|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 2, 2020 16:14:30 GMT -7
Hi all,
I think this is my first thread on the Z forums.
I moved across to Los Angeles from the UK about 7 months ago and have been amp-less ever since (left my 50W Two Rock Crystal in Scotland). Just as I got settled in and was looking for a small boutique amp for gigs and home use the Z Wreck Jr comes out. Perfect!
I picked it up at Pitbull Audio in San Diego this weekend and it sounds absolutely phenomenal, even at low volumes. One thing I don't think any of the demo videos on youtube have captured so far is how good the cleans are. I've found setting it at about noon or just shy gives really sparkly cleans, particularly when paired with a nice reverb like the Strymon Flint.
I'm playing this with a La Cabronita telecaster but in store I also tried it with a PRS Silver Sky and it was a marriage made in heaven.
For anyone intereted in it as a pedal platform, it seems to love every pedal you throw at it. In particular, I have a Vemuram Jan Ray and it sounds absolutely killer, really benefits from the natural compression of the amp when being hit with a OD pedal.
Also, I briefly turned the master volume up to full in the store and it's absurdly loud for 15 W. Easily gigable.
It's a very special amp, thanks Doc! I'm a 100% satisfied customer.
|
|
|
Post by aslerjack on Mar 2, 2020 16:45:19 GMT -7
Appreciate the post. Mine is sitting in my office, delivered today but I am in San Francisco. Will get to check it out tomorrow.
Jack
|
|
|
Post by purpletele on Mar 2, 2020 19:28:06 GMT -7
Hi all, I moved across to Los Angeles from the UK about 7 months ago and have been amp-less ever since (left my 50W Two Rock Crystal in Scotland). Halfback, I'm curious of why you moved to LA from Scotland? Why would you abandon a Two Rock BV
|
|
|
Post by John on Mar 3, 2020 4:18:35 GMT -7
I moved across to Los Angeles from the UK about 7 months ago
Are you being punished?
|
|
|
Post by j4gitr (John) on Mar 3, 2020 4:24:48 GMT -7
Congratulations on the new amp, and welcome to the US and the forum.
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 3, 2020 12:17:16 GMT -7
Halfback, I'm curious of why you moved to LA from Scotland? Why would you abandon a Two Rock BV I finished up my PhD in the UK and was offered a position doing research at the University of Southern California. The idea of living in sunshine for a few years was and is a very appealing prospect. Plus the project is really interesting. My Two Rock has a UK power transformer, grad students in the UK don't get paid much and so when I was getting ready to leave it just wasn't financially viable to move it across and then ship it up to Rohnert Park pay for a conversion to US transformer etc. I should add I managed to get my Two Rock second hand at an extremely good deal.
|
|
|
Post by purpletele on Mar 3, 2020 12:21:20 GMT -7
Halfback, I'm curious of why you moved to LA from Scotland? Why would you abandon a Two Rock BV I finished up my PhD in the UK and was offered a position doing research at the University of Southern California. The idea of living in sunshine for a few years was and is a very appealing prospect. Plus the project is really interesting. My Two Rock has a UK power transformer, grad students in the UK don't get paid much and so when I was getting ready to leave it just wasn't financially viable to move it across and then ship it up to Rohnert Park pay for a conversion to US transformer etc. I should add I managed to get my Two Rock second hand at an extremely good deal. Good story!! Congrats and enjoy California. What's the temp today?
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 3, 2020 12:21:58 GMT -7
I moved across to Los Angeles from the UK about 7 months ago
Are you being punished?
Haha, not at all, I'd happily never leave LA. As a music fan it's a phenomenal place to be. Unfortunately PhD graduates are not valued very highly in the UK whereas they are in the US. I do miss Scotland but imo things aren't in great shape in the UK and I don't see them improving anytime soon.
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 3, 2020 12:37:41 GMT -7
Good story!! Congrats and enjoy California. What's the temp today? Thanks for the warm welcome all! 26 C (79 F) in contrast to 4 C (40 F) in my hometown.
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 3, 2020 12:45:15 GMT -7
I did have a quick chance to record some noodling last night. Playing on a 2012 MIM La Cabronita telecaster with stock Fidelitron pickups. Switching Neck > Both > Bridge and trying to show some of the dynamics you can get with it set fairly clean. soundcloud.com/user-92767233/z-wreck-jr-dynamics/s-rZgkt
|
|
|
Post by lowbudget on Mar 3, 2020 12:58:54 GMT -7
Very nice, man! Very nice indeed.
Oh, and welcome aboard-great way to start!
|
|
|
Post by DRZ on Mar 3, 2020 14:07:06 GMT -7
Wow smooth clip halfbackstrat. Sounds very nice thanks for posting it.
DR.Z
|
|
|
Post by prspastor on Mar 3, 2020 16:30:06 GMT -7
Congrats on your PhD! It is a great feeling to be done. Glad you found some work. I didn’t realize it was that difficult in the UK To find a job. In my field, finding a position is really tough. I’m happy to be teaching as an adjunct in the US.
And congrats on your amp! I’ve got one preordered and I’m looking forward to playing on it.
|
|
|
Post by John on Mar 4, 2020 6:05:21 GMT -7
Just curious...what's the difference in housing expenses/rent? Going from Scotland to Los Angeles has got to be a HUGE increase in housing...or I would at least think so.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2020 6:41:35 GMT -7
Welcome to California and to the forum! Congratulations on the PHD, and - on your new Z!
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 5, 2020 12:19:19 GMT -7
Wow smooth clip halfbackstrat. Sounds very nice thanks for posting it. DR.Z Thanks Doc, and congrats on another super amp!
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 5, 2020 12:25:31 GMT -7
Congrats on your PhD! It is a great feeling to be done. Glad you found some work. I didn’t realize it was that difficult in the UK To find a job. In my field, finding a position is really tough. I’m happy to be teaching as an adjunct in the US. And congrats on your amp! I’ve got one preordered and I’m looking forward to playing on it. Thanks, it's certainly a bit of a relief but to be honest I enjoyed it quite a lot. I would say it's less that there aren't many jobs and more that there's not a market for "high skill candidates". If you look at graduate positions for example there's very little difference in starting salary between someone with a PhD and someone who has an undergraduate degree. There are arguments that the difference bears out a few years down the line in terms of promotions but that's a more difficult metric to characterise. It sort of make sense in that companies feel like they want to give you the specific training to do the job for which you've been hired. However, that fails to acknowledge that the PhD program is more about training you to be able to figure out practically any job (within the same rough sector at least).
|
|
|
Post by halfbackstrat on Mar 5, 2020 12:30:20 GMT -7
Just curious...what's the difference in housing expenses/rent? Going from Scotland to Los Angeles has got to be a HUGE increase in housing...or I would at least think so. It depends where you are in the UK. Scotland is actually very cheap in terms of living expenses, even when I lived in a beautiful flat in the centre of Edinburgh the rent for a 2 bed apartment was well under $1000 a month - a bargain to live in one of the world's truly great old cities. Although I'm from there I actually did my PhD in Bristol, England. There I shared a 2 bed apartment and our rent was close to $1500 per month equivalent. LA I have a 1 bed for $1700.. so yeah much more expensive. However, for the equivalent job my salary is at least 40% more here than it would be in the UK so I live a bit more comfortably than I would in Bristol, although muuuuch less comfortably than I would in Edinburgh. Personally, I think the benefits of LA more than outweigh that - like seeing John Mayer at Hotel Cafe (~150 persone venue) last month. Difficult to imagine that anywhere else.
|
|
|
Post by helmi on Mar 5, 2020 14:27:00 GMT -7
Personally, I think the benefits of LA more than outweigh that - like seeing John Mayer at Hotel Cafe (~150 persone venue) last month. Difficult to imagine that anywhere else. I imagine all the scantily clad women everywhere is a nice benefit for a young man like yourself also! (and dont say you haven't noticed-lol) welcome to the forum.
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Mar 6, 2020 14:58:57 GMT -7
I finished up my PhD in the UK and was offered a position doing research at the University of Southern California. The idea of living in sunshine for a few years was and is a very appealing prospect. Plus the project is really interesting. What field is your PhD in? Mine's in financial economics. I'm sort of retired, but I have an adjunct position at Columbia. And welcome to the US and the land of Z!
|
|
|
Post by prspastor on Mar 8, 2020 5:12:11 GMT -7
Congrats again! I do understand what you mean about job opportunities. Mine is in historical theology and homiletics. It’s such a narrow field of study and there are so few full-time positions, I just feel grateful to be teaching adjunct.
Enjoy your Z amps and welcome!
|
|