Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp 

Comments about Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp:

I love it. Never planning on selling this thing.
Lots of modern options added to a classic amp: master volume bypass, 1/2 power switch, bright switch on the normal channel, hot switch on the top boost channel. Lack of reverb is the only drawback, but honestly, I haven't missed it yet.
Very well built. Fit and finish are great. The sounds out of this thing are fantastic. My jaw dropped when I plugged in and strummed a couple chords. Even the girlfriend came in from the other room and said "wow." She's not big into picking up these sorts of musical details either. I went from a more budget 2 x 12" tube amp to this 1 x 12" and the sounds aren't any smaller. The cabinet resonates in a way that makes it sound like a way bigger amp. Very happy with the results.
On the one hand you can get an AC15C1 for about half the cost and it'll give you similar tones and volume, plus reverb and tremolo. The AC15HW1 sounds a lot better in person. There are some comparison videos on youtube that capture some of the difference, but in person it's pretty drastic. This thing gives you THE vintage tones, boutique level tones for less than a lot of boutique amplifiers cost. Sure, it's made in Vietnam, but I can't tell. The wiring's beautiful, the construction is good. To me it was worth every cent.

Comments about Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp:

I can't recommend it highly enough.

I play rock music. Big, loud-ass rock music. So when I hear people demoing Vox amps and playing this plinky-plink nasal-y stuff (which certainly has a place) - I'm disappointed. I usually run into the high inputs on both channels, do something sensible with the TB tone stack, normal channel bright switch disengaged, full power, MV BYPASSED (this one is important - you'll see what I mean!) - and it's an incredibly straight forward, full-of-big-fat-tone, portable-but-big-for-a-112-combo, gonna-kill-your-friend's-50-watt-volume-wise rock machine. Plain and simple. Looks really sexy on stage, too. Who doesn't like that?
While the amp looks, and certainly can be, pretty straight forward, it's can also offer you a baffling number of options depending on your needs. You'll probably find the setting that works best for you and stick with that, but I experimented for WEEKS with the different avenues I could take for my tone. I use an A/B switcher to run into the Normal & TB channel, so just from that you have a nice channel-switching amp. Depending on your A/B box you can run the channels together (or you can jumper them with a small patch), which adds a new level of flexibility. Add in the switchable watts, voicing control, MV bypass, and High/Low inputs, and you have a LOT of ground to cover. They all sound different, and most sound great.
Turret board and writing is top-notch. Cabinet is beautifully tolexed and the thing is built like a tank.

Two minor complaints:

1. There's an annoying tube/spring retainer rattle that drives me nuts at certain frequencies. This is a common problem with combo amps that have tubes mounted down toward the speaker - so it's a vintage design flaw rather than Vox's construction flaw. It also doesn't help that I play this thing very, very loudly at practice and shows.

2. One of the Ruby EL84s failed after a few weeks of playing. Again, not Vox's fault - and to be honest it gave me the opportunity to upgrade.
I understand this isn't an inexpensive amp, but it is a LOT of amp for the money. Some people complain about the fact that these are manufactured in Vietnam, but frankly the quality control is as good or better than plenty of US-made products, and I'd take that trade-off any day to be able to purchase a handwired amp with this build quality for under $2k. In fact, I'd challenge folks to find a better built, more flexible, better sounding amp within $500 of this - regardless of where it's made.

Comments about Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp:

This is a great sounding amp. It's a nice addition to my collection of Fenders. The tube rectifier gives it a great "feel". The cabinet construction is superb as well as the tolex, piping and grill cloth. I bought this used through MF, condition 1. The amp is a little pricey at full retail, I bought at a decent price. This is a great sounding/looking amp, although quite heavy for 15 watts.

Concerns: The amp makes a loud "pop" when powering off, followed by a few "crackles". When running it is dead quiet, however. Other owners I have spoken with have had mixed results with the quality of their amp, but mine is fine. The tone is so incredible I'm willing to take it to an amp tech at any price if it fails. It is a bit odd, however, that this "handwired" amp is noisier than my printed circuit board amps.

That being said, I've gigged extensivley with this amp for the last 45 days and it has performed flawlessly. I've received many compliments on the great tone, I will be keeping this one.

I recommend this amp, but be advised it may need a tube swap or a little attention from a tech.

Comments about Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp:

This amp is all you will ever need, stack any vintage sounding amp up next to it and this Vox ac15 will destroy it. It handles any play style and can go from clean to a very crisp overdrive with just the switch of the channel. This amp is very versatile with it's bright switch on the clean channel and the hot switch on the drive channel. It also gives you the option of High gain and Low gain inputs to better suit your play style and guitar. Yes this is a master volume amp but you have the option to bypass the MV like many other boutique amps. This amps speaker ( Celestion Greenback) sounds killer with any distortion/overdrive pedal. It is a pricey amp but you will not regret buying this amp.

Comments about Vox Hand-Wired AC15HW1 15W 1x12 Tube Guitar Combo Amp:

This amp is just incredible. Took off the back panel and looked inside, such an improvement from the previous handwired amps in my opinion- great components, really well laid out... The plywood cabinet is top notch, it's larger, closer in size to the ac30, but it really resonates well, much better sound than cheap fiberboard. Ventilation is good so it's not quite so bad on the tubes as a lot of other vox amps... I switched the greenback out for a Celestion Alnico Blue, which sounds better to me. Changed the tubes which was also an improvement. I might not have wanted a master volume normally, but you can bypass it- perfect! I think the quality of the fawn covering and even the plastic handle etc is actually very good, it looks nice and not cheap. Am happy to have this thing sitting in my living room. Add a little analog delay and this thing will put out some amazing tones, and it's not as loud as an ac30 so you can hit that sweet spot without shaking the neighborhood. Haven't played it in a band situation yet but I would think it would be loud enough unless you want something really clean with a loud drummer. It's an ac15 after all... but the best 1x12 I've heard!