Vox Escort 50 Bass Solid State Amp
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The Vox Escort 50 Bass solid-state amplifier debuted in the 1981 "Vox, Born out of Rock" catalog. It joined the affordable, solid state Vox Escort amplifier lineup, including the Escort Battery, Escort Battery Mains, Escort 30 Lead, and Escort Super Twin. At just 22" wide, 17¾" tall, 8⅛" deep and 32 pounds, Vox offered the Escort Bass 50 as a versatile, compact alternative for bass players when larger rigs were too powerful and bulky.
The Escort 50 Bass was a single channel, 50 watt bass guitar amplifier with a 12", 8 ohm Vox branded Fane 1221093 speaker. Its gray control panel was accented with gold silk-screened nomenclature and included "Low" and "High" sensativity ¼" input jacks, a toggle style power switch, and a red LED power indicator. In addition to a volume control, the Escort Bass 50 included a four band EQ with bass, middle, treble and harmonics controls.
Wrapped in black basketweave Vynide and accented with parallel gold strings, the Escort 50 Bass cabinet was constructed of ¾" particle board. It showcased the classic Vox "split" front panel with a Vynide covered upper section and black Vox diamond grille below. Gold "T" molding concealed the split between the grille and vynide while white "tadpole" piping followed the perimeter of the front panel. A 2⅞" wide gold plated Vox logo adorned the upper left side of the front panel while an "Escort Bass" nameplate was fastened to the lower right corner of the grille. The cabinet also included eight plastic 2-pin Rean corners, four plastic feet and a strap handle. The black-painted back panel featured two round bass reflex ports to enhance low-end response along with silk-screened product and serial number information.
Circuit Design
The Escort 50 Bass employed a "quasi-complementary" 50 watt solid-state power amplifier featuring a push-pull pair of 2N3055 output transistors. This circuit operated on a 70VDC single rail power supply. The gain for the preamp and tone control circuits was provided by a single RC4136 opamp. For a more detailed technical analysis of these circuits, refer to the Escort 50 Bass "Under the Hood" page in the Vox Showroom.
Vox Escort Bass 50 vs Vox Escort Lead 50
Vox debuted the Escort 50 Bass in 1981 followed by the Escort 50 Lead in 1982. Both shared the same cabinet size, 1x12" speaker confguration and 50 watt "quasi-complementary" power amplifier section.
The Escort 50 Lead offered volume and master volume controls alongside a three-band EQ while the Bass model provided a single volume control and a four-band EQ. The Lead version utilized a 12" guitar speaker in a closed-back cabinet; the Bass version featured a 12" bass speaker and a dual-ported rear panel for improved low-end response. The MSRP for either was ~$550 in 1982.
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