17 December 2008

VOX Valvetronix AD100VT

100 watts of power at my disposal with 2 x 12' celestion speakers through a metal grill. It's a hybrid valve + solid state amp. Your neighbors will hate you for getting this amp. Crank it up and this sucker can really be loud.Among the many amps that i have owned, this one is the most versatile in terms or built in pre amps and effects. It produces some very nice cleans and killer OD's. It has a little bit of everything for the different player at heart.


Pre Amps
01. Boutique Clean - modeled on: Dumble 100w head (clean channel). My favorite clean channel.
02. Black 2x12 - modeled after a Fender 'Blackface' Twin Reverb amp.
03. Tweed 4x10 - modeled on: 1959 Fender 4x10 Bassman. This preset is a must when i'm playing my Telecaster.
04. AC15 - modeled on: Channel 2 of a 1962 Vox AC15.
05. AC30TB - modeled on: Vox AC30 'Top-boost'.
06. UK '70s - modeled on: 1971 Marshall 50w Plexi Head
07. UK '80s - modeled on: 1983 100w Marshall JCM800 head.
8. UK Modern - modeled on: Marshall JCM2000 DSL100 head (High gain channel).
09. Nu-Metal - modeled on: 100w Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier head. Rectifier like tones.
10. US Hi-Gain - modeled on: Soldano SLO100 Head (hi-gain channel). Fat Distortion
11. Boutique OD - modeled on: Dumble Overdrive Special 100w head. Use this with a stratocaster and with some tweaking, You'll come close to getting some John Mayerish tones.

I got this at City Music at a promo price of $580+. That's cheap for a 100 watter with great pre amps and effects. The VOX foot switch can be bought separately which i find very useful for changing presets. I seriously think this amp has some good vibes to it. If you are looking for that vintage tone, This amp is definitely for you. The modern high gains can sound pretty grainy and cold. i would recommend stomp pedals for those kind of settings rather than the pre amps.


The amp comes with a built in tweakable noise gate and some effects as well. There's nothing too spectacular about the effects. 11 digital FX; auto wah, compressor, compressor + phaser, compressor + chorus, chorus + delay, chorus + reverb, flanger + reverb, tremolo + reverb, rotary + reverb, delay and reverb. I don't really care much about the FX's. The only ones i really use is the reverb and occasionally the delay. The ability to tweak the output voltage is great. That way, you can adjust the appropriate voltage needed to push the valves without busting your ear drums.

Pro's
  • Cheap for a 100 watter that has a name like VOX
  • Good looks
  • Nice vintage tones
  • Versatile for most genres of music
  • 11 pre amps
  • 11 FX's
  • Ability to add external speakers and cabs
  • Ability to adjust the voltage of the amp
  • Noise gate
Con's
  • Headphone option is no good. It dosent justify the tones and makes them sound cold and sterile
  • High gain on ceratin pre amps are too grainy
  • Damn heavy. Some built in wheels could come in handy for the travelling musician

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