Vox AD30VT

mooshoepork

Hey everyone. I have played guitar for about 5 years, and am moving on from my terrible 15 Watt Peavey practice amp (finally). I was looking at the Vox AD30VT or the Roland Cube 30. I moved towards the Vox as I don't play metal. I mainly listen to Radiohead, Muse, My bloody valentine, red hot chili peppers, the vines, the strokes and classic rock.

Anyone have any experience on this amp? I played it today in a store, but it was pretty busy, and it's kinda hard to crank it.

If anyone knows of the cheapest place in Australia to buy it, It'd be appreciated! Allan's want 439, but I could easily get them to 400 I assume. To all the Americans, this will sound ridiculous. But I am afraid that is the cost of living in Australia :P Overpriced everything.

Thanks

Rotam

I heard a lot about these type of amps malfunctioning after a while. But thats word of mouth really.

I've personally played on both amps and I have to say, they are both great for the price (well actually, they are better than what I have now). I'd probably buy the Vox if you want the sound you are looking for. Is this just for practicing or rehearsals/gigs?

You might need something bigger than 30 watts if you want to play gigs with it.

Other members of this forum know way more than I do in terms of guitars and amps. But I will try to help.

mooshoepork

It will almost 100% be used for practicing, might mic it up to record. I will probably not be gigging. I might be playing with a group, but even that is unlikely. Gigging is a definite no.

I heard the cubes were better for metal, and vox for cleans, bluesy, rock etc...

Thanks for the help!

edit: Maybe the 50 watt will be better. I can still turn it down and get overdrive apparently. It also has the Celestion speaker which apparently is better. It'd be about 100 dollars more.

flatlinegraphics

ok, modelling amps use dsp modules to create the tone. what this means is that the vox or the cube30 can sound "like" another amp. how true to the originals the models are are up to debate.. but modern modeling is leaps and bounds above the older stuff.

these are both solid state modeling amps. so all distortion is done in the DSP engine. there is no such thing as overdriving a modeler. you may clip the inputs, but generally that just means garbage sound. the modelers can sort of simulate this in software, but to say you can turn down the amp and overdrive it is not really true. the higher priced model may have better quality parts and a better speaker, but not sure if it is a lot better (if you were gigging, i'd say get the better one, but for bedroom playing, the cheaper one should be fine).

as for metal vrs cleans... again, they are both modelers, and probably have a lot of the same models (tweed, marshall, metal, rectifier, etc). the vox probably pays more attention to the cleans, as vox amps are known for that sound. might want to take a look at the line6 stuff too. the new models are pretty damn good.

all in all, if at all possible, take a day, and your guitar, and head down to a shop and try them both in person. or find a store with a good return policy and abuse it.

catalyst

I have the AD30VT and it's fantastic. I don't play metal, so it has plenty of distortion/crunch/etc. for me. It's plenty loud, so if you gig I think it'd work great. I don't, so it's kinda overkill for me

The amp models are all great and the ability to save custom configs. is handy. I was going to get the 15w version but they were sold out and the 30 wasn't that much more expensive.

I was in the same position as you about 2 or 3 months ago, and I'm glad I went with the Vox. Let me know if you have any specific questions!

mooshoepork

Thanks for the replies . So a tube screamer would be pretty much pointless. I thought because it was a hybrid, they can be used and still sound pretty good. I'll probably pick up the Vox AD30VT with the 10 day return policy.

flatlinegraphics

the tube advertised in the vox is in a reactor circuit, if i remember correctly. it stands between the pre and power stages. on some of the modelers with a tube circuit, the tube is there more as a marketting tool than an actual tone stack.

but all else being equal, pick one up, play it for a few days, and see if you like it.

otherwise, you can pick up an epiphone valve junior for less than $150, which will work with a tubescreamer. their main downside is the lack of an eq stack, but with the cash saved, you can pick up a 5 or 10 band eq pedal and go to town. at around 5w, you can really push it into overdrive and not be kicked out of an apartment.

The_Glad_Hatter

I have the AD15VT and am very satisfied with it. I've been around different kinds of amps all my life, and as far as bang for your buck goes, those voxes are amazing. (i don't know if you've seen any reviews about it in any guitar magazines, but they were all pretty enthousiastic).

http://www.harmony-central.com/Guitar/Data/Vox/AD30VT_Combo-01.html Harmony Central offers A LOT of reviews on just about any piece of equipment. But be warned, many people on there get really anal about their equipment and can't distinguish between their preferences and what the product should offer.

It's really an all-round amp. I can get sounds which (to me) sound like BB King, SRV, AC/DC,... It even can get very metal-ish should you ever feel inclined to seriously rock out. Even the effects can be quite usefull and offer all the customisation options you'd expect. (i still don't know all the key combinations, but i just twist 'em untill i hear what i like)/

I use my 15 for indoor practice, and i've never ever gotten it up to 11.

mooshoepork

I had a read through, and most say they would not buy another if it was stolen, and that they'd look into a full valve amp. Does anyone know of anything for around the same price that would be suitable? 500-600 AUS max?

Glocjt

I used an AD50VT for a while, was quite satisfied with it. I've since switched to an AD120VTH (yay for used gear), and am really enjoying that, too, even if it's a tad overkill for my needs.

mooshoepork

hmm, I had a look around. I think the AD30VT will suit me as I won't need any of the extra stuff atm. A tube amp would be too loud for my purposes. Thanks guys