VOX AC100 - UPDATES AND NEW INFO
February - March 2019
30th March (2)
The photos of the Vox catalogue of early 1964 are in the process of being replaced with better ones.
30th March
Just a note in passing. The second edition of Shirley Douglas's "Easy Guide to Rhythm and Blues for Bass-Guitar", issued in 1964, contains a great promotional picture of Peter Jay and the Jaywalkers with a Transonic. The band had two in total, one after another, both of which ended up in pieces. See also the entry below for 2nd March.
Front cover
Page 2
The third edition of Douglas's guide, published in 1970, was revised with pictures of late 1960s bands - Led Zeppelin, Ten Years After, and so on. Douglas and McDevitt were long-time Vox users, appearing for instance in a flyer of 1961 - both sides available here.
Flyer from 1961.
22nd March
Vox Teen Beat magazine issue 1, complete, is now available here. Below, a great pic. from page 4:
Los Angeles County Fair at Pomona, Disc Jockey Carnival, 25th-31st December, 1964. An AC100 with Foundation Bass cab at left.
21st March
Some pages from Vox Teen Beat magazine no. 1, late March or early April, 1965. The others will be posted soon. For details of the "Battle of the Bands" competition, which the magazine was produced to publicise, see this page.
This copy came from a seller in San Mateo, where the Bay Area contest was held. It had belonged to a drummer who attended the events.
20th March
Dick Denney's accident on the way to Heathrow, October 1964 - struck during the crash by the guitar-organ:
"Belfast Telegraph", 15th October, 1964.
17th March
A new page begun on the National Beat Contest, April to August 1965, equipment provided by Vox.
"Melody Maker", 14th August, 1965.
14th March (2)
A packet of Vox Phantom guitar strings (complete) from September 1964 - pretty much co-eval with the move to thick edged boxes for the AC80/100.
The date 9-64 in the printer's runner.
Detail from the Vox "Precision in Sound" newspaper format catalogue. Note that the packet of strings depicted has "VOX" in old style square letter form.
14th March
Two AC100s recently come to light: serial number 683 from late summer 1965; and number 954 from the end of 1965:
Serial number 954. Thanks to Michael for the picture.
Serial number 683.
Serial number 1064.
Serial numbers 683 and 1064 were both owned at one time by a collector in Germany. His numbered stickers can be seen on the plates. Both amps are paired with Supreme cabs from early 1968 - to emulate SDLs.
11th March
A new page has been started on the "Ready Steady Win" competition, summer and autumn, 1964. A photo taken on or before 9th September shows an array of Vox equipment (for potential purchase with the prize money): an AC100 SDL and large box AC50s with early trolleys.
9th March
On its way to the UK, a mid 60s Vox guitar lead with 3 yard cable - not too many around these days. This type of lead (with moulded plugs) was no. 2017 in Vox catalogues and pricelists. See the details below from the pricelist of November 1965. The "Precision in Sound" catalogue of late 1964 illustrates a coiled lead with same jack plugs (see the second entry below for 8th March).
The straight and angled plugs are illustrated in the "Precision in Sound" catalogue, below (second entry for 8 March).
8th March (3)
One side of "The British Sound" catalogue opened up to show its general arrangement:
8th March (2)
Some details - small fry really - of a Vox angled jack plug from the mid 60s with its original 3 yard lead. The cable is of the same type that Vox used for AC30 footswitches. The other end is not terminated. Perhaps used for a footswitch for an echo unit, less likely for a speaker cabinet or for guitar.
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Detail from the JMI "Precision in Sound" newspaper format catalogue of late 1964.
8th March
Just to signal the fact that Thomas Organ issued two similar fold-out catalogues in the second half of 1965: one titled "King of the Beat", which came first; the other "The British Sound":
In the latter, the amps are presented in a different order (the AC100 is at the right hand end of the lowest row), and the amplifier section of the "Berkeley II" has sloping sides. In the "King of the Beat" catalogue, the Berkeley is depicted as an AC50 Super Twin.
7th March
The English "Precision in Sound" newspaper catalogue, late 1964.
The American "Million Dollar Sound" catalogue from late 1964 / early 1965, text much as in the English listing (some small changes). The height given for the AC100 amplifier cabinet - 9" - is wrong, however.
The revised entry in the American "The British Sound" catalogue from late summer 1965. The size given for the thick-edged AC100 amplifier box is now more or less correct (width including corner protectors).
Covers were available for the amplifier but not the speaker cabinet. "Waterproof cover for amplifier unit included at extra cost". (!)
The four early adverts for the Vox AC100 SDL have been set up here.
3rd March
Pages, dated June 1966, on the Vox plug-in boosters from the Thomas Organ Accessories Manual - the first US-made units simply replicated the English ones.
See the entries for 20th and 23rd February lower down this page for an English-made Treble Booster.
2nd March
The JMI hire purchase pricelist printed for Musicland, Bexleyheath, has now been put up on the early documents index page.
Below, the page listing amplifiers. Note the AC30 Super Transonic:
Jamie and the Raiders, c. 1962, with a Transonic. There are pictures of the band using the amp on stage too. Other notable Transonic users (live) were The Fontanas and Peter Jay and the Jaywalkers.
24th February
A detail of the entry for the AC100 SDL in the JMI "Precision in Sound" newspaper format catalogue from late 1964. This is the first appearance of the SDL in a formal catalogue. The AC100 SDL had been already been advertised - the amplifier in a thick-edged box - in September 1964 in "Melody Maker", however - see this page.
Note the deliberate error - "four inputs". AC100s always have two.
23rd February
Below, the Jennings Treble Booster unit plugged into an amp (as recommended in the instruction leaflet). It works, of course, but did anyone actually use them like this?
20th February
Below, a Jennings Treble Booster unit with most of its original cardboard box (only the lid is missing) and instruction sheet. The battery supplied was a Vidor. In company with JMI, Vidor was owned by Royston Industries.
These plug-in booster units are surprising large, protruding from the amplifier in a slightly ungainly way - but they do work well.
Further pics to follow.
Plug-in treble boosters are first mentioned (though not illustrated) in the Vox "Precision in Sound" newspaper-format catalogue of late 1964.
12th February
A great picture from the Daily Mirror of Jet Harris (in the white jacket) on stage with Sounds Incorporated at the NME Poll Winners Concert, 26th April, 1964. Note the stacked pairs of Foundation Bass cabs at the extremities of the stage.
The performance caught in the photograph.
For more on the venue, the Empire Pool, Wembley, see this page.
10th February (2)
AC100 serial number 813; chassis number 1469. An AC100 Mark 2 from the last quarter of 1965. The brimistor has been removed. Further pictures to follow.
10th February
A new page gathering together adverts and promotions for the AC100 in magazines and periodicals has been started here.
2nd February
Further JMI promotional material from 1961-1962 added on the main documents index page (click on the image above).