Vox AC15 query
A friend of mine has his heart set on a hand-wired AC15 with blue speaker, but wants reverb too. Reverb and tremolo are included in the AC15C1, but not the HW1. Could the HW1 be easily/cheaply modded to take a spring reverb? Or is there anyone who builds AC15-alikes with reverb? I'm sure there are solutions I haven't considered, so please suggest away. His budget is a grand, and he only wants a combo.
Cheers,
Paul
Reverb pedal.
Yes I'm serious. Digital reverb is so good these days that it's not a lesser option - in fact it's better than most spring reverbs put into amps these days. The quality of the drive circuits and the reverb tanks themselves are often shockingly poor now, and unfortunately that includes Accutronics tanks as well.
It's not an easy job to fit a spring reverb - especially not a valve-driven one - to an amp either.
If he really wants valve reverb, a Fender '63 Reverb unit is the solution.
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand" - Homer Simpson
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Your mate should be able to get a pretty good reverb pedal to go with the HW - not really all that different in the scheme of things to having a piggyback tube reverb unit before the amp input, which is about as old school as you can get(without spending £600 on a 63 tube reverb reissue...)
The amp's own distortion will be happening on top of the reverb, but if you have any reverb-equipped valve amp up loud enough to drive the power section, that's happening anyway.
That said, I tried an AC15C1 recently and was very impressed.
EDIT: comprehensively beaten to it
Whosoever steppeth upon a distortion pedal in my sight shall make a sound that is unclean.
+1 on the reverb. The Hardwire Supernatural in particular sounds AMAZING.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-uOhCr-FoU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXy9CWb-d-4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vqTRylaSyc
Yes it does.Originally Posted by stickyfiddle
I also want the PGS Alter-Ego delay to go with it. *drool*
Unanimous verdict! Being an arch-traditionalist, I was thinking spring reverb, but maybe I should modernise. I'll pass it on.
One more thing - as he wants tremolo too, how do you rate the Boss FDR? Would the amp sim interfere with the Vox tone? I've tried one before and thought it was pretty good, but it was a very brief trial.
In my opinion once you get to this point - running digital simulations of a different amp in front of your amp - you're probably choosing the wrong amp.
At this point, if he really wants a Vox with reverb and tremolo, the right solution is to buy a Vox with reverb and tremolo, even if it's not a "Hand Wired" one. Although there *is* an older AC30HW which has both... but it's rare, expensive and heavy.
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand" - Homer Simpson
http://www.facebook.com/TheAngelConversations
There are loads of great tremolo pedals out there - some of which get impressively close to the sound of a valve-powered amp tremolo.
The recently released Strymon Flint is a combined tremolo/reverb pedal. I've only heard soundclips, but was nonetheless very impressed.
Whosoever steppeth upon a distortion pedal in my sight shall make a sound that is unclean.
Agreed on the amp sim thing, but I was thinking of combined tremolo and reverb and wasn't aware of other pedals which would do the same. It is definitely the Vox tone he's after, so the FDR is a bad idea.
As for the Flint, it looks brilliant, but damn it's pricey.
Is there actually any difference between the c1 and hw1 circuits, disregarding reverb and tremolo?
He could look for a used 1990s AC15TB or TBX - valve-driven reverb and tremolo. The trem is lush but the reverb (at least on mine) is somewhat disappointing.
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