Vox AC50 Head

1963 single channel small box candy panel. Controls: volume, bass, treble pots. Single power switch with no standby. Three preamp tubes, not sure if they are all ECC82, ECC83 or a combination. A pair of EL-34 outputs. Single GZ34 rectifier. No second channel, no channel switching, no loop. Cabinet is North Coast Music AC100 4x12 repro with four Celestion Alnico "Blues" and two vintage Goodmans Midax horns. This is the amp the Beatles toured with circa 1963, except they utilized 212 Vox cabs with a single Midax driver. This was designed as a very clean amp with low preamp gain, lots of headroom, volume and very little distortion. Does what I need extremely well and lacks nothing in that regard. Produces a fair amount of heat which is channeled nicely out the large top vent. I rate it a 3 because it's a one/two trick pony and not a swiss army knife.

The absolute HOLY GRAIL of vintage clean amps, sharing the throne with the mighty Vox JMI AC 100. The biggest, boldest, open and airy bell-like tone on the planet. Destroys all Fenders including the custom shop stuff. I use this amp with many different guitars including relic strats and teles, Gretsches, Ricks and Gibsons. Turn it up and get instant Mike Campbell. I can see why the Beatles used these. Simply Superb.

Great, no problems. Vintage Voxes catch a bad rap for blowing up but you have to keep them maintained.

Not even...My tech takes care of my amps.

Playing for 35 years for personal enjoyment, not pro. I also own a '62 and '66 Vox AC30, 1967 Marshall 100 watt, 1972 Marshall 50 watt, Rivera TBR-2M, Rivera TBR-5 and Rivera S-120. If my AC50 were stolen? Don't wanna think about it...These early AC50 amps are now impossible to find. I've seen one on Ebay over the last 12 years and even the later large box versions are getting very scarce. If you are looking for this style amp with "the BEATLES sound" I very strongly recommend checking out the current production Xits X50 amp which is astounding and offers a second channel with higher gain.

1963 JMI Vox AC50 mounted in a NCM repro small box cab. This is the SINGLE CHANNEL version with bass, treble & volume controls, four jack input arranged in a diamond pattern, candy colored panel, three preamp tubes, a pair of EL34 outputs and a GZ34 rectifier tube. No reverb, no channel switching, no loops, no whizzers, no nothing. I think it's the simplest tube amp ever made. I pair it with a NCM repro Vox AC100 open back cab loaded with four Celestion Alnico Blue Bulldogs and two vintage Goodmans Midax horns. The amp is not versatile at all, but that's not a bad thing, as it does what I need (see sound quality rating below). I use this amp with my tele, strat, Les Pauls, Gretches & Ricks for original material heavily influenced by the Beatles, Marshall Crenshaw, early Joe Jackson and 60's guitar pop. Has plenty of power, no issues. I rate it a "5" because the amp is single channel and one trick pony.

Here is where the rubber meets the road. This amp has the best clean tone of ANY amp I have ever owned or auditioned, and I have owned lots of amps. Suits my style of music perfectly, there is no better choice. I set up this amp with an A/B switch next to my Fender Custom Shop Dual Professional and it squashed the Fender. It has a BIGGER clean tone than my '62 & '66 JMI Vox AC30 amps and destroys any vintage blackface. The tone is very full & rich with a rounded top end. Pick attack is soft and sustain blooms. Carries the Vox CHIME with added authority when compared to the AC30. Think of the LARGE NOTE. Brings out the best clean character of any guitar, especially vintage, VOS or relic models. Never noisy and always delivers the shimmer. Now I know why the Beatles used them. Simply amazing.

This amp was rebuilt by Victor's tech at Plexi Palace some years ago and has never given me any problems. I don't gig with it but probably would if it was not a hot outdoor gig, as the amp gets pretty warm even with the large top vent.

Not applicable. Tom Jennings and Dick Denny have left us long ago. Furthermore, Korg is NOT Vox.

This is my desert island amp, with a JMI AC30 a close second. I've been a player for about 30 years and also own a couple of vintage AC30's, a couple vintage Marshalls and couple of Rivera pieces made in the 80's. Have a few vintage style guitars, VOS Gibson Les Pauls, Fender relic tele & Strat, VOS Ricks and a couple Gretches. If it were stolen? Don't wanna think about it. I love everything about this amp. If I could find another I would buy it.

Jennings 1963 copper panel single channel "small box" amp. GZ34 tube rectifier, trio of 12ax7 preamp tubes, pair of EL34 outputs. Extremely rare. Treble, bass, volume. That's it. Two XLR speaker jacks on the back panel, one for 8 ohm load and the other for 16 ohm load. Detachable Bulgin AC receptacle. Tone is basically clean, unless maxed out with powerful humbuckers. Tone controls radically change the amp's EQ. I max the treble and add bass to taste, volume at 50-80%. Essentially a one trick pony, very clean amp. Perfect for chimey guitar, which is why I bought it. No frills whatsoever, no reverb, loops, switching, bla bla bla. Has the features I require for the application. Plenty of power for clean guitar work, as I couple it to a NCM reproduction AC100 4x12 cabinet with four blue Bulldogs and a pair of authentic original Goodmans Midax horns. Yea, baby! Currently this jewel resides in my basement recording room. I rate it a "1" because it is a one trick pony (with golden shoes).

I use this with the following guitars: Fender EJ Signature Strat, Fender Relic Tele, Gibson LP Deluxe, Supreme, P90 Historic, Gibson Johnny A Signature, Rick 360C63 & Roger McGuinn. The tone is HEAVENLY with all these guitars. Very quiet amp, no noise at all unless wide open. HUGE clean chimey wall of sound for days. Nails early Beatles tone (cause that's exactly what they used... okay they only used the 212 cab with the AC50 but who cares). Difficult to overdrive the amp but can be done with the proper humbuckers. I run the guitar direct into the amp, no gadgets or whizzers. They would muck it up. Sorry, no distortion here. Grab yer Plexi for that...

Well let's see it's 43 years old. I have it serviced at least every six months. No problems yet. These Voxes have a large vent topside so heat is pretty well ventilated. It does get warm.

Ha ha ha! JMI went south when I was six years old.

Been playing for 30 years. My other gear is Matchless HC30, Clubman and Superchief with various matching cabs. Also 1967 Marshall 100 watt, 1972 Marshall 50 watt, Bluesbreaker re-issue, Fender Dual Professional. If it were lost or stolen I would be heartbroken. Nothing sounds like this rig. I'm looking for another right now even though I don't need it. I wish it could clone itself (lol).

Do you know what year the amp was made in?

I do not know

Is the amp versatile enough for you and the styles of music you play? What are those styles?

Its VOX its my best amp ever.

How many channels? Does it have channel switching? Effects loops? Headphone jack?

2 channels brilliant and normal; treble, bass and volume. Headphone jack - give me a break lol and no channel swiching though one needs pedals to overdrive etc to use low volumes.

What features do you wish it had? Why? Are there features you never use?

It has all that I want; Deep, dark sounds and bottom thats not ever there in those solidamps.

Where do you use this amp? Does it have enough power for you?
Power is ok. I use this amp allround though its heavy.

I used to have solid state but now i had my VOX mended, new valves, biasing and condencers....and now its really awesome

50W = noisy? It has the power to kick ass so what?

Clean is clean when its clean and when one is using pedals ist not. I would not overdrive the amp as it is for heavens sake not without pedals. I think my neighbours.

If one does not depend on VOX what then?

My amp is 30 years old and did not need any repair exept condencerchange and tubes so...

Marshall 100 HDFX + angled can 4 x 12"
VOX 2 x 12" original cab with Fostex 100W speakers (they are enough to blow brains out if played too loud

AC50 big box, black cloth, one channel, valve rectifier. Bass, treble and volume control. two inputs (which sound the same).

I play a 90's les paul standard through it, with effects like delay, chorus, wah, overdrive/ fuzz. It is currently very noisy, but is due for revalve. At the moment it has 3x12ax7, which makes it ovedrive earlier, but I think I prefered it with the 12au7 first valve(or whatever) as it had more character then, as in the tone was softer and had more of the original guitar tone in it. This maybe just because I have to use effects in the band I'm in.
Sometimes, playing guitar really sucks, and you just wish you played something you can hit, or something that is always in tune and always get the sound out of it that you want, like a keyboard. This amp is able to bring all those worst things about guitar playing out. Very hard to get the thing sounding balanced with the rest of the band. Not only is it very loud, but the sound just seems'big', as in too big. Its fun to crank it up and let it rip on your own, but in a band setting, it is a nightmare.
Having said that, when its right, its the best sounding amp I've played through. Which is why I've got it and it is my favourite amp, and really one of the reasons am on this site is to find ways to make the thing more useable (withut takng two heads to gigs). I have never tried a power brake or those groove tube things which enable EL84's to be used in class A, which might be all I need to do.
One thing I've noticed with older amps, and more so with the AC50, is that there seems more scope to change the overall envelope of the sound, whether for good or bad, which can result in amazing sounds, or shoddy, unuseable ones. Where as with a modern amp you can almost turn the controls to any setting, and the sound stays within a useable range, if you see what I mean. Easier to use, but no adventure! The other amp I tend to use more for gigs is a Laney Klipp 100 watt head from the 70's. 2 channel,(through 4 greenbacks) so more flexible, no master volume, but actually quieter than the vox. Good compromise for gigs(though soundmen still often tell me to turn down, but clubs often small). I have given the sound a 10,but itis very capable of sounding 1 in my opinion.

Actually, I half expect to die of a massive electric shock everytime I switch it on, and often, as I go to touch the string of my guitar, I wonder also if I'll fry. Its hard not to remember that you have conneted yourself to something that is 40 years old and generates dangerous voltages. It actually is reliable though, but in 4 years of ownership, I have had it repaired twice, though both times it was just valves, and both times I was unlucky enough to use tech's who were ex muppet show. That I find is one of the problems with equipment like this - finding trusted engineers who know what they're doing and will do the best for your sound. I have not found him/ her yet.

I have not had any dealings with the company itself.

I have been playing for fourteen years. I didnt exactly choose it, I just boughtit becase it was there,and only aftr comparing to vitage marshalls,fender bassman, etc, that it has a lot of the qualities in aguitar sound that I like. I wish it had a second channel, and after readingthese pages, I havelearned that there was a twochannel valve rectified head made (I previously only believed the solid state rectified head was two chanel). I would like to know more about my particular model and get the schematics. As it is, I have the two channel solid state rectified head schematic, and ac30 schematic.
if it was stolen, I would replace it only if one came along, so to speak. I would not search endlessly for another one, as life is too short and I'm mainly a guitar player, not collector. Though I would love a collection of weird and wonderful old amps, I have not the means (space or money). My ac50 is just waiting to be my first giggng amp, but I need to investigate ways to make it more flexible/ useable!

My AC-50 is a largebox, 1964(JMI), tube rectified head.

This is as barebones as it gets. No master volume, no reverb, no
tremelo, no built in effects, not even an effects loop.

2 Channels (normal and brilliant); VOLUME, BASS, and TREBLE for each. That's what you get. But then again, I didn't buy this head because I wanted tons of features, I bought it for the TONE.

1 12AU-7, 312AX-7's, 2 EL-34's, and a GZ-34/5AR4 rectifier tube. (the 12AU-7 is the first gain stage for each channel, one 12AX-7 is for the for following gain stages for the normal channel, one 12AX-7 is for the following gain stages for the brilliant channel, and the final 12AX-7 is the phase inverter).

If you find one that hasn't had the speaker jacks modded, they're the 3 pin XLR jacks, which are useless without either a Vox cab, or a converter. Mine had been modded (quite well actually) when I bought it for standard 1/4" jacks so I could actually USE the freaking thing.

From being inside the chassis, it's apparent that Vox amps are in fact designed by aliens. Just look at the pictures of the AC-50 chassis on www.voxshowroom.com . Or email me for some of my head. "let's hide the tubes in this scary tomb of a headsleeve where the heat can't dissipate from them, put a tube rectifier in it, eventhough it's putting out wattages at or above the recommended max for a GZ-34 rectifier tube, then we'll put a little tiny light bulb in line with the bias circuit that doesn't do anything (yes there is a tiny light bulb in the amp that doesn't do anything)". I thought my Orange was designed weird, this thing takes the cake.

My current rig:
2000 Gibson SG '61 re-issue>>AC-50>>Hiwatt 4x12(75W Fanes) OR Marshall 1960A(2 G12-75's and 2 V30's).

I run the AC-50 head with Electro harmonix EL-34's, a Sovtek 5AR4, and Mullard ECC83 pre's.

Here's where this amp excels. I bought it because I wanted AC-30 tone, but couldn't afford an AC-30. I had heard that the AC-50 didn't quite have the magic of the AC-30, and was expecting to be let down in my search for the Vox tone I had in my head.

OVERALL TONE:
Upon plugging in, I was very pleasantly surprised. I will say this though, you can't buy this amp wanting it to be an AC-30. But since most people are familiar with that amp, i'll use it as a basis for comparision. The AC-50 doesn't sag quite as much as the AC-30, it's a little tighter sounding (probably due to the fixed bais circuit and the EL-34's). I'm toying with the idea of cathode biasing the amp, but it's in such great shape (and so close to all original) i'd hate to hack up the circuit too much. I'm sure my curiousity will prevail some day, and the AC-50 can quit being the jealous brother with Cathode bais envy.

At any rate, it's got that wonderful Vox chime and punchy compression. The top end just plain shimmers. The low end is round and fat and THICK. Think maple syrup surrounding your ears. It has such a wonderful presence and projection to it. I use the Brilliant channel exclusively. The normal channel may be good for very warm, muted jazz tones, or maybe even some blues. But for my purposes I love the liveliness and the charisma of the brilliant channel.

It sounds like a bigger, more defined AC-30. A little tighter sounding that it's little brother, louder, more gain, but also a little less chime and a little less of that Vox grind. It's still there, it still sounds like a Vox. But the amp is just plain different, due to the different power section. Not better or worse, just different.

People talk about this amp being the best vintage amp value. I completely agree. Find me a better sounding amp, even at twice the price. Multiple people (from bands i've played with, and friends who have heard the head or used it) have told me it's the best sounding head they've ever heard. One of them owns a guitar shop, he personally owns an AC-15, and a 1959 Fender Bassman 4x10 (a REAL one, not a reissue). He likes the AC-50 better than his bassman ;).

Tone is subjective, and everyone has their own opinions. But if you ask me, that only goes so far. There are certain amps that just plain sound GOOD. They may not be something you'd use for your style of music, but noone can ever argue that they don't sound good. THIS is one of those amps. 1959 Bassmans don't sound bad, Blackfaced Twins don't sound bad, vintage single-ended Champs don't sound bad, AC-30's don't sound bad. Period. I wouldn't buy half those amps, even if I had the money. But I can't argue that they don't sound good, even if not for what I do. The AC-50 sounds good, it sounds REALLY good. And if the tone sounds like something that would fit your style well. I can't recommend you a better head...maybe an AC-30 head though ;)

TONE CONTROLS:
The tone controls are very unique. I find that with the bass and treble pointing away from you (there's no numbers or markers of any sort on the control panel) you get a nice chimey tone without a lot of mid character. If you point them both toward you, you get the same amount of treble, the same amount of bass...but with more mid character. If you leave the treble stationary and move the bass, you'll get more or less low end, but the mid presence will also change, depending on where the treble is. Same thing goes for the treble. It's actually pretty hard to explain without actually standing in front of the amp and turning the knobs yourself. But to make a long story short, there's a pretty wide variety of sounds, and the tone controls are VERY interactive with each other.

GAIN/HEADROOM/VOLUME:
As you read through the other reviews, yo

My head had a replacement output transformer when I got it. You'd never know it from how it sounds though. A few components have been replaced (small 1/2W resistors). It had the original filter caps when I got it, and they were still working fine. That's like getting a car with 300,00 miles on it with the original spark plugs. I replaced them just for good measure.

I had a problem with the rectifier tube arching...but that was the ORIGINAL rectifier tube. I thought the amp was gonna blow up, I was playing and the sound fizzed out, and I saw a flash of light from inside. There was a red fireball making its way up the plate of the rectifier tube. I turned the amp off and took it home. Replaced it and put a new socket in, and haven't heard a peep since.

Unlike new amps, with something this freaking old, you can't tell much about reliability by reading about my amp, or the other guys here that own one. It all depends on how the head has been treated. I happened to get one that's been a workhorse of an amp since i got it (except for the one minor problem). But it's 39 years old...if you're not technically and electronically inclined, it wouldn't hurt to take it to a tech for a once over. Mine has obviously been treated well, but I gig with the thing (no backup) and play it quite often...always with the volume dimed out all the way. Never a problem. I trust it completely. I do, however, change the rectifier tube every 6 months or so, just to be on the safe side. Old tube amps are like old grumpy men ;)


Tech note:
I should mention that this amp was originally designed to run on 110V (among other options), and nowadays the wall voltage where I live is well above 120V, probably above 125V somtimes. This amp shouldn't even be functioning properly. But it's still alive and kicking, regardless.

Customer support! good luck ;)

I have to say, it's probably the most hideous head i've ever seen, simply because it's almost a cube (almost, but not quite). It looks so freaking stupid on top of a 4x12. But the sound more than makes up for any of that. When I got it, my girlfriend looked at me when she first saw it and said, "That THING...is the ugliest one you've bought yet! Even uglier than that Orange one you strap into the car seat with a seatbelt" To each their own. ;)

Overall...the amp is one of the best purchases I ever made with respect to guitar gear. It's a keeper, and with me, very few things are these days. But people are catching on, and eventhough I bought it only a year ago for $600, that would be considered a steal at this point in time. Prices are going UP. Hopefully they'll go back down again.

well firstly this amp as far as any records can tell me was made some time early 63 . it is in the first 200 made , because it has been owned by so many ppl i do not know what has been modified but i put in a custom powersupply to give it some extra kick .
the only feature i use is i bridge the brilliant and normal channel.
and it is far***king loud

I use a maingard tell with dean markley pick ups.
when i stand real close it gives a hum . and when the distortion is up high it tends to feed back

i have never had anything go wrong . and yeah i use it without a back up all the time

LOL

ive been playing about 3 or 4 years i geuss
i would cry and kill ppl if it were stolen . i love the way it is all
beaten up from years of club gigs, the way the vinyl is frayed . man i like it all and hate nothing. it was this or a marshall and well every tom dick and bob have got one of those so when i heard a deeper more tone filled sound i just said hell yeah. buy one .....
but watch out for those recurring nightmares of someone trying to steal it

Mine is a '65 JMI AC50. The amp isn't "gaudy" with features. I gave it a nine simply because I knew what I was getting into with this amp. No master volume, no effects loop, and no other junk to get in the way of the pure tone. I recently went through the entire thing and it's running like brand new. The only real changes I made was putting 12AX7's in all stages to produce more gain.

I generally play this amp (and any other amp for that matter) with a tele. I also use guitars such as a '67 Fender Coronado, a Les Paul Jr (single P-90), a strat, and I have also used an SG. This amp does all EXTREMELY well. When playing the tele, I find that the Brilliant channel is just that...BRILLIANT. Too much so to be exact (ouch). However, simply plug into the normal channel with the same guitar and you're golden again. In fact, it doesn't get much better. The amp isn't versitile in the manner that you flip a switch and you've got instant tonal change. However, it does handle the characteristics of each guitar very well. The tele, as I said, was too bright. So, common sence told me to try the other channel. The SG in the brilliant channel was simply perfect. It was very Jimmy Eat World, Foo Fighters tone. Really power pop sounding. For most of my playing I stick with the tele in the normal channel. I add a dan-echo, a phase 90, and a Reverend Drivetrain in front of the amp and that's it. I set the volume so it's breaking up a little and use the Drive train as a boost mainly. It boosts the preamp so it still sounds like my amp overdriving rather than a pedal. This combo gets a great Brit-pop type sound. Very Oasis, Travis sorta vibe. Sure, you can play about any type of music on this amp. This is just what I play mainly. This amp is great for blues and classic rock as well...obviously, it's a classic amp.
These amps came out in '63 shortly after the introduction of the JTM 45. With the JTM prototype coming out in '62 and immediately getting more orders than could be filled by Marshall at the time, the introduction of the AC50 came about. Coincidence? I doubt it highly. When looking at the specs of the two amps, you'd see that, other than some changes in component values, there aren't many differences in the two amps. Personally I like the AC50 better...especially when you start to look at the price differences. They don't call the AC50 the best vintage amp value for nothing.

I have never had a minutes trouble out of this amp. I would not hesitate to gig with it without a backup. I can't say the same about an AC30.

Hehe. Yeah, right.

I'm 23 years old and I've been playing since I was 5. In that time I've owned over 70 guitars and 65 amps. I've had Marshall, Matchless, TopHat, Dr. Z, Mesa, Fender, Vox, and MANY more. So far, this is the first amp to quench that everlying thirst for tone. I finally, after tons of guitars, found comfort in my tele. Now I'm content in knowing that I have a keeper amp as well. As I said before, They don't call the AC50 the best vintage amp value for nothing. This is THE amp...for me at least.

This is an update to my previous review. Well, the day after I wrote that review, my '69 AC50 got some serious problems. It squealed and hummed like hell. I first thought that some tube had gone microphonic, but that wasn't the case. "Cap job" was done about year before, so something else was causing these noises. Well, I took my multimeter, checked almost everything in the amp and I found several resistors and couple of caps which had to be changed. And because I had to work on it anyway, I thought I might as well modify the "tone stack" a little. Previously I thought the normal channel was too bassy and brillant was too high, so those things were changed. I also took off those preamp cathode bypass caps, so the amp runs little quiter (previously it was loud ass hell). That modifying took only about 5 minutes, but rest of the amp was open for repair about and week or two. Now, after the job, the amp is absolutely great. Hardly no noise at all and both channels are equally "nice". I also experimented with different pre-amp tubes in the tonestack section, and settled for having an 12AT7 in the normal channel and 12AX7 in the brilliant. It's impossible to describe the sound, but with my setup and playing style, the sound is SO warm... And for that other AC50 (circa 64-65) my friend installed new tonestack section for normal channel and also reduced some of brilliants high frequencies (And the amp got also a master "cut" potentiometer.). Needles to say, you can't get a bad sound from it!!! Ok, bottom line is; remember that these amps are old and they will some day need some work to do. But after they have been fully repaired, they should work like new amps (and last as long). And in my opinion, those modifying projects are not a thing that reduces the value of your vintage amp, because they can always be restored to their original specs (remember to save the original working parts!). If you see and AC50, please do yourself a favour, and check it out...Once you try it, you got have it.

Because of my bad english, I'll make this short. And after I read all those existing reviews, almost all have been said... Well, I have two AC50's . Another propably '65 (JMI) and another one is '69 (VOX product). Both have been checked about year ago (some new resistors and capasitors) and they work like new. 2 channels, 2 inputs for both, volume, treble, bass for both channels, 2 speaker outputs and that's about it. Very simple, but that's the way I like it!

I play instrumental rock / surf type stuff . I have 3 stratocasters (Fender '79 , '86 (JAP) Fender paisley red and one custom made "normal" strat) all with singlecoil pickups (vintage type sounds). Signal goes from guitar - Line 6 delay modeler (multihead and tape echo) - MXR, DOD or BOSS CS-2 compressor - AC50 (the amps have '66 VOX Defiant and Conqueror 2x12" cabs with Bulldogg and Goodmans speakers.) Note, compressor comes last before amp! This setup gives just the right "vintage rock" sound like the Shadows have...(shortly said, PERFECT surf stuff.) for Cleans sound like VOX and if you crank the amp, you'll get overdrive in the style of vintage Marshalls. But when it does distort, it is damn loud, so don't forget your earplugs.

No problems.

Customer support? Yeah right! (My friend is expert in repairinf vintage amps)

I would like to have JMI VOX AC30, but they are so overpriced... But AC50 as good as AC30, only sounds little different. Excellent amp for reasonable price. You bet I love these amps, why else would I have bought another one?