Squ Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 Probably an AC30... I want to have another wide range of tones available to record with and maybe to use it live. I want it for both the clean sound and to throw some distortion in front it (maybe a treble booster ala Brian May). What are your experience with Vox Amps, or AC 30s? Through a quick check on musiciansfriend.com there's one AC 30 with 2x12 speakers thats $1,000, then there's another one with "Blue celestion speakers" that like $1,500. Do you guys know if the difference matters, or how much it matters? And also, after a quick check on ebay, "vintage" AC30s seem to go for over $2,000 so I think I'll just ignore those and get something new or used (but not "vintage"). Eh?? Red Red Rockit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funk Jazz Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 the AC30 CC (the one for a grand) is a great amp, and worth every penny. the celestion blues are an upgrade speaker, i haven't had the chance to play through them yet, but have yet to hear a negative comment about them. you can always buy them or the weber variation later on, don't know if it's worth the premium $$ from the get-go. i'm hoping to score an AC15 this month Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreamer Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 I had an AC 30, heavily modified and I loved it: it was small, portable and had both a clean and a very distorted sound. When it came out it was dubbed AC 30 "Shadows", (while the AC 100 was "Beatles"), and actually I have seen pictures of Hank Marvin and Bruce Welch using it (this is to give an idea of how clean it can sound). However, compared with a Fender (I had also a Super Reverb at the time) it had a warmer, "darker" and less metallic sound. From the Internet: Electric guitarists often speak of the Fender sound or the Marshall sound when referring to amplifiers. And these amps certainly provide distinct coloration to the amplified signal, with different, but equally musical tones. But bands leading the early British invasion, beginning with the Beatles, used other amps, the best known of which was the Vox. At various times Vox amps were used by The Animals, Rolling Stones, The Hollies, Manfred Mann, and the Dave Clark Five, among others. Many guitarists trying to emulate the Beatles heavy guitar tone on the Revolver album could never get that over-the-top sound on songs like Taxman, or She Said, or the dreamy Tomorrow Never Knows even when they used effects pedals. The secret to the sound is a cranked Vox AC-30 amp. The holy grail among VOX collectors today is the AC-30 Top Boosted Twin; the most sought after VOX is a AC-30 factory added Top Boost model with a candy apple red control panel, two blue VOX Celestion Alnico 12" speakers (which were specially designed Celestion G12M's) and brown fret cloth. VOX originally introduced the AC-30 without the extra Top Boost feature and later added this feature as a "return to the factory" upgrade. These AC-30 models have the extra bass and treble controls added to the rear panel. Later models were modified to include the Top Boost feature in the control panel proper. The officially released models are as follows: AC-30/4 Twin, AC-30/6 Twin, AC-30/6 TB Twin, AC-30/6 Twin Bass (2x15" speakers), AC-30/6 TB Super Twin, AC-30 Super Twin Reverb, AC-30 TB Super Twin Reverb as well as colored vynide versions of the twin models. Those seeking an original AC-30 must shop carefully, and with more than a little knowledge. The collectible AC-30s are somewhat rare and often difficult to distinguish from later versions. Fortunately, as part of the retro and reissue craze of the 90s, the AC-30 has been reissued in its original design, with a sound very close to the highly soughtafter originals. http://www.voxshowroom.com/ct/amp/uk/ac30.gif Korg PA3X Pro 76 and Kronos 61, Roland G-70, Integra 7 and BK7-m, Casio PX-5S, Fender Stratocaster with Fralin pickups, Fender Stratocaster with Kinman pickups, 1965 Gibson SG Standard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. Fox Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 The non-"Blue" AC30 will sound great, BUT, for the complete Vox experience, the Blues are the speaker. More chime, and they compress more when you turn the amp up. They add weight AND $$$$ though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S. Yeti Bigfoot, Esq. Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 The AC30's I've heard and played sounded great. It seems to be a pretty strong 30 watts. "And so I definitely, when I have a daughter, I have a lot of good advice for her." ~Paris Hilton BWAAAHAAAHAAHAAA!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squ Posted February 10, 2006 Author Share Posted February 10, 2006 What about the AC 15 you mentioned Funk Jazz, how does that compare to the 30? With regards to the weight musician's friend said the blue celestions only add like a pound. But they do add a lot of money. Red Red Rockit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funk Jazz Posted February 10, 2006 Share Posted February 10, 2006 the tone is pretty similar... the AC15 just suits my needs better in terms of size. it also only costs $600 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.