Vox AC30CC2 212 Combo

this is a follow up to another review please see sound quality

with regards to some complaining about under tones, i have 3 other ac30's all with blues, my CC has wharfedales. all of my ac30's have slight undertones when playing over driven especially high up, they are not loud but are there, i was concerned my CC was worse than my other Ac's until i switched the output filter cap setting to 44. this (on my CC) cut the level of under tones to the same as my other re-issue ac's. if some people cannot get rid of the problem i agree that there is a fault. however there is not an ac30 i have tried that does not have undertones when running them full up especially with a brian may style treble booster

This ac30 was made in 2006, it has two channels, top boost and normal. Both channels have Vib/Trem available and a spring reverb. the Vib/trem and reverb are footswitchable. for me, thjis ac30 is very versatile. i play queen mainly and i run this new ac30 in stereo with my older ac30 using my chorus pedal and splitter to get rid of Earth Hum. when used with a brian may treble booster and cranked fully up it really brings the house down.all the tone is there. i will never use the effects loop as i dont use effects too much at all, if i did use it it would probably be for my wahwah.
I use it at home and at gigs. due to where i live i am able to run this amp at full volume without anybody complaining.
The valves, although i am told thye are cheapo chinese valves, the take some hammering when used with the treble booster full up and none of them have broken yet

this new ac30 sounds almost exactly like my older reissue ac30 with blues in it. it suits my music style great, for the queen stuff and for other music like pearl jam aswel. for that sort of stuff i dont use any effetcs at all, just the guitar right into the top boost full up.
when cranked the class A circuitry causes the vlaves to break into the nicest sounding over drive just like the classic ac30 sound we all look for.
I cannot fault the sound

Never had any issues yet, but it is new still, im expecting the valves to break especially the rectifier, however the way i run these amps its fairly normal for me to pop a GZ34 anyway.
build quality is good i dont know what people moan about really,

never needed it yet

this amp is amazing and for those searching for the vox sound, get one! the combination of old and new technology makes this amp a must have.

30w all valve class A. This is the 2x12 with the wharfdales, not the "blues". The rest has already been said. I only gave this amp a 7 because I was very used to having footswitchable channels and was disappointed when it didn't. This meant a rocky start to mine an the amps relationship, but thats all settled now. Couldn't be easier to use.

I use a rickenbacker 360-6, let me get this out now, this amp was made for this guitar. I play everything from blue to quite heavy rock, and the AC30 suits me perfect. (For a fatter humbucker sound, I use an epiphone SG custom with Gibson 490 and 498's) As I said, this amp caters my needs fine. The TB channel has a great overdriven sound. You can really crank up the gain and it still holds together tho, you get great articulation. I use the "blended" channels, and turning up the normal channel volume gives u a great bluesy undertone to the TB channel and puts alot of force behind your playing. Blows away my other guitarists amp even on a quarter volume. If I need a littel more gain, I use a BOSS OD-3 and it comes out with a silky fluid overdrive. (works especially well with the SG) I also have a VOX Bulldog Distortion, but this has taken a back seat now, though the second channel on it sounds excellent through this amp. To get a clean channel, I just role of the guitar volume with a volume pedal. I set it so the lowest volume is just about where the amp starts to break-up. When I strum chords clean, I get a great quite bluesy sound, and singularly softly picked notes are clear and sparkling thanks to the "brilliance switch".
Be warned though, this amp does get quite abit of hum, I find especially with my rickenbacker, thought alot of other reviewers have said that replllacing the stock pre-amp tubes does help, however the hum is nothing that affects my review, just my being picky.

Have only had it three months, however, no problems yet! Would take it to a gig without a back-up. Only given an 8 because I cant really tell yet.

I've wanted a Vox AC30 for a long time, to me they're very much an iconic amp, and when I saw they were releasing the Custom classics to follow up the HW series in a price range more my style, I knew I had to get one. I would definitely buy it again, love the sound. Its exactly the sound I've had in my head all this time. I did compare this amp to the Laney VC30212, which is basically a rip-off version of the AC but with a footswitchable channel. It was wasted. There was nothin on the OD channel, I honestly thought it was on the clean when I first heard it, there was no comparison. I do wish it had footswitchable channels, but thats just me I s'pose

Pretty Well Covered Already. Won't make you read through another list. But I am downgrading this category quite a bit because the the main board of the amp is an printed IC board and there is absolutely no reason that there should not be a channel selector switch on this amp. It wouldn't add $20 to the manufacturing process. Otherwise all good.

The sound quality is the strongest part of this amp. The tone is really and I mean REALLY strong. It is widely variable and is very sensitive to picking dynamics all throught volume and tonal spectrum. Mine has the Wharfedales, but I have A/B'd the amp extensively with the CC2x with Blues. I am completely impressed with those speakers. Yes, there is a difference, yes the Blues sound more like an old AC30, but... here's the deal.... to get an AC30 to sound like a REAL AC30 you have to crank it up soooo loud that it really is not feasible in a band with a modern PA, especially if your vocals have anything to do with your band's signature sound. Even in a larger venue. The band I play in is totally into the idea of overall tone quality and as such we run lower stage volumes. The point is that, in the real world of today's modern and incredible PA's which are so amazingly accurate, you can't really crank up the AC30 up that much anyway. So why not save the dough and get the Wharfedales, run mostly the boost channel and call it done. One man's opinion, but that works for me. Bottom line: The Wharfs are truly decent sounding and enhance the whole deal for me by making it happen for under a grand.

Too new to tell how it will behave in the long run, but so far so good. Purchased it from North Coast Music and Gary up there does a really fantastic job of burning in these amps to ferret out the bad ones. He tells me that the build quality though is really consistent for an Asian amp. He's impressed. He also adds paddles to the speaker leads ends for quick disconnect for tube replacement. Whole chassis comes out on a single shelf. 2 minute deal. Pretty slick, but not as easy as a Fender. My guess is that the Asian preamp tubes won't go very far, so we'll pull them pretty soon. Amplifier section tubes are Sovtek so they're OK. I probably would have tossed the Chinese pre tubes already but, despite their origin - I have to say that they sound pretty darn good. Real tight. Going forward I would speculate that due to the apparent overall quality of the build I would look for this amp to be better than average for a tube amp. BTW, no I would never do a show without a backup. Good way to never play that venue again. Silly question.

Called Korg once on my AD120VTX, they were OK. Got right on my question and got my answer to me same day. Had a gig that night and needed results. They delivered. I have no complaints here.

I give this amp a top rating in tone and build quality. But, it's important that you get a "good one" of anything you get from Asia. As such, I would only consider buying the amp from Gary at North Coast Music, simply because of Gary's attention to detail. Plus, my local GC sells the amp for $999 (just like Gary does), but then you pay GC tax and have to mess with unsoldering the wires to get to the main chasis. Gary ships for free, doesn't charge tax, includes the speaker wire upgrade, does the burn in and changes tubes that show up as microphonic BEFORE you ever see the amp. Then he double boxes it so tight it could be airdropped from a cargo plane in your yard. So, my suggestion, have Gary at North Coast select a good one have it dropped in your living room for less money that you'd pay if you physically fetched it yourself. BTW, I have no affiliation with North Coast. He's just the real deal and I want you to know. FYI, I am pulling 1 point overall here, because I do think the amp should include remote channel switching. I work around it with a powered Whirlwind A/B/Y switch running one lead from my guitar to my effects platform into the A/B/Y, then a pair of lead to the amp, one into the boost channel and one into the boost channel, but that stinks to have to hassle with that. One more thing to mess with before a show. Yes, I would buy one again and would replace it if it was ripped. 40+ years old, play in an active and locally well-known British Invasion type cover band. I serve as the main guitarist for the band and do so with an array from Gretsch, Ric, Gib LP and Fenders. I use several amps. My large venue rig for the past year has been a mid-70's Fender Vibrolux Reverb, but because that amp is semi-collectable, I'll likely use the AC30 for large venues now and take the Vibrolux out for very, very special shows. I did use it at the largest show we've ever played this past New Year's Eve, 40+k people there. No complaints. I use a AD120VTX (stereo amp)for smaller venues and have an AD60VTX standing by at all times as backup. Vox has truly done a remarkable job producing a high-quality, vintage sounding and looking amp at an affordable price point. Very good job overall. Highly recommended from a guy whose owned lots of amps, Pevey's, Fenders, Marshalls, Vox's (currently own 3 other Vox amps, 2 Fenders, 1 Roland and a Peavey) etc. over the past 3 decades.

It's all been covered before by others. Classic features plus boutique ones. Good stuff!

Classic AC30 tones here! Perfect tone for those of us who have always lusted after this elusive sound!

OK, THIS IS IMPORTANT! The man responsible for the design of this amp has stated recently that in mid 2005 they changed several aspects of this amp. First, they stopped using the problematic chinese tubes in the pre-amp section, which effectively takes care of all the "strange harmony" and "popping" problems that so many here have complained about. They also have lengthened the leads to the speakers, making it easier to get access to the chassis. They have also installed a metal plate to better distribute airflow and heat, increasing the reliability of the unit. He also went into great detail about how each PC board was designed and why. It's very reassuring that a large corporation is listening to its customers and improving their product. It would be a shame if some early problems tarnished an otherwise great amp. The unit I have was made late last year, and I believe I can depend on it.

It effectively nails the tone I've lusted after for all these years, and throws in some great new features to boot! All of this at an unbelievable price for a fully tube driven amp. I'm a happy camper!

For those who have posted concern (or dismay) about the lack of channel switching on the AC30CC, I purchased a simple A/B footswitch - you can get the $100 Whirlwind model, or the $20 Behringer model, or anything in between. Just run 2 lines from your amp to the A/B pedal and PRESTO you've got a channel switching amp. Get an A/B/Y box and the channel blend feature becomes switchable as well! It's an easy upgrade for a classic, non channel-switching amp design. Enjoy!

The new Vox AC30CC valve combo that was purchased back in March 2005 has two blendable channels (Normal and Top-Boost). There is a master volume, two types of reverb (lo-dwell and hi-dwell), variable tremolo, and two instrument inputs. Since I am a first-time user of a Vox AC30 and this is my first time using a valve combo amp, I am quite impressed with its ease of use, versatility, and its rugged design (despite certain idiosychrosies such as difficult chassis installation/deinstalltion--like if you ever one day have to repair the amp for any reason; eg valves, capacitors, resistors, diodes, etc).

First and most important is the type of instrumentation and equipment one is using. Don't ever let anyone persuade you into thinking that there may just problems or issues with the amplifier only. Your sound will also be affected by what kind of guitar you are playing, what type of pickups, strings/hardware, type of wood of your guitar, and effects. Now, as with regards to what set-up configuration I use:

Fender Telecaster (Standard) modded with Texas Custom Shop hi-output pickups->Demarco Tone Bender(clone)--> AC30CC. I sometimes also use the provided footswitch to turn on the tremolo or spring reverb. (One day I hope to get a tape echo unit)

I mainly use the Top-boost channel for a more sparkly, jangly, chimey sound (even with distortion); but I will sometimes use the Normal channel with Brilliance to get a more bluesy Fender-like sound. Other than the guitar and effects I use, the speakers of the amp are also important. I find that the custom-made Wharfdales are very good speakers, and I think they just about rival the tone and ring of the expensive Clestion Blueback speakers. It's true that the Celestion Blues may have a more unique tone, but I can't really justify paying more than $300 for each one. Maybe in the future when I have the money I will slowly upgrade my speakers to Celestion Blues (one by one), but for now I am happy and content with the tone, breakage, power and clarity of the Wharfdales. There is one user-review I read at ZZounds.com that claims that Vox should have never offered the cheaper AC30CCs with Wharfdales and that they sound like crap, I have a few words for him, 'some of us do not have the extra money to spend on a stupid piece of metal with a magnet and paper cone', after all it is just a speaker--and yes speakers are important, but some of us would like to slowly upgrade ourselves to better speakers over time. Overall I am quite impressed and happy with the Vox AC30 CC. They should've labeled the amp Custom Combo instead of Custom Classic. Nice sound, good versatility. It has that classic chimey, jangly, sparkly sound, especially when used with single-coil guitars like a Stratocaster, Telecaster, and others. I am not at all dissapointed with its sound, but each person is different, some people may prefer a more bluesy-clean-cutting Fender sound, or perhaps a hi-gain tube saturated sound of a Marshall or Hiwatt. The Vox AC30CC is a very unique amp in its own special way, so don't overlook or underestimate its sound, clarity, power, and versatility. If you really want to know what the AC30CC sounds like, you really need to go to a local music store and try it out and see for yourself why they say "Vox, it's what's happening". See for yourself! You might be surprised!!! :-)

Although I don't use my amp that much; but when I do, the Vox AC30CC has not let me down yet, and I've been using my amp since March of 2005. I have heard other reviews where the users have had issues with there VoxAC30CC giving out because of cheap preamp tubes and other preamp/speaker circuitry issues. And yes, I do belive that most amp manufacturers, to include others like Fender, Marshall, and such, have there own iussues as well. Don't expect any reknowned amp company to make every last bit of electronic component to be top-knotch. They will have to cut-corners in some areas. So if you really want to keep the amp running good and keep it reliable, spend the extra money to have a technician reinstall your preamp esection or other parts of the amp with better-quality components...may cost more, but its worth it, and your amp will probably more reliable than ever before. And yes I will have to agree with most of you who hate spending large amounts of money for something that is "kind-of-good", but what can you do. If you like a certain brand of amp and their sound, stick to it with your heart and try to make things work, no matter what it takes. As with me, I haven't had any serious issues yet, such as "microphonic" preamp valves. But when these issues should arise, and I have the money, I will invest it wisely into having a tech to replace the ECC83s with good ones. Others have also been disgusted with Vox/Korg because they have now relocated their operations overseas to China. Yes it may sound daunting at first, but how does any other place gain experience and become good? Besides Vox is only trying to do the right thing and are trying to make there amps more afordable, yet trying to retain quality and reliablity. Eventaully, a lot of other large amp manufacturers will start making even their "flagship" amps overseas, so what's the difference, change is inevetible, it sucks, but what can you do? So the only thing I can say is that as long as the quality, craftsmanship, and reliablity of Vox products such as their AC30CC remains consistent or even improves for the better, the more faithful I will be in buying and using their products, regardless of where it is made. So please everyone, don't be decieved by others about their stories or even mine. See for yourself!

I have not yet dealt with Vox/Korg, but I heard from many that they can be of good advise and assitance, but some others say that Vox/Korg is denial about some issues, so it's really hard for me to say how Vox customer support is. However, if I should ever have any issues with Vox for any reason, I will at least have a good shop tech overlook my amp and have him/her determine what neds to be fixed/replaced/etc to make it perform better. You have to overcome obstacles one way or the other. Don't be stupid, think, you are in today's world...this isn't the good-old-days(50s, 60s, 70s) where quality is a big deal. Yes quality is very important. But if you want quality, and no one is willing to help you, do what you have to do to make "things work", especially in today's world.

I've been playing guitar for a little more than 5 years, and I'm still learning and practicing. I have two electrics (Tele and Les Paul), and one acoustic (Yamaha F210). In general I play British rock, blues, some forms of jazz, avante-garde, and sometimes adult alternative acoustic stuff (John Jackson, Beth Orton, etc), and sometimes classic rock (early FLoyd, Hendrix, Cream, Yardbirds). On occasion I will play classical and folk on my acoustic. As far as what amp I was going to choose, I was upgrading from a solid-state digital modeling amp, Line6 Spider 112 (purchased in 2001). It was OK, did the job, but I wanted more tone and variety. I wanted real vintage sound, not a fake modeled mask. I found the AC30CC to be a very worthy upgrade. I was consiering of getting an Ampeg Reverberocket 212 or a Laney VC212, but I heard that Laney has weak customer support (and that the VC 212 had overheating issues), and I wasn't sure if Ampeg's tone was British enough for me. Sorry I'm more into the British tube sound rather than the American tube sound, although I still admire and greatly respect the American sound. I figured if Vox dropped there prices down to $999 (STANDARD AMP version with Whardales) I could justify paying $200 more for the Vox than the $799 Ampeg Reverberocket. After all I've always wanted a Vox amp, esp an AC30. It's warm, ringing, sparkly, incisive tone has brought me closer to this amp, and that is why I am much allured to it. I am hooked! It's versatile rugged, and sounds great! Love it!

Vox AC30CC2X 212 Combo Amplifier 2004

Capable of many styles from hard rock to country and everything in between... very versatile amp.

Specs:
30 watt tube amp
Channel One (Normal)
Channel Two (Top Boost)
Link Switch blending Channels 1 and 2
2 Celestian Blue Alnico's
Reverb and Tremelo

You cannot channel switch from normal to top boost via foot switch. (bummer). Not convenient for shows to move from clean to dirty without physically turning the gain nob!

I use this amp for practice at the studio, recording and live shows.
The amp responds great in both settings. You don't need to blast the volume to get great tone at home and just enough power to cut through small venues.

Each channel is unique and flexible providing a wide palette for tonal variation. The link switch combines both channels into one furthering your tonal possibilities.

I test drove both the AC30CC2 (Wharfdale speakers) and the AC30CC2X (Celestion Alnicos).
The difference between the two amps are the speakers.

The Alnicos seemed to add more body and dimension while the Wharfdales seemed muddy and lacked definition.

I paid extra for the Alnicos because past experience told me I would not be satisfied.

The guitar I use with this amp is a Fender Bronco (set up for slide) with a 60's Guild Starfire humbucker in the neck position and a Seymour Duncan Jeff Beck in the bridge position. The other guitar is a Gibson Custom Les Paul.

The Vox AC30 seems to bring out the characteristics of the pickups and guitars. I did not notice the amp driving the guitar. However the amp seemed to preserve the integrity and trueness of the instruments sound while adding shimmer and sweetness like icing on a cake. Not a flat or dull sound.

(Fender Bronco)The Starfire pickup is deep and bright but not crystally.
The amp captures this.
While the Jeff Beck is hotter and drives the amp to breakup sooner.
You'll also become more aware of how heavy or light you attack the strings with your pick. It is almost percusive.

(Gibson Custom Les Paul)20 lbs of mother tone mohagany. Need I say more?

The Top boost channel has 3 knobs.(Volune, Treble and Bass)
The volume acts like gain in that you can control the amount of distortion.
Treble and bass are multi-functional and do a fine job of rounding out your tone.
Turn them up get more treble or bass.
Turn them down get less treble or bass but an INCREASE IN MIDS!
This channel is flexible and helps you to find your sound and discover new ones.

I am able to achieve a range of sounds
clean >> smooth - break up >> throaty growl >> silky overdrive

Your master volume plays the conductor role on the overall presence and power and punch. The Alnicos speakers beg to played at higher volumes. Increase the volume - get that mid range punch.

The Normal channel is the "Clean to Slightly Overdriven" section.
My guitars sound full and wide throught this channel.

Input link switch allows you to combine both these channels take you to the next level.
Simply awesome!

My amp is quite as a mouse even at higher volume. No hum or crackling.
Quality cables are a must have.

The amp is not meant for Metal such as a Rectifier. But you don't see Rolls Royces at the Indy 500 either.

Is the distortion brutal? The amp growls at me.

Sound rating is 15.

I have some reservations about the quality because of all the complaints I seen on the posts in this page.

I also understand and work with contract manufacturing in Semiconductor/ Harddrive Industry from concept to prototype, first article, post production and out sourcing to Asia. There are growing pains but hopefully Vox has continuous improvement initiatives within thier manufacturing organization that help the quality of their products. All munufacturing is headed that way. Better get used to it.

Afer registering my product I got a response within 2 days.
I asked about the type of tubes list in the BOM.

Warranty is 3 months to a year depending on the component.

I have been playing for 22 years. I own 2 guitars, one amp, one bass amp and a dozen effects pedals (all Boss except for the MXR compressor)

I have hours of researching (harmony central), counseling from others, and "hands on" with dozens of amps.
I confused myself with sales literature.

When I went into GC, my intent was Mesa or VHT. (I used to own a Solo Rectifier)

After sampling all these amps, going home and second geussing what I heard, sampling again, I walked out with a Vox.

I am in love with my amp. If this amp was stolen, I'd buy the same amp.

I would like to see foot pedal channel switching.

This is a follow up to an earlier review I did. I felt my findings were important enough to post that I am taking the time to pick up from where I left off.

As mentioned in previous posts this product is not a carbon copy of original AC30's (in fact they sound even different from the 90's reissues) but the tone they produce are good.

Upon further review of the Vox AC30CC 2x12 AND 1x12 models it is safe to say that the product suffers from what I call a "critical design flaw". In an earlier review I stated that everytime I played single note scales on the neck I would hear an undertone (by a 5th) track my playing. Higher tones seemed to exacerbate the problem, regardless of what channel or bias setting the amp was on. This behavior is not normal for a tube amp, on the contrary, it is an indication of a problem. For recording purposes this would render the amp useless because overcompressing the amp (typical in rock music) would bring the undertone out very clearly.

To be sure that this problem was not an isolated incident I tried several amps in several different stores here in L.A. In each store I was able to exhibit the problem to the sales staff in less than 1 minute, and in each store the sales staff was not aware of the problem but agreed it WAS a problem. Unfortunately, this disclosure did not prompt the dealer to yank the product. They just agreed the amp "had issues" and left it at that.

Once I was aware of the problem I contacted KORG and notified them of the issue, asking for direction on how to fix it. Apparently no one there was aware of it either, however once I got them to test the amp on their own they verified the problem exists and that they indeed heard it. Since they couldn't say exactly what component was causing the problem they said it was a "characteristic" of the amp, and essentially something an owner would be stuck with whether they liked it or not. As of this writing they have stated it is not in their plans to fix the problem because the amp is on the market and it is too late to deal with "design issues". Furthermore they also believed swapping tubes out would not solve the problem, apparently they are under the impression this problem goes deep.

After doing more research and listening to the original amps (and 90's reissues) versus the Custom Classic I can also verify that those earlier amps _do not_ exhibit this behavior. This is an inherrent design flaw in the Custom Classic and will be an issue you will need to contend with if you buy it. My recommendation to all current CC owners is to contact KORG and demand they develop a fix for the problem, the amp is still worth owning if they get it right. For anyone in the market for one, I would wait until KORG deems it neccesarry to step in and fix the amp due to poor sales and returns.

I believe this is your chance as consumers to vote with your dollars, and despite the great tone it is an amp one should avoid until it _is_ fixed properly.

First year run (obviously). Has all the numerous whistles and bells noted on the vox website and in the previous reviews. Allows a user to make fine-tuned tweaks to fit their playing style and instruments. Some don't seem to be very well thought out.

Use Tele and Strat style guitars. Tele's sound magnificent, strat's can get a little thin/brittle.

Very quiet amp! Run the amp where it's clean with a touch of 'hair' and use a variety of pedals to add the different gain colors. Amp itself gets dirty pretty quick - if that's your thing, the master and channel volume will need to be up (which is pretty loud). Speaker leads make using an attenuator impossible without some modification.

Hired gun for studio and live work. Americana, COuntry, Pop, Rock, some blues and occassional R&B/Jazz/Funk. Have enjoyed the versatility of the amp - responds wonderfully to pedals and playing styles.

Amp literally died after 45 minutes in it's first rehearsal...really bad tubes. Put in a 'nice' set of new tubes and it's been singing ever since.

Chassis is thin and twists - probably bend easy if bound and pulled on hard during removal from the cabinet. Lots of unfinished metal edges that are pretty good at cutting skin.

Chassis design is really beyond thoughtless...must remove the back pannels, 6 cheap (i.e. they strip EASILY) screws, unsolder the speaker leads and slide the chassis out of the cabinet. Not designed for working musicians - if a tube fails at a show you'd better have a backup amp...you're not going to be swapping tubes during a break or inbetween songs.

PCB boards aren't as thick as they could be - especially with the tube sockets mounted directly to the board...will be a point of failure after a few tube changes.

Toggles on top and slider switches on the back are really, REALLY cheap. Either replace them with heavier stock or don't use.

Screws used throughout (mounting and chassis) are very soft, cheap and strip like butter. Either replace them with heavier stock or don't take the amp apart.

Speaker lead design is...stupid?. Short leads that are SOLDERED to the speaker? What about clips and 1/4" jack next to the extention speaker jack? Must be redone for chassis removal and makes the use of an attenuator impossible without modifying the lead setup.

Responded to email regarding tube failure. Didn't offer new tubes, but did offer a suggestion as to what tube(s) may have failed (and were wrong).

Really great tone.
Really bad chassis design.
Really cheap parts all around.

Jury's still out. Price was right so I thought I'd give one a whirl. Probably sell it and get a Hayseed 30 or another clone...or a new kit and just build one myself...Hayseed is just a bit more and the kits are less. Major issue limiting the 'hang on to it' factor is the moronic chassis design. Just not user friendly...great if you're an at-home player or the amp's destined to be a studio queen, but it's definately not designed with the 'player' in mind.