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Post by detuned on Jun 29, 2006 18:58:45 GMT -7
The more I play my Mini, the more I like it, but since I like to run it flat out, I do miss my clean sound from time to time. When the Mini's cooking, you'll never get it all the way clean,no matter how far you turn the guitar down. :-)
I was reminded a while ago about a story I read in GP about Jimmy Herring & his rig. Apparently, Jimmy uses (or used) a pair of Twins & a pair of Marshalls & used a pan pedal to switch between the two sounds.
So, here's my thought. I'd like to try something like this on a much smaller scale. Help me find an amp that will match up well size & volume wise, yet stay clean at roughly the same volume.
I favor a Fender-y clean, but I'm open to pretty much anything. Tube, solid state, modeling, whatever. Anyone ever tried this? Any suggestions?
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Post by guitarboy02451 on Jul 1, 2006 6:53:47 GMT -7
Detuned... a simple a/b-a+b box and two amps should do the trick. Where your Mini doesn't have a lot of headroom, you might want to go with something that does.
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Post by detuned on Jul 3, 2006 9:43:35 GMT -7
Let me try this again, sans story for clarity's sake:
Have: Mini Z, love same. Wouldn't change a thing.
Want: Recommendation for small clean amp that matches well volume-wise with the Mini.
Any takers? :-)
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Post by Telemanic on Jul 3, 2006 12:56:22 GMT -7
Detuned,... I'm pickin up up on what your puttin down, Unfortunately the mini is one of the few Z's i have not had the pleasure of meeting yet. By the sound clips i get the idea of the gain structure and limited headroom, just not the volume. But guessing from experience and the wattage of it here goes, ....more well known choices, maybe a pro junior or blues junior, set below there break up point?? Nice tones off of either, but they dont have a tremendous amount of pristine clean availible, so i guess it begs the question of how clean you need. I think the Mini set for snarl, and one of the fenders set for a nice Little wing style push (SRV version) would be cool. My other thought since your open to it, is a little Vox ADV 15 modeler. Awhile back for fun, and living room enjoyment i picked one up for cheap, and was pleasently amazed at how good it sounded. Used to be that those things could only do that bedroom metal, super sustainy, overly processed thing, or a sterile cold sounding clean, where you better have a bunch of chorusing etc. The little vox was very very suprising. Really convincing clean tones that could be set to have a very tuby feel and fatness to them. It still had a full complement of cheese setings if you want, but seriously, it was the most tube like of any of that ilg that ive heard. It had more than any of the others of its kind, the ability to do just straight up guitar sounds, and being S.S., it can stay clean to the limit of its volume. One last thought, is one of those S.S. Roland jazz cube thingy's. Best of luck ! Lou
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Post by skydog958 on Jul 5, 2006 12:06:08 GMT -7
most small amps that the Mini gets put up against probably don't have the overall volume of the Mini...I would say if you run the Mini at a decent volume (2 o'clock or higher) you would probably need a 10 or 15 watt amp just to keep up in volume, maybe more if you want that really clean sound. That's just my guess.
Some food for thought that I hope is helpful. Unfortunately I don't have any specific suggestions...I'm a Z only kind of guy ;D
Maybe a Carmen Ghia?
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Post by detuned on Jul 5, 2006 13:15:53 GMT -7
Thanks for the suggestions fellas!
I was thinking that whatever I wanted for clean would need the be higher in wattage than the Mini, because I want to run it squeeky clean. I run the Mini dimed, so I want the greatest contrast possible.
I've not tried the Vox 15 watt, although I did demo the 30, which had definitely capable clean tones. Modelers in general put me off becuase they tend to sound like a recording of a good amp, rather than an actual amplifier, if that makes any sense, but the Vox was the best of the bunch I've tried.
I'll try a 15 soon. It apparently doesn't have the tube in the output section that the 30 & 50 have, which is supposed to make a difference. Who knows?
A Ghia (while an excellent amp, from all accounts) would probably be overkill... Not that there's anything wrong with that. :-)
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Post by JASON (aka jgleaton) on Jul 5, 2006 21:23:54 GMT -7
Thanks for the suggestions fellas! I was thinking that whatever I wanted for clean would need the be higher in wattage than the Mini, because I want to run it squeeky clean. I run the Mini dimed, so I want the greatest contrast possible. A Ghia (while an excellent amp, from all accounts) would probably be overkill... Not that there's anything wrong with that. :-) detuned, Actually, I think the CARMEN GHIA would be the PERFECT amp for the setup your describing!!! and I'll tell you why.... I think my Ghia 2x10 combo is small ( although a little larger than the Mini, it's Still small and light.. very easy to carry... tough as nails and reliable)... If I could get away with a smaller wattage amp with the band it's probably all I'd play... I mainly use it for practice with the band and at home although I HAVE gigged with it... a/b'd with the Stingray... anyway back to my main thought.... you can get a WONDERFUL clean sound at VERY VERY VERY low volume with the GHIA.... and with the clean level of the GHIA you could match the DRIVE volume of the MINI exactly by just turning the knob up a little ( volume would probably be somewhere around 9:00-10:00 on the GHIA to match the mini I would think, maybe a little more than that but not much) WOULD NOT BE OVERKILL AT ALL FOR THE CLEANS out of the GHIA. and you can put a holy grail in front of it with out any perceived signal loss...what I do and it sounds BEAUTIFUL! PLUS... if you ever HAD a gig where you needed a little more you COULD then CRANK the GHIA and for clean roll back on the volume or just use a good OD pedal for dirty and turn it off for cleans... you'd have a very versatile set-up... and you could even run BOTH amps through the same cab using a head switcher ( RADIAL makes one.. called the SWITCHBONE) ...be it the GHIA's cab or maybe a 2x12 combo for a real big sound out of both... just a thought... MAN if you like the MINI THAT MUCH... you owe it to yourself to give the CARMEN GHIA A TRY.... if you don't ever need any more wattage than that those might be the only amps you will EVER need... Jason
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Post by skydog958 on Jul 6, 2006 7:44:49 GMT -7
Just to add on to the Ghia idea, you could also use a "cleaner" tube compliment to get that really good clean if you still need more volume w/o breakup from the Ghia. Lehle also makes amp switchers and the like.
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Post by Telemanic on Jul 6, 2006 15:16:20 GMT -7
Ghia would be definately cool, i guess for some reason i was trying to think of fairly inexpensive (relative term) ways to accomplish the task, ie. a used generic something that had a decent clean ability and volume for like $150-300, ya know where the Mini is the star, and the other is a supporting cast member. ( if i'm thinkin right, which is almost never!, detuned is lookin for a cool practice/studio rig on a decent budget). I suppose getting into the range of even a used ghia, would open up too many possibilities to even list. I'd be biased towards a Z as well in the $700.00 or so and up price range, but certainly wouldnt turn my back on say, a used re-issue deluxe, for purely clean duties!
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Post by detuned on Jul 6, 2006 18:00:37 GMT -7
j, you are an evil man. ;-)
I actually do want to try a Ghia, they get so much love here on the board, but unfortunately, I'd have to do some serious saving to get that done. I could always get a small speaker cab & hook it up to my BF Showman - that's got more clean headroom than Godzilla after a buzz cut.
That'd be cheap too... Hmm.
Just trying to keep the love flowing for the Mini, despite it's being out of production!
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Post by myles on Jul 6, 2006 19:36:59 GMT -7
The more I play my Mini, the more I like it, but since I like to run it flat out, I do miss my clean sound from time to time. When the Mini's cooking, you'll never get it all the way clean,no matter how far you turn the guitar down. :-) I was reminded a while ago about a story I read in GP about Jimmy Herring & his rig. Apparently, Jimmy uses (or used) a pair of Twins & a pair of Marshalls & used a pan pedal to switch between the two sounds. So, here's my thought. I'd like to try something like this on a much smaller scale. Help me find an amp that will match up well size & volume wise, yet stay clean at roughly the same volume. I favor a Fender-y clean, but I'm open to pretty much anything. Tube, solid state, modeling, whatever. Anyone ever tried this? Any suggestions?
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Post by detuned on Jul 7, 2006 12:48:53 GMT -7
Myles,
That hurt!
:-)
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Post by jazzguitar14 on Jul 11, 2006 7:02:08 GMT -7
Get an Evans AE 150 for clean... (small 8" combo jazz amp)
Mini for dirt...
and a Lehle amp switcher for A - B - and adjustable A/B combo...
Next put a figure 8 pattern mic in between the 2 amps facing each other and your set for life!!!
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Post by taswegian on Jul 11, 2006 7:34:59 GMT -7
Get an Evans AE 150 for clean... (small 8" combo jazz amp) Mini for dirt... and a Lehle amp switcher for A - B - and adjustable A/B combo... Next put a figure 8 pattern mic in between the 2 amps facing each other and your set for life!!! Are there any phasing issues miking this way?
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Post by magnuspettersen on Aug 23, 2006 3:35:17 GMT -7
Get the Victoria 5112... best amp in the world, and cleans up nice!
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Post by joesnewmatch on Aug 23, 2006 6:44:17 GMT -7
I don't know about the Vicky 5112 being the best amp in the world, but I am using a Dr. Z and Victoria 518 at home and they are both amazing. For what it's worth, I just changed out the original tubes on my Vicky with NOS, including a Mazda 5YE, a Marconi 6V6 and a Jansen 12Ax7, and let me tell you, for what it's worth, the amp sounds amazing, much rounder, fuller and much quieter than before. Still haven't found a A/B or A/B/Y, but I'm eager to try the two together...
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Post by prowler on Aug 31, 2006 18:09:56 GMT -7
I'm actually thinking of trying something like this at my next show. I am thinking that I'll use the 66 as my rhythm tone & use an A/B switch & my Mini with the volume set at 3 O'Clock for my leads
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babar
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by babar on Nov 16, 2006 6:38:09 GMT -7
I noticed Brad Paisley is playing a Mini Z on top of what appears to be a Prescription ES combo in his "Alcohol" video. I play a through a lighter, cheaper solution: Fender Musicmaster Bass for clean and Mini Z for dirty. I drive both with a ZVex SHO. The Musicmaster's 12 W output allows me to have clean tone at the same output level as my Mini; and both have solid state rectifiers, keeping the attack crisp. I run my time-effects through the Musicmaster. The Musicmaster combo weighs 25 lbs and the Mini is 22 lbs, so my rig requires the same haul as a 50 watt combo, but with a broader musical pallet (IMHO). The MMB's 12" speaker compliments the Mini's 8". We're talking clubs of 100-200 max, here, so miking to the board is perfectly acceptable. The sound techs like having the option of mixing the clean/effects signal with the Mini's overdriven signal.
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Trent
Junior Member
life's a stage - enjoy every second of it.
Posts: 86
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Post by Trent on Apr 15, 2007 22:22:21 GMT -7
hi there. i was trying to figure the same thing out recently. I have had my Maz 18 Jr. for about 3 years now, and until recently, it was enough. I wanted something that made my sound 'bigger' but not nescessarily louder. I bought my mini-z sight unseen this past october to see if this would do what i wanted. Long story short, i found a switcher that I liked, and got this sound that was in my head onto cd. ...Anyways, my own reccomendation, due to my own situation, would be get a maz 18jr. it is still clean, but breaks up just enough. I mostly use the Maz as my clean amp, and switch the miniz in when i want a dirty solo. theres my two cents, dont know if that'll be any help to you or not, theres alot more people on here that are more knowledgeable than i am -T
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Post by myles on Apr 18, 2007 8:33:26 GMT -7
The more I play my Mini, the more I like it, but since I like to run it flat out, I do miss my clean sound from time to time. When the Mini's cooking, you'll never get it all the way clean,no matter how far you turn the guitar down. :-) I was reminded a while ago about a story I read in GP about Jimmy Herring & his rig. Apparently, Jimmy uses (or used) a pair of Twins & a pair of Marshalls & used a pan pedal to switch between the two sounds. So, here's my thought. I'd like to try something like this on a much smaller scale. Help me find an amp that will match up well size & volume wise, yet stay clean at roughly the same volume. I favor a Fender-y clean, but I'm open to pretty much anything. Tube, solid state, modeling, whatever. Anyone ever tried this? Any suggestions? I once posted a photo somewhere in here but I can't find it now .... my 15 year olds rig .... Two amps .... Mini-Z and Tweed Champ.
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Post by detuned on Apr 18, 2007 11:15:25 GMT -7
Look up! :-)
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Post by propellr on Apr 18, 2007 13:26:16 GMT -7
Myles,
If he got a second Mini, could it be retubed to give access to more clean tones? If so, he could A/B them and have a Mini Mini rig.
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Post by theuptownfive on Apr 23, 2007 23:11:45 GMT -7
Yay for first postings! Hey everyone, I'm Tim.
I was thinking of the same thing... what amp to match up a Mini Z with, to make my rig the most lethal while being the smallest. Have you tried the Mini Colossal by Peavey? It's 5 Class-A tube watts, and has built in tremolo, and an effects loop. It sounds pretty stunning. That with the Mini Z would be incredible together.... then throw a Radial Tonebone A/B box in-between the two, and you're pretty much cooking with gas.
Just my two cents.
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