The Mods Begin | Vox AC30 Hand Wired Pt 1

Showing what it takes to turn a pretty good amp into a REALLY good amp.
They could have done it from the factory for about $20 more. That's the really frustrating part of this.
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These are things I get asked about a lot :
Amp Tech Gear Used :
Hakko FX-951 soldering station
Weller SPG 80L soldering iron (chassis work)
Rigol DS1054Z digital oscilloscope
Thsinde 18B+ digital multimeters
Kester 60/40 solder
Techspray #4 No-Clean Desoldering Braid
Below are things that make this channel possible that people don’t usually think about. If any of these companies want to send me new and wonderful toys, I’m open to that. I can’t take free stuff when it comes to the amps I review, etc, but for the stuff below, bribe away!
Microphones/Audio Equipment :
Guitar Amps : Royer R-10 Hot Rod and/or Shure SM57 (noted in videos)
Voiceover Bench : sE Audio sE8 (small diaphragm condenser)
Voiceover Streaming : Shure SM57 with shockmount and windscreen
Voiceover Mic Arms : Elgato Wave Mic arms
Guitar Mic Stand : Gator Frameworks short weighted base stand with boom
Mic Cables and Guitar Cables : Mogami/Neutrik
Mic pre : MOTU M2
DAW : Logic Pro X on MacBook Pro 16 running Sonoma 14
Plugins : No effects other than level matching/normalization unless a recording
specifically has reverb etc added in post (rare, various Waves plugins)
Monitors : Yamaha HS7s
Monitor Stands : Gator Frameworks Desktop Clamp-On Stands
Monitor Isolation Mounts : IsoAcoustics Iso-Puck Minis
Headphones : Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (main)
Headphones : Sony MDR-7506 (alternate)
Video Equipment :
Camera : Sony ZVE-10 with SmallRig Cage (main)
Lens : Sigma f2.8 18-50mm (main)
Lens : Sony ZVE10 kit lens (rarely used)
B Camera : Apple iPhone 13 Pro (rarely used)
Tripod : SmallRig 71” with SmallRig Fluid Video Head
Streaming Mount : Elgato Master Mount S with SmallRig Ballhead
Bench Light : SmallRig RC 120D
Bench Light Diffusor : SmallRig Lantern Softbox
Bench C-Stands (light and overhead camera) : Neewer Pro SS Heavy Duty
Streaming Light : SmallRig RC 120B
Streaming Diffusor : SmallRig Parabolic Softbox
Streaming Light Mount : SmallRig 148CM Wall Mount Boom with Triangle Base
Various Other Lights : Neewer LED Panels with Neewer Softboxes
Video Software :
Davinci Resolve 18
Paul Leeming LUTs
Adobe Illustrator 28
Adobe Photoshop 25
Ecamm Live (streaming software)

[@Dr.Sheldor]

I'm always amazed at how a real master works on things - that you know how and why to do things is a rarity these days. As a fellow bad back sufferer, I wish you speedy relief. I know first hand how debilitating it is.

[@jamesf2918]

The lighting and camera work are so dialed in. Awesome.

[@ferdberfle5069]

I feel for you with your back pain. I had surgery a few years ago to repair a couple herniated discs. Now, due to arthritis I am having nerve block injections to relieve pain at the base of my neck. Getting older is NOT for the timid!

[@omen3766]

Getting older is not for the weak. Hope you feel better soon. Cheers..you have made me a Vox fan.

[@Henni63]

Get well soon Lyle. Thrown out backs take time.

[@jonnybeck6723]

Thanx Lyle... Try to relax for your back's "reset" and I hope you feel better (!)

[@danielmargolis3210]

A shame that after spending big money on a nice handwired amp the owner has to spend more in order to get it right.

[@stringlocker]

He said it was good without changing anything. And he doesn't say that very often so it probably could have been left alone

[@honkytonkinson9787]

But a bargain compared to a vintage or custom hand built one. I recall that Lyle’s AC15 amp is about $3500

[@coldacre]

not really. the amp stock is great. it sounds fantastic. it just isn’t JMI spec. Lyle is tweaking the amp for those that want it closer to JMI. he’s charging a reasonable amount for his work. still comes way under the price of a vintage.

[@flyingrat492]

I mean for how good they are the price used are always pretty decent, well worth buying for the extra $500 on average

[@markspurgin8225]

No worries mate . Take your time with your back I feel your pain I'm head for 3rd surgery in May

[@victorbeebe8372]

Aloha and Mahalo Lyle! Sorry about the pain. Thanks for the great effort you made to release the video.

[@marcuscarrozza732]

Take care of your back and thanks for the video. Do what ever it takes to feel better . ✌️

[@sgt.grinch3299]

Hope that you are feeling better soon Sir.

[@wadesummers4102]

Sorry to hear about your back. Have been there a handful of times myself. Bend over to pick up socks, knife in the low back, down on the floor unable to move and in considerable pain. Its the best when it happens on vacation! Thankfully for me it is muscle spasms and not any issues with my discs. I'm extremely active but haven't done enough for my core or stretch enough. I'm getting better with that. See a PT. Do some core strengthening and stretching. And stop lifting heavy amps! 😉 AC30CC2 owner. Enjoy your videos. I've learned a lot.

[@EdwardMartinsPhotography]

Hope you feel better. I pulled my back a few years ago so badly I was wondering if I could ever walk again. It felt better in a week or so. Been trouble free since, so fingers crossed. I'd love to see a video on the Fender 65 DRRI heater wire move especially what resisters to use and where to put them... 🙂And all my pot shafts, speaker nuts, bias pot, and jacks were loose new out of the box. The spring reverb tank had a loud feedback past volume 4. I got $400 off due to it's being "defective" which I couldn't resist and took the chance on it. Took out the reverb unit and somehow they managed to assemble it with the locator shafts between the chassis and the rubber ring so it was grounding out on both locator pins. Took 5 seconds to fix. That's probably the most money I ever made in the shortest time. 😀😀 Fender really needs to pull their finger out and spend the $25 and use better components. Where have I heard that before?

[@michaelfuller34]

Back pain is the worst!

[@xsonicassassinx]

months ago i got that same desolder pump and thought "man is it just me or is this miles ahead of every other one i've ever used?". the man has spoken. it's not in my head.

[@michaeldavis4969]

Hope you feel better! As an occasional lower back sufferer, I feel your pain (literally).

[@johnwilliamson467]

Hope your back get better Lyle . Nice video good point about the solder they used.

[@dalepiwek]

Always awesome Mr. Caldwell 🤘 nothing like assembling a 1982 Guillows Cessna 172 balsa plane with a coffee and your video playing. Thanks for keeping me happy 😂

[@retalt]

I feel that pain mate, get well soon

[@rockinvida1960]

Lyle…you’re not alone on the back stuff brother…I also threw out my back severely this week and could barely function for a few days. Felt like a knife in my lower back. Finally getting back to somewhat normal. Go easy and be careful so you don’t re-injure yourself. Take care and thanks for the excellent vids…

[@RobbieF]

Thank you, Lyle. It's always a treat to watch your craftsmanship.

[@mitchthemetalhead2589]

Thanks to your amazing mods to my dads AC15C1X I’m now a big Vox fan. Sorry about your back, that’s a misery I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Hope you feel better soon and looking forward to the next video.

[@richardlynch5632]

Feel you about your back...Sorry for your pain. Getting your core muscles just a bit tighter really can help! A little does alot😉 If you get to the point that you're considering getting a shot to block the pain...Dr. Dick Durbin from south San Francisco (if he is still practicing) is THE best. The saying "I felt the pain melt away"...? Its true, and hasn't returned😃👍 Thanks again Dr. Durbin👍👍❤🖖 It is worth the travel if the pain gets to where you cannot move at anytime without becoming very unhappy 😉👍👍 😎✌👍❤🖖

[@BCEpedals]

Lovely video Lyle. Sorry to hear about your back, I am a physical therapist, so it sounds like you may have a disc bulge or herniation. It’s very treatable and not a terminal issue. There are as many people without pain that have disc bulges, etc as there are those with pain essentially, (brinjikji 2015)If possible I would suggest maybe getting evaluation by a PT if it doesn’t clear up in a week. They can help give you ways to manage it and resolve it.

[@MattXScott]

Nice! Great video and sorry to hear about the back. Get well soon sir.

[@caveatemp]

For what it's worth, if you can find someone who does 'Bio-geometric integration' (BGI)- a type of chiropractic, I highly recommend it. They get to the root of pains like that. And they don't do any kind of bone crunching whatsoever.

[@joeltunnah]

Ignore everyone telling you to get surgery or go to a surgeon. Your first stop is a chiropractor. I was a skeptic, I've had lifelong back problems, and was convinced I had herniated discs. After 3 visits, and a few weeks of specific exercises he gave me, my pain was gone.

[@andrewfitzsimons7047]

Take care of yourself mate :) Thanks fpr this Video - looking forward to part II

[@bramblefinger]

i love the dry humour in your phrasing, theres lead free solder out there thats fantastic, this is not it, hope your back feels better soon

[@goldenboy8167]

Hope your back gets better, ugh, I know what dealing with that is like. Is this the new hand wired version or the fawn colored HW that has been out for a while?

[@retalt]

I'm very interested in these specific videos. I have the AC15HWX and love it, but it's a bit noisy (hissy) and I reckon it could be better. I'll be watching this with much interest 👍🍺👍

[@AnthonyTyson-ym5gs]

Sweet Vidz. I like yer style Lyle. Keep on pickin' Cowkidz

[@davedeville6540]

I had one of those AC30HW’s. Very thin and shrill sounding.

[@DavidKrane1645]

Pttf, before gutting it & ‘making it right’, just sell the HW Vox and get Lyle to build you proper one, All the big amp companies are now just like street corner dealers, pedalling talcum powder as the purest Colombian Snow.

[@zanzabar4ky7]

It seems like getting a led solder station and an ROHS one would be easier than trying to convert to led solder. It would also suck if some one tried to export one you worked on and it was destroyed at customs.

[@PsionicAudio]

Leaded is better for high temperature connections that are subject to vibration. In a sane world amplifiers and certain other gear would be exempt from the lead free rule. You want to keep lead out of landfills? Great, so do I. By keeping the amp out of landfills - and leaded solder makes it less likely to be disposed of.

[@David.S.]

back issues are the worst..there's a great vid on YT called "12 minute foundation training" that's excellent for the lower back, not easy to do but something to look into.

[@bottomkitchen250]

Hope you getting better soon, Lyle. Seems like a lot of people have been dealing with some kind of issue lately, myself included (tooth issues and headaches, I think because of that). I'm curious to know when they made that change to the turret board.

[@Alex-fd2dr]

Lyle hope your back is better try using an inversion table. It does wonders for your back.

[@Splattle101]

I'm very interested to see where you take this. I recently did some minor mods to my handwired AC15, mainly reducing the filtering and trying to make the normal channel a little less 'woofy'.

[@mamulcahy]

Back pain? Vicodin and Flexeril for the win!

[@breakfastbuddy5]

a good vox sounds like a Marshall

[@samysaab]

Curious about the new handwired series that VOX presented at this years NAMM. Really interested in your opinion - hope you get your hands on one soon!

[@gerardlabelle9626]

At what point would it be faster and cheaper to build an amp from components? Rather than half disassemble an existing amp and reconstruct it, Bionic Man style.

[@donaldmoser212]

I can't offer anything yet to the dialog on amp repairs, spinal pain and appropriate meds, yes. I just got out of the hospital after two weeks and this time unfortunately major brain surgery.

[@hakonmoen3438]

interesting! Would the output tube grid stoppers, that are not present in the gap you are pointing out(at around 3:00), cause oscillation issues due to proximity to the turret mounted screen grid resistors or the grid leaks? or both?

[@PsionicAudio]

Neither actually. They are most effective directly at the grid, not at a distance.

[@hakonmoen3438]

@@PsionicAudio I see. But for those HW AC30s that have the grid stoppers mounted on the turret board, what makes them oscillate?

[@cap217cap217]

The Bruno UG 30 filtering is all 47uf which is interesting because that amp has a lot of sag and forgiveness. The Z wreck has all 8uf but that amp is tight. Everything else is basically the same. Why is this?

[@Tibbon]

Do you have any idea why they might have done it like this? As you note, this isn't really about cost.

[@bonuspoppa]

not directly related to this amp, but I'm looking to buy a used amp but before i do would like to ensure that i have a good tech locally that I can have work on my amp. do you know of anyone in minneapolis?

[@lennybrowntooth5009]

I know the larger 3/8" Alpha pots are better than the stock 16mm pots, but have haven't seen reports of reliability issues with the stock pots. Is going to the larger pots more of a taper, feel, and look thing?

[@PsionicAudio]

Taper and feel.

[@robotsongs]

Interesting, my mentor taught me I should by default be running 700-750 for standard leaded solder. What temperature are you normally running? Also, no worries about the update schedule, friend! Your health is your most important asset, you owe nobody apologies for maintaining it.

[@PsionicAudio]

I normally run 700-750. I actually ended up going to 800 to get the old lead free out then back to 700 to solder the new components in (800 can be rough on flux).

[@goodun2974]

​@@PsionicAudio, 800F and leadfree solder is rough on soldering iron tips too, as I'm sure you know, but other's may not. Sometimes it's helpful to have a second iron one can quickly swap to if you're going to be desoldering a lot of leadfree connections; easier to plug a different iron in the soldering station than to change out a hot tip. Leadfree solder is also extremely unforgiving of cheaply made knockoff tips!

[@goodun2974]

​​@@PsionicAudio, ps, take it easy until you mend. I've sprained my back a number of times; rest, and a hot bath or a heating pad, were my best friend. My ribcage is so distorted from 3 open heart surgeries that I always have some background level of back pain no matter what. I'm going in for cardiac catheterization Friday to plug the pinholes in my heart; I don't call it Good Friday, I call it Black Friday because it was the day I suffered a broken leg when I got hit by a car at age 7 ! Hopefully I'll get to cheat death yet again.....

[@DrRussPhd]

The Surgeon at work. :) Go easy on the back or you will have leave tube amps behind and go digital. :)

[@retread1083]

Some cheap parts and bad choices but a turret board is beautiful. How much did it cost the customer to have you do what the factory should have done for an extra $20?

[@robotsongs]

"x 25.... and a couple weeks"

[@akkudakkupl]

What is the point of changing the pots to larger ones? As long as they have the right value and taper there is NO DIFFERENCE.

[@PsionicAudio]

Addressed in the next video. Yes, there are differences.

[@akkudakkupl]

@@PsionicAudio Electrically?

[@PsionicAudio]

Yes

[@U_ever]

Heal yourself bruh !

[@what1864]

the only logical reason to me that they did what they did at the factory was so the amp wasn't quite as good as the original ...

[@AnyMajorDude-et2ub]

I truly don't understand their logic 🤔 Vox owns the patents, have all the blueprints and wiring schematics of the old amps, can order any values in bulk that they want, and they know how sort after these old amps have become. So why the hell do they change cap values, and electrical circuits, and change a winning design into something inferior?

[@bawilms]

Bulged discs are no fun.

[@roberthurless4615]

I encourage you to go to an Orthopedic surgeon for your back. Please don't let that go or you may have permanent damage to your back. The doc might give you a Cortisone injection which should help.

[@joeltunnah]

No. Chiropractor first.

[@realadamnixon]

Hope the back gets better soon Lyle! Back pain is no joke!