Vox V830 Distortion Booster

the hardest thing is battery access , have to remove all four screws from the bottom , oh well, no use complaining

i'm jus writing this because i had a dunlop fuzz face reissue RED ONE , the one w/ foot switch connected to the pcb board w/GERMAINIUM transistors that i was having a heck of a time getting it to sync with my rig so that i could use it without having to adjust the amp settings everytime i wanted to use fuzz ... and then one day, i picked up this VOX V830 DISTORTION BOOSTER on a whim cuz it didn't cost much and it was TRUE BYPASS, it turned out to be an EXCELLENT PEDAL to stick in front of the fuzzface... i was able to control the volume between the two AND still get all the FUZZZZZ i could handle and it EQ's purrrfect w/ it, i had tried others w/ mixed results none good... THIS ALONE WAS WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION FOR ME! however.. i will say as a stand alone boost pedal it wasn't perfect, there was a sweet spot (imho) if you eq with your decent tube amp but out of the zone though and uugh !! - i'm using a carvin nomad(w/4x12) like belair w/4 el84's & i figured this pedal might match up well w/ el84's cuz vox and it did, it also sounded great before my blues driver ... i love that it's true bypass and it's earned a spot on my pedalboard ... all i have on the board now is a older (stack of dimes analog) crybaby >> CS-2 >> V830 >> Fuzzface > BLues Driver >> Uni-vibe >> - (space open for talk box) - i'm happy for now. it's kinda like someone else said to paraphrase think of this as a utility pedal sort of a filter to kick your REAL dist pedal . i did NOT find it too trebly for my rig as someothers have said - just my two cents worth - - overall my sugestion is at the prices these can be had for try it out. I was glad i did. - thanks

no problems , no issues

???

this is an great pedal if used right and a bargain for sure

Easy? Yea

A buddy of mine who is a purist blues player gave this Vox pedal to me (Thanks Wilson). He liked the boost and I like both the boost and distortion. It's mine now, he's not getting it back.

You get a little hiss when it's pushed, but no worst then 99% of the distortions out there. I use this in front of a Mesa Nomad 45 (EL84s) and it sounds great. As a boost or to add some growl, this pedal is fine. Not really one for Metal, but for most overdriven sounds.

With the steel case you could drive a car over it. Well built. I had it for years now.

???????????????

Distortions are all different, if you see this pedal, give it a try. If you like a singing distortion or a crunch kind of sound, you will not be disappointed.

3 easy knobs: Level, Drive, Tone

Bought it as a completion to the Boss OD-1, to get a wider range of distorted tones when plugged to a Fender Pro Junior

The sound quality is good, except the "Tone" knob doesn't really change much. It lacks a some "bottom", but that's what I was after, to give that little amp an more open sound when heavy distorted. Will cut through the band. Works great together with the guitar knobs, Roll down the volume, and it's clean. Rather quiet, witdh good harmonics great sustain, and nice overdriven midrange. It does the right job with my Fender amp, and gives me a bright sound, that stays nicely open even with high volumes and don't sound muddy. So it does what the Boss couldn't do alone. I thought I would sell the Boss, But it's good to have both in the rig for different rythm and lead work.

In fact it's a question of what you intend it for.
9 - for the tone knob

Really well build. Bought it used, but this pedal can handle a lot. Even the pots still turned like butter.

I play for over 20 years. Now mostly rock with fusion, I've been through some gear, but finally ended with a small tube amp with a decent sound and some pedals, that give me what I was after. My inspirations are very differet and vary with time. Latelly: Allan Holdsworth, Guthrie Govan, Greg Howe, Miles Davis, Bill Brufford and Billy Cobham.

It's always a question if some piece of gear works for you or if it doesn't. A 10, as it really suited my needs.

volume, dist, tone

Think about the name: distortion BOOSTER. The word "booster" is key.

Try playing this pedal through a fender super reverb on 10 that is already in slight power tube distortion. That is the sort of thing this pedal is all about. It has great note seperation. It BLENDS with and ENHANCES your natural power tube distortion sound, it does not replace your power tube distortion like most ditortion pedals try to do.

This pedal is designed for pro guitarists who understand what real vintage tube amp distortion is all about. It is not made to replace channel switching on an amp and it is certainly not made to be placed in front of a crappy solid state amp. Don't get me wrong you can get respectable crunch tone in front of a clean TUBE amp but that's not it's best use.

Ever play a pedal that sounded thick, rich and full through a small tube combo but sounds boomy and muddy through a full size amp with a big cab? (big muff?) The opposite is also true some pedals sound thin and small through a small combo but rage through a large amp with a big cab. (ts-808) More speakers means more bass. Have you ever tried to push a big amp into power tube distortion with a pedal that has a lot of bass. The distortion turns all muddy and sputtery right? Drive the same amp with a pedal with a lot of mids and trebble and your in tone heaven right? What I'm getting at is don't let amateurs who diss things they don't understand prevent you from checking out this pedal.

Someone on this page said the more people paid for it the more they liked it. Hmmm... I didn't pay much at all and I love it. I think it is more likely that people who have nice gear and understand tone like it and people who would be better served by a Boss pedal don't like it. It's like wearing jeans and a t-shirt with $200 dress shoes. The outfit is going to look better with some converse, but that doesn't mean the shoes aren't good.

TRUE BYPASS!!!

You can use it to crush your boss pedals.

If you are an amateur don't buy this pedal. If you "get it" about power tube distortion and pro tone check it out. Makes a great alternative to a clean boost or tube screamer for when you need more hair on your tone.

Really easy to use. Volume tone and drive. The tone control has so much treble, but as long as you keep it on teh lowest level and only change the volume and drive it's ok. And even easier to use. :)

I mainly use 2 electrics, a mid 90's Gibson les paul special and a UK made Hohner Strat with active EMG single coils. I also tried this pedal with a few other guitars. At the moment I'm using a Marshall Valvestate, and a Fender Frontman 15G as my amps, but I also tried the pedal with for example marshall stacks and peavy studio. With a single coil guitar, and the tone control at the lowest level, this pedal sounds fantastic. It brings out the notes really well and the level of gain doesn't affect the brightness of the tone. On low gain it has a great bluesy kind of sound, especially good for funky stuff. On high gain, I get a great sound for harder rock. More of a vintage sound than a metal sound but still pretty high gained. And I can still strum a jazz chord and get all the notes.
The bad things about this pedal is that it has problems to handle bass frequencies. The sound gets too blurry with a humbucker guitar, especially on high gain. And the tone control should stay at the lowest level. After 10 oclock the treble gets painful.

Well built stuff. Never had any problems with it. Been gigging a lot with it and it's always reliable.

Never been in contact with vox about it.

I've been playing for 10 years. I play a lot of different music. (Rock,blues,metal,indie,jazz,hc). I bought this pedal pretty cheap, mostly because it was a vox and I never tried one. It's very trebley and doesn't fit humbucker guitars that well, even if it workes on lower gain, or could be used as a boost on solos. But when I'm using my strat this pedal is my main overdrive/distortion pedal. With the strat, the sound is always clear no matter what amount of gain I use, and therefore it's a good choice for most styles of music. I would definitely find a new one if it was stolen. It would be even better if it was better in handling the bass frequencies and had a more versatile tone control.

the 3 simple knobs... although this takes a little bit of finesse to dial in, but once you do it sounds great.

One dialed in, this is a great and under-rated distinctive sounding vox tube-style overdrive / distortion pedal. As all distortion pedals go, on max settings the unit can be noisy... keep the level knob at about 50% and be careful with the tone knob.. a little goes a long way. adjust the drive knob depending on the song your playing.. this can be cranked up completely without worries and sounds great with a fender hot rod deville. the trick is... let your amp do the hard work, let the pedal take care of the drive. Guitars I like to use with this: 62 fender jaguar and gretsch sparkle jet. Great for everything from t-rex to jesus and mary chain. If you're looking for a distortion that you can play very hard rock and metal with.. this wont be smooth enough for you.

this is my main drive, I gig it every time.

have not had to contact vox, this is a good sign.

very nice overall... this works well for that classic 60's brit-rock vox tone! A superb and versatile pedal.

I mean it's three knobs. What's there to not understand.

There's a pre-requisite for this pedal that nobody seems to say; this should not be viewed as a distortion or overdrive, but as an effect like chorus or phaser (not that it makes those sorts of sounds). This pedal useful as something to either boost your main overdrive pedal or channel, or as an effect to your clean tone to give it something different. This EFFECT should not be considered for a main distortion or overdrive pedal. If you already have a good distortion pedal or an amp with a good second channel then this pedal can be used to great effect to broaden your tonal character. Also, the use varies greatly depending on where in your effects chain it lies.

Definately a solid pedal. Would use this on a gig in the way that I use it, NOT as an only distortion.

n/a

My guitar play styles range from Jimmy Page to The Edge to Dave Navarro and the pedal is most usable in the U2 tone as well as the clean but slightly dirty Strat tones like SRV and Gilmour. I've been playing for 7 years and in my set up I have it after my Vintage H&K Tubeman, and before my Crispy Cream Treble Booster. I've tried it in various positions in the chain and the best place is definately where it is. I tried it at the end of my distortion chain, but if you want to use it in conjuntion with any other O.D. pedal, it looses a lot of it's quality being later on in a chain. It also sounds very good with a TS808, TS9, or Treble Booster directly afterwards. ONLY complaint with it is that the LED was not very bright so I changed it to a flourescent blue to be able to cut through darkness better.

too easy.

bought this one a week ago,spent 3 hours on it and its for sale now...
go for the 2004 tubescreamer ts-808 reissue(vintage 808 are too expensive for the difference) or a vintage proco rat... this vox v830 can do a certain job but its crap compares to a ts 808. my gear is vox ac30+rickenbacker 360 and a gibson 335...
its like waisting your money on a fake guitar instead of bying the real deal.you know the routine,in the end, we all go for the real deal.

probably good.
for those who are still looking to buy one,
i let it go for 30$...
surface_theband@yahoo.com

Volume, tone and drive...but u have to know what do u want to make this pedal sounds good

I bought this about 5 - 6 years ago...used for a while..and then no more...
About one years ago..i started re using this effect...now understanding it's real capacity.
I've a '69 50W Bass Plexi and a 2003 reissue ac30...it sounds best on plexi.

My setting are: level 2 o'clock, tone halfway, drive halfway.
I sound it with a yamaha sg3000 or a washburn simil strato...
The secret is to don't go over alfway in tone and in distortion...'cause too much distortion make any guitar sound the same...and too much treble make loose the bass...
This pedal has not a lot of bass...but my amply yes..so it's good for me!

So..at theese settings it's ideal for that '70 santana sound or eagles sound (think 70's live hotel california)

Good sustain...no hiss...truebypass and cleans very well with your guitar volume rolled back...

Switch isn't very good..i've to change it...
for the rest...all ok

Never dealt

i play mostly (live) '70's music...and i like very much santana...so...it's good for me...
On my plexi i use only truebypass pedal...another point for vox...

It's something like ts-9...natural sounding..and my plexi compensate the poor bass that the v830 has...

Level, drive and tone, how hard can it be?

I play through these pedals varying: Ts-9, Ts-10, STL, V830, Ds-1, Cs-9 and Boss Me-50 and I have Laney GH50L and Engl 2*12" Vintage. Laney/Engl-combination has tremendous potential for heavier sounds that I'm yet to explore.

Only complain I have with this pedal is the tone knob, It doesn't go "mellow" enough. It stays harsh no matter what. I have to use my guitars tone to tame this biting devil down. But rolling tone down produces very good sounds, very similar to Ts-10 and Super Tube that I have, with a little bit of extra edge to go.

After I learned to use this pedal, it totally nailed the sounds I was after: Bluesy hard rock and so on. Still I would like to mod this pedal so I wouldn't have to use my guitars tone all the time. Any suggestions?

It's made in China but it looks rugged enough. I also took a peek inside and it was very tidy looking job. The LED is too dim, hard to see when your on stage.

Can't say.

I'm in a band that plays pop/rock -kinda stuff. My own music goes a bit to the heavier side or bluesy. After a little bit of tweaking I can use this pedal for both.

If it were stolen? If I got it as cheap as originally, I definitely would buy it.

If you can hit the bowl when you pee, you can operate this pedal. You aim in the general direction...
With a wee tweak it's easy to find the two specific sounds that IMO make this pedal a gem.

Excellent pedal for nailing British sounding rock. Sorry for that generic sweep, but it really does bring to mind Marshall Plexi tone. Eric Johnson would like this pedal if he was as poor as I am - a most satisfying violin-like, creamy, saturated drive with just the right amount of singing top. But you've got to keep the tone dial skinned back as it gets a bit shrill when pushing anything but the brownest amps, especially with single coil pickups.
Dime the drive, tone well below noon and bring the level to what you want, and it's my personal slice of inspiration pie. Round, corpulent and plenty of smooth harmonic distortion.
Also does a really nice Voxy grind. Pushes EL84's into that zone for sure.
To sum, tone-wise this is a 2 trick pony, and for a c-note, that's one more pony than usual. And what it does do, it does exceedingly well - in fact, mops up. I'd give it a 10 in its price category, but an 8 in light of the brittle top end. (others might actually like that)

Long after they make flutes from our bones, this sucker will still work - indestructable.

Made in China by the same folks who built the Great Wall. Customer support...who knows? Who cares? This thing will outlive all of us.

Great bang for the buck. I love this little monster for what it is - a cheap way to make any amp crunch and growl like an old plexi, or grind like a hot vox. Apparently it's true-bypass but I've never yet gone through a pedal or switch that didn't do something to my tone. THis one does NOT suck tone as bad as my other pedals - Boss, Rat, Tech21, Wahs or whooshers. It sounds best through my ancient Traynor Mark lll head and 3X12 cab. Also rips it up through a Princeton, vox-like 15 watter, and my Crate VC30 loves this pedal. With single coils, you better watch your high end. Humbuckers push it instantly into violiny tone-zone, and you can bring up the highs a bit more.
I love the chicken head knobs, the old chrome and black heavy duty construction and the word 'VOX.'
If you're looking for a cheap way to add girth, smooth and warmth to your leads, or a very convincing crunch for rhythym work, this little chrome monster is worth checking out.

Is there a distortion pedal that isn't easy to use?

Ironically, it seems like the more the previous reviewers paid for their Distortion Booster, the more they like it! I guess if I had paid $100+ I'd try to convince myself that I liked it too!

How does it really sound? This pedal is okay at best -- has a certain mid-range honk to it that just can not be dialed out. If you like that sort of thing in your tone, then you'll love this pedal. Also, it is quite incompatible with some of my amps -- the Trace Elliot Velocette (like the Gibson amps) in particular. Personally, I wouldn't (and didn't) pay more than $30 for it. Sold mine on eBay some time ago -- more than tripled my money... It seems the value of these is coming back down to Earth now as people are figuring out that it just doesn't sound all that good!

I never had a problem with it while I owned it.

Overall, seems to be very over-rated here on Harmony-Central. They couldn't give these things away before they were discontinued... Probably why they stopped making them, don't you think?

I am absolutely sure that I would NOT include the Distortion Booster in my live rig -- not useful enough. It might be okay to leave laying around your studio in case you need some crappy punk-rock tones. Well, maybe it's not quite that bad. But not much better! It does, however, look really cool though! And by the way, my rating is based on the $30 price point at which I had purchased it. The cheap Dano and Arion pedals are better.

level,tone,drive and your off!

On single notes you get that singing Clapton howl...no fizzy fuzz buzz here.It's upper midrange makes it good for leads but seems to be somewhat compressed for much chord crunch.I boost it with a Reverend Drivetrain which is perfect for chord crunch so when it comes time for those hot lick solos,I just kick this beauty on and dance all night.The tone control is a real mystery as it's overloaded with treble so If you go past 12 on the dial,your sound will be so thin and cold you wished your big German woman Hilda would come home from camping to warm you up or at least let you use her mucklucks so your ears won't melt.You would think these engineers would have figuered out by now how to develop a tone knob that can cover the whole bass/treble spectrum or have a knob for each the treble and bass to open it up ad give it a balanced Eq. This ones a keeper though as it has a tone I like.

Built solid and heavy,expect it to last.

Vox is in The UK but probably have a US rep somewhere,never needed them.

Have played for 45 years and has that definate 60's vibe as it's good for rock and blues.I Play through a Marshall G50RCD and boost it with a Reverend Drivetrain.Compared it to many pedals,and if lost I would buy it again....if I could find one as their discontinued now.

Easy as pie to use-the level controls the level in a very linear way, the tone works perfectly and the gain goes from subtle to screaming. Very versatile without being complex.

Used with a Fender style amp, this effect covers the heavy "Marshall" sounds very effectively. While it doesn't perfectly imitate an overdriven Marshall, it has a complex and heavy tone that lets a Fender cover parts a Marshall usually covers. I have a modded Tube Screamer, a DS-1, a Daddy-O (yuk!) and I've traded tons of other pedals. This thing has become an essential part of 'my sound' and I use it with my Tele, Strats, humbcucking guitars and my P-90 LP JR. It's equally friendly with every one of them, and is sufficently adjustable to give good results with everything.

True bypass and solidly built. Never a problem.

Never dealt with them, so can't comment.

I play mostly blues and classic rock, with a little country and metal thrown in. This pedal manages to cover them all. In fact, if I can get another one at a decent price I plan to use two set to a lightly distorted tone and one full-up to work like a two channel amp. Love it.

Three knobs and a footswitch. A trained monkey could use this pedal...and maybe an untrained one, although I don't think an untrained monkey could play very good guitar. But who knows? Maybe the world is waiting for the first primate guitar player.
The manual is satisfactory. It tells what everything does.

I am playing through this with a homemade Telecaster (traditional setup) and a Deluxe Strat Plus with lace sensor pickups. I run my effects setup (mxr phase 90, crybaby, DD3 digital delay, tube screamer, vox distortion booster, jim dunlop tremolo) through a Fender Performer 1000. I dig the Fender's clean sound and slightly dirty sound completely, but sometimes you have to go crazygonuts with some mean distortion. This little metallic wonder gives me a close approximation of the meaty wonderful distortion I get out of my little Vox Pathfinder amp. It sounds great and adds some really nice roaring-but-melodic, classic distortion. Hint: use it with a tube screamer and amp distortion for relatively controllable feedback, which can be cool under certain circumstances. Sound quality is so subjective its hard to say "yes, Sonny, this pedal is what YOU need! Hallelujah!" But if you like tasty distortion for overdriven leads and rhythm, try it out. If you don't like it you can sell it to some gearhead on ebay, maybe for more than you paid.

Seems pretty reliable. The thing is made of chrome and tough black plastic. I'd say even though I haven't gigged with it extensively it should hold up as well as my other pedals, which aren't build as solidly. I'm not a wealthy musician so I use all my pedals without a backup. It's a hard fact of life, but sometimes you have to rock out ghetto-style. I take care of my gear so that's usually not a problem. It's always a good idea to keep the drunks away from your rig at live gigs, though. I don't think spilled Mai Tais ever made a pedal work better.

Haven't dealt with the company. As stated earlier I haven't had it a long time, but it shouldn't be hard to get someone with a basic knowledge of electronics to re-solder a few wires or replace a footswitch, whether they work for Vox or not. It's not rocket science.

I play music ranging from surf to hard rock and rockabilly if I were to put it in a category. A generous friend said we sound a little like Tito & Tarantula (we're not THAT good) This pedal helps me get the distortion I need for some of the hard rocking songs we do. I tend to look for a distortion that doesn't sound like everyone else. I try not to fall into that category of sounding like every jackass who plays a strat. SRV clones, you know who you are. The Vox delivers a sound that's not a cookie cutter distortion. It's capable of being rather transparent at low volumes, but when you turn it up, look out, Jack! You're playing with fire and it's going to be fun!
My favorite features of the pedal are the simplicity, ease of use, cool looks and wonderful sound. If you like the distorted sounds of people like Lenny Kravitz, the Clash, U2 and basically anyone that used a Vox amp you'll like this. I suppose you could get more distorted than that with this pedal but it sure would be muddy. (I'm no metal head, but this offers some dangerous sounds that don't sound like metallic cheesyness)
As compared to my other distortion unit, the Ibanez Tube Screamer (TS10)it can do everything the 'Screamer can do and more. Set it low for a slightly overdriven boost. Tweak it up a few notches and you are in rich distortion and sustain heaven. (be careful with that volume knob, son...It's a might powerful)
If it were stolen or lost....first I'd cry, since its attached to my pedalboard, most likely some jackass now has all my pedals. After assuming the superhero alter ego of Condor Man and doing some serious damage to the responsible party's cranium I'd...take my pedalboard back. But if I couldn't find it I'd probably replace it if I had the bread. Getting an AC adaptor is recommended. This is the best sounding distortion pedal I've used, and the price is nice compared to a lot of boutique pedals out there (Fulltone, Diaz, etc). It'll rock your ass ALL around. The rest is up to you, Grasshoppa.

Its very easy to use. This box is VERY tone sensitive so you can really dial in your sound, almost like a precise air strike of rocking.

Its great for achieving a Hendrix style fuzz bomb. Even when you've got the drive turned all the way over, you can still distinguish notes in the low, mid and high ranges. But seomtimes, its a little too much and you get this heavy robotic sound from it. Its easy to over do it with this box. With high tone and drive, the sound gets sort ofgrainy and robotic like I was saying before. Kind of bothersome.

I've never had a problemwith mine. Its solid metal, very hard to break. Just make sure to unplug the cable from the INSTRUMENT side of the box if you are using 9v batteries. Oh and don't step on it and turn it on late at night when your fumbling around your dorm at 4am to get a drink of water in the night. The battery goes out really quickly.

I haven't had any problems so I've never had to deal with Vox. Being a discontined item, I bet it would be hell trying to get help from Vox. Just a theory though

Its simple, and straight forward. I like the sound a lot. I use it on a thinline tele and a Reverend Hellhound amp and its a great effect for hard rock. But you can get frustrated with the tendency for this box, when you are messing with it, to breakdown your tone.

Easy to use. Just crank the drive, find the right tone, and get the volume setting right.

It is crunchy but not to crunchy. It could be a little more clear though. It doesn't sound like any metal stuff or regular rock sound though. The tone knob gives a good tone all around. I have an ashdown bass head going through an avatar cabinet, may have been a cheap cabinet but it is better than cabs 2x or 3x it's price! I use it on my Ibanez btb 515 bass and it sounds pretty good. It could be better though. It's almost and 8, not a 7.

If you don't have an ac adapter it could be a little repetative replacing the battery every couple of months. It hasn't broken down yet.

Never had to deal with them.

I play metal but sort of an alternative style of it. It works pretty well but I'm getting an electro harmonix big muff pi pedal soon. I've been playing for 2 1/2 years. I don't love or hate it. It just works fine and does it's job fine. It helps out with the music. I'm also adding the electro harmonix bassballs pedal. Still a good pedal but not too main stream or contemporary.

Nothing more than 3 knobs - but it takes a little time to find the right setting you're looking for

Used with a '67 reissue Gibson flying V or a Epiphone Union Jack Supernova on Orange 120W Head and 4x12 cabinet.
Used mostly coupled with a BOSS overdrive/distorsion OD2.
As shown by the name it's a Booster so when used with a normal distorsion it has a wonderful sound - used alone its not as good (too warm sound, very crunchy -- DIRTY!) but it's fun and nice for distorted solos - not for chords. This pedal expresses itself better when used along with other effects.
On my Orange amp it has a wonderful sustain, dirty enough but not sounding like metal.

I think it's a pedal for those who look for a true british/70's RocknRoll sound (Rolling Stones, Hendrix,...) and maybe for punkrockers too (But Clash rather than louder stuff)

Metal aficionados won't like it, i think (but has anyone seen metal guitarists play on Vox gear????)

All made of steel.
Your grandson will still play on yours.
But i wouldn't trust the footswitch too much.

Never dealt with them. I know it's discontinued. But i dont think anyone would ever need to have one repaired.

Info & schematics at www.voxamps.co.uk

Great sound, built like a tank, soooooo beautiful : i give it a 10.
You'll love its design.

If it was stolen the guy would deserve death penalty! It's my favourite one.

EASY TO USE... if u cant turn 3 knobs that is.

the worst sound i have ever heard from a distortion pedal EVER. i had a boss PW-2 power driver and that sounds sooo much better. if you really need something that will make ur guitar stand out this is it, but it wont make ur guitar sound good AT ALL.

metal case, its solid as hell. I've had it for a couple of years now and its still in great condition, but thats cause i hardly use it.

no I DEAr

I play alt/metal/rock and this pedal doesnt do any of them well, i've been playing 6 years, I have an Epiphone Dot, a yamaha pacifica, a De'Armond M65, and a variety of pedals, if it was stolen i'd get money from the insurance and go buy ANY other pedal cept this one. I hate the way it kills any tone your guitar had, and the way it just suxs soo bad.

Easy to use right out of the box. Pretty self-explanatory. The tone knob is extremely sensitive.

I bought this pedal after I bought the Valvetone. The booster is not as well defined as is the Valvetone. I use both pedals though. I like to run the booster in front of the valvetone. I use it when I need a little more edge. By its self the booster sounds too "nasally" and sharp. It seems no matter how low I set the tone knob the booster is still too sharp. Granted I do play it through an AC-30 which tend to be sharp anyways. It sounds pretty good in front of another overdrive.

Great! Never had a problem

I e-mailed vox about some nos mullard tubes for my AC-30, but they never e-mailed me back! Maybe they're busy!

If I lost the dist. booster, then I wouldn't but another one. I would buy a fulltone. If your pocket can't afford a Fulltone, then buy a valvetone!

It's easy to use: level, tone and drive controls. just tweak here and there--basic distortion pedal.

The sound is very "crunchy," and I really don't like that. it's almost harsh-sounding, not the smooth drive I like. but that's just me. I use it through a solid state 12" speaker amp. I can't say that I really care for the sound at all. I can't get good sustain out of the pedal...but sustain is what I want out of distortion.
and playing high, trebly notes (i.e. solos) is shrill and painful. there is no "ching" or "ch-" sound when palm muting...quite disappointing.

tough stuff. but, the dials turn a little too easily, so an accidental bump would really screw up your settings.

n/a

I like rock and roll, anything pre-1992.
this pedal is really for niche users. if you like this kind of sound (very crunchy, little sustain and "ching") then you'll love this pedal. don't expect to play metallica out of it. it's not heavy distortion. axlroseusa@netscape.net

It'sm hard to get a good sound.... :((( but it's easy to use - 3 knobs.

I'm using Fender Stratocaster USA with mini-humbucker SeymourDuncan HotRails. This effect really sucks.... I bought it because I wanted to get better sound than my BOSS Blues Driver. But with vox distortion booster i can get only sound like LED ZEPPELIN or GUNS'N'ROSES - On a stratocaster!!!!!! humucker and single sounds the same! it really do mess with the sound. I am uusing all-tube WEM Dominator amplifier from mid-seventies.

Friends told me that this is "a distortion BOOSTER", not distortion, but when i plug my guitar to vox, the vox to my blues driver, and to the amp, it sound only good, when vox is not it the circuit. when i turn it on, i sound like GNR. To bad :(((( I cannot depend on it. Sorry

Never dealt with them, but i think i should... :-/

Overall? Let's say it is REALLY UNDER THE good tone of the stratocaster. I don't like it at ALL. Everyone is saying that this effect is one of the greatest distortions, like TubeScreamer (TS9). Don't believe them. :(

Three knobs overeasy.

I play in a sixties garage cover band and I use this pedal for fuzz. Sounds great through my Vox C-30 twin and Carvin SX-200, both solid state. Sounds best with humbuckers. With my Epiphone Dot (neck pickup with treble at zero) I can really get that fuzzy sixties tone. It is a little noisy when you turn it up but hey, I'm in a garage band so I shouldn't really complain...

Knock on wood but I've never had any problems. Seems more solid than my Danelectro pedals which, even though they weigh more, feel cheaper. I have used it without backup on gigs. I'll give it a 9 just in case.

Don't know.

For sixties fuzzy dirty sounds, this is perfect. I've been playing on and off for ten years but just recently got a little serious, joining my first real band. If I lost this pedal, I'd definitely buy another one. It does what I want it to do with minimal fuss, which is exactly what I need.

I have never known any distortion pedal to be too difficult to figure out... This one is simple enough. Played with it for 15 minutes before I got the tones I wanted.

I play a Hamer USA Studio with SD 59 pickups through a 67' Fender Bandmaster. My amp was modified, and it now has a built in overdrive channel, but I wanted to be able to call on some really dirty distortion if need be. The v830 really just doesn't deliver. I have it next to a v847 Wah-Wah, and I keep thinking that the wah was left on. The other users who complained about their low-end being cut out were right on. This pedal simply flattens out your tone, making for a really cheap sound. However, I have found that I can really beef up my solos using the drive on about the 10 o'clock setting. If you are playing in a large ensemble and really need a riff to stand out, this pedal can really do the job, just don't forget to turn it off before playing any rythm lines.

Vox pedals are very well built. The foot switch seems like it could be a bit flimsy, but I haven't had any trouble yet. Plus, the chrome housing is soooo nice.....

Never dealt with them.

I play mostly rock, with some indie and blues thrown in. As I said before, if you just need to crank out a solo or two, this pedal can really help you out, but other than that it just doesn't cut it. Not a bad pickup for $40 bucks though, as it can be usefull.

It has three knobs, don't need to say anything more about this. You may need to twist a little with both the pedal and the amp and you can get a GOOD VARIETY of sounds.

I'm playing it with an Epiphone SG (G400), (with grovers and Gibson 57' reissues) and sometimes an Epiphone Wildkat. My amp is a Marshall 5212 (2x12 Celestions) with two channels, clean and overdrive.
It is a bit noisy on the highest gain settings, but I hardly ever set the drive to more than 14 o'clock. I use it as a distortion booster on the drive channel, and it is a great sound coming out. Doesn't destroy the guitar's sound at all. It sometimes sounds even better when I use it on the clean channel, with the treble and bass (on the amp) set at 9 o'clock. It cleans up wonderfully when you turn back the volume on the guitar. You can get really wonderful tones there. Very 70ish, which I like a lot. Could come pretty close to Neil Young's distorted sounds at times. But I like to have my own sound.
I think it's the best distortion pedal for the money, if you like 70's rock. I don't think so, I'm certain!!! :)

I've had it for almost two years without a backup. Never failed me.
It looks awesome as well. One time, a guy asked; "Oh, nice pedal, I guess it costs A LOT?"
As some have said, to change batteries is a bit time-consuming, but if you have a good screwdriver, you can do it in 3 minutes...

I play a lot of rock, blues some jazz (a lot of folkmusic as well, but I don't use this one then!!). I'm very satisfied with this pedal. I've tried a lot of other pedals but this one beats them. I'm currently interested in buying a Fulltone Soulbender. I guess they won't match each other too well, but since they're both true bypass (which I'm VERY FOND OF) it won't be any problem (except that I have to buy more batteries! :( )
I've been playing for 5 years, and i use the pedal when I'm soloing (which happens to be very often, we're really into jamming) and sometimes to get a dirty rythm sound. I find it wonderful when turning back the volume on the guitar, it's an opportunity many players forget. I never gig without it with the rock bands I'm in.
As I said, I'm going to buy a Fulltone pedal soon. I hope that won't mean I won't use this one any more. But I like to vary my sound (in that way I get inspired), and it's not because I dislike this one. Not at all.
I recommend this pedal, for the money it's awesome, and even those of you who look at the price tag and think it's too cheap, try it out!
(my rating should be 8.5!! :)
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions

Like most distortion pedals, its very easy to use.

I'm using this with my AX84.com Hi-Octane amp (although this is a variation that uses a KT88 in single-ended mode for around 15 watts). The guitar is an Ibanez GAX70 with duncan alnico pro pickup in the bridge. The sound of it is quite good into my amp as long as it is used as its name implies, as a BOOSTER. Whether you use it as an overdrive or an overdrive+distortion it works fine. If you use it purely as a distortion pedal, it can sound rather lifeless as some of the reviews indicate. However, since it is supposed to be a booster, I don't fault it in the least, just as I don't fault it for not being a chorus pedal. It does what it is supposed to do well.

Seems built pretty well. it has a real switch on it instead of the little plastic pads. Its always a good idea to have a backup. If it went out on me I still have my amp which sounds awesome on its own.

I play a variety of rock music, mostly post 1980 stuff. I've been fronting a 3-piece rock band for around a year and playing guitar for ten years or so. I got this real cheap from a guy and I'm a cheapskate, but I think it would be worth $50 if you bought it new, provided that you don't ask it to get awesome distorted tones without any help from your amp. If you use it to boost a good amp, it works fantastic and has a nice british type of character. My DS-1 is very similar, but it sounds a little more american in tone. Not a bad thing. They both complement my amp.

It has three knobs, level, drive and tone. turn them up or down. pretty simple.

I play an epiphone dot (with gibson pu's and grover tuners) through a 50 watt sovtek head with a 2x12 avatar cabinet. I've got a load of cheap distortion pedals, and by far and away this is my favorite one. I got it for 60 bucks off of ebay and it's been my main pedal ever since. Okay, here's the deal, I play in a punk band but hate how everyone just plays les paul's through marshalls. ick. The vox gives me a very trebly "razor blade" sound that cuts through the mix like a mofo. It does cut some bass off, but that's what I like about it. I like to turn my amp up about half to where it's just breaking up then I turn the drive on the thing to about 9 o'clock to get just a dash of distortion. It sounds really good to me, but you might want to check it out first cause I don't think it'll appeal to everybody.

I've been gigging without a backup for a couple of months now. Seems to be really solid.

never had to deal with them.

I've owned a boss ds-1, a dallas arbiter fuzz face, a big muff reissue, and a danelectro pastrami overdrive and this pedal is my favorite. It should be noted that I'm not into gobs of distortion, and I don't think that this pedal could do it so you heavy metallers look away. This is a great mild distortion pedal. would be good for punk rock, indie rock, space rock, any kind of rock.

It is very easy to use. Level, drive and tone chicken head knobs. What kind of sound I want from it depends on what other effects I have in my chain.

I use this with a Vox AC15 reissue (blue speaker), a Vox Cambridge 15, and a 67 Fender Bandmaster. I like it best with the Bandmaster, cause it really dirties up that clean Fender sound. My only reservation is that it tends to cut off the low end. But with my Telecaster switched to the neck position, it delivers a great "Sunshine of Your Love" type of distortion. When I use it in conjuction with my Vox 810 Valvetone, it acts a a true distortioin booster, magnifying the overdrive into something much nastier. Great sustain.

It was driven over once, while in the box in its bubble wrap. Still works fine.

I don't know about customer service, and I don't anticipate needing it. I sent my V-810 Valve-tone to Don "Tone-man" Butler, who replaced the cheapo caps and resistors with carbon comp stuff. I may do the same with this (cost: $45). If I could get better low end I would be really happy.

I have a fairly clean style, but if I want to play the lead from "Taxman" or something this pedal comes in handy. If it were lost or stolen I would weep and wail and gnash my teeth, then see if I could get one for cheap on eBay, where they tend to show up all the time. It looks cool and sounds cool.

I just got mine today at a pawn shop ,been staring at it for about two years I tried it on their equipment .When i got home & hooked it up I fell in love ,this is what i've been looking for.I play on a fender strat(usa),fender vibro champ (tube).I need something else to go with it, my amp doesn't have any reverb. I like blues ,suthern rock & balls to the wall heavy. From stevie Ray to Zakk Wylde.OH HELL YEAH!!!!

I need a wah ,sustainer,reverb &chorus

Simple layout, level, tone, drive. Not hard to use.

I've used this pedal with a variety of guitars. A les paul custom, an American tele, Mosrite, 70's Mustang, and even a semi hollow Fender Coronado. I run those into a Blackface bandmaster with a Rat and a musicman HD130 with the Vox into a single Park 4X12 cab which I wired stereo. It's more than sufficed with all guitars. I get a nice amount of crunch. Crisper than the rat, but not as round of a sound. With a little phase it can sound very evil. Really cuts through.

I gig with it many times without a backup. Solid construction. The housing is nearly indestructable. However, the switch sucks, replace it right away. I own 2 of these. The first one went after about 6 months, the second after 1. I replaced them with a Fultone 3PDT switch from Stewart Macdonald, it's an excellent switch, I've used it in other effects too. With the new switch I give it a 10, with the old one a 7.

Never dealt with them.

I play rock with a bit of a punk influence. I've only been playing guitar around 2 years now, but I've played bass for about 9. I own entirely way to much gear. Including the guitars above I also have a Fender Bass VI (strung B-B) an American P and Jazz bass, Mesa Bass cabs, a 30 watt sovtek (very good amp for the money) And too many pedals. And I wonder why I'm always Broke. If it were lost or stolen I would hunt down more, this is my sound, I love this pedal.

Doesn't get any easier. Two big, funky chicken head knobs and one stomp button. That's about as simple as it gets. The knobs are great, you can adjust them on the fly in the middle of the song very easily.

I use this pedal for a wide range of guitar tones. I play mainly through a Fender Blues DeVille 2x12 and play a Les Paul Studio and a Semi-hollow Tele. So, as you can tell, I play a wide variance of music styles. I need to get some heavy crunch on some stuff, and also just a little grit or sustain for other stuff. This pedal has come through for me. As someone who hates real nasily and trebly guitar tones and relies on "fatness" for all styles, this pedal gives me more crunch without sacrificing my tone. It really cuts through, also.

As I have had my Vox pedals for over 4 years (of heavy gigging) and never had a problem, I can say--without a doubt--that these are one of the most reliable pedals you will find.

Never had to deal with them.

In my opinion, this is--by far--the best distortion pedal you can get for the money. I play anything from blues-rock to modern/hard rock and this pedal can do it all. I use it in conjunction with my TS9 and can really get the phat tones that I need. If stolen, I would replace it immediately. This pedal allows me to keep my Fender Blues DeVille and still get the heavy crunch that I need for our modern/hard rock stuff. I highly recommend it.

Like any other pedal, one applies pressure to switch in order to persuade said pedal to activate itself. This pedal is amazing. When I read all of the other reviews, I thought, "Billy, this just can't be as perfect as all that, surely there has to be a fault." No faults. At low volumes, when your roommate is sleeping, it delivers, and at high volumes, when you are playing outside or during a jam, it works brilliantly. All of the controls are rather self explanatory, "LEVEL, TONE and DRIVE" Level affects how loud it is, TONE affects how much high end sound comes out, and DRIVE puts in the distortion. I've not had the balls to use it in conjunction with my amp distortion, as I worry that it will be way too scratchy or loud, but by itself, it makes my crotch wet. I like to pretend I'm a decent blues/rock player, and this really makes my playing sound great. IF you do not own this pedal, buy it. The only way you can find it now is if you happen to come across it used. VOX, in their infinite wisdom decided to stop making them because the kids weren't buying them. I've heard this pedal sounds like a pile of puke compared to the V810, so I am looking for one of those, but this is the pedal to have. drop your DS-1s, your Fab Tones, your Daddy Os, and even your Rats... this is it, baby. I seem to have digressed... I didn't get a manual, but does one really need a manual with a pedal this easy to use? Kick the drive all the way up, the tone all the way down, and the volume to taste and put a (vox)wah pedal before it and you get the niftiest sound you can imagine.

Telecaster>(vox)wah>V830>Dan-Echo>Cool Cat>Fender Hot Rod Deville 4X10. It's only noisy if you aren't playing. The effect produced by this pedal is never weak, nor is it overpowering, it is simply THE sound. If Jesus was a pedal, He would be this. I can get the sound of Eric Clapton, I think anyways, with the afore mentioned settings and a bit of tweaking on the chorus pedal, and I can get a "Hey Bulldog" distortion with the tone a little bit higher. It is a versatile, amazing, all round kick butt pedal. I would sacrifice 100 bulls in it's honor.

This is a vox, pedal anyway, and they CAN'T break. I would like to see one of these go out. Even with a low battery, it kicks my other distortion pedal's arses on numerous occasions. I wouldn't need a back up, I am that confident. Would Jesus let me down?

Because they are so dependable, I have never had to talk with Vox about their pedals at all, so I am going to give it an obligatory 10.

If this were stolen, I'd probably shave myself and join an Egyptian cult. There are three things that I need to live. Food, Sleep, and this pedal. The casing, the colors, the simplicity of it, the chrome, the rubber, the chicken head knobs, the little red light... I get moist just thinking about it. I would give my left testicle to ensure its safety. As far as value goes, I know that this pedal has changed my musical life. You can get so many sounds from this little box... it really puts things into perspective. This is my favorite pedal in the whole wide world. I don't go anywhere without it(unless I'm naked).

Easy to use. Three knobs... How difficult can it be.
LEVEL, DRIVE and TONE. Seems a pretty versatile pedal, much tone control. But i do not like the sound with my amp.

I use this distortion with a strat copy, and a Fender Deluxe 112 Plus.
This thing does something to my amp which REALLY sucks.
It filters all the "depth" out of my tone, and with distortion above, say 12 o clock, it sounds as if you were trying to cut glass with a chainsaw. Just a very harsh distortion, no sustain, no warmth WSE.
My impression is, that you should not use this one with single coils and a solid state amp

Only used it for a few weeks, then shoved it under my desk, and never looked at it again. It looks really tough, built like a tank.

Never had to deal with anyone adout this one

Maybe it is a good distortion, but it sucks for me.
Just trying to get rid of it asap.

Quite easy... 3 familiar knobs that you see on most distortion...from left to right... level, tone, drive. Don't have the manual bought this used.

I tested this straight into a tech21 psa-1 preamp into a crest power amp and into marshall 4x12 cab. Used a speaker emulator preset and "plexi" preset.
It's a bit noisy on most extreme settings but that's a distortion so it's somehow normal.
This distortion pedal let's your guitar sounds its own thru it, wich I like... That's the only distortion I've heard on its own thru a speaker simulator alone that sounded good to me...(so far) on distorted sounds adding this can get you a pretty heavy hard rock sound wich is great. And it's true bypass!

Yeah I'd depend on it, woudl use it without backup.
The switch is easy to replace, has some people seem to have had problems with it from what I read here... I'd replace this with a carling 316dpdt footswitch(DIY frequently used switch) if it ever fails me.

No experience with them...

I play mostly anything I feel like... Been playing for 10+yrs.
Gear I own shown at; http://www.angelfire.com/pq/glorbz/BunkerStudio.html
Stolen or lost I'd try to replace it since this the best distortion/booster pedal I've had so far... What I love about it? TRUE-BYPASS!!! and I got to say it looks really nice:) Nothing I really hate about it, nothing I wish it had that it hasn't. It helps me get different flavor out of my gear wich is great, a very musical pedal also good for guitar volume knob usage, it cleans up well. This thing is really close to a AC30 distorted... now I've gotta hunt for a vox valvetone to see if it does the AC30 overdriven sounds as close as this does for distorted! A great thing to add to your gear for recording if nothing else!

Volume, Gain, and Tone. If you can't figure out how they work, give up on life and become a drummer.

While getting the sound is simple enough, battery changes leave a lot to be desired. Unscrewing the 4 screws in the bottom plate to change a battery is a pain in the ass. On the other hand, it can be powered with an AC adaptor.

The signal from my guitar goes through a Wah and EQ before hitting the Distortion Booster. From there the signal travels into a heavy fuzz, a compressor, and a reverb unit before being sent into the low gain input of a Marshall 50 watt JCM 800.

The distortion from the Vox can go from fairly mild and smooth to very fuzzy and trashy. One thing that is a constant is a very nasal midrange which gets honkier as you increase the gain. This pedal was meant for cutting through a mix and it doesn't dissapoint. Some players will be turned off by the lack of low end, and metal players may not find the kind of sound they're looking for, but for rock this is it.

One great feature sound-wise is the fact that these pedals are true bypass, which means that when they aren't on, they aren't robbing your signal of high end sparkle like some other popular brands.

One small bit about noise. The pedal can be pretty noisy at high gain settings, or when using 9V adaptors to power the pedal. My advice is to stick with batteries for power.

Appears to built solidly, but I have a backup for it just in case.

For hard rock this is one of a rare breed of distortion pedal - one that gives you as much or as little raunch as needed without masking the sound of your guitar to the point where every guitar sounds the same through it.

Typical distortion pedal controls - one for the volume, one for the gain, and one tone control. So simple even a drummer could use it.

Signal chain is as follows :

Guitar
EQ
Distortion Booster (2 of them)
MXR Blue Box
EQ
Flanger
Delay
Marshall JCM 800

The Vox adds a very ballsy saturation to your signal without turning into mush. The distortion has a very pronounced midrange which will cut through band even with the tone control set for full bass. The sounds cleans up very nicely when you roll back your volume control, and the unit only becomes noisy when you peg the gain.

FWIW, I own 2 of these pedals and set them to "stun" (everything at 12 o'clock) and "kill" (volume at 9 o'clock, gain at 3 o'clock, tone at 12 o'clock).

I've yet to gig with my setup, but the Vox pedals look sturdy enough to take a beating and not give up the ghost. With two of them in my pedalboard, my backup is taken care of.

This pedal shines for rock applications. It probably won't make gain a lot of metal distortion fans, but as a way to spice up your signal it does wonders.

easy to use, easy to get a good sound

best smooth-sounding distortion (not overdrive) I have ever used

dependable so far

not yet

no longer made so I bought a second one while I had the chance, great sounding distortion pedal, plenty of gain, and good for all types of music

The 3 knobs are interactive, so you have to dial in your sound. However thats what it cool about it.

This thing sounds great with a Gibson. Think Mick Ronson from Ziggy Stardust album, or "Alright Now" from Free. Or even "Freebird" solo tone. Very 70's british solo tone. Can be piercing with tone turned all the way up. Halfway down is perfect. Lots of gain on tap, great for sustain in solos, but never sounds metal.

Had mine a year, nothin' but battery changes.

Great pedal for british sounding leads. Others say it's too nasally, but I love the"hump" it has. The same as my favorite players had on 70's records.
Too many pedals push too much bass and low mid and lose your solos in the mix. This cuts through like the solos did on those old Free, Queen, Foghat, BOC etc. albums. Too bad they stopped making them!

It's simple. There are just 3 nobs: level, gain, and tone. The only problem is that you have to remove 4 screws to change the battery, so I just use an AC adapter

I use it with a Epiphone Gibson Special Model 1 and a 10 inch Peavey amp so it suits my simple needs. It has great sound for the music I play except it gets kind of noisy at the highest setting if you let the strings ring. It is a definate must if you play hard rock, heavy metal, or 80's rock. It probably wouldn't work for light music. It has a very smooth tunneling distortion, which I like.

It is definately dependable. It has a thick metal casing that will withstand anything. I am worried if the button will break, though. I would have no trouble using at a show.

I only got it recently, so no problems.

It is a good start-up pedal because I have only been playing for less than a year. It has an awesome retro look with chrome plating. If it were lost I would probably invest and get a multiple effects pedal. It has a cooler sound than the valve-tone(V810). I just wish that you didn't have to adjust the level when you change the gain.

With controls for Level, Tone, and Drive, there's no problem in figuring out how to use the thing.My only gripe is that to replace the battery you need to unscrew the whole base plate.Sort of time-consuming.

I use this with either a Fender Jazzmaster or Fender Strat(stock,except for a locking trem that I installed),through a early 70's Fender Bandmaster Reverb.In the tore when I tried it out it sounded really sweet,but........Well,First off,try to stay away from florescent lighting when using this pedal,because it makes a heck of a lot of noise.Secondly,it sounds great when I'm using it at low volume in my room.However, when I've used it at practice or to play a set...BLEAHHHHHHHH!!!!I really didn't expect the nasty,nasally noise taht this thing spits out.It's impossible to get rid of the pervading trebly honk.I really prefer a more bassy/midrangy distortion.And, something that doesn't make so much extra noise.

It's a heavy metal case and can most likely stand up to a ton of abuse(which is probably the best thing about the pedal).Like I said,it's noisy so it helps to have a backup.As far as batteries go,it doesn't really drain them to fast.

I haven't had any problems(well,ok...I haven't been able to get a good sound,but that's another story...).Therefore,no reason to call them.

OK,here's the final analysis....I'll give it this,It's nice and simple.( I recently got a Dunlop Fuzz Face,and love it.IT'S SIMPLE!!!)I suppose some players could get a decent sound out of this.My advice would be to try and crank the thing BEFORE you purchase it and see how you like it.I mostly play modern rock/pop,and it's just not my cup of tea.I wouldn't miss the thing if it wound up stolen(except for the gorgeous chrome housing),and I'll probably wind up trading it in for something else.Like I said...Try BEFORE you buy!!!

The 3 knobs are very simple.

I'm using an 83 strat and a fender blues deville. This pedal is as noisy as most distortion pedals. The tone is not bad at all. However, it is plain. If you can get a good price on this, it's probably worth it. This effect does make for an excellent lead boost. My only complaint is that the distortion lacks in the low end. You'll fall in love with this pedal if you're into that piercing treble sound. Personally, I don't want to go deaf from using this effect. I bought the Ibanez Tube King after having owned this effect for a few months. The Tube King is similar but is much fuller and richer. The Tube King also has more gain. The highest distortion this pedal is capable of is punk - no grunge, hardcore, metal, etc. This effect can have a usable overdrive like sound - I can see it being used for blues when plugged into a tube amp. This distortion can't really produce any fuzz sounds either. My suggestions are not to buy this effect for any heavy distortion. It does have a nice, ordinary, distortion sound though.

The housing is nice looking. It has true bypass switching. It seems like it will last.

Both lead and rhythm sounds are usable. Not much personality. Many people enjoy the sounds in this box though. However, there are better distortion units in every sense. This pedal is becoming more and more inexpensive, so, in my opinion, this pedal deserves a 9 for its value. It really beats everything else in its price range.

It's pretty simple to use with only three knobs: level, tone, and drive. There wasn't much to the manual but it wasn't really necessary.

For a reasonably priced stomp box, this thing has an incredibly full and natural sound. Although it's not quite as fat as other pedals such as the Tube Screamer, I find that it's much thicker. The only problem is that it isn't as versatile as one might like. It kicks major ass when at full force, but when you turn the distortion down, it really loses its flare. I play it through a 60W Fender DeVille 2X12, which has a lot of kick and bass, and when I step on the pedal, it seems like the sound coming out of my amp got its legs chopped off-- it totally loses it's power and strength. But basically, when you use the right amp and the right guitar, it's got a great sound for playing stuff with Green Day-ish distortion. Also, when paired up with a Dunlop Wah, the distortion booster is the ultimate rock distortion pedal.

I've had the pedal for almost two years, and I've recently started having problems with the switch. It sometimes doesn't completely kick in, and I have to turn it off and do it again. Also, my drive knob is fucked, but I don't really care cause I always leave it all the way up.

I haven't yet tried getting help for it... but soon.

All in all, it's a great rock distortion pedal. Although it certainly is not without its flaws, if you hook this thing up to a Marshall stack, and put an 80lb Les Paul behind it, it kicks a lot of ass. Otherwise, be careful. Give it some good testing before you buy it. You'll hate it with a passion, or you'll love it to death.

Very easy to use with just 3 knobs. But they are very interactive, so expect it to take some time to dial in your sound. The manual is very brief.

As a clean signal booster, it works very well, reasonably quiet. I've used it in some experiments with a $1.50 piezo transducer from Radio Shack as a temporary pre-amp. We also use it with a Marshall VS65R, it can overdrive the tube even with a "lower power" guitar. It also does a nice job with a Trace Elliot Tramp. When engaged, it tends to emphasize the Treble end of the tone. Perhaps I will be able to fix this with a capacitor change in the future. You either will like or not like it's distortion. We will use it as a test platform and exchange it's clipping diodes for LEDs, germainium, and other experiments, but we still like it's qualities as is. Please remember the amps we use it with, both have excellent distortion qualities of their own. My son can do Petrulli with his LP clone, or SRV w' his hotrodded Mex Strat, so he's happy. (He really can sound quite a bit like those guys!)
I disagree with those who find the V830 overshadowing their sound. At higher settings, of course any clipping diode pedal like this will bury you, but working in the lower end of it's range and with high end gear, especially good speakers, it is a contributor, not the dominate force.

I bought it at GC new for $30 bucks, figuring I would get at least a beautiful case out of the deal. It is SOLID. The foot switch looks a little cheesy, but hasn't quit yet. Battery life seems to be very good, which is important since you have to remove 4 screws from the bottom to change the battery.

no contact

I would buy it again and pay a normal retail price. It has a lot of applications for us. I'll put the $1.50 piezo pickups in my accoustics and use it as a preamp. It provides good distortion with my Crate 12" practice amp for the Sunday eve pickup band at church, and it contributes with the Marshall and Trace to make good sounds. I really don't hate anything about it. I really like it's appearance and performance.
I only buy stuff at Guitar Center when they have really good sales. I was fortunate to get such a versitle piece of hardware for a very good price.

it's really easy to get a great sound out of this pedal. you can get a huge variety. all you have to do is press the foot switch. one tone knob, one level, and one distortion makes it that easy.

i love the sound i get out of this. i usually play ska and punk and the pedal is just right. i use it with a little fender bullet and a fender squier strat. (my first amp and guitar, they kinda suck)

well, i just got it just about a month ago, and i haven't had any trouble.

i haven't had any trouble with it.

i think it's a great pedal for punk and ska. it was a great value.

Very simple Level, Drive, Tone. However I dont like how the level must be totaly re-done every time when the drive is changed thats why it got a 9 not 10.

Very quiet! Very Strong! Very Vintage! Very Sweet! This is a great sounding vintage distortion I have heard none better in my life. Dont buy this is your looking for something els. It totaly drounds out your personal sound but it still does what it is ment to........... Brings back memories of Cream.......

YES ITS VOX!!!!!!!

NO IDEA NEVER HAD A PROB

I give her A 10. This is a great pedal for the money it sounds so cool! I love the vintage sound. IT LOOKS AWESOME!!!! CROME AND BE-UTIFUL!

This pedal is very straight forward,Level,Tone,Drive.The manual SUCKS!But you don't need it anyhow.

I'm using this with a Gibson LesPaul Standard and a Fender Strat through a Fender Hot Rod DeVille 4x10 guitar amplifier.I find this pedal really de-personalizes your guitar tone and doesn't respond all that well to dynamics .I get the impression that this pedal sounds the same regardless what guitar you use.Don't get me wrong this pedal isn't all that bad,it certainly lives up to its name in that you can dredge a lot of distortion out of it.With the drive knob set at 2 o'clock or more it gets very gnarly,subtle it ain't.But I like distortion so that's O.K.,it's the midrangy honk that's a little overbearing after a while,kinda sounds like a wah-wah pedal backed off.I suppose that's what sets this pedal apart from the rest.I believe they designed this pedal to sort of emulate Vox amps when overdriven.This pedal is pretty noisy when you get into the higher range of distortion,but that pretty much comes with the territory,it's only Rock'n'Roll afterall.

Can't really say, I've only had it for 6 months, but it seems reasonably well constructed,but I haven't giged with it or put it through the abuse a professional musician might inflict upon it on the road touring.

I've had no problems with this pedal so far.

I like ZZ TOP but this pedal doesn't dial in that tone.I've been playing guitar for over 20 years.If it were stolen or lost I wouldn't buy it again,I would probably check out the Danelectro Fab Tone instead.The V830 has a good crunch tone but it needs better EQ control to make it more versatile.

It's a one foot button distortion box.

I loved the sound at first. It's almost a tube screamer. Very close. It's a great tone heavy distortion, and sounded great through my Vox AC-30.

Well, here's my problem. I went through 3 of them. And the foot switch went out in all three.

Nill.

After the third one failed I gave up and spent a little more on the Ibanez Tube Screamer. It's more sturdy (though not nearly as cool looking!), and just gives more of a real tube distortion.

Has the usual distortion, tone, and level knobs. If you dig the mxr distortion + then getting a good from thi sound wont be hard. But changing the batteries wont be easy. You still have to remove four screws from the base plate to access the battery compartment. Still dont know why they never learned.

I was checking out pedals at Tom Lee when i noticed they had the new Vox pedals. So i decided to try this one out along with the vox valve tone. The valve tone was too weak for my taste so that left me with this. Once engaged, i noticed a sort of mxr distortion + kinda vibe. It was raw, meaty, and was able to sustain notes very well. It was also very dynamic. Roll of the volume in your guitar and you get a clean to slightly overdriven tone depending on your pickups. So i decided to buy it. When i tried it with my peavey classic 20 and les paul special, i noticed it was edgier than the shops roland blues cube i tested it on and i was able to nail a sugar type sound. But for some reason, it sounded one dimensional compared to my blues driver. Maybe because its bass respone isnt too stong. Anyway this pedal gives of a truly unique and awesome sound when used with a half cranked classic 20. Great for crunchy riffs and droning parts. And when mixed with the blues driver, it gives a nice fuzzy character kinda like suede. The tone control of this pedal in my opinion isnt very dramatic but a least you get more control over your sound. So for those of you who dig vintage distortion, i suggest you try this one out.

This thing looks sturdy and reliable. But unfortunately for me, i had too choose the one with a slight problem. Yeah it sounds great but it has a tendency too lose volume or die out when it is stepped on. But this didnt happen when i was testing it out. Hopefully its just a little switch problem. But overall build quality looks good.

I would buy another one because mine has a footswitch problem and i cant replace it cause i was in vacation when i bought this. Just hope the next one i buy works fine. Well over all this pedal sounds great especially with a slightly cranked tube amp.