Vox Cambridge 30 Twin Reverb

Price Paid: US $345? used

Features: 8
Don't know for sure what year it was made. I bought it used off eBay with heavy modifications done to it previously. This amp is pretty average as far as features. 2 x 10 speakers, 2 channels, tremelo, reverb ... etc.

Mine has had the optocoupler changed, and a power upgrade. Many people have had a 60 watt power upgrade, but mine was listed as a 56 watt chip on the auction ... not sure?

Anyways, it also had the fret cloth changed to the classic brown (very nice) and cabinet corners added. This amp has been seriously overhauled.

Sound Quality: 7
The guitars I use are a Gibson SG Special, a Epiphone Les Paul Standard, and a Squier Afinity Tele Special. All of my guitars sound good through this amp, but more so with my Tele.

I play music similar to U2 , especially similar to The Unforgettable Fire album. I'm a really big fan of The Edge's tone. I bought this amp in hopes of achieving a AC30 like sound. While it get's pretty close... in the end it's still no AC30. That's not to say this is a bad amp. Because this amp has a very good sound. I can't afford a AC30, so I guess you could consider this the poor man's AC30. At least for me, it is. It fits what I was looking for.

The clean channel is what makes this amp. I don't even bother with the amp's distortion channel. The distortion channel is just too muddy on any setting. I may try a 12AT7 down the road to try tame it. But I use pedals for my distortion and overdrive needs. Anyways, the clean channel is excellent. It has a very nice chime on harmonics and is very responsive to all the pedals I throw behind it. Very nice clean tone, I'm very impressed.

Just remember this is not an AC30, the sound can get you close, but you can't top the sound of the real thing.

Reliability: 9
I feel I can depend on my amp. I mainly play in my room, but I have used this at church before. I've had it for probably a year and have had no problems. A few days ago the volume faded low for a minute but then went back, but I was jamming pretty heavily. Or it could have been my ears. LOL.

All amps are prone to break down but this thing looks soild. I take care of all my gear as if they were my children. This thing came with a nice custom padded tuki cover, so it's protected pretty good if I take it in my car.

Customer Support: N/A
N/A

Overall Rating: 8
I've been playing for 9 years, I've got a ways to go yet. I'm still young and I've got a lot to learn. Hopefully this amp will help me in my search for my perfect sound. If this thing was stolen I would be sad ... I'd probably save up for one of the new AC30CC amps. Either that or a vintage Hiwatt.

The only other thing I can say is, give this amp a fair shot. After the mods it's a very soild amp. If you don't give your gear a chance and work with it to get your sound, it's pointless to buy gear. Music is a labor of love.

Check out www.guitargeek.com , I post on there ... it's a cool site.

Submitted by TheBlindsideKid at 01/05/2006 22:08

Price Paid: US $150 used

Features: 1
Not sure when this amp was made. I bought mine "like new" from a local music store. Have to tell you right off.. all the bad stuff you've read here and elsewhere is true about the Cambridge 30 twin reverb(or single speaker version). They are pure crap. I had the mods done by a pro tech too. Didn't help one bit. I couldn't wait to get rid of mine. Luckily the same music store took it back in trade and I got a Marshall valvestate. Very nice for the price and way better sounding with NO hassles.

Sound Quality: 1
I play an vintage 70's Strat and a Les Paul special. I love the original AC30 with the top boost and always thought that brian may had a great sound. I didn't have the bucks for a vintage AC30, so I thought I would try the Cambridge 30 twin. As you already know, I was very disappointed, even after the modifications everyone says you should make. No decent distortion either, even with a preamp tube. I had a good tube in it too. Bought it off ebay for $40. It was a vintage NOS Mullard. Didn't help. Thank God the store took the amp back and I was able to get the Marshall.

Reliability: 1
For the time I had the Cambridge 30, I couldn't ever depend on it, so it never went to gigs with me. I never knew what it would do or if it would just stop working during a set. It broke down once, rather it started loosing sound power and wouldn't do anything until it cooled off, and even then sounded funny. I had all the servicing and work done by a professional. I treated it as good as I could, but it was just not realiable at all. The Marshall is totally reliable and I gig with it.

Customer Support: N/A
Never delt with the company. I think Korg owns it anyway, but didn't bother trying to get in touch with them. I just took it to a amp tech.

Overall Rating: 1
I've been playing for 8 years total, 2 years professional now. I have my Strat, Les Paul, a Taylor acoustic, a Fender Acoustic amp, Marshall half stack(for big venues) and the new Marshall valvestate combo, which I really love and use for most gigs now. Thank God I don't have it anymore, but if I did and it was stolen or lost, I wouldn't bother looking for another one. But if I lost my Marshall valvestate, I would buy another one in a heartbeat. I wished that the Cambridge 30 would have been what I wanted, but it was just pure junk and a waste of time. My best advise to everyone out there that is thinking they can buy one of the Cambridge 30 amps and modify it to sound great is just kidding themselves into believing it only because they really want an AC30. Hey, if you want an AC30, just save your money and buy an AC30. The Cambridge 30 is NOT going to ever be an AC30 and it will never sound like one, no matter what you do. Please believe me and save yourself some grief.

Submitted by Don Hinshaw at 11/19/2005 05:50

Price Paid: US $199

Features: 1
I own a Vox Pathfinder 15R and it's awesome, so I thought I would try the Cambridge 30. Man.... did I make the biggest mistake of my life. Like flushing hard earned money down the toilet. I will elaborate further down on this review. For the basics, it's supposed to be a 30 watt combo with reverb, tremelo, and a tube preamp. The reverb is the worst I've ever heard, the tremelo is worse, and the tube preamp doesn't help the sound at all. I even changed out to AT7's and 5751's, but nothing helped.

Sound Quality: 1
I play a variety of sounds. I use a variety of instruments. I like the clean sound of my Patherfinder 15R, and it's as loud enough to be heard over the drummer with a decent preamp/pedal. Anyone tells you different, they are just giving you the BS to play down the amp so they can pick them up cheap on ebay or something. The Pathfinder 15R is a true VOX all the way. The sound will amaze you right out of the box. The sounds on this Cambridge 30 right out of the box is a nightmare. Then if you turn it up to anykind of real volume for more than 20 minutes, it heats up and dies on you.

Reliability: 1
I was too ashamed to use this amp at gigs, so I did the "MODS", with the tremelo and power amp section. If someone tells you that it helped, they are giving you the BS again! I did ALL THE "MODS" and it did not make it sound better than my Patherfinder 15R. Even after the "MODS" my Pathfinder kicked the Cambridge 30's ass all the way down the road and back! And all I had in front of my Pathfinder was my Korg PX3 pandora. The combo of these two is something you would have to hear to believe. I get serious SRV and Brian May sounds! and that ain't easy. I finally sold(actually gave it away) to some dope that read about the "MODS" and thought he was getting a real deal. I even warned him, but he still bought it with his eyes open. I kinda felt sorry for him, so I sold it to him for $50. I think I got the better part of the deal. Poor guy.

Customer Support: 1
VOX support is a joke. Maybe one day, KORG will realize that need to put as much attention into the VOX line as they do their Marshall line. Yep, they own Marshall too, but they did good with the Marshall line.

Overall Rating: 1
I've been playing music for over 30 years and have had mucho equipment, so I've had time to define my sound, tone, and setup. Believe it or not, I don't use a Marshall stack, a $2000 Ibanez, or $500 pedal board. I use my two Pathfinder 15R's, a Korg pandora, and a Japanese Squier Strat. They do the job and I get nothing but compliments from fans and in the studio. Nuff about me and my thing... bottom line here is to let people know...DO NOT BUY A CAMBRIDGE 30 AMP, MODIFIED OR NOT. YOU WILL ONLY BE SORRY! OK? That's it from a 30 year professional.

Submitted by Eric Weissman at 11/17/2005 02:42

Price Paid: US $250?

Features: 5
this amp was new back in 2001 or two maybe. features are pretty basic. two channels that are switchable distortion/clean. knobs are backwards. you get used to it, but why? it is a solid state amp with a tube preamp stage... really more like a tube coloring stage.

Sound Quality: 2
this is one of the worst sounding amps i have ever heard. the only thing that saves it is the nice little celestion bulldogs in it. they are 16 ohm speakers i believe wired to an 8 ohm load at the amp. the amp sounds ok at low volume, but once you turn it up it is harsh and the enclosure rattles. the distortion is like the sound of 100 forks scraping a blackboard mixed with someone sanding some wood. <(*_*)>
i tried changing out the tube but to no avail.

Reliability: 3
this amp is in no way reliable. it is a cheap 'made in china' piece of junk. it browns out if you turn it all the way up for a few minutes and just fades away like an old zenith radio. if you take this to a gig, you better be a good whistler, because you won't be playing a guitar through this amp.

Customer Support: N/A
i didn't bother dealing with VOX. i knew i had been had once i noticed online that other people were having the same problems with the amp that i was having.

Overall Rating: 2
i have been playing guitar for 10 years. i use a peavey 50/50 classic and an old ampeg V-4 (the mother of all guitar amps). if this amp were stolen or lost it would be a miracle because i already disassembled it and used it for parts. i will never buy another VOX product of any sort simply because it's bad business to sell this kind of garbage to innocent consumers in such mass amounts. they should have refunded everyone's money that bought one of these.

Submitted by jeff pasley at 08/16/2005 21:41

Price Paid: US $275

Features: 10
First of all, I'm describing the amp AFTER the power upgrade and the autocoupler change (see elsewhere in reviews). Before: brownouts and flatulence. After: it's an entirely different and great amp.

I play a wide variety of music with classic rock being my most common choice. Have done everything from playing for a square dance to being an opening act for Bob Segar.Throw in blues, jazz, etc., and you get the idea.

Two channels, reverb, tremelo, gain on the second channel, footswitchable (any stereo footswitch seems to work if you don't have the Vox). The clean has the Vox jangle that Vox lovers crave, the second channel, with the gain button on, has a uniqe distortion that is rich in mids and low-mids ( a little like a Big Muff with the tone rolled back on your guitar)but with a very nice ping harmonic available. I give it a 10 here because it packs together the sounds that should make you want a Vox in the first place and all of them are killer. The tremelo after the upgrade isn't as deep as it was but it's still plenty for my needs. The reverb has a nice richness and depth, though it can't be cranked to surf-music levels.

Sound Quality: 10
I use a variety of guitars through it but mostly a modified Tele with a blade humbucker and a Lil' '59 and a '69 Les Paul Custom that has the original bridge pickup with a P-90 in front. The inherent jangle of the Tele sounds best with the clean channel. Both guitars sound great in the gain channel.
The amp is inspiring for classic '60's-'70's rock: Beatles, Stones, Neil Young (think of Cinnamon Girl), etc. I use it along with an A/B/Y switch and a Fender Deluxe Reissue. The combination gives me the sounds I have long wanted and I don't expect to make another change in amps for a long time. My '74 Super Reverb, as proof, is going up for sale.

Reliability: N/A
It appeared to be a piece of junk before the upgrades and now it's my favorite amp. I'm told by my tech guy that the board the electronics are mounted on isn't the strongest he's ever seen. I've only had the upgrade for a few months so the reliability isn't something I can judge at this point.

Customer Support: N/A
DNA

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for 38 years and I've played and owned much gear. I would find another Cambridge asap if something happened to this one.
My final comment is that many people have been knocked out by the incredibly inexpensive Vox Pathfinder. I have the Pathfinder in the mini-stack configuration (2-10"s) and like it a lot. However, the amp sounds high mechanical and transistorized when compared to the upgraded Cambridge. If you want a gig-worthy (60 watts: plenty of volume for most gigs and stages)Vox with a jangle that's virtually indistinguishable from the very expensive all-tube models, then find one of these amps. It is one of the great bargains available today.

Submitted by Anonymous at 06/22/2005 09:10

Price Paid: US $339

Features: 7
Model V9320
Two channel with reverb and tremolo,gain boost and mid boost buttons,power,channel,gain boost indicator lights, 12ax7 preamp tube.
Two footswitch jacks,speaker out,headphones out,line out jacks.
30 watts output,two 10"celestion 8ohm speakers wired for 16ohms.
The 7.0 rating I gave it was based on intent,not on execution.

Sound Quality: 7
I use this amp for practice.I have used two telecasters,one strat,a les paul, two rickenbackers,one e335 and a larivee d-04 with sound hole pick up thru this amp. The telecasters and e335 sounded best.But good tone is different to each player,you try then decide if this amp is for you.
The reverb tank is a short 3 spring, med decay type. Not fender like at all,but still pleasant sounding to me. Tremolo and gain channel have average solid state sound.

Reliability: 3
Purchased amp 05/2000. ser# 0000178. Had amp for 4 years and used on average of 3hrs a week before "Brown out problem" became too severe.
Thanks to the people here on Harmonycentral.com ,I found out what needed repaired. I not only had the bad optocoupler replaced,but had the 60 watt upgrade done and the preamp tube replaced with an ei 12ax7 yugoslavian tube. Power is now enough for "Jamming" with. Tone is bright with much improved low end. This is how Vox should have sold this amp in the first place. As far as reliability goes after the repairs,only time will tell. Repairs were done at Ampwerx 1935 E. 7th st. Long Beach Ca. 90813. Time in shop,3 weeks total.

Customer Support: N/A
Did not even try,since amp was out of warranty and no recall had been issued.

Overall Rating: 3
Have been playing guitar for over 40 years. This amp was not one of my best purchases. Would not buy again. Would not buy vox/korg products again. Shame on vox for not recalling this amp. The major problems they are having with their Valvetronics line is no surprise.
Look on e-bay,see the low prices modern vox amps bring .The word is getting out, and Vox's reputation is going down the drain. Would you buy a new chinese made ac-30 for $1000.00 bucks? NOT ME!

Submitted by a.j. at 04/02/2005 11:27

Price Paid: US $180 used

Features: 8
2 channels, reverb and tremolo, pair of 10''s...excellent practice and recording amp...not quite loud enough to compete with loud drummer...lacks "modern" gain capabilities without an external effect.

Sound Quality: 10
i play a wide variety of styles with a broad range of tonal variations and i mainly use this amp just for it's clean channel, which is absolutely awesome...i plug one of a couple charvels with stock jackson pickups through an rp200 and i can get pretty much any sound i want. the amp did have some noise issues and the tone was a little on the dark side when i bought it used, but after replacing the sovtek tube with a new groove tubes 12ax7r the thing is quiet as a mouse all the way to 10 with the gain maxed and holy cow does it get one hell of bright tone...almost painful unless you play with the tone knobs, which are very interactive and sensitive to tweaking...channel 2 gets some nice classic distortion tones...think joe walsh, black crowes, bad company...but it was not designed to sound like a warhead...that'll require a pedal.

Reliability: N/A
i bought the amp used from guitar center and i'm not sure if the opto-coupler problem has been fixed or not, but i have had no problems other than a crappy tube. it would probably get beat up pretty bad on tour as the cab is kind of wimpily constructed and it has no corner protectors, but the light weight is a nice feature...

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 9
overall, for what i payed and what i use it for, this amp is an easy 9...i have never heard a better clean tone and you can get some really novel and usable gain tones if you spend some time playing with it...perfect for home and studio...you'll probably have to mic it if you wanna use it live though...

Submitted by Anonymous at 02/16/2005 10:17

Price Paid: 50.00 service charge (USD)

Features: 8
The tremelo and reverb are adequate. Not the best but not the worst either.
If you make the modification that everyone is suggesting you will have to adjust the trim pots VR11 and VR12 on the circuit board to get a good tremolo sound. You may experience a little clipping at the far left of the pot (it can be adjusted to get a good tremolo sound and no clipping). I can live with this trade off because the amp sounds soooo great now.

Sound Quality: 10
When I purchased this amp the sound was great when you turned it on but it would deminish in power and the sound would get muddy after the amp heated up. After making vent holes it was slightly better but still had a problem. I put heavier gauge wires to the speakers using the monster cable theory and this helped a little too.

This amp would still get so hot you could fry eggs on it. The heat was destroying the sound quality and the power output. Apparently the cheap optocoupler that they used in this amp was drawing so much power it was overheating the whole amp.
I changed the optocoupler as recomended on many other reviews and the difference is unbelievable. Now the amp runs very cool, The power will blow you away, and the sound is definately VOX. Very clean crisp sound with lots of power.

This is not a practice amp anymore. Change the optocoupler and you will have a TEN rating amp. Maybe even an ELEVEN. I LOVE THIS AMP NOW. I always loved my Cambridge 15 amp and it is the reason I bought the Campbidge 30 twin. It never sounded as good as the Cambridge 15 but after the modification it sounds just as good if not better than the Cambridge 15. Did I mention I LOVE THIS AMP NOW?

Reliability: 10
There was no reliability until I did the modification that others recomended. CHANGE THE OPTOCOUPLER ASAP and you will have a great amp. The reliability now is a ten.

Customer Support: 1
Customer support was non existent from Vox/Korg. I brought the amp to the local authorized Vox repair dealer. They charged me $50.00 and told me there was nothing wrong with the amp. I brought it back again and they didn't charge me this time but still said there was nothing wrong with the amp. This was very frustrating due to the fact that the amp sounded terrible to my ear and there were a bunch of unsatisfied musicians on Harmony Central experiencing the same problems as me.

Overall Rating: 10
I wrote two previous reviews voicing my frustrations with this amp (3/8/03 and 1/20/04). I noticed the reviews where people were saying they found the magic fix for this amp so I tried it. If you don't know how to solder and can't do the work yourself get someone to do it for you. You MUST make the modification if you want this amp to perform like a VOX should. The difference will blow you away.

It took me quite a while to find the parts so I will help you out with that. I found an electronic supply company called Allied Electronics that stocked the parts. The web site is (www.alliedelec.com). The optocoupler that you need is Part # VTL5C3/2 Allied stock# 980-0730. The part costs $3.79 (I can't believe Vox would want to hurt there customer base for a four dollar part). This optocoupler has two leads on one side and three on the other. You will have to cut off the center lead on the three lead side for it to fit on the circuit board.

If you want to change the power transistor to get even more power out of this amp you can get part# LM3876T stock# 288-1358. These are $5.24. The bad news is that there is a $25.00 minimum order.

The reason I have given this amp a ten rating at this time is because it is truly a ten after the modification is done. IF YOU DO THE MODIFICATION YOU WILL LOVE THIS AMP. IF YOUR AMP SOUNDS LIKE CRAP NOW DO THE MODIFICATION YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE.

Submitted by Jay Shrub - The Shrubs 12/10/2004 at 12/10/2004 07:01

Price Paid: N/A

Features: N/A

Sound Quality: N/A
I finally got the optocoupler and 60-watt upgrades completed, and WOW! The amp really comes alive with these fixes. Other tweaks included some fine tuning of the VR11 and VR12 trimpots and a Groove Tubes 12AX7. Now I have a very sweet, reliable, versatile and really LOUD amp. Very articulate; like a real Class A Vox. If it had a bit more low-end, it could be that AC-30 I've always wanted.

For those of you that have these upgrades done, be sure to adjust the VR11 and VR12 pots. VR11 affects tremolo depth and unless you adjust it to suit the new optocoupler, the trem won't be as deep as before. The VR12 sets the gain going from the preamp to the amp section. The factory setting is such that the amp won't overdrive the OEM amp chip and needs to be cranked up some to take full advantage of the new 'coupler and amp chips. You can take the clean channel from a quiet squeaky clean to a nice tubey - and much louder - crunch with judicious tuning of VR12. Season to taste!

Someday, I'll go back into the amp and swap out some resistors to enhance the low-end, and maybe get crazy and replace one of the 10" speakers with an 12" Greenback. But for now this thing's my new best friend!

Reliability: N/A
The repairs have drastically reduced the operating temperatures so reliability should be much better. I've used it at moderate volume levels for several hours at a time with no hint of a problem. Time will tell.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: N/A

Submitted by Jim at 10/27/2004 05:12

Price Paid: US $152.00 used

Features: N/A
This is an update of my review earlier this year.

Sound Quality: 8
The tone was & still is excellent.

Reliability: N/A
See below....

Customer Support: N/A
Fix it yourself or find someone.

Overall Rating: 9
I had this amp redone as mentioned by some below. The crappy opto-coupler was,as indicated,the problem. I also did the 60 watt modification. The tremelo was somewhat weakened by the changes but still works, however that is the least used effect for me. As I predicted I now love this amp! It screams for a little combo & I can now easily gig with it. For such a small light amp its great! My advice is to find one that someones pissed at-buy it cheap-and do what some of us have done. Most competent techs fix it no problem.

Submitted by Rob B at 10/03/2004 08:28