Post by cooluke on Nov 22, 2021 8:40:39 GMT -7
All
It's been 10ish years since I have posted to a Forum (TGP), but The Z Wreck jr has me giving it a go again.
Not my 1st Dr Z, but it's been 15 years or more since my last one. My 1st was a very early wood front Maz Jr with verb. My 1st ever Boutique amp after gigging a 100w 73 Marshall no less. Can't remember the dates but late 90's I think. Not sure when Z started.
Anyhow, the jr Wreck is an interesting amp! I did own a Two Rock Ruby Express clone for a while, but that's WAY different.
I have just a single guitar these days, a pine CS Double Esquire from a few years ago. It's a very cool guitar that's very much a Telecaster, but with a sonic flavor thats just a bit outside most Tele tones. Somewhat aggressive sounding bridge that I love, and a very nice Neck tone, also the more usable tone cap on the dark neck setting thats amazing.
I have 5 or 6 hours on the amp at stage volumes mostly. Crazy loud combo considering the inefficient GB speaker and 5Y3! Louder than my Swart AST Pro with the Heritage H30 with gz34. The AST holds together WAY louder, but it may have the cap that runs the tubes the coolest. I guess there are 3 different values out in those and I never opened it up to see which I have. The amp is fantastic, but very much a single coil amp.
The Jr is not as dark as I was expecting, to the contrary it's very clear and the highs are something. Easy to tame, but part of the magic seems to be the low mid breakup and the high end snap. That snap can get away from you if you are used to digging in with the pick, and I had to ease up on my right hand a lot as the AST actually invites a heavy handed approach (in my case). My only other amp in the past few years was a Smallbox 50 combo, and it was mostly my stage amp. That amp was very clear sounding as well and the highs could get away from you with a Strat or Tele. Awesome amp, but too much for home use. It has a killer master, but that amp needs volume to really deliver. So does the Jr. I do find the Master useful with the jr, but lets be real, the amp is best with it at least 1/2 way up regardless of the volume setting.
I mostly play Country and Blues these days and yes, the BP influences were a big part in my purchase. I would not have a problem doing classic rock, or even something a bit heavier, but there are better amps for modern rock stuff if thats the main goal. My goal was an amp that needed no pedals. If I were to use this live, I'm not sure how I would set it yet as it's a bit fussy with the few I have tried with it. With the master way up it's a clean thats pretty amazing and it takes OD's pretty good as well as a Carbon Copy delay. With more gain and lower master settings it gets "interesting". The amp is a bit scooped verses many amps I have owned, and thats with a Tele that has some midrange that sets it apart. Reminds me of the lead channel of the Smallbox, vs the Plexi side. I loved the plexi side and I had Dave mod the SB lead side to be closer to the plexi. For the jr to get enough drive for rocksh leads with a Tele (no pedals) I would need to pull the master down some for the indoor venues I sometimes play and crank the volume. Not a deal breaker and I suspected this based on the YT clips. The highs do not breakup like the lows with my guitar, and thats OK, but I was hopeful
I was looking for a Blue Line 65 amps London before buying the jr as this was my favorite live/home use amp (out of way too many I have owned). Clean versions that are not unreasonable do come along, but not common on reverb/ebay. I could see selling the jr down the road if a Nice London pops up close to me, but I'm not rushing yet as I want the get at least 50 hours on the speaker and live with it a while. I actually HATED the Smallbox when I 1st played it, but it grew on me as I learned how to use it with my various guitars at the time. If I was younger and gigging a lot that amp would still be it.
Anyhow, LONG 1st post, and I will post more thoughts as they come in. It's a fun amp for sure, and I'm having fun sorting out its "thing"!
Luke
It's been 10ish years since I have posted to a Forum (TGP), but The Z Wreck jr has me giving it a go again.
Not my 1st Dr Z, but it's been 15 years or more since my last one. My 1st was a very early wood front Maz Jr with verb. My 1st ever Boutique amp after gigging a 100w 73 Marshall no less. Can't remember the dates but late 90's I think. Not sure when Z started.
Anyhow, the jr Wreck is an interesting amp! I did own a Two Rock Ruby Express clone for a while, but that's WAY different.
I have just a single guitar these days, a pine CS Double Esquire from a few years ago. It's a very cool guitar that's very much a Telecaster, but with a sonic flavor thats just a bit outside most Tele tones. Somewhat aggressive sounding bridge that I love, and a very nice Neck tone, also the more usable tone cap on the dark neck setting thats amazing.
I have 5 or 6 hours on the amp at stage volumes mostly. Crazy loud combo considering the inefficient GB speaker and 5Y3! Louder than my Swart AST Pro with the Heritage H30 with gz34. The AST holds together WAY louder, but it may have the cap that runs the tubes the coolest. I guess there are 3 different values out in those and I never opened it up to see which I have. The amp is fantastic, but very much a single coil amp.
The Jr is not as dark as I was expecting, to the contrary it's very clear and the highs are something. Easy to tame, but part of the magic seems to be the low mid breakup and the high end snap. That snap can get away from you if you are used to digging in with the pick, and I had to ease up on my right hand a lot as the AST actually invites a heavy handed approach (in my case). My only other amp in the past few years was a Smallbox 50 combo, and it was mostly my stage amp. That amp was very clear sounding as well and the highs could get away from you with a Strat or Tele. Awesome amp, but too much for home use. It has a killer master, but that amp needs volume to really deliver. So does the Jr. I do find the Master useful with the jr, but lets be real, the amp is best with it at least 1/2 way up regardless of the volume setting.
I mostly play Country and Blues these days and yes, the BP influences were a big part in my purchase. I would not have a problem doing classic rock, or even something a bit heavier, but there are better amps for modern rock stuff if thats the main goal. My goal was an amp that needed no pedals. If I were to use this live, I'm not sure how I would set it yet as it's a bit fussy with the few I have tried with it. With the master way up it's a clean thats pretty amazing and it takes OD's pretty good as well as a Carbon Copy delay. With more gain and lower master settings it gets "interesting". The amp is a bit scooped verses many amps I have owned, and thats with a Tele that has some midrange that sets it apart. Reminds me of the lead channel of the Smallbox, vs the Plexi side. I loved the plexi side and I had Dave mod the SB lead side to be closer to the plexi. For the jr to get enough drive for rocksh leads with a Tele (no pedals) I would need to pull the master down some for the indoor venues I sometimes play and crank the volume. Not a deal breaker and I suspected this based on the YT clips. The highs do not breakup like the lows with my guitar, and thats OK, but I was hopeful
I was looking for a Blue Line 65 amps London before buying the jr as this was my favorite live/home use amp (out of way too many I have owned). Clean versions that are not unreasonable do come along, but not common on reverb/ebay. I could see selling the jr down the road if a Nice London pops up close to me, but I'm not rushing yet as I want the get at least 50 hours on the speaker and live with it a while. I actually HATED the Smallbox when I 1st played it, but it grew on me as I learned how to use it with my various guitars at the time. If I was younger and gigging a lot that amp would still be it.
Anyhow, LONG 1st post, and I will post more thoughts as they come in. It's a fun amp for sure, and I'm having fun sorting out its "thing"!
Luke