|
Post by mazmaster on Jun 19, 2012 16:41:11 GMT -7
I was going to wait a few days, but it won't take that long. The goal has been achieved! This is a KILLER pedal amp, every bit as good as my Germino Monterey 100 (the absolute best I've ever played till today), but obviously with its own flavor. The new G12M is not broken in and is kinda' bright and brittle, but the amp had enough range to dial great tones despite that fact. (That G12M is going on the variac tonight and if that doesn't do it, then in will go a Scumback M75, which may happen anyway. We'll see.) But, the real deal occurred when I plugged it into my Germino 4x12 with the broken in Scumback M75-PVCs. OMG, it was like the gates of heaven opening up and a choir of angels singing. I found the sweet range started happening right around noon on the volume (with Bass about 11:00 and Treble about 10:00 for a totally balanced clean tone straight in). But, everything really got perfect from about 12:30 on up to the point of amp breakup (assuming you wanted a clean tone for rhythms). I only have two BBs and an original Jetter GSR on my board and they BOTH absolutely kicked arse and melted right into this amp, once again, starting around noon (medium rehearsal level) on up. For most gigs, I don't think I'll need attenuation, but probably only 3dB if so. Hats off to Dr. Z and Humbucker for creating this little monster! IMO, the objectrive has been achieved. ANYTHING that can hang with the Germino in this category is an off-the-charts winner in my book. Now, I've got my ideal "big rig" and ideal portable rig. SWEET! Oh, and this is with stock tubes. I've got a few RCA NOS 5Y3s from my dad's collection back in the day and some GE long-plates I really dig. I also see there are still Amperex NOS EF86s to be had, so things can only get better from here..and this amp is already a '10', IMO!
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Jun 19, 2012 19:15:32 GMT -7
And what did you think of the Hi / Lo function?
|
|
|
Post by mazmaster on Jun 19, 2012 21:02:51 GMT -7
Didn't mess with it too much given the short slot I had tonight, but think it would be really helpful for high output PUPs if more front end headroom was needed.
Very easy amp to dial in though. Love the sweep and range on the EQ. Perfect. This is an absolutely killer amp!
|
|
|
Post by jesslm02 on Jun 19, 2012 22:24:49 GMT -7
Nice looking rig there for sure!
|
|
|
Post by markT on Jun 20, 2012 4:20:49 GMT -7
It's always fun to get in on the first batch of Z amps. Thanks for the impressions~ Enjoy~
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Jun 20, 2012 4:59:06 GMT -7
Didn't mess with it too much given the short slot I had tonight, but think it would be really helpful for high output PUPs if more front end headroom was needed. Very easy amp to dial in though. Love the sweep and range on the EQ. Perfect. This is an absolutely killer amp! Truth!
|
|
|
Post by Maddog on Jun 20, 2012 5:09:39 GMT -7
Drooling here!
|
|
|
Post by mazmaster on Jun 20, 2012 7:53:52 GMT -7
It's always fun to get in on the first batch of Z amps. Thanks for the impressions~ Enjoy~ Oh ya, for sure! I ended up with #005, but it looks and sounds fully evolved to me, unlike some other early builds from other companies I've been involved in. The good Doc's stuff looks even more immaculate and refined than the Maz 18 I got back in 2002, and THAT amp was world class...and is still going strong!
|
|
|
Post by jesslm02 on Jun 21, 2012 12:18:16 GMT -7
Were you able to try out the M12 with the band? It looks like our band practice for the week has been canceled so I'll have to wait until next week!
|
|
|
Post by mazmaster on Jun 22, 2012 8:25:25 GMT -7
Were you able to try out the M12 with the band? It looks like our band practice for the week has been canceled so I'll have to wait until next week! No, I didn't. I ended up having to work late, so I planned ahead and threw the Lunchbox in the trunk and then went straight to rehearsal from work. But, I left the M12 G12M on the variac at home till last night - 48 hours of pounding! That warmed it up and smoothed it out nicely and the sustain increased DRAMATICALLY. With my pedals this amp/speaker combo just want to take off into controlled feedback like crazy, even at lowish volumes. Tried some NOS briefly. Swapped the LPS for a GE long-plate and the mids got sweeter and juicier, but I seemed to lose sustain and the tendency to break into feedback. Tried a 1952 RCA blackplate 5Y3GT with the GE and that seemed to brighten and tighten things up and added clarity. A lot more testing needed on this front. Tried a rebuilt LHDC in a GW 1x12 and actually like the Cele G12M better. Tried a RWB in an Accomplice combo and THAT produced the most "balanced" tone, IMO, but didn't quite have the character, "attitude" and sustain of the Cele G12M. The Cele also seemed louder than the RWB! That should not be. Maybe the Z cab is doing that. Overall NO cab or speaker has come close to matching the Germino 4x12 with Scumback M75-PVCs. That thing is a miracle worker with any amp.
|
|
|
Post by jesslm02 on Jun 22, 2012 9:52:24 GMT -7
No, I didn't. I ended up having to work late, so I planned ahead and threw the Lunchbox in the trunk and then went straight to rehearsal from work. But, I left the M12 G12M on the variac at home till last night - 48 hours of pounding! That warmed it up and smoothed it out nicely and the sustain increased DRAMATICALLY. With my pedals this amp/speaker combo just want to take off into controlled feedback like crazy, even at lowish volumes. I'm think I'm going to do the same. I don't have my variac rigged up yet but I do have a filament transformer that I've used before. Only thing is I have to do it when no one is home or else it'll drive my wife CRAZY! I'm thinking about grabbing one of the crate power blocks too. I can use it to break in speakers and take to gigs as a backup.
|
|
|
Post by mazmaster on Jun 22, 2012 10:29:39 GMT -7
No, I didn't. I ended up having to work late, so I planned ahead and threw the Lunchbox in the trunk and then went straight to rehearsal from work. But, I left the M12 G12M on the variac at home till last night - 48 hours of pounding! That warmed it up and smoothed it out nicely and the sustain increased DRAMATICALLY. With my pedals this amp/speaker combo just want to take off into controlled feedback like crazy, even at lowish volumes. I'm think I'm going to do the same. I don't have my variac rigged up yet but I do have a filament transformer that I've used before. Only thing is I have to do it when no one is home or else it'll drive my wife CRAZY! I'm thinking about grabbing one of the crate power blocks too. I can use it to break in speakers and take to gigs as a backup. I stuck mine in a remote corner of the basement and, even though it was still in the cab (which usually makes it louder), you still could barely hear it, or not at all, at most spots upstairs. But, I only used 1/3 max power too, so about 8-8.5W. Now, breaking in the EVM-12L at 67W was a different story! LOL. Anyways, I'm pretty impressed with the Cele G12M so far, after getting it broken in. I've read stories about the Chinese plant really nailing it these days (every bit as good as the Brit-built ones), so maybe it's true! I have a pretty big gig tonight and really wanted to take the M12, but I really want to get settled on tubes and a speaker (and get the cover I got ordered) before taking it out. So, I'll just have to settle for the Germino halfstack. ;D
|
|