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Post by snatch28 on Aug 19, 2017 7:17:01 GMT -7
I know they are not in the same league , but I bought the Maz 18 NR head to play with a band that no longer exists...I need to buy a cab for the Maz (found a good deal on a used dr z convertible 1x12) so my question is... Is it possible to get from the Maz jr nice tones at home levels with pedals ? I will keep the Blues Junior as my main practice amp but I'd like to play the Maz every now and then to get a better satisfaction even at home but i'm not sure it is worth it the extra money for the cab for home use only (at the moment) Sorry for my english!!!
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Post by digs57 on Aug 19, 2017 7:30:56 GMT -7
I would think it would be worth to have complimentary cab in general...worth it to me!...A good pedal will get you there at a volume for home volumes...
I do use a bassbreaker 15 for downdirty jams/home practice but I have to have that maz at any volume over the fender is preferable...fwiw....
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Post by zpilot on Aug 19, 2017 8:05:50 GMT -7
If you are ONLY going to use it at home, then for me it would not be worth buying another cabinet. You will do fine with pedals but it won't sound as good as cranking the amp where it can open up. It will be way better than the Blues Junior amp. Think about getting a speaker attenuator so you can turn the Master Volume up. A Brake-Lite will be a good choice to start with. There may be better attenuators but they cost 2 to 3 times as much. Lots of guys on the forum are perfectly happy with either that or an Air Brake. The Air Brake is more money but it has a "Bedroom" dial for really low volume playing.
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Post by snatch28 on Aug 19, 2017 8:35:50 GMT -7
If you are ONLY going to use it at home, then for me it would not be worth buying another cabinet. You will do fine with pedals but it won't sound as good as cranking the amp where it can open up. It will be way better than the Blues Junior amp. Think about getting a speaker attenuator so you can turn the Master Volume up. A Brake-Lite will be a good choice to start with. There may be better attenuators but they cost 2 to 3 times as much. Lots of guys on the forum are perfectly happy with either that or an Air Brake. The Air Brake is more money but it has a "Bedroom" dial for really low volume playing. The thing is I love the amp...I played it 3 times at rehearsal attached at a 4x12 and it was amazing, even for someone like me who lacks of experience as a guitarist it was really inspiring.I hope I'll find another band but I really don't know if is going to happen, so I don't know if is better to keep the amp in the closet waiting for an opportunity (but how can you satisfy your GAS putting your new toy in the closet) or sell it or make it work in some way ...I wanted to try some attenuator like the brake lite or the air brake but I haven't got a chance yet and also if I add the money for the attenuator plus the cab it starts to be expensive and I'm not worried about the cost per se , but I start wondering if is worth it or I should just give up and buy something else.
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Post by snatch28 on Aug 19, 2017 8:47:52 GMT -7
I would think it would be worth to have complimentary cab in general...worth it to me!...A good pedal will get you there at a volume for home volumes... I do use a bassbreaker 15 for downdirty jams/home practice but I have to have that maz at any volume over the fender is preferable...fwiw.... Sorry...did you mean that the Maz for you is preferable at any volume over the fender or it is preferable for higher volumes over the ones the fender can master?
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Post by digs57 on Aug 19, 2017 9:06:38 GMT -7
Yes it is preferable...I just don't need the maz to be in breakup mode to appreciate the tone I guess...
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Post by snatch28 on Aug 19, 2017 11:35:05 GMT -7
Yes it is preferable...I just don't need the maz to be in breakup mode to appreciate the tone I guess...(not you!) but It cracks me up that some guys feel they have to defend there liking the jr over whatever (maz) cause it does the bluesy breakup thing lower volumes...that's what you like have at it. Fender blues jr is a great lil amp for what it is...I like my bassbreaker 15 way over blues jr having had every conceivable blues jr...still it is what it is..."Its not and never will be a dr z maz jr...ect". To be honest I've never really bonded with the BJ...I don't dislike it but something is missing...not saying that in good hands could sound really good but I don't have good hands!!! What I know that even with pedals the Maz worked so much better than my BJ when I tried it with the band and was easy enough to dial a tone that I liked but I'm not sure I can feel that difference at low volume...I tried with a cab that someone lend me once and I couldn't make it work ...but it could be me...that's why I'm asking you guys
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Post by digs57 on Aug 19, 2017 11:50:24 GMT -7
I believe all Z's are player dependent at low volumes...they give what you put into it and skill level does matter...
The basic blues jr can only be "so" good I guess and will be way more forgiving in ones abilities.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Aug 19, 2017 13:58:20 GMT -7
Why not play the Maz through your BJr. speaker until you decide if it is for you or not. I believe you can just set Maz on top and plug it into your speaker (make sure you use correct ohms input though).
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Post by j4gitr (John) on Aug 19, 2017 22:58:34 GMT -7
When I bought my MAZ, I got rid of the BJ. No speaker swap could make that amp tolerable after my MAZ. I wasn't willing to put any money into the popular mods for the BJ. It's not a knock against the BJ , just my sonic preference. YMMV.
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Post by JasonM on Aug 20, 2017 19:22:51 GMT -7
When I bought my MAZ, I got rid of the BJ. No speaker swap could make that amp tolerable after my MAZ. I wasn't willing to put any money into the popular mods for the BJ. It's not a knock against the BJ , just my sonic preference. YMMV. Much like my situation back on 2007 when I got my first Z which was a MAZ Jr NR, within less than month I sold my Blues Jr, 3 months later I sold my Deluxe Reverb Reissue... I really liked my Maz Jr at home but I can probably get away with more volume than most at home. I did primarily use it for a clean platform with pedals at home and thought it sounded really really good.
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Post by captainron (Ron) on Aug 23, 2017 11:17:03 GMT -7
Hello snatch28, as a current owner of both the Maz18 and a Fender Blues JR. I will say the Maz even at low volume sounds MUCH better than the Fender Blues JR. The only reason why I have not sold off the blues JR. is I used it for practice in a band and left it at the practice place that was a little shady. I didn't want to leave a Dr. Z at a place i didn't trust. I'd say get a speaker cab... you can always sell it here later if it don't work for you or sell the Fender when it just sits around.
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Post by BritInvasion on Aug 23, 2017 11:27:27 GMT -7
Another Maz18 NR user here that ditched a Blues Jr. right after getting my first Maz 18. I use my 18 NR at low volumes with pedals and it sounds great.
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Post by snatch28 on Aug 24, 2017 5:53:52 GMT -7
Thank you guys...I think I will get the cab then and eventually I'll probably sell the Blues Jr
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Aug 24, 2017 6:03:14 GMT -7
My Blues Jr. didn't last long after my first Z.
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Post by greenblues58 on Aug 24, 2017 6:25:24 GMT -7
I have a concerningly growing number of non Z amps in my collection but l can attest to the fact that non of them l repeat non of them take pedals like my Maz JR NR! I have heard it repeatedly stated on the forum that the Maz in particular inhales pedals and that is a very apt description. The only other amp l have thats not pedal fussy is a Marshall vintage modern. I would love to know why some amps just don't like pedals.
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Post by Rik on Aug 24, 2017 16:21:47 GMT -7
Maz Braklite and yes it works very well at home levels. Dr Z speaker or a cream back gives you low DBs also. Had mine for over 10 years
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Post by captainron (Ron) on Aug 25, 2017 21:44:28 GMT -7
Forgot to mention I use a creamback M with my Maz. I did have 3 blues Jr's. Sold 2 of the three after picking up the Maz.
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Post by The Fonz on Sept 1, 2017 2:58:42 GMT -7
Well. As someone who literally just sold his Blues Jr. last night, I thought I'd chime in. I too have a Maz Jr combo. Never used it through a cabinet. Played it for years in the band situation and love it. Never really liked the way the Maz sounds at home, even with pedals. But man playing out it was dreamville. Played the Blues Jr out for years before I got the Maz. While I did like the Blues Jr in the band situation (prior to the Maz), to me it sounds so much better at home. Only played it out one time in years, but still never wanted to sell it because of how it sounds at home. Jump forward to the last month or so, and now I have Monza head and Z convertible cabinet. When I first got the Monza I was using the Maz combo as a speaker cabinet (and even tried out a friends cab). To be honest I did not like the way the Monza sounds at home, but much better out with the band. However, after just purchasing the Z convertible 1x12 cabinet this week, it sounds great at home (and live with band at a gig time). Decided it was time to sell the Blues Jr the other day and someone bought it yesterday. It was a sad day as I had a lot miles on the BJ, but it's now time to put miles on the Monza and cabinet....
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