ztex
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by ztex on Jan 25, 2017 11:10:08 GMT -7
Howdy! Just joined the ranks with a recent Z28 purchase last week. Went to my local store intending to purchase a used Headstrong Lil' King S they had listed as I'm in the market for a 20 to 30 watt amp that produces more of the "American Blackface" tones. The Headstrong was decent but had the same issue I experienced with a similar Vintage Sound model that I returned a few months back. The speaker mounts and cabinet can't seem to handle the 12" speaker without producing annoying buzzing and rattling even at just 30% volume. Ran into that issue with both brands. Was resigned to picking up the Fender DRRI as it honestly sounded as good as the other two "boutique" amps and did not buzz or rattle at moderate volumes. Then I saw the Z28 in the corner and gave it a spin. Didn't know anything about it but tried it out since the shop owner said it was 22W and modeled to be somewhat in the American Sound family.
Was impressed from the first chord! Great sustain and clarity that was far beyond the other amps I had tried that day. Didn't know anything about the tone controls and the past noon feature but was not naturally drawn to take either past noon anyway during the test drive. It's a 2X10 combo model and built like a frickin' tank! Needless to say, none of the annoying buzzes and rattles I'd been hearing from the other brands when I took the volume to 10 o'clock were present. I was already good with just 3 knobs as I was planning on only using the 3 knob side of the DRRI anyway.
Had the Z28 at home now for a few days and, even though I'm still in the honeymoon period, so far zero buyer's remorse! It fits in nicely next to my Fender Vibrolux Custom (current model) which is 40 watts. Spending time now re-calibrating my pedal board settings for the Z. My compressor pedal is really needed with the Vibrolux to help with clean sustain but not really with the Z28. It does fine on it's own! I'm a Tele country & blues player and am surprised by how bright the Z28 is with my setup. There is zero chance I'll ever get the treble control anywhere near noon to enjoy the OD functions it can bring past that point. Anything after about 9 o'clock on the dial is just too bright with my rig. Bass sounds great around 1 o'clock. This is an amazingly well made amp and unbelievably solid all the way around. (and very heavy as well!) I was surprised it did not include an external speaker out option so I could run another cab in addition to the combo amp. It's dead silent with the volume at 9 o'clock. I can actually hear the little bits of extra noise each pedal brings into the mix when I turn them on which I've never heard before since my Vibrolux is a noisy beast in comparison. My Keeley Aurora reverb pedal adds just the right amount of reverb when needed and I'm good to go! Very happy I chose the Z28 over the DRRI and can't wait to unlock more of it's mysteries in the months ahead. This forum was a great learning resource for me as I was making my final decision with the amp since I didn't have any previous knowledge of it.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Jan 25, 2017 11:21:58 GMT -7
Congratulations on a great amp and welcome to the Forum! A lot of great people and information here. The only problem with Z amps is that they are like Lays Potato Chips - can't have just one!
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Post by John on Jan 25, 2017 12:50:16 GMT -7
Welcome to the forum. Your first Z = gateway drug! You'll find yourself owning more soon.
I've had a Z28 myself in the past, and I don't think I've ever heard anyone say they can't get the treble up past noon. It's rare for someone to call the Z28 a real bright amp. To me, they have a bit of a lower midrange push about them.
But if you can stand to try it....try the 3-3-3 setting.....all knobs to 3 o'clock and use the guitar volume knob for clean/crunch. That seems to be a widely used setting. Loud and roarin'! Pedals will react differently with the Z28 because of the ef86 tube.
You may find yourself using the tone knob on the guitar more often now. If it's THAT bright, keep the tone knob of the guitar down around 7 or so...all the time. Only open it up all the way when you need something that bright. Yeah...turn the guitar tone knob down, and turn the amp up to 3-3-3 and see what happens!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 25, 2017 13:28:27 GMT -7
Enjoy your new amp. It's one of Doc's best.
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Post by pcns on Jan 25, 2017 14:27:05 GMT -7
Z28 is a great amp, I've several and regretted selling . . . will get one back some day!
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Post by nmz on Jan 25, 2017 15:28:52 GMT -7
Great amp, congrats! I would like to own another some day. It made me clean up some slop in my playing. I used the 9-9-9 setting a lot but as John said 3-3-3 is amazing!
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Post by Stephen on Jan 25, 2017 18:16:08 GMT -7
+1000 on 3-3-3
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Post by Ridgeback on Jan 25, 2017 18:29:31 GMT -7
My favorite Z. When I find the right deal on a blonde head, I will own one again. Congratulations and welcome to the forum.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2017 5:40:36 GMT -7
Congratulations i have mine for over 10 years.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2017 8:12:59 GMT -7
Congratulations, and Welcome to the forum!
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ztex
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by ztex on Jan 26, 2017 19:53:07 GMT -7
I have a couple of more hours on the amp now and it's been quite a ride! Still loving how when I turn off my compressor pedal the amps natural sustain still remains in place and chords ring as if the pedal is still on. Currently playing with a 9-1-9 setting. John was correct in recommending I work with my Tele's tone knob more for the brightness. I've been so dialed in with my Vibrolux over the past decade that I had set up everything to basically work with my tone knobs near full at all times.
In fact, that's been an unexpected bonus to the Z28. Having to re-imagine my usual pedal board settings and guitar tone controls. With the Vibrolux, I usually push it a bit more with a TC Electronics Spark Booster pedal to fill the sound out. No need with the Z! I actually like the sound of the amp better without the TC boost added in. I had to greatly reduce my compressor settings before I liked keeping the comp pedal on. OD - Echo - all my pedals had to be re-calibrated for the Z which has been a blast. Amazing how "settled" a player can get when they just play through one amp for so many years. I enjoy working on a new sonic canvas again.
Plenty of clean headroom for chickin' pickin' and I can hear some nice OD tones waiting for me with that volume knob but don't want to scare my wife just yet! Very glad I chose this amp over the DRRI. No regrets.
On a side note - I never really checked out this forum until this week with the new amp. Now that I've read through a few pages of threads, I have to say this is one of the more consistently positive and informative music related forums I've seen in quite some time. Definitely a breath of fresh internet air!
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Post by John on Jan 27, 2017 8:55:00 GMT -7
On a side note - I never really checked out this forum until this week with the new amp. Now that I've read through a few pages of threads, I have to say this is one of the more consistently positive and informative music related forums I've seen in quite some time. Definitely a breath of fresh internet air! Some forums can be very negative and ruthlessly harsh. You have people, sitting around just waiting for the opportunity to be the first to pounce on someone else. That does not happen here. A person will get one warning.... (And the NO religion or politics is STRICTLY enforced) Many of us have known each other for many years. Many of us have met each other. Some have taken vacations to others homes. A few of us are in bands with other forum members. Many of us get together for 'Z-Fest'...a gathering on a weekend with guitars and Z amps and jam, meet new members, catch up with old forum members, eat, try out new amps (or one you're interested in), and generally have a lot of fun. People fly in from all over the country for Z-fest. People come from other countries for Z-fest!
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Post by texasjim on Jan 29, 2017 12:55:55 GMT -7
Hey, welcome ztex! Where are you located?
I've had a Z-28 2-10 for about 11 years. It's a fantastic amp!. I have a 2-10 extension cab with Z-10's for gigs where I need to move more air. The Z-10's are 16 ohm speakers, which gives you 8 ohms in parallel. When I use my second cab, I plug the amp's speaker jack into a female jack on my extension cabinet, which is in parallel with the extension cab's speakers, and play all four speakers thru the 4-ohm jack on the amp. You could do the same with an 8-ohm 12" speaker. I've never done that, but I'll bet with the right 12", it could be awesome!
Enjoy your '28. They're awesome amps.
TexasJim
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Post by Joey Beverages on Feb 2, 2017 6:36:04 GMT -7
Congrats and welcome aboard. Z-28 w/210 is a great combination cheers always Joel
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Post by Pete aka shouldb on Feb 3, 2017 5:00:55 GMT -7
Try this.........max your volume, and use your T&B as output controls. That way you don't have to take the T too high, but you can get some gorgeous harmonic over tones........I know, counter intuitive, but it really works! Congrats on buying the hidden gem in the Z range
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ztex
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by ztex on Feb 3, 2017 17:58:18 GMT -7
Another week with the Z28 and loving it more than ever! Just added a Fulltone Supa-Trem to the board to get the missing Tremolo sounds from my Vibrolux and it sounds amazing. Have finally dialed in my pedal board and guitars to the amp and my ear has adjusted to the new sonic qualities of the Z. Fired up the Vibrolux the other day and it's like an old friend you get to see once and a while but you don't have as much in common any more. It'll be a solid back up amp to the Z. Still working with a 9-1-9 setup on the amp controls. Seems to be just right for my setup.
TexasJim - I'm in Austin.
Made-Man - will definitely give the full volume with lower tone controls a try in the near future.
Quick story - fired up the Z28 a few days back and thought it was dead. The jewel light did not come on and the amp was silent. Was not happy. Moved it to a new power outlet and tried it again with the same result. Switched out the detachable power cable to a new one but no use. Finally realized I better check out the tubes in the back and sure enough they were glowing. Plugged in the Tele and all was well. Apparently, the jewel light bulb came loose and was not lighting up and the amp is so darn quiet with nothing plugged into it I thought it was dead! My Vibrolux has so much hiss and hum when you turn it on that you'd never mistake it for dead. Unscrewed the jewel light and pushed the bulb back into place and all is well. Amazing that the Z was so quiet it took me a few minutes to realize it was just a jewel light issue.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2017 10:15:36 GMT -7
Totally silent.
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Post by Pete aka shouldb on Feb 8, 2017 1:24:23 GMT -7
Another week with the Z28 and loving it more than ever! Just added a Fulltone Supa-Trem to the board to get the missing Tremolo sounds from my Vibrolux and it sounds amazing. Have finally dialed in my pedal board and guitars to the amp and my ear has adjusted to the new sonic qualities of the Z. Fired up the Vibrolux the other day and it's like an old friend you get to see once and a while but you don't have as much in common any more. It'll be a solid back up amp to the Z. Still working with a 9-1-9 setup on the amp controls. Seems to be just right for my setup. TexasJim - I'm in Austin. Made-Man - will definitely give the full volume with lower tone controls a try in the near future. Quick story - fired up the Z28 a few days back and thought it was dead. The jewel light did not come on and the amp was silent. Was not happy. Moved it to a new power outlet and tried it again with the same result. Switched out the detachable power cable to a new one but no use. Finally realized I better check out the tubes in the back and sure enough they were glowing. Plugged in the Tele and all was well. Apparently, the jewel light bulb came loose and was not lighting up and the amp is so darn quiet with nothing plugged into it I thought it was dead! My Vibrolux has so much hiss and hum when you turn it on that you'd never mistake it for dead. Unscrewed the jewel light and pushed the bulb back into place and all is well. Amazing that the Z was so quiet it took me a few minutes to realize it was just a jewel light issue. Haha! I've been caught out a couple of times like that with Z28 and my old Remedy! Z designs out all unnecessary nonsense like buzz, hum and hiss! He just leaves the good stuff in there!
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Post by Maddog on Feb 8, 2017 5:27:03 GMT -7
Hey neighbor! Congrats on owning one of the best amps on the planet!!!
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