Interesting new guitar from Vox?

[Pete C]

I'd prefer a Les Paul, a Strat, a Tele, a 335, a nice acoustic, a Dobro, a sitar... but this looks handy for home-recording..


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E538AllaUac

[bruno]

Very cool guitar - some great sounds.
B

[kenny mac]

Wow sounds excellent,not sure about the shape but I think that may change.
Cool sounds.

[Groundy]

Great sound Pete.....



Alex

[Johnny Robbo]

Hmmm... interesting. I had one of the Line6 Variax guitars on loan for a while when they first came out. Like this guitar you could dial in all sorts of acoustic & electric sounds, and they were pretty convincing. You could go from a typical Knopfler-esque "out of phase" strat sound to a Les Paul to a Dobro to a tele (and many more) all at the flick of a switch.

The problem with it wasn't the sounds... they were great (when it was working... like all Line6 equipment I've used, reliability wasn't it's strong suit) but it was the feel. You don't realise how much the different feel of a tele from a Les Paul affects they way you play until you're getting a Les Paul sound... a CONVINCING Les Paul sound at that, from a guitar that doesn't FEEL like a Les Paul. It's like eating something that looks like a steak & has the texture of a steak, but tastes like ice cream (sorry... best analogy I could think of).

The slab-like body & stiffness of a tele makes me "dig in" a lot more when I play that type of guitar, and that's a big part of the sound for me. Likewise, a strat with it's different bridge & comfort countours encourages me to play with more "finesse". The sheer weight of a Les Paul is (for me) a large part of what gives it it's "stop a tank at 30 paces" feel which, again, informs the way I play that type of guitar. Each type of guitar gives a different type of feedback to me as a player & it just felt odd when all of that was missing.

I also think that VOX have shot themselves in the foot a little by making this instrument look so weird. Guitar players are a conservative bunch, in general. I reckon they'd sell more of these if it had a lovely quilted maple sunburst finish & a more "normal" body shape & construction.

Just my opinion 

[Greeny]

That's a really interesting video - it definitely shows the guitar in the best light. But I agree with Johnny Robbo that they should have gone more 'mainstream' with the design.

Looks like a good tool, though not for me. I like the originals.

[alfstone]

...mah!....

 

not for me.

Alfredo

[Pete C]

Interesting to see your replies but it does show we're a conservative bunch when it comes to guitars - the 60 year old designs are still the favourites and they got them more or less right from the start. Why change something that works?

Including my bass I've got 7 guitars and its been a pleasure to gradually build up a small collection over the years when I've been able to afford to add a new one or had a couple bought for me by Mrs C to mark a special occasion.

The Vox has its merits if you've only got the budget or space for one guitar and want a variety of sounds. I'll stick with what I have too!

Pete

[Geir]

I love the concept, but I don't find the acoustic modelling good enough. They are OK, and if I played a lot live with the need for both acoustic and electric I might consider it. I just wish they hadn't wasted their R&D resources on the synth sounds.

[alfstone]

Just to clarify better, since we're talking about guitar modeling, in terms of RESULTS I think that such a guitar cannot be compared to a GP-10 driven by an exaphonic pickup (GK-3A, or Godin, or Roland-ready Strat etc.).

You may begin to look/listen at 22:00:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F0zKG6Fsd0

Alfredo