Vox (musical equipment) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Vox is a musical equipment manufacturer which is most famous for making the Vox AC30

Vox AC30

The Vox AC30 is a guitar amplifier manufactured by Vox and known for its "jangly" high-end sound. First introduced in 1958 due to the growing demand for higher-wattage amplifiers, it became an iconic amplifier for British musicians and soon for others....

guitar amplifier

Instrument amplifier

An instrument amplifier is an electronic amplifier that converts the often barely audible or purely electronic signal from musical instruments such as an electric guitar, an electric bass, or an electric keyboard into an electronic signal capable of driving a loudspeaker that can be heard by the...

, the Vox Continental

Vox Continental

The Vox Continental is a transistor-based combo organ that was introduced in 1962. Known for its thin, bright, breathy sound, the "Connie," as it was affectionately known, was designed to be used by touring musicians...

electric organ, and a series of innovative but commercially unsuccessful electric guitar

Electric guitar

An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...

s and bass guitar

Bass guitar

The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

s. Founded in Kent

Kent

Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

, England, Vox has been owned by the Japanese electronics firm Korg

Korg

is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners...

since 1992.

Beginnings

The Jennings Organ Company was founded by Thomas Walter Jennings

Thomas Walter Jennings

Thomas Walter Jennings, also known as Tom Jennings was the founder of the company that produced the first Vox Guitar amplifier.-Beginnings:...

in Dartford

Dartford

Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....

Kent

, England after World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. Jennings's first successful product was the Univox, an early self-powered electronic keyboard similar to the Clavioline

Clavioline

The clavioline is an electronic keyboard instrument, a forerunner to the analog synthesizer.It was invented by Constant Martin in 1947. It consists of a keyboard and a separate amplifier and speaker unit. The keyboard usually covered three octaves, and had a number of switches to alter the tone of...

.

In 1956 Jennings was shown a prototype guitar amplifier made by Dick Denney, a big band guitarist and an old workmate from World War II

World War II

. The company was renamed Jennings Musical Industries, or JMI, and in 1958 the 15-watt Vox AC15 amplifier was launched. It was successful, popularized by The Shadows

The Shadows

The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...

and other British rock 'n' roll musicians.

The AC30

In 1959, with sales under pressure from the more powerful Fender Twin and from The Shadows, who requested amplifiers with more power, Vox produced what was essentially a double-powered AC15 and named it the AC30. The AC30, fitted with alnico magnet-equipped Celestion

Celestion

Celestion is a British maker of loudspeakers.-History:The work of what would become Celestion started in Hampton Wick in 1924. Celestion Radio Company and Celestion Limited were formed in 1927, and two years later the company moved across the Thames to Kingston. The company grew rapidly, but was...

"blue" loudspeakers and later Vox's special "Top Boost" circuitry, helped to produce the sound of the British Invasion

British Invasion

The British Invasion is a term used to describe the large number of rock and roll, beat, rock, and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States during the time period from 1964 through 1966.- Background :...

, being used by The Beatles

The Beatles

The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

, The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

, The Kinks

The Kinks

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...

and the Yardbirds, among others. AC30s were later used by Brian May

Brian May

Brian Harold May, CBE is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the guitarist and a songwriter of the rock band Queen...

of Queen

Queen (band)

Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

(who is known for having a wall of AC30s on stage), Paul Weller of The Jam

The Jam

The Jam were an English punk rock/New Wave/mod revival band active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They were formed in Woking, Surrey. While they shared the "angry young men" outlook and fast tempos of their punk rock contemporaries, The Jam wore smartly tailored suits rather than ripped...

(who also assembled a wall of AC30s), Rory Gallagher

Rory Gallagher

William Rory Gallagher, ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995, was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland, and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste...

, The Edge

The Edge

David Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...

of U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...

and Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

guitarists Thom Yorke

Thom Yorke

Thomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...

, Jonny Greenwood

Jonny Greenwood

Jonathan Richard Guy "Jonny" Greenwood is an English musician and composer, best known as a member of the English rock band Radiohead. Greenwood is a multi-instrumentalist, but serves mainly as lead guitarist and keyboard player. In addition to guitar and keyboard, he plays viola, harmonica,...

and Ed O'Brien

Ed O'Brien

Edward John O'Brien is an English musician, songwriter and guitarist for the rock band Radiohead. He is also responsible for harmony vocals during live concerts and on many tracks from the band's albums...

. The Vox AC30 has been used by many other artists including Mark Knopfler

Mark Knopfler

Mark Freuder Knopfler, OBE is a Scottish-born British guitarist, singer, songwriter, record producer and film score composer. He is best known as the lead guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the British rock band Dire Straits, which he co-founded in 1977...

, Hank Marvin

Hank Marvin

Hank Brian Marvin is an English guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist for The Shadows. The group, which primarily performed instrumentals, was formed as a backing band for vocalist Cliff Richard...

, Pete Townshend

Pete Townshend

Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...

, Ritchie Blackmore

Ritchie Blackmore

Richard Hugh "Ritchie" Blackmore is an English guitarist and songwriter, who was known as one of the first guitarists to fuse Classical music elements with rock. He fronted his own band Rainbow after leaving Deep Purple where he was unhappy because his favourite musical style wasn't adequately...

, John Scofield

John Scofield

John Scofield , often referred to as "Sco," is an American jazz guitarist and composer, who has played and collaborated with Miles Davis, Dave Liebman, Joe Henderson, Charles Mingus, Joey Defrancesco, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell, Pat Martino, Mavis Staples, Phil Lesh, Billy Cobham,...

, Snowy White

Snowy White

Snowy White is an English guitarist, known for having played with Thin Lizzy and with Pink Floyd and, more recently, for Roger Waters'...

, Tom Petty

Tom Petty

Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...

, Mike Campbell, Peter Buck

Peter Buck

Peter Lawrence Buck , is an American rock guitarist who is best known for playing in and co-founding alternative rock band R.E.M....

, Justin Hayward

Justin Hayward

Justin Hayward is an English musician, best known as singer, songwriter and guitarist in the rock band The Moody Blues.Hayward was born in Dean Street, Swindon, Wiltshire, England...

, Mike Nesmith, Peter Tork

Peter Tork

Peter Tork is an American musician and actor, best known as a member of The Monkees.-Early life:Tork was born Peter Halsten Thorkelson in Washington, D.C.. Although he was born in 1942, many news articles report him as born in 1944 in New York City as this was the date and place given on early...

, Noel Gallagher

Noel Gallagher

Noel Thomas David Gallagher is an English musician and singer-songwriter, formerly the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and principal songwriter of the English rock band Oasis. He is currently fronting his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.Raised in Burnage, Manchester with his...

, Matthew Bellamy

Matthew Bellamy

Matthew James Bellamy is an English musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the lead vocalist, lead guitarist, pianist, and main songwriter of the alternative rock band Muse.-Early life:...

, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

Omar Alfredo Rodríguez-López is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, writer, actor and film director who was born in Bayamón, Puerto Rico...

, Dustin Kensrue

Dustin Kensrue

Dustin Michael Kensrue is a vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist in the Orange County, California post-hardcore/experimental rock quartet Thrice, as well as a solo artist....

, and many others.

Other Amplifiers

Once The Beatles

The Beatles

became tied to Vox amplifiers (a deal was struck early in their recording career whereby they would be provided Vox equipment for exclusive stage use), the quest for more power began. John Lennon

John Lennon

John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

's first Vox was a fawn-colored twin-speaker AC15, while George Harrison

George Harrison

George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

's was a fawn AC30 with a top boost unit installed in the rear panel. They were later provided with twin black-covered AC30s with the rear panel top boost units. Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney

Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...

was provided with one of the first transistorized amplifiers, the infamous T60, which featured an unusual separate cabinet outfitted with a 12" and a 15" speaker. The T60 head had an unnerving tendency to overheat and McCartney's was no exception, so he was then provided with an AC30 head which powered the T60's separate speaker cabinet. As the crowds at Beatles shows got louder, they needed louder amps to keep up. Jennings provided Lennon and Harrison with the first AC50 piggyback units, and McCartney's AC30/T60 rig was replaced with an AC100 head and a customized T60 2x15" cabinet. Lennon and Harrison eventually got their own AC100 rigs, with 4x12"/2-horn configurations. From 1963 through 1966, The Beatles had several prototype or specially-built Vox amplifiers, including hybrid tube/solid-state units from the short-lived 4- and 7-series.

In the early 1960s the Brothers Grim became the first American group to be featured with Vox Amplifiers. Joe Benaron, CEO of Warwick Electronics Inc. / Thomas Organ Company

Thomas Organ Company

The Thomas Organ Company was a manufacturer of electronic keyboards and a one-time holder of the manufacturing rights to the Moog synthesizer. The Company was a force behind early electronic organs for the home....

, the United States distributor of Vox, along with Bernard Stockly (London), importer of Challenge pianos to the United States, arranged for the boys to have full use of the tall Super AC 100 Vox amps (4x12" speakers). The solid-state version of this amp (known in the USA as the "Super Beatle") was produced to cash in on the Beatles-Vox affiliation, but was not nearly as successful as the tube AC30 and AC15 models. A modern popular rock artist known for use of the Super Beatle is Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...

, although in the April 2008 issue of Premier Guitar, lead guitarist Mike Campbell revealed that the Super Beatle backline was, on their thirtieth anniversary tour at least, primarily used only as a stage prop, though Petty used his "on a couple of songs." (In the group's early days, the Vox equipment was chosen because it was particularly inexpensive in 1976, yet had a desirably handsome appearance.) A photograph included in the article showed Campbell's actual guitar sound was coming from other amplifiers hidden behind the large Super Beatles, which Campbell stated were "a tweed Fender Deluxe and a blackface Fender Princeton

Fender Princeton

The Fender Princeton was a guitar amplifier made by Fender. It was introduced in 1947 and discontinued in 1979. After Fender introduced the Champ Amp in 1948, the Princeton occupied the next to the bottom spot in the Fender line...

together behind the Super Beatle, and an isolated Vox AC30 that I have backstage in a box."

The Monkees obtained large empty Vox cabinets they would conceal themselves in prior to the live shows on the 1967 tour. They would be onstage with the real Vox amps they used in the performance and they would emerge from them for a grand entrance at the opening of the show.

Guitars


Vox Phantom VI	Vox Mark VI

Vox's first electric guitars, the Apache, Stroller and Clubman were modeled after solid-body, bolt-neck Fenders, which at the time were not available in the U.K. A four-string Clubman Bass followed shortly after. These first guitars were low-priced, had unusual TV connector input jacks and were produced by a cabinet maker in Shoeburyness, Essex. Vox president Tom Jennings commissioned the London Design Centre to create a unique new electric guitar, and in 1962 Vox introduced the pentagonal Phantom, originally made in England but soon after made by EKO

Eko guitars

Eko is an Italian manufacturer of electric guitars, acoustic guitars and similar instruments, catering to professional level and manufacturing largely for export...

of Italy. Aside from the unusual body and headstock shapes, Phantoms featured copies of the Fender Stratocaster neck and its attachment, the Strat's three single-coil pick-ups and standard vibrato bridge that in this case copied a Bigsby unit. Aside from being a bit awkward to hold for seated playing, the Phantom guitars now approached professional quality, performance and price. Phil "Fang" Volk of Paul Revere & the Raiders

Paul Revere & the Raiders

Paul Revere & the Raiders is an American rock band that saw considerable U.S. mainstream success in the second half of the 1960s and early 1970s with hits such as "Kicks" , "Hungry" , "Him Or Me - What's It Gonna Be?" and the 1971 No...

played a Phantom IV bass (which for was eventually retrofitted with a Fender neck). It was followed a year later by the teardrop-shaped Mark VI

Vox Mark III

The Mark is an electric guitar made by Vox. The instrument is also known as the Vox Teardrop, but this is not the official name. The Vox Mark came in three variations, a 6 string , a 9 string and a 12 string...

, the prototype of which had only two pick-ups (rather than three) and was made specifically for Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

, again using a Bigsby-like "Hank Marvin" bridge. By the end of the decade, Stones bassist Bill Wyman was shown in Vox advertisements playing a teardrop hollow-bodied bass made for him by the company, subsequently marketed as the Wyman Bass. Many guitar gear authorities dispute that he ever actually used the instrument for recording or live performance. See also Vox Bass Guitar

Vox Bass Guitar

Vox made a number of bass guitars during the 1960s, although they were not nearly as successful as their efforts in amplifiers...

. Vox experimented with built-in effects and electronics, with guitars such as the Cheetah and Ultrasonic

Vox Ultrasonic

The Vox Ultrasonic or V268 was a mid- to late-1960s hollow body thinline electric guitar. The guitar's body resembled Gibson thinline models such as the ES-335, but otherwise was quite different...

offering numerous built-in effects. Amongst many innovations were the Guitar Organ, which featured miniaturized VOX organ circuitry activated by the contact of strings with fret contacts, producing organ tones in key with guitar chords. This instrument was heavy and cumbersome with its steel neck and external circuit boxes, and rarely worked correctly, but was a hallmark of the ingenuity of this company.
In the mid 1960s, as the sound of electric 12-string guitars became popular, Vox introduced the Phantom XII, which has been used by Tony Hicks

Tony Hicks

Tony Hicks is a guitarist and singer who has been a member of the British pop group The Hollies since 1963.-Career:...

of The Hollies

The Hollies

The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...

, Captain Sensible

Captain Sensible

Captain Sensible is a singer, songwriter, guitarist who grew up in Croydon, England, and co-founded the punk rock band The Damned in 1976. After leaving the band, he reinvented himself as an alternative pop singer with a rebellious, self-conscious image...

of early English punk band The Damned and Greg Kihn

Greg Kihn

Greg Kihn is an American rock musician, radio personality and novelist.-Music:Kihn is the front man for The Greg Kihn Band, which released several singles and albums that made the charts in the early 1980s...

, and Mark XII electric 12-string guitars as well as the Tempest XII, also made in Italy, which featured a more conventional body style. The Phantom XII and Mark XII both featured a unique Bigsby style 12-string vibrato tailpiece, which made them, along with Semie Moseley

Semie Moseley

Semie Moseley was a luthier, and the founder of Mosrite guitars.He was born in Durant, Oklahoma in 1935. His family migrated to California along a path similar to many "Bakersfield Okies", first moving to Chandler, Arizona in 1938, and two years later in Bakersfield, California...

's "Ventures" model 12-string Mosrite

Mosrite

Mosrite is an American guitar manufacturing company, based in Bakersfield, California, from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. Founded by Semie Moseley, Mosrite guitars were played by many rock and roll and country artists....

, the only 12 string electric guitars to feature such a vibrato. The Stereo Phantom XII had split pickups resembling the Fender precision bass, each half of which could be sent to a separate amplifier using an onboard mix control. Vox produced a number of other models of 6 and 12 string electric guitars in both England and Italy.
Guitar effects pedals, including an early version of the wah-wah pedal

Wah-wah pedal

A wah-wah pedal is a type of guitar effects pedal that alters the tone of the signal to create a distinctive effect, mimicking the human voice...

used by Jimi Hendrix and the Tone Bender fuzzbox pedal used by Jimmy Page

Jimmy Page

James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...

of the Yardbirds were also manufactured. In 1967 Vox introduced a series of guitars which featured built in effects such as fuzz tone, "repeater" tremolo, and a wah-wah operated by the heel of the picking hand pushing on a spring-loaded lever over the bridge. The Delta phantom style guitar and bass, the Starstream teardrop 6-string, and Constellation teardrop bass had such effects.

Vox also pioneered the first radio microphone system, which freed singers from being connected by a microphone cable to their amplifier or PA.


Vox Standard 24	Vox Virage DC

Vox had experimented with Japanese manufacturers at the end of the sixties with the Les Paul style VG2, and in 1982 all guitar production was moved to Japan, where the Standard & Custom 24

Custom 24

The Vox Custom 24 was one of a group of guitars produced in Japan by the Matsumoku company between 1982-85. Matsumoku had already produced guitars for Aria and other brands such as Westbury and were recognised as leaders in performance, innovation and quality. The electronics in these guitars were...

& 25 guitars and basses were built by Matsumoku

Matsumoku

Matsumoku Industrial was established around 1900 as a woodworking manufacturer of various items but is best known as a manufacturer of high quality guitars and bass guitars.- History :...

, the makers of Aria guitars

Aria (guitar company)

Aria is a Japanese manufacturer of acoustic and electric guitars and basses.- History :Aria was formed in Japan in 1953 by Shiro Arai as Arai and Company. They began retailing acoustic guitars in 1960, although the company didn't actually start manufacturing their own until 1964. Aria arranged for...

. These are generally regarded as the best quality guitars ever built under the Vox name. However, they were discontinued in '85 when production was moved to Korea and they were replaced by the White Shadow models, although a number of White Shadow M Series guitars and basses are clearly marked as made in Japan, suggesting a phased production hand-over.

In March 2008, Vox unveiled the semi-hollow Vox Virage DC (double cutaway) and SC (single cutaway) at the NAMM show

NAMM Show

The NAMM Show is one of the largest music product trade shows in the world, founded in 1901. It is held every January in Anaheim, California, USA, at the Anaheim Convention Center...

. Notable characteristics include a 3D contoured ergonomic design which not only had an arch top, but also bent back from the neck toward the base of the guitar hugging the player's body. The guitar body was milled from a single block of wood and had a fitted face in combinations of mahogany and ash. A new triple coil pickup system designed by DiMarzio called the Three-90 emulates a humbucker, P-90

P-90

The P-90 is a single coil electric guitar pickup produced by Gibson since 1946. Having a more complex architecture and larger dimensions than Fender's single coils, it is occasionally mistaken for a humbucker.- History :...

, or single-coil tone.

In 2009, Vox refined the Virage design with the Virage II series of guitars. This series repeated the double and single cutaway bodies of the earlier Virage series, but also included the Series 77 (with double horns emulating the Gibson SG series), the Series 55 (with resemblance to the Gibson Les Paul single cutaway), and the Series 33 (with lower cost fabrication than the 77 and 55 series). The Virage II series features a CoAxe pickups which resemble the earlier Three-90 features, but claimed to be lower noise. The one-piece cast MaxConnect bridge of this series is aluminum and provides both a saddle and anchor for the guitar strings.

Organs

The Vox brand was also applied to Jennings's electronic organs, most notably the Vox Continental

Vox Continental

of 1962, whose distinctive trademark "wheedling" tone was immortalized by Alan Price

Alan Price

Alan Price is an English musician, best known as the original keyboardist for the English band The Animals, and for his subsequent solo work....

on the Animals

The Animals

The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...

' track "House of the Rising Sun", and later used by Paul Revere of Paul Revere & the Raiders

Paul Revere & the Raiders

, as well as Ray Manzarek

Ray Manzarek

Raymond Daniel Manzarek, Jr., better known as Ray Manzarek , is an American musician, singer, producer, film director, writer, co-founder and keyboardist of The Doors from 1965 to 1973, Nite City from 1977–1978 and Manzarek-Krieger since 2001.Manzarek is listed #4 on Digital Dreamdoor's "100...

on most songs recorded by The Doors

The Doors

The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...

and by John Lennon

John Lennon

on The Beatles

The Beatles

' track "I'm Down

I'm Down

"I'm Down" is a song by the Beatles written by Paul McCartney and first released as the B-side to the single "Help!" in 1965.-Composition:...

", both in the studio and live at their 1965 Shea Stadium

Shea Stadium

William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...

concert. Doug Ingle

Doug Ingle

Doug Ingle is a founding member and former organist, vocalist and primary composer for the band Iron Butterfly. He also had a short stint with the pop group Stark Naked and the Car Thieves in the early 1970s after he left Iron Butterfly.- Biography :Ingle's father Lloyd, a church organist,...

of Iron Butterfly

Iron Butterfly

Iron Butterfly is a US psychedelic rock band best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".Their heyday was the late 1960s, but the band has been reincarnated with various members. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the 31st best-selling album in the world, selling more than 25 million copies.-History:The...

used it on "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" and other songs of the group. Mike Smith of The Dave Clark Five

The Dave Clark Five

The Dave Clark Five were an English pop rock group. Their single "Glad All Over" knocked The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" off the top of the UK singles charts in January 1964: it eventually peaked at No.6 in the United States in April 1964.They were the second group of the British Invasion,...

and Rod Argent of The Zombies

The Zombies

The Zombies are an English rock band, formed in 1961 in St Albans and led by Rod Argent, on piano and keyboards, and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group scored a UK and US hit in 1964 with "She's Not There"...

were also made frequent use of the instrument. Peter Tork

Peter Tork

of the Monkees can be seen playing the unusual looking Vox organs several times during the Monkees TV series (1966–1968). In newer popular music, the organist Spider Webb of the UK garage band The Horrors

The Horrors

The Horrors are an English band from Southend on Sea, formed in 2005. Their debut Strange House, was released in 2007 and reached number thirty-seven on the UK Albums Chart, their second album Primary Colours was released in 2009 and peaked at number 25 in the UK...

can be seen using a Vox Continental. A famous Vox organ riff can be heard on "96 Tears" by Question Mark & the Mysterians. Benmont Tench

Benmont Tench

Benjamin Montmorency Tench, III is an American keyboardist best known as a founding member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.-Early years:...

of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...

has frequently used his vintage 1965 single Continental in the studio with the band since 1976 and still uses the instrument today. Another famous signature Vox organ sound was created by Augie Meyers when playing with the Sir Douglas Quintet, as heard in the songs Mendocino and She's About a Mover.
The Continental and other Vox organs such as the Jaguar, the Continental II, Super Continental, and the Continental 300 share characteristic visual features including orange and black vinyl coverings, stands made of chromed steel tubing, and reversed black and white keys. The English wood key single manual Continental (V301J) has become increasingly collectible, although the wood key American-built (V301H) and plastic key Italian-built models (V301E, V301E/2 and V302E) are also commanding premium prices. Jennings sold production rights for the Vox Continental organ to an Italian subsidiary of Thomas Organ in 1967. Under the new production agreement, the Continental was gradually and subtly altered in quality and sound, and reliability became questionable. For example, Ray Manzarek

Ray Manzarek

of The Doors

The Doors

The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...

had been using a Vox since 1966, but could no longer trust it during performances because of the problems in quality after 1967, and thus was forced to look elsewhere for an organ. He settled on the Gibson Kalamazoo, because it had a flat top like the Vox Continental, so it could accommodate the physical requirements of the Fender Rhodes

Rhodes piano

The Rhodes piano is an electro-mechanical piano, invented by Harold Rhodes during the fifties and later manufactured in a number of models, first in collaboration with Fender and after 1965 by CBS....

Piano Bass, which was the bass instrument for The Doors in concert.

GuitarOrgan

In 1966, Vox introduced the problematic V251 GuitarOrgan

Guitorgan

A Guitorgan is an electric guitar with electronic organ components added. Each guitar fret is separated into six segments, creating independent contact switches for each string. The organ notes are keyed when a string touches a specific segment...

, a Phantom VI guitar with internal organ electronics. John Lennon

John Lennon

was given one in a bid to secure an endorsement, though this never panned out. According to Up-Tight: the Velvet Underground Story, Brian Jones

Brian Jones

Lewis Brian Hopkins Jones , known as Brian Jones, was an English musician and a founding member of the Rolling Stones....

of the Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

also tried one; when asked by the Velvets if it "worked", his answer was negative.

The V251 connects to a mains power-supply unit via DIN plugs and a four-conductor cable (power, guitar output, organ output and common). The PSU in turn has individual amplifier outputs for guitar and organ.

Organ tones are sounded in one of three ways; in 'normal' mode, by pressing any string onto a fret; in 'percussion' mode, by fretting any string and touching the included brass plectrum (connected to a short wire plugged into a socket on the scratchplate) onto any metal part of the guitar; or by pressing one of the six 'open string' buttons. There is an option to silence the lowest two strings, and the organ section, as a whole, can also be switched off. There is a four-position octave selector, a six-position effect selector, a four-way selector for the percussion, and a flute selector.

The guitar section is equipped with two Vox pickups, a three-way selector, and conventional volume and tone controls. In common with Phantom models, it has a Bigsby-style tremolo unit, a fixed-intonation bridge and individual Vox-branded tuners.

The V251 is somewhat awkward to play as the neck is wider at the nut end than at the body, and a player's natural tendency to bend a string results in it slipping off the divided fret. Additionally, at nearly 9 lbs, it is very heavy, as might be expected.

The instrument never became popular though it was a precursor to the modern guitar synthesizer. Ian Curtis

Ian Curtis

Ian Kevin Curtis was an English singer and lyricist, famous for leading the post-punk band Joy Division. Joy Division released their debut album, Unknown Pleasures, in 1979 and recorded their follow-up, Closer, in 1980...

of Joy Division

Joy Division

Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...

is sometimes believed to have used a GuitarOrgan, but he actually used a Phantom VII special with onboard effects.

Decline

Vox grew very big very fast. In 1964 Tom Jennings, in order to raise capital for JMI's expansion, sold controlling interest in JMI to the Royston Group, a British holding company, and sold American rights to the California-based Thomas Organ Company. Displeased with the direction his old company was taking, he left the company in 1967, roughly the same time that Marshall overtook Vox as the dominant force in the British guitar amplifier market. While Royston's Vox Sound Equipment division set up new operations in the Kent town of Erith, Tom Jennings set up a new company in his old Dartford location, joined later by Dick Denney. Jennings Electronic Industries operated for several years, making an updated and rebadged version of the AC30 along with other amplifiers, as well as a new range of organs.

Meanwhile Royston, due to the loss of a lucrative government contract in one of its other companies, went into liquidation in 1969. As a result, Vox went through a series of owners including a British bank and Dallas-Arbiter. The AC30 continued to be built alongside newer solid-state amps, but in a series of cost-cutting moves different loudspeakers with ceramic magnets began to be used, as were printed circuit boards and solid-state rectification. Particleboard replaced some plywood parts in cabinet construction, and at one point an all-solid-state version was introduced alongside the classic tube-powered model. Rose-Morris, Marshall Amplification's British distributor, bought Vox in the 1980s when their deal with Marshall ended. They tried to reinvigorate the Vox brand, continuing to build the AC30 along with a few other decent modern designs. In 1990 they sold the company to Korg.

Meanwhile in Sepulveda, Thomas Organ, after importing JMI's British-made amps for a short period in 1964-65, began to produce a line of mostly solid-state amplifiers in the United States that carried the Vox name and cosmetic stylings. With some assistance from Dick Denney, these amps basically paralleled JMI's own transistorized amplifiers but were different from the British and Italian made Voxes in sound and reliability. To promote their equipment, Thomas Organ built the Voxmobile, a Ford

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

roadster dressed up to look like a Phantom guitar, complete with a Continental organ and several "Beatle" amplifiers. Despite the huge marketing effort, Thomas Organ's Vox products did much to damage the reputation of Vox in the North American market for many years. By 1968, the company had also marketed a line of Vox drum sets (actually made by a German drum company, known as Trixon

Trixon Drums

Trixon was a drum and percussion instrument manufacturer, founded on September 18, 1947 by Karl-Heinz Weimer in Hamburg, Germany. Trixon drums are remarkable for their innovations in drum construction, including conical and ellipsoidal shaped shells, and unique designs in mounting hardware...

), which included a kit that featured a conical-shaped bass (kick) drum, that looked more like a wastepaper basket left on its side, and another with a bass (kick) drum, that looked like a flat tire. Gimmicks like this didn't help sales and by the early 1970s Vox's American presence was virtually nonexistent.

Renewal

Vox Amplification Ltd. has been owned by Korg

Korg

is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners...

since 1992. Korg revived the tube rectifier

Rectifier

A rectifier is an electrical device that converts alternating current , which periodically reverses direction, to direct current , which flows in only one direction. The process is known as rectification...

and alnico

Alnico

Alnico is an acronym referring to iron alloys which in addition to iron are composed primarily of aluminium , nickel and cobalt , hence al-ni-co, with the addition of copper, and sometimes titanium. Alnico alloys are ferromagnetic, with a high coercivity and are used to make permanent magnets...

speaker

Loudspeaker

A loudspeaker is an electroacoustic transducer that produces sound in response to an electrical audio signal input. Non-electrical loudspeakers were developed as accessories to telephone systems, but electronic amplification by vacuum tube made loudspeakers more generally useful...

s for their version of the AC30 in what is considered the most faithful version of the amp produced for many years. Korg have also used the Vox name for a new range of digital modelling amps. In 2005 manufacturing was moved to China, including a yet-newer redesign of the venerable AC30, designated the AC30CC, which has now been superseded by the AC30C. A hand-wired, heritage version, the AC30H2 (and the wooden cased AC30H2L) were also produced.

Valvetronix

Recently Vox has emerged as a leader in the digital amp modeling market with the release of its Valvetronix line of digital amplifier modelers. Utilizing Korg's REMS modeling software, the Valvetronix are driven via a low-power tube power amp stage. The latest line, the AD15VT / AD30VT / AD50VT / AD100VT, has received many awards and much praise for its recreation of eleven classic guitar amplifiers at a price considered affordable. The company did not reveal which non-Vox amplifiers were modeled in the product manual. The eleven amplifier types as named on the dial are

Boutique CL
Black 2x12 (based on 1965 Fender Twin Reverb)
Tweed 4x10 (based on 1959 Fender Bassman
Fender Bassman
The Fender Bassman was a bass amplifier introduced by Fender in 1952. Although it was originally designed for bass guitars, it was frequently used for normal electric guitar in rock and roll, blues, and country bands.-History:...

)
AC15 (original Vox amp)
AC30TB (original Vox amp)

UK '70s
UK '80s
UK Modern
US NuMetal
US HiGain
US TweakGain
Boutique O.D

As for the newer models, who feature 22 models, in order from green to red mode, these models are & are based upon:

Boutique CL / Modded CL: Dumble Overdrive (Clean)/Fender Showman (Dumble Modded)
Deluxe Tweed / Tweed 2X12: Fender Tweed Deluxe/Fender '57 Twin Amp
Super 4X10 / Tweed 4X10: Fender Super Reverb/Fender Tweed Bassman
AC15 TB / AC15: Vox AC15 (1960's Top Boost)/VOX AC15 (1950's EF86)
AC30HH / AC30TB: Vox AC30HH / VOX AC30 Top Boost
Express Train / Boutique OD: Trainwreck Express/Dumble Overdrive (Overdrive)
AC50CP2 / AC30BM: Vox AC50CP2/Vox AC30BM Brian May
UK 25TH / UK '80S: Marshall 2555 Slash Jubilee / Marshall JCM800
US '90S / Cali Metal: Peavey 6505 / Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier
UK Modern / UK '90S: Marshall JVM / Marshall JCM2000
Boutique Metal / Metal Bull: Diezel VH4 / VHT Pittbull

Valvetronix XL-Series

The valvetronix XL-series builds on the success of the original valvetronix digital amplifier. A range of tube-powered modelling amplifiers, with hi-gain sounds designed to span the entire range of heavy rock music. The XL-series uses VOX's patented Valve Reactor technology, producing the sound and feel of an all-tube amp.
Models: AD15VT-XL 15-watt 1x10" speaker, AD30VT-XL 30-watt 1x12" speaker, AD50VT-XL 50-watt 2x12" speakers, AD100VT-XL 100-watt 2x12" speakers.
Each amplifier has eleven inbuilt amp sounds:

Glass
Funked
Buzzsaw
Crunched
Thrashed
Raged
Modern
Fluid
Molten
Black
Damaged

Hi-quality modern effects are also built in, giving more control over the output:

Octave
Comp
Comp + Phaser
Comp + Chorus
Chorus + Delay
Chorus + Reverb
Flanger + Reverb
Tremolo + Reverb
Rotary + Reverb
Delay
Reverb

Cooltron

In addition to the Valvetronix, Vox has developed a line of analog effects pedals. Dubbed Cooltron, the line provides guitarists with vintage sounding overdrive, compression, boost, distortion, and tremolo

Tremolo

Tremolo, or tremolando, is a musical term that describes various trembling effects, falling roughly into two types. The first is a rapid reiteration...

. The pedals utilize low-power 12AU7 tubes to create vintage soft-clipping preamplification. Two of the Cooltron pedals, the Big Ben Overdrive, and the Bulldog Distortion, won the Guitar World Magazine

Guitar World

Guitar World is a monthly music magazine devoted to guitarists. It contains original interviews, album and gear reviews and guitar and bass tablature of approximately five songs each month. The magazine is published 13 times per year...

Platinum Award.
Cooltron pedals:

Bulldog Distortion
Brit Boost
Big Ben Overdrive
Duel Overdrive
Over the Top Boost
Snake Charmer Compressor
VibraVOX

External links

Vox Amplification homepage
The Vox Showroom , a Vox Amps online resource.
The History of Vox Amplifiers by Jim Miller
Vox Guitars.info The Vox Guitars Book
Vox Wah Pedals - Reference, Reviews and Price Guide
TV show "I've Got a Secret" featuring the V251 GuitarOrgan.
The Guitar Collection features the earliest Vox Shadow and a 1980's White Shadow

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.