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Duff
June 3rd, 2007, 12:56 AM
This is one fine little amp.

I would say this has to be one of the all time best bedroom amps ever made, tube styles included.

It has a very excellent clean sound that shimmers and can be modified with reverb and tremolo.

It has a distortion sound developed by turning a gain knob, with a boost button that moves the distortion into new territory quite well.

It is totally loud enough for a variety of environments including bedrooms, small areas, etc. It turns down really well for low volume quality tones and distortions.

It has that special Vox appearance that so many love. More importantly, it backs its attractive looks up with outstanding sonic performance. I have never played a fifteen watt amp that sounded this good, except for possibly a Fender Blues Junior. That Blues Junior is another very special and super great little amp. No question about it. But the Pathfinder is also very excellent, with a nice reverb and a great tremolo. You can combine its well integrated elements to produce some highly quality sounds and all sorts of volumes, up to its maximum potential. Of course you could go even farther with the filtered line out, or by miking it. You could even plug into a cabinet or build your own cabinet.

This is a really nice little amp. Stand it next to one of those Vox fifteen watt chromies and see what it looks like. Play it and you might find you like its sound better too. I only played the bigger chromes and found them to be complicated and difficult to get a great sound out of, plus they are notoriously unreliable. The Pathfinder starts out with a great sound and waits to be adjusted into incredible intensities.

This unit rocks like a freight train and rolls into a blues explosion, effortlessly.

I would highly suggest trying this before a fifteen watt chromie. The Pathfinder fifteen R is hard to find in stores though. No wonder, it sounds so great. But it can be easily be found on all the internet music sites.

Duff
Winfield, Pa

"Blue, blue windows behind the stars. Yellow moon on the rise. Big birds flying across the sky, throwing shadows on our eyes; leave us helpless, helpless, helpless." NY

SuperSwede
June 3rd, 2007, 05:14 AM
Nice review Duff.. I have not tried the Pathfinder amps, but your review makes me really interested. I´m a big fan of the Blues JR as well.

tot_Ou_tard
June 8th, 2007, 07:58 PM
I forget, does the Pathfinder use the ValveReactor circuit?

Duff
June 12th, 2007, 11:23 PM
It is solid state and very well done. Super excellent sound and looks good too. A lot of people would really like this sound and the nice tremolo and reverb.

mwagnerch
July 1st, 2008, 08:19 PM
Is this amp loud enough for gigs, or to be heard over a drummer? What about a church setting?

Duff
July 2nd, 2008, 12:46 AM
Need about 100 solid state watts or 30 - 50 watt tube amp to effectively keep a drummer from yelling at you to get a real amp.


Duff

pes_laul
July 3rd, 2008, 08:08 AM
Need about 100 solid state watts or 30 - 50 watt tube amp to effectively keep a drummer from yelling at you to get a real amp.


Duff
actually my little 15 watt line 6 played in front of about 800 kids at my talent show and it was a little over halfway up and you could hear me.

(though The mics on the cieling could have picked it up)

Brian Krashpad
July 3rd, 2008, 09:28 AM
actually my little 15 watt line 6 played in front of about 800 kids at my talent show and it was a little over halfway up and you could hear me.

(though The mics on the cieling could have picked it up)

Were you playing with a drummer?

If so s/he was playing awful softly.

No way a 15W SS could cut it with any of the drummers I've played with over the years. Not un-mic'd.

Katastrophe
July 3rd, 2008, 09:44 AM
Nice review, Duff. I always wondered about the little Voxes...

I wouldn't recommend a 15 watt solid state amph for gigging. I played on a Fender Frontman 25 watt SS amph and was able to be heard over a drummer, but that thing was cranked.

For a church setting at lower volumes (unless y'all rawk out), a 50 - 75 watt SS amph should do okay, especially if mic'd.

My 120 watt Crate is loud enough to play country gigs at any of the clubs in my area and still be heard, without a mic at the speaker.

Tarin
November 28th, 2008, 05:54 PM
A little late for a reply on this.. but on my honeymoon i went to Cancun, one weekend we wen't to the island of Cozumel and decided to rent a scooter to drive ariund the island (1 hour travel round the island).
On our little trip we came across a local coffee/restaurant/bar with a live cover band playing so we had to stop and take a look.
The band played ok, some songs came out better than others and played mainly rock and reggae tunes.
The guitarist played thru a Vox Pathfinder 15 (without reverb) and the Line 6 red-bean processor. The amp hold out pretty good and clear (at the time i had the Vox AD30VT) and was surprised to find out how loud this little amp sounded... tha band was playing outdoors BTW.
So after that experience i sold the AD30, bought a 15R with a Digitech RP250 to handle all the gadgets if i ever feel to fool around... basically i enjoy playing it directly.
Right now besides the 15R i own a Crate V5 waiting to be modded (see thread).

Here's the pic of the Cozumel band, couldn't catch the name of the band so, no plug here.

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/DSC02996.jpg

Brian Krashpad
December 3rd, 2008, 08:35 AM
Haha, that sign is pricelss: Big Tippers go to Heaven!

I notice they wrote it in English por todas las touristas!

Tarin
May 10th, 2010, 07:54 PM
I had to revive this thread... i just have to.
This little amp sounds awsome as it is, we all know that... but have you heard it through a 12" cab?

I recently got a Blackheart LG half stack... the head i will sell but the cab i'll keep for further testing.
Thing is i've been using my 15R with this 12" cab and to my ears it just sounds great... i'm not that much "tone savy" but i know what sounds good to me when i hear it.
I've had lot of 15-30 watt / 200-300 dollar amps since i buy on Ebay and sell on the mexican version of Ebay... that way i get to use lots of guitar stuff.

Back on the subject: i then decided to upgrade my 15R with a 10" speaker, got a good deal on a Jensen MOD 10-35... i just finished installing it... soundcheck, and decided to write about it ASAP.

Great little amp this 15R's... no wonder it's the only one i haven't sold.

Duffy
May 11th, 2010, 05:27 AM
This thread takes me back.

I was just looking at my Pathfinder 15R yesterday, admiringly.

It is no wonder that after two failed attempts to get a solid functioning Peavey Classic 30 I finally, and with great satisfaction, purchased the new
Vox AC15c1 Custom with the Celestion Greenback. I already have a Peavey Delta Blues that performs impecably and sounds even better now that I elevated it above the floor. Spud's comment that the Classic 30 would be redundant blew past me like a funky wench until later when the wisdom of his words finally sunk in.

The AC15c1 Custom is an awesome amp that does not crackle or pop and sounds like an instrument in its own right. It looks a lot like the Pathfinder 15R and has a top panel lay out quite similar to the AC15c1.

I can't speak highly enough about both amps, but the AC15 is in another universe. I played it last night with my NOS Ibanex SZ320. The SZ320 is an unbelievable guitar. I might sell off some lesser guitars and try to find a new old stock SZ520 just because they are such great guitars.

Last night I noticed something very enjoyable with the SZ320. When I turned down the volumes on the pickups on the guitar, it kept all of the tone; all of the driven sound and clarity. I'm not sure if it was the guitar or the AC15, but suspect the guitar strongly. This was a really welcome treat at about four in the morning jamming to some Buddy Guy with the Saturday Night Live Band CD at low volume. I also was playing my Ibanez stock AS73 with the only mod being my just modified neck - that I finely sanded down to the bare wood and treated with lemon oil. This neck is now awesome and for some reason I have immediately bonded with this excellent guitar, one of my best, that did not get picked a lot for playing. From now on it will be one of my favorite players. I'm playing it right at the moment thru my Crate Palomino V32 212 with Celestion 70/80's, another great sounding amp, set up next to my AC15 for easy nodding out access. I also played my Squier Affinity J Bass with the Fender Custom Shop noisless J bass pickups; super smooth sounding bass with very musical tone. The Custom Shop noisless pups and the Flatwound strings give this bass a tone that is really fun to jam along to CD's with. I was grooving to almost exclusively mellow blues tunes from Gary Moore, Buddy Guy, and others. No effects pedals, just these fine guitars and the inexpensive bass.

Anyway, it is amazing how similar in vibe the Pathfinder 15R is to the AC15c1. I am going to do an a/b sound comparison with some grains of salt added to see if I can find any parallelisms other than the visual vibe.

I wonder what a great replacement speaker for the Pathfinder 15R is?

I'll let you know about the amp comparison, see if there are any tonal parallelisms. I bet there are. Especially with the reverb and tremolo played into the picture.

Commodore 64
May 11th, 2010, 07:33 AM
Back on the subject: i then decided to upgrade my 15R with a 10" speaker, got a good deal on a Jensen MOD 10-35... i just finished installing it... soundcheck, and decided to write about it ASAP.


Did you have to install a new baffle or modify the existing one?

Duffy
May 11th, 2010, 10:39 AM
I'm thinking that a really good quality 8" speaker might work just as well as a ten in the Pathfinder. An 8" with a high sensitivity rating, like 100dB or greater.

I wonder if anything in the 8" range is really good and available?

Commodore 64
May 11th, 2010, 10:56 AM
I'm thinking that a really good quality 8" speaker might work just as well as a ten in the Pathfinder. An 8" with a high sensitivity rating, like 100dB or greater.

I wonder if anything in the 8" range is really good and available?

I'm loving the 8" in my Champ, it's a Weber Alnico Signature 8S. Weber makes a TON of 8" speakers, here are a few:

Signature Series
http://taweber.powweb.com/weber/csig8s.htm

http://taweber.powweb.com/weber/asig8s.htm

Vintage Series:
http://taweber.powweb.com/weber/8f125t.htm

markb
May 11th, 2010, 05:05 PM
Lots of love and ideas for the Pathfinder 15 over at tdpri

Link to google tdpri search (http://www.google.co.nz/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=site:www.tdpri.com+%22pathfinder+15%22&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&redir_esc=&ei=W-LpS5meLIzqsQP23IjnBw)

Tarin
May 11th, 2010, 10:51 PM
For the 10" i used the same baffle board... i thought i would get in trouble disassembling it but no, it's a fairly easy task to do:

The baffle unscrews right off very easy, the tricky part was to unstaple the grill cloth in order to use it again... what i did is, i just unstapled the bottom part and almost both sides to the top, leaving just the 2 first staples in place to hold down the cloth (shoulda taken pictures, right?).
So basically, the cloth and the white piping are just hanging on by the golden valance (or whatever it's called... my english sometimes slips) metal thing just underneath the VOX emblem.

You know what... i did take some pictures, not of the whole process, but with some photoshoped notes i guess i can be clearer.

... just a minute or two...

Tarin
May 11th, 2010, 10:52 PM
Sorry, left it at the office... i'll be posting thos pics tomorrow.

ZMAN
May 12th, 2010, 06:07 AM
Ii picked one up about a year ago brand new for $115 in Maine. I leave it there with a couple of pedals so I only have to take a guitar down when I go for an extended visit. I have played it through my 2/12 avatar cab and it sounds really good. I use a Boss BD2 and DS1 in front of it and I am getting some really good blues tones with the stock speaker. It is a fun little amp.
It really is amazing when you can pay 30 to 40 bucks for a decent guitar cord. For an SS amp it sounds very "tuby".,

bigG
May 12th, 2010, 10:59 AM
I played thru one a couple years ago when I bought my Vox AC15 (now gone). The sales guy was stoked to show it to me, and I was VERY impressed! SWEET little combo, fer sure! :cool:

Duffy
May 12th, 2010, 12:05 PM
I dusted off my Pathfinder 15R and plugged it into my 16 ohm Epiphone So. Cal. 4 by 12 cabinet - wow, what a great sound. It has an 8 ohm ext. speaker jack on the back so I don't think I'll hurt the amp section or the cabinet, will I?

Sounds good.

Just fo the fun of it I unplugged it from the Epi 4 by 12 cabinet and listened to it straight up thru the stock 8" speaker - super great sound an LOUD.

I will have to think twice before putting in a ten inch speaker, which I'm leaning toward, a lot of variety: I'll get a real sensitive one, like 102dB, this will be LOUD.

I wonder how much room I'll have for the ten incher? Will I have to worry about the back of the magnet area touching the amp section or chassis?

Also, when you PUT IN YOUR 19 INCH SPEAKER did you have to use a jig saw and cut out a larger circumference for your speaker opening? Obviously you must have done that. Did you just use a pencil with a piece of string and scribe a specific diameter circle around the perimeter of the hole? I imagine there is a specific desired BEST opening size to maximize the speaker freedom of action and to allow ample space for the screws/bolts to fasten it up to the baffle.

It looks fairly simple, and did you get a noticeable differenced in the tone? The stock speaker sounds pretty incredible as is.

I am amazed at how tube like this Pathfinder 15R sounds stock. Now I know why I bought it in the first place. Or should I say, now I can appreciate this amp that I had no idea was so great when I bought it. That would be more correct I think. My ear has developed so much since buying that amp years ago. The old Pathfinder 15R now sits in my amp wall in the living room and is plugged in and ready to go at a moments notice. It adds some grace to my amp wall, I must say.

I have not had the time to a/b it to the AC15c1 new style yet but it sounded mighty good cranked yesterday with a twin humbucker Hartly Peavey Signature EXP superstrat. Just the way you would want a guitar like this to sound thru a small tube amp cranked. And this is solid state. Amazing little amp that should get some positive input from those of us that have them here at the Fret. Beginners could benefit from hearing about these great inexpensive amps.

Kestrel
May 12th, 2010, 04:49 PM
Great little amps, those Vox Pathfinders. They're best sounding small solid state amps I've come across.

Duffy
May 12th, 2010, 07:49 PM
I must say that I really like my Vox DA5 "chromie" solid state modelling amp without any tubes. It produces some great sounds, but the Pathfinder 15R does one thing really well and you can crank it up and it does it even better.

I bought my son a Crate RFX 65 three channel solid state that is also a great sounding amp, discontinued.

Vox still makes the Pathfinder. I find this impressive because the sales are probably miniscule compared to the sales of the inexpensive chromies. Maybe they keep making it out of respect or tradition. Maybe they want to maintain that traditional image, even in the low cost range. Or maybe there are things we don't know, like professionals might like and order a lot of Pathfinders for studios and practice, and keeping these serious customers happy might be one of their priorities.

I hope they keep making the Pathfinders for a long long time. It is an amp that is almost like an instrument. With a decent guitar you play the Pathfinder. It is more than just a means of amplification of a guitar's sound. It has a sound all its own, almost like my AC105c1 Custom new style. The new AC15 I have is an amp that I am growing into, constantly learning new things about it and how to set it for different sounds. It is capable of some really chiming sounds, unlike my other amps and a range of other tones. Tonight I noticed that two different strats sounded completely different thru it at the same settings. One sounded shrill and uncontrollable, with Texas Specials; the other, a Squier Deluxe sounds incredible and smooth and rich with no problems at all, pure excellent sound. That Squier Deluxe is a great strat. Really glad I got that guitar. That is another instrument I have grown with and it ages with a real vintage vibe. The "white" necks a lot of people complained about is aging beautifully into a beautiful honey color. I have been polishing the basically unfinished fretboard with lemon oil. This brings out the grain and soaks in a little.

Tarin
May 16th, 2010, 06:39 PM
Ok, so i got some pics now of my 10" speaker mod.
As i was saying earlier on this thread, i used the same baffle board but the cutting part has a twist to it... you need to make a straight cut just under the golden-metal-thingy that goes across the amp (and holds the grill cloth on the top side).

Here a comparison of the stock speaker:
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1899.jpg

The baffle board once it's off the amp (very simple to take off):
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1903.jpg

You have to take out a lot of staples... they are fairly easy to take out with a thin flat-head screwdriver (or a knife):
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1904.jpg

In this next picture you can see were the screws are to take out the baffle board (you can also see some fungus from the humidity at home... yikes!).
The white-poorly-photoshoped lines indicate the way i had to cut the board in order to fit the seaker:
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_189.jpg

One last thing... the speaker magnet does touch the amp's chasis once it's in place.
Hope this is helps.

Tarin
May 16th, 2010, 09:51 PM
Disclaimer: With this amph (mod) you won't get screaming solos.

That's right fellow fretters... the amph word has just made it's way into Mexico.

poodlesrule
May 17th, 2010, 11:18 AM
One last thing... the speaker magnet does touch the amp's chassis once it's in place.
Hope this is helps.


I just looked at the inside of my 15R a minute ago, after reading this. Effectively, there is not that much depth available.

if looks are not a concern, one could make a new box from scratch, as the chassis design is rather simple and compact?

Duffy
May 22nd, 2010, 12:39 PM
Poodlesrule,

I'm not sure what you are talking about, specifically here? What doesn't fit and in which dimension? What is it going to touch? Which speaker?

Quote: Effectively, there is not that much depth available. Unquote.

That Mod speaker upgrade looks like a good idea, or another speaker even.


Are you saying that it won't fit?

macareves
April 10th, 2012, 03:03 PM
Hi Tarin,

I am thinking of doing the same thing with my amp. Thanks for the pictures, but:
can you post pictures of the amp after the operation? How does it fit?
This Jenssen speaker seems to be one of the most chosen as a replacement for this amp,
what are your experiences after the change?
I suppose it is vital that I choose the 8 Ohm version,
or does 16 Ohm work too?

Tarin, or anybody else?

Thanks!
Mcrvs


Ok, so i got some pics now of my 10" speaker mod.
As i was saying earlier on this thread, i used the same baffle board but the cutting part has a twist to it... you need to make a straight cut just under the golden-metal-thingy that goes across the amp (and holds the grill cloth on the top side).

Here a comparison of the stock speaker:
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1899.jpg

The baffle board once it's off the amp (very simple to take off):
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1903.jpg

You have to take out a lot of staples... they are fairly easy to take out with a thin flat-head screwdriver (or a knife):
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_1904.jpg

In this next picture you can see were the screws are to take out the baffle board (you can also see some fungus from the humidity at home... yikes!).
The white-poorly-photoshoped lines indicate the way i had to cut the board in order to fit the seaker:
http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q86/tarinazo/VOX%2015R/IMG_189.jpg

One last thing... the speaker magnet does touch the amp's chasis once it's in place.
Hope this is helps.