Please recommend: Modern, high-gain version of a Vox AC30

[jakeru19]

Hi everyone, long-time lurker, first-time poster.

I'm soliciting recommendations for an amp that sounds like a cranked AC30, but perhaps a touch more modern and with more gain available. I already have several hot-rodded Marshall-type amps, but to my ears, the Vox-style distortion offers something unique and different... chimier, grittier and with lots of treble. If I may make a crazy analogy, if I am to compare them to chainsaws, it sounds like the Vox has smaller teeth spaced closer together and the Marshall has larger teeth spaced further apart. So far, I am looking at the Victory VC35 copper, and the Bad Cat Hot Cat and Lynx. Anything else I should consider? Thanks so much.

 

[braintheory]

I am a big vox fan (I have a ‘62 AC30 non-top boost and ‘63 AC30 Top boost). I’ve tried them all when it comes to modern and boutique vox style amps and honestly none of them hold a candle to a real deal ‘60’s copper panel vox. I agree the Vox definitely have that chime they’re known for, but I consider their overdrive to be smoother/less gritty than Marshall’s, but maybe more glassy in a way. That being said, my favorite recent made vox inspired amp I’ve tried was probably the Tex EF86 I used to own. Imagine something kinda like a vox (maybe a hint of Marshall there too) but a bit more gain, thoatier, more growl, and darker. My second favorite recent Vox type amp was maybe the Savage Schatten (didn’t like the Savage Glas as much). The Bad Cat’s would definitely be more modern and heavy if that’s what you’re looking for, but imo not as high quality tone. The Tex’s and Savage’s are still very vintage voiced

The Xits are also quite sought after, but haven’t tried one. Actually, also the Komet’s are worth considering. Those sounded awesome. They’re inspired more by Trainwreck, but I have a feeling they’ll still be great for what you’re describing

EDIT: Actually, what may be even better is to just get a real vintage vox like mine and install the new Hot Mod in it. They’re made for Marshall’s but can also work in Vox’s. I just got mine. Will give it a try later

For reference, I’ve tried Divided By 13’s, Top Hat’s, Matchless’s, Bruno’s, Sommatone’s, Reissue Vox’s, Bad Cat’s, Morgan’s, Star’s, and Todd Sharp. They almost all sucked compared to a real vintage vox Copperpanel. For my own selfish interest I wish those others didn’t exist so that I wouldn’t have wasted so much time and money trying and also owning some of them just to realize later how much better the old Vox’s really are. I’ve had the same experience with respect to Marshall’s and Fenders

 

[RaceU4her]

i could be wrong but i always thought Matchless were more in the vox realm

 

[dirtyfunkg]

Haven't played it but have heard that the Fryette Memphis is along the line of what you're looking for.

 

[cardinal]

I have an AC30HW60 that I love.

You should really check out the Morgan Dual 40. I had one and it was like the AC30 but tighter and more gain. IMHO the Power Scaling on that amp didn't sound great. Installing a normal master volume was easy and sounded very good. The circuit looked just like a Vox, so I'm assuming the bulk of the difference was the very modern and huge Mercury Magnets transformers.

 

[FourT6and2]

Hiwatt Super-Hi 50

 

[paulyc]

I am a big vox fan (I have a ‘62 AC30 non-top boost and ‘63 AC30 Top boost). I’ve tried them all when it comes to modern and boutique vox style amps and honestly none of them hold a candle to a real deal ‘60’s copper panel vox. I agree the Vox definitely have that chime they’re known for, but I consider their overdrive to be smoother/less gritty than Marshall’s, but maybe more glassy in a way. That being said, my favorite recent made vox inspired amp I’ve tried was probably the Tex EF86 I used to own. Imagine something kinda like a vox (maybe a hint of Marshall there too) but a bit more gain, thoatier, more growl, and darker. My second favorite recent Vox type amp was maybe the Savage Schatten (didn’t like the Savage Glas as much). The Bad Cat’s would definitely be more modern and heavy if that’s what you’re looking for, but imo not as high quality tone. The Tex’s and Savage’s are still very vintage voiced

The Xits are also quite sought after, but haven’t tried one. Actually, also the Komet’s are worth considering. Those sounded awesome. They’re inspired more by Trainwreck, but I have a feeling they’ll still be great for what you’re describing

EDIT: Actually, what may be even better is to just get a real vintage vox like mine and install the new Hot Mod in it. They’re made for Marshall’s but can also work in Vox’s. I just got mine. Will give it a try later

For reference, I’ve tried Divided By 13’s, Top Hat’s, Matchless’s, Bruno’s, Sommatone’s, Reissue Vox’s, Bad Cat’s, Morgan’s, Star’s, and Todd Sharp. They almost all sucked compared to a real vintage vox Copperpanel. For my own selfish interest I wish those others didn’t exist so that I wouldn’t have wasted so much time and money trying and also owning some of them just to realize later how much better the old Vox’s really are. I’ve had the same experience with respect to Marshall’s and Fenders

I have a Vox HW AC30 reissue and I’m dying to try Cameron’s version of the Hot Mod in it (adds a Jose style Master feature), should be epic. Might need a decent boost pedal in front too, but we’ll see if/when it becomes available.

 

[Devin]

Cornford Hellcat perhaps

 

[japetus]

Orange AD30

 

[gibson5413]

3rd Power Kitchen Sink

 

[Spaceboy]

Orange AD30

This amp sounds nothing like an AC30. It’s a great amp but a totally different tone and feel. It does sound amazing with a treble booster though.


OP, the Bad Cat Lynx and Hot Cat sounds nothing like an AC30. Their Cub does, but it’s not exactly high gain. It’s more of a Matchless vibe than Vox, but it’s all in the same family. I haven’t played that Victory VC35, but it sounds great in demos and gets a little more Marshall sounding that anything in the Matchless style ballpark.

You could also stick with an AC30 and experiment with the right methods to boost it into the gain you need. I play my AC30 HW with two Crowther Hot Cakes and it covers a lot of ground. I had the Double Hotcake but two singles stack sounds better for some reason.

 

[braintheory]

Orange AD30

This amp sounds nothing like an AC30. It’s a great amp but a totally different tone and feel. It does sound amazing with a treble booster though.


OP, the Bad Cat Lynx and Hot Cat sounds nothing like an AC30. Their Cub does, but it’s not exactly high gain. It’s more of a Matchless vibe than Vox, but it’s all in the same family. I haven’t played that Victory VC35, but it sounds great in demos and gets a little more Marshall sounding that anything in the Matchless style ballpark.

You could also stick with an AC30 and experiment with the right methods to boost it into the gain you need. I play my AC30 HW with two Crowther Hot Cakes and it covers a lot of ground. I had the Double Hotcake but two singles stack sounds better for some reason.

I agree most of these other amps being recommended sound nothing like a Vox. I have a Double Hot Cake myself and it does sound very good with both my ‘62 AC30 and ‘63 AC30 Top Boost, but I like even better with those amps my Thorpy Heavy Water and Fulltone Custom Ranger. Amazing pedals

 

[fusedbrain]

If you're looking for the Vox vibe in an amp, it needs to have:
Cathode biased EL84's
No negative feedback
low filtering
really low value coupling cap between the first and second gain stage
those funky Vox treble cap / slope resister values.

The problem with your request is that it's not possible to retain the Vox vibe while changing the basic Vox circuit to produce more gain. A lot of that vibe comes from crushing the input to the phase inverter. Kinda like the Plexi vibe, but a different sound.

My suggestion would be to purchase a Heritage or HW Vox amp, and experiment with various boost pedals to get the gain you desire.
One of my favorite setups is an Exotic EP booster into my Vox AC30HW.
JCM800 levels of gain, but still retains the core tone.
I like the EP style boost for the added bottom end in this scenario, but a Klon type boost would work well too.

Hope that helps!

 

[braintheory]

If you're looking for the Vox vibe in an amp, it needs to have:
Cathode biased EL84's
No negative feedback
low filtering
really low value coupling cap between the first and second gain stage
those funky Vox treble cap / slope resister values.

The problem with your request is that it's not possible to retain the Vox vibe while changing the basic Vox circuit to produce more gain. A lot of that vibe comes from crushing the input to the phase inverter. Kinda like the Plexi vibe, but a different sound.

My suggestion would be to purchase a Heritage or HW Vox amp, and experiment with various boost pedals to get the gain you desire.
One of my favorite setups is an Exotic EP booster into my Vox AC30HW.
JCM800 levels of gain, but still retains the core tone.
I like the EP style boost for the added bottom end in this scenario, but a Klon type boost would work well too.

Hope that helps!

Agreed. I have an original Klon Centaur silver (no horse) and it works great with both my Vox’s, but they tend to take most boosts well. I’d never really use it for modern high gain though imo even with a boost. The Vox's (at least the real ‘60’s Copperpanel ones) just have this inherently smooth, pretty tone that make most other amps come off grating in comparison, yet they’re still plenty bright and glassy on the brilliant and/or top boost input, part of what makes them so special sounding. Beautiful sounding amp, but just not the best platform for metal imo, but amazing for many other styles. The high gain amps recommended here sound nothing like a good vintage Vox

 

[paulyc]

How's this ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNq2tlG8Opk

 

[fusedbrain]

How's this ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNq2tlG8Opk

Well....... this stuff is all subjective, and the OP may very well think that is exactly what he's looking for.
Kinda sounds like poo to me, but hey...it's a YouTube vid, so who knows.....
Those shitty Vox speakers and the open back cab ain't helping either.

 

[braintheory]

How's this ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNq2tlG8Opk

Well....... this stuff is all subjective, and the OP may very well think that is exactly what he's looking for.
Kinda sounds like poo to me, but hey...it's a YouTube vid, so who knows.....
Those shitty Vox speakers and the open back cab ain't helping either.

I actually liked that. That was the only real example I’ve seen of a high gain vox tone. Definitely a tight, bright high gain sound for sure, but still not exactly what I consider a metal sound to be. I agree about the speakers and cab. Probably would’ve sounded way better and beefier if he connected it to a 412

 

[stanz]

There are several high-gain pedals that work well with the VOX AC15/AC30 circuit. As far as HG VOX-like amps go, I beleive Freyette makes a something akin to what you're looking for.

 

[paulyc]

How's this ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNq2tlG8Opk

Well....... this stuff is all subjective, and the OP may very well think that is exactly what he's looking for.
Kinda sounds like poo to me, but hey...it's a YouTube vid, so who knows.....
Those shitty Vox speakers and the open back cab ain't helping either.

I actually liked that. That was the only real example I’ve seen of a high gain vox tone. Definitely a tight, bright high gain sound for sure, but still not exactly what I consider a metal sound to be. I agree about the speakers and cab. Probably would’ve sounded way better and beefier if he connected it to a 412

I think it sounds pretty good, considering it’s just a you tube clip. I agree about the stock speakers/cab, I bet some greenbacks or other Celestions in a closed back 2x12 or 4x12 cab would help quite a bit.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

How's this ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNq2tlG8Opk

Well....... this stuff is all subjective, and the OP may very well think that is exactly what he's looking for.
Kinda sounds like poo to me, but hey...it's a YouTube vid, so who knows.....
Those shitty Vox speakers and the open back cab ain't helping either.

I actually liked that. That was the only real example I’ve seen of a high gain vox tone. Definitely a tight, bright high gain sound for sure, but still not exactly what I consider a metal sound to be. I agree about the speakers and cab. Probably would’ve sounded way better and beefier if he connected it to a 412

I think it sounds pretty good, considering it’s just a you tube clip. I agree about the stock speakers/cab, I bet some greenbacks or other Celestions in a closed back 2x12 or 4x12 cab would help quite a bit.

It's a little splatty to my ears but I think it sounds pretty good. Some of that might be speakers but also the negative feedback on an AC30. Aren't they kid of voiced to really overload everywhere so you end up with this big burly sound that you then shape with a pedal/treble booster? The Brian May secret. I think if you want that gain and the Kruse clip impresses you, then what the hell, you are in the Marshall camp. So go Marshall! Or maybe just maybe, you go with the Synergy stuff and get an AC module, a plexi, and then something Friedman for the 3rd slot.