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Introducing OX | Amp Top Box from Universal Audioplay button

Introducing OX | Amp Top Box from Universal Audio

About Universal Audio by Bill Putnam Jr.play button

About Universal Audio by Bill Putnam Jr.

Universal Audio's Historyplay button

Universal Audio's History

Universal Audio

collapse expand iconDescription

The Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box is a premium recording system and reactive load box that gives guitarists the ability to achieve perfectly studio-miked amp tones from their favorite tube amplifier anywhere, at any volume level. Featuring Universal Audio's groundbreaking Dynamic Speaker Modeling technology, the OX emulates speaker drive, breakup and cone cry like no other product on the market.

Achieve Cranked-Amp Tone Minus the Volume

The OX allows you to play your tube amp in its tonal sweet spot—from pristine cleans and edge-of-breakup grit to fully saturated distortion—at any volume level, from whisper-quiet to stage volume. Universal Audio designed the OX to provide the same tone, dynamics and responsive feel of a real speaker cabinet so you can experience your amp's natural tone like never before. Just plug your amp's speaker output into the OX and your cabinet into the OX's output to enjoy the true tone of your amp at any volume.

Dial in Legendary Studio Tones

The OX offers more than just reactive load attenuation. Its front-panel six-position "Rig" control provides complete mic and cab setups—including 22 vintage and modern cabinets loaded with iconic speakers from Celestion, Jensen, JBL and more, close mics, room mics and up to four simultaneous studio effects. The OX is the only product that offers a selection of expertly placed room mics, providing an authentic studio tracking room experience while recording your cranked amp.

Dynamic Speaker Modeling for Organic Tone

The OX utilizes Universal Audio's Dynamic Speaker Modeling technology to faithfully emulate speaker breakup, drive and cone cry, which is essential for reproducing the complex harmonics and sonic nuance of a real tube amp and speaker cabinet. Using the Speaker Breakup knob in the OX app, you can control the harmonics and sonic complexity that only occurs at certain frequencies and volume levels on various speakers—far beyond a static Impulse Response system. This gives you the same phenomenon that happens with an actual speaker cabinet.

Intuitive Software Control and Connectivity

The OX software app offers simple, intuitive control over all of the OX's parameters via Wi-Fi, letting you tweak, store and recall hundreds of presets from your iPad, Mac or Windows 10 computer. You can then save your six favorite sounds to the OX's front-panel Rig knob for instant recall. The OX also features a headphone jack for silent practice with your cranked tube amp, balanced TRS line outputs, S/PDIF digital outputs and footswitch connectivity.

Open Box Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box Reactive Load Box Level 1
Open Box Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box Reactive Load Box Level 1
Open Box Universal Audio OX Amp Top Box Reactive Load Box Level 1

collapse expand iconFeatures

  • Get the ultimate tone out of your tube amp—anywhere, and at any volume
  • Pair your amp to this reactive load, with boutique UA analog quality—built for years of home and studio use
  • Instantly audition dozens of album-quality mic and guitar cabinet setups with front-panel "Rig" control
  • Get authentic "edge of destruction" tones complete with speaker breakup and cone cry, thanks to UA Dynamic Speaker Modeling

collapse expand iconSpecs

  • Premium, no-compromise analog reactive load box for tube guitar amps
  • Five finely tuned guitar amp attenuation levels—from off, to whisper quiet, to full-band volume
  • Front-panel “Rig” control for instant, album-quality mic and speaker cabinet emulations
  • UA Dynamic Speaker Modeling emulates speaker breakup and cone cry
  • World-class Universal Audio EQ, compression, delay and reverb effects built-in
  • Selectable 4-, 8- and 16-ohm operation
  • Front-panel Headphone out for silent practice with cranked tones
  • Balanced TRS line outs, and S/PDIF digital outputs for stereo recording
  • Pair with OX mobile or desktop app over Wi-Fi for editing and saving presets

Featured Articles

collapse expand iconReviews

4.5

20 Reviews

83%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend

I use this constantly in the studio
Does exactly what is says it does, well.

Most Liked Positive Review

5

Great Solution for Keeping Your Neighbors off your back

Very interesting product. I bought it to work with my Fender Bassman RI and after contacting Tech Support from Fender and Universal Audio to discuss how and if it would work with a 2 ohm output I was told to contact the other manufactures tech support to verify that it would work. Nobody wanted to say "OH Ya, that will work, but they did say it should" In order to make the connections from the Fender to the Amp Top Box I had to purchase a "Weber Harness" set of cables and only use two of the four amp outputs and set the Amp Top Box to 4 ohm. The Product works great and I can crank up the Fender Bassman and turn down the output so my neighbors don't have to be driven out of bed. The software that is available works great with my Mac's Logic. Easy set up. I found that if I turn the Fender Bassman on its side, the Amp Top Box sits on top very nicely. The handle on the Fender Bassman sits a little too high for the Amp Top Box to sit on top of the amp.

VS

Most Liked Negative Review

3

Decent sounds with many flaws

A couple things I wanted to share for people considering this unit. The sounds that the ox box produces when you listen through headphones or through your DAW are "good" - borderline studio quality. However, to my ears they still don't sound 100% real, which means I doubt you will be hearing this used in any professional studio album. I think it's fine for a hobbyist. As for the claim that this is an analog circuit which maintains the character of your amps tube tone, I'm not really buying it. As you go through the presets, each tone seems to be entirely different from the last, which means maybe 80% of the tone is coming from the simulation of the speaker cab and mics. Not much different than a Line 6 Helix or Kemper in that you are really playing an imitation that trained ears will hear, and those other products come with more features. The worst part is that the processed sound cannot come out of your amp's speaker. It can only be routed to headphones or a line out. This may cause people to invest in better studio monitors and ditch the external speaker cab for home practice or recording altogether. Not really "bad" per se, but a different approach. I wish the processed sound post cab emulation would be fed to the amp speaker to enjoy that way. I'm not going to sell the Ox for now, but it has flaws, to be sure, and some are quite glaring. The WiFi can be spotty to get in to change your presets. The amp is attenuated even at the "un-attentuated" setting, meaning if you want the top volume for some reason you will need to unplug all your speaker connections and go direct to the speaker. I definitely hear the drop in quality of the tone as the amp is attenuated and it requires more work in post production to clean up or compensate for with EQ. For the price tag, it is really questionable as a value proposition for a home studio. Not sure I'd recommend it for the money spent, but it definitely unlocks some sonic possibilities. Take a look at the Boss product as well.

Filters

Best Uses

  1. Home Studio15
  2. Amateur Recording10
  3. Professional Recording8
  4. Performances6
  5. Outdoor Events / Games1

Cons

  1. Limited Functions3
  2. Difficult To Use1
  3. Poor connectivity1
  4. None1
  5. The only con is not owning it sooner1

Describe Yourself

  1. Experienced16
  2. Professional Musician1

Pros

  1. Excellent Sound16
  2. Easy To Use12
  3. Good Power Output5
  4. Warm / Comfy5
  5. Portable4

Reviewed by 20 customers

  • Works as advertised

    3

    Verified BuyerVerified Buyer

    submitted9 months ago

    byJesse

    fromPhoenix AZ

    Submitted as part of a sweepstakes

    Used for studio recordings. Well built and attractive. Easy to use but would prefer Bluetooth or USB to connect rather than the Wi-Fi set up currently used. Cabs and mics sound legit, the onboard processors are simple, transparent, and surprisingly effective. Decent presets. I kept it.

  • Unimpressed

    2

    submitteda year ago

    byChris

    fromBoise, ID

    This is not impressive in 2023. I'd love to see UA add a DI and REAMP I/O, and improve the flexibility on the number of speakers and mic placements and output tracks. Until then, this is definitely not worth the cost.

  • I use this constantly in the studio

    5

    submitted2 years ago

    byPaul

    fromCleveland, OH

    My background is guitar for 30 years - this is the sauce. It has everything you need, it takes a minute to dial in like all electronics, but this thing is reliable and just sounds 'right.' My old Fender and Dr Z's are collecting dust.

  • I'm a happy camper

    5

    submitted3 years ago

    byGuitar Gary

    fromSan Francisco

    Super clean. I had tried to save $ trying a Two Notes Captor with ADA GS3 cab simulator but there was no comparison. Presets are enough at the moment. Have not tried WiFi.

  • Yes

    4

    Verified BuyerVerified Buyer

    submitted3 years ago

    byStephen

    fromNYC

    I've only had it for a week so the jury is still out. That said, been doing some recording, it sounds good. The set-up of the speaker sim app was fairly easy. I've found I'm using fewer plug-ins like eq and compression to get my guitar tracks to sound right so it kind saves cpu.

  • Great sound but unreliable connection

    3

    submitted4 years ago

    byC Franklin

    fromVirginia

    Sound quality-wise, this thing is amazing. It offers a ton of high quality tones that are near identical to a real speaker/mic set up. HOWEVER… I really don't know what UA was thinking in terms of how to connect to your desktop in order to take advantage of the included software. You can't connect using a USB like every other peripheral on the market. Instead, you are forced to connect via WiFi. The problem is, there are so many restrictions on what is "approved" WiFi/home network that chances are you may have to play IT tech to get it running. And even then, the Ox's built in wifi is completely unreliable and you may not even be able to connect at all. I spent three weeks trouble shooting and working with customer support without any luck. A quick google search will show you that this is a common problem. So unless you are willing to take that risk, I would suggest getting a load box that connects to your desktop in a more reliable way.

collapse expand iconQ&A

Have a question about this product? Our expert Gear Advisers have the answers.

  • submitted7 years ago

    asked byAlex

    fromKY

    When will it be compatible with Android and Windows?

    When will it be compatible with Android and Windows?

    Open Reply - Gear Head
    That information was forwarded to the vendor for consideration.