Vox AC30 Brian May Custom Limited Edition

One control knob to rule them all! This is an interesting amp production from Vox. It is a Brian May signature amp, but the most interesting thing about it is....it only has one control knob. So if you want to sound like Brian May you have only one choice to make. If you want to sound anything other than Brian May well.....tough luck. This amp is very unique and interesting design. They have taken the tone of Brian May and give you a volume control to give you how much or how little of that voicing you need.


UTILIZATION

Well there isn't much to talk about. You either like Brian May or you don't. I'm suspecting you wouldn't buy this amp if you didn't like him. Since that is your only tonal option you have.

VOX Brian May AC30BM Features:

* True Limited Edition - only 500 AC30BMs will be built
* Classic VOX look with black vinyl covering and diamond grille cloth
* Includes period-accurate red control panel
* 30 watts of tube-driven power (4 x EL84s)
* Gold VOX logo and trim plus white piping
* Built-in "Deacy" foot-switchable booster circuitry
* Treble/mid single transistor boost with gain and bypass switches
* 15-watt power reduction switch changes volume and voicing
* Two 12-inch Celestion/VOX Alnico Blue speakers

SOUNDS

Well like I have mentioned above you have one sound and one sound only. Sure you can try out different guitars and such but you cannot get out of the voicing. You can have a Les Paul sounding Brian May tone or you can have a Strat sounding Brian May tone. Or just buy one of his cheap Red Special Guitars switch to phase on the guitar and click the Deacy boost on the amp and you will be screaming lead solos.

OVERALL OPINION

My overall opinion is if you want to sound like Brian May then this would be the amp for you. If you didn't want to buy something made in China which this amp is then buy an older reissue UK made Vox AC30 and a treble booster. Just make sure you get a Red Special guitar since a huge portion of his tone came from the sound of that unique guitar and its phasing options. If you just need something to record with and you want to get that Brain May tone then I would suggest getting a Vox VBM1 and use as a direct recording simulation option. You will get that Bohemian Rhapsody solo in spades.

These are discontinued so you'll have to find one on the used market. I think I have seen them as low as $1100 used. Which is a bug splash if you only have one tone at hand and that fact that it is a $1100 used amp made in China. Save your money and get the VBM-1 or get a UK made Vox AC30.

The Vox AC30 Brian May is a limited edition version of the classic AC30 electric guitar amplifier.  Like the original, this amp delivers 30 watts of power and has standard 1/4 inch connections for plugging your instrument in.  However, the amp only has a single parameter - a simple volume knob.  The amp is tube based and has two 12" speakers inside of it.

UTILIZATION

Using the Vox AC30 Brian May is simplier than any other amp that I've seen, as you've only got the master volume knob to control.  However, for me this hurts more than anything as it makes the possible tones very limited.  The sound is a good one, but I really like having other tone parameters so that I can customize my sound - with the Brian May AC30, if you don't like the sound of the amp, there is nothing that you can do to change it whatsoever.  I don't think I've ever seen an amp with so little control, and I don't really understand why they did this.  Unless you're having technical problems, a manual isn't necessary in any situation...


SOUNDS

While the inherent tone of the Vox AC30 Brian May is clean and sounds quite good, not having any parameters to work with really hurts the versatility of the amp, as it really doesn't have any!  I've used the amp with a Fender Telecaster and a few effects like a Tube Screamer and Big Muff, and without pedals to control your sound, I really don't know how anyone could use this amp.  I understand that it is a limited edition Brian May custom, and there is definitely some value in that, but not having any parameters really hinders the overall usefulness of the amp.  Having said this, the sound that you can get with the amp is definitely awesome.


OVERALL OPINION

While they no longer make the Vox AC30 Brian May, it wouldn't be an amp that I would recommend anyway.  It is the type of amp that you want to try out once or twice to see what all of the fuss is about, but definitely isn't something that I would want as my main amp or even a main stay in my set up because of the lack of versatility.  The price is pretty expensive now that they don't make them, even more so than the original AC30, which for me is a much better amp.  If you're a big fan of Brian May and Queen (like I am), I would try this amp out if you come across it, but it definitely isn't worth buying one of these at all...

Lamp. Jack.puissance 30 watts input connector but switchable 15 watts. And no adjustment? Indeed, it is the 30 ac pure juice. Everything happens upstream.

UTILIZATION

Clear, plug and play

SOUNDS

Clean and crunchy clean as it is.
With a trebble boost input, it sounds Queen.

OVERALL OPINION

3 years of use for mine.
I tried two vox ac 30TBX forward stereo.
The feature I like most: The plug and play, ultra easy!
The least: Its weight, I would have liked a tone setting. The integrated booster is not used much. A tube screamer sounds input through against hell!
Value for money: 8 / 10..celui seeking a typed his Queen does not have to look elsewhere.
I would do the same choice, but I turn to a simpler setup.