Voxes (Ac30)

TimmyPage

New member
There are two pieces of gear/GAS that always come back to me.. the AC30 and the Telecaster.

I'm wondering.. overall are the AC30cc's good? The one in the local store sounds wonderful, though I can't crank it as much as I normally would. It's also been sitting there quite a while (surprisingly) and is played quite a bit from the staff.. so it's proven reliable at very least..

Or would it be better to get the head and the cab? Sheerly so I don't murder myself going to gigs.. 40 pounds is fine.. 70 is dangerous..

That and I'm obsessed with that 60s - Yardbird, Beatles, Stones style - tone, and I love using it in modern applications. That and what I write is usually along the vein of.. Neil Young.. or the Tragically Hip.. or.. Rush from time to time. Yeah.. I'm Canadian.. eh.

Would it have enough headroom for jazz in club or bar or.. concert hall.. style settings? If not my Traynor could handle that issue.

So what do you all think.. Green Light? If not.. try to stop me?
 
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Re: Voxes (Ac30)

Go get it! If ya don't like it ship it to me! I've been GASing for one for awhile. I'm getting to the point of taking an honest shot at getting one.

I have no real advice though. I love the tone of the amp personally.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

I'd love to build or own one. I was thinking about building a DC-30, which is pretty much the same thing sorta. The soundclips on matchless's website are pretty sweet sounding, but first I gotta get this plexi I got going.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

The AC 30 is cool.

At a concert this past week, I asked Scott Bernard what he was using these days.

"A Vox. I travel with a moving blanket, and I wrap the amp in it and mic the amp. It only sounds good cranked."
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

I usually play a Telecaster through the Vox AC30 at the store. It is such an awesome combination. The AC30 is a pretty loud amp, and it responds well to the guitar's knobs and your picking dynamics. And the tone is just heavenly.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

Because it's Chinese made, I set my expectations low, but after playing a bunch of them, I really like them. They're really nice sounding amps, and now that they've been out for awhile, they'll pop up used for really great prices. And they really do sound better and better, the louder they are.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

Nice amps indeed, but not like the old ones, close enough as the tone is really nice!
Some of those Chinese factories are really good and very professional, they are here to do buisness, and they would like to keep it!
The competition is fierce!
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

Well, there an interview with Richie Blackmore where he admits that he has empy marshal 4X12 cab with AC30 sitting in it, from what I understand that a lot of recording of late DP and Raibow was done with that thing and smaller venue gigs too, obviously it was marshall Major time when it came to arenas, but ... I would love to get AC30 from the the seventies or something like that, I believe that Vox are the aristocracy of guitar amps, they really come through if you have something elegant to play, Blackmore, May ... I don't have anything elegant to play yet, but I really want one.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

70lbs dangerous!?:laugh2: C'mon now! I used to have an old Peavey Classic VTX, four 6L6's, and two big Scorpion speakers. That thing must have weighed at least 90lbs. My 5150 cab actually feels lighter!:smack:

Back on topic, I finally got to play a VoxAC30 the other day, not that I'm a big fan of anything less than over the top high gain heads, but man, those have to be some of the sweetest sounding cleans I've ever heard. I played my Strat through my buddies AC30, and wow. The warmth, the way the notes bloom, how they sustain, just incredible. I think that the ultimate guitar/cable/amp rig, would be a Strat/Les Paul, into an A/B box, with an AC30 for cleans, and a Marshall/Peavey/other high gain head for dirtys. If you like it, and can afford, why not? Life's too short to play crummy gear!:fing25:
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

When I think of Vox AC 30's Its either the Beatles or Queen. Brian MAy gets some seriuos sound out of them. I'd love to have one too!
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

I think head would be a better idea as 2x12 combos weigh too much. I prefer the separate head and cab combos cause I can actually lift them.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

I love AC30s. Great sounding amps. Rory Gallagher used them a lot, through the 60s and early 70s, up until Irish Tour '74 which is actually a Tweed Bassman and a Tweed Twin, but thats beside the point. The AC30cc I tried at GC sounded pretty good with a Tele, definetly had that Yardbirds vibe going for it.
 
Re: Voxes (Ac30)

For distorted tones, the AC30 works well with pedals. As far as the comparison between older UK models and the newer China models, I have never had the opportunity to compare side-by-side. But I really like these amps. If I was to get one, I would go for the head, just because I would want the flexibility of mixing it with my different cabs.
 
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