Vox AD120VTX Valvetronix 212 Combo

Price Paid: 2500 (AUD)

Features: 10
A brand new 2004, valve preamp, solidstate power.
This amp has all the features you need, except maybe a decent noise gate and harmonizer.
Awesome range of sounds and fantastic tone.
120watts through 2x12" neodog speakers provides plenty of power.
As I play heavy/melodic/progressive music I need a big range of sounds and this amp has all the sounds I could emagine using.
Good onboard effects and pedal sections, combined with amp models that are storable in banks of 4 patches - depending on the foot controller u use depends on your patch selection options while playing. (no footcontroller included).
The noise gate wasn't suitable when getting a heavy distortion with the "treble boost" function, even when set on full.

Sound Quality: 10
The range of sounds and tone of this amp are outstanding. As a purist I am not about to talk-up a modeling trannie amp unless it is warranted, and this amp is.
I have used a number of guitars with this amp, and it easily can be setup to get the best tone possible from all different combinations of pickups.

Reliability: 4
This is where the amp let me down.

I had the amp only for a few weeks and the amp would randomly turn itself off, sometimes it would come back on after a few seconds, sometimes I would have to flick the power switch off and then on again.
This was an intermittent fault that would only happen every few rehearsals.
After looking into the problems with Valvetronics amps, it seems that many of them are faulty.

Reliability of Chinese made electrics and overall quality control is poor in many many cases.

Damn Vox for moving production out of the UK.

Customer Support: 4
I sent the amp back to get fixed, but they reckon there is no fault occurring. Ofcourse because it is an intermittent fault. They wouldn't test the amp for at least a few hours, understandabley, but where does that leave me?

I will not rely on an amp that is unreliable. Make sense?

From my modest research into Valvetronics reliability, you would think that the service department would be able to isolate the causes of common faults and know how to test and rectify such problems.

Overall Rating: 5
What it comes down to is: No professional musician is going to use an unreliable product, are they?

Submitted by Tobias at 01/02/2006 08:14

Price Paid: US around 11oo dollars for the amp and 275 for thevc-12 pedal.

Features: 10
I purchased the vox ad120 vtx at guitar center in charlotte n.c. in nov 2005. Iv had my eye on the amp for a couple of years but wasnt wanting to come off of the hip with the cash. I have not heard a better sounding amp of any caliber yet then this amp. Dosnt matter if you are a tube or solid state amp gutarist. This amp is the most versatile best sounding amp that iv ever plugged a gutiar into, (period). Its stereo sounds very wide and spread out. Its distortions are simply unmatchable. The FEEL is as good as it gets. Harmonic feedback can be adjusted to perfection.

Sound Quality: 10
My guitar is an older washburn hb-35 (gibson 335 semi-hollowbody copy) I enjoy playing 60s - 70s style rock such as blue oyser cult, ccr, the hollys etc. I also enjoy southern rock and the newer style country rock. Put it this way, this amp is designed for the cover mucic musican. It IS THE best amp for versitility. Iv been playing the guitar ever science I was 10 years old. I am now 43. I played thru and owned fender tube and solid states, marshall tubes, dean markley hybyrds, peavey sterio solid states etc. My ears are very well devloped for sound. I am very critiacal to amp sound. I dont like harsh transistory keen sounging amps, but appriciate that warm , smooth , fat, singing gutarist sound. Trust me, you can look all you want but you will not beat the sound of this baby, Period!!

Reliability: N/A
Iv read the reviews on this amp and I am very aware that some have had trouble with the Cant give you an opingion on the reliability of this amp at this point, however I have no Idea how these other muscians treat their equipment or what experience they have with controls. Vox has been around many years. From what I understand, Korg owns Marhsall and Vox. I say If you Like this amp and its sound, buy it. Do like myself and spend the money for extended warrenty such as what guitar center offers. Anything and Everything mechanical or electrical has a logical reason for breaking down if that be the case which means it can be repaired. I have a marshall mg250dfx as a backup. Its always a good idea to have a backup amp if you play gigs regardless how reliable you think your main amp is. Think about it in terms of golf, fishing , hunting etc. Always have a back up, then if you have a breakdown you handle it. WHAT IFS isnt going to keep me from having the best sounding amp that I can get my hands on!

Customer Support: N/A
I havnt dealt with vox before however I have dealt with Guitar center and I think that they will stand behind what they sell If the intend on keeping repeat business! Its only smart business,

Overall Rating: 10
Put simply I am not going to spend my hard earned money on something that I am unsure about. Yes ,like I said, you want beat the sound of this amp! (period.) Let me also say this, I first bought the tonelab se. From what I was told, the se has the same guts if you will at the valvetronix amps. Its not a bad pedal played along with the marshall back up but it does not compare to the vox ad120vtx valvetronix amp, You have to remember that the cabinet and neodog speakers are going to give you a totally different sound. Also I would say that if you plan on using this amp in a band situation to buy the vc-12 pedal which looks alot like the tonelab se. Who wants or has time to fiddle with amp knobs while playing in a live situation when you can have everything pre-programend in a pedal at the touch of a button not to mention the built in tunner!

Submitted by hollowbody at 12/04/2005 21:45

Price Paid: US $1199

Features: 10
The Vox AD120VTX features are covered pretty well in the other reviews here. I don't need to give a complete list of features here as most readers can look these up on the Vox website or read them in the other reviews here. But I will list my favorite features here:
The amp has a collection of amp models that covers most of the desirable amp tones from clean Fender oriented tones, to over-the-top high gain tones. The amp has a collection of effects that represent two categories 1) effects that you would place in front of the amp (compressor, Wah, overdrive pedals, etc) and effects that you would normally place in the effects loop of an amp (Chorus, Delay, Phase Shifter, Tremelo, etc.) The Reverb is separate from these two effect types. This is a very well thought out configuration since it enables you to configure any amp model with an assortment of effects in front of the amp, and inside the effects loop (awesome feature and extremely useful!). One of the best features in the amp is the ability to set the output power for lower volume if needed. This essentially allows you to get all the tones you would want (simulating a cranked tube amp) at lower volumes if needed. (the amp can be very loud if you need it) For most of my playing I have been using the 2x30watt or 2x15 watt settings. Even at these settings the amp is plenty loud enough to keep up with a live drummer, bass, and keyboard player in a small club setting. The best feature of this amp however, is the VC-12 footswitch. If you are considering this amp you MUST get this pedal to fully appreciate what the amp can do. The pedal is equally well-thought-out as the amplifier itself is. With this pedal you can turn on/off any effects assigned to a preset, change presets, re-call the last preset, and do real-time control of various effects such as wah or rotating speaker speed control. This amp with the VC-12 pedal is by far the most versatile amp setup that I've ever played. Features alone don't make for a great amp, but the features designed into this amp are all very usable.

Sound Quality: 9
This is where the amp really stands out in my opinion. I had owned a Fender CyberTwin for nearly 5 years before bying this amp. The main difference that I've noticed with the Vox as compared to other modeling amps that I've tried is in the responsive feel and tones of the amp. While there are other modeling amps that sound good there are very few that feel very much like a cranked tube amp. With the Vox, even in the clean settings you can feel a big difference in the way the amp responds. The Vox's Fender Twin amp model, for example, has a nice fat warm tone with plenty of sparkle when you turn up the presence. The notes are punchy and fat like you would expect on a realy Twin.

The Vox AC30TB model is equally impressive. Although I've never owned a real AC30, I notice the characteristic tones that I can get with this model. It's great for clean jangly parts, and turns into a monster when you crank up the gain. You can nail everything from classic Beatle tones to a good Brian May imitation if you want it.

Another of my favorite models in the amp is what they call Boutique OD (modeled after a Howard Dumble Overdrive Special). Again, the OD Special is an amp that I've never owned, however I have to take Vox's word for it that this model sound like the real one. This model is absolutely incredible for getting that Roben Ford kind of fat vocal lead tone. I've been using this model to do my Santana lead sounds in the cover band that I play in and it really works well for that. Even with my guitar turned down the amp responds with nice overtones. I use a Hamer Newport which is a hollow-body with P90's. It sounds fantastic with this particlar amp model.

My other favorite amp models are the 70's UK (model of a Marshall Plexi) and the Fender Bassman model. The 70's UK model is really nice for getting a fat vintage Marshall sound. It sounds even better when you select one of the overdrive pedal effects in front of it. You can nail the Eric Clapton Cream era sounds with that setting. (What fun!)

In addition to the great sounding amp models, the effects sounds are just as good. This is the main reason for my getting this amp. I wanted the effects to sound as good as the amp models. The effects in this amp are superb. The Phase shifer sounds like the classic MXR Phase 90, the chourus sounds like a Boss chorus pedal, ... I have yet to find any effect in the amp that didn't sound usable. They did a tremendous job putting all of the most common effects in here. My only gripe is that they didn't provide stereo versions of all the effects. Since the amp is stereo one would expect that most of the effects are stereo but, this is not the case. However, the rotating speaker, and chorus (which are in stereo) sound exceptionally good so this makes it worthwhile to have the stereo amp anyway. But I wish that Vox would make the delays in stereo that would have been even better.

Reliability: 8
This is the one area that concerns me after reading some of the other reviews about the amp and some problems that people had with earlier versions of the amp. I am crossing my fingers that the amp will serve me well and remain reliable. I treat all of my equipment very well and I typically don't play at very high volumes. The only reliability issue that I've noticed is that the amp uses plastic corner covers. Frankly, I would be willing to pay more for such an amp if they would use higher quality parts. Seriously, its the best amp that I've ever had in terms of sounds and flexibilty. If I knew that they used better parts I would be willing to pay extra. However, I'd also read that the VTX series has several reliability improvements over the older versions of the Valvetronix amps. So I'm hoping that I won't have any trouble with it. So far, so good.

Customer Support: N/A
No opinion on this yet.

Overall Rating: 9
This amp represents the best of the current breed of modeling amps in my opinion. I have played them all and this is clearly the best sounding of anything on the market. Especially for live playing, this is the one to have. I have been playing guitar for 28 years and playing professionally since high school. I play in a variety of groups and need access to a wide array of tones. This amp really delivers and I have not found anything that even comes close.

Submitted by Anonymous at 10/10/2005 12:55

Price Paid: US $735.00 used

Features: 10
Im a newbie to this amp, so my opinion probably isnt very helpful or warranted.

Sound Quality: 5
I have a 1984 Jackson Soloist and a 1981 Fender Strat that I play in a cover band. Problem is at rehearsal with the VOX, i have the master volume knob up almost half way and it still very low, not sure why???

Reliability: 5
Not sure on this yet, but like before mentioned, something about the output/volume doesn't seem right...

Customer Support: 2
Have sent a couple emails to Vox asking for help, no reply as of yet.

Overall Rating: 5
Been playing since the age of 8 and am now 39, been thru a lot of gear, Boogie's, Marshall's, Line 6, etc., when i demo'd this amp at GC it was amazing!!! But when i bought one and played it live, ugh! Don't know what to do, I just wanted a combo amp that wouldn't break my back, something simple to use, pack and go...and the Vox seemed like the answer, heck when played at GC i could feel the 'bottom-end' thru the floor...don't seem to feel that once i got it home.

Submitted by Trey Michael Paige at 09/22/2005 07:26

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A
Not applicable to this review submission. See previous remarks.

Sound Quality: N/A
Again, see my earlier remarks from a previous submission.

Reliability: 1
Ok. This is where I have something to say. In my earlier review, I praised this amp for it's features and sound quality. I had also said that I was concerned about some of the other reviews regarding the reliability and was wondering if I was next on list of unfortunate schmucks. Well, after only 65 days of limited home use the left speaker just cut out permanetly. I recall someone else mentioning this as well. The major retail outfit whom I purchased this from (their initials are G.C.) would not swap it out for another one on the floor because this happened after the 60 day cut-off even though I have dropped around 4K + there. Fortuantly I bought the extended protection plan which covers parts, labor and shipping. It only takes one bad experience for me with a product name or retailer to leave a bad tast in my mouth. My confidence in Vox is at the bottom. If this were just an isolated case that's one thing. But it would seem that I am not alone in my relaibility issues. I will say this however. I have a Roland MicorCube practice amp which I play through every night in front of the TV just to stay in practice and it never gives me any grief. I had a Roland Jazz Chorus years ago which again, never let me down. But I was led to the Vox by the Salesman which in retrospect was a mistake. Should have Kept walking towards the Roland when I entered the store. Come on Vox. You have been making amplifiers for ever. What's so difficult about making one that won't take a crap after a couple of months. It's not exactly Astro Physics you idiots.

Customer Support: N/A
We'll find out I guess.

Overall Rating: N/A
Buy a Roland.

Submitted by Scott Rolf at 09/18/2005 17:13

Price Paid: US $1,000.00

Features: 9
I have recently gotten back into playing and the only gear I kept from my band days was my 1973 Stratocaster, which I purchased new. My style of playing is modeled after Steve Hackett and Peter Frampton. I needed a new amp. and was familiar with Marshall and Roland as those were my amps of choice back in the day. I wanted that warm tube sound like the Marshall and a clean jazz sound as with the Roland plus some modeling for extra versitility. I was introduced to the Vox by the salesman who knew what I was looking for after speaking with him. The pedal effects are strong with the exception of the chorus which is not up to the Roland standard but not bad either. I would like to be able to link the pedals but isn't absolutly necessary. The amp modeling is to my ear very close. I love the tape delay which reminds me of the echoplex from my old band days. 32 presets is way to much. There is no way anyone can remember what particular sound is stored is which location. So, what I did was to write my own sounds on the first 4 banks. That gives my 16 of my personal presets which is plenty for a guy who is used to two cannels: clean and dirty. Overall, more than enough features.

Sound Quality: 8
I have added two more guitars to keep my Strat company. A 2002 Dean USA HardTail and a new just delivered Gibson custom shop 1957 Les Paul Junior. The sound is very solid and plenty of volume. My only concern is that with some of the dirty effects the sound seems to dribble away and break up instead of an even fade. This can be comphensated for by adjusting the gain and compression a little. I have not had any vibration or ratteling as some have mentioned. Ok, this next comment is to the guy who said that this amp is good only if you like dirty distorted sounds. This Vox does a very fine job with not just one type or clean sound but a varity of clean selections. I just takes half a brain and a little time to know how to make the adjustments. The lab called, your brain is ready.

Reliability: 9
This is the main reason for my review submission. The most important factor in any equipment selection is relibility. It doesn't matter how good it sounds. If it doesn't work it's usless. I am concerned that there have been more than one review stating that their Vox had developed problems after a few months of use. I don't really understand how a non-mechanical piece of equipment can for no aparant reason stop working. There is an initial burn in period and if it passes then it should be good for many years. I have never had an amplifier failure in any application. Like many of you I have had this for just a few months now with no problems. Should I be waiting for the other shoe to drop? What specifically seems to be the problem other than "it just quit working". If this Vox continues to deliver without any problems then I can holestly say that I am very pleased with my purchase. However if this proves to be otherwise then I'll dump it and get a Bogner.

Customer Support: N/A
I haven't had a need to contact them and hope I never do.

Overall Rating: 9
Overall, this Vox does the job quite nicely. There is one thing that I don't really like about this Vox and that's the gold plastic logo. It would be very easy to break off and it looks cheap. I like the way Marshall does their logo. However, this is only cosmetic and therefore not that big of a deal.

Submitted by Scott Rolf at 09/06/2005 22:38

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 1
This amp has about 50 fx possibilities that go all the way from crappy to pointless.

Sound Quality: 1
I was trying to use it in a rehearsal space in NYC. First I tried my pedalsteel then we tried a Gibson 335. No matter what we did the sound was weak and thin for the unusable fake"clean" settings and rediculous for the FX settings. It was like when you are used to a real BF deluxe and then you put your zoom multi fx in line. You go from glorious to choked and phony sounding. The modeling stuff is such crap its depressing. I can't believe people find it remotely acceptable. Like listening to low res mp3's through ear buds.

Reliability: 2
If you want to get that overcompressed angry midgets down the hall modern rock sound this is your amp !

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 1
I've been playing music for a living for 25 years. Spend your money on a real amp and skip this sort of trash. Practice more and learn how to get a good sound with your hands.

Submitted by Phil Saunders at 08/20/2005 10:56

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 9
2004 model. Plenty of features...almost too many for my taste. I'm more of a plug and play kind of guy, but wanted some versatility. This amp definitely nails it in that category. The tube/valve is a nice touch and adds some warmth to the tones to make them all in all very pleasing. I use this as a backup amp or an alternative amp for live settings (only small to medium sized clubs right now) and it has plenty of power. What's really great about this amp though is the power rating switch in back, allowing me to play the same tones I use live in a bedroom setting. I just wish it came with the footswitch; it really is a neccesity and the fact that it's $300 extra is a bit annoying at best.

Sound Quality: 7
I have a fender american vintage '62 strat and a schecter c-1 elite. I tend to use the fender with my twin reverb reissue and the schecter with the vox only because I feel the vox is better suited for humbuckers. It's good for loud rock which I like to play. I like having a bluesy edge to my tone and it does that well too. It even manages some pretty good metal distortion when I feel like going wild. I really enjoy the sounds I can get from this amp when screwing around in my bedroom or garage...however, this amp does not cut very well in a band. I got the 120 watt version specifically so I could continue using it if my band starts play larger venues. Most of the time though I find myself using all 120 watts with lots of volume for our mild club settings to get my leads to cut through. It's a bit of a bummer. If anyone knows of a pedal I could put in front of this amp to make it cut, that'd be great if you could let me know. Also, on a side note, the ultra light speakers create some buzzing sometimes which is terribly annoying. I might end up replacing the speakers altogether.

Reliability: 10
It's suited me fine so far.

Customer Support: N/A
haven't had to deal with them

Overall Rating: 8
I've been playing 5 years, but don't get me wrong, I'm pretty accomplished for my age and know good tone. As stated before, I have an american strat and a fender twin reverb. I use a maxon od-808 ibanez ts-9 and vox wah in front of the twin. I also have the schecter which I stated before, that I run straight to the vox. I love the tones I can get on my own with the vox, which leads me to believe it would be great for recording, but the fact that it doesn't cut really bugs me. Perhaps the Seymour Duncan pickup booster would help? I don't know. Also, once again, I really wish it had the foot pedal included. It is an absolute neccesity for live settings. I got the amp for a great price so I don't really mind all these small nuances, but nonetheless, I like to complain.

Submitted by Garrett Cook at 07/24/2005 20:52

Price Paid: US $1199

Features: 9
2004... I bought it after trying out many amps... what is striking about this amp is the ability to easily manipulate sounds and at low volume levels due to the volt switch on back... the chorus feature allows for a nice wide sound... the amp modeling is decent.. and the tube/valve allows for tube dynamics especially when the master is up almost all the way.. at nite I plug-in my flat headphones.. there is enough power at 100 watts... it takes a bit to program it the way you wish but when it's programmed it's beautiful....

Sound Quality: 8
2 main guitars- customized 1975 Les Paul Deluxe with QM1 pickup on the neck and Schaller pickup at the bridge... QM1 brings out the wood (ala "Sweet Child of Mine" lead) while the Schaller allows for Southern Rock Gibson sound(ala ZZ-top, Skynard).. I also have a straight 2004 USA Fender Strat(no noise reduction, all single-coil) all stock.. what this amp does well is carry the mids and allow for the raw wood sounds.. the 1980's Marshall Amp features allow for the
80's rock sound esp. with chorus up.. I think the amp is a little weak on the clean sounds (Fender Ultra Chorus is a good amp for this) and probably won't be the greatest Heavy Metal Tube Amp like a Marshall's JCM Stack.. but I bought it specifically for the sounds that I like Mid to Low range textured guitaring...

Reliability: N/A
I haven't had it long enough to comment on this... I know I'm going to get a back up tube... although I've been told the tube can handle the load..

Customer Support: N/A
I haven't had it long enough to comment on this...

Overall Rating: 9
I've been playing 25 years or so.. I've sold my other gear over the years.. had a Mesa Boogie Maverick Class A amp... it was very nice, very loud.. had a 1986 Peavey T-60 which--I think--is a little under-rated esp. for clean sound and blues sound.. I just gave a Fender UltraChorus to my nephew.. I may end up purchasing another one in the future due to its clean sound.. I've tried many amps: Fenders- Twin and Deville, Marshall JCM's, Crates, Peaveys, Carvin--I think, etc.
I'm satisifed with the Valvetronix, it suits my needs for the most part.. if it was lost or stolen, I'd buy another one--it's hard to get the sounds I look for..

Submitted by john at 06/20/2005 21:29

Price Paid: US $800

Features: 9
whew...anyone who gives this amp a bad rating for features is insane. The 32 storable programs are great, and the AC30 amp model sounds awesome. I won't list all the features, but you can change the quality of the sound in many different ways, easily from the top of the amp and store your program for later use at the touch of 2 buttons. Only downfall in my opinion is that you can only use one pedal effect at a time.

Sound Quality: 10
I play a couple different styles... I like playing bach and things like that on the Clean Boutique setting with a little reverb and chorus...it really sounds sweet. You can get so many sounds out of this amp, i can play bach one minute and then switch to heavy metal the next. I read the thing about someone's cab vibrating, and that is hard to believe, because this amp rattles my brain before anything on the cab rattles.

Reliability: N/A
Seems fine so far?

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't had to deal with. I will say that they have good support for their products online...you can download the entire user manual.

Overall Rating: 9
I love this amp...If lost or stolen I would definitely buy another. I can get just about any sound I want out of this amp...a couple of my friends got line 6 amps for their little heavy metal cover bands, but with this amp, you can get good clean sounds, and more than enough distortion for heavy metal. Check out the tube overdrive with the clean boutique and some reverb...now try to get that sound out of a line 6 amp. muuuch more versatile than anything i have ever seen before.

Submitted by hellotman at 05/20/2005 08:00