1960s Vox Ultrasonic V268 Vintage Guitar, Built-In Fuzz, Boost & Wah w/ Case
$5,499.99
$5,499.99
Shipping calculated at checkout.
Up for sale, a 1960s Vox Ultrasonic V268 in exceptional, 100% original condition, complete with a hardshell case. This rare top-tier Vox, made by EKO in Italy, was produced for just a few years in the late ‘60s, loaded with a bevy of built-in effects including a Treble/Bass Booster, Distortion, Repeater, and a palm-actuated Wah.
Tonewoods include a spruce top, maple back and rims, a three-piece maple neck, and bound rosewood fretboard. While the body shape was clearly inspired by Gibson’s thinline ES models (which were enjoying a surge in popularity concurrently to this model’s release), the fully hollow design is actually more akin to a Fender Coronado or Hagstrom Viking, yielding a resonant, percussive acoustic profile faithfully channeled by the pair of Vox Ferro-Sonic single coils. These pickups were “designed for wide range high fidelity,” delivering plenty of sparkle and articulation balanced by a notably full, warm lower-midrange cut, particularly with the neck pickup engaged.
Naturally, there are also a vast array of tones available through various combinations of the onboard effects. The Treble/Bass Booster has a very wide sweep, functioning as a low-pass filter when rolled off and a high-pass filter when dialed up, and boosts the selected frequency range. The Distortion circuit has a similar flavor to a Fuzz Face, powered by a pair of BC108 silicon transistors ideal for dirty crunch and buzzsaw bliss. The Repeater is a unique effect, modulating volume and akin to a tremolo, particularly dimensional at higher speeds. The palm-actuated Wah has a smooth feel and great vocal character. The built-in E Tuner is the only electronic component that is not functional. This Ultrasonic V268 weighs 7lbs 14oz, professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 11-49 strings, low action, and accurate intonation.
Neck Specs:
-Wood: Three-piece maple with Vox “Double T” reinforcement
-Shape: Medium C, very generous shoulders, measuring .850” 1st fret, .940” 12th fret
-Fretboard: Bound rosewood, pearloid block inlays with diagonal stripes
-Frets: Medium, leveled and crowned, no wear
-Scale Length: 25”
-Nut Width: 1 5/8” (measured at zero fret), aluminum
-Tuners: Original Vox-stamped, clean chrome plating
-Serialization: Embossed on four-bolt neck plate, “Made in Italy by Vox” text on back of headstock
Body Specs:
-Pickups: Vox Ferro-Sonic
-Electronics: Effects powered by 9V battery, three-way pickup selector switch, Master Volume and independent Tone controls. E Tuner non-functional
-Hardware: Original bridge with threaded roller saddles, original Bigsby-style vibrato, chrome plating has chipped away at end of vibrato by strap button, both Wah and vibrato actuate smoothly
-Plastics: Original reflector knobs, thick one-ply dark tortoise pickguard
The gloss Cherry finish is framed by ambered multi-ply binding, and the very prominent, broad checking common with virtually all Italian Vox instruments is quite limited on this example, largely near the neck pickup and input jack. Some previous separation of the top along the lower bout body edge has been reglued and is structurally sound. Cosmetic wear is limited to just a scant few small dings on the lower bout perimeter and back, and one ding adjacent to the binding at the bass-side waist. The neck profile retains its smooth gloss.
A modern Epiphone black tolex hardshell case is included.
Tonewoods include a spruce top, maple back and rims, a three-piece maple neck, and bound rosewood fretboard. While the body shape was clearly inspired by Gibson’s thinline ES models (which were enjoying a surge in popularity concurrently to this model’s release), the fully hollow design is actually more akin to a Fender Coronado or Hagstrom Viking, yielding a resonant, percussive acoustic profile faithfully channeled by the pair of Vox Ferro-Sonic single coils. These pickups were “designed for wide range high fidelity,” delivering plenty of sparkle and articulation balanced by a notably full, warm lower-midrange cut, particularly with the neck pickup engaged.
Naturally, there are also a vast array of tones available through various combinations of the onboard effects. The Treble/Bass Booster has a very wide sweep, functioning as a low-pass filter when rolled off and a high-pass filter when dialed up, and boosts the selected frequency range. The Distortion circuit has a similar flavor to a Fuzz Face, powered by a pair of BC108 silicon transistors ideal for dirty crunch and buzzsaw bliss. The Repeater is a unique effect, modulating volume and akin to a tremolo, particularly dimensional at higher speeds. The palm-actuated Wah has a smooth feel and great vocal character. The built-in E Tuner is the only electronic component that is not functional. This Ultrasonic V268 weighs 7lbs 14oz, professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 11-49 strings, low action, and accurate intonation.
Neck Specs:
-Wood: Three-piece maple with Vox “Double T” reinforcement
-Shape: Medium C, very generous shoulders, measuring .850” 1st fret, .940” 12th fret
-Fretboard: Bound rosewood, pearloid block inlays with diagonal stripes
-Frets: Medium, leveled and crowned, no wear
-Scale Length: 25”
-Nut Width: 1 5/8” (measured at zero fret), aluminum
-Tuners: Original Vox-stamped, clean chrome plating
-Serialization: Embossed on four-bolt neck plate, “Made in Italy by Vox” text on back of headstock
Body Specs:
-Pickups: Vox Ferro-Sonic
-Electronics: Effects powered by 9V battery, three-way pickup selector switch, Master Volume and independent Tone controls. E Tuner non-functional
-Hardware: Original bridge with threaded roller saddles, original Bigsby-style vibrato, chrome plating has chipped away at end of vibrato by strap button, both Wah and vibrato actuate smoothly
-Plastics: Original reflector knobs, thick one-ply dark tortoise pickguard
The gloss Cherry finish is framed by ambered multi-ply binding, and the very prominent, broad checking common with virtually all Italian Vox instruments is quite limited on this example, largely near the neck pickup and input jack. Some previous separation of the top along the lower bout body edge has been reglued and is structurally sound. Cosmetic wear is limited to just a scant few small dings on the lower bout perimeter and back, and one ding adjacent to the binding at the bass-side waist. The neck profile retains its smooth gloss.
A modern Epiphone black tolex hardshell case is included.
