The World’s Greatest $100 Guitar Amp - Vox Pathfinder 15R!
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- čas přidán 27. 08. 2024
- I demonstrate a Vox Pathfinder 15R guitar amp with a Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty . I play the amp both through it's internal speaker and through a 1971 Marshall 1960A 4x12 Speaker Cabinet. This amp is an insane bang for the buck.
This amp is one of the mains on our last few recordings. Love it. The best cleans I've ever heard.
I have to agree with you here Johan . This amp is fantastic . Produced between 2000-2013 and has an amazing tube like tone . Found one new in box for 50 bucks a couple of years ago. (I had to pay a little more for the Vox FS2 footwitch which was sold seperatly. 😀 )
Last time I went to Hellstone Music in Stockholm , this is the amp I was offered as a test -amp. and it was marked with capital letters : NOT FOR SALE.
Hahaha! Cheers Gary ;-)
6
This really proves the value of a great speaker cab, it's sounds fantastic through that 412. Much less so through the combo speaker.
Thanks!
I don't disagree that a good cab makes a ton of difference, but what this really shows is the difference between a lone 8" speaker and four 12" ones. An apples and oranges comparison no matter the build quality.
Another amp I own from Johan's channel. I know I make good purchases when I see it here. The Pathfinder 15R has amazing cleans. And the spring reverb is cool too.
Thanks Vic! :-)
You specifically make me bust out all my old combos and try and get better tones then I could when I was younger. This has lead to me running almost all of my old combos through my 4x12 cranked and its been fun.
I’m glad to hear that! Cheers
@@JohanSegeborn Are you using any pedals, or is this straight from the guitar into the amp? Thanks!
“Than”
@@helethead You have the power to talk to anyone across the world at any seccond and you choose to correct a misspelling.
@@madmod “second”
I bought mine new, back in 2011. It has sat in my spare room, unopened in the original box ever since. I went to sell it this week, but when I looked at it again I changed my mind. I gave up playing due to severe arthritis in my hands, but this little amp is just a joy to own. I get pleasure just looking at it. A keeper.
I bought mine at Sam Ash in New York City, about 2005. I bought the footswitch sometime later (I don't remember where.) That was around the time folks weren't playing the guitar like they had before, in the 80s and 90s. The only time I played it myself was when I tested it. So, now youngsters are getting into the guitar, and geezers (no pun intended) like me are trying to be 'gurus,' huh? That's funny. I notice there's no Jazz gurus, though; just Rock.
I did the filament clip mod on mine to open up the clean tone a little more. That and I wired in an acoutronics spring reverb in the bottom of the cabinet and replaced the baffle with a 100 year old piece of pine and installed a Jensen C10q. Never looked back. I gig with it, record with it and can carry it along with a guitar case and pedal bag! Unreal, the tones!
I got the Jensen Mod speaker for it, but haven’t tried it yet. I actually really like the stock speaker a lot. I think they record better with a condenser mic 🎤 rather than sm57 types
That mod seems really interesting!
What impendence c10q - 8ohm?
My father bought me my first electric Guitar, this amp and a Boss ME 70 effects processor. 10 years since i got this amp, it still sounds amazing and stops me from buying any other amp. I just love this amp. Presently I am playing PRS Se standard 24 with my ME 70 processor and this amps sounds so amazing.
I owned 3 of these at one time. I ran two together. I did the LED mod on all of them. I still own one and play it regularly.
Definitely going to look at picking one of these up; very excellent tone for its size and class. Great demo as always.
Thanks Barny!
You won’t regret picking one of these small titans up! They get ridiculously loud as well as great tone!
Took me almost 2 years to find one locally and I jumped when I did find one. You'll see lots of 10R's, but wait for the 15.
This brings back memories of working in a music store in 2001. We had all manner of fancy tube amps hanging around, but more often than not, when we just wanted to jam around and relax, we always seemed to grab a Pathfinder. Great little amps, we had trouble keeping them in stock as whenever someone would demo a guitar through one, they'd usually walk out with the amp too, haha.
Wow! That is the best sounding $100 dollar amp I have ever heard. Its hard to believe it sounds that good with no effects
I have one, it produces pretty dark clean tone, even with a stratocaster. I use mine as a bass practice amp and think it sounds fabulous!
Got the one without reverb, my home amp for more than two decades. Still going strong.
I remember when these came out back when I was working for a famous big chain guitar store that had them online while our retail store never got them. I actually set up appointments with customers for the days that I would bring mine in so they could hear it... then take their order for it thru the online system. I did my part to get the word out on these gems of an amp. Naturally, like every piece of gear you demo, you really make it shine in this video. Now, relegated only to the used market (Vox must have been hurting their tube amp sales with this one), let's watch the "Johan Seal of Approval" prices soar. Cheers!
Believe the hype gentlemen, this amp sounds absolutely amazing. I don't know what formula VOX used, but the tone is tremendous, it has one of the best cleans out there. I use it with a 4x12 EVM 12L cab for a bigger sound... try that. I haven't played my AC-30 after using that combination :). It is that good.
Always heard great things about this amp. Never actually heard the AMP though, until now. Well done sir! 👍
Thanks, I’m glad to hear that!
I have it since 16 years, great little amp it is! Tnx for the video!
Me: *finds this amp on reverb for $100* "I"ll buy this later"
Johan: *Releasea a new video about the Vox Pathfinder 15*
Reverb: *Brings up the price from $100 to $500*
Kidding aside, great demo
Thanks Michael ;-) I think my influence on prices is a tad over exaggerated :-)
Sad but unfortunately true!!!
Big YES to this!!! I'm not letting go of mine! Thanks for the review, Johan!
Thanks Brendan!
can it do metal?
I have one and love it. Great show, Johan! One of the best examples of the versatility of the Pathfinder 15r I’ve ever seen. Bravo!!
Norah Jones usually uses this as her main touring guitar amp! Sounds amazing. I need to get one, wish it was still in production
The built-in overdrive “boost” on this amp is nasty in a really good way, and sounds nothing like a standard Vox tone. It’s like they put a Rat pedal circuit into the amp! I love my Pathfinder. Thanks for featuring this amp Johan! Cheers!
Thanks Paul, yeah that boost knob works great for sure. Cheers!
Hi Johan: I play one of these through a 2x12 with Celestions. It’s a little boxy with its internal 8”. Very nice cleans, awesome tube-like crunch tones. Reverb and tremolo included, so all-in-one solution. Typical Vox tone, takes pedals well too. The only cons: can be a bit hissy with some pickups due to Electric Frequency Interference (other amps less sensitive to that when A-B’d) and a good pedal will overrule the internal boost which is a bit noisy. Other than that, it is a phenomenal amp that I use everyday.
I just bought this amp a couple of weeks ago, and wow. Plug this into a 4x12 cab and it is amazing.
The best affordable amp you could get... I'm so happy I got one before you made this video!
;-) Cheers
I’ve been using large fender tube amps for years but was ready to switch to a smaller rig. I was doing a lot of research into the 10 watt pathfinder and was lucky enough to find the 15R at my local music shop this weekend. Instantly fell in love with the tube like sound of this amp. The tremolo and reverb are great. Although I prefer a fender long spring sound I do enjoy the stock reverb on this amp. It’s so fun as is, I haven’t even plugged my pedalboard in yet.
Hey, your playing has gotten even better. The little moment of shred at the beginning w/ the black les Paul was a nice bit of showcase, amp’s got bite! Cheers ✌️
Thanks Daniel! Glad to hear it
One of my biggest seller's remorse, for sure! It's a fantastic grab'n'go amp!
Every amp you play sounds great! I can't decide what to buy next.
Thanks Chris! ;-)
He did it! Great stuff as always Johan
Thanks Ashley!
I really bonded with this amp when I had one, the foot switch for boost and tremelo really made me a better player. Top notch as always Johan
Thanks, glad to hear it! Cheers
I'd swear this was a Tube Amp. Amazing demo! Back around 2012 or so, my 100 Marshall Head failed me at an outdoor wine festival. Thankfully the other guitar player had a Pathfinder 10 in his trunk as a backup amp...I had to crank it to about 8 and it sounded amazing through my Marshall cab. I may have to track down one of these.
Great Tone
And when played through the 1960 cab it sounds as menny expensive amps.
As usual the selection of riffs shows how versatile the amp is.
Good works Johan 🙂🎶
Thanks Ulrik! Great to hear that!
I have one I bought about 12 years ago, still have it and gig with it. I have the foot switch too.
Later, I found another one for $120 used. That’s what they cost new.
I bought it as a backup but later sold it. Should have kept it.
This thing is amazing. It has reverb, tremolo, master volume and gain and wait for it…a line out for connecting to a board and one for an extension cab.
It’s a loud 15 watts with a very tube like voicing. Love it!
If you can find one these days they go for $250 and up. Still worth it.
I have a theory that in the 90s Vox had a design meeting and went through all the solid state innovations that Thomas Organ came up with in the 60s as well as more recent ideas of solid state amps made in the 80s as well as pedal designs. Took all that info transferred it from discrete components into a mixture of discrete along with integrated opamp chips, like in pedals. To come up with this beauty.
Certainly one of the best ever made. I have four -- 2 from the brown cloth period and 2 from the black cloth period. Each pair is made up of one PR15 and one P15. In retrospect, that might have been really stupid, but they sound great (the Bulldog speakers are SO much better than the stock VX110 speakers in more expensive low-end VOX amps). What I also really like about them is you can run them through an external cab loaded up in any configuration that equals 8 or 16 Ohms. This makes it a good-looking, great-sounding, and versatile amp.
Ahh yes, my favorite small amp. I had the Pathfinder 15 since the early 2000s, bought for $80 on clearance. Recently scored a 15R for $70. Can’t wait to run these stereo.
@Triple6 Clique Speaker in my old one got replaced. But they sound just about he same
I absolutely love this amp, often looking it up just to see if anyone else has discovered how good they are yet!
Wow sounded great with the stock speaker. Sounded tremendous through the Marshall cab. Another great video!
Thanks John, great to hear that!
Glad to finally see you discover this little amp. I use two in stereo @ home, but it looks like i need to invest in a 4x12 cabinet because the amp sounded glorious through it.
Hello Johan, the Vox Pathfinder is a staple of good affordable rock tones! Cheers!🤟🏼
Thanks Vincenzo! Cheers!
I own one of the Pathfinder 15R’s as well. Great grab and go amp with amazing tones inside. It does amazing clean and light crunch on its own, but takes pedals amazingly. I wouldn’t suggest the high gain tones myself, but hey! That’s me.
I remember when these came out in the early 2000's when I was still working in a music store, they were quite popular and also the Pathfinder 10, we certainly sold a lot of them. Bet there are a bunch out there on the used market, they really sound good. Thanks for the demo and stay safe, Johan
Thanks man! Be well!
Hey i talked with you about this amp a few months ago...this amp has the most beautiful tremolo I’ve ever heard
The Vox pathfinder 15R and a Marshall lead 12 are my living room jam practice setup. Absolutely the two best small solid-state amplifiers ever made. They work wonderfully together. I cannot best their tone with my live rig which is a Marshall DSL 40 and a Fender Blues Deluxe.
Two of the best SS amps...have the same two in my kitchen.
@@mykalgambullmusic5520 Have you tried the usa-made fender bronco from the 90s? I agree about the pathfinder and the lead 12, but the bronco is another contender for the killer ss combo title
Love the shredding by the way Johan
Thanks man! :-)
Well done Johan! Lovely and and Tones! Thanks for sharing brother and Be Well All!
Thanks brother!
Hot damn! That's a phenomenal sounding amp both clean and driven! I'm completely blown away. Playing it thru the 4x12 would totally fool me you were playing one of your vintage Plexis... Next time I see one of these I'm jumping all over it!
I’ve had one of these for awhile now. Punches *way* above its weight. Reminds me of an original AC15 when played clean: clear but on the darker side. As Johan shows it absolutely rips when cranked up! The reverb is meh but I use a pedal for that anyway. Tremolo is pretty darn good. I usually run it into a Hi-Tone cab loaded with a pair of 12” Fane-style speakers. Absurd value for the money.
Thanks David!
Had one of these as a backup for many years and even used it in rehearsal with a 10 piece band with full horn section. Great little amps for the money. Sounds good with a tube screamer in front too.
I bought one of these the day it came out and It's still one of the best amps I ever played.
I walked into a Seattle Guitar Center ages ago and they had this stacked up display right when you walked in the front door with a choice of this Pathfinder Reverb 15r or the little white single knob Brian May amp for $49.95! Long ago. I walked out with the Pathfinder. Still have it but I changed out the speaker to a 10" Eminence with some finagling. It just smokes for its size! Keeper!
This is the first amp I ever bought! Had no money back then so I had to sell my Playstation 2 to buy it. I originally wanted to buy a Marshall MG or a Fender Frontman, can't remember well. I finally went to the store and saw the little Pathfinder; I don't really know why, but it really caught my attention over the other cheap beginner amps, then I asked if I could try it. Even as an inexperienced kid, I immediately recognized that it sounded a lot better than the other amps I previously heard, so I happily left the store with one. I still have it and I'll never get rid of it.
My first introduction to Vox amps was Line 6 and all the modelling, either a "Class A Clean or Class A Top Boost". Hardly used them. Thought it was crap til afew years ago my local music store rented me an AC15. I finally got a taste of what Vox is all about. Borrowing the best from the AC30 without four channels the AC15 was great but too powerful( and heavy) for the bedroom. The only thing maller was an AC10. Still pretty loud with a single 10 inch speaker and exploits the Top Boost with digital reverb quite well but NO tremolo. Bummer. Then I discovered this. I must go on a quest now to find what sounds like the best Vox in a small but cheap package, the 15R. Thanks Johan.
I've used this amp on my last six music videos and I absolutely LOVE it! It's a beast of an amp!
Finally! I have been playing through this amp for years! I wish they would bring it back.
At 1:59, that's some Kiss Alive 1 tone right there!
hi Johan. i'm back once more. i love these little amps. i can't believe how good they are. i probably wouldn't believe it my self if i hadn't heard. i have the pathfinder 10 and i want a 15 as well. nice demo. you get a good idea of what these little amps can do.they work great with pedals too. Rock on. bye for now
Wow!!! It actually has that Vox "Roar" to it!!! It's always fun to find hidden gems like this!!!
Great bank for the buck amp! Our former worship pastor had one of these about 15 years ago and only used it clean with a processor in front of it while playing in the band with me. Never sounded very impressive that way. Too bad he was missing out on all this thing could do just going straight into the amp. Well done as usual Maestro Johan showing what you can do with an inexpensive amp. We shall see if you can coax great tone out a lowly Line 6 Spider sometime in the future :-) God bless and rock on.
Thanks my friend! The Line 6 is coming up soon I hope! ;-)
This guy can make anything sound good
I used to own this Amp !!. I regret selling it !!.
Wow what a tone' both internal and through the Marshall - proving its power to drive the cab. Great licks Johan from the first note' and essential speed demonstrates it's overdriven clarity. Great video, thanks for sharing.
Believe it or not that cab is an impedance mismatch dropping total power by half! It could run two of those cabinets in parallel, with the same power through each speaker X8!!!! It would be 6 dB louder in the end.
I have one of these. It's a great little amp. Even had a guy looking to see if it had valves in it once cos he couldn't believe the sound! Excellent!!
Johan I picked up one of these for 80 dollars in immaculate condition. I absolutely love this amp! It really changed my perspective on solid state amps. Mine is from around 2001. Great great amp. I want to install a 10 inch Ragin Cajun from Eminence.
I think of doing that mod too. Cheers!
I got one last week. Great for the money. Love the clean. The reverb is just right and how nice to have the tremolo for that vintage vibe. And the two button Marshall foots witch works on it. Great rehearsal amp, so compact light and portable. Love your videos 👌
I have the Vox Pathfinder 10. It's amazing!
I only have two amps that have been on this channel and one of them is this one! For a solid-state amp, this thing is amazing! I have the model with the brown grill cloth. Sounds spectacular on both single coils and humbuckers. None of that shrill, ice-picky, solid-state sound.
Great rehearsal amp. Small enough to take places as well. These old big amps are too much for me to lug around these days lol. My Vox AC-15 stays at home
Even the ac15 1x12 is a brute of a combo. It weighs every bit as much as my 2x12 50watt tube Peavey classic vt and sounds killer.
Check out the Korean Cambridge Thirty which precedes the pathfinder. Also great!
I am a proud owner of this amp ... best $60 USD I have ever spent on any gear. Running it through the Marshall cab is next level !!
You’re very welcome, Johan! LoL- I don’t know if you ever checked my channel or not. But I think is one of the very best amps ever made! You will have to do comparisons in the future with your Marshall’s. Not to mention it takes pedals awesomely! Start feeding it some compression and a tubescreamer and you might start unloading some of that Marshall gear. The internal speaker is without question the best sounding speaker on the planet for low volume playing. You should put a dB meter, I am sure you will hit 115 dB A rated through your 4x12. I hit 121 dB through my 2x12 Eminence Governor cabinet Z rated.
Hahaha! That’s for the tip man!
I'm actually happy that I'm not completely blown away by this. Reason? Pretty much everything Johan plays sounds genius so I just get a bit overwhelmed!
I wanted one for a while. Finally one showed up locally for $150 US. I’ve never played through a AC 15 or 30 so I don’t have a good comparison. I’m gonna look for a used cab next. I have a Super Champ XD with a line out also.
Sounds fantastic into that 4X12.
Thanks!
Great amps. Loud! Versatile. Toneful. I have three and gig every week with them and my Dr. Z MAZ 38 SR stays home in a roadcase. Surprisingly, one of my amps has no reverb, no badge, no information on it whatsoever and it is in a different colored grill cloth! Just has the VOX gold badge on the front and that is it.
I had two of these,sounded ace together...
"...my Black Beauty" That sounds so cool...
Seems no matter what amp you play it still sounds like Johan
Cheers mate
I put a Celestion Eight 15 speaker in mine and it bangs. $35 modification. Totally worth it.
I own one and it gets better cleans than my ac30 and I'm not exaggerating at all, it also nail those u2 Joshua tree tones.
Sounds great through the 4x12, not so great through the 8” combo speaker. Great job as always Johan!
Thanks, glad you like it!
You ain’t kidding!! Nice jamming too
Thanks, glad to hear that!
I just managed to get a used one of these... it really is surprisingly awesome for a solid-state amp!
I have had one for years.... Definitely reacts "tube-ish"...... Awesome amp
Sounds really good !
This amp was talked about on various sites when it was still available new as a great budget amp. I think there’s also a non reverb version too. Nice to hear it here!
Glad to hear that
Yes, I have the non-reverb one. It's the Pathfinder 15. Great little amp. It's all I use at home. From crystal clean to nasty crunch and even high gain overdrive all in a sweep of two knobs.
If you like the Pathfinders tone, you need to try a Danelectro Honeytone Ht-50 (or the Danelectro Nifty Fifty) they are the same amp. They share similar circuit topology but I think the Danelectro has an ever better vintage tone. The Pathfinder has a better high gain tone.
But that is my all time favorite sleeper solid state amp. Very gigable stock for blues and rock.
Just picked one up for 69 USD. Second hand. Can't wait for it to arrive and test how it sounds with the JOYO Cab Sim.
I had an Orange 35rt which sounded great on its own. Then I put it through my 1x12 and I couldn't believe how good it sounded. Sounded much like it's bigger relatives. You can get some killer solidstate amps that rival tubes.
This one and the Cambridge 30 (and 30 only in the Cambridge models...) are really must have amps in my opinion ! They're made with good sense ans they get a blue alnico loudspeaker that make the difference with the other amps...
Price goes up minutes after Johan video is released. They do sound pretty good on a recording though. The trem is cool.
Yeah, really cool tremolo
I love mine. I have the version without the reverb. For a SS it has incredible dynamics. The amp responds to volume control too.
Yeah it even cleans up from fully cranked using the guitar pots
In what comes to the tonal quality itself, this amp has a much better tone than my Fender Blues Deluxe. I solely use the Pathfinder at home, and need the BD when I eventually play out, because it can keep up with drummer etc. Wish I could have the Pathfinder tone onstage.
Hi Johan. By itself is bit boxy, bit connected to the 4X12 is great. See you next friday. Cheers.
Thanks Jorge, Cheers!
8:04 I didn't know a Vox could do that?!
Yeah versatile for sure, Cheers!
That was amazing.. I have the Vox Vt40x, and i absolutely love it... I think Vox make exceptional products for home use! Obviously your playing and gear make a big difference Johan! Cheers
Also: 10:15 was amazing! great little riff, make a song out of it -_-
Thanks Kev! Glad you like it!
It's strange that the Pathfinder 10 is still available but this discontinued
Vox needs to reissue this amp but with a 3-band EQ and Aux in with its own volume control... that would be a fantastic upgrade to an already really good amp..
I second that, or a cambridge version as well. Never understood having I mid range boost button but knobs for high and low. It works but a knob for adjustment would be better, maybe add a reverb as well for a all around great amp.
They discontinued the 15R because it it was to good for to cheap. In 2002 it cut into the sales and out sold the AC10 & AC15. They want the world to buy tube because thats where they make $. The Pathfinder 10 though its a great $89 to spend on a small Amp isn't cutting into the sales of the bread n butter tube amps that Vox sells like the 15T & 15R did. So it went bye bye. I just got a 1999 Pathfinder 15T for Xmas its so awesome. I suggest anyone Find one, buy one.
@@SmithWesson90 hehe I know that, but that could be countered with a higher price... I got a brown 15r on the way right now. Will get one more ans use them in stereo...
@@SmithWesson90 I totally agree. The pure class A design, the traditional classic Vox sound from the amp and the headphone out is the reason I have bought one (checking/tracking the package ID 7 times a day right now 😉).
I plan to find at least one more in Vox brown and I plan/think I will keep one stock and mod the other. Thinking of new 3-spring reverb tank, hopefully a mid EQ controll, an on/of switch for the leds and hopefully tilt the 4 outs on the back 90 degrese so they face straight back.
I had one several years ago. It sounded fantastic.
I paid a little bit more than $100, it's worth it.. it sounds like a vox. I have mine stacked on top of my lead 12 combo...ABY box-> a mini London Tower of tone!! Perfect pandemic rig.
Two great amps indeed