Vox Pathfinder 10 Combo

Price Paid: US $110

Features: N/A
newer, vox pathfinder solid state amp with tremelo.

Sound Quality: N/A
Any amp can get a good sound, but this one is pretty limited. THe distortion sucks. the clean sound is okay, it breaks up pretty easily. overall, the sound is just barely ok, nothing good on average. the tremelo sounds like crap. i don't know what's wrong with it, it's like when the volume turns down the bass turns up, so it doesn't sound like a regular tremelo.

Reliability: N/A
not very reliable. the tremelo stopped working on me. otherwise, everything was fine.

Customer Support: N/A
didn't try it.

Overall Rating: N/A
buy something else. unless you can get it cheap. for amps this size, it doesn't matter what you get unless you plan to record or something.

The best practice amp ever made is a fender bronco-trust me, it sounds amazing. or it did.

Submitted by billy jackson at 09/11/2002 12:06

Price Paid: US $95

Features: 9
This is a 2002 Vox Pathfinder 15 watt 1 by 10 combo. This little practice amp is great for all types of music--blues, rock, jazz, etc. It has built in tremelo and a gain channel, which are both footswitchable. It also has a line out, headphone jack, auxillary speaker out. The headphone jack is especially nice for practicing late at night. This amp has plenty of power for practicing, but not enough to keep up with a drummer. It's clean tone is as good as I've heard on a non-tube amp this size. So great for practicing and recording. I give it a 9 instead of a 10 because it didn't come with the footswitch (why would they make such a great amp and not include a footswitch--that's absolutely ridiculous).

Sound Quality: 9
Like I said earlier, this amp will do just about any style well if played clean; the gain channel is a bit muddy. The tremelo is great also. Even on the clean channel, you can manipulate how much gain you get by adjusting the volume and master volume controls. I highly reccommend this amp for practice and recording, but I've even seen them being used in small venues (miked, of course). I'd give it a 10 if it had a better gain channel, but since clean is much more important to me, it gets a 9 for sound.

Reliability: 9
I've used it for several months now, and haven't had any problems. Others who've had them longer haven't complained of any problems either, so based on what I know, this amp will last a long, long time. But only time will tell.

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't dealt directly with Vox.

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for about 15 years and if it were lost or stolen, I'd definately get another one fast. I tried other practice amps, Fender, Marshall, and others, and none compared. I'm convinced this is the best practice amp for the money, maybe the best amp period for the money.

Submitted by armistead at 06/18/2002 13:16

Price Paid: US new: 90.90 (including 2 day shipping)

Features: 9
i got the amp brand new from zzounds.com b/c that was the best deal
i could find on it. $90.90 us dollars (that included the 2 day delivery i payed a little extra for). i was looking for an amp for
nice clean electric tones at a decent volume for practice, recording, and possibly even playing live (mic'd up. or running the out on the amp to the board). i found what i was looking for in this amp. has
more than i need actually b/c i could live without the 'overdrive' channel. controls are: gain, overdrive/clean button, bass, treble, volume, power. standard 1/4 guitar input. 1/4 headphone/line out.
10 watts. solid state. plenty loud enough for me.

Sound Quality: 9
i'm using a danelectro 56u2 reissue (semi-hollowbody with lipstick single coil pickups) with this amp. i bought this amp for the clean
sounds and i *love* the clean sounds. very crisp and clear, and CLEAN like they're supposed to be. works great for me. i usually
keep the bass and treble halfway up, volume on 10, and from there
just adjust the gain to various levels.
i can get a nice slightly overdriven sound by pushing in the overdrive button and keeping volume and gain both really low. i won't
comment any further on that b/c overdrive and distortion aren't my things. i'm all about clean sounds if you can't tell already.

Reliability: N/A
it seems well built and like it will last with proper care.

Customer Support: N/A
never dealt with them, so i can't comment on this.

Overall Rating: 9
if this were lost or stolen i'm pretty sure i'd get this same amp.
if not this particular model then another vox. i'm hooked on vox now.
i love the clean sounds i get from it, the small size, light weight,
and i REALLY like the way this amp looks too. very cool! i did quite
a bit of research trying to find the amp with the features i wanted,
and this is it. if i could change anything about it, it wouldn't have the overdrive channel and instead of gain and volume, just one control to adjust the level. i like simplicity. other than that, i'd
keep it the same. great amp, and less than $100! what a deal!

Submitted by jeremyg at 05/09/2002 12:03

Price Paid: US $80

Features: 8
I didn't end up buying one, so I dont exactly remember except to say it was very simple and very small. Has enough knobs to do it's job.

Sound Quality: 9
Played my G&L ASAT through it and got REALLY pleasant clean tones and some thin distortion I would never use anyway. SUPRISINGLY good clean sounds. I could not believe I was playing through an $80 amp! Yes, it sounded small... but it also sounded great. It was not meant to compete with a 4x12. It sounds good enough that I was trying to decide between this amp an a $300 all-tube Fender Pro Junior. I went for the real tubes in the Fender but was mighty impressed by this tiny amp.

Reliability: N/A
Does look kinda cheap, but otherwise I have no info on which to comment.

Customer Support: N/A
Probably more helpful than Fender.

Overall Rating: N/A
I have been playing for 15 years and I would recommend this amp to anyone just starting to play or looking for a tiny amp for picking on the porch or traveling. I was impressed enough to write a review for a product I didnt buy. Enough said. I might still buy one someday. For 80 bones... you can't go wrong. I think Vox makes the best small, affordable amps on the market with better build quality than Fender.

Submitted by Anonymous at 03/17/2002 13:26

Price Paid: 70 (eur) used

Features: 9
I don't know what year it was built, but it's pretty young I suppose... It has a lot of feature for a amp of this size, you can hook up a pedal for the boost. I bought it last week because of the many positive reviews right here; I don't regret it at all!!! It's ideal as practice amp, but it was used for a gig, a jamsession, and wow, it does the job without a moan! All the guitarist were surprised of it!!!

Sound Quality: 10
It was played with a Höfner from the 60-ties, and it sounded amazingly well (and loud!) all the guitarist at this jamsession looked at it and liked the looks, but

Reliability: 9
so far so good!

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 9
I have to get at least 2 more right now, because these people were very impressed by this little amp....

Submitted by diederick at 03/08/2002 02:02

Price Paid: US $79

Features: 7
Well. It sounds great, and what features do you expect for a 79$$$ amp.
the pathfinder 15 had a tremolo, but I was not into it, so I am happy they did not bother with it on this one.
the gain and overdrive sound really good, and the treble bass knobs work well and are not too harsh. so I think for the price you get plenty. Still they are minimal.

Sound Quality: 10
incredible. again the best sounding amp in this price range. wide range, and good clean sounds that break up a little bit with my telecasters lead pickup. and very loud but clear sounds.

Reliability: 10
I don't think I will have any problems with this amp. It is too simple. and I opened it up and it is laid out in a fixer friendly manner... nothing is in anythings way. and the chassi comes out easy. might be fun to modify one of these if you are into that sort of thing.

Customer Support: N/A
N/A

Overall Rating: 10
I have been playing for about ten years, I use fender guitars (telecaster mustang, coronado xii) and a danelectro tremolo pedal sometimes...
I think this amp will be perfect for rehersing with my new small band.
and I am excited to use it in the studio since it runs really quiet (except when in overdrive) and will make great clear recordings. If you want an amp you can carry to practice or the studio and not break your arm, and you want some great sounds with out toooo much volume, give it a try for 79$. Well worth the money.

Submitted by Jonthan Bennett at 02/05/2002 08:22

Price Paid: US $79.00

Features: 5
The Pathfinder 10 is a new addition to the Vox line, announced originally at the 2001 Summer NAMM, but, as of the date of this review, only now arriving in stores. It is a s/s amp rated at 10 watts with a 'custom designed' 6 1/2" speaker, which carries the 'Vox' logo. Panel controls are Gain, Gain Boost Switch, Treble, Bass, and Volume, plus a 1/4" Headphone/Line Out jack. Utilizing this jack mutes the internal speaker. No reverb, tremolo, or footswitch options are provided.

Sound Quality: 7
I already own a Vox Vavletronix AD120 and a Cambridge 30 Reverb Twin, so I ordered this more out of curiosity than a real 'need' for another amp, intending to use it as an easy carry-around (you can literally carry it with one finger) from room to room. The first guitar I plugged into it was my 'strat' single coil. The sound which resulted was pretty much what I expected from the amp... very clean and crisp, but not much in the way of 'body'. The distortion was... well... distorted (which is to say it sounded like a tiny solid state amp)! Ok... so I went in and got my semi-hollow humbucker guitar... plugged it in... and could not believe what I was hearing! The sound filled out and was so big and rich, it sounded VERY much like the Cambridge 30 Twin 'clean channel'... but, of course, at a lower volume level. The distortion and 'Gain Boost', while certainly not 'tube-like' (these words are refreshingly absent from any Vox literature about the Pathfinder 10, by the way!) was very usable. The volume that this little box generates is also quite impressive... being sufficient for low-level practices with a band, or even for gigging in a small room backing up an acoustic group or small jazz combo. Jazz players should love this amp, as it is inconspicuous and produces wonderful clean, mellow tones at a reasonable volume. ANYONE who is just taking up guitar would do well to make this their first amp, as the tone is satisfying enough to encourage practice and progression. It certainly does perform much better with humbucker pickups, so it gets two numbers here: Single Coils-5 Humbuckers-8

Reliability: 9
Not much there to go wrong!

Customer Support: N/A
N/A

Overall Rating: 7
My AD120 is a superb masterpiece with all the bells and whistles and everything I would ever need for gigging. My Cambridge 30 Reverb Twin is an excellent sounding utilitarian amp, easy to transport for rehearsals and light gigs. But... the Pathfinder 10 has a certain 'fun' factor to it that is hard to describe. It's kind of like being transported back to when I was learning to play, and played through any old thing that would convert electrical signals into sound. The primal simplicity of it is very appealing. But the Pathfinder 10 goes beyond that, and actually produces very usable tones! What started out as a curiosity will now get quite a lot of use, both in and out of the home! If you are just beginning to play, or need to supplement your collection of 80lb. amps with something a lot more portable and fun... try the Pathfinder 10... for $80 you can't go wrong!

Submitted by Mark McNeil at 01/22/2002 07:27