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The Vox UL730

The power amp schematic is OS/114 (shared with the 430), and the preamp schematic OS/117 (shared with the 715, 760 and 7120).

The 7120 aside, the 730 is perhaps the most well known of the 7-series guitar amps. All sorts of things have been said about numbers remaining - even that only 26 survived a "cull" carried out by Vox in 1967 - the premise being that a large number of unsold amps, and amps recalled from owners and distributors (exchanged in some cases for new solid state units), were destroyed in Dartford. That is wide of the mark unfortunately. Probably around thirty or forty exist today.

The Beatles had at most two - not two each, or six each, but two in total. The serial number of George's amp is known, and it is not either of the two! now claimed. Watch out!

Also watch out for conspiracy theories and the fluffy stuff that's regularly ventured about UL730s.

Triumph Electronics, which assembled the amps for Vox, was a small place and produced work of the highest quality - but not always in an orderly linear fashion. Elements changed as production proceeded. Wiring was copied from sets of component boards not designs on layout sheets.

The schematics as we have them were for the repairmen and service departments, not the wirers and assemblers at Triumph.

A number of 730 cabs produced around October 1966 evidently had Celestion T1225 ceramic speakers, rather than silver alnicos. The cabs that the Beatles had on stage at the Savoy Theatre for the Hello Goodbye promo video (10 Nov. 1967) certainly had T1225s. See 2/3rds of the way down this page.

Amps are registered in two sections: (1) by serial number if known; and (2) lower down the page, serial numbers unknown.

Serial numbers begin at 3000 or 3001. Note that they are not a reliable guide to relative date, ie. amp no. 3030 could be later than amp. no. 3040.

The Finnish band Tetetermite with a 730 set just visible in the background

EARLY

An early 730

Pictured above with a 715 cab - the original is to be seen below.

Pictured with its original cab. Currently in the UK. Sold on ebay in 2016. Restored to full working order. Various things indicate that this amp was part of a small pre-production run, c. May/June 1966 (it is not a prototype). Points to note: the early style of panel; the different arrangement in places of the electronics - notably the lights over the front panel; the filtering in the power section; and some of the under-chassis elements. The original footswitch has a different style of lettering from what came to be standard. The back panel is removable (early style of box).

SERIAL NUMBERS KNOWN

Serial number 3002

Not necessarily the second issued, though perhaps still early - see the note on the unreliability of Triumph serial numbers.

Above, pictures of the same amp with a very probably later cab - offered/sold on Gumtree UK in September 2016, but for a long while resident in Holland. Possibly another 730 in the background. Note the presence of Celestion ceramic speakers - see below.

Serial number 3020

The amp alone (no cab, no trolley) sold on Gumtree in 2009. Above, pictures from the auction.

Serial number 3021

Serial number 3022

Currently in Australia. A good tidy amp. Visible pot codes are "GN" = July 1966. Thanks to Guy for the pictures.

Serial number 3029

Currently in the USA. 12 June 2016: This amp is currently for sale.

Serial number 3039

Currently in Italy. Formerly owned by the band "The Royals". As ever, some of the mustard capacitors were old when they came to be used for this amp - date code C4N = third quarter of 1964.

Serial number 3052

Formerly in the UK, now in South America. Thanks to Steve for the pictures. One of the pots has the date code "GN" = July 1966. The mustard capacitors are by and large old stock with date codes from 1963 and 1964 - Triumph had large batches of these.

Serial number 3078

Currently in the USA. Main amp in picture. To the left, on the floor is 730 serial number 3029. Number 3078 came from Germany. The cabinet is an original, the trolley a NCM reproduction.

Serial number 3089 - currently in Germany

Supplied by Piano Werner, Straubing, in Bavaria. The outlet still exists today. The only date code discernable is of a mustard capacitor - C4N = third quarter of 1964, so as in the case of serial no. 3039 above, old when it came to used. The reverb mixer resistor appears to be 470K.

Serial number 3092

The Celestion T1088s have date codes 10LL and 02ML = 10th November and 2nd December 1966, respectively.

Serial number 3102

Existence reported by J. Elyea.

SERIAL NUMBERS UNKNOWN

Offered/sold on Leboncoin (France) June/July 2017, now in Denmark.

Formerly in Denmark. Sold on Reverb in June/July 2017..

Above, an old picture of the same amp. Note the scratch on the panel, seven diamonds from the right. The dings in the wooden case have since been tidied up.

Currently in Holland, with original cab and trolley.

Poor pictures from the late 1990s. Advertised for years on Marcus Hardy's now defunct toneheaven site.

Currently in the USA. Accompanied by a repro NCM cab.

Currently in the USA - ex Sentience Studio. In the last pic, the amp is shown either with another 730 or a 715.

Paired with a North Coast Music repro cab and trolley.

Note the pair of T1225 speakers instead of the more usual alnico T1088s.

Serial no. 3002 (see above) was offered/sold on Gumtree UK in 2016 with this cab, which is likely to be later than the amp. Note its T1225s as above.



Grabs from the Hello Goodbye promo video, shot at the Savoy Theatre, London, 10th November 1967. The amps on stage were Conquerors, and the cabs 730s with ceramic T1225 speakers.

Paired (doubtless not from point of origin) with a closed back 460 cab. A nice amp with original footswitch.

Formerly in Germany, currently in the US.

In pre-restoration condition. Currently in the UK.

Currently in Holland.

Currently in France. A nice set, missing though the top bar of the trolley.

Offered for sale by Music Ground in the mid 2000s. Music Ground more recently also used pictures of this amp to try and sell a "7120" with four KT66s!". Perhaps it was accidentally converted.

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