prepare to be bummed out
the VR is not terribly voxy. Even the tube-based input stage is not directly based on the ac30 or 15 from any era. Its totally bastardized. Its a shame because a hybrid ac30 and 15 might be cool. your amp might cop some Petty vox tones on the clean channel but keep in mind a lot of the most coveted petty tones are not voxes anyway. The first few albums are mostly a 5C3 tweed deluxe for lead and Tom playing rhythm through a fender quad reverb or another big silverface amp. All Fender. I am not sure when Mike Campbell acquired his blonde ac30. Tom used it on VH1 story tellers in the 90s and rumor has it Mike uses it in an ISO box in addition to his stage setup of a non-reverb Princeton and the aforementioned 5C3 deluxe (as well as a separate fender head driving a vibratone, which is fender's 1 speaker version of leslie). I've spotted Tom playing his red Marshall JTM45 and matching 4x12 (I think its a really late 45 by the cosmetics and will be one of the least fender versions of this amp before the complete switch to EL34 output tubes and a solid state rectifier) at shows and in footage the las 10 years and occasionally I will see him with a blonde/brownface fender head and cab (or two) but I don't know if its a bassman, showman, tremolux, bandmaster or what... I've also seen Petty paying through a tweed 5F6 bassman or 5E7 Bandmaster....
the heartbreakers' use of vox amps is overstated... they use all sorts of stuff new and old in the studio (runnin down a dream was a groove tubes head, no shit, mike campbell si really open about it) and not as much vox as one would think... though back in the day they toured with solid state Vox Super Beatles,, if you see the Super Beatle setups on stage these days theya re props and their real amps are hiding behind the wall of shitty amps and are usually fenders and the odd marshall I mentioned. That other guy who switched from drums to guitar tends to play dicided by 13 boutique combos, not sure which ones specifically, but given that they appear to 1x12s they aren't voxy circuits.
regardless, even if you knew which petty sogns were the blonde ac30 you are not reproducing it with a valve reactor... the old amps from before 64 run hotter (you can fry an egg on the top of my 1962 30B after about 10 minutes of playing and it definitely affects the tone), are usually not top-boosted stock and have some hefty output transformers your little amp won't cop.... not to mention the critical ingredient which is the blue alnico celestions. The weird, marshally tonestack with an un-voxy midrange and less interactive treble and bass as wella s the lack of a 'tone cut' because there is no phase inverter tube on the valve reactor is in your way, the overall topology of the ac amps is a big part of their sound.... you could putter with it, but its not really meant to be a legit vox. If it was they wouldn't be able to sell guys like me an ac30hw for big money!
Additionally Mike Campbell's ac30 that he and tom both use sometimes is even older than my vintage ac30 (and mine's OLD AS FUCK). It may be the notorious ac30/4 circuit (there was a crossover period with blonde cab cosmetics and the coppertop chassis/circuit with 6 inputs instead of 4). If that's the case forget it. The EF86 pentode that drives those amps is a unique hifi tube that nothing replicates except a few old TV pentodes and to a lesser extent the 5879 pentode favored by Gibson in the 50s. Nothing quite sounds like an ac30/4 or a similar modern amp like the heritage ac30 and matchless stuff. I honestly get my best 'mary jane' rhythm tones from my matchless on the ef86 channel, though my 62 gets in the right ball park if I really fiddle the treble, base and tone cut carefully. My ac30hw is the furthest from the mark. its a little too polite, and in 'hot mode' its too rude.
So my suggestion is to enjoy the ac15VR for what it is, which is one of the better sounding hybrid amps I've heard, and not try to get something out of it that it won't do. Find your own tones on it and have fun! My suggestion will lead to hours and hours of enjoyment (hopefully) whereas seeking tones gotten from completely different gear will lead to frustration and buyer's remorse. Unless you play in a heartbreakers tribute band, if that's the case, buy silverface Princeton and a Gibson GA6! it'll get ya close to campbell's tone! For petty try any blackface or silverface fender head, even a reissue OR maybe Fender's new bassbreaker 45 amp. Mike and Tom use a fair amount of pedal overdrive to push their amps over the edge (I've seen pictures, Mike sets both amps' volumes low, around 3 at the edge of breakup and Tom's JTM45 was always set more on the clean side too)... both guys like the way huge Red Lama (Mike has an old Camel Toe which is a Lama and a Green Rhino mk1 in one box.... theyt alk about reissuing thru Dunlop as the 'Campbel' Toe) and tom ha a standalone, pre-Dunlop Lama and may also use an old Tubescreamer.
I am not saying the VRs are bad amps. The gain channels are silly, but the clean channels sound cool enough... but having tried them (real ac30s are heavy), they don't really keep up with a custom classic... and the truth is that the custom classic is a shadow of the glorious vintage ac30s... check my review here on of the vox ac30 right here on equipboard for detailed info all things ac30! the vox ac30 is my favorite amp and I'm something of a vox afficianado.... I check out every amp to wear the ac badge
-s.webp?v=1783090989 "Fender American Standard Telecaster")
