Orange AD30 and Alnico Blues?!?

[paescu]

So lately I've been lusting for that elusive AC30 tone. While not really owning it, I basically have an AD30 at my disposal, so I was wondering if pairing that up with an alnico blues loaded 2x12 cab would get me closer to that Vox tone, since the only Vox amps that I played which had that magic chime were ones with alnicos

Has anyone ever tried or done this? Thanks for your help

[Bensen]

Don't know about the celestions but I put a pair of eminence red fangs in my ad30 and found the tone of my life. It definitely gives it some voxish vibe but it still is 90 orange, it now has lots of compression and sounds even fuller - nothing for metal or funkguys, but very cool for me. I'd say if you wont a voxsound get a vox, if you want an orange with some chime and sparkle alnico speakers are great

[irish_admiral]

You might like it, but beware - you might prefer the overdrive sounds with the stock speakers rather than the blues.

I'd be trying to make your Hiwatt amp sound like a Vox if I were you.

[paescu]

a pair of eminence red fangs in my ad30 and found the tone of my life. It definitely gives it some voxish vibe but it still is 90 orange, it now has lots of compression and sounds even fuller - nothing for metal or funkguys, but very cool for me. I'd say if you wont a voxsound get a vox, if you want an orange with some chime

Interesting, that's eminece's version of the blues, right? I'm not necessarily looking for THAT vox tone, just for that edge uf preak-up power-tube-saturation chimey sound. So far the Orange (it's a head btw) has been paired up with a 1960AV cab, great cab for rock tones but to me somewhat lacking when used for cleanish or those slightly overdriven sounds. The Hiwatt has fantastic clean cleans and takes pedals really well, but isn't anything like a vox really, and absolutely impossible to get anywhere near power-tube breakup without causing instant tinitus.

[libtech]

The AD30 does not have the chime of a vox, however it sounds fantastic with blues!!

[irish_admiral]

With your Orange, try diming the master, and rolling of the bass a bit, and the mids a lot. That's about as close to a Vox sound as you'll get. Vary the settings according to the pickups used...

What Hiwatt is that?

[misterMagoo]

dude, buy an ac30. you won't be disappointed!

[paescu]

well, for the price of the ac30 c2x (the one with the blues) I could actually buy the ad30 and the 1960AV cab from the guy that's just leaving it in our practice room PLUS the 212 vox cab with blues.

[misterMagoo]

if your buying brand new... there are deals to be had out there. used that is.

[pages plexitone]

It looks just like my DR103 but I can't be sure Joe.

I love the sound of celestion blues in combo amps. I really reallly really like the chime. I had a red fang in my Rocker 30 combo once and it sounded pretty good. It was about 1/3 of the celestion in price and almost as cool, swirly and complex.

CAUTION: OPINION AHEAD...I don't think there is a substitute for the Celestion Alnico Blue if that's the sound you're after. Spending the money up front is cheapest.

I have 2 Blues in my Marshal Bluesbreaker. It doesn't sound like a vox per se but it does chime and has a very unique crunch that I never get tired of.

[paescu]

It's a Custom 50 in my sig, in case you were wondering.
Yeah there are deals to be had on the used market, but the used market is quite small here in Switzerland, to put it mildly. so I'd just have to wait and hope. buying used from the uk or germany is quite complicated and expensive because Switzerland isn't in the EU (high shipping costs and import taxes).
On the other hand there sometimes are fantastic deals to be had on the used market here. My axiom when it comes to guitar amps has always been to buy used and under/at par to resale value. That's the only reason why I have such great gear. I once had a Dual Rec and matching Mesa cab which I sold at a slight profit, I bought the Hiwatt from my guitar tech for a ridiculously low price. In fact when I see him he always jokingly asks if I've sold it for twice the price I paid him (He bought it in the seventies for cheap from the original owner, didn't really use it and wasn't looking to make a profit).

[irish_admiral]

Well, I tried a custom 20, and really like the sound of it. I think it'll get you to similar territory to AC30s, but if you want an AC30 sound, you need an AC30. That Hiwatt will get you closer than the Orange AD30 will, IMO, although the AD30 has it's own great sound too.

The deal you're being offered sounds pretty decent though.

[paescu]

Well I had to look up the Custom 20 and I guess that one probably has is closer to a vox with it's el34 power stage.
Maybe I should have been more precise. I don't need to have that exact AC30 tone, I was just wondering if using an alnico equiped cab with an AD30 could make it a bit more chimey and voxish wih clean or slightly overdriven sounds. I'm well aware that the AD30 is different and darker and will never sound exactly the same

[hooty]

I use one of my AD30's with two Alnico Gold speakers and it sounds a lot more chimey. It's all a matter of taste but I like it better than the stock Vintage 30 for clean and overdrive sounds. On the other hand they are expensive...

Cheers,
hooty

[irish_admiral]

I was just wondering if using an alnico equiped cab with an AD30 could make it a bit more chimey and voxish wih clean or slightly overdriven sounds.

Well, given that you're changing the speaker, and an Alnico Blue is part of "the" Vox AC30 sound, it will get you closer, but as you've recognised, it's only half of the sound.

So it sort of depends what you want.

If you're looking to get closer to the Vox sound, I still think the Hiwatt will be better than an Orange AD30. If however you want an Orange AD30, and are just interested to see how it could be made to sound more Vox-like, then sure. Answer is above!

Just remember, get the right tool for the right job. Most important thing is what you need for your gigging requirements... get what is most appropriate.