When folks turn to TSV to provide great backline rental for any concert audio or other special events, we rely on our tried-and-true Vox AC30’s to get the job done right, time and time again.
The two amps that we mainly use are the AC30CC2 and the AC30HH.
But while we use these two amps quite a bit, we don’t really get much of an opportunity to hear them side-by-side in a true tone comparison test. So we thought to ourselves, what do these amps sound like when directly compared to eachother when run through the exact same speakers?
With that said, we decided to pit these two amps against eachother in an no holds barred AMPLIFIER SHOOTOUT!
LADIES AAAAAAANNNNDDD GENTLEMEN…LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!!
In the red corner, the 2007 Vox AC30HH
-30W (class AB) Head
-Handwired electronics
OTHER SPECS:
Front panel controls: Inputs x 4 (2 – Normal & 2 – Top Boost)
Channel 1: (Normal)
Volume
Brilliance Switch (Off, 1 and 2)
Bass Shift (1, 2)
EF86 Mode (Pentode, Triode)
Channel 2: (Top Boost)
Volume
Treble
Bass
OUTPUT SECTION
Top Cut
O/P Mode (Pentode, Triode)
44.1 lbs. 23.9″ x 11.7″ (D) x 10.2″ (H)
And in the blue corner, the 2007 Vox AC30CC2
-30W (class AB) Combo
-Loaded with 2×12″ 30w Whafdale Speakers
OTHER SPECS:
Front panel controls: Inputs x 2 (Top Boost & Normal)
Input Link Switch for blending channels
Normal Volume
Brilliance Switch
Top Boost Volume
EQ (Treble and Bass Control)
EQ Standard/Custom Switch
Reverb
Tremolo
Tone Cut
Master Volume
70.5 lbs. 27.75″ x 10.4″ (D) x 21.25″ (H)
Both amps will be running through a 2×12″ cabinet loaded with Eminence Legend GB128 speakers. The AC30CC2’s internal speakers will be bypassed for this comparison.
-Ceramic “British” sounding speakers
-50W, 8 Ohms
So without any further ado, here’s the video of the comparison…
Spinning in the shop this week is John Talabot’s new album, fIN
While the whole album is pretty amazing, we are particularly fond of “Destiny” and it’s ambient nicety. But don’t just take our words for it, listen to it yourself! And maybe drop on by iTunes and buy this album! I’m sure John would appreciate it.
Whoa! First MUSIC MONDAY of 2012, pretty sweet! And to ring in the New Year, we thought we’d blast some blasts from the past and what better time than RIGHT NOW, to play some Van Halen!
So enjoy this video and look back as you look forward!
For some reason, we thought we would talk about loopers today. Joel and Collin are both guitar players and, as a result, love guitar effects and related gear. In fact, Joel used to play one-man shows at coffee shops with just a guitar, a mic and a looper!
“What in the heck is a ‘looper’ anyway?”
Well a looper is a piece of equipment that can record a phrase of sound and then loop in continuously to provide a background for more sounds to be played on top of it. These loops can be recorded and re-rerecorded until the amount of recording time is used up…basically it’s like recording an album of backing tracks, LIVE!
For those out there that do know a thing or two about loopers, you know that Boss has kind of been at the forefront of the looping technology…looping artists almost always rely on the Boss loopers as part of their setup.
For a long time the Boss RC-20 had been the standard for all other loopers to compete with.
With 5 and 1/2 minutes of loop sample time, it was perfect for artists to orchestrate samples and loops for an entire song, layering vocals, guitar and other things to create quite an amazing effect.
But of course, as technology advances, these loopers become more and more advanced; carrying more power and features in smaller packages. And the market of loopers is no exception to this trend. After a long reign at the top with the RC20, Boss introduced the RC20XL
Very similar to the RC20 but with 16 minutes of recording time, in the same box as its predecessor. Now artists could almost work entire sets around loops and samples.
Around that same time, Boss also introduced a single stomp-box version of their famous loopers with the RC2
While it lacked the versatility and features of the RC20, it fit into a very small space of a pedalboard, yet still provided 16 minutes of looping time, but for a single guitar, unlike the RC20 and RC20XL which had multiply instrument and microphone inputs as well.
Boss then decided to step it up and create a multi-track, full-size sampling and looping board for artists to use as an “all-in-one” answer to their looping, sampling and signal-routing needs; the Boss RC50
This bad boy features 49 minutes of recording time, advanced multi-tracking, effects, midi and many other features never before seen in a loop station. A truly revolutionary all-in-one loop station. At the time of its release, no other looper had the massive amount of features and potential that the RC-50 had. In fact, local St. Louis band, The Tender Tribe still uses these things when they record and perform.
The Boss RC30 was then introduced as better, smaller storage technology was developed.
With just under 3 hours of recording time, Boss really blew loopers’ minds with so much bang, yet somehow stuffed back into the original RC20-sizead package. The RC-30, while not as feature-laden as the RC-50, carried some impressed tracking capabilities to coincide with the awesome amount of recording time.
If only Boss would somehow create looper that had the recording time of the RC30 combined with the sheer power and advanced features of the RC50…well guess what?! BOOM! THEY DID! Introducing: THE BOSS 300!
This bad boy lets you record up to three hours of tracks and is equipped with 99 banks of storage, 16 on-board effects and tons of connectivity for microphones, guitars, midi, and just about anything else! The RC-300 also feature multi-track sampling that allows you to stop and start different loops independently of one another. Personally, we here in the TSV shop can’t wait to get our hands on one!
We hope you have enjoyed this brief history of Boss loop stations. And while it may indeed be a random subject to focus it sure was fun to learn about, wasn’t it. Well, if that wasn’t enough, here’s a clip of a St. Louis guitarist, Math You using his old trusty Boss RC-20 to make some pretty amazing music.
We all know that Joel gets a little restless when he’s looking for things to do around the TSV shop. And this past week was no exception. In between a few video installation jobs, Joel found himself with a little free-time. Since his drum kit was back at his practice space, Collin suggested he “rip it up” in the TSV shop with his skateboard. So that’s just what Joel did! Here’s a clip:
Tune in tomorrow for TSV discussion of BOSS Loop Stations, in particular the new BOSS RC-300!
TSV
In this new segment on the TSV blog, we bring you the crucial stats and info on some of Tower Sound & Vision’s key players. Today we focus the spotlight on Andrew “The Carty Boy” Carter.
Height: 6’1″ (though he says 6’3″)
Weight: 150 lbs.
Hair: Red
Eyes: Hazel
Clothes: Filthy
Specialties: Non-sequiturs, plaid shirts, rat-tails, fast vans, LED lighting systems, Cool(er) Ranch Doritos
Andrew is always behind the scenes. Whether it is setting up for ballroom events, or as a running stage-hand at live concerts, The Carty Boy moves fast, works hard and always gets the job down right, all while providing the TSV team with a little comic relief. Andrew recently received the TSV “Medal of Efficiency” which he was awarded after completing several grueling lighting tasks with exceptional speed and accuracy. And while Andrew fancies himself a “lighting guy,” we feel he is equally at home running out input snakes, setting up stage plots and installing professional audio/video installations. Over the past year, Andrew has been a real asset to the TSV team and has thus earned the title of “TSV Heavy Hitter.”
While we look back on 2011 very fondly, we are truly excited to see what’s ahead for 2012. We have some great things in store for TSV and some exciting things to share here on the blog as well so stay tuned!
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY, from your favorite audio/visual rental company, Tower Sound & Vision.
In keeping with last week, we decided to we would stick with the theme of great video clips from India. And today we have another jewel! Now, of course, we all love MJ…he was the best; no one will ever be like him. As a result of his greatness, many imitators have come along over the years…afterall, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Granted, some imitators hit the mark of “flattery” and some, well, some just seem to fall into the category of WTF! Fortunately for us, the following clip falls into that of the latter!
Ever since Joel set up that dang drum set in the TSV shop, he will not stop makin’ all sorts of racket! Joel, don’t you know we’ve got video installations to do?! C’mon, man! Alright, alright…we must admit, it’s pretty cool. Especially when he plays along to one of our favorite American Football songs. Check it out…
We hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday Season and we are looking forward to the NEW YEAR!
This week we’ve been getting a lot of things done in the TSV shop and have chosen American Football to provide the soundtrack for our shop work. Yeah, it’s a little more mellow than what we’ve been blasting the past few weeks, but what can we say? I guess we’re softies sometimes.
If you know American Football, then you know just how magnificent they are. If you don’t know who they are, just know that they are from Champaign, IL with a long and impressive lineage of musicians. But most importantly, you should know that their 1999 album American Football is a MUST, MUST BUY! And for whatever reason, this album just seems like a winter album. But regardless, with the amazing songwriting and guitar playing of Mike Kinsella and the superb drumming of Steve Lamos But don’t take our words for it. Check out one of our favorite songs of ALL TIME, “Never Meant”…
Joel likes them so much, he puts this on in his headphones and pretends he’s the drummer. Who knows…we may post a video of that, someday!
x 11.7″ (D) x 10.2″ (H) 
TSV Sound & Vision 