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Post by driventone on Mar 29, 2013 10:17:58 GMT -7
Hello! New to the forum. Long time Dr. Z fan, aspiring Dr. Z owner who needs help making a decision.
I play only at home, and I live in a condo, so bedroom volume is a must for me. I play blues, classic rock, hair metal, and sometime punk or modern type stuff. I have a tweed Champ reissue to handle my clean and slightly dirty stuff, and a Marshall JCM1 to handle the hair metal and other stuff, but neither is really getting me a good AC/DC, ZZ top type of tone (unless you count the ZZ top stuff they did with a cranked Champ, but the Champ is a little loud for cranking at my place). I have an Orange Rocker 30, but it's a little too dark, has no bite really, and sounds squished and fizzy at the volumes at which I can use it at home.
When I bought the Rocker, I demoed a non-master volume Monza and loved it, but had the thought "that is the loudest 1x10 combo I've ever played!" I have been thinking about the Mini Z, but I'm not sure how quiet it can get with the attenuator, and I'd like just a bit more headroom. When I saw the video of Dave Baker turning down the PPIMV on the new Monza and talking over it, this really got me thinking about the Monza.
The 1 watt Marshall I have is about the loudest I can go in mu place when I dime it. So here is my question - will either the Monza or the Mini Z be able to get that quiet and still have a good Billy Gibbons or Angus type bite and grind? Which is the best bedroom volume option - a built in attenuator (Mini) or a PPIMV (Monza)?
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Mar 29, 2013 10:45:25 GMT -7
My vote would be Monza with MV - "Billy in a Box"! You can dial down the MZ and crank volume to get fuzz out of the Monza - was doing it last night. What a blast!
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Post by supernaut on Apr 1, 2013 20:01:03 GMT -7
Funny, I posted the very same query a couple of months back (except for me, it was Monza or Maz 8)!! Also, our needs are very similar (I only play at home, classic rock/metal--Sabbath, Paul Kossoff & Free, Schenker, AC/DC). I too have the JCM 1(c) and WOW. I had the Mini Z and totally loved the tone out of it (to MY ear it sounded just like Schenker on "Assault Attack" esp. the song "Samurai") BUT, I play straight into the amp, no pedals, so even fully attenuated, the Mini Z was too loud (trying to save what remains of my hearing--WHAT??--after 37 years of Sabbath!). I opted for the PPIMV Monza and have not regretted it. Not sure about about the clean headroom aspect, as I only play hard/heavy. One of the posters to my question said that the Monza can be tamed by rolling back the volume. In my opinion, both Mini Z & Monza are made to ROCK (or RAWK). Not much clean in there I play humbucking pickups (Les Pauls and a custom made SG) through it (Burstbuckers and 490r & 498t) It is more aggressive than the Mini Z, but you can always dial the Monza's volume back (not the master volume). The output level of the Master Volume on the Monza (in dbs) is VERY sensitive. You can get some pretty amazing dynamics in the mid 80s db range. Hope this helps. GOOD LUCK PS, Dave Baker & PCNS were MAJOR factors in selling me on the Monza
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