VOXVX50 GTV 50-Watt 1x8 Inches Digital Modeling Combo Amplifier

This Vox VX50 GTV amp is a godsend for guitarists like me, who A. don't want to invest thousandsof dollars in pedal boards, and B. love the Vox sound but also want a good array of choices ofamp models and FX built-in, since I switch styles frequently, going mainly from jangle rock, to powerpop, to folk rock, to metal and hard rock, etc. I'm also just playing at home, solo,so I didn't need a 150 watt head and cabinet or $1000 Fender tube amp, really.I got rid of some other junk I had, including a horrendous Kustom Tube12 amp I had for years,didn't like it, and got a mini Vox G2 (which is also a neat little amp), a Roland Micro Cube,which is phenomenal in its own way for clean and chorus sounds in particular,and a 10 watt Blackstar V3 amp, which is the king of crunch channels. However,I still wanted a true Vox combo amp, and so, hearing about the VX50, I took the plunge.I love each of these new smaller combos, but my goodness, the Vox VX50 is a small dynamoof British chime and power pop goodness. You unpack it and plug it in, and don't evenrealize the power it has until you jack in and play some power chords and wahhhhh!It blows your head off!I tend to use the chorus, delay and reverb the mostand rarely, flanger or phaser. If I need better quality blues or overdrive sounds,I plug in my new Boss Blues Driver pedal, which, as good as this amp is,only makes any amp sound better, or guitarist. The built-in FX are decent, although you might want torun a few pedals to get more quality FX if that's crucial for you.This amp has some decent FX built in, and the various amp models areunbelievable. I particularly love the AC30, AC30TB (with fantastic chime and sustainjust on the verge of breaking up), and the next two higher settings, one beingI think, the Marshall JCM 800 head model for some nice crunchy high gain power pop or pseudo-metalsounds. For months I've been sitting here cranking out The Records, Stiv Bators, and Shoesand Tom Petty, Pretenders, The Who, Peter Murphy, and whatever else tunes in sheer Vox Brit combo bliss. I wouldn't buy this amp if you're a metal player, although it does have some high gain settings that might be useful for metal. I haven't even gotten to those yet. I think I used one of themfor practicing Led Zep's "The Ocean," and that got me closer to Pagey's sound.Mainly I'm running my new Telecaster through it (it'sscary how versatile that guitar is via this amp), or my 12-string acoustic-electric. That's it.This is a "tube" amp with Nu-Tube tech., but, if you're a total metal or blues purist thatwants a full tube amp sound, I would go buy a real Fender tube amp, Vox AC30, orlook to Marshall or Randall or some Mesa type high gain or metal amps. I notice you'llrarely get any horrid feedback from this amp, though I'm not running tons of pedals,and I'm not cranking it at its highest power output, nor am I running the highest-gainamp settings.This VX50 however, in a small lightweight handsome package with an easy to use interfaceup top, packs an UNBELIEVABLE power punch. At 25 watt setting (using the attenuator),it's almost sometimes too loud and I have to back down a bit on the master or gain toget under what I'm practicing to. Nearing a full 50 watts, it's probably going to be loud enoughto play a show with or bring to a band practice, easily. I haven't had any need, playing at home,thus far, to put it past about 25-30 watts. Keep in mind that this amp is rated at 50 wattsbut it's meta-tube power, so it's really a lot more powerful than it sounds on paper.My only complaints are the weird stud power buttonon the top right, I'd rather have had an old-school flip power switch. I'm babying it when Ipower her up. Also, the wall wart power cable at back is a bit flimsy on the back of ampconnection side, although I haven't had any issues with it as yet. I do notice a tiny bit oflike, hiss or noise when I've first powered her up, and plug in, but you won't hear any noisefloor when you're playing. The amp runs pretty clean as far as the signal is concerned.Some of the built-in FX like chorus or flanger may add some hiss or white noise, a tiny bit.I also use a wireless transmitter system these days, cause I got sick ofcruddy cables cutting out on me lately. Wireless works fine with this amp. The amp claimsto have bass-enhancing tech., built in, and it definitely can deliver some bass if that's whatyou need out of your guitar, I tend to keep the bass at half at most and the low-end is fine.It's not nearly as large in profile or weight as the older Vox Valvetronix amps were.In this way, it's unobtrusive, attractive, but it packs a real wallop, let me tell you.It's excellent for Beatles, power pop 80s stuff, some light metal, hard rock, classic rock,punk, etc., anything requiring some chime, jangle, chorus sounds, etc. Blues maybe,metal I doubt it. I would look elsewhere for those type of sounds. I was sitting herepracticing The Records' power pop classic "The Girl in Golden Disc" tonight, and I can literally nail their sound on that song (I think they were heavy Marshall users) with maybe the AC30TB with gain up, or the JCM Marshall model, no problem. This amp is made for that type of rock and roll. Stiv Bators' "The Last Year" ditto, can dial that sound in with ease. So much fun to have a versatile Vox amp at my feet here, and it just sounds great. The Telecaster loves it. The gain knob is almost like a second master, you have toreally watch out if you crank it really high, it will boost the volume ceiling substantially, besidesadding the usual dirt or overdrive/distortion to it.I think the Vox VX50 is a wonderful small combo amp that is spectacularly versatile,great for beginners or intermediate players, but pros in search of the Vox AC30 sound,or blues or hard rock players, will likely not be satisfied with this type of modeling amp.I think it excels at bedroom or home or practice use, maybe for a small bar or cafe show.It might be a decent little recording amp too, but I can't vouch for that.Vox fanatics might also consider the new Vox Cambridge amp, but that's open-back,and (I believe) a bit more powerful, and bit more $ as well. If you are going to beplaying out professionally, don't bother, go buy yourself a real tube VOX AC30 and don'tcompromise! But for having fun at home, or practice, this is a fantastic amp.Given the power and versatility, and quality of its sound, and compactness, I believeit's well worth the money. My Blackstar and Roland small amps are both great,but the Vox has that creamy/dreamy chimey Vox sound (plus even more) that justcannot be imitated very easily. You'll buy this if you know that's the sound you want.For some reason I found the Roland amp better for playing some Rush, butthe Vox is no slouch for stuff like that, either. The Roland just has a meatier choruseffect built-in, which is probably why it lends itself to Rush, or, The Police.That being said, I'm confident you can dial that in on the Vox VX50 as well.If you want to play Van Halen or Megadeth, well, this is NOT the amp for you!

It is a great practice amp. It has a little too much treble, and lacks the warm bass tones. Sounds just a little "tinny". It seems like it could use just a little more bulk to it. VOX is a great product overall.

I was looking for a small amp that I could use mainly for home use or the occasional small gig, and I think Vox nailed it with the GTV 50. For it's small size and light weight, this amp can get LOUD. I turned the power level up to 50 watts and cranked the volume, and my windows were rattling. You can definitely use this amp with a drummer although I recommend micing it if you want to play a gig. The attenuator is a great feature, and the amp seemed to perform well at high and low volumes.Pros1. USB Class Compliant: this was the deciding factor for me as I wanted an amp that I could use in conjunction with Quantiloop on my iPhone. The Boss Katana can not do this. By connecting the VOX to my phone and using a bluetooth midi pedal, I now have full looping capabilites with the amp and it's great for practice or writing music. I also love the fact that I can record directly into my phone or PC.2. Size: I love the small size and light weight. No, an 8" speaker is not going to sound as big as a 12" speaker and that should be obvious. For it's size, however, it has a surprisingly full sound.3. Sound/Feel: I mainly use clean to mid-gain tones, and I really enjoy the sound of this little amp. It really does sound and (more importantly) FEEL like a tube amp. I'm not a big effects guy, but the reverb and delay are more than serviceable. The modulation effects are not the best, but they do the job.4. Pedals: This amp takes drive pedals really well.Cons1. High Gain: I would not recommend this amp if you mainly use high gain tones. I've never really enjoyed Vox's high gain modeling. Honestly, I've never really enjoyed high gain tones from any modeling amp. The high gain tones on this amp are wooly and don't have a tight low end. If you plan on using significant distortion with this amp, I recommend using a distortion pedal in front of the amp.2. No Effects Loop: it would be nice to be able to insert my own modulation or time based effects in an effects loop. Not a big concern for me, however, because I use distortion pedals if that's the sound I'm going for, so I can put these effects after the pedal.3. No Direct Out: a direct out with cab simulation would have been a great addition for when you don't want to mic your amp for a gig.

I had bought a Line 6 modeling amp several years ago and it never sounded right to me. I wound up frustrated with it and sold it. The new VX50 sounds great right out of the box and it’s everything I had hoped my previous Modeling amp would be. It supplements my AC4TV practice amp and now I’ve become a loyal Vox customer.

This amp did not work for me. It did not sound as good as I was led to believe, and worse, it randomly flaked out now and then, which made it unusable. But I gotta say, I love that it's only 9 pounds! It is surprisingly loud. Enough for small gigs for sure. The trouble is, you get a guitar amplifier that sounds and acts like a 9 pound toy. Seemingly decent electronics, but they're stuffed into a plastic lunchbox. Fun to play around with but that's the end of it.

I can see this being really useful for players like me, hobbyists who like clean and crunchy sounds. The models are pleasing, the onboard FX are pretty good, the I/O capabilities are great, and the low E and high E tuner really sold me on the package over the Boss Katana or Yamaha THR.

I bought this because of the modeling aspects. I tired to follow the instructions, but even following the sparse instructions, the programming functions don't work. The software is useless as it won't write changes to the amp. The support is nonexistent, and all the forums show that this problem was known for this amp for a long time.For a regular amp using the "Clean Line" is fine, and I love the sound from there, but I could have saved a lot of money if I bought a regular amp instead.