Vox Pathfinder 15R

Price Paid: US $120

Features: 9
I purchased this amp new in 2004. This amp is quite versatile in its range of sounds. I like to play many styles of music, the clean with tremolo gives a good, classic jazz guitar sound, but can really rock when the boost is kicked on. The optional vfs-2 footswitch switches both boost on/off, and tremolo on/off. without the footswitch you can only turn the trem. on or off by turning up or down the depth knob. has a headphone jack, line out for direct recording, and an extension speaker jack. I play in a small bedroom, and this thing has more than enough power for any basement or garage. solid state, but a very warm sound, and real spring reverb. there is no good reason not to buy the model with reverb, unless you do not like reverb.

Sound Quality: 10
I have a squier cyclone, and play everything from dropped-d doom riffs to sparkly jazz improvisation. slightly noisier with single coil activated, with just the bridge humbucker, it is quiet. It has quite a bit of crunch in boost, and if you add an external pedal, you can get some wild distortion and controllable feedback.

Reliability: 9
Have not owned it long,but the construction is very solid.

Customer Support: 9
Bought this amp as a floor model, so it did not have the manual, but I downloaded one for free from the vox website, nothat you need a manual, this amp is simple to use, well labeled, but a helpful website, with many replacement parts available.

Overall Rating: 10
I have been playing for a few years, and it is pretty much for fun, I play alone, and do not gig. I wanted an inexspensive amp, and if you like tube sound, thick reverb, and the added pulse of tremolo, you can not beat this amp. I am speaking to those looking for entry level gear, and not a lot of money- you will probably not do better.

Submitted by Anonymous at 11/26/2004 07:48

Price Paid: 150 (euro)

Features: 9
featuring gain volume 2band eq tremelo (depth and speed) and verb
speaker out and headphone out muting the 8" buldogspeaker, line out not muting the speaker

Sound Quality: 10
I recently got the fender lite ash strat and previously played a squiertele. Normally I play a 100watts peavey who's clean channel is good to rock with some (all dan electro) pedals. This one has a lot of possibilities that are usable. The peavey's "leadchannel" is useless p.e.
Since out drummer plays funky without having to go over 120db the 15watts transistors are enough to fill the 4x4 meter rehearsal space. I like it with a bit of belly
The clean sound is really clean and humless, if you turn up the gain and press the boostswitch you get a range of crunchy sounds which are rich compared to my previous vacuumcleaner-sounding 100watts.

Reliability: 9
For a gig I'd probably root the speaker-out to something. Have to trie things.
It looks well and solid built

Customer Support: N/A
na

Overall Rating: 10
Paid more and waited weeks for it, but in all this part of the country it was the fastest way to get it. It will probably suit me for a while allthough it is so small. The fun thing is I can go rehearsing b bus again if i want to

Submitted by PT at 11/12/2004 15:02

Price Paid: US $95.00 used

Features: 10
Mine was made around 2000, had it for 4 years and I have to concur with most of the reviewers here. This is the best fucking practice amp money can buy. So what - it don't have a middle control, it is still VERY versatile and you can play anything from country to hard rock with it as it stands, with the footswitch you can buy for it (well worth the $30.00), or you can hook an effects pedal up to it and get AWESOME distortion. This amp is fucking incredible. It is loud enough to do "small" gigs with. For example, my wife plays the keyboards, and sometimes during the bands break, her and I will do some of the stuff we write, and I will use this little VOX. If you like the classic rock, rockabilly, blues or country, then this amp is awesome. Not a heavy metal amp but a good effects pedal will handle that. Reverb and tremelo are great.

Sound Quality: 10
I have a Fender made in Mexico Standard Telecaster and a Fender also made in Mexico Nashville Power Tele. This amp suits my style very well, which is usually a blues rock/classic rock sound. You can get great Hendrix and Zeppelin tones from this amp and also Stones, Beatles and of course Clapton and Dire Straits. For country, the clean channel is beautiful and twangy. Gets a great Queen sound too. Not noisy at all. Clean channel will distort into a very nice crunch at higher volumes, but isn't that what it's supposed to do? With an effects pedal the distortion is brutal, especially with a ZOOM 606. I don't like that kind of music though, I personally like the boost channel on this amp, which is more like Zeppelin, Hendrix or Townsend. I tell ya folks, if you are into 60's and 70's classic rock (not fucking pop) then this amp is unbeatable. By the way, I tried one of those new Valvetronix AD15's against this Pathfinder. The Valvetronix sucks in comparison. The Pathfinder sounds more like a tube amp than it the valvetronix does.

Reliability: 10
Tough as hell. It's been dropped, kicked, rolled down the stairs and even fell out of the back of my pickup truck (going slow of course) and other than some nicks and scratches - no change in tone at all. It has never broken down.

Customer Support: 10
Never dealt with the company, and I bought this in a Pawn Shop. The lady at the Pawn Shop was nice though so I will give them a 10 too.

Overall Rating: 10
Been playing long as I can remember. Have a few acoustics other than what is mentioned above. I love this amp and would definitely get another one, but I ain't gonna lose it or let anyone steal it. Well, I also have a Fender Frontman 25R, a Peavey Envoy, a Marshall MG15RCD and at the practice level this amp blows them all away. I gig with a VOX AC 30 (which I don't own, but is provided at the club we gig at).

Submitted by Karl at 11/10/2004 22:02

Price Paid: US $119.00

Features: N/A
I think mine was probably made in 2002 or 2003. The amp is very versatile in many respects. It is good the British Crunchy sounding overdrive as you would get from the Rolling Stones or an American Crunch sound like you would get from someone like Steve Earle, as well as Classic Rock, Beatles, Rockabilly and awesome for country music. It is NOT good for heavy metal. My music style varies. I write my own stuff which would be more oriented towards electric folk or country music with heavier distortion which is what I guess they call alternative country these days. I also play a lot of classic rock, blues, rockabilly, hard rock and have my metal moods. This amp does very well on all these styles of music except heavy metal. The Marshall is much better for heavy metal or hard rock in my opinion. I bought this amp to go along with my Marshall MG15RCD, which between the two gives me every sound I wish to make. Since this does not have a separate volume control for the overdrive and clean channels, I am going to assume it is single channel. It has a push button "boost" switch, which really gives you that old British Invasion Crunch, much like early Stones. It only has treble and bass controls but that doesn't trouble me one bit. It has an awesome tremelo as well as reverb. It does have a headphone jack but I don't believe it is footswitchable. It has all the features I need for practicing at home, I guess my only wish is that I could find an amp that would give me everytype of sound I want without having to use an effects pedal. I use this amp strictly for home practice as I do have a Marshall AVT 100 and a VOX AC30 for gigs. It has MORE than enough power for home practice, this mother fucker is loud, and it would definitely work in a gig situation because it is MUCH louder than the Marshall MG15 and doesn't lose it's sound integrity. Be warned it is indeed loud enough to get your neighbors calling the cops and that's the voice of experience speaking. It is solid state, but it sounds like a tube amp. I will rate the amp for what it is intended to be which in my opinion is a 10, but don't compare that to a VOX AC30.

Sound Quality: 10
I have four guitars. I have a Yamaha Studio Pro, which is a Les Paul Copy which was so good, I got rid of my Gibson Les Paul and kept the Yamaha. I have a Squier Standard Strat, that has been souped up a bit with Texas Special Pickups and since that change is a kick ass mother fucker. I also have an SX SST 57, which is a strat style guitar based off the Fender 57 Strat, which in my opinion sounds as good as the real thing at a fraction of the price. I also have a no name, Rockstar Telecaster copy, which has been altered to string through body and I replaced the single coil at the neck with a Duncan Destroyer Humbucker and it is also kick ass now (it sucked when I bought it, but it only costed me 50 bucks). I use this VOX amp when I have my classic rock, beatles, stones, yardbirds, rockabilly and pure country moods, which are frequent. I have had VOX Amps for 40 years and they are all very quiet, haven't seen an exception. The clean channel is very clean and you can set it for bright and twangy for country or warm for soft rock type stuff. Turn the gain up without the boost switch and you get a very nice "crunch" similar to the Stones, Steve Earle and Springsteen. It has a very good variety of sounds, unless in my opinion you are trying to get that heavy metal sound. You can get it on this amp, but you will need a pedal for it. Sometimes a pedal is a hassle though and personally I like the boost sound distortion of this amp, reminds me of the old "Who" stuff. For metal, if that is solely what you are into, go for the Marshall. The clean channel does NOT distort, even at full volume unless you crank the gain up. The distortion is Vintage distortion. Cream, Hendrix, even Zeppelin stuff you can do fine with it. Don't expect Metallica, Iron Maiden or Sabbath from this amp. Great amp for Queen, Brian May stuff, especially on a strat or telecaster. This is an awesome little fucking amp and the sound is pure classic VOX. I can't really tell the difference between it and my AC30 except of course for volume.

Reliability: 10
It is built like a tank. Have had many VOX amps and never had one break down on me. It isn't what I use to gig with but for practice, this amp will suit most everyone's needs. Nothing to change, burn out or break as it is solid state. I've played the shit out of this for over six months and it still kicks ass and it has been knocked about a bit too.

Customer Support: 10
Never had to deal with VOX. I bought the amp from music 123 and have dealt with them for several years, and they aim to please.

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing for 40 years. I have the gear I mentioned above, plus a bunch of acoustics and acoustic electrics. I would get another one if it were lost or stolen, but that ain't likely. I ain't gonna lose it, and I have two rotweillers that love to eat people. I compared this to all the other amps in it's price range. Crates, Fenders and Peavey's are no match for it in a 15 watter. The Marshall MG15RCD is equal. I chose this one because between it and the Marshall I can get any sound I want.

Submitted by James at 10/25/2004 19:16

Price Paid: NZ$305 (New Zealand (Approx US$129))

Features: 9
Look at the website for these details or above at the other reviews for the specs. Personally I think you get a lot on this amp for the low $$$ laid out. I bought amps costing three times as much that don't have the tremelo...sure they may have a middle eq knob, but I can tell you which I'd rather have!!

Also, the thing looks fantastic, nice and old school!! She's got character.

Sound Quality: 10
WHAT?
I'm using and Epi Les Paul with Seymour Duncan pickups jazz at front / medium gain bridge pickups. And the Vox Pathfinder 15r of course. I play soft rock / ballad stuff / bluesy stuff.

WHY?
I've previously had a Marshall AVT150, a Fender Stage 112 and a small peavy 'Rage'. A few years ago I ditched all my amp gear as I wasn't using it and bought a dirt bike instead. Jee wilikers, those things are fun. Anyhoo - got tired of not being able to jam my epi in the bedroom, so thought about getting a small amp, and figured I could just mic it up if I go on stage.
I purchased the Vox based soley on the reviews on this website and........I'm NOT dissapointed! YES, this is a really nice sound...read on....

SOUND - CLEAN
At first, you plug in and think "It's not bad at all", then, you fiddle with some knobs, and you think "It's actually a little bit vintage sounding or something - I really quite like this..", then, you play some more, fiddle around a bit more with the settings, and by the end of half an hour, you can't believe the mint clean tone that's clean when you want it to be, breaking up perfectly when you want it to, all coming from this ridiculously cheap amp!! And the tremelo - heaven I tell you! Believe the reviews, the clean is really impressive for an amp this size. And....it just get's better the louder you go!! I love it! In fact, I think I prefer the clean to my AVT150 I had. More vintage sounding, more character. You'll need to play with the settings depending on your guitar, but spend the time, it's worth it.

SOUND - OVERDRIVE
Haven't played a huge amount yet on OD but can vouch for the fact that it's a nice overdrive sound, but isn't hardcore. PRETTY darn good though given the speaker size, again more vintage rock sound, I've heard others say it's got a hendrix / queen sound and I'd agree. It's not a tube marshall though, so if you're into that big grunty tone, might not be the one for you (although haven't tried plugging into a cab as other have suggested). Overall quite acceptable though.

VOLUME
This thing is LOUD. It will mic up well and act as a stage monitor perfectly. Why spend more $$ on a bigger amp that a hassle to lug around??

Reliability: N/A
No probs yet. Haven't had it long!

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't had a problem so no need to call them!

Overall Rating: 10
I've been playing around 10 years. Dig this little amp, would highly recommend it to others as a great practice or even small gig amp.

It's rare I feel like I've got a bargain, with this I feel I have! It's just too good sounding for the $$. VERYY HAPPY CUSTOMER HERE.

Submitted by Anonymous at 10/11/2004 21:11

Price Paid: US $1219

Features: 10
I bought this new after trying out a used Pathfinder Mini-stack in a loacl music store. The tremelo and reverb features are what made me want to try out the amp. The sound of this little solid state amp rivals the classic tube amps. Trust me. I know.

Sound Quality: 10
I'm plugging a stock Stratocaster in to the Pathfinder and setting the Volume knob all the way up then using the Gain to adjust the output. It starts out clean and by the time you've turned it up 3/4's of the way it sounds ridiculously amazing. I'm not using the Boost function. I use an old double footswitch (from a Fender Deluxe Reverb)
to control the Tremelo on/off. I can plug this into an extension cab, but the little Vox speaker sounds pretty good. The Tremelo and Reverb sound great for such a little amp, but surfers will not catch the big one on this little dude.

Reliability: N/A
An amp this good must have an application outside the home somewhere, but I am using this for making recordings.

Customer Support: N/A
I registered the warranty after I bought it.

Overall Rating: 10
I'm an old timer and over the years have owned and used the classic amps that young guys slobber over. I currently have a Fender Pro Reverb, a Deluxe Reverb and a Princeton. In my opinion this Vox Pathfinder 15R sounds as good as any old Deluxe Reverb just not as loud. I would never have believed that a solid state amp could sound this good.

Submitted by Hank at 10/11/2004 08:24

Price Paid: US $119.00

Features: 9
Amply covered previously (no pun intended there!)

Sound Quality: 10
I use a stock Strat made in 1972. I play with a rock/jazz group which does primarily small-club venues. I agree that the gain "boost" switch kicks in a sound that's a little harsh for my purposes, and I don't use it. I get a nice sound, however, by blending the Volume knob with the primary Gain knob, which gives me a nice tube-like tone. I'm running the external speaker jack out to an old Vox Cambridge cabinet which one of my band-mates is loaning me. The "combo" amplifier portion of the Cambridge has been removed, leaving only this nice 2 x 10" lightweight cabinet, and my buddy has wired an input jack into the speakers (Celestions). It seems very compatible with the Pathfinder. I also use a Digitech RP-50 processor, into which I have programmed three main settings: clean; mild distortion; and heavy distortion.

Reliability: 10
I'm playing about two or three gigs per month, and it has worked consistently well.

Customer Support: N/A
Haven't needed it yet.

Overall Rating: 10
This review further supplements a couple of earlier reviews I had done on the Pathfinder. Primary purpose of this review is to re-emphasize that, at least with the particular setup I've applied to it, this is one awesome little amp. Just played in a crowded small club over the weekend, and it's amazing how relatively little I have to turn up the Volume and Gain knobs (Volume at high noon, gain at 10 o'clock). I'm definitely NOT stressing the amp out at all! It is really getting the job done for me. I can see where that might not be the case if I was using the amp without the extension cabinet, but when you plug it into the extension-- WOW !! It really pushes it nicely!

Submitted by Bill Sheehan at 10/04/2004 09:46

Price Paid: US $120

Features: 8
Reverb is "okay" but for the price it's very good. Don't use the gain button. It's way too harsh and brittle sounding. If you need a lot of distortion get a good pedal (Tube Screamer, etc.)

Sound Quality: 10
I've used this to rehearse with my band for the last 6 months using a Marshall 2X12 cab extension. We play classic rock, blues, and some newer stuff. This amp is unbelievable. I have a Mesa Maverick that I use for gigs but I would not hesitate to use this with an extension cabinet for small rooms. It is simply stunning. Put a few pedals on it and it can do almost anything (Well, not metal but then you should be using a Line6 anyway). What a bargain! If you can't afford a Mesa or Fender tube you cannot go wrong. Get this amp, a used 2X12 and you will be amazed.

Reliability: 9
6 months of getting beat up at our rehearsal space and not one hiccup. It's a little tank.

Customer Support: N/A
Dunno.

Overall Rating: 9
I've played just about every amp under $2000. Obviously, this won't replace your Twin or Matchless but for around $100 it is amazing. Again, hook it up with a decent extension (I prefer a 2X12) and it will humble your drummer - I don't care HOW loud he is. I'd also recommend a good distortion pedal as the gain button is pretty harsh. I have not played any amp under $800 - $1000 that could compare to this one with my Marshall cab ($250/used) and Tube Screamer ($50/used). For $400 the total package compares close to my $1600 Mesa. And it weighs less than my ES335 and fits on the front seat of my car!! Now THAT's a bargain.

Submitted by Mike in Downingtown at 10/03/2004 19:05

Price Paid: US $120.00

Features: 6
Pathfinder has reverb, tremolo, gain knob and gain boost button.
The reverb works really well I will add. Enough power for a small room I suppose. Looks are a major plus. SOund is a major let down.

Sound Quality: 2
Sounds like a blown out 4" Hyundai car speaker at high gain settings. Using this thing with a Telecaster custom with Humbuckers. Sounds is loud but does not sound anything like a tube amp or a VOX. The distorted channel is weak. It sounds like someone screaming in a 5"x5" cardboard box. I bought it thinking I could record with it. WRONG. It is Ok for standard practice. Don't think you will get decent sound out of 15watts with an open back design. I learned my lesson. If you want to record or play at decent volume without the "cardboard box" syndrome, I say buy a tube amp or an AVT Marshall. In my opinion the smallest thing you should consider is 30 watts of tube power. Turn the gain up and distort at any volume;loud or soft. Everyone says 10 watts or 15 watts for bedroom and recording. No way. As long as the amp has a gain control or get a distortion pedal. These amps under $200.00 just don't sound like power at all. They sound like blown out 4" Hyundai car speakers.

Reliability: 7
Never broke on me.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with VOX

Overall Rating: 4
It looks cool. It doesn't sound that impressive to me though. I would suggest a tube amp or a tube preamp solid state amp. You won't regret it. Unfortunately VOX doesn't make an affordable tube amp without a lot of cheesy digital modeling so I using Marshall now.

Submitted by Fred Riley at 09/30/2004 19:53

Price Paid: US $120

Features: 10
Very sharp and retro looking little amp. Looks like it should have some tubes in it. Very light, but it doesn't vibrate at high volume. The reverb is very good. The tremelo is a bonus. 8in. speaker sounds great. All the controls you need on top of the amp. The inputs on the back of the amp hang upside down, which seems to defy gravity. Haven't used any of them yet.

Sound Quality: 8
This is definitely a British-voiced amp, which is something new for me since I've always used Fenders. However, I grew up on British invasion before I became a Blues freak. This little wonder emulates that Voxy chime and Hiwatt crunch, and reasonably replicates the tones of the Beatles, the Kinks, the Stones and even early Pink Floyd. Tweak the gain and jam out on "Ticket To Ride", "You Really Got Me", "Stray Cat Blues" or "Astronomy Domine". It's fun, it's retro & it's cool! Mind you, this amp replicates these sounds. There's no way it sounds just as good as those $3000 amps for $120, but it's fun & it's satisfying. Push in the boost switch and turn up the gain for some sludgy Marshallesqe ACDC & semi- Sabbath sounds. The 15 R does Vox better than Marshall sounds, but I can't stand ACDC & Black Sabbath anyway. As I stated, I'm primarily a blues-rock fan for the last 30 years or so, used to Fender amps. This is where this amp seemed to be lacking initially. I use a home-made strat with Lace Sensor golds and a Lace Chromedome bridge pickup, and a Squire Fat Strat with a DiMarzio "Humbucker from Hell" in the bridge. I use the Fat Strat for more crunchy sounds, and I must say that the "Humbucker from Hell" sounds gorgeous through this amp clean. I can't beleive how rich & chimey it sounds. When I first got this amp, I was really digging all the clean & semi-crunchy tones, but it didn't sound very Fendery & I couldn't get sustaining bluesy leads out of it. So, I ran my Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive into it & 'Wow!" it turned into a warm singing blues machine. It made my heart melt. With the Sparkle Drive it sounds somewhat Fenderish. It doesn't nail some of the classic Fender tones exactly, but it sounds better in some ways. Warm, buttery & very bluesy. I jam the Blues with great satisfation on the 15 R & Sparkle Drive combo. I can't stop sometimes. Of course a Sparkle Drive costs as much as the amp but other TS-9 type pedals would probably do the trick. Ican't wait to get my hands on a good fuzz pedal to fully utlize the aformentioned '60s sounds of this beautiful little beast. This amp can get very, very loud for it's size & the 8 in. speaker handles the volume quite well. It also sounds great at whisper quiet volume late at night, which makes me happy. It is a practice amp & it shouldn't be volume dependent like so many of those noisy Fender solid states. The speaker sounds amazingly good & I believe it' a big factor in the sound of this killer amp. The reverb is also great for the price. In conclusion, I believe the 15 R sounds great for chording - clean & semi-crunchy - but lacks the sustain on it's own for solos. However, when you use your favorite stomp box, it sounds brilliant. It doesn't sound as good as a tube amp but it sounds much better than all other solid state amps at & above this price range. Very warm & very tone ful.

Reliability: 10
It is very solid, runs quietly ands seems very reliable.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 10
The Pathinder 15 R is an incredible bargain for the price! It looks great, sounds great, and suits my needs perfectly. Vox/Kork deserves accolades for the design & constuction of this amp. The best solid stae amp I had previous to this one was a Fender Sidekck 25 R (see my review at HC). It was great, but Fender quit making it & replaced it with crappy-sounding models. Let's hope Vox doesn't make the same mistake! I'm strictly an amatuer guitarist who jams out in my living room just for fun. I recently sold off my Fender Super 60 tube amp because it was too loud, too heavy & too volume-dependent for my purposes. It only sounded really sweet at high vlolume & lost it's tone if I turned it down real low. I got on HC and checked out the reviews, and I decided to try the Pathfinder. I miss the extra sustain & harmonics that those cooking tubes in the Super 60 could achieve but the Vox sounds good enough that I'm not depessed over it. This little Vox is the perfect practice amp & I wouldn't hesitate to take it to a jam session. At 18 lb.s, you can carry it anywhere. Some folks say they gig with it. If I had a band, I'd definitely get a Dr.Z Maz 38 to blow poeple away with superb tone. I've heard Buddy Whittington of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers playing through the Maz 38 live & it souns so fabulous, it almost makes you come! The Maz 38 is my dream amp but I'm about $1600 short on that one, so, for now, I'll stick with my Pathfinder 15 R. Much thanks to the other revierers here for leading me to this gem.

Submitted by Rick Devore at 09/18/2004 23:07