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Post by canes on Sept 3, 2006 19:57:08 GMT -7
Hi everyone, I'm about to join the brethren of Ghia owners, in a week or so. I have a 2x10 on the way, man am I pumped. I'm a blues player, but play anything when the need arrives. I currently only own a 74 Twin Reverb which I love, but I want something tamer and more portable. I've had my eyes on Dr Z's amps since I became a huge Paisley fan and have lusted for one since. My local music store is going out of business and I had my eye on a Deluxe Reverb RI, I was about to pull the trigger but decided I'd rather be 'really' satisfied and buy an investment rather than a namesake. Granted, the Deluxe sounds good no doubt, but only a great deal on one made it purchase worthy. That coupled with my beautiful wife giving me permission to go after a Z cemented my drive to get one. At any rate, the incredible praise and adoration on this forum for the Ghia made it an easy choice. I'm hoping that the legend of this amp live up to my hopes and anticipation for it. As far as pedals go I only own a small compliment as I prefer a small/simple setup. I was wondering what you guys thought about the pedals I have, and how they act with the Ghia: a Boss SD-1, TS-9 self modded to 808, DOD milkbox comp, Boss Super Chorus, and Crybaby Wah (very unsatisfied with). From what I've read TS type overdrives aren't the greatest. But I'm also building a clean boost that sounds quite nice with the twin (sparkle boost from diystompboxes.com), I'm hoping it works well with the Ghia. But I'm sure that for the honeymoon period my rig will be my Robert Cray Custom Shop of Mexi Strat with Fralin Blues Specials straight into the Ghia.... man I cant wait! Thanks for the great website by the way, its a wealth of knowledge. I look forward to conversing with you all in the future! BTW, a couple months ago I got a steal on a brand new 335, i've come to not exactly love the tone so much (through my Twin at least), will I love it with the Ghia or should I sell it for a Z-28? Regards, Jason
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Post by texblooz on Sept 3, 2006 20:29:49 GMT -7
I think the Ghia is perfect for blues. I just gigged with mine for the first time Saturday. This was an outdoor stage and I had the vol cranked up to about 3 o'clock pushing a 2x12 cab. Sounds great with a clean boost, but I used no pedals at all this time. It's that good.
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Post by flem on Sept 4, 2006 0:26:28 GMT -7
I dont have one (though I want one) but I tried a 210 combo a lil while backand was stunned at the tones it could produce. The controls are so simple but work so well. It was a lot of fun to play. Great clean and dirty blues, rock, country sounds. It's definatly my next DRZ purchase if I can ever get the money for it.
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Post by JASON (aka jgleaton) on Sept 4, 2006 12:19:00 GMT -7
Hey Jason,
welcome to the Forum.... your gonna LOVE the Ghia..great choice... I also have a 2x10 combo it's light and sounds great... I play it more than any other amp, as I also use it at practice with the band...
couple of suggestions for ya... get a pair of WEBBER BEAM BLOCKERS FOR IT... they will help tame the highs and you can then tilt that thing up at your head while CRANKED for a louder gig and it won't bother you AT ALL!! one of the best things I did for mine...
BUT I ALSO HIGHLY recommend some NOS tubes from mike at KCA (he's one of the experts on this forum)... I put that NOS Mazda Rectifier in mine with a couple of NOS pre amp tubes... and a matched GT set of power tubes from MYLES and WOW, WOW, WOW...
it was good BEFORE, but with the NOS stuff... this little amp will give ANY amp a run for it's money... even my Stingray!
You will love it... but trust me (and maybe some others will chime in about the beam blockers, maybe not as much for the 12'' speakers but definitely for the 10"s) I'd GO ahead and order the beam blockers and get them coming to ya so you'll have them when you get your amp... those Z 10" speakers are great but they can cut your head off when the GHIA is cranked... the beam blockers fix that so you can dial it in (especially the highs) ANY way you want it...
I tilt mine back (cause of loud drummer) and aim it right at my head... sounds great, no problems with cutting my head off... cuts through nicely... hit a boost for solo's, use a little OD and your in Blues heaven... you ALSO may not wanna get rid of that 335 after you play it through the GHIA... and you probably won't use as many pedals with it as you would other amps... cause you can crank the GHIA for some good drive/ hair and maybe add a good boost or an overdrive set so that it's a little more than a boost (but maybe not as overdriven as you would normally use) due to the ghia being cranked and giving it up already... sweet.
You really should like this amp... if you don't, let me know and I might be in the market for another one to run with mine... ;D ;D
hope this helps...
Jason
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Post by guitarboy02451 on Sept 4, 2006 18:45:51 GMT -7
The Ghia rocks, simple is the way to go with this amp. I recommend an AC Booster, for Reverb EBS Dynaverb. Your TS-9 will also sound sweet as well. Congrats.
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Post by yinielin on Sept 4, 2006 20:01:59 GMT -7
I didnt like the way the ts9 sounded thru the amp. I guess I really dont like how the ts9 sounds thru any amp tho sooo.
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Post by Matt H. on Sept 4, 2006 20:08:04 GMT -7
Oh Yeah. Keep it simple - AC Booster sounds killer with my 2x10 combo.
I think the 335 will sound great. Just set the CG's tone to the right level - and everything else will fall into place.
Good Luck and Congrats!
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Post by texblooz on Sept 4, 2006 22:08:30 GMT -7
Yep this amp loves the AC booster. Not quite as sweet as the amp alone cranked up, but great for playing in small places where you still need some crunch, but volume is an issue. (This is a LOUD 18 watts!) The amp's natural overdrive has kind of a "swampy" quality to it. Real low-down and dirty.
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Post by bustertheboy on Sept 6, 2006 1:05:33 GMT -7
hi canes, let us all know how you go. My first impressions were how bloody loud the ghia is! next maybe was how rich and how amazingly it lets harmonics through that you didn't know existed this is a stunning amp once you get used to it try different, particularly nos, tubes in it- it responds to tube changes in a special way brett
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Post by canes on Sept 11, 2006 18:15:32 GMT -7
Thanks for all the suggestions guys! The amp is finally tracking and should be in my hands on thursday. I'll post pics and clips, and praise im sure! Man I cant wait!
Jason
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Post by canes on Sept 16, 2006 16:21:10 GMT -7
Received the Carmen Ghia thurday, initial impression: heavier than expected, but no worries, seems very well built. I had brought a mexi-strat with Fralin blues specials to work that day knowing it'd be delivered in the afternoon. I could only bring the volume to little over off, probably about 7 or so, but WOW, its sounded so clean, pure, authentic, i wish i could describe it. One thing that did put me off a little in the beginning was the blues specials sounded a little dark, lacking hi-end sparkle (yes i know they have a few more winding makings them darker but i guess im used to my twin) but the bridge pickup sounded the best i've ever heard a strat bridge sound! THe sound of strat bridge pickups make me cringe but this tone was glorius.
When i got it home that evening i plugged in my CS Robert Cray (with what i've heard has texas specials) and the neck middle pickups soudned a wee bit bright, with the bridge being unusable as usual. But finally i get to crank it.... FLOORED ME! Wow, tone for days... and headroom??? I was worried about no headroom and it REALLY suprised me. With the tubes that came in it (used from ebay, 06 model) it seemed to have plenty, JJ EC80-something in V1, sovtek 5751, GT EL84's #6, and a mazda 5y3. The breakup was the clean/dirty breakup i've always wanted from my twin but could never achieve. The amp seemed so responsive to pick attack, fingering... bad fingering... etc. I notice how bad some of my guitars need a fret job!! I noticed that my heavy pick attack leaves my hand pressing the e-string into the neck/pickups causing noise on my Cray! I've never noticed this before... its very true what i've read here: what you put into the amp, you get out! And i just LOVE the responsiveness... my technique is OK so i didnt have much trouble adjusting to the level of "hi-fi" this amp has but damn, the feel and touch i can get out of this amp is... well.. incredible. Im hooked. This amp does seem to really let the character of you guitar shine through, i never realized just how different my guitars DO sound from one another.... ( then agian i've never owned a 'boutique' or hi-end amp before either).
I took this amp to a blues jam the same night and it cut like a mofo, way more headroom than i need (used a TS-9 with 808 mod with great success). And i let a few fellow bluesmen play my rig and I got to listen from the audience and all i can say again is wow... wow.. wow... this thing cuts great, i always could articulate chords and leads. It just sounded great.
Ok, enough rambling, i have a few questions for you guys: - what 12ax7 sounds good in V2 to replace the 5751 to get a little lowered headroom? - and two, what 12ax7's in v1 do you guys use (nos or otherwise). I've tried 2 Jan Phillips NOS that sound great, but have both turned out to be microphonic (damn ebay!), and have a couple Jan GE's that i've yet to try, as well a host of others: EH, Sovteks, Svets, and more. -- and three: will NOS EL84's make much difference? I see Mike at KCA has some NOS Teslas, are they worth it?
PS: Im honored to be a part of the Ghia brethern now! Have a great day brothers! And thank you Dr Z for a superb product!
Jason
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Post by billyguitar on Sept 16, 2006 16:56:27 GMT -7
My 5751 went bad and I put in two 12AY7s that I already had. Sounds better to me.
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Post by texblooz on Sept 16, 2006 18:40:49 GMT -7
Hey canes, congrats on the new amp! The articulation is one thing that really stood out for me too, all the way down to the lo E. Not an ounce of flab. As for your tube questions, I am using a Svetlana 12AX7 and it sounds great to my ears. I personally wouldn't spend a lot of money on NOS power tubes. The current production EL84s from JJ are very good. Alot of folks here use GT EL84's #6 because the GT matching is superior. I'll be buying some when the time comes.
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Post by canes on Sept 22, 2006 20:03:10 GMT -7
Thanks for the reply texblooz.
My observations after about a weeks worth of playing:
THe 335 kills, im keeping it.
The strats: 1/3/5 pickup positions kill!! Sparkle, musical, just great. But to my ears, sometimes the strats sound a bit dark (outside the bridge pickup). This could be because im used to the bright switch and treble knob on the twin but i wish there was more hi-end. Is there anything i can do to remedy this? Speaker changes? Tube suggestions. I've tried different preamp tubes with great success at changing characture of the amp but still lacking some hi-end sparkle in the strat 4-position. I've yet to change output tubes as i dont yet own any other EL84s but im willing to try some new ones.
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Post by bustertheboy on Sept 23, 2006 15:49:30 GMT -7
Hi Canes, you're about the first person outside myself not to find the ghia too bright- I find mine super fat after my Vibrolux (original '65) but then I've got 2 greenbacks. By mistake or accident I found plugging into my old Ibanez/maxon compressor (1970's) brightened things up impressively- It might be the input buffer or something, so try some bright clean pedal perhaps. Also I found nos tubes great for more detail. Brett
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Post by canes on Sept 23, 2006 16:49:06 GMT -7
I've just a/b'd the Ghia through its speakers and through my twin with Weber Ceramic Signatures. I actually prefer the Weber 12's, sort of. The Z 10's seem to have a little more warmth and character but the 12's just have more hi-end suited to my tastes.
The z 10's seem to have more midrange but less hi-end. But maybe im just not used to 10's. I've never owned an amp with one, but im pretty sure i'd like to have a bit more hi-end definition. What 10's would you guys recommend to replace the stock speakers with? In another scenario, would adding a 1 or 2x12 be an option.
Buster: I played a BF Vibrolux at Darren Rileys in Raleigh NC (great amp tech) and was floored. I was close to getting a new Custom Vibrolux but glad i went with the Z (the Custom Vibrolux just seems too noisy, but did sound great).
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Post by T-R☼CK ♫ on Sept 24, 2006 6:49:32 GMT -7
GLAD YOU'RE DIGGING ON YOUR GHIA.........KILLER STUFF.....ABOUT YOUR STRAT BRIDGE P/U BEING UNUSEABLE.....I FELT THE SAME WAY FOR A LONG TIME TILL' I FIGURED OUT A MOD U MIGHT WANNA TRY........I'VE BEEN DOING THIS TO ALL MY STRATS FOR THE PAST THREE DECADES WITH GREAT SUCCESS..........RUN A JUMPER FROM THE MIDDLE TONE POT TO THE POST ON THE PICKUP SELECTOR SWITCH THAT IS CONNECTED TO YOUR BRIDGE P/U.......ONLY ONE SHORT WIRE AND 2 SOLDER CONNECTIONS ARE REQUIRED........I NO THE ERIC JOHNSON MODEL HAS A MOD TO USE THE BOTTOM POT BUT YOU LOSE YOUR MIDDLE P/U TONE ADJUSTMENT.......WITH MY MOD.......U KEEP EVERYTHING PLUS GET A TONE POT FOR YOUR BRIDGE P/U AS WELL.......GOOD LUCK AND KEEP ON WAILIN' ...................
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Post by canes on Oct 2, 2006 16:27:22 GMT -7
Thanks for all the advice guys, but it was just me! After playing the Ghia out quite a few more times I realized that at living room volume (with wife watching TV, just a hair above off) you dont get an accurate picture of what the amp sounds like cranked even just a little. After getting a chance to open her up more I realize the highs start to sing; I even elevated the amp and now I agree, a plenty bright amp. I'll be ordering some beam-blockers for it.
I took it to new band practice the other night and got many compliments. I just love how a crank of the tone knob gives you a new amp! Not to mention my pedal board continues to shrink, down to two pedals now! Who needs reverb? chorus? compression? Not the ghia, this tone stands on its own.
Jason
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Post by myles on Oct 10, 2006 18:47:49 GMT -7
I think the Ghia is perfect for blues. I just gigged with mine for the first time Saturday. This was an outdoor stage and I had the vol cranked up to about 3 o'clock pushing a 2x12 cab. Sounds great with a clean boost, but I used no pedals at all this time. It's that good. I would not say the Ghia is "perfect" for blues ... but that statement comes close to the actual truth. The Carmen Ghia is the best blues amp ever made in the history of guitar amps. Hmmm .... I may be a bit biased but I have found nothing better since I was 15 years old when I switched to electric from acoustic guitar. I am 57 now.
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