Vox AC4TV
- Thread starter faizal_rocks
- Start date
faizal_rocks
New member
Well for the 1st time that u got the amp, u need to play it for a few hrs each day to break in the speaker..do change the tubes as well 
I use JJ 12AX7 and Ei EL84 in mine, using the Tungsol 12AX7 is recommended too.
I use JJ 12AX7 and Ei EL84 in mine, using the Tungsol 12AX7 is recommended too.Well for the 1st time that u got the amp, u need to play it for a few hrs each day to break in the speaker..do change the tubes as well
wont the amp overheat if u play it for a few hours everyday?!?!
faizal_rocks
New member
wont the amp overheat if u play it for a few hours everyday?!?!
Few hours a day won't hurt so as long u dun leave it on overnight..as a precaution, at least for me
keithC
New member
my tone knob is at 50%. initially i found it very trebly when i turned it all the way up, but now that my speakers are broken in (should be by now) i'll try it at 75%.
another thing is the bass response.. it doesn't really boom even on max bass settings with my effects.
and i never ever play it with the 1 watt or 1/4 watt setting, it sounds way too muddy to my ears!
haha i usually keep my tone knob at 50% too. although most of the time i throw a eq pedal in front of it for more tweaking options
fazial: is there any major difference in tone or sound with the tube swap. thinking of swapping tubes too.
im actually quite concerned abt the heat this amp generates cus it gets pretty hot after like an hour. i actually think its frying the tubes inside cus im experiencing crackling and sudden volume drops after the amp has been on for half an hour. gonna send it down to get it checked soon.
fazial: is there any major difference in tone or sound with the tube swap. thinking of swapping tubes too.
im actually quite concerned abt the heat this amp generates cus it gets pretty hot after like an hour. i actually think its frying the tubes inside cus im experiencing crackling and sudden volume drops after the amp has been on for half an hour. gonna send it down to get it checked soon.
faizal_rocks
New member
attoegg: Not to worry, bro. I experience the same thing as u did. With the stock Sovtek tubes, I heard crackling noises and I thought it was my cable's problem but it wasn't. I think the crackling sound disappeared after a few days. I made the tube swap and it sounds smooth for cleans and break up. I feel like experimenting with other tube brands to see if I can make it sound better
Ized
New member
=keithC
I dont have this problem. You can ask Whitestrat about the abundant bass on my AC4 cos he tried it. Its thumpy for a lack of a better word....
Its either your guitar, settings or perhaps the volume you'r playing it at (the amp needs to be cranked)
I dont have this problem. You can ask Whitestrat about the abundant bass on my AC4 cos he tried it. Its thumpy for a lack of a better word....
Its either your guitar, settings or perhaps the volume you'r playing it at (the amp needs to be cranked)
Last edited by a moderator:
naviros
New member
Thanks.
Another question regarding the AC4TV. I got the combo version, and it seems to overheat really easily. Like, after an hour of practicing, the amp is really really hot, like, can cook egg hot. And my sound that is supposed to be clean sounds kinda distorted and muddy.
Is it the tube problem? Or is that just how tube amps are?
First time owning a tube amp.
Thanks.
Another question regarding the AC4TV. I got the combo version, and it seems to overheat really easily. Like, after an hour of practicing, the amp is really really hot, like, can cook egg hot. And my sound that is supposed to be clean sounds kinda distorted and muddy.
Is it the tube problem? Or is that just how tube amps are?
First time owning a tube amp.
Thanks.
Last edited by a moderator:
MrBukka
New member
Ok peeps i have just joined the AC4TV club, i am really digging this amp. Swapped out the stock tubes for a broken in JJ el84 i had lying around and tungsol 12ax7......god damn tonal bliss (great chimy cleans with alot of fullness, dynamics and clarity, crank it and it sounds fat and buttery)! Of course there is a slight boxiness to the sound but not in a bad way, i felt that it gave the amp some natural compression that sounds nice when cranked and the close back gave some needed bottom end for the 10" speaker.
Funny that i actually didn't like the JJ (it sounded alittle too dark) when i had it in my modded blackheart which currently has a sovtek el84m (great cleans and headroom) and tungsol 12ax7 in it. Besides sounding gd alone, the ac4tv sounded sicker and awfully loud running into my 2X12 ceriatone oversize cab loaded with V30s!
I must say it's a fantastic buy and i cant wait for my ABY switch to be done so that i can run both amps in stereo wahahahaha! Btw faizal i am just curious abt how the ei el84 is treating u?
Funny that i actually didn't like the JJ (it sounded alittle too dark) when i had it in my modded blackheart which currently has a sovtek el84m (great cleans and headroom) and tungsol 12ax7 in it. Besides sounding gd alone, the ac4tv sounded sicker and awfully loud running into my 2X12 ceriatone oversize cab loaded with V30s!
I must say it's a fantastic buy and i cant wait for my ABY switch to be done so that i can run both amps in stereo wahahahaha! Btw faizal i am just curious abt how the ei el84 is treating u?
naviros
New member
Wow, seems like its been awhile since this thread has been looked at. Just going to share some of my experiences as I've been playing on this amp.
I've always one that left my amp settings alone after I've played through and got a good neutral clean tone to it. So all I do when I play is fiddle with my volume switch on my guitar, knobs on my effects etc. etc.
I've never really wondered about how the dynamics of the volume knob works out. In saying volume knob, I mean both the one on your amp, and the one on your guitar. Give it a little try, turn to 1/4 watt, turn DOWN your amp volume, and turn your guitar volume to max. You'll get nice INSANELY SATURATED tone.
If you want a loud clean tone, turn up to 4 watts, and turn down your guitar volume. Do note that I'm using Tungsol 12AX7 & JJ EL84, so I have a little more headroom as compared to maybe, the stock Sovteks.
Go on, experiment with it yourself! The only thing I found limiting was the range of dynamics I could achieve with the tone knob. No matter, I shall have that rectified in due time...
When I have the time, I will try out the Mullards EL84s, or Gold Lions, if I can find them, thinking of using only the amp itself for my drive needs. Maybe some TAD 12AX7s too...
I've always one that left my amp settings alone after I've played through and got a good neutral clean tone to it. So all I do when I play is fiddle with my volume switch on my guitar, knobs on my effects etc. etc.
I've never really wondered about how the dynamics of the volume knob works out. In saying volume knob, I mean both the one on your amp, and the one on your guitar. Give it a little try, turn to 1/4 watt, turn DOWN your amp volume, and turn your guitar volume to max. You'll get nice INSANELY SATURATED tone.
If you want a loud clean tone, turn up to 4 watts, and turn down your guitar volume. Do note that I'm using Tungsol 12AX7 & JJ EL84, so I have a little more headroom as compared to maybe, the stock Sovteks.
Go on, experiment with it yourself! The only thing I found limiting was the range of dynamics I could achieve with the tone knob. No matter, I shall have that rectified in due time...
When I have the time, I will try out the Mullards EL84s, or Gold Lions, if I can find them, thinking of using only the amp itself for my drive needs. Maybe some TAD 12AX7s too...
field reports after owning tat amp since 09 christmas...the amps great for daily simple plug-n-play session. i'm not an audiophile so it's abit hard to discern the nicest of tones but i still like wat i hear.
after getting suggestions to get pedals to boost it, i used a big muff pi at first and it didn't sound the way i wanted, so i thot maybe i needed an OD pedal instead, after tumbling here n there i manage to find EHX's graphic fuzz (a 6 band EQ + OD type Fuzz + mild envelop filter effects all in one) using that pedal, all other pedals added to it sounds nice..be it wah or distortion and especially a nice sounding muff pi..
the amp now is still all stock, i place a metal pick on the cooling vent on top there to check really how hot is the amp..wat i would recommend or wish i'll try once im richer is to change the tubes(can someone pm me the price of the tubes at burlington sq? thanks)
one more thing to note, the speakers aren't exactly stellar maybe compared to a celestion 12'' in my 75W line 6, maybe due to it's 10'' size and closed back design and still limited tone controls(no matter wat eq pedals u put in, it still goes thru the amp's tone knob right?) and lack of the earth-shaking maybe cos of it's size..
after getting suggestions to get pedals to boost it, i used a big muff pi at first and it didn't sound the way i wanted, so i thot maybe i needed an OD pedal instead, after tumbling here n there i manage to find EHX's graphic fuzz (a 6 band EQ + OD type Fuzz + mild envelop filter effects all in one) using that pedal, all other pedals added to it sounds nice..be it wah or distortion and especially a nice sounding muff pi..
the amp now is still all stock, i place a metal pick on the cooling vent on top there to check really how hot is the amp..wat i would recommend or wish i'll try once im richer is to change the tubes(can someone pm me the price of the tubes at burlington sq? thanks)
one more thing to note, the speakers aren't exactly stellar maybe compared to a celestion 12'' in my 75W line 6, maybe due to it's 10'' size and closed back design and still limited tone controls(no matter wat eq pedals u put in, it still goes thru the amp's tone knob right?) and lack of the earth-shaking maybe cos of it's size..
ToneJedi
New member
breaking in your speakers
Brand new speakers usually require a breaking in period. Start with a few minutes with low-level playing or background hum.
Then, turn up the power amp volume to full, and control the level with the preamp gain and play with a fat, clean tone.
Have the bass and mid up full, and the treble at least half. Use the middle pickup position and play for 10 - 15 minutes using lots of open chords, and chunky percussive playing.
This will get the cone moving, and should excite all the cone modes and get everything to settle in nicely.
I got the above tips from the celestion website, I tested it on my AC4 head/cab and it seems to work fine.
Brand new speakers usually require a breaking in period. Start with a few minutes with low-level playing or background hum.
Then, turn up the power amp volume to full, and control the level with the preamp gain and play with a fat, clean tone.
Have the bass and mid up full, and the treble at least half. Use the middle pickup position and play for 10 - 15 minutes using lots of open chords, and chunky percussive playing.
This will get the cone moving, and should excite all the cone modes and get everything to settle in nicely.
I got the above tips from the celestion website, I tested it on my AC4 head/cab and it seems to work fine.
theunknown
New member
er.. an AC4tv is a class A. volume and tone. how do we control the preamp gain? and the EQs?
