Draelyc
Member
I had a chance a few short weeks ago to pick up a used Dr. Z Maz 18 Jr. NR head. Now, there was nothing wrong with the amps I had, but this was my first opportunity to "step up" to a "next level" kind of boutique-type amp. Just think of the e-prestige & internet cred, I (er) thought. I listened to clips & watched vids of the amp, especially the demo at Dr. Z's site. The price seemed pretty good. So I went for it.
Well, when last we visited our Intrepid Hero (i.e., me), he had started a half-dozen threads about the experience in HCAF, and many folks were kind enough to talk me through the ups & downs I ran into as I explored the Maz.
As a way of getting started here, and rather than bore y'all with an attempted re-creation of a bunch of old threads, here are the conclusions I came to and the things that I learned from this experience:
1. I am pretty much a preamp-distortion kinda guy. I know that's anathema to the tube-purists out there. But hear me out: I fully and wholeheartedly agree that any decent tube amp is going to sound *better* cranked up than it does at whisper-quiet volumes; however, for my personal tastes, I need to be able to get my basic tone (including gain/saturation) at a lower volume, and then be able to turn it up as desired & have the tone just get "better" from there. As a result, I've realized I do better with amps which get a good bit of their overall sound (gain & tone) from the preamp rather than from really overdriving the power amp.
Now, I still need to have a responsive amp that cleans up well from the guitar's volume, because I ride that volume knob constantly. I rarely change channels during a song on my channel-switching amps. So I need a well-tuned preamp, to be sure. But there it is.
2. I'm a tone freak, but I'm also a control freak! I need to be able to control my amp's gain, eq, and overall volume equally. The Maz has a volume (preamp) and a master volume control, but I quickly learned that those knobs are really like gain controls for the preamp & power sections, respectively, and they don't work as actual volume controls. Very frustrating for me, since I need an amp to work well in bedroom, practice, recording, low-volume jamming, *and* higher volume gigging environments.
3. Although my favorite guitar tones tend to be what you'd consider "vintage," and though that's the kind of sound & texture I tend to try to create in my own music, I've realized that I actually have an easier time doing that with an amp that's more modern in its sensibilities. I don't need "modern metal" levels of gain by ANY stretch of the imagination, but I have discovered that my tunes use more (preamp) gain than I thought they did, something I learned by trying to play my tunes on the Maz at lower volume levels. Again, if overall volume were not an issue, the Maz would work great for my music, I think. But it's just not working out, with an amp that *must* be cranked to in order to saturate.
It reminds me of the time I bought a Strat a few years back. Some of my all-time favorite players have been Strat guys. Some of my favorite recorded tones have been Strat tones. But as a player, I could not get on with that Strat to save my life. The feel was all wrong, and getting the tones that I wanted would've required completely re-vamping my whole approach to amplification.
That's what the Z was like: it would have required that I start over from Square One and re-design my whole approach to guitar. And at my age (& stage of laziness), I just couldn't bring myself to do that.
So, my last few threads at that other site were basically a record of my attempts to love this amp & make it work for me, because I REALLY wanted to dig it. And it *does* sound awesome -- it's incredible, for what it was designed to do. I should have checked out that design a litte more closely before I purchased, though. For example, I should have noticed that, in the Dr. Z demo vid, the amp doesn't really get that glorious crunch until they crank up the master volume....
So, that's the latest chapter of my gear quest. At this point, old HCAF would chime in with a "Cool story, bro," or a "Riveting tale, chap," etc. It'll be interesting to see what RT folks do.
Meanwhile, I'll keep rockin' the Speed Twin & the Studiotone, dreaming of the day that I can be a booteek dood, too....
Chris
Well, when last we visited our Intrepid Hero (i.e., me), he had started a half-dozen threads about the experience in HCAF, and many folks were kind enough to talk me through the ups & downs I ran into as I explored the Maz.
As a way of getting started here, and rather than bore y'all with an attempted re-creation of a bunch of old threads, here are the conclusions I came to and the things that I learned from this experience:
1. I am pretty much a preamp-distortion kinda guy. I know that's anathema to the tube-purists out there. But hear me out: I fully and wholeheartedly agree that any decent tube amp is going to sound *better* cranked up than it does at whisper-quiet volumes; however, for my personal tastes, I need to be able to get my basic tone (including gain/saturation) at a lower volume, and then be able to turn it up as desired & have the tone just get "better" from there. As a result, I've realized I do better with amps which get a good bit of their overall sound (gain & tone) from the preamp rather than from really overdriving the power amp.
Now, I still need to have a responsive amp that cleans up well from the guitar's volume, because I ride that volume knob constantly. I rarely change channels during a song on my channel-switching amps. So I need a well-tuned preamp, to be sure. But there it is.
2. I'm a tone freak, but I'm also a control freak! I need to be able to control my amp's gain, eq, and overall volume equally. The Maz has a volume (preamp) and a master volume control, but I quickly learned that those knobs are really like gain controls for the preamp & power sections, respectively, and they don't work as actual volume controls. Very frustrating for me, since I need an amp to work well in bedroom, practice, recording, low-volume jamming, *and* higher volume gigging environments.
3. Although my favorite guitar tones tend to be what you'd consider "vintage," and though that's the kind of sound & texture I tend to try to create in my own music, I've realized that I actually have an easier time doing that with an amp that's more modern in its sensibilities. I don't need "modern metal" levels of gain by ANY stretch of the imagination, but I have discovered that my tunes use more (preamp) gain than I thought they did, something I learned by trying to play my tunes on the Maz at lower volume levels. Again, if overall volume were not an issue, the Maz would work great for my music, I think. But it's just not working out, with an amp that *must* be cranked to in order to saturate.
It reminds me of the time I bought a Strat a few years back. Some of my all-time favorite players have been Strat guys. Some of my favorite recorded tones have been Strat tones. But as a player, I could not get on with that Strat to save my life. The feel was all wrong, and getting the tones that I wanted would've required completely re-vamping my whole approach to amplification.
That's what the Z was like: it would have required that I start over from Square One and re-design my whole approach to guitar. And at my age (& stage of laziness), I just couldn't bring myself to do that.
So, my last few threads at that other site were basically a record of my attempts to love this amp & make it work for me, because I REALLY wanted to dig it. And it *does* sound awesome -- it's incredible, for what it was designed to do. I should have checked out that design a litte more closely before I purchased, though. For example, I should have noticed that, in the Dr. Z demo vid, the amp doesn't really get that glorious crunch until they crank up the master volume....
So, that's the latest chapter of my gear quest. At this point, old HCAF would chime in with a "Cool story, bro," or a "Riveting tale, chap," etc. It'll be interesting to see what RT folks do.
Meanwhile, I'll keep rockin' the Speed Twin & the Studiotone, dreaming of the day that I can be a booteek dood, too....
Chris