|
Post by pvfan on Apr 8, 2011 18:41:30 GMT -7
I added that monza part to my sig there to better reflect the accuracy of my current tool set
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 8, 2011 21:02:52 GMT -7
I feel quite alone in the universe right now except for my invisible friend and my cat. This amp sounds like crap through a Red Fang, H30, Gold 10. Raspy, static-fizz, high end that falls apart, even with the knobs at 9:00. I guess I will do the requisite tube swaps to see if that helps. The new tubes I just bought are in the Ghia that's now gone because the jingle bells were too loud. Maybe a Chinese rectifier would have helped reduce the British telephone sound coming from the back of the Ghia (no matter where the knobs were), but it may have also neutered half the mojo. Anyway swapping out tubes at the store tomorrow. I guess I need to stockpile them for occasions such as this. If I didn't have the Route 66 to plug into right now I would be guzzling alchohol to make the pain stop. It's gotta be the output tubes right? I mean it don't sound *that* bad, but it sure as hell don't sound that great either.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 8, 2011 21:29:30 GMT -7
well anyway new amp day. Brand new amp. I must still be paying for something wrong that I did to someone because thousands of dollars aren't enough.
|
|
|
Post by bluzman on Apr 8, 2011 22:32:38 GMT -7
Well I would congratulate you on your new amp, but it seems like you don't like it. I love mine with the RF... No fizz. It different than other Z-Amps for sure. Good luck
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 8, 2011 22:34:11 GMT -7
no, there's something wrong. I tried it with 3 speakers.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 8, 2011 23:34:42 GMT -7
INSTANT KEEPER GORGEOUS CLASSIC SPANKY
These were my first thoughts today. Followed by "this is a GUITAR VOLUME KNOB amp, Mike! So use it as such!" and so I DID and was amazed to get the same sort of Carmen Ghia sounds that I like with the GV up, except with this Monza the GV had to be turned down to sound the same. I thought that was neat, with the GV for a "lead boost" and YES the amp is addictive and fun and YES I heard those tweed sounds in there and YES I like the core "Ghia GT" sound. Of course I do.
So I was liking it, but I noticed this blatty low-end and raspy high end the more I turned up the GV. And then it "seemed" to be happening no matter what.
Just now, WTF, it didn't seem quite so bad. And with my new Air Brake I was able to make it go almost entirely away, and I was getting some truly golden syrup even on max bedroom. On 4 clicks I was quite pleased with everything actually.
It seems intermittent. I'm praying it's tubes. I'm tired of driving to the store but such is life.
Yes I've read the Fizz and Zing thread 1000 times and I am not quite ready to believe this is how the amp is "supposed" to sound, especially since it is intermittent as if it were a heat problem.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 0:23:24 GMT -7
INSTANT KEEPER GORGEOUS CLASSIC SPANKY These were my first thoughts today. Followed by "this is a GUITAR VOLUME KNOB amp, Mike! So use it as such!" and so I DID and was amazed to get the same sort of Carmen Ghia sounds that I like with the GV up, except with this Monza the GV had to be turned down to sound the same. I thought that was neat, with the GV for a "lead boost" and YES the amp is addictive and fun and YES I heard those tweed sounds in there and YES I like the core "Ghia GT" sound. Of course I do. So I was liking it, but I noticed this blatty low-end and raspy high end the more I turned up the GV. And then it "seemed" to be happening no matter what. Just now, WTF, it didn't seem quite so bad. And with my new Air Brake I was able to make it go almost entirely away, and I was getting some truly golden syrup even on max bedroom. On 4 clicks I was quite pleased with everything actually. It seems intermittent. I'm praying it's tubes. I'm tired of driving to the store but such is life. Yes I've read the Fizz and Zing thread 1000 times and I am not quite ready to believe this is how the amp is "supposed" to sound, especially since it is intermittent as if it were a heat problem. now it's not doing it at all and at 2 clicks I have the COOLEST fuzz tone I ever heard and it's NOT falling apart like it was -- and on 0 clicks (bypassed) where I expected the problem to most recur it doesn't. help me understand, people. In case anyone hasn't figured it out about me this is the only thing I care about, sorry to be blunt sometimes. I live alone in a recording studio and I play every day. Could it have been because something was so NEW that it had to burn in or break in? Will this come back because these amps are like little living, breathing organisms that catch the sniffles or whooping cough or the hershey squirts?
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 1:58:23 GMT -7
now it sounds straight broken.
I have a feeling this thing is gone tomorrow.
|
|
|
Post by pcns on Apr 9, 2011 4:46:13 GMT -7
have you called the shop and asked them about this? If something is coming and going it could be something wrong. When its not sounding right does is stay not sounding right with different guitars too? There are a lot of dumb little things can cause a amp to sound funky one day and then not so funky the next. Dirty connections come to mind. When I took my Maz Jr in for the tone bypass mod Don asked me if I realized my rectifier tube was failing? Normally they just died a sudden death but mine was going the slow hard way. My amp would sound great and then it wouldn't. Turns out that after it was warmed up the tube would start a slow fade away. Just some things to try, I love my Monza, it rocks out great, cleans up just enough, very very cool amp and will match up nicely with my next Z amp, a Z28 Todd
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Apr 9, 2011 4:47:29 GMT -7
Yeah, Mike, there must be some kinda bad voodoo going on there.
Based on various threads here, it does seem the Monza sonically works for some folks and for others it's not a good fit. I liked it, but didn't love it, in the 1x10 with RF. I moved the amp into a head and connected it to a Mesa-branded EV, and I really like it there. (I put a Z-28 into the 1x10 and love that pairing.)
Let us know what you find/do.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 9:43:41 GMT -7
thank you for the support, young sportsmen
this problem definitely comes & goes in one sitting, but just now this amp sounded great and pretty much exactly like I thought it was supposed to. Really nice, knobs up high, too. Only a few bees and wasps when I chunk the top string open. Sounds like a 5150 Jr. GREAT. Until I touched the controls; then the problem would come back -- BUT, it seemed that after a minute or two that the amp would *adjust* itself to the new setting, and the problem would go away. Please read that last part thrice.
so yes, I will call the store for advice and to make sure my tube swaps won't negate any return policy (which would only be a trade for another Z) but I am really thinking "funky tube problem."
It's the fact that it's intermittent in one sitting.
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Apr 9, 2011 9:52:52 GMT -7
It's the fact that it's intermittent in one sitting. Yeah, that's pretty much a sure sign that something ain't right. Glad to hear you're digging the tones when the "good Monza" comes out to play
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 10:24:48 GMT -7
knobs way up just now sounded fudging superb - awesome. Fantastic. Exactly like I thought it would.
If it stays like this all day I am going to say it was a problem with film burning off, or some new-ness that had to melt away. No one has played this amp but the Z people and me. It is BRAND new.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 12:15:38 GMT -7
knobs way up just now sounded fudging superb - awesome. Fantastic. Exactly like I thought it would. If it stays like this all day I am going to say it was a problem with film burning off, or some new-ness that had to melt away. No one has played this amp but the Z people and me. It is BRAND new. and after all that glory, I put it on standby for an hour and walked away came back and played, sounded like the speaker had holes punched in it so after a fat-arse Saturday brunch I'ma head on down to the store for a tube compliment and then start swappin' ... but when this thing sounds right it sounds goodie goodie gumdrops. I'll keep all you Zeebee Geebees appraised of the goings on.
|
|
|
Post by doctorice on Apr 9, 2011 15:18:41 GMT -7
If it's any consolation I had a tube fail in my Z Wreck after only a couple hours of play time. Dr Z made it right.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 16:48:33 GMT -7
first, I swapped the power tubes.
sounded pretty darn good. Did my standby test. Came back, sounded good, and then gradually the raspy fuzz box and blatty bass came back.
after it cools, next to try swapping out is the rectifier. Although they gave me the same kind as the Sovtek that's in there it will be good to keep all things equal in fault isolating. A difference in sound will mean more.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 18:29:55 GMT -7
swapped rectos, V1, power tubes, by themselves one at a time and now all of em, and all new everything in there right now.
"problem" comes and goes, and now seems minimized, but half the mojo is gone, and NOW I have the same jingle bells like a phone ringing that I did with the Ghia that drove me nuts, and it gets LOUD. Putting the original recto back in is the last thing I'm trying.
Pretty sure it's goodbye Monza and goodbye forever to combos. Spent $100 troubleshooting this today. Thank C***** & The B***** that I have a Route 66 or I would be quite livid. I don't especially feel like taking the NOS GZ34 recto from my perfectly fine 66 to see if it fixes the Monza cuz it will just jinx the 66 too.
Dear Universe,
I am sorry for whatever it was I did to get you so pissed at me.
Mike
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 9, 2011 19:25:15 GMT -7
(this is as much for me to keep track as it is for all you guys to jump in if ya care to)
I put the original recto back in that was in there when I got the amp, and now 1) the mojo is back, 2) the raspy problem is back, and 3) I have jingle bells in addition.
Based on what is being called "fizz and zing" in the Fizz and Zing thread, which is another currently running topic here, my hypothesis now is that I have a really sensitive amp here, and I have a peculiar combination of tubes that makes it sound as I've described.
Bottom line is there might not be a problem with the amp; it's just how it is. I guess I could send it off to the hospital for a check-up, but I believe that's what happened in the Fizz and Zing thread, and "the fizzy artifact" was still there afterward.
That fizz and zing the people were talking about in that thread, not this thread, may have also to do with what I was describing earlier when I was talking about my top end falling apart.
Is this amp supposed to sound like a fuzz face? I didn't think it was. Maybe if I try that LPS in V1 it will tighten things up.
|
|
|
Post by pvfan on Apr 10, 2011 14:50:32 GMT -7
is a Monza supposed to sound like a fuzz face huh? help? anyone notice that I'm losin it? I am not talking about "fuzz" -- I am talking about a Fuzz Face. Does anyone know what I mean? "sounds like you don't like the amp." if I'd just said New Amp Day, sounds great, I'd have people telling me what tubes to try swapping and begging me to tell em what I think. Problems don't equal popular topics. In Ask the Experts I ask about the V2 in this being cathode following, and whether I can swap out the LPS for a less stout pre. don't. At least, don't in this amp, based on the 2 seconds mine lasted before the amp became a train whistle. All a bored. Maybe I could have the Doc fix this, but fudge it man. I'm tired of this crap. I know tubes are problematic man but I'm sick of spending 1000s and it don't work, and more waiting, and after all that it still might not work, takes months to get it to sound right only to decide it's too loud or it's not for me. Had a brand new $3000 Bogner blowing fuses and frying tubes and with fried caps and melted components because they were to close to the light inside. Can't find tubes that work. Bought a whole new tube complement for this Monza and made the problems WORSE. Getting that used Ghia down there. If it gives me any problems ... Thanks for the support the few of you. Not sure what the point of my being here is. It is not to tell everyone +1 great amp all the time and to drop the fact that I play in a worship band every thread that's for sure. I'll rob a bank and give people a million dollars. I don't care about money. I want amps that work and don't sound like British telephones from the bottles shaking. I'll do whatever it takes. Not enough money? I'll get more. I'll wait in line. What do you want from me, world? I take stuff to the best techs in the area, they don't care, wait months and spend hundreds only to get back something that sounds awful. Nobody has time any more. No one does a good job anymore. It's all politics and hype and marketing. Of course, the store is CLOSED today. My ranting will continue to get my karma smited, I don't care, but at least I did SOMETHING to make myself feel better.
|
|
|
Post by hitoverdrive on Apr 14, 2011 17:24:24 GMT -7
is a Monza supposed to sound like a fuzz face huh? help? anyone notice that I'm losin it? I am not talking about "fuzz" -- I am talking about a Fuzz Face. Does anyone know what I mean? "sounds like you don't like the amp." if I'd just said New Amp Day, sounds great, I'd have people telling me what tubes to try swapping and begging me to tell em what I think. Problems don't equal popular topics. In Ask the Experts I ask about the V2 in this being cathode following, and whether I can swap out the LPS for a less stout pre. don't. At least, don't in this amp, based on the 2 seconds mine lasted before the amp became a train whistle. All a bored. Maybe I could have the Doc fix this, but fudge it man. I'm tired of this crap. I know tubes are problematic man but I'm sick of spending 1000s and it don't work, and more waiting, and after all that it still might not work, takes months to get it to sound right only to decide it's too loud or it's not for me. Had a brand new $3000 Bogner blowing fuses and frying tubes and with fried caps and melted components because they were to close to the light inside. Can't find tubes that work. Bought a whole new tube complement for this Monza and made the problems WORSE. Getting that used Ghia down there. If it gives me any problems ... Thanks for the support the few of you. Not sure what the point of my being here is. It is not to tell everyone +1 great amp all the time and to drop the fact that I play in a worship band every thread that's for sure. I'll rob a bank and give people a million dollars. I don't care about money. I want amps that work and don't sound like British telephones from the bottles shaking. I'll do whatever it takes. Not enough money? I'll get more. I'll wait in line. What do you want from me, world? I take stuff to the best techs in the area, they don't care, wait months and spend hundreds only to get back something that sounds awful. Nobody has time any more. No one does a good job anymore. It's all politics and hype and marketing. Of course, the store is CLOSED today. My ranting will continue to get my karma smited, I don't care, but at least I did SOMETHING to make myself feel better. Ok the fizz zing thing IMO is a different issue then you are having. The fizz and zing comes in at the tail end of what is played but the core tone is there. I have enough tubes on hand both NOS, ANOS and current production and that's including a Mullard GZ34. No tube changes eliminated the FZ issue. A whole new amp(which I got)didn't eliminate it. It is not the same thing you are experiencing. What you have is a Monza with another issue. Call or email Don at repairs@drzamps.com. Stellar customer service. You will be helped. Quit being silly and thinking something is jinxed or you are suffering bad karma. It ain't so! Your amp is not working properly...end of story. Get rid of it or get in the solution and call/email Don. I mean this kindly but seriously. I hate to see others mess around with an amp problem that a tech should be handling. I think you have tried all you can and know.
|
|
|
Post by bluzman on Apr 27, 2011 16:31:44 GMT -7
Based on his attitude in a few other threads, his attitude in this thread and his username, I'd stick my neck out and say he was troll. I think somebody pissed him off at the Peavey Forums or something. Maybe I'm wrong but I doubt it.
|
|
|
Post by KeithA on Apr 27, 2011 16:58:19 GMT -7
Based on his attitude in a few other threads, his attitude in this thread and his username, I'd stick my neck out and say he was troll. I think somebody pissed him off at the Peavey Forums or something. Maybe I'm wrong but I doubt it. Not the PV forum so much, but I think you'll find similar 'colourful' posts in the Seymour Duncan forum Keith
|
|