AC30CH 30-watt Tube Head Review

Great amp.

I paired it with the VOX 2X12 handwired cabinet. It sounds great, and I'm glad it comes with the attenuator. It's LOUD. I was hoping the VOX magic would make me sound like George Harrison, but I still sound like me. Too bad.

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Not bad

Well built amp. Its good but not fantastic. The attenuator is almost worthless to me. The amp definitely sounds best at the full 30 Watts. The onboard reverb and tremelo sound good but too tame for me so I still use a reverb and tremelo pedal. For the price it"s a good head but if I could do it over I would buy the handwired version.

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Vox with Caveats

I've had this amp for about 8 months and have mixed feelings. It's great 'dimed' and with the right cabinet it sounds rich and interesting. That being said, I got the head to play with different cabinets in different locations and there is a massive tonal variance depending on the cabinet. When you get a good match, this is an awesome amp but a poorly matched cabinet will yield… read more less than stellar results. My prime sound for this amp, when it's not dimed, is slightly overdriven while using the gtr volume to round out the tone. It's very hard to get a pure clean sound at decent volume due to the master volume. But it goes from a light colored crunch to ripping with finesse. There are some weird design choices. The effects loop is great but not very useful with no foot switch as using the loop seriously alters the tone of the amp. The attenuator is nice but it only sounds good at 30W in my view. The attenuator has some smarts and won't let you blow up the amp. I tried a cabinet that had mismarked impedance and thought I had killed the attentuator. Happily, when I fixed the impedance setup the attenuator worked fine. Depending on the cabinet the normal channel can be utterly useless as it's very dark and muddy. I tried to use both with an AB-Y switch but it only works decently on certain cabinets. I'm parked on the top boost. The tremolo isn't an old Fender but it's still pretty useful and fun. The reverb tone control has minimal value but definitely can add color. It's heavy and bulky but you get a massive spring reverb tank that really sounds good. I bought this to get a VOX sound but based on the finicky nature of cabinets I probably would have been better off with an AC30 combo. At some point I'll get the actual VOX cabinet but I found a combination I can live with for the time being. I have a Deluxe Reverb 65 reissue and have been spending some time comparing with the AB-Y switch. The VOX is WAY chunkier and a lot more fun without pedals. The DRRI stays clean for a long time and can be colored easily with pedals at any volume. If you can crank this AC30CH or enjoy slight reactive crunch at lower volumes the VOX is awesome! Rich, harmonics, reactive loud, crunchy fun. If you are stuck at lower volumes or want a really loud clean sound, there are other options.

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Great amp!

I've always wanted an AC30, and I must say I'm very happy with this amp. It sounds fantastic on both channels and sounds great with either my SG or my Strat. It has no problem getting that "Vox chime" and can get some surprisingly heavy tones too. It is a very loud amp, but thanks to the built in attenuator you can still get great tones at a more home friendly volume. If… read more you are a fan of the Vox sound don't hesitate to get one of these amps. You won't be disappointed.

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VOX AC 30 head

Very nice amp. I have a few and this rates up there with the best. Solid build and a nice predictable solid sound. Reverb and trem are both very usable.3W setting works well. It will disappoint if you start on 30W and drop to 3W. But start the evening on 3W and it sounds just fine! I typically run a pretty clean sound and use pedals to grit it up, however, the gain can be driven… read more to get a good overdrive sound at reasonable levels.I like amps with minimal knobs for ease of use, but there are times when you need to shape the sound of your guitar and this amp does that easily and effectively.Tolex, beading, fit n finish and knob feel etc is all very good. Wish the crappy gold logo was made of something a bit nicer!

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