Hey gang, help me out.

Several nights ago, in a 3am GAS attack, I ordered a Gretsch 5120 from Zzounds. I won't get it for several days still (c'mon UPS!), so I've got some time to look for a new amp too.

My primary Fender amps are my '65 Princeton Reverb re-issue, my Super-Champ XD and my Champion 600. They give me exactly what I need for my Telecasters.

Talking w/ some buddies about the Gretsch, they are saying I "gotta" have a Vox amp to go w/ the 5120. They say Gretsch and Vox go together like peanut butter and jelly.

So anyway - I'm game to look at the Vox amps (any reason to get new gear), but I'm totally clueless about the Vox line-up.

Help me out - what am I looking for? I don't need anything bigger than my '65 Princeton.

Thanks!

RickyD

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Old age and treachery will win every time over youth and enthusiasm.

"You can never have too many Tele's." A quote from my Sweetwater Sales Engineer

Lead guitarist in my band plays a Gretsch White Falcon and uses Fender amps exclusively. Obviously if you can afford a White Falcon he could buy any amp he wanted He has a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe that sounds fantastic with it which he gigs with. The other Fender amp he uses is a solid state FM 212 he leaves at the rehearsal studio. I'd wait until it arrives before deciding that you need a new amp too.



If you do decide to try a Vox I would do it at a store and let your ears decide and not be influenced by people on a forum or what your "friends" say. Vox's VT series are reasonably compact and powerful but are also affordable...however they are also made in China. Vox's all tube amps cost twice what your new guitar cost...so I doubt you'd want to invest that much, but if you do then by all means try before you buy.

This is the one I'm seriously considering, though I haven't made up my mind yet.
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vox-Custom- ... 517163.gc#

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'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

RickyD

Brian Setzer plays them Gretsch guitars through a Fender amp and he sounds great!! The Princeton should do just fine.

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

I don't have any experience with a Gretsch guitar and my Vox days are well in my past (I owned a V1142 Super Beatle briefly in 1969). That said, an acquaintance plays his Rick 330 through a re-issue AC30HW and it's got a real sweet vibe. I've played his amp using several of my Strats as well and they sound very retro/tasty. The AC30 pretty much nails the Petty, Beatles, and early Stones tone beautifully.

HTH

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

i had a vox ad50vt valvetronix, and it was a very nice amp. i also bought a vt40+, and returned it promptly due to noise issues. go to the vox forums and you will see what i mean.
the ac series, however, are very nice too

i have to agree with brother dave.

i play mine through a twin reverb and a ac 30

i prefer the twin sound. but you could check out a ac 15 there good and lighter than the 30

if you want the valvetronics sound. buy a tonelab i have one and it does everything my old ad120vt did but its in a small package. why dont you check one at the guitar store hooked op to the equivalent of your current amp selection.

AC15C1 is a great amp for the money however I don,t own a gretsch so no help from me.

I own 2 Vox amps a Pathfinder 15R and a AD120VTH along with the AC30 Amplug. I strongly reccomend the Valvetronix line of amps for their realiability and features. My AD120VTH combined with the 412-BN cab and VC12 Footcontroller not only gives me the classic Vox amp tones but those of many of the world's foremost important and desireable amps.The effects of these amps are deadly and incredibly like those they are made to emulate.For a full rundown on their model line up go to http://www.voxamps.com and also look through the part of their forum dedicated to the AD and Valvetronix series of amps.There is a guy there who goes by the moniker Voxman and his knowledge about Vox is on par with Arjay's about Fender et al.Look into used Vox gear too as it rarely gives out and will last for years if not bashed around.

I bought my AD120VTH for just $400 when just over 1 year old compared to a new price of $1,200.The Blue grill ones are the most desireable for sound quality.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Hi RickyD

I have several Vox amps from the old 'busker' type (Escort & SuperTwin) to the modern DA5 and DA20 modeling amps. I also have a Cambridge 15 (long since discontinued) a Pathfinder 15R and an AC15C1. The only Fender amp is use is a 90s Bronco.

I try for the clean jangly "british" sound of the Beatles. I have a 360 Riki and an Epiphone Casino, either when coupled with the all valve AC15C1 are great. My Tele's and Strats also sound good through my Vox amps.

I am currently using my Cambridge 15 with a Mexican Tele, the valve preamp in the Cambridge gives it a little more body than that of the Pathfinder 15R which is solid state.

A friend of mine had a Gretsch 5122 and used it through a valve AC4TV and they were a good combination.

Hope this helps.

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ukraider
"money cant buy you love but it can buy guitars!!!!!!"

Guitslinger; would this be the current version of your AD120VTH?
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vox-Valvetr ... 1636994.gc
If the effects and footswitch are good, it may be a good choice for what I need. It seems like a lot of power though. They also have a VT80 with a single 12" speaker.
Does the VC12SV pedal work with these amps? It didn't say on the VOX site.

_________________
'10 American Deluxe HSS Sunset Metallic
'10 JA-90 Thinline Telecaster
'15 Music Man JP-15 Blueberry Burst
'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

Hi Drew 365 the amp that they had featured was the most recent incarnation of ny amp. As for the VC 12 I believe that it was compatable with all the AT-VT series but I'm not absolutely sure.The best was to find out is to go to the Vox forum http://voxamps.com and ask somone with encyclopedic knowledge of Vox Amps such as Vox Man. The VC-12 went out of production but it may have well been reissued as there were repeated calls for it to be reissued as the VC 4 wasn't much on an improvement over the onboard effects panel whereas the VC 12 gave you 128 optional settings.I picked up a used one for $150.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Hey Ricky, Gotta go with Bro Dave on this... I play my 5120 through a Hot Rod Deluxe... It just plain rocks!

Bill

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Hey, Boy Blue is back!

I have no doubt his new Gretsch will sound great through a Fender amp. Since the OP asked about Vox and I'm possibly interested in getting a Vox, I thought I'd post a bit more info. In researching Guitslingers recommendation I found Vox has a new model: Valvetronic Pro VTX 150 Neodymium. It's based on the EL84 tube and uses the VC12SV pedal. It's a bit more expensive, but sounds like it could be a pretty nice amp.

_________________
'10 American Deluxe HSS Sunset Metallic
'10 JA-90 Thinline Telecaster
'15 Music Man JP-15 Blueberry Burst
'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

i have to agree with rockstar that of all the valvetronics amps the blue ones are by far the best. i see them on ebay at reasonable prices all the time. you can get a ad120 head for around 300 bucks well worth the money combos a bit more. the newer ones in my opinion are not as good sounding.

heres the problem. the pcbs in them are weak and prone to cracks if they get bumped around. this was a problem with mine when i first bought it used and probably the reason why i got it at the price i did. fortunately i found a good amp tech who fixed the problem.

now i use a ac 30 with a tonelab controlled with a vc4 pedal board i get the same sound. they are great amps for the money and id take a blue faced one over any of the newer ones . specially the ones with the chrome grille there butt ugly