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Post by guitarcory on Jan 9, 2011 12:44:46 GMT -7
My local tech who also builds amps mentioned it would be easy to add a foot switchable extra gain stage to the EZG, and I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts, concerns, advise on this. I'm sorry but I can't remember the details on how he would do it.
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Post by John on Jan 13, 2011 9:57:50 GMT -7
Just get a pedal. The mod will kill the resale value. A lot of the time, 'mods' are toxic in the resale world. Because you never know if it's a good mod, a weird mod, or a mod that you want or don't want.
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Post by mtlrecords on Jan 13, 2011 12:04:16 GMT -7
Yeah, I have to agree. Mods are a bit risky for both resale and usefulness. But it's your amp to do with it what you please.
I will say that if you are looking for gain, the EZG handles pedal so well...why not just get a Fulltone OCD or an Xotic AC? Or any number of even higher gain pedals?
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Post by BW on Jan 13, 2011 19:14:14 GMT -7
Silk Purse...... sow's ear.
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Post by mtlrecords on Jan 13, 2011 19:42:00 GMT -7
Check this out from the M.I.T. archives-
In 1921 the management of Arthur D. Little, Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., issued a small report describing the methods employed by the firm's chemists to create "silk" from pork byproducts. The idea behind this surprising and not very practical experiment was to prove that something said to be impossible was, with sufficient effort and ingenuity, attainable. As the report notes, the old adage "you can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear" had been used for years to discourage inventiveness and enterprise. "We resolved...to prove that it was false, and we have done so. We have made a silk purse of a sow's ear."
The chemists' first step was to observe the production of silk by silkworms, analyzing both the process and the product. They found that the viscous liquid emitted from ducts in the worm's head turned to silk after contact with air and that it was chemically akin to glue. Following this lead, the lab reduced one hundred pounds of sows' ears (certified to be authentic by an affidavit from the supplier, Wilson & Company, meatpackers in Chicago) to ten pounds of glue, which was turned to gelatin by adding small amounts of chrome alum and acetone. After much trial and error the chemists hit upon a means of producing fine strands by filtering under pressure and forcing the substance through a perforated spinneret. The resulting brittle strands, softened by bathing in a glycerin solution, were dried, dyed, and woven into cloth of "the desired soft, silky feel." From this cloth two "silk" purses were cut and stitched in imitation of a medieval design.
The company freely acknowledged that the two "silk" purses, expensive to produce, had more value as conversation starters than as items intended for practical use. They were widely exhibited at trade shows and promotional events. "We frankly admit," the report states, "that it is not very strong or very good silk, and that there is no present industrial value in making it from glue." The report concluded:
This making of silk purses of sows' ears was merely a diversion of chemistry at play. When chemistry puts on overalls and gets down to business, things begin to happen that are of importance to industry and to commerce. New values appear. New and better paths are opened to reach the goals desired.
Arthur Dehon Little (1863-1935) attended MIT as an undergraduate student in chemistry from 1881 to 1884 and taught papermaking at the Institute from 1893 to 1916. He served on the visiting committee for MIT's departments of chemistry and chemical engineering and was a life member of the MIT Corporation. The firm he founded in 1909, Arthur D. Little, Inc., was for many years one of the largest and most diversified consultancies in the world.
“On the Making of Silk Purses from Sows’ Ears” is included in the Arthur D. Little, Inc. Archives Collection (MC 579), which was given to MIT by the Arthur D. Little, Inc. Alumni Association in 2002. The collection is available for research in the Institute Archives & Special Collections, 14N-118. During the month of October one of the two silk purses is on display in the Maihaugen Gallery with other objects from the collection or lent by alumni. (The other silk purse is in the Smithsonian Institution.) More information about ADL, Inc. and the collection is on the Archives web site.
Good point for sure BW!
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Post by rcrecelius on Jan 15, 2011 8:28:11 GMT -7
I tried to take a pig ear away from a dog one time...
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Post by mfirst on Jan 22, 2011 9:08:36 GMT -7
If I remember correctly, Doc's EZG design evolved through several stages before the EZG 50 was released. I think there was a point in time when it had a switchable drive channel. In the end Doc released the amp as a 1 channel amp without a drive channel. I don't know the reasoning for the removal of the drive channel, but I think there must have been a good reason that it isn't there. Just a little food for thought before you make your decision.
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Post by Phil (aka Phil) on Jan 28, 2011 14:42:13 GMT -7
If I remember correctly, Doc's EZG design evolved through several stages before the EZG 50 was released. I think there was a point in time when it had a switchable drive channel. In the end Doc released the amp as a 1 channel amp without a drive channel. I don't know the reasoning for the removal of the drive channel, but I think there must have been a good reason that it isn't there. Just a little food for thought before you make your decision. You're correct as always. Doc labored for a LONG time over the design of the EZG. At one point it did have a foot switchable gain stage. It was going to require some creative and unwieldy methods for making the gain boost "get along" with the reverb. Doc went to the "simpler is better" approach that he's so good at, and the result is an all time classic amp. Pedals do indeed work well with the EZG. Jason's Landgraff just kills through it; Tube Screamer type pedals rock, and Paul's Cusack Screamer pedals sounded so good that I bought one Please don't mod the amp.
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Post by tumeniamps (Tom) on Jan 20, 2022 5:18:40 GMT -7
Send it to Don for a master volume. It'll make it roar at any volume level. Hitting it with a Klon while having the amp pushed is a thing of beauty.
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Post by GuitarZ on Jan 20, 2022 12:18:12 GMT -7
Back in the day, my brother and I used to go in and mess with my amps. We first added a master volume to my Ampeg Gemini VI (which I still have) and then juiced up the gain of an Ampeg V2 and added a master volume. I did some work on my Marshall (after trading in the V2) which I have since backed out. It was fun, and we were always messing with my amps. So, if it's something you're into having a customized modified amp, that can be fun and cool. I'd balance that with the advice above that it can impact resale value. Also good advice that you may be able to get into the space you want by adding boost pedal. I kind of get it if pedals aren't your thing since I love just plugging straight into the amp. I haven't messed with my Z's. I will pop in my boost pedal if I want additional front end gain. I will also tell you that the AirBrake was a game changer since I found new tones, sustain, and sounds. I found an amp inside my Maz Jr that I didn't know existed. So, there you go: options. Options are good and sometimes even lead to better ideas. I didn't try the Silk Purse mod though.
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Post by GT Roger on Jan 25, 2022 7:25:19 GMT -7
I'd agree with John above. I likely wouldn't buy a modded EZG, unless it was done by the good folks at Dr Z.
I run a Kingsley Harlot (12ax7) overdrive pedal into a Klone pedal, then I hit the front of the amp. It's got a very Marshall sounding overdrive sound. I shut the pedal off (with the Klone always on) and I got that sweet EZG clean sound. I use the Klone as a clean boost.
I preach about the Kingsley pedals. They're expensive, but truly sound like an amp overdrive, not a pedal.
I'd love to see Dr Z come out with a preamp tube overdrive pedal!
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bigez
New Member
Posts: 46
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Post by bigez on Jan 25, 2022 19:34:47 GMT -7
I get the resale value issue entirely, but i love modding amps. The Dr’s amps are great for modding because they are so well and clearly laid out and the components aren’t crammed together. I put a push pull tone stack bypass switch in my M12, and added a push pull in my Jetta that engages the other half of v1 in parallel (that one is really good!). Other stuff too, mainly little tweaks here and there. Despite all this, I find myself playing the stock settings most often. I do have a Max 18 and a Ghia that i haven’t touched because l love the out of the box sounds so much.
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Post by nick0 on Jan 26, 2022 9:49:35 GMT -7
I put a push pull tone stack bypass switch in my M12, and added a push pull in my Jetta that engages the other half of v1 in parallel (that one is really good!). Cool idea for the Jetta. What effect does this have on the tone?
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bigez
New Member
Posts: 46
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Post by bigez on Jan 26, 2022 17:59:30 GMT -7
It's a slight boost, but enough to kick the amp into overdrive a bit sooner. To me, it thickens the sound a little (but frankly this amp is already thick enough!).
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Post by nick0 on Jan 26, 2022 18:05:53 GMT -7
It's a slight boost, but enough to kick the amp into overdrive a bit sooner. To me, it thickens the sound a little (but frankly this amp is already thick enough!). It's a great sounding amp!
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