Vox AC30-TB

Price Paid: US $775.00 used

Features: 10
1965 JMI Vox AC30-TB. Grey panel top boost, silver alnico speakers, plain Woden transformers, swivel tilt stand, and original Vox cover. I bought this amp from a friend in 1978 who was the original purchaser. He only used the amp lightly for about a year before he quit playing. When I bought it, it still had the original Mullard tubes in it and still sported the showroom hang tag on its center handle. Everything was perfect about the amp's condition.

By now, everyone knows the AC 30 3-channel drill - Top Boost (Brilliant), Normal, and Tremolo. The Top Boost channel uses all 3 tone controls (Treble, Cut, and Bass). The other two channels only have the Cut control at their disposal. I never use the Tremolo channel because I find the tremolo too harsh and abrupt. However, that bit is of no concern to me, as I never use a tremolo circuit to begin with. I have always been pretty much of a "bare bones" player and use effects sparingly. I expect the amp and guitar, in conjunction with my hands, to create that "perfect tone" we all carry in our heads. For me, this amp simply does it all no matter what guitar I plug into it.

Many people say that the AC30-TB is limited as to the tones that can be coaxed from the amp. I beg to differ. I do things the old fashioned way - I daisy chain the Top Boost and Normal channels together with a short jumper cable. Primarily, I plug into the high-gain input on the Top Boost channel and jump the low-gain input of that channel to the high-gain input of the Normal channel. This way, I get loads of versatility because the voicing of the two channels is entirely different from one another. If I want that crystal clear bell chime, I simply turn the Normal channel volume down all the way and adjust the Top Boost volume to where I need it. If I want full out distortion, I dime the Normal channel and bring up the volume on the Top Boost channel to the desired level depending upon which guitar I am using at the time. I also tweak the tone controls to suit what I'm going after.

Face it folks! This is an old amp design and, for its day, it was loaded with features. If you feel Vox should have at least included a reverb and a master volume, then you haven't been around long enough to know that those features would have been superfluous in a live situation. No one played dirty back then and an on-board reverb just got lost in the acoustics of night clubs and dance halls.

Sound Quality: 10
The Top Boost (Brilliant) channel is just that - Bright. The treble control is shelved at a higher frequency than most other amps but that is part of what creates the beloved Vox chime. The other part of the chemistry is the Vox/Celestion alnico speakers. The Cut control is somewhat akin to an old radio tone control in that it sweeps between treble and bass but in a mid-range sort of way. The Bass control, like the Treble control, should be used judiciously. Both of them are VERY active and a little bit goes a long way. The amp is also amazingly loud. When needed, I tame its volume down with a THD HotPlate.

No matter what guitar I use, I can get spectacularly clean, rich, warm, and chimey tones to glorious, raging distortion with wonderful compression, sustain and lovely harmonic overtones. In the 80's and early 90's, I had a difficult time getting decent tubes but now I load the thing with JJ Tesla's and am very satisfied. The JJ's give me the closest tone to the original Mullards of all the tubes I've tried to date.

The guitars I use the most with this amp are a handmade "Strat" loaded with Duncan pickups, a '69 Les Paul loaded with DiMarzio pickups, a stock '59 Gretsch Country Gentleman, a '74 Rickenbacker 450-12, and, most recently, a Burns Brian May Signature. This amp allows each guitar to have its own voice no matter what settings I use. I'd say this is the mark of a truly great amp! The only pedals I use with this amp are an ancient Boss Chorus, a 1965 Vox Wah-Wah, and a Crispy Cream Treble Booster built by Scott Humphrey. I use the Wah very little and only use the treble booster with the Brian May Signature.

I play hard rock, blues, a little jazz and some country using this amp. I only turn to my Marshall when I want to have that signature Marshall sound. Otherwise, the AC30-TB can cover it all with ease.

Reliability: 10
In the 27 years I've had this amp, I have only needed the services of a professional amp tech twice. In 1981, the amp needed its first new set of filter caps. In 2004, it got a new set of filter caps again. In addition, any parts that had gone too far off spec were replaced with NOS parts. When I first got the amp, I noticed how hot it ran so I fabricated a new upper back panel (to preserve to original), cut a hole in it and installed a 5" whisper fan. Since then, I have never had a heat problem. I also control the higher modern voltage issue the cheap, old-fashioned way - I always place a 100' 18 gauge extension cord between the power outlet and my amp. That shaves off enough line voltage to keep the old girl happy.

I toured, recorded and rehearsed with this amp for many years and only had to pull out a backup amp once. That was when the filter caps went south the first time. It was my primary amp from 1978 to 1995. The only special thing I did to it when I was out on the road for 4 solid years was to re-load the thing with EVM 12L's to protect the Vox speakers. The alnico speakers are back in it now protected by the THD.

If this isn't reliable, I don't know what is!

Customer Support: N/A
JMI - May you rest in peace! Thanks for the great amp.

Overall Rating: 10
Sound quality and tone are very subjective topics. However, let me put it this way. During my 45 years of guitar playing, I have owned many amps, in a variety of models and configurations, from all the major manufacturers. I have sold nearly all of them except this amp. The Vox AC30-TB gives me almost everything I want. The only other amps I use besides this gem are a Vox AC30/6 TBX (which is about to get the full Don Butler treatment) and a Marshall 100 watt Plexi over a 1960a 4x12 loaded with Celestion G12H's. Probably the only amp I regret having sold was a 1964 Fender Bassman.

If someone stole my '65 AC30-TB, I would hunt down the thief like a dog! Then, I would do whatever it took to get another. This is my favorite amp of all timeż Period!

Submitted by Ian M. at 07/18/2005 01:22

Price Paid: 950

Features: N/A
1965 Jenning Vox AC 30. Bought it from Ampaholics in Surrey. Sounded great in their shop. Got it home, but it didn't sound the same as my mates. Turned out that Goodhand-Tate (poncey name) had re-coned the speakers - looked fine but sounds harsh. Other bits in the amp had been messed with too. Spent another small fortune getting it sorted, but still needs a pair of genuine speakers to make it good. Beware. Not an honest fella - shop elsewhere. Buys his stuff on E.bay and part exchange junk from music shops, bodges it up then then doubles the price to the unsuspecting. Be warned, buy elsewhere.

Sound Quality: N/A
Now that it is sorted, it is everything I expected, apart from the sound being a bit harsh - pair of genuine speakers will sort this - more expense, but live and learn.

Reliability: 10
Too old to gig with without a backup. Still 40 years old so ......

Customer Support: N/A
Lots of spares avaliable. Lots of people can work on them - and some that can't of course (or they are just not honest fellas).

Overall Rating: N/A
Too long to remember. Met lots of friendly sharks in my time. Made it, lost it. Still playing. Like some of the new rock stuff coming through. Hope for the future. Stay safe and watch out.

Submitted by Mick at 05/27/2005 14:28

Price Paid: US $7,300 used

Features: 8
I have two JMI AC30's from different years and am reviewing both. Pricing above was for BOTH amps. $4,500 for the '62 and $2,800 for the '66. The first is a candy panel 1962 top boost, blue alnicos, Albion transformers, CHROMED chassis courtesy of Plexi Palace (hence the price). The second is a 1966 grey panel top boost, silver alnicos, plain Woden transformers (not painted green). The amp is three basic separate preamp circuits feeding one power amp section. The amp is a one trick pony. However, with an A/B switch I run both the normal and TB channels simultaneously. Instant channel switching! The third tremelo/vibrato preamp section can be used on it's own or combined with another channel. With a bit of simple patching, relatively versatile - certainly useable. My styles of music are pop & rock, the amp suits these just fine. No effects loop, don't need it. No reverb, it would kill the character of the amp anyway. I don't wish for any additional features, with the flexible input patching it has everything I need. The amp is KILLER for recording, both clean and distorted tones. Depending on the drummer & application, it may/may not have enough stage power. With my drummer the amp runs out of clean headroom, but the distortion level is perfect (I have a VERY loud drummer). Both amps are in my studio, I rarely use them live. Plenty of power in a studio environment. I rate the amp an 8 due to no internal channel switching, effects loop, reverb. But keep in mind I never need those features.

Sound Quality: 9
Okay, here is where the amps are VERY DIFFERENT. The '62 has dark, thick tones with pronounced lower mids, soft highs. The '66 is brighter with more ringing high end. They BOTH are VOX airy & chimey, and both shine with single coil pickups, mini humbuckers, or full sized humbuckers with low gain. I run out of loud clean tones quickly with Gibson Alnico 490 humbuckers, so the amp still SOUNDS great, it's just less versatile. With low gain pickups and channel switched inputs, the amp is either clean & chimey or saturated & spongy. Good enough variety for me, even with no pedals. The clean channel any channel WILL distort at high volumes - not an issue in the studio. I would describe both amps tones as chimey, airy & spongy. The distortion is never harsh. I run both amps together and the sound is GLORIOUS! But since nothing is PERFECT I rate the amps sounds as 9. Plus they are finicky regarding pickups.

Reliability: 8
Everyone dismisses old AC30 amps as "unreliable". It depends. Albion & Woden transformers are preferred and more reliable components then Parmiko (which were used after David Jennings sold the company). Also, most ALL JMI Voxes were built well. These original Voxes are reliable IF they are properly serviced and maintained. That means new caps & tubes when required. Operating voltages should be periodically checked. These amps GET HOT. A second set of top vents would have been helpful in the original design. If you are good with a router you can add them. My Voxes have only failed when I installed "NOS" tubes. Now I use only brand new current production tubes and have no problems. I rate the amps an 8 due to the high operating temperatures.

Customer Support: 1
Ha Ha! There hasn't been a JMI VOX company in almost 40 years.
Sorry, Korg doesn't count.

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing 28 years, semi pro. If it were stolen or lost I would get something else - they are simply too expensive. You buy a Vox for the tone, which is GLORIOUS (did I repeat myself?). I compared my Voxes to Matchless amps, which I sold to buy these. The Matchless had too many upper mids and sounded "boxy" to my ears. (Don't get me wrong, Matchless amps are excellent).

Submitted by David LaCava at 03/16/2005 12:01

Price Paid: 800 (EURO) used

Features: 9
Made in England ca. 1978 to 1980. (Rose Morris era) I use it mainly with my 2 Rickenbacker guitars 330 and 330/12. You can plug 6 guitars into this amp, but I only use the brilliant channel. The normal channel sounds a bit dark, the vib/trem channel interesting, but it´s nothing against the brilliant channel. Simply perfect. Pure jingle-jangle.
What´s missing? A Master-Volume would be ok, but what I really miss is a reverb. So I bought a cheap stomp box for this,and it works great.

Sound Quality: 10
The sound is absolutely incredible. I use it only clean with the "cut"-switch turned off completely and I can get all the classics out of it (Beatles, Byrds, The Smiths...)
We were comparing the AC 30 with a Fender Blues de Ville (also tubes), and the AC 30 won by far. It´s really a different league.
This amp isn´t very variable, and for distortion this one is not the right one. You love or hate it. My advise: If you like clean sounds, buy this. If you like distorted sound, go and buy something else.
10 points here of course, no question.

Reliability: 8
I have this one since a month now and changed the tubes one time, as the they were quite old. It´s buzzing a little bit sometimes.

Customer Support: N/A
Don´t know.

Overall Rating: 10
Playing since 15 years now. 2 Rics and a Tele.
If this amp was stolen I would kill the thief. If this amp was lost, I would kill myself. I will never buy a different one, execpt another AC 30.
The best thing is: The AC 30 upgrades any guitar. Even cheaper guitars are sounding good, and good guitars are sounding great.

Submitted by Bernhard at 02/23/2005 09:23

Price Paid: US $1500

Features: 10
Mine is a rare Rose Morris era Vox AC30 made in 1991. It has all the same features previously stated but with the addition on Reverb.

Sound Quality: 10
Sounds like smooth, silky, chocolate. I play in an Alt Rock band, but my roots are blues/funk-based. This amp covers it all.
I mostly play just the Normal channel with the tone cut knob at 10 o'clock, volume is on full (keep reading to find out how my ears can stand the volume.) It originally came with greenback speakers, I've swapped those out for Vintage 30s. Man what a difference! smoothed out the highs, and punched the mid-lows. I also use an A/B/Y box to channel switch between the normal channel and the Brilliant channel. This is the only way to do this. Of course the brilliant channel is on full as well with the bass at (3 o'clock) treble (1 o'clock). Now the only way youre ears can handle this is to use an attenuator of some sort between the amp and speakers. I use a Marshall PB100 powerbrake. Keep in mind these are 16ohm cabs. The PB acts as a master volume. But its wide open on stage most of the time anyhow. With the Powerbrake I can "Y" the output to another cab. I use a showman cab with a greenback and a jensen. Man, when used in conjunction with the V30's, life couldnt be better, time doesnt exist. Now folks,, when you drive your AC30 as hard as I do in this setup,, youre gonna find out quick that there aren't a whole lot of tubes that can hold up to the abuse. My personal preference has been JJ tubes both pre and power. 1year4months and counting No Problems!! I had a closely matched quad put in. Let them warmup properly for 20 mins and cool down in stanby for 5min when your done and your tubes will go the extra mile.
I never use the Reverb or the Tremelo. Just an analog delay, chorus pedal, Boss DS1 (to overdrive, not dist,, all knobs at 12o'clock) and another overdrive pedal.
I mostly play an american Telecaster. I just roll off the volume on my guitar to get a clean tone (if there is such a thing, but you guys that drive this amp know what I mean.)
If you have this amp and only play in your home,, get out there and get a PB100/hotplate/Dr Z attenuator (about $200-400) so you can really see/hear what these amps are all about. Sure, you get a great clean tone at low levels, but nothing a bassman or a twin can't get. Roll the volume up to the tone where other amps can't even dream of reaching.

Reliability: 10
If your amp is popping or getting volume "jumps" , you aren't allowing your tubes to warm up enough. Turn on your amp, go make yourself a sandwich, come back and rock out till you puke. good times.
Almost a year and a half on the JJ's I threw in, and Im still cranking out tone. Take care of your tubes, and your amp will sing to you.
Ive gigged with this for 2 years with no backup, practice for 3 hours 3x's a week, and never had any problems with it.
Oh yeah, make sure your tubes are closely matched. If you dont know what Im talking about,, take your amp in to a pro and have him order the tubes for you. Or ask some guys here.

Customer Support: 10
never dealt with them,, I wouldnt know who to go to anyhow. Rose Morris? JMI? Korg?
whatever, thats what forums are for.

Overall Rating: 10
Ive been playing for 17 years actively. Ive owned soo many amps and guitars its sick. One day a friend took me into a vintage shop and I tried out an AC30 for the first time. From the 2 minutes it took for the Sales guy to walk over to me to tell me to turn down,, I knew where my tone was gonna come from for the rest of my life till I get rich ofcourse. :) Smooth, silky chocolate. Ive sold my 100 watt Marshall DSL Stack for this 33watt 2x12 box with no frills or thrills, and havent looked at anything else.
Amps ive owned/tried: Marshall DSL/TSL/JCM 800/ MARSHALL Artist/Mesa Boogie Nomad 100/Nomad 55/Carvin XB100/Fender Bassman/MusicMan HD130r/HD150/LINE6 crap/fender twins/JC120. And I still only play my AC30. Though I will give alot of credit to the Fender Bassman 4x10 combo's. A respectable alternative.
www.Mannaray.com

Submitted by Gary C. at 01/11/2005 17:27

Price Paid: US $2935.00

Features: 8
Not sure of the year its a reissue bought new in 2000. I always loved the tone of these amps and not only gig but have a recording studio so I need a variety of amps. I give it an 8 due to no reverb.

Sound Quality: 10
Awesome tone I was mainly using this as my clean tone amp with a Les Paul or a Rickenbacker. Very good amp for that jangly sound but starts to dirty up at higher volumes. After a few months it started making really weird noises while just sitting after being played for a couple hours, I figured it was the tubes going.

Reliability: 2
Well now for the bad news I used this onstage and bought a very expensive flight case to protect it during travel so I did not mistreat the thing. It was retubed several times which can get
kind of spendy if you buy quality tubes. After it went out on me at a gig I would not gig without a backup. 2 months after the last retube
it went out on me at a show.....thats it, if a piece of equipment fails on me twice on stage it never goes on stage again. I will retube it (AGAIN) and only use it for studio work where it doesnt matter as much if it craps out. Bottom line its not the amp for a regularly gigging musician.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with the company as the distributor for the US is back east and I live out west.

Overall Rating: 3
I will have to knock it way down due to the reliability issues. I have several different fender amps, marshall amps, and a couple of smaller crate amps. I have 18 guitars and have been playing in bands and recording for over 30 years. Great studio amp if you can afford it for the unique sound, but for a gigging musician, especially if you don't have tons of cash, get something else.

Submitted by Pat Vaughn at 08/06/2004 15:42

Price Paid: 550 (Ł) used

Features: 10
Although the amp has minimal features they can be used to great effect, and any number of tones can be created using the 3 channels all with low and high inputs( so 6 in total).
Mine is an 80's model with reverb and vibrato features, although the vibrato effect has recently stopped working. However I don't mind as I never used it anyway.It has G-12 speakers and cut, bass and treble tone controls.
I play rock'n'roll music and have always found it loud enough to cope at gigs (which with a PA shouldn't matter anyway.

Sound Quality: 10
I use a '77 Gibson the Paul with seymour duncan pick-ups.
I use the brilliant channel for my clean sounds and the vibrato channel ( which overdrives at a much lower volume) for a really honking typa 60's sound. Also I use a Boss Blues driver on both channels for a more fuzzed up modern sound.
For my solos I also use an ibanez compression pedal which used in conjunction with the 2 distortions is possibly the biggest fattest sound I have ever heard from an amp.
It took me a while to get used to using all these different tones and sounds but was well worth it.
It also has great sonic capabilities for feedback which I am presently mastering.

Reliability: 8
I have had no problems except the loss of the vibrato effect. This doesn't matter to me and appart from that it has been great.
Also I buy my equipment from a long-time indepedent guitar shop who carry out repairs to my gear free of charge. hurray!!

Customer Support: 10
Like I say its second hand

Overall Rating: 10
Before buying this amp I have Had Marshall, crate, peavey, laney, fender and carlsboro amps. In my opinion the vox had by far the most character (and looked the best). Also some people I have spoken to claim the 80's version to be one of the worst. This may be true but there will always be exceptions, I was going to swap mine for a '68 version but it really didn't sound as good. So make up your own minds cos when it comes down to it nobodies opinion matters but your own.

Submitted by wils at 04/28/2004 13:22

Price Paid: US $1100

Features: 9
Bought it used, I think it's a 2001. This thing has unbelievable gain, sweet tone; sounds amazing clean or dirty. It's a bare bones Class A tube amp, no reverb, vibrato isn't that great.

Sound Quality: 10
I use a Tele Nashville Deluxe through the normal channel and a Gretsch Tennessee Rose through the Brilliant channel and it's a dream. I bought it to play in larger venues and theatres but it sounds great at lower volumes at home also. I use a Yamaha GT Stomp and I can dial in just about anything you can think of: Sparkling clean tones, slightly overdriven to thrash tones, punk tones etc. The tone cut feature is very good, I found that it produces more mid range than a typical Fender tube amp.

Reliability: 9
I Just got it, haven't had any problems.

Customer Support: N/A
I haven't called them so nothing to say here.

Overall Rating: 10
I've played a bunch of Fender and Marshall tube amps and the more recent "clone amps". I've been a Fender advocate for many years but nothing comes close to the AC30 in terms of gain and versatility of the tone. There expensive, but worth every penny. You gotta try one.

Submitted by Kevin E at 04/16/2004 14:09

Price Paid: N/A used

Features: 9
it's an oldie, maybe 30-35 years old, don't know, great for blues, rock, surf, you name it...that british crunch and overdrive if you turn the volume knob high up, otherwise use a pedal for very high gain (i use marshall bluesbreaker 2 and it's a great combination).
doesn't have many features though, but who needs them?3 channels (brilliant, normal and tremolo), volume, bass, treble, cut, reverb, vib. tremolo and speed (for vib.t.).i use it all the time and it works perfectly, it's also loud enough to play in any club.you guys which are hung up on buttons and artificial effects and similar knobs take 3 for this rating.

Sound Quality: 10
i use a strat.sound on this machine is the best i've heard ever, no wonder that beatles, animals, hendrix, clapton, queen and many others used this amp.sound gets distorded at high volumes, maybe some of you find this as a minus, but i just turn volume on my guitar down and it's clean.i don't know how these new vox's sounds like, but this one is the best!i'll never sell it.

Reliability: 10
like i said, it's very old, but still in one piece!i broke a handle on it, but it's not a surprise after such a long time.i'll change the tubes, they're pretty old too.i'd use this amp anywhere and anyhow, without backup.

Customer Support: N/A
if there was anything to fix, i'd try to do it on my own, i think that the warranty is long gone.

Overall Rating: 10
every guitar player has it's own taste, i say that all of you should hear this amp before buying any other, if there was a "hall of fame" for amps, this one would surely get in immidiately.you hear this amp every day, listening to beatles, clapton, queen, animals, cream, hendrix, yardbirds, etc., just try it, you've got nothing to lose!i highly recommend it.

Submitted by Anonymous at 01/05/2004 08:13

Price Paid: US $1600 used

Features: 10
I think it's a 90s.
It gets a zillion tones, all excellent, from clean to end of the world.
3 channels - vibrato, normal, brilliant.
The vibrato channel is kind of goofy - you have to patch it into one of the other channels with a short cable - on it's own, it's such an extreme effect is virtually useless. At best, it gets kind of a leslie sound.
I use this amp at gigs and at home in my studio. It has an overabundance of power.
The main thing is it gets the best tone you've ever heard.

Sound Quality: 10
My main guitar is a cheapie (that I continually pick for for it's tone), a Squire SuperSonic, 90s, Japan.
The AC30 suits my style well because I like to play clean a lot but I like to have headroom to crank the thing up and get a nice overdriven sound, which the AC30 is unrivaled for by any other amp. I play rock, pop, blues, r'n'b, country.
At high volumes, there is some degree of noise, but the signal-to-noise ratio is neglegeble.
You can play clean loud enough to get over a loud drumer in a small club.
The distortion is the most colorful, detailed, rich, sweet, yummy distortion in the world. Ref "we will rock you" Queen.

Reliability: 10
So far, no problems.

Customer Support: N/A
not applicable

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing gigs since age 15 in the early 80s.
If lost stolen, would have to be replaced.
I just love this amp, period. It rules.
The only other amp I like as much as this is my Balls M18 http://ballsamps.com/ which is a clone of a Marshall 18 watter / Watkins Dominator. My only beef is the weird tremelo, but I guess that's part of it's charm. Overall, this is the greatest amplifier in the world.

Submitted by Tim Boykin at 11/11/2003 09:02

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 9
Because there are not too many effects (or none at all), I give this a 9. simplicity at its best. I'd give it a 10 if there was actually some sort of gain option. The level the volume needs to be at to get that distortion over powers the rest of the band. (I really dont mind, but then you cant hear what I'm playing along with!)

Sound Quality: 10
amazing. I bought this amp 'broken-in' not 'used' I gave up my Vox Valvetronix for this thing. There is nothing wrong with ad120, in fact its amazing itself with all of its features. But I could hear a bit of a tin cup sound, and decided to fork out the bucks for 'the real thing.' And am NOT disappointed at all. I'm recording an album next month and am sooooo happy to have this for it.

I use a Tele Deluxe through 12 effects, if you want to know them, email me. The sound is superb. Extremely clean and clear, but more importantly, the tone is smooth AND vicious. I've been using the normail channel, but am making the switch to the brillian channel for that extra something.

Reliability: N/A
Havent had any problems yet, but its a tube amp and will have backups with me for shows and recordings, and recommend you all do the same. It's a shame to bring this beautiful amp to a show and not be able to play it.

Customer Support: N/A
Havnt

Overall Rating: 10
I play in a alt band, www.themood.ca , and this amp completes me and the band loves it as well. First rehearsal with the new amp the band was smiling at the amp, not me. I havent had it long enough to truly give an overall review, but at this point I got to say with a TELE and the effects that I use, I think its a very happy family.

If you'd like to hear the band with a Valvetronix, which I still dearly love, check out the website. Otherwise come back in two more monthes to hear the AC30. Sorry for the plug, but we're all musicians here....

Submitted by Matty K at 10/09/2003 15:22

Price Paid: US $1850.00 used

Features: 8
1965 JMI AC 30 top boost grey panel.(factory top boost not a later modification on the back panel.)
6 inputs.high and low for 3 settings.Vibrato/tremolo channel,Normal channel,and Brilliant channel.
Treble and bass effect only the brilliant channel.Cut switch effects tone on the other two.You can link up the channels for various tones.egg shaped footswitch.I don't mind the basic controls.I suppose a master volume would be nice but I bought this amp for it's famous tone.So I won't attempt to tell vox what to change.It is a classic.Seeing as they continue to make reissues of this amp today I 'm guessing it is as close to perfect as they can make it.
It has one "on" switch no "standby" switch.
Versatility ?You either love this tone or you don't .
The dials are basic.The control is subtle and intuitive.

Sound Quality: 10
I primarily use a Gibson semi- hollowbody with humbuckers.
It suits my musical style which is mid 60's rock / blues .
It is noisy and at times .Occasionally picks up radio signals.
It's an old amp so I expected this.It has great tone all the way through.It stays warm and rich in lower volume and then gets an
amazing natural overdrive when pushed louder.However the level needed to get this overdrive is very loud.The distortion is smooth and defined .Beautiful Classic tone.I play straight through it at times but have recently added an effects processor and this has really added to the richness of sound.
Starting with such a great tone it can only get better as you build on it.I know a lot of people claim to leave it without any effects but it is amazing to hear the difference.I can get alot of the beautiful overdrive at lower volumes this way as well.very touch sensitive amplifier.

Reliability: N/A
Me and this amp are the same age.I haven't had any problems with it so far.It 's bound to need check ups and fixes sooner or later but not too worried .

Customer Support: N/A
haven't used them.I think the warranty ran out quite awhile ago.

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for over 20 years.I own another ac30 '63 candy panel.If stolen I would try and find another exactly like it.Beautiful classic tone.I love it.
What do I hate about it?
(1)-I hate lifting it.
When inside it's road case it is almost impossiible lift it on my own.
(2)It won't fit into the trunk of a cab.It is too precious to chance it without the case.
(3)It heats up like a nuclear reactor really fast.
But it is all worth it for the tone.
I heard alot about this classic amp before buying it.
It truly delivers the goods.

Submitted by Anonymous at 03/13/2003 20:49

Price Paid: 480 (Ł) used

Features: 8
AC30 TB Vintage 1991 model for UK market.
Bought USED for Ł480.
Combination of of Marshall and Harma valves with a MesaBoogie GZ34 Rectifer.
All usual channels, vibe, normal, brilliant (and it is!)
Built solid. I expect no problems, but I do own a Ducati :)
I'm not a big Vibrato fan, so I don't know how much I'll be using this...mine has no reverb, but in a hall who needs it? Use a pedal if you need it. I don't miss it.
I opened it up and the board is in great shape for 13 year old amp used for gigging by previous owner. clean with no BBQ smells.

Sound Quality: 10
Wow, what a sound. Nirvana for me.
I use a Burns Brian May and '73 Strat with Kinman AVn Blues pickups and they both wail on the VOX..
BMay Special through this is full of wonderfull tone. Using the top boost channel and my VOX tone bender fuzz, blood appears out of my eyes and ears. Small animals run for cover and dogs who hear past 22KHZ ask for forgiveness.
Really its a nice tone both for vintage brit 60's and crunchy power of the blues. Distorts nicely using Normal channel at not too high a level..I think a tube change to Groove Tubes may improve this.
I heard a THD hotplate is good for this amp, but UK stores are a fu'%ing ripoff charging Ł249 for them.
Top Boost is a signal now for a special secret club...if you see someone with a VOX T Shirt for example, wink and say quietly (or loud if they have hearing problems) 'TOP BOOST'.
PS You will lose the sensitivity of frequencies >15KHz if you play out with this amp.

Reliability: 10
OK so far. Stop whinging.

Customer Support: 9
Not called Korg yet. Will call to order a cover and new cloth for front in a few days.
I did email them for a catalogue and it came in 3 days delivered with the Valvetronix demo CD....that was good service.

Overall Rating: 10
Playing for 15+ years on and off.
Previous guitars are (were) VOX teardrop and Rickenbacker 12 string.
If it were nicked I'd buy another.
Buy one. Its a piece of history that sounds as good today as it did 40 yrs ago..isn;t that why you own a Fender?

Submitted by Martyn (Oxfordshire) at 01/26/2003 03:11

Price Paid: US $1000 used

Features: 6
1993 reissue. I believe this is possibly the 1st year that Korg reissued the AC-30's. Very simple design. No effects loop, or reverb. 33 watts which drowns out any 100 watt stacks I have ever owned. All tube with tube rectifier. I mostly use this amp in a live setting in stereo with an Orange AD/15 combo. Bottom line this amp cuts through any loud drummer or bass player.

Sound Quality: 10
This is where this amp smokes the competition in my opinion. Mine has the Vox "blue" speakers and they sound amazing. I like class A balls to the wall sound. I like it at high volume with a Bionic Expandora distortion pedal. I mostly use a Rickenabacker 360 and a Rickenbacker 370/12 through a TC Electronics 2290 delay then into an Eventide Harmonizer. Talk about heaven. I have worked years of trial and error to get this set up but this now works perfect for me. One thing I have noticed on the reisse sound though is they are not all equal....This is a 1993 reissue that for some reason sounded much better than my 1995 purple reissue that I used to have. It was something about the wood in the cabinet design. I swapped out the guts in both amps and the 93 reissue was still the better sounding amp even though the components were identical so it had to be the cabinet. I would not change a thing about the sound. Maybe make it a little less noisy when not being played.

Reliability: 8
My 1993 reissue has never broken down but I always bring a backup. My 1995 reissue broke down twice but it was just a faulty rectifer tube. Once I changed that it ran fine.

Customer Support: N/A
Never had to deal with them. I would rather skip the corporate bullshit and pay the $$$ and have a tech I trust service the amp.

Overall Rating: 10
I would replace this sucker in a heartbeat. I would for sure look for another 1993 resissue and probably pass on a 1995 reissue. My guess is the 1993 was a little better quality because Korg wanted to impress since it was their first year. My only complaint is these things are really pricy new. Why pay $1850 for a new Korg reissue when you can get an original JMI for this price. The new Korg reissues come loaded with Ei power tubes which are nice.

Submitted by Greg at 11/17/2002 05:54

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 7
I have this on long term loan from a friend -hooray ! It could be late '60s or early 70's -it has Celestion/Rola G12 speakers. Tag strip wiring. The chassis is held in by 4 rear screws. We know what AC30 TBs are, so no more from me.

Sound Quality: 10
Fender Tele & Gretsch guitars. I play rockabilly and use the Brilliant channel. Having gigged with this amp, all other amps are now no longer satisfactory. It has THE sound -thats it !!

Reliability: 7
Its old, but so far so good. Needs new input jacks -it gets hot but it hasn't broken yet. I have Ei Yugoslavian tubes and they sound great.

Customer Support: N/A
N/A I am a tech, so I do any fixing myself

Overall Rating: 9
This amp over all others has the tone to die for. I f my friend wants it back - I don't know what I'll do.

Submitted by Anonymous at 09/08/2002 19:54

Price Paid: US $1800 used

Features: N/A
The AC#) \6TB I bought was made in 1993 I believe. It has three channels with a high and low input for each. There ia a Normal channel, a brilliant channel and a vibro-trem channel. Its a class "A" amp and is very loud for a 33W ot 36W depending on where you read the wattage info. There are two 12" Celestion "Greenback" speakers which I really like. There is no reverb which would be a nice addition but I just use a reverb or delay pedal if I feel the need. The AC30 is a tube amp which for me is mandatory. I am used to playing Fender amps so it took a bit of getting used to but I realy think the amp is bad to the bone. I recommend it.

Sound Quality: 8
I use it for blues mostly but if you are into the Beatles, you can nail their sound with the correct adjustments of the controls. Amp is pretty clean but at high volumns you can get some distortion. I use a TS-808 for a clean boost and that satisfies me but if I add drive to the amp from the TS-808 it really sounds cool. Overdriven withiut being distorted beyond belief.

Reliability: 8
So far so good. No problems yet. Appears to be well built.

Customer Support: 8
Never delt with the company. There is a website where I got the schematics for the amp for free.

Overall Rating: 9
Been playing a while. I am 48 yrs old now. Wish it had a reverb built in. Kinda heavy.

***Does anyone know how to use patch cords to jump between the various channel inputs for different sounds? I need to know how to do this. Please help!!!! Thanks.......Joe

Submitted by Joe at 09/06/2002 08:24

Price Paid: US about 400 used

Features: 8
VOX AC30 TOP BOOST REVERB, made early seventies (1969-1972), previous owner said it was made in '70. This one comes WITH REVERB! It's one of the "square Vox logo'd" AC30's, and the double row of large style vent grilles (5 in total). Has got 4 push pull's: the volume pot of the three channels + the reverb pot; it also has the original footswitch. Since this is only my sixth day that I own the amp, I'm still experimenting with it: if anyone knows what the push-pulls are for, let me know. Still some cosmetic & electronic work to do (some joker painted it silver ...; one vent grille missing; not the original knobs; springs missing; loose connection check to perform). I was looking for an amp that had a reverb, vibrato and a reputation, this AC30 has it (or will have once I get a new reverb unit).

Sound Quality: 9
I tried it with a so-called superstrat (H-S-S), but I prefer to use my Epiphone Casino with it. I play rock and pop, also Beatles and sixties things, so this amp should get my tone closer to that. I only had one occasion to turn it up all the way: I was pleasantly surprised by the awesome tone and the sound of the distortion. This is not for bedroom or living room use, at least not when you have direct neighbors or a wife located in the same house... Because the only way to get some distortion is to put the volume all the way up! Anyway, I still want to try it in combination with some FX pedals. The vibrato channel is something I can't resist, it sounds really cool. But the trick is to COMBINE the channels: connect the inputs with patch cords and you can mix the 3 channels: you'll have the muddy normal channel, the brighter brilliant channel and the vibrato as switchable channel sounding together. I was also amazed by the (musical) range of the treble and bass pots.

Reliability: N/A
In some reviews, I read something about "ghost notes": sometimes I hear indeed a note that I don't play, so I think my amp suffers from it too. If anyone knows what to do in this case: all help is welcome. For the rest: I can't really tell, since I only have it 6 days.

Customer Support: N/A
There's a lot of info on the net, and for the rest I'll do my own check ups.

Overall Rating: 8
I've been playing since 1989, my first real amp was (and still is) a Marshall JMP 50 Watt combo with even fewer features than the AC30, the only feature is bass-mid-treble-presence. So it's a progress for me :-) to have tremelo and reverb on it (once I fix the reverb, that is). As I felt it was a bargain for the price paid, I don't mind the small fixable defects and cosmetic stuff: I'm anxious to start fixing it, once I get to know the amp a little better. The purpose is to make it my main amp for gigs. If I find another one in the same condition I'll buy it too (for that money). I would NEVER buy a new one, since I think that the pricing is WAY OUT OF LINE!!! No matter how good the tone, it's still wood, vinyl, some electronical components and 2 speakers, same thing applies for some guitars: half your amp's price is the name it carries. I'm not into that game. But overall, my first impression is an 8.

Submitted by The Niz at 03/22/2002 05:09

Price Paid: (traded a mesa blue angel 2x10, and mesa dual rctifier tremoverb combo)

Features: 10
this is a reisue, 2001, I think. 6 inputs , 3 non switchable channels.feature wise you would think less knobs equals less features.I just got done with the 20 knob mesa tremoverb combo, what a nightmare.This amps simplicicty makes it easy to dial in a good tone, if you can't get a good sound out of this amp, your guitar is a hunk of shite, or you don't know how to eq. this is my main amp I will gig with it soon. I like the vibe trem feature, although limited they sound nice, better than any pedal I have used. I play alt rock,but this amp would be good for just about any kind of music. I have seen every kind of band using these amps, frank black-u2-son volt-some local punk bands. If I were a heavy metal artist I would have kept the mesa, great distotion in those. i am giving this amp a ten in versatility because of the they diverse reaction and response this amp makes depending on what pickup I have on how hard or light I play, the tone of your guitar and fingers really make this amp sort of a chamelon. I have not experienced this with sensitivity with any other kind of amplifier. oh yeah, mine has green back speakers and they sound just fine to me, however I will eventually get the blue speakers, that many users can't be too wrong.

Sound Quality: 10
I use a prs ce22 with dragon 2 pickups.I use lots of delay. tirppy guitar sounds. heavy distortion(mesa v-twin), and wah and loop effects. still get the tone of the ampand guitar very nicely.this amps clean tone are very distinct, bellish/chimey, in a really sweet way. check u2, daniel lanois. This amp overdrives very nicely really smooth with out that high buzzing sound most distortion units make. check u2's untill the end of the world. that is the sound. this amp sounds excellent. it took a lot of amps, money and experience to get to this one, glad I made it.

Reliability: N/A
I only know what I have heard, lots of negativitey here, but I have also heard that the reissue models wont break down like the old ones. class a amps eat tubes, but I haven't had that trouble yet. so I have no expeinced opinion here.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 10
I would give this amp the highest marks, but it is the right amp for me. I loved my mesas, but they weren't the right amp for my taste. I am a big u2 fan and I have always loved the sound of the edges guitar. the more research I did the more I found that I liked the sound these amps make, just about every band I really like use one of these. like many I wish there was reverb but that is a small price to pay for such an excellent tone. If it were stolen I would steal another one. I love you like you were my own daughter.

Submitted by otto at 03/07/2002 07:47

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A

Sound Quality: N/A

Reliability: 10
This is an update of an earlier post of mine. I still love this amp but it has been in the shop a couple of times for solder joints beaking loose. I have had some problems with the original drake transformers but seems ok now. I have put a fan in the unit and put in a master volume in place of the cut switch..this makes the amp much more versatile. If I was dependent on this for my livlyhood, I'd have this guy named Don Butler go thru it and upgrade the important componants..I understand the difference is amazing once he finishes with the upgrades. But regardless, the amp still chimes and roars the way I want it to and will never get rid of it....I give it a 7 so far..

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A

Submitted by hans at 02/25/2002 06:07

Price Paid: 100 (GBP) used

Features: 9
My AC30 is actually a Jennings AC40. These were made by Tom Jennings and Dick Denny (the Vox creators and designers) after their departure from the original Vox company in the late 60's and early 70's. The design and electrics are almost identical to the Vox AC30 (as is the output), and the changes are mostly cosmetic to avoid ending up in court! I love the two band EQ (bass and treble only), it's easier to get great sounds from it, as the two controls take on a wider range than on three band EQ amps - to take into account the lack of specific mid adjustment. The three imputs means that you can plug more than one instrument into the amp - a feature loved by 60's musicians who couldn't afford more than one amp, though the sound quality is a bit crap! The 33 watt power rating is great. A bit much for the bedroom perhaps, but at leat you don't have to wear earplugs when you crank it. The 16 Ohm speaker out put is a little anoying at times, if you use an extension cab, and the fact that they are wired in series means that if one speaker goes dead, it takes the other one out too. I need no other features, so this amp rates highly for it's no nonsense ease of use.

Sound Quality: 9
The Normal channel is a bit muddy for me, but great for mellow blues/jazz...Brian May uses the Normal channel for all his lead work, but uses a treble boost to get some more highs in the sound! This contributes just as much to his tone as the home-made guitar. The vibe/trem channel is lush! The best I've ever heard, and this is really where the suberb class A tube sound comes into its own. The bright channel may be a little thin and harsh for those who love a fat tone, but it's great for cutting solos, and good for 60's or indie jangle! It's also the quietest valve amp I've ever heard - and quieter than any tranny I've come across too! The three channes and teo inputs on each (high and low) make for a great range if you know how to use them for the best, and with the use of patch leads between them the range is even greater! If the bright is too bright and the normal too dulkl, try a combination of the two!!!! The G12-M Celestions are superb and woody in character, and are better then the Blues for coping with volume, and give a less mushy sound too.

Reliability: 7
Without a regular service all amps can be unreliable (you wouldn't drive a car without an MOT or a service, would you?!). The only problem I've had with this in a year and a half of owning it was when I put Chinese EL84 valves it. They were shite, and blew the amp up. Four resistors later and it now works fine again. Just goes to show that you have to pay for quality, but everyone knows that. All the other components are original, so it's obviously worked fine for the last 30 or so years! I have had no problems due to the heat of the amp, but the use of a fan, especially at gigs or hot environments is recommended. The rating reflects the need for servicing and quality valves (ie, cost of upkeep).

Customer Support: N/A
Vox, now owned by Korg, know little about the vintage amps (and nothing about my Jennings version), as the records were not well preserved. There are some great people out there helping to keep the old ones alive. Check the web pages for Tone Heaven, Plexi Palace etc. A special mention must go to Dave Peterson, who worked on Brian May's AC30's. I have spoken with him when my amp blew, and he was most helpful. There are good guys out there if you look. ALWAYS get a qualified tech to look at you amp, and if possible one who has a wealth of experience/knowledge. I don't know what the service is like for the Korg reissues, as I have never dealt with them.

Overall Rating: 8
The AC30 (and Jennings AC40) are in a class apart. No one seems to have accurately copied them, and their popularity and longevity shows them to well constructed, professional quality equipment for the working musician. I have only had my AC40 for a year and a half, but the experience I've had of AC30s over the 9 years I've been playing has been has been superb. They do things that Fenders and Marshalls just can't. As soon as the pennies are saved up I'm gonna buy a new reissue one, and maybe a JMI too - as long as the price hasn't gone through the roof by then! I'll give it an 8 rating. I knocked two points off due to the stupid prices for an original!

Submitted by Jim at 01/24/2002 09:44

Price Paid: GBP (450) used

Features: 5
The amp doesn't have a huge variety of sounds, but I'll give it half-points, simply because the Cut control really alters your tone beyond recognition depending on its setting. There are Bass, Treble and Cut controls, but they only operate under the Brilliant Channel, which is the only channel I use. The Normal channel is dull, lifeless and employs far too much bass for the sound I look for, and the VibroTrem channel.. well, this has been somewhat confusing. I bought mine second-hand, and although it is perfect condition, the egg-shaped foot pedal did not come with mine, so I can't seem to do anything at all with the 'VibroTrem' effect, although I've heard that it's quite disappointing, anyway.
The Vox AC-30 works excellently with any sort of effects pedal. It gains very high marks here; very functional.

Sound Quality: 9
True, the amp itself does sound fantastic. The all-valve, Class A models have a truly definitive sound that cannot be matched at high volumes, but this is precisely where the amp loses a single point in this category. Its volume. It is insanely loud, and anyone looking for a bedroom-specific amp that is able to be 'cranked' to replicate that famous AC-30 distortion is in for a nasty surprise. Accepting this, the completely clean sounds given-off by this amp are wonderful. I tend to use the Brilliant channel with the volume, Treble and Bass set at 5 with the Cut at 7, which I use for most of my clean lead with a BOSS SD-1 pedal for some artificial overdrive (blasphemy with this amp, but I can't handle the volume in my nice little suburbanite surroundings). You would be a complete fool to buy this amp if that dire metal or punk stuff is your sort of thing; this amp is really only useful for people into soft indie, Britpop or early 60s-70s British music. Excellent for all Radiohead and Beatles plagiarisms.

Reliability: N/A
I have only had mine for a few days thus far, and it has given me no problems, but needless to say, given the other opinions listed here, I'm more than a little concerned.

Customer Support: N/A
Again, I haven't dealt with them, but I've found their website and contact telephone numbers.

Overall Rating: 9
I use this amplifier with an American Fender Stratocaster, a Marshall Shredmaster, a BOSS SD-1 overdrive and DD-3 delay pedal and an Electro Harmonix Smallstone Phaser. All of which were initially bought to plagiarise Radiohead material, but all have come in useful for other projects, and all of which sound absolutely astonishing through the amp. With effects, this amp gains an overall 10, because the way it reacts with them must be heard to be believed, but I'll give it 9, assuming that most people aren't as interested in otherworldly sounds as I am. Excellent sound and an awesome overdrive if you can handle the volume. HUGELY recommended for indie concerts.

Submitted by Alex at 01/03/2002 04:02

Price Paid: US TRADED A mATCH BOX TOY MOTORCYCLE

Features: 1
Amp years - i have spent over 32,000 on Vox amps in past 26 years.
How many channels - huh ??? Each is different !
What features does one wish Vox had ? HuH /? We buy em , do we have a choice ? i.e. Customer service has not been a prime concern of the company's policy !
Where have I used Vox amps ? Everywhere, but ALWAYS with a backup on stage!

Sound Quality: N/A
Professionally until 1988 undersigned utilized typical Fender Strat, Tele, Gibson, Trussart , Anderson, Gretsch Corvette - Falcon, Gibson and Moonstone 335 type excellent tone wood guitars. Now all I use are older 86 thru 1991 PRS Custom 24's Standard and maple tops , which ever sounds best thru amp for thE particular night. Each amplifier's tone is dependant on ax plugged in thaT NIGHT! Older PRS guitars are a God send for players who love perfect intonation! A PRS thru a Vox amp - which happens to function PERFECTLY that enchanted evening - is absolutely a guitar players heaven on earth !!!PS If Vox were a car it would run out of gas every 57 miles..... and the owner would be a walking ....

Reliability: 1
Reliability --- hmmmmm , let me put it this way .... a cross between a 1970 Datsun 240Z and a 1961 Volkswagon Van in the Himalaya mountains 14,000 feet above sea level during the latter part of February !

Customer Support: N/A
Valley girl as a Nobel winner for 2003 !

Overall Rating: N/A
Playining professionally for 29 years, also a BSEE and BSCS engineer aqnd sound engineer for large venues . AMp sounds great but works like an older 1969 Volkswagon in the mountains. If one does not have a hair blow dryer to defrost the VW engine after a cold morning, it most likely would not start . Reliability has been a big issue from DAY ONE !!!

Submitted by James Douglas Jones at 10/09/2001 20:37

Price Paid: US $1300 used

Features: 5
The Vox AC30 Top Boost I recently purchased, was made in 2000. I am into British Invasion stuff like The Who, Hendrix, Yardbirds, Stones from the late 60's and 70's. This Class A all-tube amp has no less than 11 tubes and delivers the goods with a very special roar and a punch, second to none. Since Vox replicated the original 1965 design, it's by no means a modern amp, and it is missing some of the features you might expect from an $1850 amp, such as an effects loop. Two important improvements over the original are a stand-by switch and slightly larger vent grills to dissipate the heat generated by the tubes. So far I've only used the amp for rehearsal, but I'm dying to take it on a gig. Two models of the Vox AC30 TB are available. I read so much about the original Blue Bulldog speakers, that I had to have them in my amp. When I was sixteen, I borrowed one of these amps for gigs and I have always wanted to have that sound again. Before you buy, you really should live with that amp a few weeks and play it a lot. It's such a weird, expensive and "nostalgic" gizmo, that you either fall in love with the sound, or you'll hate it. For my part, I was at first disappointed with the lack of features -but after playing for two weeks again, I feel a lot better. It seems that the VOX AC30 TB is more than an amp: It is so responsive and dynamic, that I call it an instrument, and it somehow became part of myself. Imagine you meet a very plain girl, with a fantastic personality -that's the AC30!

Sound Quality: 10
I am playing Fender American Strats, but own a few other guitars. I prefer the Strats for the VOX, because of their chimey, ringing sustain, and the powerful attack. When the volume is set at only 30%, I can already hear sweet harmonic overtones, and your playing style really translates beautifully into a rich dynamic spectrum. The amp has three sets of dual inputs, but there is no way to switch channels on the fly. Your axe is plugged into one of three channels: The "Brilliant" Channel has a beautiful sparkling clarity, but never sounds thin (It's my favorite). The Vibrato/Tremolo Channel allows for these effects to be added when you step on the footswitch. My amp for some reason lacks power on this channel, and since the effects cannot be modified much (two speeds only), I find them useless. The normal channel is, well -normal and not especially interesting to me. I particularly like using a ZOOM 505II pedal with only very light distortion, or compression. Keep in mind, that it is at times kinda noisy, but that depends a great deal on the pedal and your guitar pickups. This sound takes me right back to the old days, paint peeling from the walls, all kinds of shaking goin' on, and at this age I already lost some of my hearing anyway. The VOX AC30 TB is an instrument with an awesome personality plus a time machine all rolled in one.

Reliability: N/A
My amp has not broken down yet, and I don't expect it to. Prior to buying it, I'd heard of people putting fans on it, because it supposedly creates a lot of heat -not so. I recommend using the standby switch between sets, it just makes good sense. As soon as I can, I do want to purchase a second set of tubes, just in case.

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't dealt with customer support. But since I met this great electronics guru and tube expert in our area, I feel confident that I can call on his support, If I ever have a problem.

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing for 35 years, and own all kinds of stuff. My favorite guitars are American Stratocasters. My favorite is a sunburst 1994 American Standard with a Roland GK2A Hex Pickup added for my VG8 Virtual Guitar system. If the VOX got stolen, I would not buy it again, although I love it very much. I am absolutely in love with the small range of raunchy sounds, but I hate the fact that there is no effects loop. I did compare it to a Mesa Boogie Maverick (which is also Class A), but my emotions told me to buy the VOX.

Submitted by Roger Hausmann at 05/07/2001 09:52

Price Paid: US $1,700.00

Features: 9
This i a reissue of the "legendary" vox ac30, true almost entirely to the original specs, with the exception of 4 conspicuous bolts holding the chassis in, and the top panel being maroon, and of course the added standby switch. The amp can cover any style of music... i personally play rock/blues, but i've heard it played for country, jazz.. it works. It has 3 channels, vibrato, normal, and brilliant. Each have 2 inputs. The channels are not interchangeable with a swithc, however, the switch allows you to turn the tremolo on and off when using the vibrato channel. It's 35 watts on 2 12" celestion alnico blues speakers.. and it sounds more like 80 watts. Very powerful. It needs reverb though, in my opinion... because it's impossible to find a decent reverb effect in a pedal or rackmount. I never use the normal channel.. it sounds identical, except slightly louder, in relation to the vibrato channel.

Sound Quality: 8
I mainly play on it through an EMG with Rio Grande custom pickups. Sounds really great, i use a boss ds-1 which is really transparent, and the amp has a lot of color. Using the treble/bass/cut(tone) controls, you can get any sound of of the brilliant channel. While the cut is the only one that works for normal and vibrato, you still get nice variety. The amp has a real bright sound in general, but can get really dark, and extremely raunchy when you crank it up. Even though there is no distortion channel, using celestion speakers (which are pretty filthy on their own) you can get some hellacious crunch. Only drawback is you have to crank it past 8-9, which is too loud for most practice situations.

Reliability: 1
This amp is THE worst quality i've ever seen. I treat it like a porcelain doll. It's broken down FIVE times in under 8 months, and i've found, through a little research, this is the NORMAL way these amps perform. Total crap.

Customer Support: 1
The company sucks. They honor the warranty, but very slowly. No reimbursement for shipping, and keep in mind, there are about 5 locations in the USA that can service it under warranty. Korg in new york acts like they have nothing to do with vox when you call the number and talk to a person (hah) and IF you can get ahold of vox over in england, they talk down to you for being american. The warranty is 1 year, but good luck finding a service center. It took me a month, and my $1,700 amp was a sitting duck

Overall Rating: 5
I've been playing for 5 years or so, and i use only one amp, one guitar, and a few pedals. I find that i can get more sounds by just being comfortable and familiar with a small amount of gear, and using it correctly. If this amp were stolen, they'd bring it back to me. I love the tone, i love the styling and the look of the amp.. it's beautiful. But i hate the quality. I'd sooner buy a rogue guitar than replace this amp with another of the same kind. If it had 'verb it would help, but without some quality, it's no good. I recommend strongly against buying this amplifier, you're asking for trouble if you do.

Submitted by David at 04/14/2001 13:34

Price Paid: GLD (1600 (800 USD)) used

Features: 9
Mine is from the early 70's and has the grey panel and greenbacks...
I think you all know the faetures of an AC-30TB. I really like the greenback speakers, for me the sound a little less harsh and sharp then the bulldogs, which I like!
But what I like best is the brilliant channel!

Sound Quality: 10
What can I say....it's THE AC-30 sound! There are people who say the the AC-30's from the 60's are better tehn the ones from the 70's, but I don't hear too much difference.... I think the have more value simply because they are harder to find! The important thing is to get yourself a vintage AC-30 (60's, 70's doesn't matter!), and you will have point-to-point wiring! It's this basic wiring that seems to do the trick! Also on the new AC-30 you have crappy circuit boards with the tubes mounted sideways on it...you don't want this!
The good this about AC-30's is that this is one of the few combos which have the tubes poining up of down or sideways!

Anyway, as I said before...I like the brilliant channel best, the typical VOX tone is unique!

Reliability: 9
I had no problems with mine yet (even though it is vintage), but it's build like a brick house!
The amp does get hot though (VERY HOT!), so this micht become a problem in the future....

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with them

Overall Rating: 10
Even though it has limited features, and it does get very hot....the amp is of fantastic value, a true 'must have'!
Just be sure to get a vintage one...the new ones I would rate about 8/9

Submitted by Mr N at 03/12/2001 03:46

Price Paid: 600 (english pounds) used

Features: 9
This Amp is a late sixties, early seventies model I think as it has the dark front grill cloth and the smaller square logo. I'd guess its factory construction date at around 1969 - 1971 but i'm not sure exactly. It's in absolute mint condition and apart from the fact that the little top boost logo is missing (i will replace this as soon as i locate one) you'd seriously think this was a 1990's reissue. Anyone out there can pin point the date for me from the serial - email me! It's got a dark blue control panel and small cooling vents (too damn small - you could heat an apartment with this monster). I think if started to list it's features id be repeating well known historical facts. I havent gigged this amp yet but from all accounts its bulletproof (apart from over heating - and going on fire). The only thing this could have in addition to its features would be a cooling fan for the valves - its like a nuclear reactor inside for heat! It's hot and heavy but this amp is the best there's ever been - only god... and maybe the edge could be critical of this thing.

Sound Quality: 10
I use this thing with a strat, a memory man deluxe, a digitech whammy and an ibanez ts9. This section will be short. It sounds absolutely amazing. The high end is superb as long as you dont bring in too much cut and when you shut the effects off and turn it up the valve distortion is staggering. this is the way an amp should sound - but only the ac30 is capable. Simply Perfect!

Reliability: 9
As far as this goes I havent had it that long. I here that if you keep it cool, dont push all kinds of crap distortions through it and be generous when it comes to regular revalving its a life time amp. There are a lot of stories about them blowing up and catching fire and i can understand that but for that tone most players would kill!

Customer Support: 10
Warranty? I dont think so. It's ancient and its still going well so im not worried. I paid a lot of money for this thing and if your willing to buy one then youd be stupid to abuse it! Mine will be revalved yearly and treated like a baby! As far as customer service goes - i'm not sure really. They were quick to send me a catalogue but when i asked for help on dating the amps origin from its serial number i got no reply. I dont care really to be truthful. I now have an amp that is really unrivaled by anything else and its sounds absolutely superb!

Overall Rating: 10
Ive been playing for 5-6 years. I mainly use an old strat but i have some epiphones as well. If it were stolen...haha - this is insured big time and id just buy another as soon as i could get the right one.I love the tone, the valve overdrive at high volume and generally the privilage of having an old top boost. The only thing i think any ac30 owner should have is a memory man deluxe - these top boost and this were made for each other. Marshalls dont come close and the twin is just a pretender to this thing. I read somewhere that the late sixties - early seventies models like mine with the small logo sound the best and its one of these type that the edge uses for a lot of his live stuff.

Submitted by Ronan Curran at 02/05/2001 08:02

Price Paid: 150 (pounds) used

Features: 9
Made around 73/74 by Vox Sound Ltd, is a very high quality unit that has been reliable for the past 25 years or so (still has the original tubes !!!) Could use a master volume control as the only way to get that famous sound is to play it unbearably LOUD ! Vib/Trem feature (that I used to laugh at) sounds rather cool these days.

Sound Quality: 8
Use it with a 1975 Shergold Masquerader for most stuff & a '95 Washburn HB35S for the more melodic stuff. No effects, usually run through the 'bright' channel. Is generally a warm, clean sound, it has to be run very hard to produce any distortion (then it sounds wonderful)

Reliability: 9
Has been very dependable, doesn't see much action these days, but was gigged relentlessly between '75 & '85. Had a capacitor go bad once, but that's about it.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with the company (I believe it's been several companies), the only repair my father did. Has been bulletproof for more years than is really fair.

Overall Rating: 10
Tried a Peavy Triumph 60 for a while (thought I get up to date), but soon went back to the Vox & they will probably bury me in it !! Was the best choice out there & is probably worth 10 times what I paid for it back in 75.

Submitted by dan at 09/12/2000 19:07

Price Paid: US $1850.00 used

Features: 8
This is a circa '63 AC 30 w/ the top boost circuit on the back of the amp. I use an A/B box to switch between the Brilliant channel (which I use for leads) and the Vib/Trem channel. The Vib/Trem channel has a footswitch to turn the effect on/off, so I have access to three sounds, then add an Overdrive pedal, and the tones are plenty versitile.

Sound Quality: 10
The amp sounds great w/ my strat plus w/ lace sensors and my PRS Std. 22 w/ Dragons. Both the Vib and Trem sounds are fantastic, a la Radiohead, REM, Tom Petty, the list goes on and on. The amp really reacts to different pickups and settings, and is amazingly touch sensitive. My reissue MXR effects (flanger, phase 90) and Crybaby 535 also sound super, the amp seems to interact w/ effects like no other amp I've ever been exposed to.

Reliability: 8
I bought my amp from Plexi Palace (Mason Electronics) and it had been fully serviced. I have had absolutely no problems aside from blown tubes. I was a little concerned before I bought it because of some of the stories I had heard, but I push mine real, REAL hard and I have been completely satisfied, it has never let me down.

Customer Support: 9
I have not dealt w/ vox, but I have called Victor at Plexi Palace several times w/ questions and he has always taken time out of his day to talk w/ me, answer my questions, etc. If you are in the market for a vintage amp, I would suggest buying from them.

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for 16 years and have been through alot of gear. I've owned newer Marshalls (80's to present), 5150s, Boogies and Fenders. I have recorded through Carr, Matchless, Orange, Music Man and several others, many of which were good amps with good tone, but none of these amps reacted to my touch, technique and feel like this vintage AC 30. Sometimes I think it is alive. The amp is unreal. If I could give it an 11, I would.

Submitted by Jason Borgen at 09/06/2000 16:06

Price Paid: US $340 (dfl. 800) used

Features: 6
Mine is a '68, one of the later JMI AC-30's. I refer to the other submissions for the specs, no real need to repeat it here (3 channels, top-boost and two normal, one with vibrato/tremolo). All channels have a separate volume and the TB channel also some tone controls (hi, low, tone cut (passive high filter)). I could use a better "presence-like" control fot he high-mid range and maybe a reverb on the top-boost channel, I guess. I bought it a few years ago from a guy who had switched to pedal steel and felt that the amp was not suitable for this. In Europe, in the private used market they occasionally pop up for around $500-1000,-. It has a dark grill cloth and one replaced back panel (and silver bulldogs). I also have a '71 AC-30 "Vox product" with the silver Alnico speakers (on the outside virtually the same amp though not on the inside!).
Without some additional pedals and stuff the amp is not very versatile. I added some wheels on the bottom.

Sound Quality: 9
I use it with a strat and sometimes a tele. Styles I play with it are rithm parts for 90ties retro-rock with the TB channel and for recording, lead parts with a very high-gain treble booster in the normal channel. I always have the low set to zero and the hi to about 1 to 5 (of 10) on the TB channel.

The sound is totally unlike 60/70s Fender amps (which are nearly all great amps). The EQ of the TB channel is very different: a deeper low end and much more crisp high end. Many Fenders also have a lot of high end too but on the VOX the frequency is much higher, the "Fender-ish" high-end seems to be lacking on the VOX. There to my opinion very little mid to high-range (I heard that that's the reason why Clapton barely uses them). I think most of this is caused by the characteristics of the EL-84 tubes and especially the voicing of the Alnico speakers. On my '71 this is even more pronounced (has metal film resistors and lower quality other components). There is also very little "punch" (not good for funk).

The tone controls on the TB channel work very drastically, high settings are not usable to my opinion. The TB channel starts breaking up at 5-6 (of 10) resulting a Beatles-Taxman like sound (very nice). The normal channels sound very dull unless pushed into distortion (which adds a little top end). This is a pitty for the beautifull vibrato circuit in the AC-30's normal channel. With a high gain treble booster however and full volume you can get a very typical nice singing hi-gain tone on the normal channels (Queen-like). In this mode you get a really different amp compared to just crankin the TB channel. This is a public secret of the AC-30. The volume in this mode however is probably too loud for a club.

The amp sounds best playing rythm parts with Rickenbacker-like guitars (6 or 12 string). Strats and tele's sound also OK but then the sound is not fat and high/mid-rangy. I think, at least at clean settings, humbuckers may sound dull.

I changed my GZ34 rectifier tube for a smaller one, lowering the power to about 20 Watts without affecting the sound too much (I can recommend this). Since the amp is class A it gets hotter and hotter especially when you don't play. The circuit only accepts very high quality EL84's (others burn out due to the high currents) unless you do the rectifier switch. On the later solid state rectified models this is even worse, you should modify the amp to lower its power. Compared to the solid state rectifiers the GZ34 models sound "softer" and more compressed, better in my opinion.

I have trouble using overdrive pedals for this amp, a TS9 (super pedal on Fenders) sounds not good (harsh and transistory), a RAT a bit better but a good overdrive pedal for this amp I still have to find.

The amp lend itself very good for recording with a mic. It is extremely silent at high volumes but there is a minor, ever present hum.

Reliability: 7
After a thorrow servicing with high quality parts and tubes AND the rectifier swap mine is now very reliable. Contrary to what other people are saying I think the JMI models are well build. They used high quality components and strong cabinets. But its circuit is very complicated which makes it of course more prone to failure. In original setup and especially with a solid state rectifier it gets extremely hot and it is very, very hard on tubes (with all the associated problems). You could install a PC ventilator.

Customer Support: N/A
no experience

Overall Rating: 9
Playing for about 15 years, glad to own a JMI (although the last reissues are supposed to be good as well). It is an amp with a typical sound which is unlike Fender and tends a bit to a Marshall sound. I like using it.

Submitted by Antoon Visschedijk at 08/09/2000 02:48

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A
I've already done a review on this great amp... just wanted to let everyone know that I found a master volume mod for this amp...you just use the cut control as the mast.vol so no new holes etc.. it works great.

Sound Quality: N/A

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A

Submitted by hans at 01/27/2000 05:17

Price Paid: US $1250

Features: 7
I believe my Re-issue is a 94/95 model. Its got 3 channels, with 2 inputs for each. (Normal/Top Boost/Vib-trem) This amp is very basic...no master vol, no effects loop, no reverb. I would like a master vol. but not if it would alter the amps vibe...the AC-30's tone is the only reason to own this expensive,heavy amp. Reverb is a must, so you'll have to buy an external one...I use a Peavy Valverb. Its only 33 watts, but believe me, its way more than enough.

Sound Quality: 10
I use it with a strat(sc/sc/sc) and a blade (sc/sc/hb). It sounds great with any guitar I've played thru it. It is noisy sometimes so I've always got a ground lifter close by...this usually works. I bridge the Normal & Top Boost channels together and plug into the Normal chanel. You can then use each channels volume setting as tone control...TB for extra treble,Normal for bass. The amp itself hasnt much variety in sounds, but if the correct effects are used you can nail almost any sound. The tone will come thru. This amp has the BEST natural overdrive...I tend to use "transparent type" effects to let as much of the Vox tone come thru..especially distortion. You dont have to play very loud to get the great tone, compared to a marshall or fender that is...its still pretty loud.

Reliability: 8
I've had no problems. But as a precaution installed a small fan inside the amp up near the vents, above the tubes..this keeps the amp from hardly even getting warm. This gives me a warm fuzzy.

Customer Support: 3
Ive never dealt with them. But theres no web site to contact...like Mesa Boogoe, and no Phone number on the warrenty card...its seems like theyre trying to hide or something. I would probobly just take it to my tech for any repairs/tweaking rather than trying to track a company down that does not ,apparently, want to service its own product.

Overall Rating: 10
I play this in sterio mode with a Mesa Mark III/Fender Vibratone. A Peavy Valverb feeds into a Chandler Sterio digital delay which then goes into each amp. The VOX is the essential piece here. Without it, the rig is useless. Replacement would be automatic. Nothing I've tried sounds like a cranked VOX AC-30, absolutly NO replacements would be entertained. If it came down to it, just the vox with a couple of pedals would suffice for most any situation. I really wish it did have a master volume, but I use a Chandler Tube driver stomp box to get the overdrive I need...good enough.

Submitted by Anonymous at 11/15/1999 05:32

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A
I belive i´s an late 60´s
with the grey speakers

Sound Quality: 10
I use a les paul deluxe 70th with the pick ups replaced to a 57 classic
neck position and a seymore duncan 59 bridge position,
and a migthy might strat.copy with rosewood body with fender picks
in neck and middel and a seymore duncan hotstack bridge pos.
I play useally blues and the sound is just beutiful clean and warm
and when I put the voulume up it´s becomes a reel nice distortion
it´s just sounds fantastic

Reliability: 10
I have owned this amp since early 70th and it has never let me down

Customer Support: N/A
never needed to contact them

Overall Rating: 10
i´ve been playing for 35 years or something
yes, i would buy it again if it were stolen
the deepness of it´s sound, i have had a fender twin
a feder deluxe (the only thing who you can compare it whit)
and several others and there´s nothing who will sounds like
the AC 30
buy one and you´ll see what I mean

Submitted by Lars Hedlund at 11/13/1999 10:22

Price Paid: US $1000 new

Features: 9
A master volume only. Three channels bright, normal and trem. 6 pre-amp tubes (5 12AX7/1 12AU7), 4 EL84's in class A for the power section, and a tube rectifier, 11 tubes in total. The top boost channel has treble, bass and cut controls (the cut acts as another high frequency cut). The normal and trem channels use the same cut control that the top boost channel uses but the treble and bass controls don't work here. But, this is a faithfull reproduction to the 60's control panel, so blame the 60's designers so I'll give it a 9.

Sound Quality: 10
I think I'll play an AC30 Top Boost till the day I die! I've been gigging for 12 years, and now I own a recording studio. I think I've finally learned what a fabulous guitar tone is. I use the Top Boost channel for my clean sounds and it is perfect. My tastes vary widely: Clapton, Steely Dan, Jimmy Page, Eddie Van Halen ("Fair Warning" CD), Stone Temple Pilots, Radiohead, etc... To me, they all have a great tone for the music they play, but they all have one thing in common in their tone, it's thick, warm and full (well sometimes not Page!). You can here all the notes ring out in a chord, even if it's fully distorted. For my overdrive/ distorted tones I use the normal channel with the cut at 3 O'clock, and a Varidrive pedal made by S.I.B! This pedal, with this amp, is a dream come true! The Varidrive operates with a 12AX7 tube in class A. It produces a thick, full, rich harmonic overdrive/distortion that must be heard to be believed. I've replaced my pre-amp tubes in the AC30TB with Fender Sovtek's distributed by Groove Tubes, and replaced the poor sounding Chinese tube that came with the Varidrive to a Tesla 12AX7A. This is the absolute perfect combination with an excellent double coil in the bridge position, a Tom Anderson or Fralins. Almost all the reviews on here say they prefer single coils with this amp. I just wanted to write in and say that I don't. I find this amp to be extremly versatile with the Varidrive added to it. I can nail all the guitar players tones that I mentioned above.

Reliability: 8
When I received the amp I needed to bring it back in right away for a repair. 2 metal tabs located behind a pre-amp tube were touching and shorted it out. A simple problem actually, no worries. Looked it over, everythings fine. I gig without a back-up.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with them.

Overall Rating: 10
I would buy another and another! I put in an effects loop to save my tone from being eaten by my effects rack. The more of your guitar tone that gets to the amp section unpolluted the better. Besides, this amp will never be for sale! I've seen many people on the net who own a Vox, ask what overdrive pedal can they use that will keep the amps natural tone underneath the crunch. I've got it.

Submitted by Adam Martin at 04/10/1999 22:25

Price Paid: US $650.

Features: 7
I don't know how old this reissue is becaue mine had the 3 channels (Vib/Trem, Top Boost & Normal) plus reverb. I don't see any tube rectifier, so it must be solid state. I bought it used w/ Celestion G12-75'. My version has (4) EL-84's and (8) 12ax7's. I'm going to retube it because I think the original tubes are still in it and the amp may be 10 years old or older.

Sound Quality: 9
I play mainly Telecasters although I also have a Peavey Wolfgang w/stop tailpiece. I also use a TS-9, Klon Centaur and Dan Echo. The sound with my Tele is sparkling, up front and unlike any other amp I've heard. It just has a different quality to it. Now I see why Matchless based their amps on the AC-30. You have to be able to play to enjoy this sound, meaning its so sensitive but... This thing cuts but if you set the treble properly it's sweeter than Fender's with more midrange than the Blackface and Silverface amps. I use the top boost channel with the bass all the way down and treble midway, but your hands will tell you how to set it-everyone's different.

Reliability: N/A
It's still new to me so I'm not sure yet about reliability. Mine doesn't seem to run extrememly hot.

Customer Support: N/A
No experience yet. I want to find out how old it is and I'll call Korg.

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing a long time (I gigged with Beethoven before he was famous)and recently curiousity has gotten the best of me regarding classic amps which I've never owned. My '73 Marshall 50 watt head and this amp are my favorites. I played a new AC-15 which I didn't like that much but this thing...

Submitted by Howard Paul at 02/02/1999 08:23

Price Paid: US $950.00 used

Features: 8
This is a 33 watt two-twelve combo w/ three channels (Brilliant, Normal, and Vib-Trem) and NO reverb. The vib-trem control is footswitchable (w/ a regular 1/4 inch footswitch jack-nothing hard to come by). While the channels are not switchable, you can run jumper cables to run either two or all three in series. It's Class A biased and thus self-biasing. Mine is a '92 model (I have no idea who built it...) and has a solid state rectifier, but is otherwise all tube. While not flexible control-wise, it is very flexible as to what styles of music it's good for.

Sound Quality: 10
I use a variety of guitars with this amp. While all sound good, I find that my 'brighter' sounding instruments behave the best w/ this amp. The amp is "bright and mid-rangy" without alot of bass response, and compresses more than my Fender amps-AC30s are famous for this. I run all three channels together, the Normal channel providing a slightly better low end than the Brilliant channel, which has most of the tone . The Vib-Trem channel has no depth control, but its' volume knob works sorta like one when chained with the others in series. The channels are VERY interactive and small changes can defintley wreak havoc on a finely tweaked tone. Further, the high end on these amps can kill mosquitos at 100 yards, so it's important to watch yer treble when tweaking the tremelo. The tremelo itself isn't very deep and is quite fast even at its slowest setting. While ineffective for Duane Eddy throb, it can do psychedlic stuff marvelously, as well as Leslie speaker impersonations. I've never had an amp w/ vibrato and thus no reference point-but once you turn it on you will definitely realize "Hey, I've heard this sound before..." Since it's a Class A amp it runs very hot, and has a very pleasingly rich overdrive sound. It has to be heard to be really appreciated, but I now see why so many boutique amps base their circuit on the AC30.

Reliability: 8
Class A amps are hard on tubes, but mine have held up well for the past five months I've had it. I've heard tales of the old ones going up in flames, but this amp seems quite well ventilated. I guess it's too early to tell, but I've been hauling (and I do mean hauling) it to gigs, jams, etc. and it seems perfectly stable. According to the guy I bought it from there's been no repairs and all components are original. I'll only give it an eight, but I may be short changing it-alot of people seem to use these as their main amps.

Customer Support: 10
My customer support from Action Music in Arlington, Va. has been fantastic (proprietor Matt Baker was a former AC30 user and has provided me w/ much insight to its use and capabilities). I've never dealt w/ Vox. The music store gets a ten

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing for twenty years and so far this is my all time fav amp. I play a variety of "roots" type stuff. Putting an outboard Fender reverb in front of this thing is what dreams are made of. It provides plenty of snap and twang off a tele-w/ a good delay pedal and tubescreamer you can nail Danny Gattons' tone (if not his licks). Mine still has the nifty chrome stand, which looks cool, and sorta helps protect the amp if placed over it while travelling, but overall adds to more stuff/weight when travelling-a potentially big concern cuz AC30s are HEAVY! mine has Celestion greenback speakers, which sound great to my ears. I simply love the sound of this amp. They're expensive and heavy and some are potentially unreliable-but sonically it's heads above the rest.

Submitted by Bob Craver at 04/28/1998 09:26

Price Paid: US $995

Features: 5
Not a whole lot of bells and whistles here, folks. Six inputs; two for each channel. (Normal,Brilliant, Vib/Trem) Not very versatile, but good for those who know what they are looking for. Since the AC-30 doesn't have reverb, I'm using an old Ibanez delay pedal for the shimmering effect.

Sound Quality: 9
I run my old strat through an effects chain (no efx loop on amp) into the Vox. I'm in an indie-rock band, and although Vox's aren't really known for the true "rock out" sort of sound, it's perfect. The tone of the amp without any distortion (I usually play through the brilliant channel because you can adjust the settings for treble and bass) is stunning. I can't really put it any other way. When you add distortion, depending on what you are looking for, the results can be incredible. The amp has a slight hum when on, but hardly noticeable when playing live. Like I said before, it's not very versatile, but the great thing is that you can tweak it to your own liking using various pedals. That's what makes this amp so widely used. You can bastardize it with as many effects as you'd like, but it still maintains that incredible tone.

Reliability: 7
Rule of thumb: AC-30's run hot. True, the cooling vents are bigger now, but the class A circuit in the amp naturally runs warm. I put a fan behind mine and it keeps the amp surprisingly cool, but if I take it away, then I'm taking my chances. The Edge of U2 has an immense collection of these amps, a couple of which actually erupted into flames on stage. Go figure.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with them. I'm sure they're very nice english chaps.

Overall Rating: 10
I spent over two years looking for an amp to use consistently. I looked at Fenders, Mesa's, Marshalls, even Oranges. I knew Vox made great amps, but I couldn't see spending $1600 on a thirty some watt amp. Camping out on this web page became a religious practice for me. Finally, it came down to too hernia-inflicting combos: a Fender Twin, or a Vox AC-30. With the Vox, I'd be paying more, but inside my head I knew I wanted it more than the Fender. It just had THAT TONE. Then I saw an ad on this music store's web page (Master Musician's: if you're ever in the DC/Baltimore area, I suggest you check them out) . They had an AC-30 for under a grand. As it turns out, the Vox in question had a little scrape on the covering, so the price was lower. So I bought it... and it was the best decision I could have ever made. For the price I got it for, I'd buy it over and over again. Thanks for listening to my little dramatic "how I got my amp" saga.

Submitted by Chad at 01/22/1998 06:00

Price Paid: US $1700

Features: 5
Who needs features when you have that tone! It has a sound that works and thats all it needs!

Sound Quality: 10
It likes single-coils the best, but humbuckers sound fine also. If you want to have a sound unlike most others, get one of these amps. Turn it up and it just screams, and keep it low and it chimes. Great recording amp, Great live amp!

Reliability: 8
Since I got mine(a '94 korg reissue) I have had a problem with ghost notes especially the louder it gets. Even though these ghost notes are VERY annoting, the amp still works fine as long as I put good quality tubes in it.

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't called them.

Overall Rating: 10
If I could do it again, I would, but I would buy a custom color version. These amps are great!

Submitted by Anonymous at 11/22/1997 17:14

Price Paid: US $1600

Features: 7
The AC-30 has three channels (Vib-trem, normal and brilliant) with 6 inputs. It has the standard bass/treble, but no mid, and the EQ only seems to affect the brilliant channel. A Cut dial works like a presence or bright switch, but is quite versitile. It comes with 2 12" speakers, your choice of Celestion Vintage 30s or Vox Blue Reissues. The Blues are more expensive and only rated at 12 watts a piece, but sound better. The amp is a devilishly loud 33 watts and has three handles so it's easier to carry this unwieldy beast. Mine is a limited edition made in red covering, I have heard there are only 50 in the world. My only feature gripes are the lack of reverb and the steep price. Some may be upset by no distortion, but cranking the volume gives you silky overdrive to die for.

Sound Quality: 9
Each channel is distinctly different, I will describe each separately. Vib-Trem is, you guessed it, Vibrato and tremolo. the Vibe is a square waveform rather than the more common triangle waveform (such as on Fender) so the sound isn't as "swampy", it is almost like turning the volume knob on your guitar up and down very quickly. Listen to "Planet Telex" by Radiohead to hear it. It's spooky. Trem is quite fast, and adds a cool texture. R.E.M.'s "Whats the Frequency..." is a good example. Each sound has three speed settings- not the utmost in flexability, but cool. The Normal channel can put out a decent clean rhythm sound, but is rather mediocre as compared to the other two channels. Brilliant is the definative "Top Boost" sound. It can range from a fat clean to liquidy overdrive, yet always maintains it's tonal characteristics and definition. While this amp can't generate an impressive plethora of tones, the few it does spit out are remarkably useful. Some say it is not a versitile amp, but look at some of it's users- Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, U2's the Edge, Peter Buck of R.E.M., the Beatles, Courtney Love of Hole, Rory Gallegher, Brian May of Queen... If that's not variety, I don't know what is. I use a PRS Custom and a Strat for the most part, and each one sounds equally cool. I have a Fender '63 Reverb unit that I use with the Vox, and the 2 are an unbeatable pair. In fact, even with the reverb set to 0, the Fender unit works almost as a preamp and dramatically improves the sound. If you buy the AC-30, I cannot stress enough the good the Fender tank will do you. Hurry though, Fender is no longer making them and they may soon be hard to find.

Reliability: 7
Old Voxes are notorious for exploding into flame. The newer ones have larger top vents, but a fan behind it still wouldn't be a bad idea. Being Class A Tube, it does burn valves rather quickly, but that's the price to pay for great tone. As for speakers, the Celestions probably can take the beating of the cranked amp a lot better, but the inefficiency of the Vox Blues is vital to the sound. They should last you for a good while, though, unless you use a heavy distortion pedal at loud volumes. Matt Baker at Action Music (check out thier website at actionguitar on guitarnet) says that at low volumes, a pedal like a Big Muff or Hyper Metal is ok, but if you use it with the amp cranked, it will rip the Vox Blues to confetti. Again, Celestions should be fine. I use a Tubescreamer and have yet to encounter a problem. In short, if you are careful with this amp, it should give you no problems. They are built in the Marshall factory, so I assume they are pretty tough.

Customer Support: N/A
I can't comment on this really, but I know Vox amps are built in the Marshall factory, so that's who you would be dealing with. Be careful with it and you'll probably never need Customer Support.

Overall Rating: 8
Overall it's a pretty solid amp. If you could only have one amplifier, I would advise you shop around before you commit to the Vox. I have a Fender Deville and a Marshall that I use along with the Vox, and these three give me just about everything I could want. It's definately worth checking out if your in the market for a cool new tube amp. I couldn't decide whether to give it an 8 or a 9, but finally decided on an 8. One thing about this amp- if you can't play really well, and get good tone out of your Fingers, this amp won't give you anything. In the hands of a really good guitarist, it's an easy "10." I am young and rather inexperienced so I still have some time to go before I can get the full potential out of this amp. If anyone has any tricks they have discovered with the Vox or questioned, feel free to e-mail

Submitted by Eamonn Aiken at 05/12/1997 14:44

Price Paid: US $1000.00 used

Features: 8
The amp is an improved remake of the early 60's Jennings AC-30. It is made in the Marshall factory, with a much improved chassis than the original, and larger vents for better cooling. At 33 watts, it is surprisingly loud, should handle most situations with ease. It was never designed for the ultimate in versatility, but it basically has one awesome sound. If you are looking for a swiss army knife, then this amp isn't it!

Sound Quality: 10
It is a very quiet amp, and crank it up, and you will know why you bought it!

Reliability: 10
El84's run hot, but the improved venting helps out...I would trust and take this amp anywhere, anytime.

Customer Support: N/A
Never had to use them, but Korg seems like a sharp group of folks.

Overall Rating: 10
I would definately buy it again, don't get a Matchless when you can buy the real thing!!!

Submitted by Anonymous at 03/23/1997 19:59

Price Paid: N/A used

Features: 7
Typical old-style amp (separate jacks for each channel, no switching). Three channels which can be an advantage, two jacks for each channel. (Vib/Trem, Normal and Brilliant). You can use an AB box to use more than one channel at once. The tone controls are a little unusual. Nominal 30 watts output from 4 EL84 tubes. 6 preamp tubes and a tube rectifier. (Note: the regular non top-bost AC30 has 5 preamp tubes). All preamp tubes are standard 12AX7, 12AU7, etc.
There's a lack of shielding at the back and bottom of the amp. Be warned - pulling the mains selector plug on the top panel exposes live mains wiring a few millimetres down into the socket. It shouldn't be on the top panel where it can get water etc in it. Power cord, speakers and foot switch are not detachable from the amp. (This may be a modification from the original though). The power cord was wired direct to the circuit with just a knot in it to hold it in the amp. This may be a mod, but at any rate it is not acceptable. The design of the amp does not give good opportunity for ventilation of the tubes. The top of the power-amp chassis section is very prone to build up of grime and rust, because the air vents are above it. Fortunately, the rest of the circuit has stayed relatively clean over the years. It's cathode bias, which means no bias adjustments, and it runs in class A with no negative feedback (which means hot running and a very tubey sound). This power amp configuration is somewhat unique for a guitar amp (but this does not affect serviceability).

Sound Quality: 7
Sound - Vib/Trem and Normal sound decidedly mediocre. The brillant channel is excellent due to the top boost circuit, which adds an excellent quality to the entire sound, not just the treble. It a very 'alive' sound. I'd strongly recommend modding an amp (not just Vox) to have this top boost circuit. Good for a wide range of sounds; I'm sure you know the major users of Vox amps. It hums and hisses a lot due to poor circuit layout and the lack of negative feedback.

Reliability: 5
I wouldn't trust one of these as far as I could throw it. The circuit layout is just so cheap and nasty, a real rat's nest. The chassis is cheaply pressed out of steel that looks like It would be expensive to fix, since the chassis is made of two bent sheet metal pieces bolted together (I hesitate to call it a 'chassis'). And the circuit layout is quite complex and frustrating to service. Overall, the circuit design is bad from a hum and buzz point of view. The carry handles have broken repeatedly. It's hard on its tubes.

Overall Rating: 6
This amp would sound bad (to me) without the top boost on the brilliant channel, which is outstanding. The other channels were fairly mediocre. When it comes down to it, this is a cheaply made mediocre amp. The average Fender is far better designed and built, by way of comparison.

Submitted by Hamish Hubbard at 01/21/1997 12:45