tulk1 Posted December 11, 2009 Posted December 11, 2009 Uh, wow!!! Got to play the Prospect thru a Dr. Z Prescription Jr. last night. We occassionaly go to a country jam up in the Northland. It's about a 45min drive from my house, over an hour from my singer's house. But our drummer plays the jam, and if our bass player shows it's easy to get in some good toonage. I'm not the best jammer, so it's good to have people that know the songs. Anyway!! Normally the amp provided is a Fender SS of some sort. Not to rag, but the GP really has no clue how to set it up. Pushes the highs, kills the mids/lows and plays his Strat on the bridge pickup. Guess that is supposed to be twang. Again, anyway!! Last night one of the jammers dragged in his Dr. Z Prescription. 15w, El84s, EF86 Pre and loaded with tone to spare. I nearly had an "O" when I plugged the Prospect in. Granted, it was cranked and Tracy would never let me get away with playing that loud in our band. But man 'o man was there harmonics, overtones, probably some undertones and the 'ol Prospect just sang thru that amp. Did have some feedback issues, but with that semi-hollow you can actually feel the feedback starting before it gets loud enough to hear. We did a couple of Martina, some Chris LeDeux, Suzzy Bogguss and Wynona. It was a blast!! And that Prospect just twanged when it needed to, was ballsy when that was needed and even a bit mellow acoustic(ie) when needed. All thru an orgasmic producing Dr. Z amp. Gawd!! I didn't need AAS to go with the GAS!!!
jmb27 Posted December 11, 2009 Posted December 11, 2009 Prescription Junior? Very cool amp, indeed. Gotta love a pair of '84s with an ef86. While I have not had a lotta play time on the RX Jr, I can well imagine how sweet the Prospect woulda sounded. And, if ya get the chance, try yer Prospect with a Galaxie with a 210 cab. cheers always, eh Joel p.s. yes, I am a big Dr Z fan
tulk1 Posted December 11, 2009 Author Posted December 11, 2009 Joel, Was thinking of heading over to Mass Street Music in Lawrence this weekend to try ALL of the Z's. They generally have a stash of each model. Will drag the Prospect along if I do. The RXs are pretty big in country music due to the Brad Paisley connection. But I kinda liked them even before he got his mittens on 'em.
fxdx99 Posted December 11, 2009 Posted December 11, 2009 Nice thread, Kenny - always enjoy reading about playing out experiences. I tried Zs quite a while ago and liked them all. Can't remember the models I tried, but in the end they all had sweet spots that were louder than I typically need. A Deluxe Reberb at noon to 3 is about perfect for full band club volume. How do the smaller watt Zs compare these days?
rjsanders Posted December 11, 2009 Posted December 11, 2009 have loved all the Zs i've tried. owned a Ghia, a Maz Studio Lead head, 3 (count 'em) Rte 66s and played quite a few others. am presently intrigued by the Mazerati GT & firmly believe everyone should own at *least* one el84 amp
jmb27 Posted December 11, 2009 Posted December 11, 2009 Nice thread, Kenny - always enjoy reading about playing out experiences. I tried Zs quite a while ago and liked them all. Can't remember the models I tried, but in the end they all had sweet spots that were louder than I typically need. A Deluxe Reberb at noon to 3 is about perfect for full band club volume. How do the smaller watt Zs compare these days? just a coupla quick thoughts if ya dig a Deluxe Reverb with band @ club volume: might recommend a Maz Junior - if ya don't mind master volume and a pair of EL84s. 18 watts and you will be heard. I have used a Z-28 ( 12ax7 and ef86 w/ 2x6V6) thru a 210 cab and w/volume @ noon and the tone controls a little further to the right and you can go from clean to mean in a nice way. and, if you need a little more wattage there's always the JAZ 20/40 - can be run @ 20 or 40 watts - master volume - 4x6V6 - trem and reverb on-board. matches up nicely with 210 cab. got a chance to see/hear/play during a trip to Cleveland back in June cheers always, eh Joel
tulk1 Posted December 13, 2009 Author Posted December 13, 2009 Well, we ended up at MassStreet today. The wife was a real trooper about it, too. She even drove. Stopped for Bfast, met some friends, got a latte and headed up the road. There was someone in the amp room demo'ing some 65(?) amps. So our sales guy asked what amp I wanted to try and set me up in a private room. Pretty cool. Got to spend some quality time with the Jr. Talk about chime! Wowzers. Nice master volume, very responsive to the tone controls. The grit, boost, whatever that extra ooomph switch is called was a bit over the top. But otherwise it was a danged cool amp. No woder country players are switching to this amp (and it's offshoots). It could get very twangy, yet still was ballsy enough to put some hair on the notes. And didn't pierce the ears. About the time I figured I'd played that one enough we noticed the guy upstairs was gone, so Shel and I headed up to look at the other Dr. Zs. Plugged into the MAZ Jr, right off. It had some of that charm and chime. But honestly, it was a bit thin, even adjusting the TCs. Sitting close to that was a Galaxy - oh lord!!! Now that is an amp! Two channel, TBP, Pentode/Triode switch, 2x10. That amp was very warm, balsy, yet still had enough chime for the ASAT (took my Z3 to play thru the Z amps). Channel Two gets a bit nasty(er), kinda Marshally. Now here's the kicker. Got back home, looked up the Galaxy. Turns out it's the Dr.'s take on a Super Tweed!!! No wonder I liked that amp!! Told the guy I had to look at what I had, see what I could sell (which means live without) and see what happens from there. Very nice salesman! Oh, also played a first version Mazeratti. One Vol, One Tone, about 45w, played thru a Z 1x12 cab. Very hi-fi sounding. Very guttsy, yet somehow still had the chime my ears want for the country. It's a possibility as the wife reallys wants me to get away from the combos and start lugging a cab/head. Sunday I plan on digging out my current 4 main amps at home, set them up in the living room and sorta A/B/C/D them against each other. Should be fun. And yes, I will use a Heritage in the "amp shootout", as well as the G&L.
rjsanders Posted December 13, 2009 Posted December 13, 2009 Well, we ended up at MassStreet today. ...Sunday I plan on digging out my current 4 main amps at home, set them up in the living room and sorta A/B/C/D them against each other. Should be fun. And yes, I will use a Heritage in the "amp shootout", as well as the G&L. xlnt report. place sounds like Gelb Music, near here... so, what are the 4 main amps? (youtubeage of the Galaxy are most jonesworthy)
JeffB Posted December 13, 2009 Posted December 13, 2009 2nd thread Ive read today and 2nd GAS attack.
tulk1 Posted December 20, 2009 Author Posted December 20, 2009 Didn't get the Prescription Jr. Didn't get the Galaxie, either.
tulk1 Posted December 20, 2009 Author Posted December 20, 2009 So what did you get? Haven't taken pictures yet. So maybe I shouldn't say. Ah, heck with that. Got a Carmen Ghia 1x12 combo. So far, so good. Took the Prospect with me to check out the amps. Barely got back out the door with it. I think they liked my guitar as much as I liked the amp. They've offered to buy it if I ever want to sell it. As for the amp, it was used and at a good price. And they took some off of that. It even has the Dr's Brake Lite mounted in the cab. Very useful toy. The Prospect just commands attention thru it; the Z3 sparkles like Kirk and Spock beaming up.
Dick Seacup Posted December 20, 2009 Posted December 20, 2009 Everybody raves about the Carmen Ghia. It's like the holy grail of toobness or something.
golferwave Posted December 20, 2009 Posted December 20, 2009 Nice score Kenny! All of the Dr. Z amps I've played through sound great. Used Carmen Ghias seem to be especially hard to come by so they must really have the mojo.
yoslate Posted December 20, 2009 Posted December 20, 2009 Savvy score, Kenny! Played a Carmen Ghia out a couple of times. Still don't understand why I don't own one! Just about perfect voicing; love 'em. Congrats!
tulk1 Posted December 20, 2009 Author Posted December 20, 2009 Thanks guys. Altho' I've only had it a day I'm getting to really know the amp. Had to stop playing so my hand could rest. I did some speaker comparisons today. Just used the 8ohms I had around the house. The Z came with a Cele V30. It has some nice chime to it, gets dirty easy if pushed, has a bit of a rough edge in that it's very in your face. Sorta pushes the notes at you. That is with both the Prospect and the Z3. Marshall branded Cele G12H Heritage (hehe). A bit darker than the V30. Not as many brilliant highs. Smoother, maybe? Notes not quite as defined as the V30. Tamed the Z3 quite a bit. Almost! too dark for the Prospect. Altho' the Tone knob is SO responsive on the Ghia that getting some presence back in wasn't a big deal. Weber 12F150 100w. Uh .... yeah baby!! The Prospect really loved that speaker. Clean, clear note definition. Held the bottom end together well when going into OD. Broke up very well using just the clean boosts in tandem. The Z3 liked it, too. Maybe not quite as much as the G12H, since the guitar in general has a brighter sound. When I went back to the V30, it seemed to be the best overall speaker to handle both guitars. So, I'd say the good Dr. made a good choice in speakers for this amp. ....... (hehe).
gopeteygo Posted December 21, 2009 Posted December 21, 2009 Congrats on the new amp, Kenny! Can't wait to see it.....
SouthpawGuy Posted December 22, 2009 Posted December 22, 2009 Congrats. That has got to sound amazing with the Prospect and the ASAT Z-3 !
Dick Seacup Posted December 22, 2009 Posted December 22, 2009 I keep checking back, looking for clips. <sigh>
tulk1 Posted December 22, 2009 Author Posted December 22, 2009 I keep checking back, looking for clips. <sigh> The DAW is in shambles. It's a shame, a scam, a sham of a scam. My trusty 'ol Epox Socket A mobo blew chunks the other day. Gawd, I liked that board and I miss it already. Near as I can tell it took the chipper and the vid with it. Got another mobo/chip/fan coming from geeks.com. Hope to see it over the Holidays. Maybe then. But, in the meantime, here's a natty pic via the cell phone. Yeah, too lazy to get out the digital.
yoslate Posted December 22, 2009 Posted December 22, 2009 Ha!!! Best control panel ever! What else is there?
Kuz Posted December 23, 2009 Posted December 23, 2009 But it only has 2 knobs? How do you work an amp like that? Love it! Cool as all get out!!!
tulk1 Posted December 23, 2009 Author Posted December 23, 2009 But it only has 2 knobs? How do you work an amp like that? Love it! Cool as all get out!!! John, you need to add one of these to your collection. Fer sure!
JeffB Posted December 23, 2009 Posted December 23, 2009 Cool looking amp. Controls like that mean even I could get it right. Glad youre enjoying it. I would really love to hear some clips with you playing through it. I havnt had the opportunity to try one myself.
jmb27 Posted December 23, 2009 Posted December 23, 2009 But it only has 2 knobs? How do you work an amp like that? Love it! Cool as all get out!!! less is more? oh yes. plenny of great tones available with a Ghia .... start with both controls @ 12:00 and then dial-it-in from there ....
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