Vox AD60VT Valvetronix 112 Combo

Price Paid: US $670 no tax

Features: 10
They've all been listed before so there's no reason to recap.

Sound Quality: 9
I love the tones. I do mostly hard disk recording at my house and the amp is perfect for this type of work load. It has a several really useful and convincing models. It's my only amp and does everything I need it to do. I have noticed some rolling bassiness that is a bit irritating, but it could be the way I am dialing the tone.
I use a GnL strat with standard pickups. I play mostly modern rock type stuff.

The best thing about this amp is the tones.

Reliability: N/A
I've had the thing for about a week, and everything is fine so far.

The little "Valvetronix" logo fell off 10 minutes after I took it out of the box. I hope that's not a sign of things to come. I was probably going to take it off anyway just to confuse people in the audience. You know to make them wonder how the hell I was getting all the tones. :)

Also, I didn't even buy one of those cheap-ass foot pedals. I'm hoping they'll upgrade in the near future. In the mean time I dial the tones in an old-school fashion. MEMORY and speed.

Customer Support: N/A
No need to call them yet.

Overall Rating: 9
So far I am really pleased with this amp. I could never really afford all the amps I need to use for recording. So this is a perfect match for me.

Submitted by tye at 08/05/2002 15:56

Price Paid: US $679

Features: 7
2002 model bought at a local dealer. The individual features have already been detailed in other reviews. I play covers doing material from the 70's on up and the Vox easily handles all the Rock, Pop, Metal, and Blues I'd ever do. The effects sound quality ranges from okay to very good; Chorus – OK, Delay - very good. Pedal parameter settings are compromised and not optimal, e.g., you may want to tweak the tone of an overdrive pedal but can't. Patches can only be set manually; strongly suggest you make a written record of your favorites. The presets on the amp demonstrate what kinds of sounds you can get but I didn't find them that useful for the music I do.

Having better real time control of the effects, banks, and channels would be my first wish for an improvement. The reviews of the floor pedal are brutal; you can download the manual and make up your own mind. Being able to run multiple pedals at once, or even if the compressor was in it's own section would my next change.

Sound Quality: 9
The convincing sound and feel of the Vox is the number one reason to buy it. I mean, I'm a tube guy and it's just not right that a hybrid amp can sag, sing, sustain, sparkle, and growl like this for what it costs.

Great quality and variety of amp choices. I don’t know if they nail the originals because I haven’t owned most of them but they sound convincing. Perfect for a cover guitarist and offers more useful effects than I would ever carry around with me. It’s loud enough for me although I understand sonic tastes vary. If I need something louder than this, with an extension cab, then I’m probably playing in the wrong band. I think you can dial in punishing distortion. I haven't pushed the clean settings to test the headroom. It doesn’t disguise the identity of your guitar. A Tele sounds like a Tele, a 355 like a 355.

The higain models are noisy, and the manual tells you they will be. On board noise reduction offers some help. I get intermittent crackling using higain models; not while playing, but when not playing. The output level of the Fender models is weak. The sound quality is good but the output is noticeably weaker.

The Boutique clean, UK Blues, US higain, and Vox models are my favorites, but I like them all. The delay section is really thick and rich in my opinion. The Chorus lacks depth and the Rotary sounds like an impostor. The individual pedals range from OK, Acoustic, to very good, UniVibe.

I have to give this a 9 for the tube amp sound and feel across all the models and effects that I think are above average like the Delay and UniVibe.

I use Fender, G&L, and Gibson guitars with stock pickups and Fender and MusicMan amps.

Reliability: N/A
No problems yet. The worst thing I've noticed is sloppy caulking inside the speaker enclosure. I've used this for bedroom and basement practice and at small gigs. I haven't pushed it yet. My gut reaction is that if I would start using it full out I'd be sure to have a backup rig with me. I base this on the model being fairly new, that pesty crackling I get on the higain models, and the other reviews.

I'm not going to offer a rating until I have pushed the amp at longer and louder gigs.

Customer Support: N/A
I haven't needed to use customer support yet. Funny though, the manual is full of spelling and grammar errors. I hope that's not a sign of overall neglect and attention to detail.

I can't offer a rating until I use them.

Overall Rating: 8
I've played for 30 years with Fender and Gibson guitars going through Fender and MusicMan amps. I've owned the Vox for 5 months. As a cover guitarist I've always had to spend a lot of energy getting the tones of all the different bands and styles of music we did. I hope this amp will make that job easier, be more convincing for the listener, and cut down on the amount of gear I have to lug around.

I understand why some reviewers dislike the floor pedal. But if I
compare the Vox set up to my vintage rig the Vox is still more versatile. As one reviewer offers, bring along a couple of your favorite pedals to fill in the gaps. Even though there are some design decisions I would have made differently, the amp is straight forward to operate, light, and easy to move.

I originally purchased this for bedroom and full band basement practice and jams but I’m considering making it my main rig (by including a 2X12 extension cab). It sounds amazing, feels good and can cover the four decades of rock music in all the various styles I play.

Maybe a Vetta or Zen Terra would be more flexible and full featured but I wasn’t willing to spend that kind of money. The Vox is fun to play and if they can ensure the quality and improve it's functionality it'll be around for a long time.

Submitted by Anonymous at 08/04/2002 09:06

Price Paid: N/A

Features: 5
I have just spent about three hours in the glass cubicle at my local guitar center. And did not buy valvetronix combo..I wanted to write this as a concern to all those considering. I have played Johnson, line 6, POD, etc. I am very familiar with modeling amps..What is disturbing is this is so close!!!! It hits sounds closer than other modelers most importantly in how the feeling of tube compression is felt when your playing (I think that is very important for expressive playing) It has more of a Johnson JM-60 panel but works way better...The models are great, the effects are cleaner, the phaser only phases your guitar not the not a bunch of hum and noise!!! It does hit a AC-30 sound and also has an AC-15 which is better. The boutique clean is just great!!! PRoblem is the foot pedal mode!!!!! NOT GOOD see below...

Sound Quality: 5
Sounds are good if I wanted to play every thing in the world this could do it..Problem again in foot pedal mode see below

Reliability: 1
Here we go!!! I tried five different ones in the store and all five did the same thing.. I have read other reviews and I may know where this crackle is!!! It is in the foot pedal mode..when you are using this mode..It sends crackle noises through the amp...bad bad do I want to record with it?? no Do I want to play live with it? no It is to bad..I would have bought one.. But I record alot in various studios and these people are on the clock..nothing pisses them off more than losing a track to some disturbing unwanted noise..VOX take out the foot pedal feature and I will buy one..Or fix it!!! I don't think I would need it anyway...

Customer Support: N/A
Don't know did not buy it..those of you with 90 day warranties act fast...

Overall Rating: N/A
Crackle noises unnacceptable at any price period..we as musicains need to stop throwing our money away at untested technology..STop spending advertising money and research you &*(&(*)ing products!!!! This goes out to all manufacturers..

Submitted by Anonymous at 07/20/2002 09:54

Price Paid: US $650

Features: 8
Only owned for 5 days, but this thing's pretty amazing. I probably would have given it a higher rating, but the footpedal is horrible. The amp advertises 32 presets, yet the footpedal only allows you to access 16 of them at any one time. Plus, the function of going from bank 1 to bank 2 is lame. YOu have to hold down one button for > 1 second before you can switch. Just how much trouble could it have been to set this thing up with midi?

Other than that, this thing sounds quite amazing. I love the fact that I can hit my open low E string and not be buried in a mess of distorted garbage.

I probably would have liked the 2x12 more, but it was quite heavy.

Sound Quality: 10
Using an old Steinberger GL-3. The amp sounds great with this. I was completely freaked-out by the "Unplugged" setting. I've never been able to dial an amp in with a sound that comes this close to an acoustic guitar.

This is far better than my previous rig of a power-amp, ADA preamp, digital reverb, and marshall cabinet.

Reliability: N/A
Too Soon To Tell.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 8
Been playing for 32 years. I'd be totally interested in hearing about how other players have tweaked this amp with their own settings. It's still very new to me, so I haven't done much more than use the factory installed presets.

Submitted by Paul Keller at 07/18/2002 11:35

Price Paid: US $700

Features: 10
you all know the features from the other reviews. I bought mine new from guitar center. The amp is extremely versatile and can accompany a plethora of tastes. I used the amp in my studio which I believe it works best given its variety of sounds. The amp is fairly loud, probably would need the 2-12" for playing gigs though as I'll explain later, this amp should not leave the confines of your house (unless your'e returning it to guitar center!!) I used the plexi amp the most as well as the botique clean which I believe may be a dumble.

Sound Quality: 9
I was highly impressed by the sounds this amp produces, especially the plexi, ac-30 and botique clean. I can nail the zep tone as well as the crowes and SRV with the botique sound. The trmelo is decent. The chorus I did not prefer (though most i dont). The octave is very typical (sounds good). The univibe is your run-of-the-mill univibe. The tube distortion is pretty good and actually i found that it sound a bit nicer than my fulltone fulldrive 2 run through the amp. Both my fulltone pedal sound great no matter where you put them except in front of this amp (who knows why?). I will say this amp sounds very tube (I even replaced the 12ax7. It crushes line 6 and fender cyber twin. Amp is a very neat concept, one that i would suggest you read the manual to really appreciate what it can do

Reliability: 2
VERY VERY VERY dissapointed. I went through three of these amps before I gave up on them. I used mine only in a studio, and received all three from guitar center. The first, I left on for several hours and it crapped out when I returned to play it (no sound from the high input, could have been my fault but I've never had this problem with other standard tube amps) The second was crumbling in sound from the minute I turned it on. The third seemed like it was going to make it and then I high a c-note (not that loud either), and it crumbled. I am absultely through with these amps. Despite that they sound good, they are made like crap. VOX and Korg should know better cause I've used stuff from both companies that has been fairly high quality and dependable.

Customer Support: N/A
I will say that I have had to use korg's tech support in the past and they've been nothing but helpful. I have no experience with regard to this vox product.

Overall Rating: 4
The sounds I give a 9 but the reliabilty brings the amps rating down cause you have to worry so much about it failing that it truly is not worth the hassle. I've been playing for about 16 years. I myself play blues rock (black crowes type stuff). I use a clapton strat, es-335, 1987 jap strat and a les paul deluxe 1977. I use fulltone guitar effects including the fulldrive 2 and the '69 pedal. As stated, I'm done with this amp and eventually settled for the fender vibrolux (nice rock-n-roll amp). The tremolo on the fender is 100x better but the reverb on the vox is fantastic and very flexible. All in all, I think I can honestly say that you should really think twice before purchasing this product. VOX needs a good Q&A inspection because despite the nice tone (truly), the reliabilty makes it worthless.

Submitted by blake at 07/12/2002 07:34

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A
Just a quick note: regarding the bassiness mentioned in the previous review, and with which I agree (and so did Guitar Player mag) - there's been comments on other user boards about changing the power amp tube(s). Those who've done it seem to agree the factory-supplied 12AX7 is the worst. I guess it's not easy to get to but since I have some leftover tubes here from my old Fenders I'll give it a shot soon.

Sound Quality: N/A

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A

Submitted by QE IV at 06/26/2002 17:29

Price Paid: US $699

Features: 8
The amp design and layout is excellent in my opinion. This amp was clearly targeted at those who wanted to get a lot of tones but were not interested in the complications of MIDI or spending countless hours trying to coax a good tone through computer editing. The nice thing as well is that it has an effects loop, headphone jack, and line out so it has covered the main bases for added versatility.

The foot pedal would be fine except for two things. It does look like a little toy and is somewhat cheesy. Two, it is way too expensive for what it is. Other than that, I actually prefer the simpler pedal design it offers. I also use an actual wah if I need that sound because I've yet to see any of these modeling amps have pedals on their footboards that had really good feel.

Power is a bit of an issue. It's tough to get clean tones that cut through unless you jump the volume and master volume, which adds a some grit. That's OK for me, but it may be an issue for some others.

Sound Quality: 8
I play a Les Paul Classic with SD Antiquity pickups. I also play a 2002 Am Std Strat with stock pickups (I'm waiting on my Bill Lawrence pu's). I play mostly a combination of classic rock, blues, pop rock, and some punk stuff. The amp helps me get a wide variety of useable tones.

I have owned tube amps in the past, most recently the Reverend Hellhound. I've also used a Johnson Millenium 150 which was a pioneering digital modeling amp. I think this amp really excels at the in-between British distortions and British sounds. They are very punchy and have a lot of character. The American models are OK, but they don't sound as good as the US setting did on my Hellhound. The high-gain distortions are very serviceable. As I mentioned before, the cleans have to be slightly gritty to punch through in a small jam band situation. Most of the effects work just fine. If you're an effects freak, then I think you may find the the quality lacking a little. For me, it works just fine as I don't use them much anyway. The modulations can be a little noisy and don't have a great range before they sound like crap.

As others have noted, the amp can get noisy with higher gain settings or fully boosted EQ. It's not too bad, but it is noticeable.

Reliability: 5
Here is where I have some concern. At first, I was issues a bum foot pedal that had a little broken plastic piece on one of the pedals. Cheap!!! I have also had times where the amp powers up but doesn't produce sound (it just happened in a rehearsal this past weekend). All of a sudden, after turning it off and on, it works. I haven't been able to narrow it down as to what the cause is yet.

The amp is constructed of mid-range material at best. It is definitely not produced with the same material quality that you see from the boutique amp makers. I don't beat up my amps, but for those who don't want to worry and gig a lot, this may eventually be an issue for them.

Customer Support: N/A
No experience with them since buying the product. I did call one time to VOX/Korg USA last year, when the amp was supposed to come out, and asked them what the delay was and when it was coming out. I was treated to one of the finer customer service calls ever. NOT!!! If this girl was any indication of the overall quality of customer service, I am very afraid if this thing breaks down.

Overall Rating: 7
I really want to like this amp. Sometimes I find myself really digging it and other times I wish I had something else. I had come from having the whole pedals/tube amp setup prior to this amp. And prior to that, I had a Johnson digital modeling amp. In retrospect, the Johnson was OK but it wasn't as convincing as the Valvetronix. It was also more complicated and took more time to find sounds. The Reverend Hellhound with pedals was a great tone, but I found hauling the pedal board to be a pain in the ass. I also found that setup to be restricting to someone who home records and plays in a basement jam/cover band and likes a variety of tones.

The VOX is close in many respects and the price tag is good as well. The sounds, especially the Brit ones, sound very alive and dynamic. It is really cool to quickly dial some of them up. I think what still nags me is just the reliability/quality issue. I'd happily pay $200-$300 more for this same amp with a more professional build quality and component quality. Until that time, I give the amp just a marginal recommendation.

Submitted by Matt Martin at 06/26/2002 08:11

Price Paid: US $650.00

Features: 10
I just bought mine today and what sold me is the many, real user features. It is a 2002 model.

Sound Quality: 5
I've been noodling with various guitars from my Strat amd Tele to my EMG and SD humbucker rock guitars and even my Carvin. Two issues come up. 1) The footswitch is way too expensive at like $250. 2) No matter what I do, the sounds are way too dark and bass heavy. It is hard to get a real Marshall sound even with the bass on "0".

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A
I've been playing for over 20 years and have owned every amp on the planet. The Mesa's were great but very limited on low volumes, Marshalls have the same issue, Line 6 just miss the boat (though I feel the POD's are the best for direct recording).

Submitted by Bill L. at 06/18/2002 23:41

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A
I want to add that I'm going to try a mod to the foot controller myself....by tapping into the up-down bank switches on the chassis, if possible, and bringing out additional wires....then I'll hope there's room to add two more regular-style footswitches to the foot panel....I haven't opened anything up yet but it's certainly worth a try. Vox, you're inviting people to reverse-engineer your amps by turning out such rinky-dink accesories.

Sound Quality: N/A

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A

Submitted by Queen E IV at 06/18/2002 12:25

Price Paid: US $700

Features: 7
You know the features by now… I have to agree with the last review, the foot controller is really a joke. Not only does the thing look like a toy, the foot switches are way too small. Its very poorly designed to say the least. I bought the AD60VT w/the controller and ended up returning the controller to get my damn money back! It is not worth $175. Maybe $70 at the most. This is my only complaint. Oh and I bought this at GC by the way. Make sure you get one new in the box and not the ones they keep on the floor. I actually had to buy the “floor model” and well it had lots of probs when I got it home (I was so pissed) and I returned it and had to wait two weeks for a brand new one to come in. I guess these are GC’s #1 seller?

Sound Quality: 10
I honestly feel this DMA sounds the best out of all of the others on the market. I love the amp settings. I use to own a Carr 6V slant and had to sell it for financial reasons and well how do I put this. This little VOX does a real real good job at coming !close! to sounding like a “real” tube amp. Yeah yeah, it doesn’t sound like a tube amp but hey, considering that I used a Carr for 2 years and then went to this thing its saying something for the Valvetronix. I wish I could get my Carr back but – a condo to live in is more important.

Reliability: 7
I feel this DMA is gonna be tough. I am not in a band at this time (just moved) but I am jamming with a jazz band in my area. I think it can withstand abuse. The only thing that worries me is that sometimes I hear a “crumble” in the tone. I have talked to other Valvetronix users and they confirm the same “crumble” sound on certain clean settings. This might be a fault of VOX. So I’m hoping there is nothing wrong with the Valvetronixs. Its very hard to hear but if you listen for it you’ll hear it. We shall see what happens. The warranty is only 90 days which is not good.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 10
Overall this is an incredible DMA for the money. It does its job good. It comes real close to “tube” sounding amps and this is pretty amazing to my ears. I tried out the Line 6 Flextone II’s and they just sound so flat and dry its not even funny. Valvetronix sounds a lot better than the Flextones, totally serious. I tried out the VETTA for kicks and I honestly have to say – the Valvetronix still has a more realistic tube sound. Go out to the store and just A/B them for yourself. My complaints are the warranty is too short and the foot controller needs to be redesigned. If I start to play out I’ll need that foot controller but I’m hoping by then VOX will have a revamped controller available. Check out one of these babies, you’ll be impressed I assure you!

Submitted by CaliManJim at 06/17/2002 10:11