vox new handwired amps

[Gary mac]

Hi all hope everyone is well as its been a long time since i posted here but as i have more time on my hands now here goes lol .

I got an email from vox and due to the popularity of the vox ac15htv and so on so they have done it again with these what do you think ......

www.voxamps.com/uk/Handwired/

all the best
Gary mac

[asimmd]

Hi Gary

They all look very nice but there's not an EF86 anywhere?
Maybe they don't think it's needed anymore.

I have a Vox Heritage Handwired,which does have the EF86 channel,so I wonder what the pricing of these will be.

Nice to hear from you

Alan

[grip]

Hi Gary,

It would be nice if they gave a ballpark figure on the price and some soundclips.

Quote from the advert....
".....There may never have been an amp boasting such a lofty and pure sound in the entire history of VOX. The VOX Hand-Wired Series relies on the painstaking technique of turret board hand-wiring – a method requiring a high level of skill and craftsmanship – is used, resulting in wiring that's beautiful in its artistry, ensuring an efficient signal path with minimal loss and no restriction in amplitude....."

Is this jargon for "we've reduced the cost of wire.


;D


Kind regards,


Chris

[Gary mac]

Hi guys i dont know what the ball park price will be probably about the same as the heritage series was and no doubt they will have a guitar player trying these out somewhere down the line .

What i dont get is why they dont just make them the way they did in the 60's (i would have preferred my heritage to have had the later cabinet) when vox ruled the world !!! instead of wannabe clones of what they were/are famous for .

And as far as im concerned an ac15 just isnt the same without the ef86 valve when will vox get things right

regards
Gary

[dakwah]

also the sound clips will never be of the Shadows.

Stan

[Tone]

Hi

I have a hand wired Heritage AC15 and I love the sound. I did have problems with it, though, which were sorted out by our own Amanda and she was rather scathing about the state of the wiring. I think most of us have the perception that "hand wired" is the bees knees (the marketing boys have done their job) but that doesn't mean to say that quality is 100% guaranteed!

As regards the EF86 channel, I've found that the same sound can be obtained from the Top Boost channel with careful adjustment of the bass, treble and cut controls so perhaps the new amps can do the business for Shads sounds.

Cheers.

Tony

[Gary mac]

Hi tone
I have a ac15 heritage and yes quality control was a joke as i had to change my amp 6 times before i got one that worked ok .

Guess what the one i got is now playing up and its out of warranty and after speaking to amanda came to the conclusion that its the rectifier valve that needs replaceing but if that dosent do the trick then i have to send the amp of to her .

Good on you amanda where would we be without her help !!!!

Tone usually handwired is the bees knees but depends on who builds the amp and what quality control is involved charlies pinnacle amps for talk sake are out of this world (i know i used to own one) and the quality is second to none .

From what i hear so are the jmi amps vox need to take a leaf from them as i think people just want the same type of vox amps they could get back in the day at a reasonable price but hey i could be wrong
As to myself if i was buying another amp i would go for the jmi as price wise there wasnt much difference when i bought my ac15 heritage ......

regards
Gary

[stratomaster]

Advertising a JMI VOX amplifier as "Hand wired" is a red herring.

Of course it has to be wired up by hand, there's no other way.!!

As a teenager in the '60s I visited the JMI VOX factory in Kent, which was heaving with crafts-people including the ladies who soldered together the wired circuits.

James.

EDIT: Even the last AC30 wired up by Mable on a Friday afternoon as she was thinking about the weekend, would have been perfect ;D

[didier]

Sept 4, 2010 1:21:53 GMT stratomaster said:

Of course it has to be wired up by hand, there's no other way.!!

Unless if it's wired on a printed circuit !

Didier

[stratomaster]

Sept 4, 2010 8:44:36 GMT didier said:

Sept 4, 2010 1:21:53 GMT stratomaster said:

Of course it has to be wired up by hand, there's no other way.!!

Unless if it's wired on a printed circuit !

Didier

I took it for granted that people would assume I was referring to a genuine 60's AC30 or a modern faithful reproduction of a '60s AC30.

These do not have printed circuits



I wouldn't want to dip that in a bath of molten solder ;D

[keithinalps]

Have swapped my AC15 H1TV+£'s for a JMI 30/6 TB Shads 50th, could not get 'The Sound' with the Vox

[asimmd]

Hi Tony

I also have a Heritage AC15 and I have heard that the the EF86 sound can be produced by the Top Boost side of the amp,although I am stil trying to get near it.

Alan

[Gary mac]

Hi stratomaster
I guessed that you were referring to a 60's model .

Keithinalps i get a great early sound with my heritage so much so i sold my pinnacle and kept the vox but wouldnt mind owning a jmi better build quality .....

I think that when it comes to the early sound everyone hears it differently

Regards
Gary

[rogerbayliss]

I got the Heritage AC30H2L and overall its worked fine with the right sounds. Did have to change the rectifier vales and power output valves this year. The fuse blew when the rectifier went. There have been problems with JMI amps too in the past I heard. The wiring in the Heritage and the New Vox range looks pretty much the same. Amanda stated the mains input voltage was a little on the high side on the Heritage range and contacted Vox about their spec. The other problem on the Heritage was the fuses were at the back of the chassis with the power tubes and rectifier and to change them you have to get the chassis right out to access. To date though I am happy with mine and it gets regular use weekly. The new amp of course does not have the ef86 channel but I too have got a similar sound from the top boost by setting the Bass and Treble to zero and cranking it a bit more and using a bit of EQ to cut the bottom end a bit more. The new amps have a switch for Hot/Cool on the Top Boost to drive the 12AX7's harder or cooler so maybe they will imitate an ef86 when in hot mode with the bass and treble off as stated. I too wish that the quality would improve in the amps off various manufacturers because they ask sometimes silly money for them and they really should provide the goods to match the price ... nuffsaid..

[Gary mac]

Hi Roger
Good to hear from you i totally agree with you about manufacturers and silly prices im happy with my vox too i think my rectifier valve has gone as my fuse keeps blowing as well .

I did get to use the AC30H2L in the studio for some of the recordings i have in the soundfiles section here and liked it very much but i preferred the ac15 miked up through the pa sounds awesome .

Regards
Gary

[stratomaster]

It's a good thing that the original VOX amps had valve mains rectifiers.
My very first 15watt amp had a selenium rectifier that went AWOL when rehearsing in a very confined space.

Imagine a St. Bernard dog farting after a meal of cabbage and sprouts ;D

[rogerbayliss]

Gary that's the most likely cause if fuse is blowing I tried a couple of fuses and kept blowing on switch on and a new recifier sorted it. I think it's best to turn them off before switching from Triode to Pentode mode too .. best to turn them off and wait 20-30 secs then change the mode and switch back on. It could also be down to a power valve though .. when we had mine go last time the faulty valve was obvious and was glowing red across the plates I think so was easy to ID ... I think switching on and off to much can be a problem I usually turn mine on and leave it with the volume turned down till next time I play through it at the clubs and touch wood with the new power and rectifier valves in it's been fine since ... lol

[Gary mac]

Hi Roger
I have just bought a mullard ef86 valve and a mullard ez81 and will replace the rest with mullards might as well go the whole hog and keep the rest as spares (apart from the one thats not working lol ) .

Amanda was kind enough to give me that info and from the way you're self and Amanda are talking thats what the problem is as to the triode switches etc i always switched of the amp and waited 10-15 mins then switched back on .

I think its great that yourself , amanda and of course charlie are all here to help us and it is very much appreciated but most if not all of the members here ....

Best regards
Gary

[Gary mac]

Hi guys i have managed to get a sound clip comparison on the amps although i think the new is on half power (so the guy says ) .

sounds good
cheers
Gary