Vox AC30HW 212 Combo

The verb and trem sound amazing. It gets very loud and has that brilliant "sparkle" that attracts some of us. It would be nice to have a second channel so to have a clean and dirty channel but, my ZVEX super duper 2in1 more than covers for it. An effects loop would have been helpful too, but, then again, a true bypass can fill this space in perfectly.

OK. THIS AMP SOUNDS BRILLIANT!!!!!! It really is my "dream amp". The reason for the low rating.....(perhaps this should be in the reliability section).....I've been trying and trying to get rid of a "ghosting" issue for a long time. When playing chords high on the fret board with the high E, B and G string there is a ridiculously annoying, dissonant overtone that turns the "vox sparkle" into mush.

Well, it's never broken down but, it's hard to rate high with the ghosting issue. Also, the mesh and sticky cover scratch, stretch and tear easily. This is not much of a problem as, I prefer my amp to look used.

This is a bit of a story.....
I originally had an AC30/TB re-issue that had a horrible ring. I tried to get rid of it with help of a local amp specialist with no avail, sent it away to vox and had it returned months later to find that nothing had changed. THIS IS WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING......You see, I teach drum lessons for a local music store. My boss (the store owner), was telling the VOX rep that I was considering returning my VOX and buying a MESSA BOOGIE Road King(Bad choice, I know). The rep made some calls and agreed to sell me a hand wired AC30 for the same price as the Road King.

Pretty cool.

I just wish I had some warranty left over so I could get my ghosting problem fixed.

Nice amp, amazing VOX sound but, an unfortunate blanket of un-usability.

Hopefully I can get this fixed soon.

Then I will change this rating

Two inputs hi and lo....volume, treble, bass, cut (trem- depth, speed), (reverb-mix, tone) master volume.

This is the best AC-30 ever made. I've owned them all, and this one takes the cake. I was never a big fan of reverb on an amp- but I must say this amp has made me change my opinion- it really is amazing. The trem is great too. The clean tones this amp produces are classic AC-30 chime, and when it overdrives it is very dynamic, touch sensitive, and musical. The master volume is very usable as well. You can run it at less than half-way, crank the pre-amp, and still get a very punchy, ballsy lead tone. Operates with very low noise in comparison to most tube amps I've owned which is an added plus. I'm really thrilled with this amp, and can't wait to find another one as a backup or to run with stereo effects. 10 all the way. Best AC-30 ever!

This amp has been very reliable up to this point. I've had it at about 20 gigs, and it hasn't shown a bit of an issue. It does tend to go through EL-84's more often than say a Fender would go through 6L6's - I replace them about every 6 months or so. This is pretty typical with AC-30's and in comparison to other AC-30's I've had it is less of an issue. EL-84's aren't overly expensive either, so this doesn't bother me too much. Put in the best tubes you can find and it will be well worth your money in tone. Most reliable AC-30 I've ever had- but it is still a tube amp, and a tube can fail at any moment regardless of the amplifier. I always bring a backup to a gig...although I've never had to use it with this amp. A 10.... for a tube amp.

I haven't had to deal with Vox at all, but I understand that they are friendly and helpful when it comes to customer service. God knows they have to be now that they've moved there operations to China. So much for finding any new UK made Voxes. What a bunch of sellouts! Very disappointed with Korg!!!

I've owned a lot of amps over the years- and this is one of the best of the best. It really has a special tone, and makes playing very enjoyable. I personally could not be happier for my needs. If you can find one of these... consider yourself lucky, and don't let it pass you by. If you do- please email me, so that I can grab up a second one. These are lifetime partners in tone. I spent a ton of money on this, but I feel that I got what I paid for and then some. Well worth every penny.

The amp has a master volume as well as very controllable tremolo and reverb, tone 'cut' feature is very usable. The amp, because of the simple design, responds to different tubes both preamp and output.

We all like to write reviews and pat ourselves on the back at how we picked the perfect amp...well, this amp 'may' be perfect if you are looking for an amp that fits this context. This amp is not a high gain monster, though it will overdrive and distort with OD/distortion pedals in front of it. The natural distortion from the amp is very warm and musical, not tight and focused as much as creamy and full. This is probably as much to do with the Celestion BullDog speakers. I have an AnalogMan silver TS9 and a fulltone OCD in front of this amp and it is sustain/tone heaven! I use a custom shop Fender 54 strat with Texas sp. PU's and an old 60's Gibson Les Paul Deluxe with soap bar humbuckers. The reverb and tremolo work excellently not cheesy or overbearing. The reason I like this amp over the chinese AC30CC is that this amp is stone QUIET!!! the chinese custom classic was HISS city! so bad I couldn't use it...(cheaply built too...)this amp is built solid and performs excellently! I have owned many other class A amps (Matchless, Bad Cat, Carr, Vox) this amp EASILY outshines all of them....in class, tone, quiet performance.

the amp is new, I expect it to eat output tubes and outlast me...

no idea....

this amp is very expensive, but, for what you get...the headaches avoided and the tone gained....it is priceless!!!!!!!!!!

N/A

This is a follow up review after using the amp for over two years now. Best ever AC30. Bought another one of these.

I have used the amp for over two years, at least 260 gigs, stays in the equipment truck, no road case, just a cover. As expected zero problems. Only maintenance: Changed output tubes twice. Ei's.

Don't need it

Still solid 10's all the way around. Simply a great amp. Bought another one.

Single Top Boost channel with added 2-knob Reverb,Tremelo, and Master Volume.

I'm using this amp with both a 57' reissue Strat loaded with Custom Shop 54' pickups, and a stock 61' reissue Gibson SG. Effects include an EH Deluxe Memory Man, Fulltone 69' Fuzz, Bad Bob Booster, and a reissue MXR Dynacomp. The amp sounds equally great with both guitars. With the strat I get a wonderfully detailed sound, sweet chimey highs and great but not overwhelming lows. The SG is really able to push the amp into surprisingly high gain realms. The Celestion Blues always keep the sound detailed with absolutely no fizz or farting out.
The Reverb is more subtle than that found on Fender amps, but great sounding nonetheless. The tone knob acts almost as a second dwell control as well. The tremolo does the job, but honestly is nowhere near as complex as the original. Different circuit I realize.

Excellent. Over two years with no problems whatsoever. I haved owned the TBX reissue- actually two of them- and they were a nightmare.

I called them once for a Owners Manual as well as for a footswitch. They were very helpful both times.

I love it. Sometimes I feel it's too much amp for me, but I know I would kick myself if I ever sold it.

Great add on features compared to the origiginals. Reverb and a master volume added on. Got rid of extra channels which I never used. Trem now on tob boost channel - makes sense.

It's all about class A sound I say and no amp does it better then this amp! They really took this amp to a different level and changed the character of this amp and gave it a little more of a more modern personality to it - I just love it! I would rate it an 11 if I could.

Seems like it's built like a tank with good quality parts.

People seem to know there stuff and have been quite helpfull.

Would rate this amp an 11 if I could - love the tone of this amp. Don't just think beatles this amp does absolutely everything! Got to now find myself a back up one to gig with.

Single top boost channel from the originals with the addition of a master volume, reverb and a much better tremolo. Great improvemnts and the single channel is all you need.

I have has many, many, many amps and have to say this is the best sounding amp I have ever owned. I love class A amps and no other manufacturer touches this baby! Mind you they are the ones that invented the whole craze. Boogies, and all the boutique stuff soesn't come close. As well the celestion blues just sound so mucial and chimey. Would rate 11 here if possible.

Built like a tank! ALl components seem to be of greater quality - knobs, pots, transformers, tubes etc.

Support has been great so far. Really good at answering questions.

Worth every buck. I am already in the market for a back-up one incase anything ever happens to this one. Great job to Vox/ Marshall on this limited run model.

Great improvements from the originals. Trem, reverb and even a master volume.

KILLER! Would type in forever to describe how much great tone this amp has.

Built like a tank just like the originals. Basketwaeve tolex looks amazing but you must be carefull as it tears quite easily.

Local support is great.

Hands down this amp is a keeper in my collection. If it was stolen I would definitely have to replace it with another. Now that the so called ciustom classics are coming out of China I am sure these rare handwired collectible ones will go up in value. I tried a Chinese one and they are great bang for your buck but not nearly in the same league as these handwired ones made from the Marshall factory.

This is a great amp, with the best features of the AC15 "reissue" (master volume, reverb, tremolo), the power to handle big gigs, but the ability to sound great at bedroom volume. Reverb tone switch actually is nice---I prefer the darker tone to the brighter "surf" reverbs, and this unit delivers both well. Tremolo is better sounding than the AC15, which was better than the Fenders in my opinion. Tone cut, is handy I suppose, but I tend to prefer in your face sounds ala Marshall, so I rarely cut the tone (presence) more than a tad. As is true with the AC15, the natural tones are so good, that you don't really want to use effects unless you must for a particular song, so no need for an effects loop for me.

I play blues based rock, with a touch of Van Halen style noodling, primarily using a Big Apple strat with Seymour Duncans. Amp works fine regardless of the pickup combination used, but I find myself drawn to the neck single coil, to get a semi clean tone. 335 delivers the goods as does gold top Les Paul. Distortion isn't brutal--it's very defined and articulate in the mid range, so if you set the interactive tone controls right, you get a lot of non-fuzzy distortion, which still allows the individual notes of a power chord to ring out. Amp can tend to be bright, even with bass up high, but dialing back the treble a bit, or adding just a touch of tone cut, handles this issue well. Loud volumes can be clean as you like, or dirty, since the preamp and master volumes, coupled with the loud class A watts, give you all the choices for sound. But the roaring feedback/harmonics aren't the default overdriven sound of this amp, unlike a Marshall, so those sounds come from a nice pedal (for me it's a Chandler tube drive), which pushes the front end hard.

It's relatively new (2003) and appears very durable, though the tolex is a bit fragile. First thing I realized after trying it out was, I never want to part with it, and as a result, if I wanted to gig with it, I needed a road case. For me, it's an investment, but even more so, it is the amp you want to use as your main rig, so I hope the road case keeps keeps this amp cosmetically clean and functionally reliable.

No dealings with the company, so no opinion.

I've been playing for 35 years, electric for about the last 20. I own a Marshall JCM 800 50 watt half stack, 1964 Fender twin, Rivera fifty five twelve, Vox AC15, '87 Blackie strat, '94? Big Apple Strat, '83 Gold top Les Paul, '76 Gibson ES335, Tayor, Gibson, Guild, Larrivee acoustics. I would definitely replace this amp, as I would the AC15--they are both the real deal Vox tones, and in my opinion, there's no points in buying something else to get this sound. With my other amps, I have the flavors I want for rock, blues, jazz, and don't need anything else (no grunge, rap, disco, death metal)

I purchased this amp from Zzounds at a discount. Apparently, it had to be sold as damaged because the box was damaged. However, the amp was in perfect shape. What good fortune. This amp is very versatile. It is different from the originals as far as channels and such, but I'm not too worried about it. It sounds great. I do kind of wish it had an effects loop, but if they left it out in deference for circuit simplicity, I'm fine with that. I use this amp primarily as a clean amp in a two-amp setup including an Orange 1d-140tc/Orange 4x12. It has just enough clean headroom to play high volume gigs.

Probably one of the best (if not the best) sounding amps I have ever played, which include a 69' plexi, 66 twin reverb, etc. It was designed and built with one thing in mind; producing an amp that could yield all of the classic vox sounds faithfully in one amp. It has a master volume, which allows you to get an amazing grind at non ear-splitting levels. I play in a band that is a modern rock of the style of radiohead/themarsvolta/interpol, etc., and this is my clean. ...and it sounds glorious. I need to get one of the new custom classic amps so I can retire this one from the road. I am insane for even thinking of taking it on the road. I think there only like 250 of these made? The distortion is not really brutal. It is smooooth.

No problems so far.

Amazing amp.