Don't Buy a Vintage Vox! Here's Why!

The Vox sound is highly coveted amongst guitarists, but most of us don't have $5,000 to drop on a mid 1960s AC30. On top of that, the more recent Vox amplifiers seem to fall short in tone and reliability when compared to their vintage counterparts.

In recent years, I was made aware of the KORG-era Vox AC30 TBX that was produced from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s. The AC30 TBX outperform all of the current production Vox amps in tone, build quality, and reliability. Today, I'm showing you what makes the KORG-era Vox AC30s so great.

KORG Era Vox AC30 TBX:

Psionic Audio Vox TBX Video:

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CREDITS:
Host/Co-Production: Mason Marangella
Guitar: Tim Marco
Video: Nico Sotomayor
Video Editing: Mason Mejia
Co-Production/Design: Mason Mejia
Audio Engineering: Hunter Harrison

#voxamplifiers #tubeamps #VoxTBX

[RandallWhitneyNY]

Glad to see that these Korg/VOX AC30 TB reissues are still appreciated by discerning players! I was the product manager for VOX USA at that time and worked very closely with Steve Grindrid at Marshall to make sure we were building an amp that was as close as we could get to the original but using modern production techniques. We of course also had to deal with present day safety codes and restrictions.

[thekingofbohemia]

I've got a 1963 Vox AC30. Works and sounds great. I'm 72 y/o. Never had any trouble with it.

[ianmcfarland]

I'm sorry to hear that you had trouble with your vintage AC30s. They can be temperamental if they're are allowed to get too hot. I have three vintage amps, a 1964 (blue speakers) and two 1965s (silver speakers). I got them in the mid '70s and used them almost exclusively for two decades - on the road and in the studio. They never gave me any untoward trouble. Luckily, no blown speakers either! I made back panels for them with holes cut out for fans to exhaust the heat from the amps. From there on all they needed was regular maintenance and tubes. In 2001, I bought three Vox/Korg AC30/6 TBX amps so I could keep my '60s JMI amps out of venues. Originally, they sounded OK but couldn't hold a candle to my JMI amps. I had them modified so that they sounded as close to the JMI amps as possible. I had Marshall style head cabs built for them, 100w Plexi sized, to allow them to run cool. Their Marshall-style chassis facilitated that. Part of the mods included new iron and beefier parts to take the punishment I gave them. Using my Burns Brian May Signature guitars, I ran the amps flat out into attenuators. They survived well yet I had more breakdowns with the Korg amps than the JMI amps. I used the JMIs in the same manner. Now that I no longer am playing out I've sold the Korg amps and will keep only one of the JMI amps - the 1965 with Woden transformers. To my ears the Woden iron sounds the best. If any of you viewers of this video are interested in owning an AC30, the maker of this piece is correct in that the Korg-era Vox amps beat any Asian build, but, with proper care, NOTHING beats a JMI AC30!

[jumpbluesdude]

I have a 63 that I completely went through. Every component measured, every cap checked for leakage, all the grime cleaned out, and tube sockets replaced where needed. Just a good servicing. Has not given me a problem since.

[rickenbacker]

I owned a UK (Marshall) made 90s era AC-30TBX for a number of years. It was a maintenance pig, constantly at the tech for fixing things and even hitting brick walls with a seemingly unfixable problem (myterious buzz/rattle, vibration on certain notes). Subsequently, I found a '64 JMI AC-30 (non-TB, treble), bought it and never looked back. I gave the amp a basic overhaul with new filter caps, replacing a few resistors, one pot and a few other little bits and pieces and the amp has been stable and reliable for the next twenty years and more, regular gigging, rehearsals, damp rehearsal rooms, shipping overseas, always played "hot" with a power attenuator etc. Not a single break down or issue. I put in new filter caps and tubes just this year, for the first time since that service over 20 years ago.

[wrobinson]

Agreed. In 1975, I got a Vox AC-30 from the late 1960s, and it produced some incredible it was working. It gradually became unfixable, (at least for a price I could afford at the time) and I quit using it. It sat in my garage until we had a flood, which destroyed it. .

[matthewwwtaylor]

That's my Korg-era AC30 TBX in Lyle's video! My only regret with purchasing this amp and getting Psionic's mods done is that I never get to play the amp because I live in an apartment. It is loud enough to kill a small animal.

[joewerry]

It’s amazing how over the years the AC30 has been combined with different guitars to get so many different yet similar classic tones

[thetonetosser]

My old '63 AC15 twin was the perfect gigging amp. Even in clubs. EF86 circuit. Loved modern pedals too. Bloody heavy though.

[Lalairu]

Videos like these make me get even more in love with Vox amps. I bought an AC4 C1 12 this summer and I can't happier. This is my second valve amp, the first one was a Bugera V5 which I sold to buy the Vox. For the money the Bugera was amazing, but I wanted the Vox sound and the Ac4 delivers! Still saving for the AC15 head though. The demos where fantastic, specially the STP sound! Thanks for the video :)

[jazz_grooves]

One of the last vintage bargains would be an AC50. I picked up a JMI era 1966 AC50 in great condition last year for $850. Has the beautiful chime of an AC30 with Marshall type low end. A really great sounding amp!

[bruceboome]

About 12 years ago, Cliff Richard and the Shadows (hugely popular in the UK and Commonwealth) did a 50th-anniversary tour. The two guitarists each had 2 modernJMI amps, faithfully modeled on 60's Vox amps. Hank Marvin, the lead guitarist sounded incredible, the best clean Strat tone I ever heard. Sadly, not many were made.

[sassulusmagnus]

A big part of the way the guitars sound on the Beatles recording of I Feel Fine, if I recall correctly, is that they had plugged a Gibson J-160E acoustic into the amp. I think that's also supposedly how John Lennon got that weird feedback sound at the start of the song.
I love my '94 AC30/6TB. Very reliable. I run it with an Alnico Blue and a Greenback. Nice combination. All hail the "Blizzard of Nails".

[al]

I contend that the very best use of a Vox AC30 was by James Williamson on Iggy & the Stooges Raw Power album.

[revbrodiddley]

This is pretty funny. Back in the late 90s and early 2000s it was common knowledge that the Korg ac30tb’s and tbx’s had terrible reliability issues. I went through two of em myself. Good sound though! And I enjoyed the video for sure.

[guitaristwilllane]

i love seeing the AC30TBX get more attention! it deserves every bit of praise! as a TBX fan, i'd like to offer some clarification on a few things:

- there's no cult following among the VOX community over the TBX, we all pretty much unanimously agree it's far superior to the majority of Korg's other AC30 offerings
- the "Korg-Era AC30" is a misnomer. Korg has owned VOX since the 90's so any AC30 they've put out is a "Korg-Era AC30". i generally just refer to this amp as the "AC30TBX" for clarity
- the CC2 (custom classic) is not a current version of the AC30. it's been discontinued since 2010. the current consumer grade AC30 versions are the AC30C2 and the AC30S1, both of which i'd argue are not worth your money on a professional level. this has nothing to do with the type of circuit or components, but the circuit design itself (the in/out sound)
- the HW1/HW2 amps are well designed, well built, and populated with fine-quality and accurate components. they are the closest you can get to the traditional VOX sound and format when considering a new purchase. the most important things with the HW1/2 are the superior circuit design and the ease of service/modification, not the component quality or the HW nature itself. so, there's no reason to worry about the components as long as they are installed correctly and their value matches what the schematic calls for
- the true closest modern "new" AC30 to the traditional 60's designs would be the HW60 series amps, but $$$$! just get a matchless at that point
- using a vintage VOX has it's fair share of problems but they can be workhorses when given the proper TLC. for one, their components have drifted in value over time so capacitors and resistors will need to be replaced (if the previous owner didn't replace them already). second, they were made to receive lower voltages from the wall (USA, around 110VAC compared to 124VAC+ modern day), so you have to use a variac or voltage reduction like the Brown Box.

:)

[thomasmetz]

The circuit for my Korg era AC15-TBX is way different than the current iterations. It is basically the top boost channel of an AC30. It has a 5Y3 tube rectifier, tube driven tremolo & reverb. They were made in England. My amp had issues with poor solder joint quality, that I fixed when I installed Mercury Magnetics transformers. No issues at all with reliability since reflowing all solder joints.

[carlosalves]

I Always enjoy your videos, Brother so thanks so much man You always go the extra mile in my opinion. Im a massive U2 The Edge Fan and other Vox players too. I have a VoxAC30CC2X and I love this amp. Its my first tube amp and to me it sounds great. Some people say oh you have the ""Chinese: celestion blue speakers, blah, blah. its not as good as a 60s TB, the circuits are different, the cone paper in the speaker is different just not as good, yeah maybe LMAO . I bought this amp in virtually new condition for 465GBP around 600USD in 2010. Im still laughing today. Funny thing is trolls say its not a true representation of the original, while playing a squier strat. Its a bit of a double standard.
So anyway, who cares its an incredible amp and adding an eq pedal to the mix can shape some nice tonal joy to my ears. I wonder how many on YT are recording and selling albums and touring and taking a vintage 60s amp on the road? anyone going platinum anytime soon? Im not, , but its great for my small home studio. So my point is enjoy what you have and learning to get the best sound from your gear and playing your guitar to best of your ability for me is far more important after all they're just instruments to express yourself. Peace from Australia.

[andrewloukidis]

Originals are perfectly reliable if maintained properly like my 66.

Same with my 93 TBX, never let me down after decades of use and abuse

Hard to believe how much time has passed that these are not well known.

[ae]

When the second and third guitar parts came in on the “Killer Queen” bit I couldn’t help but smile. It is always fun to imitate original genius.