New-to-me Vox AC15

[duhvoodooman***]

Not just any AC15--this is a 2007 Vox 50th Anniversary Heritage Series hand-wired AC15 1x12 combo. The model designation is AC15H1TV. I was particularly interested in this model not only because of the hand-wired quality factor, but also because it uses the original 1958 AC15 EF86 preamp circuit on one channel and the 12AX7-based '63 Top Boost design on the other. I had been looking for the head version of this amp for a while, but those seem to be as rare as hen's teeth. Then I came across this one on eBay; the seller had the 1x12 combo version loaded with a Chinese Celestion G12M Greenback up for bid. My understanding is that this model originally came with an Alnico Blue, and it so happens that I had just bought one of those off my local CraigsList. So we cut a deal whereby he removed the speaker and I bought the amp for $140 less than the BIN price he had listed, as a "best offer".

I've had the amp for two weeks now, so finally got around to snapping a bunch of photos tonight. Had the back off anyway to swap in a NOS Mullard (rebranded to GE) EF86 preamp tube (which sounds fabulous), so it seemed like an opportune time to grab some pix. It has a couple of nicks in the tolex and the handle is scuffed up, but otherwise it's in very good shape. No functional problems at all.

I'm very pleased with this amp so far. LOUD for 15W, so I've been playing it mostly through a Weber MicroMASS attenuator. The Top Boost cahnnel has great top-end definition and more overall clarity, but the EF86 has a full, rich character that is very attractive, and sounds absolutely gorgeous when overdriven. The stock EF86 (Russian, I think--it's wrapped in a vibration-damping material, so I can't see the labeling) sounded good, but the NOS Mullard tube takes it to a whole 'nother level. I generally find that I prefer a given amp either clean (like my octal-modded Blues Junior) or dirty (like my 18W clone), but this one sounds great either way. Lots of EQ/tonal options, too, with pentode/triode switches for both the EF86 and output stages, and two types of bass cut controls on the EF86 channel. The Top Boost channel has treble & bass controls, and there's a master top cut control that affects both channels.

I left the Celestion Alnico Blue in the separate 1x12 cab I had mounted it in, and have been playing the amp mostly through that or a 2x12 cab I have loaded with a WGS Green Beret (Greenback clone) and an Eminence Redcoat Wizard. I had a spare WGS Veteran 30 (V30 clone) that I wasn't using, so I've installed that in the AC15 cabinet, but haven't used it much yet. I've yet to find anything that the amp didn't sound good through, though.

Here are the photos: