradeoff is the hiss. (Make sure you know how to operate the variable noise gate) That's why I stand by the fact that you need a tube amp for highvolume rehearsals and gigs. But for home, the Vox head on the Bogner 2-12 is perfect.

 

[Mkf411]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I think I'll wait until the prices drop lower on used AD-60 heads and pick one up to run with my Avatar cab. I have tried running the AD-60 with the Avatar cab, but it doesn't sound good when the combos speaker mixes with the Avatar's.

I was thinking about disconnecting the speaker in my AD-60 combo and running the speaker out to my Avatar Cabinet. But that might not be good for the AD-60, though.

One really good semi-clean tone that I've found at low volumes is when I use the line out on my Univalve to drive the Valvetronix AD-60 combo. So I'm playing two amps at once.

I run the Univalve (6k6 power tube and stock preamp tubes) on the Roll (clean) channel with all the settings on full and then put the built in attenuator at 12 o'clock.

Then I run the Univalve's line out (instrument level) into the low input on the AD-60 and use an AC-30 patch with Reverb and delay on the 15 watt setting. It sounds great.

I'm running a wet/dry set-up and both amps compliment each other well. IMO the Univalve tends to be a bit bright and the Valvetronix combo a bit dull, but together they make beautiful music.

I'm still searching for a good crunch tone using both amps, but haven't had any luck. I guess I should be glad to find one great tone, but the search goes on....

 

[Wattage]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

I don't think I can push a cab with it the way it is stock. It has a line out but it is line level, good for phones at best.

Does the head have all the same options as the ToneLab? If so I'll be owning that 60wt. very soon. The Vox cabs aren't any good? Man they look cool as hell, how funky to run that set up when every one else is running stacks, that's right up my alley. I've got to learn how to screw with the noise gate a little, it's a bit too agressive in a few spots IMO but that is minor, the Dumble OD setting is fantastic and worth the price of the whole amp right now.

 

[dogcityrocker]

Re: New amp - Vox Valvetronix AD15VT

Ive been looking at the AD60VTX and the AD50VT. The 50 is 1/2 the price of the 60, but it is made in Korea, has a cheaper speaker and fewer options. For the price, you might as well jump up to the 30 or 50. With both, you have the option to set the amp at lower watts (ie 15), which will work out for you as a practice amp yet have a little more umph for small gigs.