Vox VT20X 1x8 inch 20-watt Modeling Guitar Combo Amplifier w/ DSP and Hybrid Design

Does the Model for the AC30 sound exactly like an AC30? No. But then again, you didn't PAY for an AC30. This amp is about 1/3 the cost, but gives you MORE than 1/3 the sound of the AC30. Same with all the other models.I tell people this, unless you HAVE to have that exact tone, most Modeling amps will get you where you need to be. I have a Fender GTX100 (used to have the LT-25) and BOTH are great amps. No issues, but I also really love this Amp. In fact, I doubt my GTX100 will see much action now that I have this (unless I just really need a specific Fender tone and 100W of power output)...But if you want some great tones for small club size or home / studio use? You could do a lot worse with $350....Build was as expected at this price point. It doesn't blow you away, but it absolutely doesn't seem "cheap". 40Watts to that 10" driver sounds really "whole" and the sealed cabinet really helps reinforce the low end that would likely lack in a 10" driver (over a 12" or 15"). So plenty of power for most situations. The effects aren't as nice or varied as the Fender GTX series, but it's also noticeably cheaper (so you get what you pay for effects wise) and still has most things you'll need (just not as many OF them)... The only real snag is the operation. Yes, if you're used to traditional amp knob controls, this isn't so bad. But if you really want to tune the modeling aspects, I'd suggest using the Tone Software to do it, and the panel interface is a little harder to use than say the Fender Mustang series...Overall, here is my breakdown:Fender LT-25 - Great for early beginners and people who want to try modeling amps or new players who want to explore tone without investing too much.Fender GTX100 - Full on Modeling goodness. Great Solid State Tones and TONS of amp sims. Nice Speaker, Nice output. Great unit, though it may be "too much" for some home or hobby players (so it may not feel worth the investment).This VT40X - Great midpoint between the LT-25 and the GTX100 (but the with addition of a valve preamp and some really nice VOX tones). Priced inbetween the two fenders. More features than the LT-25, less features than the GTX100.A good purchase.

I've been playing guitar for 30+ years. It was my whole life from about 14-24. Played in a world famous (well locally anyway) band. The whole 9 yards. I never had money but had to fork over enough to allow me to play with other professionals and play live frequently. So I've owned a couple of Marshalls and a Peavy. Slapped on an ADA for effects and I was off. Suffice to say I am not an audio file/sound geek. Of course I LOVE good sound as much as the next guy but rarely did I mess around with it. It was just - get a couple of good sounds and jam.So 25+ years have gone by since my last amp purchase as regular life, supporting and raising a family etc has taken over. Oddly enough, even though I am much better off than I was back in the day I decided to just start small and find something under 200 bucks. Amazon lead me to this Vox vt20x modeling Amp.I've read over the years that solid state simply cannot compete against tubes and I had heard results that certainly solidified that view. I am sure that still may be the case overall but after spending two days with this amp I must say they have come A LONG way. I will just list the pros and cons as I have come across them AND point out the one issue that I am trying to resolve regarding the volume.PROS:Price ($179 - are you kidding. My bluetooth headphones are $100 more than that)Weight and size: This thing is tiny. No more lugging around my 1/2 stack to jam with my best friend. At my age lifting the cab was not fun anymore. This thing is LIGHT.Volume: LOUD. Wow. Like I said - I haven't purchased an amp in years so my perspective is certainly dated, but I had no idea a small amp like this could get so loud without cracking. I am buying the 40 Watt just in case but I really think this thing could handle most jam sessions. My best friend is not great but he has been consistently loud since we were 16. I look forward to our next jam to test it out (will update).Controls: A ton of options but sweet out of the box. The layout is simple and almost self explanatory. That said there are a ton of options (presets and controls) so it is worth taking some time to learn. Tuner works fine. The Tone Room software (free) changes the game completely.Tone Room Software: This is where my mind exploded lol. Inside the software, which installed easily and detected the amp automatically, there are dozens of preset tones. They label these tones so most people familiar with the song would know what they are talking about and in some cases use the name of the song directly. I probably cannot play a song start to finish that is not my own BUT I can play the main riffs of countless songs over the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and beyond. So as I went along and in most cases easily matched the label of the tone to the actual song my jaw just dropped. Black Dog - play - CHECK! Day Tripper - play - CHECK! Cliffs of Dover - sort of play - CHECK! Raining Blood - play - CHECK! Sandman - CHECK! Walk This Way - CHECK! Have a Cigar - YES! Paranoid - CHECK! This went on and on. You get the picture. AGAIN - a true audiophile/purist would notice issues but to my ears when I dropped Unchained I felt like a kid again. If I owned this as a kid I never would have left my room.CONSI can only think of two cons with only one being a real issue (not enough to reduce my rating from 5 stars however).Volume Spike on preset change: this really bugged me at first. I THINK I have found an obvious solution but will be following up to be sure. Essentially when you start moving around the presets by turning the knob the volume jumps WAY up. You can see this on the software on the interface. The trick is turning the VOLUME knob on the amp all the way down and using the POWER LEVEL to control overall volume. Not sure if this is ideal but it now seems to be working fine with me. I have ordered the pedal and I hope the issue does not reappear while switching with the pedal.No DAW interface: this I think for this price and all things considered is more of an upgrade suggestion but it sure would be nice to dial this right into something to record without having to mic up. VOX - do it. This would be cool.OVERALLThere is not much more to be said. I read one review that stated you would get better use of the tube in this preamp as a light on your Christmas tree. That may be true. It's hard to tell if the warmth and quality of the sound is helped by the tube or if it's just the improvement in digital tech but I really don't care. It sounds frickin great. I'm not a big guy and I'm old (46) so I cannot lug around a big ass amp and this weighs almost nothing. On day 1 I played for 8+ hours for the first time in AGES. I went to pick up this morning to play and my fingers were toast. Going to take a few days to break them in.I am going to make a video review where hopefully I can duplicate the songs and the tones to give potential buyers a better idea of what they are getting.

I like this amp, but there one thing I don’t like as well. For example, it isn’t a grounded plug amp and if you use it just at home to practice you will have to make a ground plug cord to ground it to a wall plug. After I figured this out my practices are nice and without static hum. It looks great in my opinion and the app is easy to use with my laptop to change up my preferences. Overall I like it , it’s just stupid that I had to make a ground to rid the static hum. Just my personal opinion