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Summary of Contents for Valvetronix

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Page 2: ... equipment grounding conductor and a grounding plug The plug must be plugged into an appropriate outlet that is properly installed and grounded in accordance with all local codes and ordinances DANGER Improper connection of the equipment grounding conductor can result in a risk of electric shock Check with a qualified electrician or serviceman if you are in doubt as to whether the product is prope...

Page 3: ...n FX 13 ii External Control OF Modulation Speed 14 iii Programmable Noise Reduction NR 14 6 Delay Section 15 7 Reverb Section 16 8 Bypass Original Value Section 16 9 Bank Manual Write Tuner Channel Section 17 10 Power Switch 18 B The Rear Panel 19 Storing Stuff Writing Stuff More 21 Program Select Mode 21 Recalling A Program 22 Switching Between Programs 23 Writing and Storing Your Own Program 23 ...

Page 4: ...haviour What s What And What Does What 36 A Pedal Points 36 B Amp Models 39 Troubleshooting 50 Techno Talk yawn General Valvetronix Specifications 53 A United States patent has been obtained for Valve Reactor technology Patents are pending in other countries As of July 2001 Company names product names and names of formats etc are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners ...

Page 5: ...p they have to possess experience and expertise in both digital engineering modeling and amp design manufacture After all if they fall short in either area the end product is not gonna be all it can be and as a result both its tone and its guitar friendly nature hey you want an easy to operate guitar amp not a com plex computer right will suffer big time We re happy to report that your new Val vet...

Page 6: ...odeled The Valve Reactor power stage is to all intents and purposes a bona fide valve tube push pull power amplifier but in miniature It utilizes a 12AX7 valve a dual triode device meaning two valves in one and is equipped with an output transformer just like a real valve amp Instead of connecting directly to the loudspeaker though this transformer is connected to a specially designed VariAmp Powe...

Page 7: ...deled These characteristics include Class A or Class A B operation Presence and Resonance low end control circuitry both found in the negative feedback circuit that some but not all valve power amps have and power output Being able to match such vital characteristics except power output which is user defined helps ensure that each and every one of our models is as tonally authentic as possible as ...

Page 8: ...u go any further Why So you can see the pretty pictures of the Top Panel and Rear Panel it contains while you re going through the Quick Start that s why CHECKING OUT THE 32 FACTORY PRESET PROGRAMS 1 Turn the MASTER Volume Control on the amp all the way down 2 Plug one end of the supplied power cord into the AC POWER CONNECTOR on the rear panel of the amp and the other end into the wall 3 Make sur...

Page 9: ...can be found on the back of the fold out rear cover of this manual before you reset the amp See the ORIGINAL VALUE LED section on page 26 if you wanna know how to do this 7 Hold down the Up and Down Cursor Buttons the ones right next to the BANK DISPLAY window and the TUNER CANCEL Button that is next to em and while you re holding all three of them down at the same time switch the amp s POWER Swit...

Page 10: ...Tone and is a lush clean program that is best suited for your neck rhythm pickup How do you get to it Easy just press the CHANNEL 2 button and you re there And notice how seamless the transition from program 1 1 to 1 2 was none of those horrible holes of silence that plague the switching on so many digital devices this bad boy switches instantly 12 To get to the next program 1 3 all you do is hit ...

Page 11: ...ou notice that Program 1 4 was still up and running This cool feature ensures seamless program switching in between any of the Banks your next program isn t chosen until you hit a Channel button STEP ON IT If you get yourself the optional VC 4 VOX Foot Controller you ll be able to switch seamlessly between all 32 programs with it So what are you waiting for get one 15 There is no step 15 amigo Thi...

Page 12: ...his believe it or not is where you plug your guitar into the amp There are two 2 input jacks to choose from High Low HIGH high sensitivity Strictly speaking yeah right a high sensitivity input jack such as this is always recommended for use with a guitar loaded with low output pickups such as sin gle coils This said most guitarists ignore this recommendation imagine that and use this input for axe...

Page 13: ...ner of this section lights up So whenever you call up a program and this LED is off it means the Pedal Section is OFF bypassed Just in case some of the abbreviations we ve used aren t 100 clear the ten pedals on offer are PEDAL Selector Switch This lets you select one of the ten stompboxes on offer or bypass the section OFF Turn to page 36 for more information on each of the pedals modeled here ST...

Page 14: ...allows you to select any one of our sixteen 16 stunningly accurate amp models each of which is based on an accepted all tube classic including the leg endary VOX AC30TBX As already mentioned in the intro to this manual each model not only replicates the exact gain and tonal characteristics of the original amp s preamp circuit it also reconfigures the all important power amp stage too in terms of b...

Page 15: ...selected Once again please turn to the AMP MODELS Section on page 39 for more information concerning this NOTE In keeping with the originals certain models will produce almost no sound when these three tone controls are turned all the way down counterclockwise NOTE Not all of the original amps that we modeled house controls for Treble Middle and Bass For example the amp we based TWEED 1x12 on only...

Page 16: ...ER Volume Control As is the case with all Master Volume controls this knob enables you to adjust the overall volume of your Valvetronix combo VERY IMPORTANT NOTE The MASTER Volume Control is NOT programmable COOL N IMPORTANT ASIDE The Valvetronix Virtual FX loop he next three areas we re gonna look at are the MODULATION DELAY REVERB sections of your amp And just so you know all three of em are pla...

Page 17: ...trol and set noise reduction NR too i MODULATION FX TYPE Button This button enables you to select a Modulation effect or not When a particular effect is chosen the red LED to its left will light up If no effect type is selected i e none of the five LEDs are on the Modulation Section is bypassed turned off STEP ON IT If you own the optional VC 4 Foot Controller you can use the foot pedal it houses ...

Page 18: ...OF MODULATION SPEED EX CON External Control Button As already hinted when this button is activated the LED above it will light up when it is you can adjust the Speed of your chosen MODULATION effect using the pedal on the optional VC 4 VOX Foot Controller Told you this pedal was cool so what are you waiting for man Drop everything and buy one NOW iii PROGRAMMABLE NOISE REDUCTION NR NR Noise Reduct...

Page 19: ...y professionals prefer these lo fi units because of the warm dark echoes they produce MULTI HEAD This is a model of a tape echo unit boasting two playback heads and both are being used Furthermore each of the two resulting ech oes one from each head has its own feedback loop The result A complex and warm multi tap echo effect TAP Button This button enables you to set the delay time by merely tappi...

Page 20: ...s professional recording studios DEPTH Control This knob enables you to adjust the depth level of the chosen Reverb from sub tle to cavernous REPEATED HINT FOR THE THIRD AND LAST TIME If you add REVERB to a program and you can t hear the effect make sure the BYPASS BUTTON 8 isn t engaged If it is the ORIGINAL VALUE LED directly above it will be on and this means that everything in the virtual FX l...

Page 21: ...number 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 or a note name during tuning See page 30 for more details on tuning UP and DOWN Buttons Use these buttons to select one of the eight 8 program banks MANUAL Mode Press both UP and DOWN buttons simultaneously to enter Manual Mode See page 28 for specific details of this highly useful mode WRITE Button This button is used when you want to store a new program FYI storing a new p...

Page 22: ...s are used in the tuning process 10 POWER SWITCH As amazing as it may seem this switch turns the power to the unit on or off And get this when the power switch is on the indicator above the switch lights up Providing the amp s power cord is plugged into a working outlet of course ...

Page 23: ...ks and sound 2 Do NOT use a speaker cabinet with a Wattage rating that is less than 60 Watts or less than the output power you ve selected with the POWER SELECT Control 5 If you ignore this warning you could end up blowing a speaker and that s not recommended 3 ALWAYS use speaker cables unshielded to connect external speakers NEVER use a guitar shielded cable WARNING If a cabinet with an impedance...

Page 24: ...ORTANT NOTE If have an external effects processor that only has a single Mono input and you want to use it in the LOOP of the AD120VT please use the amp s Left L SEND not the Right R one 5 LEVEL Control This enables you to adjust the output level volume of the PHONE OUT jack 6 and the LINE OUT jack s 7 6 PHONE OUT Jack Connect your headphones here The output is Mono on the AD60VT and Stereo on the...

Page 25: ...in fact we already did that in the QUICK START section see also page 4 In this section we re gonna get into recalling programs switching between pro grams and even writing your own And don t worry it s all so simple even your drummer could do it So let s get to it PROGRAM SELECT MODE Providing you aren t using the built in tuner page 30 in Manual Mode page 28 or half way through either recalling s...

Page 26: ...ering Program Write Pro gram Recall Tuner Mode or Manual Mode this will only happen if you can remember the channel number of the program you were previously using and press that CHANNEL button If you can t remember the channel number the only way can you ensure you return to the program you were using is by following steps 1 2 above RECALLING A PROGRAM The easiest way to do this is by running thr...

Page 27: ...rogram first TWEAKING AN EXISTING PROGRAM Lets say that you really like the crunchy modern rhythm sound of preset 1 3 Breakin Stuff and you d like to write a complimentary lead sound that is louder has a tad more gain more mids Chorus and Tape Echo Here s what you do STEP 1 Turn the MASTER VOLUME down and then switch the amp on duh STEP 2 Plug your guitar into the amp bigger duh STEP 3 Use the TYP...

Page 28: ...ialed in our amp model STEP 7 Using the AMP TYPE Selector Switch choose the amp you wanna use STEP 8 Dial in the GAIN VOLUME TREBLE MIDDLE BASS and PRES ENCE controls to taste STEP 9 If you want to add any MODULATION DELAY and or REVERB hit the BYPASS switch again so the ORIGINAL VALUE LED above it goes off and then select and dial in the effect s you want REMINDER to switch off MODULATION DELAY o...

Page 29: ... If you get as far as where do you want to store your new program mode and then decide your tweaked program sucks all you ve gotta do is hit the TUNER CANCEL Button and you re outta write mode phew STEP 12 Use the UP and DOWN Buttons to select the bank you want to use and the CHANNEL Select Buttons to select the channel STEP 13 Hit WRITE again and you re done Hey who decided 13 was an unlucky numb...

Page 30: ...t exactly how the controls for any MODULATION DELAY REVERB effects being used are dialed in shortly Detour over let s get back to the wondrous workings of the ORIGINAL VALUE LED As mentioned earlier when we were going through the Top Panel of your amp the ORIGINAL VALUE LED also acts as the indicator for the BYPASS Button which when engaged bypasses the MODULATION DELAY and REVERB sections of the ...

Page 31: ... right one knob at a time and you already know what to do right Yes you ve got it slowly but surely rotate the GAIN control through its full range of movement while keeping an eagle eye on our helpful pal the ORIGINAL VALUE LED When you reach the setting the ORIGINAL VALUE LED will let you know STEP 7 Do exactly the same for the VOLUME TREBLE MIDDLE BASS and PRESENCE controls duh STEP 8 So we ve a...

Page 32: ...DULATION DELAY and REVERB section As far as they go what you see is what you get remember 2 The delay time you set up for the DELAY providing you tap one in of course 3 Whether or not EX CTL is selected in the MODULATION section 4 Any NOISE REDUCTION NR changes you make SWITCHING TO MANUAL MODE To get to MANUAL MODE from either Program Select Mode or Tuner Mode sim ply press the UP and DOWN button...

Page 33: ...UP and or the DOWN button Doing this will auto matically take you back to the last program you were using or 2 Hit any one of the CHANNEL SELECT Buttons this will take you to the last bank you were using and whatever channel number you press to get out of MANUAL MODE take your choice ...

Page 34: ...s in the BANK Display is indicated by the LEDs for CHANNEL 1 CHANNEL 2 and CHANNEL 3 These three LEDs act as the built in tuner s needle When the note you re playing is exactly in tune with the note name indicated in the BANK Display the CHAN NEL 2 LED is the only one that lights up If it is slightly flat the CHANNEL 1 LED will light up to tell you Likewise if the note you are playing is slightly ...

Page 35: ...you switch your Valvetronix combo on If desired you can recalibrate the tuner in the range of A 438Hz to A 445Hz Here s how you do it Activate the Tuner and then while holding down the TUNER CANCEL button use the UP and DOWN buttons in the BANK section to scroll through the recalibra tion options The lowest digit of the A frequency will appear in the BANK display as shown below When the BANK displ...

Page 36: ...ram needs tweaking then go ahead and tweak the sucker After all it s your amp right In short USE YOUR EARS WHAT S ON THE FACTORY PRESET PROGRAM MENU HEALTHY PLAYING NOTE None of the below dishes contain any cheese BANK 1 1 1 Flying High Screaming lead tone that s bound to cause eruptions 1 2 Def Tone Nice n clean Perfect for AOR power ballad hysteria 1 3 Breakin Stuff Mayhemic modern rip yer face ...

Page 37: ...tbreaking rock riffage 2 3 Vulgar To get any closer you ll need a purple goatee Hostile 2 4 Dirty Ol Man Filthy but cleans up nicely when you turn your axe down BANK 3 3 1 Tasty Flange Clean compressed n flanged 3 2 Cream Badge A tried n tested Rotary recipe topped with a creamy sauce 3 3 Nativity in Black The metal tone that started it all None more black 3 4 Super Natural A spicy Latin dish over...

Page 38: ...E BLACK 2x12 SPRING 4 3 Crossfire Crunch TUBE OD TWEED 4 x10 TAPE SPRING 4 4 Clean Trem BLACK 2 x12 TREMOLO SPRING PROGRAM PEDAL AMP TYPE MODULATION DELAY REVERB 1 1 Dirt RECTO 1 2 Mr Clean BOUTIQ CL CHORUS SPRING 1 3 Unchain US HIGAIN FLANGER TAPE ROOM 1 4 Sweet Child TUBE OD BOUTIQ OD TAPE ROOM 2 1 Alabama s Home COMP TWEED 1x12 PHASER SPRING 2 2 Large Led Balloon UK 70S ROOM 2 3 Vulgar TREBLE B...

Page 39: ...ges you ve made in MANUAL MODE Right now that the important notes are taken care of let s run through how you reset your Valvetronix combo back to the original factory programs 1 If your amp is on switch it off 2 Hold down the and TUNER CANCEL Buttons at the same time and then switch the amp on while you re still pressing the three buttons If you ve done this correctly a will be flashing in the BA...

Page 40: ...n to lead lines clean or dirty CONTROL QUIRKS DRIVE Adjusts the sensitivity of the compressor i e when its smoothing effect kicks in The amount of compression sustain will increase the more you turn this control up 2 ACOUSTIC Acoustic Simulator Wanna go unplugged without the hassle of switching guitars and amps Enter the acoustic guitar simulator a clever effect that magically converts an electric...

Page 41: ... range of their Wah pedal and then leave it there This is often called stuck Wah imagine that and when used tastefully can be very effective as it produces a very distinctive sound that will cut through any mix You can dial in a stuck Wah sweet spot with your DRIVE control in a heartbeat Try it it s cool STEP ON IT Reason to buy a VC 4 number 174 Yep you ve guessed it you can use the pedal part of...

Page 42: ...way these pedals are deal with it dude 7 TREBLE BOOST This pedal effect is modeled after a treble booster that was designed with the VOX AC30 specifically in mind It is a great way of adding teeth to an overdriven sound check out presets 1 3 Tie Mama Down classic rock 3 3 Nativity in Black old school metal 2 2 Vulgar modern hi gain fueled brutality if you don t believe me 8 TUBE OD This model is b...

Page 43: ... ing the accuracy of any of our models This means you ll be able to mimic the full tonal spectrum of each and every one of the originals we ve modeled and then some thanks to the extra flexibility and additional control the six Valvetronix amp controls give you For example if an original doesn t have a Gain Control AC15 AC15TB AC30 AC30TB UK BLUES UK 70S BLACK 2x12 TWEED 1x12 and TWEED 4x10 the Va...

Page 44: ...ke sure that we cover it Such things will be revealed in the model descriptions that follow shortly TUBE TALK Us Brits call em valves while our US cousins call em tubes as the saying goes England and America are merely two countries divided by a common language Anyway call em what you will these wondrous glass bottles lie at the tonal heart of each of our 16 models As all the amps we ve modeled ha...

Page 45: ...e overall sound Thanks to the awesome accuracy of our Valve Reactor power amp the same is also true of your Valvetronix combo For this rea son we heartily recommend that you crank the sucker up as often as possible And as I ve literally just pointed out thanks to our unique POWER SELECT control you have a choice of output Wattages that ll suit every occasion from bedroom to garage to gig and all p...

Page 46: ...shion turn it up for more sparkle turn it down for less Original s valve compliment 1 x EF86 3 x ECC83s 1 x ECC82 in preamp 1 x EZ81 rectifier 2 x EL84s in power amp 2 AC15TB While the AC15 was born in the late 50S the AC15TB is a modern day child of the 90S which combines the sweet n desirable tonal characteristics of the AC15 s low Wattage power stage with the increased tonal flexibility that th...

Page 47: ...iving force behind the now legendary British Invasion the name given to the huge wave of success that several English bands enjoyed in America during the 60S This charge was led by a quartet hailing from Liverpool who quickly became Vox s most famous ambassadors ever We ve modeled the sterling sounds of the AC30 s Normal channel as they definitely encapsulate those classic tones that defined the a...

Page 48: ...s standard Once again the PRESENCE control of our model acts as the original s Cut but in reverse off cut while the GAIN TREBLE and BASS mimic the origi nal s Volume Treble and Bass controls The MIDDLE is an extra with 12 o clock being its neutral position Our AC30TB model produces clean sounds that are rich and jangly with a smooth yet detailed top end and overdrives that have a glorious throaty ...

Page 49: ...he GAIN control all the way up and immerse yourself in an instantly recognizable organic overdrive that responds beautifully to the subtle dynamics of your playing and dominates classic rock Rolling back your guitar s volume con trol results in a unique and highly useable clean sound Original s valve compliment 3 x ECC83s in preamp 4 x EL34s in power amp 7 UK 80S This is modeled on a 1983 all tube...

Page 50: ...ggressive tone breathing monster capable of mondo gain while retaining individual note definition With the GAIN control on full UK MODERN allows lead lines to soar into soulful feedback while its low end chunk remains tight and punchy Wimps beware Original s valve compliment 4 x ECC83s in preamp 4 x EL34s in power amp 10 RECTO This bad boy is based on the Modern High Gain channel of a brutal 150 W...

Page 51: ...y respected 100 Watt head named the Overdrive Special This custom order handwired beauty has a spectacular overdriven sound that s perfect for sax like legato soloing With its GAIN control wide open BOUTIQUE OD produces a stun ning sustain which is very smooth and very soulful can you say woman tone Original s tube compliment 3 x 12AX7s in preamp 4 x EL34s in power amp 13 BOUTIQUE CL For this amp ...

Page 52: ...SENCE control on your AD60VT AD120VT emulates this switch when off and on plus all points in between Original s tube compliment 4 x 12AX7s 2 x 12AT7 a k a ECC81 in preamp 4 x 6L6s in power amp TONAL HINT BLACK 2x12 is the perfect partner for ACOUSTIC Acoustic Guitar Simulator in the Pedal section 15 TWEED 1x12 The original we modeled here was born in Fullerton California in 1958 and clad in tweed ...

Page 53: ...lume setting on your guitar This means that by backing off your axe s volume when the amp is cranked you can produce a beautifully clean and full tone It also means that dynamic picking control allows you to make notes or chords more distorted or clean than others depending on how hard or how soft you pick em Another cool tonal quirk of TWEED 4x10 is the classic vintage tube amp sag its GZ34 recti...

Page 54: ... MIDDLE and BASS on certain AMP TYPES if the EQ controls are all turned down there will be little or no sound coming from the amp due to the way the circuit of the original works And if a PEDAL is being used check the DRIVE and LEVEL settings Are you in MANUAL MODE this is indicated by in the BANK Display If yes turn the following controls above their minimum setting PEDAL DRIVE PEDAL LEVEL GAIN V...

Page 55: ...IGINAL VALUE LED remaining on If it is disengage it by pressing it again so that the ORIGINAL VALUE LED goes off 6 You re using the optional VC 4 Foot Controller and you can t hear the PEDAL MODULATION DELAY and or REVERB effects you ve got dialed in Make sure the VC 4 isn t in Individual Mode which means it can switch off any or all of the above 7 You re using the ACOUSTIC pedal setting and you r...

Page 56: ...e manufactured under strict specifica tions and voltages as required by each country These products are warranted by the VOX distributor in the country where they are pur chased Any VOX product not sold with a warranty card or carrying a serial number disqualifies that product sold from the manufac ture s distributor s warranty and liability This requirement is for your own protection and safety ...

Page 57: ... RETURN 1 x FOOT CONTROLLER JACK REAR PANEL AD120VT 2 x LOOP RETURN L R 1 x FOOT CONTROLLER JACK NUMBER OF OUTPUTS REAR PANEL AD60VT 1 x LOOP SEND 1 x PHONE OUT 1 x LINE OUT 1 x EXTERNAL SPEAKER OUT REAR PANEL AD120VT 2 x LOOP SEND L R 1 x PHONE OUT 2 x LINE OUT L R 2 x EXTERNAL SPEAKER OUT L R POWER OUTPUT AD60VT 60 Watts RMS 8 ohm AD120VT 2 x 60 Watts RMS 8 ohm SPEAKERS AD60VT 1 x VOX Original 1...

Page 58: ...n 20bit D A conversion 20bit Sampling frequency 48KHz POWER SUPPLY REQUIREMENTS AC Local Voltage POWER CONSUMPTION AD60VT 73W AD120VT 135W DIMENSIONS AD60VT W X D X H 530 x 267 x 559 mm 20 87 x 10 51 x 22 00 inches AD120VT W X D X H 699 x 267 x 559 mm 27 52 x 10 51 x 22 00 inches WEIGHT AD60VT 19 6 Kg AD120VT 26 2 Kg ACCESSORIES INCLUDED Power cable OPTIONAL VC 4 VOX Foot Controller ...

Page 59: ...1 8 2 3 7 6 5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 AD120VT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 AD60VT 9 10 ...

Page 60: ...e where all the knobs are set by drawing a line in the empty circles 2 Indicate which MODULATION DELAY REVERB effects are being used by colouring in the relevant LED including EX CON 3 Don t forget to make notes on NR TAP TEMPO and POWER SELECTION in the areas indicated Wanna remember how you set up your favourite programs Well this is the place to do it Simply do as follows WORD TO THE WISE There...

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