Queen’s Brian May, known for his wall of VOX AC30s, is lauded for having one of the most recognizable guitar tones in the history of rock. Guitarists who wish to emulate that sound may now be able to get closer to it with the new VOX Brian May Limited Edition AC30 Combo (AC30BM) - a streamlined recreation of May’s famed stage amplifier and boost pedal set-up, with a limited worldwide run of only 500 amplifiers.
Designed to sound identical to May’s legendary live/stage setup with slightly more versatile features, the 30 Watt AC30BM has a built-in foot-switchable boost circuit (rather than Brian’s separate treble/mid boost pedal), a back panel 15 Watt switch that performs a true power reduction by changing the number of tubes, biasing values, and output transformer impedance — all of which allows the user to achieve the legendary Brian May tone at lower volume. In addition, the amplifier employs 2 x 12AX7/ECC83, 4 x EL84 and 1 x GZ34 tubes.
Predominantly hand-wired, the AC30BM stays true to the original with components mounted on turret tags; however some modern printed circuit board construction is employed for adding more stability to the amplifier’s performance with no loss of the original tone. Other features include built-in treble/mid single transistor boost circuit with gain and bypass panel switches, two Celestion/VOX Alnico Blue 12" 15 Watt loudspeakers and a supplied external footswitch.
The amp features Brian May’s signature logo on the control panel, and comes complete with a durable padded vinyl cover embroidered with Brian’s signature, as well as a product introduction from Brian himself with the user manual.
Price and Availability
The VOX AC30BM is available March 2006 with a U.S. MSRP of $3000.
More info:
www.voxamps.com
