Vox AC15 VR clips (no effects)

[Damoes]

Hey Thijst, ik zit er zwaar over na te denken deze versterker te kopen.

Ik speel vaak met een maatje in een te gekke oevenruimte op een AC15HW met blue alnico.Helaas is deze versterker niet in mijn bezit. Mijn vraag is, kom ik een beetje redelijk boven de drums uit met de VR serie?de HW red dat prima maar ik vraag me af of de VR er ook boven uit komt.

Groet,

Vincent

[thijst]

@Damoes Tja de HW15 gaat natuurlijk onnoemelijk veel harder dan een solid-state. Ik speel zelf in m'n band met een H&K Statesman Dual EL84 (20 watt) en die kan ik niet boven een kwart open zetten. Ik heb de AC15VR ook wel gebruikt en dat gaat goed maar je houdt minder over dan bij 15W buizen. Bij twijfel zou je ook naar de AC30VR kunnen kijken!

[DarthTonberry]

Hey, i'm getting this amp in a few weeks and was wondering, does it distort well enough to be decent for some hard rock? or is it too thin and need a pedal to put it into that real dirty range?

[thijst]

@DarthTonberry Well you can hear for yourself in the video. The last setting is probably as far as it goes in terms of drive, which is more than enough for me but that's personal. It's not a metal machine but heavy rock should be within range.

[irvan36mm]

I have both the AC-15CC and the AC-30VR. Even though the VR amps is almost,but not quite on par with the all-tube versions of the AC-15 & 30....they still kick major ass.

And they work very well with pedals,too!

I use my AC-30VR with a Pod XT Live floorboard. I set the amp on the clean channel,adjust the Top Boost to taste & use the Pod for my distortions,delays,etc.

In order to get the sound that YOU want,you have to be willing to do a little bit of work w/ your amp,pedals and your guitar.

[thijst]

@minpinful What is very sad?

[undergroundamericana]

does this amp handle pedals very well?such as overdrive and delay?

[skaught66]

Have you had to change out the tube? If so, was it hard to get to?

[BonScott41]

can u send me the tabs for this song?

[sweetcatastrophes90]

VAN DIEMANS LAND!! Love a bit of the Edge :)

[PIlotrcm]

What kind of speaker is in your amp?

[thijst]

@PIlotrcm Stock speakers, whatever they are.

[ChickenFaeces]

@thijst Will the clean channel on this thing overdrive?

[ReldWolf]

@PIlotrcm 1x 12", 8 Ohm VX12 Celestion custom speaker

[sinatora76]

@23ericiscool No, it's a 12AX7 set up as a really tiny tube amplifier in the power stage. You're correct that that would only give you .5 W or probably even less W. The tiny tube power stage sound is then amplified by a solid state amplifier to give you the 15W output.

[armyqpzm]

is this a all tube amp?

[thijst]

@armyqpzm No it's a Valve Reactor amp. The Valve Reactor circuit places a 12AX7 vacuum tube (or “valve”) into the power stage. Known as a dual-triode tube, the 12AX7 is actually two tubes in one. This tube has been configured to act as a small power amplifier. This circuit provides all of the tonality and feel of an all tube amp.

[ChickenFaeces]

@thijst

So is the overdrive channel extra, kind of like a perk? Or can you not get decent overdrive out of the clean channel?

[thijst]

@ChickenFaeces The clean channel remains clean all the way through, even at very high volume. If you want dirt, you will need the overdrive channel. The OD2 channel is more like distortion; it is definitely higher gain than the OD1 channel.

[ChickenFaeces]

@thijst

Wait, then weren't you on the clean channel at :50?

[thijst]

@ChickenFaeces I was. The first part is with the Normal volume at 9, and Master at 10. Here, I could crank the Master up to maximum and it would still not break up - you would hear the sound you hear in the video, but really loud. In the second part, I increased the Normal volume, which basically acts as gain. You get a little drive, and I ahd to reduce the Master to keep the overall volume at the same level as the first part.

[ChickenFaeces]

@thijst

Oh, okay...

OHH, so you can't overdrive the POWER tubes, but you can overdrive the PREAMP tubes?

[joshbaezmusic]

awesome video man! btw, how much background noise does the amp make? i bought a marshall tube amp awhile back and when it was on it made this annoying humming sound, is this the case for this amp as well?

[thijst]

@joshbaezmusic I think any amp will produce some low backgroudn noise. Can't comment on your Marhsall of course but on the AC15 VR it did not bother me at all.

[KeepJamen]

I want this amp! would you recommend it? thanks!

[thijst]

@KeepJamen well I use it for rehearsal and live gigs so yes I would recommend it.

[KeepJamen]

@thijst Ok cool! i will check one out at guitar center one of these days. thanks for your reply.

[95blake59]

How loud would you need the master volume to play small shows with this amp? and would this be good for practice at home and also some small jams with drums and bass?

[thijst]

@95blake59 it would be perfect for all purposes you mention. the level of the master volume would depend on the normal or drive volume and the size of the venue.

[rffontaine]

Van Diemen's Land!

[19ZoSo93]

Damn. This thing has got some great tones!!

Im trying to decide between the 30 watt model of this amp or the VT50..

[thephantomsguest]

Van Deimens land nice one lol

[serve4life]

so the ac15vr and the ac15 are 2 different amps? how much does an ac15 cost?

[thijst]

@serve4life the AC15 VR should be less than 300 euros, the AC15 C1 (full tube version) will be close to 500 euros.

[jesusofsuburbia57]

how does do with pedals though?

[thijst]

@jesusofsuburbia57 Check out my other AC15 VR video; I'm playing a few tunes with my Tonelab LE hooked up to the amp. That should give you a rough idea. For what it's worth: guitar > Tonelab > AC15 VR is my setup nowadays for live gigging.

[thebighappies]

@thijst ¨So the volume is enough to rehears with your band and gig with aswell?

[thijst]

@thebighappies Absolutely loud enough for rehearsals. Also loud enough for small gigs, but larger gigs will require the amp to be mic'ed but that would be the case for any amp.

[jesusofsuburbia57]

what was your eq like for the demo (if there is one)

[thijst]

@jesusofsuburbia57 As I stated in the info, EQ was flat.

[felttoaster]

How does this amp compete with the Tube AC15 , 30 and amps in the price range

[thijst]

@felttoaster Hmm... nog quite sure I understand your question. There are no tube AC15's and AC30's in this price range?

[felttoaster]

@thijst No I am talking about how this amp would compare with a standard ac15 and 30 AND any additional amps in the price rap

[felttoaster]

@felttoaster *range

[thijst]

@felttoaster Ah I see. I've had an AC30CC2X and an AC15 CC1X in the past and in all honesty, this amp does not have the mojo of those two. But you cannot expect an amp to sound just as good for less than half the price ... so given the price bracket, the VR sounds fantastic. Better than any other amp I've had in that price range (Fender Roc Pro 1000, Fender Frontman 212R, Vox Pathfinder, HH music man). Considering bang-for-buck, there's no better if you ask me.

[wedge070]

How is the reverb with this amp? Digital or spring? I tried the Bugera V22.. it had digital reverb and it sucked. I really like the sound and design of this amp..

[newpixeldude]

Hold me nooow oh hold me noooow... can´t wait til I get one of these amps

[MrKerre1806]

I just got my ac15vr. I'm really happy with it. Great Amp. Real great warm VOx tone.

Reverb is to weak, by a good reverb pedal is suggest. Great for U2 sound what I was looking for. Great clean channel too. In OD a bit noisy. Overall: Amazing Amp at an amazing price.

[wedge070]

I really like this amp. Im looking for a low wattage (20 or under) amp that has good vibe to it. I use pedals, but the amp needs to have some stand alone mojo. Its a bit pricey at $375.00 .. do you think its worth the money? I surely dont want to dump big ass dollars into an all tube amp. This hybrid vox sounds very good.. How is the bass response on it? And do you really get a tube vibe from it??

[thijst]

@wedge070

There is a tube in this amp. It's a bit of a technical story but I believe it's in the first stage of the power-amp. Is it worth the money? Depends on your requirements. I think it's the best I've ever had in terms of bang-for-buck ... and I've had tube AC15, tube AC30, Fender Roc Pro 1000, Tech21 Power Engine 60 a.o.

[wedge070]

@thijst Thanks for the info... really interested in this amp. How is the reverb?  I think its digital.. Does it sound good?

[thijst]

@wedge070 reverb is digital. personally I don't use the reverb, I take all my effects from my Tonelab.

[wedge070]

@thijst Thanks... I like reverb...but on the low side. I need to find a shop that has one so I can play it..

[pigvonrow1215]

Someone please help is the distortion between the ac30vr and the ac15vr the same? I want to get one and i need the one with the best distortion range. Please help.

[TRASHidols]

Hey-o, hey-o,

Pardon me, but I've been wondering if these ACVR amps are pedal friendly ? Y'never know w/ solid slates.

Thanks so much for your time.

[thijst]

@TRASHidols

Check out my other clip ("Vox AC15 VR clips"). It is me playing with my Tonelab in front of the amp, and should give you a good idea of how pedals sounds through it.

[LuiisMay]

could i connect this to a 4x12 marshall cabinet?

[thijst]

@LuiisMay

I don't see why not ... just make sure the impedance matches. Check the manual if in doubt - it's available on the vox website.

[stryke92]

what song did u play ?

[thijst]

it's Van Diemen's Land by U2.

[Nu18F]

I should have asked if it feedbacks like a single end or push/pull amp. Sweet controlled notes morphing into feedback or transistor Pathfinder like?

[Nu18F]

Will the amp feedback ?

[thijst]

@Nu18F

Like any amp, it will.

[jmreyes29]

Hi, thanks for the demo. Just one question though. How loud can it get? Especially the clean channel. Do you think it can be heard over a drummer for small bar gigs?

[thijst]

No question about it. The amp is much much louder than a normal 15W solidstate amp. It's much closer to a tube AC15 in terms of volume.

[jAMMAN798]

I see you are an accomplished U2 guitarist... well done. Because of this I am sure you use an AC30 when you perform. If so, how would you rate the new VOX AC15vr and AC30vr against the tube version of the AC15 and AC30. Thanks.

[thijst]

Thanks for the compliment. No, I don't use an AC30 when we play live. Nowadays, I only use a Vox Tonelab LE, straight into the P/A. Until a few years ago I did use an AC30 CC2X but with the Tonelab's fantastic amp modeling abilities, it is so much more practical to go straight to the P/A.

As for your question: of course a full-tube amp will sound better but these amps are about 1/3 of the price. Certainly great value for money, worth every penny.

[thijst]

Absolutely. It's a technical thing but from what I've been told it's rated as a tube amp i.e. the 15W is clean. Comparing this to a "normal" 15W solid state is like comparing night and day.

[marc12marc]

the grill cloth is allready coming off ????

[thijst]

Erm... no? Must be the lighting or something.

[darkrreaver]

Sounds really promising... I'm wondering how these will do with pedals in front...

I'm surprised they sound so good for SS amps. Never thought I'd be craving one... Such good news they are more affordable than the tube versions! Plus no buying and swappin tubes... Awesome...

[TheLedGuitarist]

oops

[Hammy135]

van diemens land. Great amp! I think i'm going to have to invest in one of these, they sound great and are affordable. Vox do it again, i was even impressed by their 10w pathfinder

[thijst]

I've only had it for a week now but it appears solid. No idea about reliability; only time will tell.

[VlastaStevanovich]

Wow mate, that was quick! :) Thanks. Is it well built?