Fender vs Vox vs Marshall: What's the Difference? | Reverb Tone Report

Fender, Vox, and Marshall make fantastic amps, each with different sonic flavors. While individual amp models vary to an even greater degree, each brand has a distinctive sound that fans can recognize instantly. And in fact, many musicians have a strong preference for one over the other. So let's talk about some of the key differences between these powerhouse amplifier brands.

Guitars: Fender Custom Shop Strat, Gibson Les Paul Standard
Mics: Shure SM-57, Lewitt LCT-640

0:00 - Intro
0:23 - What is the Fender amp sound?
03:40 - What is the Vox amp sound?
08:02 - What is the Marshall amp sound?

[SundayMatinee]

1:07 Fender clean
2:06 Fender reverb
3:02 Fender driven
4:51 Vox clean
5:46 Vox reverb
6:43 Vox normal channel
7:02 Vox top boost
7:27 Vox driven
8:46 Marshall saturation
9:20 Marshall clean
9:56 Marshall cranked

[Aaron-zhkj]

Andy: "we're gonna crank this marshall."
Some random guy: "**** yeah!"

[Not_Mii_Uus]

It's okay, Vox.. I don't like hearing negative feedback, either... :(
LEAVE VOX ALONE

[papawx]

I own amps from all three, but to me, I couldn't live without my '73 Super Reverb. My neighbors enjoy it too, I can tell by the looks I get from them when I go to the mail box.

[drbooks]

“The Marshall seems to always want to be cranked. And that’s what we’re gonna do” - LMAO - internet gold

[FuzzballSounds]

2:42 Andy has also mastered the art of pickup switching

[lance]

I'm glad you always use the Deluxe Reverb for pedal demos - it makes it a bit easier to compare.

[SamLibman]

One of the best things about Andy that really sets him apart from other guitarist/demonstrators is that his guitar is ALWAYS IN TUNE! Bless this man, haha. 🤘🏻🤘🏻

[thehmc]

9:50 Salute to the dude in the background who wanted to crank it the fuck up. \m/

[jinjxmusic]

Most of my amp preferences are "clean" and "Fenderish" so watching you go into the low input made me see how I could use a JCM800. Thank you, Andy, for constantly giving us the game on gear!

[garrettbaker]

My mind is made up: I'll take one of each.

[kiaora]

Fender had three great eras of Amplifiers. Tweed, Brownface and Blackface. Four, if you want to count Silverfaces too - all sounding significantly different with unique tonal characteristics. Not to mention during the 50s and 60s, they were also making some of the greatest solid body electric guitars ever seen and what would become industry standard Bass guitars. No other company came close to the brilliance coming out of the Fender factory during this time.

[davejsutdave]

I’m so glad you mentioned the JCM 800s clean abilities it’s a grossly misunderstood amp in that people just associate it with hard rock when the reality is that it was probably the most used amp in its day by all different players. Plenty of country players used them as well. People always forget the low input gets you crisp tones and they’re great for pedals. And if you dial the preamp back in the high you can get great subtle breakup. Most of those metal guys ran it with RAT pedals and tube screamers to get that “metal” tone people associate with the 800. It wasn’t default by diming it.

[ahobimo]

All three of these amps are perfect. Each one of them is my favorite. Real tubes win. No exceptions.

[CodyCEngdahl]

That strat with the Fender reverb is the most perfect tone to me.

[justinbowlin]

Such a cool demo. I'm a Vox enthusiast myself, with a gang of Vox amps sitting behind me as I type this, but I loved hearing the comparisons. Fender and Marshall are awesome too, and I was actually pretty impressed by the clean tone of that JCM800.

[jamesrobinson]

I used a Vox AC30 about a month ago at a gig, for the first time. I don't like the jangly/treble sizzle that I thought that it would have (just my personal preference). I used the low input and I was floored!!! It accepted my pedals exceptionally, it sounded awesome, was easy to dial in a great base tone and felt great to play with. The Vox AC30 is the best amp that I've played in a long time.

[gdrugg]

I love the Vox style amp because of the dynamics. If you have it cranking a little bit, no worries if you forget to hit your OD pedal. You'll be rocking out and hitting those strings hard, only to realize that the wonderful tone you're hearing is purely from the amp.

[dimensionalencounter]

“Fender vs vox vs Marshall what’s the difference” they don’t come in Orange.

[TheToneLounge]

I'm a huge Vox fan. On it's own, it can sound a bit odd. Not much bass, scooped low mids, heavily pronounced high-mids and highs. Once you hear it in a mix, it's like it's been pre-EQ'd for you. It just sits where it is suppose to, frequency wise. I want to get a Deluxe Reverb as well, as they are the opposite (frequency-wise) of the Vox amps. The two together should be quite something. Cool video, very insightful. Cheers