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Post by mjmtri on Feb 12, 2008 20:18:42 GMT -7
Can someone please compare an Srz to a GT? Can't decide Thanks Michael
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 12, 2008 21:38:26 GMT -7
Well I have both here, so I'll give a go. Maybe we can get Phil to come in and set us straight after that. The two amps cover a lot of the same territory, but they aren't quite the same deal. The SRZ has a full complement of tone controls, while the GT has basically a cut control. So it's no surprise that the SRZ can get a lot brighter or a lot darker, and there are many shades of tone between them. The GT basically has it's own sound, and you can tailor it to the room with the tone control, but the basic sound is the sound of the GT. But what a sound - holy cow. The SRZ has almost twice the power of the GT so it's not too surprising that it is a bit louder. That said, the GT is one loud amp. I think they both sound best with an Airbrake. The SRZ is basically a JCM800 type circuit, so you get that level of crunch going on. The GT has considerably more available gain, to the point that with certain guitars it's out of control. Seriously, with the volume past noon, some guitars you don't want to stand too close to the GT or it will just take off. Both amps clean up really well and have very cool clean tones when you roll the guitar volume down. But I have to give the nod to the GT on this one - the cleans you get from the GT are sparkling in the same way the Stang Ray cleans are. This thing cleans up like no other high gain amp I've ever played. But of course I haven't played them all... The thing is, the GT also gets the nod for articulation. The SRZ is very good, but the GT can have a LOT more gain and still hold it together. I'm glad I have the SRZ, and I'll use it for specific things here. But if I had to live with one or the other, I'd keep the GT, no question.
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Post by mjmtri on Feb 12, 2008 21:40:48 GMT -7
thanks benttop
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Post by groovergeorge on Feb 12, 2008 21:52:20 GMT -7
Would you say the cleans on the GT are comparable more with the Mazerati or more with the Stangray, Benttop? With single coils at what point on the dial does it get dirty or remain clean more importantly. Can you still get a nice jangly strumming rhythm sound out of it with those AC30 type tones?
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 12, 2008 22:44:48 GMT -7
Would you say the cleans on the GT are comparable more with the Mazerati or more with the Stangray, Benttop? With single coils at what point on the dial does it get dirty or remain clean more importantly. Can you still get a nice jangly strumming rhythm sound out of it with those AC30 type tones? Well lets see if I can say this in one gigantic run on paragraph... The thing with the Mazerati GT is simply this - as soon as you start hearing sound it's already very nearly full volume. That happens between 7 o'clock to 9 o'clock on the dial. With the volume at 9 o'clock it's still fairly clean, but you can already hear the hair on the notes. So for me, the main way that I use the amp is to turn up even more than that for my high gain solo sound, and turn the guitar down to get back to the crunch and clean stuff. The amp cleans up completely when you do this, but the volume barely goes down at all. Pretty amazing. With my Strat, the guitar itself gets a bit brighter when I roll the volume back, so it's a little hard to judge what you're asking, but yeah, it's very jangly at that point. I only had my Mazerati for a couple months, so based on that faint memory, I'd say the GT sounds more like the Stingray when you turn the volume back. That shouldn't be a big surprise considering the shared heritage of the two amps. Someone else who has a Mazerati and a Mazerati GT can probably give you a better idea of how those two compare, but they really aren't the same amp.
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Post by groovergeorge on Feb 13, 2008 2:14:50 GMT -7
Thanks very much for taking the time to give me the low down on the amps tonal capabilities.
I'm in a bit of a dilemma as to which way to go as I'm searching for big cleans but still want to be able to play blues gigs as well. i guess all round desert island rig. I have got a Maz invasion which is very similar to a Sr but want something with a simpler-purer signal path. I considered a KT5 for a long time but i think the volume just might be way too much.
+1 to you for taking your time to give me your thoughts.
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Post by Phil (aka Phil) on Feb 13, 2008 7:32:13 GMT -7
Well, I'll add my two cents to the already excellent comments by Benttop: The two are very different amps. They both sound "Marshally" to different degrees, as Steve said, but both have their own take on the Marshall sound, as well as their own feel.
The SRZ uses the basic Marshall 800 series preamp (cathode follower tone stack), *but* there are significant tweaks and changes by the Doc. The tone controls are much more effective, all the components are of much higher quality than a Marshall, and it has an ultralinear output transformer. It is still a fixed bias class AB EL34 amp.
The Mazerati GT is a very unique design, very short circuit path amp- but it's a cathode biased amp with four EL84's.
The "feel" of the two amps to the player is very different. The SRZ responds like you would expect a fixed bias class AB EL34 amp with a cathode follower tone stack to respond (gets brighter as you dig in harder). It has that EL34 crunch, but it sounds at lot smoother in the mids/highs than a JCM 800 and has a much tighter bass response. It is a cascaded gain front end design; the SRZ doesn't have a whole lot of clean headroom. You can clean it up a little by turning down the guitar's volume control, but it's a hard rockin' amp.
The Mazerati GT has a much different feel. In short, it feels like you're connected to the speakers with a straight piece of wire that responds to your touch. It's got a very unique sound; it's not exactly Marshall at full guitar volume; it's got a little bit of that Vox/Trainwreck thing due to the cathode biased EL84's. It still sounds very much like a Dr. Z amp though; very tight low end, extremely smooth distortion and highs that are very easy on the ears even with the unbelievable clarity. When you turn down the guitar's volume the cleans are more like the Stangray, which is no huge surprise given that the GT uses the same output transformer, cathode biased EL84's, and a cut control (although the implementation here is slightly different than on the Stangray).
When I first got the SRZ, I hooked it up to my Z-Best, plugged in my 1986 Kramer Baretta and played some VH. I know, EVH used 100W Plexi's, different speakers in 4X12's....etc. Even so, I was quite surprised at how little it sounded like EVH- the SRZ has it's own thing happening- the low mids are very thick. When I got the GT, I did the same thing- with much different results. You know that all those shades of clean, crunchy, dirty, and everything in between that EVH gets by turning down the guitar's volume control on "Girl Gone Bad", "Drop Dead Legs", "Hot For Teacher", etc.? The GT does all that unbelievably well. It doesn't sound exactly like EVH, but it's close enough for me. It's got a very smooth gain that sounds like some kind of incredible hot rodded Marshall- but it's coming from a quad of EL84's. It also is the best feedback amp I've ever played- you just turn slightly toward the speakers and hold a note and it sings forever.
The SRZ doesn't have the clarity of the GT, but it does have a full set of tone controls including a very good master volume. That does make it more "versatile" in some player's eyes. However, given the choice between the two I think the GT is more "fun" to play because of the clarity, the feel, and the incredible shades of gain you can get just by varying your picking attack or using the guitar's volume control.
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Post by mjmtri on Feb 13, 2008 7:51:41 GMT -7
Thanks guys for the comments. I really appreciate it.
Michael
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 13, 2008 8:03:36 GMT -7
Yeah, what he said!
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Post by heynewguy (Ol’ Bill) on Feb 13, 2008 13:07:15 GMT -7
Thanks to Phil and Steve for another great review.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 13, 2008 14:17:30 GMT -7
Oops, forgot a very significant difference. You can buy a new Mazerati GT. Not so with the SRZ.
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Post by Phil (aka Phil) on Feb 13, 2008 14:24:06 GMT -7
Oops, forgot a very significant difference. You can buy a new Mazerati GT. Not so with the SRZ. There's at least one, if not two of the SRZ LE's available right now on the used market. I was kind of assuming that mjmtri might be interested in one of them. But yeah, as far as new production goes, the GT's your only choice.
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Post by Jones'n for Tone on Feb 13, 2008 21:37:16 GMT -7
Darn it! I try'd not to read this thread. Just when I'm really starting to dig my 6545, here I go jones'n for another Z amp. The GT of course. Couldn't ya just make up something bad to say about the GT? I mean like pretend they only come in pink (some say "Pank") or putrid green. I'm thinking the Doc could be compared to the pharmaceutical giants. Even though he's providing us a cure for tone sickness on one hand, he's just creating more tone junkies on the other. Once you're hooked it's a tough habit to kick. I can hear it now at the AA meeting (Amps Anonymous).... My name is Brian, I'm a tone junkie. It all started when I got hooked on my first Z. She was a blonde Stangray. I've always had a thang for blondes..... Well, at least I'm not in this one alone!
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 13, 2008 23:28:17 GMT -7
Hey, the 6545 has some serious Mojo too! That amp rocks!
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