Vox Mark VI

I have a reissue '98 Vox Mark VI "Phantom". This is the elite of the reissues. As stated below, 3 alnico single coils with original style covers, Bigsby bow tie tremolo, a Shaller roller bridge, solid chrome knobs: 5 setting rotating pickup selector switch, master volume, 2 tone controls. 5 sided body in Black. Looking totally cool is another feature. Came with the fitted zip-case which is pretty essential since this badboy doesn't like to sit, or can't really unless you want the risk of him falling over. And it's not a guitar that you can really sit and play. This is pretty much a stand-to-play.

there's really one reason to search one of these out: for a clean, 60's, jangly sound. and it does this better than any 60's vox i've ever played. yes,better. i've owned and have played a lot of vox guitars and this one takes it when it comes to sound. the original Phantoms were pretty crap. play one, you really won't be that impressed with it's sound or tone. but this, this has "it". with the tone selector you dial in nothing but awesome 60's tones, but with modern parts and wiring and attentive craftsmanship. this thing just pulls more tone and is quieter than the originals. and the ones made by phantom guitar. this here is the real deal. possibly the greatest sounding vox guitar ever made. the 3 pickups give it an edge over the 2 pickup reissue models.

i got this used, don't think it was played very much. the intonation is great, actions great, finish, everything is really well done. the shaller roller bridge with the Bigsby is essential. heavy use of the trem really doesn't knock this out of tune. neck is maple and feels great. rosewood board is fine.

it's a deceivingly heavy guitar. poplar body i believe, with the maple neck. it's solid. everything about this guitar is solid. it was built to last, unlike 60's vox guitars (though the country western acoustics were pretty well made imo). abusive use of the Bigsby and roller bridge, the strings stay in tune. if you breathed on the trem arm of the old voxes, they'd go out. metal strap buttons = right on.

i'm a bit of a vox fanatic. love, love, love all things vox bad or good. i just don't understand why they barely acknowledge the fact
that they ever made guitars. i mean yeah, most of that was in the 60's and long out of their mind. but these reissue guitars, i can
only find limited information on them and they were mostly built in '99. good thing the reissue guitars are of high quality.

this guitar is amazing. i really expected it to be like the originals for whatever reason so when this came to me i wasn't overtly excited. i figured reissue of a phantom, uh, sorta cool but not really. no. this is what the original Phantom should have been. All of Voxesguitars should have been made with this much care. for sound, it is the best Vox guitar ever made. for reliability, it's the best Vox guitar ever made. i'm sold. i love collecting Vox guitars. if you're a vox collector, theres a lot out there to collect to hang on the wall or what not. but if you're gonna play a Vox guitar, record with it, these reissues are the only way to go if you care about how you sound. seriously. i love the ultrasonic and the cheetah and the grand prix, etc. love the built in effects on those, love how they look (they're a lot cooler looking than the Phantom imo). they're great for gigs cos they're badarse looking. but if you're gonna record with a vox and really want great tone, this is it. this has the "60's" sound better the 60's Voxes.

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The reissues came out in '99 with a $1200 tag. For this guitar, that's a bargain. Being a Vox collector I understand wanting to throw
down $2000 on a '65 Phantom or Teardrop or whatever to add to the collection. But as a player, the money is better spent in one of the reissues. Not the Phantom Guitar made ones. They ain't VOX no matter how many old vox trademarks they buy and designs they copy. I have a hollowbody teardrop of theirs. It's not bad, but doesn't sound as nearly as good.

Apparently Korg USA bought the Vox name and made a series of guitars in the USA in the late 1990s. 3 single coil pickups. The controls are all barrel shaped metal knobs, one selector (usual Strat 5 way combinations) volume and tone for the neck & middle pickup. The selector switch feels solid but, unlike the original Vox, there is no visual way of telling what pickups are selected. The original (as I remember) had a metal knob with a protruding pointer so you could see where you were. The bridge is a roller type and works well. Bigsby licensed trem which is solid but really has a minimal effect (forget F/Rose whammy effects - think Duane Eddy). The neck is maple with a nice piece of rosewood for the fingerboard. Thin, vintage style, frets nicely done. Not sure what the body is made from. Has a black sparkle finish. The body style is its trademark - sort of coffin shaped. Well balanced when standing. Pretty hopeless when sitting down - you need a strap really.

Great sound. Strat like but with a richer tone & more power than an average Strat. 5 very usable sounds. Clean sparkly treble. Neck pickup is fat & warm. Very quiet pickups.

Got the guitar used but it played OK. Pickups were too low - bring them up close and... what a difference. Can't see any faults in the workmanship. Neck is very nice - fast smooth etc & well finished.

Haven't had chance to use the guitar live yet (I play a Gibson ES125 & acoustics mainly). Seems like a solid made guitar. Holds it tuning very well even after bending. Don't use teh trem much but, surprisingly it seem stable. The strap buttons are the usual tiny metal jobs and IMHO are useless. The one behind the neck is soo close to the neck that getting a strap on isn't easy. Also it's easy for the strap at this end to come off. I would probably fit some strap locks if i were to gig it regularly.
Never gig without a backup.

Been playing 25 years. Had most of the classic guitars at some time. Been looking for a Strat and this thing actually sounds better that the Strat I have at present. I like it's quirkly looks. This guitar is so much better than the original VOX Phantom I used to have. I got the 60s one from a pawn shop around 5 years ago for #30, sold it to a dealer for #250, he cleaned it up and sold it to someone out there for #1200 (not you surely?). So who is the mug - the person who sold it for #10 or the person who bought it for #1200? Sound wise and build wise there is no comparison between the two instruments. The original was poor when new and it won't improve with age. This new one may not have the 'Authentic' Vox pedigree but it stands comparision with any #500 plus guitar.

A very straightforward Stratocaster type construction. Nothing fancy, bolt on neck, and solid craftsmanship. The neck has a strat feel to it with fairly low action. Again nothing fancy, it's not like playing a screen door nor is it like playing one of those hot pink Japanese battleaxe shaped things that simply require pulling off and hammering. Having played mostly Les Pauls for the past twenty years, this guitar did not have the solid feel I was accustomed to, but then again, it's not supposed to.

One thing that stands out is that this is a quality instrument and I am amazed at the price they are being sold for. There is a five-position selector knob with volume, control, tone; all knobs are sold metal. The Bigsby mechanism is built to last with rollers on the bridge. The tuners are nondescript and pick guard is thick yet not in the way. I did notice that the nut has a tendency float around when bending the first or sixth string.

The sound is bright and high end and very, very clean. Through out the neck, the tone is consistent, from up on the sixth string to down around the 20th fret on the first string. The tone selector gives the player a significant range of tone between the pickups with no bleeding over in the pickups.

I play it through a Fender Twin reverb with a Fuzz Face and digital delay/reverb box and am able to mike directly in the board when recording. This gives me that garage band blast of fuzz and reverb without having the engineer freak.

The overall sound is a strat without the painful treble. Bright, clean and well balanced

The guitar came in a zippered gig type bag but with plenty of packing; this guitar does not move around in the case. The intonation was set and in a year and a half of plenty of use, have not had to change a thing. I think the finish could have been a little heavier due to the fact that at certain angles you see the seam of two pieces of wood in the body. But overall this feels and looks like a quality guitar.

I have been using this guitar mostly for studio work in the past year and half and it has never failed me. With several hour sessions of sweat, pick dust and dead finger skin, I simply wipe it down and it's ready to go. The guitar stays in tune with even some serious whammy action. And even with that sweat based toxic concoction handling this thing, the nickel plating and painted finish show no discoloration. The strap buttons are metal and hold well with the thin leather strap.

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I own six other guitars (bass, acoustic, electric 12 and 6 string) and this one has become my main electric. For years I have been playing a Les Paul that I modified and installed EMC pickups in, and I swore by it. But the Vox is a blast to play (note that sitting down takes a little work due to the shape of the body. If this were stolen or lost, I would get another without hesitation. Having played an original Vox Phantom VI, I can say that this guitar is built far better than an original. I search for years looking for a Phantom VI in good playing shape, but this reissue exceeded by expectations. It's fun to play and it looks as cool as hell. I have been playing for about thirty years and have come to the conclusion that they were right?."Vox?.It's what's happening".