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Post by Patrick B on Aug 24, 2018 0:25:58 GMT -7
I just purchased a 2011 EZG-50 head. I'm assuming it doesn't have any mods but that's not confirmed yet. I also have a brand new Dr. Z 4x10 cabinet with the factory Dr. Z speakers.
What I've noticed is that the amp seems to be producing more and better highs/treble from the 8 ohm output compared to the 4 ohm output. I can't run the 4x10 cab from the 8 ohm output so I disconnected 2 of the speakers to reduce it to 8 ohms and it really sounds better.
I first wondered about this difference between the amps 8 ohm and 4 ohm outputs when I simply was trying out the amp with a separate 2x12 8 ohm cabinet that has two Celestion Vintage 30's (16 ohm wired in parallel for 8 ohms) and really liked the treble response I was hearing. That surprised me. I wouldn't expect more treble and highs from a 2x12 with Vintage 30's compared to the Dr. Z 4x10. Does that sound surprising to you? I know it's completely different speakers and sizes and cabinet so maybe that comparison is useless.
But it did inspire me to try the 4x10 with only 2 speakers in 8 ohm mode and it's undeniable that the Dr. Z 4x10 with two speakers in 8 ohm is producing better and more pleasing highs/treble than using all 4 speakers in 4 ohm. I don't think it's merely the absence of lows that I'm hearing.
Could this just be a normal expected thing with the amp? Or could there be something wrong or fixable like maybe new or different tubes? I don't know the age of the tubes but they are the recommended ones. I'm not satisfied that I like the 4x10 better with only 2 speakers. Seems like a waste and it's disappointing. I expected this amp with this 4x10 cabinet to be fairly bright but it's sounding a little dull using all 4 speakers in the 4x10 at 4 ohms.
I'd appreciate any thoughts and/or advice. What I want to do next is rewire the cabinet with all 4 speakers to 16 ohms and try the 16 ohm output on the amp to see what that gives. Might try that tomorrow.
Thanks!
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Post by T-R☼CK ♫ on Aug 24, 2018 9:52:49 GMT -7
What I want to do next is rewire the cabinet with all 4 speakers to 16 ohms and try the 16 ohm output on the amp to see what that gives. Might try that tomorrow. Pretty sure you'll like the results.
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Post by Patrick B on Aug 24, 2018 11:26:43 GMT -7
What I want to do next is rewire the cabinet with all 4 speakers to 16 ohms and try the 16 ohm output on the amp to see what that gives. Might try that tomorrow. Pretty sure you'll like the results. After the rewire I do think it's brighter and I like it better. I probably should have played it a little bit before rewiring today to have a more recent memory of the sound before the change. But when I now compare it to the 2x12 with Vintage 30's there doesn't seem to be as big a difference as I remember from yesterday. The Vintage 30's are still much brighter and I can't help but like them better. I think these Dr. Z 10" speakers are simply more mid range and don't have the highs I am expecting. Why did you predict I'd like the results? Is it something to do with the 16 ohm wiring on the amp/transformer or something to do with wiring speakers in combination of series and parallel? I love the size and look of this 4x10 cabinet and I want to use it. I guess I'll have to explore some different 10" speakers to go in it that will be brighter sounding. Also, when I started researching how to wire 4 speakers in a cabinet to keep the cabinet total ohms at the same as the individual speakers I ran across people saying that parallel/series is different than series/parallel. Definitions were often mixed up and reversed but basically people are saying that two sets of series wired speakers connected in parallel is different (and different sounding) than two sets of parallel wired speakers connected in series. I don't get that. It seems it would be the same to me however you look at it. I need to study the diagrams more to see if I agree that it actually is different. Do you have an opinion on this? I used diagram from Mesa Boogie manual where they describe it as two sets of speakers in series wired together in parallel. Is there another way that might sound different that I should also try? I'll try to include a pic here.
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Post by T-R☼CK ♫ on Aug 24, 2018 21:16:04 GMT -7
The Z 10s are as good as anything you'll find. After all, they ARE, in a nutshell... Eminence speakers. I'm NOT an expert in the realm of spkr cab wiring. I DO, however... have vast experience with the MANY combinations of OHM problems related to more than 2 speakers in a single cab. In my humble opinion... the higher the OHMage you can get away with... the more treble/headroom you're gonna get, because you're using more "winds" of the output transformer. Doc will probably chime here & shoot me down... Just MY personal 50+ year experience.
Play the sh!t outta those 10s b/4 you change them out. They'll sound a HELLA lot different after they're broken in Bruthr. I wish U the best!!
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Post by Paul (TRANE) on Aug 25, 2018 7:27:39 GMT -7
If memory serves when you find a tone you like with 2 speakers and then move to 4 speakers you need to lower the bass and increase your highs to get same basic tone. Now it has been a while since I went through it all... So YMMV. Have fun!
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Post by Patrick B on Aug 25, 2018 7:42:49 GMT -7
The Z 10s are as good as anything you'll find. After all, they ARE, in a nutshell... Eminence speakers. I'm NOT an expert in the realm of spkr cab wiring. I DO, however... have vast experience with the MANY combinations of OHM problems related to more than 2 speakers in a single cab. In my humble opinion... the higher the OHMage you can get away with... the more treble/headroom you're gonna get, because you're using more "winds" of the output transformer. Doc will probably chime here & shoot me down... Just MY personal 50+ year experience. Play the sh!t outta those 10s b/4 you change them out. They'll sound a HELLA lot different after they're broken in Bruthr. I wish U the best!! Thanks! I really appreciate your information. I will take your advice and play this for a while before I try any other speakers. I played quite a bit yesterday and I was really starting to dig it! What I realized is that this rig actually let me use my bridge pickup! I think maybe my ear just needs to adjust to something different. I have also been accused of having too much treble in my sound anyway. I had a buddy with way more experience and better ear than me come over to hear the EZG-50 thru the 4x10 and he was really impressed and loved it so that gives me even more confidence that it's probably just me switching to something completely new and different. I guess I'll leave the cabinet wired at 16 ohms for a while since I'm liking it now. I can already tell this amp and cabinet is gonna make me a better player. It's so dynamic which is great for being expressive but it also will reveal any sloppiness/laziness in controlling one's dynamics.
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Post by Patrick B on Aug 25, 2018 7:45:51 GMT -7
If memory serves when you find a tone you like with 2 speakers and then move to 4 speakers you need to lower the bass and increase your highs to get same basic tone. Now it has been a while since I went through it all... So YMMV. Have fun! Thanks, that does make sense! I appreciate your help. Oh, I'm definitely having fun now. I'm very excited. I think I may have jumped the gun thinking about new speakers after only playing for a few minutes. I'm gonna play this for a while and I'm pretty sure I'm gonna love it as is.
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Post by GT Roger on Aug 26, 2018 10:00:31 GMT -7
I've been running my EZG head with a Dr Z 2x10 cabinet (with Z 10's) and a 1x12 cabinet with a V-30. Both cabinets are open back. I've tried several combinations and I really like this blend.
As for treble, I use a Klon Klone as an always on clean boost pedal. I'll tweak the tone knob on the pedal, depending on the guitar I'm using, to brighten it up as needed.
My head does not have the bass mod, so my bass knob is usually almost all the way down. Mid and treble knobs are typically set around 12:00.
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