Vox AC4TV

I've heard quite a few times that there is no such thing as a good low-wattage valve amp but lately that seems to be changing with amps such as the Blackstar HT-5, Blackheart Little Giant, Orange Tiny Terror and now the Vox AC4 TV. It is based on the old AC4 amplifier but reduced to 5 watts and with some nifty modern features. Here are the specs: Controls: Tone, Volume, OP Level (4W, 1W, 1/4 W) In/Out Jacks: Input, External Speaker Jack (1/4") Output: 4 Watt RMS 16-Ohm Speakers: AC4TV 1 x 10" 16-Ohm Celestion VX10 custom speaker; Valve/Tube Complement: 1 x 12AX7 (pre) / 1 x EL84 (power) AC4TV Dimensions: 13.78" (W) ...  Read the complete review

Nowadays there's a whole host of small valve amps on the market. The AC4/TV is Vox's offering. At £189 it is reasonably priced, around the average for these small amps. The most unique and interesting feature on the AC4 is the variable wattage. The amp runs at 4 watts but can be switched down to 1W or 1/4W. This is a great feature for bedroom practice. The amp doesn't offer a gain knob to get preamp gain so to get any kind of overdrive you need to crank the powertubes and that means turning the amp up. That's where the variable wattage comes in, even at 4 watts this amp is really loud if you want overdrive, turn it down to 1/4W and it becomes a lot more ...  Read the complete review