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Post by jhen86 (jordan) on Jul 27, 2017 19:00:05 GMT -7
I just finally got my first Z!!! M12 head arrived yesterday(snagged it used on Reverb).
Loved it yesterday....straight in, clean with my American Tele (Fralin pickups). Wow, what a great clean tone. So much clarity and responsiveness. Every pickup position sounded so good (which is not usually the case with Tele's I've found). Most my gear was not at home. Only pedal I could find in storage was a Rockett Led Boots, but it sounded great!
Just tonight, I brought the full pedal board home. After about an hour, I found myself a little disappointed. Not sure if I just had hyped expectations or not, but found several of my pedals just didn't sound how I had hoped. Especially, my Klon style pedal (JHS modded Soul Food). Very sad, as I love all that brilliant sparkle and bite from a Klon pushing an amp.
Pedals on my board: Exotic SP Compressor......(sounded good) JHS Mod Soul Food.....(Sounded not great...stuffy, stiff and bloated) King of Tone/ Bluesbreaker clone.... (sounded pretty good) Ibanez TS mini......(sounded like a TS, decent) Rockett Animal......(sounded GREAT)
Cabinet: Avatar 2x12 (Blue & G12H30 70th ann). Partially open back (oval). Amp settings: Tried combinations of all three knobs anywhere from 10-2 o'clock, all on high setting. Low setting seemed too flat.
Previously, my main amp was a little 20 watt handmade amp that is definitely more in the Marshall territory, with maybe a touch of Vox. More compression, less headroom. Ran that amp just on the verge of breakup so pedals really pushed/saturated nicely but imparted their own tone as well. Haven't owned anything in the Fender vein in quite a while, but it feels like the M12 takes pedals a lot like the Fenders that I've recently played.
I've learned to not make any major judgements until I've played something a few times live, mic'd up and through my in-ears. Do any of you have any experience with any Klon style pedals and the M12? Curious, if it is actually a little more picky with drives than I thought it might be, or if I just have an aversion to anything that leans toward a Fender?
EDIT: Would love to hear what favorite drives some of you may have with the M12.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2017 19:40:18 GMT -7
I found the M12 to be extremely pedal friendly, although it's not what I'd call a Marshall-y amp. Klons/Klones typically they respond best into a cooking amp, so there's that.
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Post by zm12 on Jul 28, 2017 6:14:41 GMT -7
I agree with FleaLux in that klon type pedals sounded best through a cooking amp or before other dirt pedals. I always hated them on their own for dirt regardless of what amp it was. The M12 always gives me the feel of a pushed amp tone at reasonable volumes so I've liked many of the od pedals I've used through it. Klon/klones/Ts9's- meh, on their own. Excellent pushing others Standalone od's through the M12: J rockett 45 caliber,Thorpyfx gunshot, Mesa flux drive Rothwell switchblade among others sounded great through the M12. This is just dirt pedals. Loved all my other pedals through it better than any other amp I've owned but that's another topic! Hope you have good luck with the amp. Don't give up just yet
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Post by Jefferson on Aug 5, 2017 7:09:42 GMT -7
Are you running the amp on the hi or lo setting? I found the lo to be much better with pedals...
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Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2017 7:54:23 GMT -7
Are you experimenting with the settings on your pedals or just trying to run them the way you did with your old amp? Sounds like you had the M-12 set up clean when you had your old amp "just on the verge of breakup". Pedals would definitely react differently into a clean amp vs an amp just on the verge of breakup. Try turning the bass & treble up past noon on the M12 to get closer to a little grind.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2017 13:09:46 GMT -7
Are you experimenting with the settings on your pedals or just trying to run them the way you did with your old amp? Sounds like you had the M-12 set up clean when you had your old amp "just on the verge of breakup". Pedals would definitely react differently into a clean amp vs an amp just on the verge of breakup. Try turning the bass & treble up past noon on the M12 to get closer to a little grind. Yeah, mess with pedal settings for sure...I've taken my board to a gig and had to plug into someone else's amp and had to tweak em all a little to get close to what I was used to.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Aug 5, 2017 13:43:49 GMT -7
Doc designed the M12 as a pedal platform so you should be getting some great sounds out of it. In addition to Mark and Eric (Roscoe) suggestions, you mentioned the amp was picked up from Reverb. Any idea on when the tubes were last changed out? That may be part of the problem. You might also compare them to the recommended tubes - a lot of people change out from stock and find out that Doc really did know what he was doing when he selected the tubes for the amp BTW - welcome to the Forum. A lot of great people and information here!
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Post by jhen86 (jordan) on Aug 8, 2017 21:24:34 GMT -7
Thanks for all the input guys. I'm getting more used to the M12 after some more hours with it, and a weekend gig under the belt. To answer all the questions.... 1) Yes, I know its a totally different approach than working with a 12ax7 preamp already breaking up. I knew it would be going in, but was just surprised at how different it actually was in practice. Been working out the kinks and finding useable settings with my current dirt boxes. Klone still stunk but some of the others were REALLY nice. Enjoyed using the Rockett LED Boots and using the volume knob for clean up. 2) Tubes are not stock (Winged C ef86, GT 12ax7, and Mesa EL84s???) but everything sounds good without pedals so no real symptoms of bad tubes as far as I can tell. Sidenote:I am looking to get some NOS glass soon, and maybe try the Steve Miller mods (sans cathode resistor). If I do, I will try to record some high quality audio samples for you all to hear the differences with 5AR4, EL844, and then both together. 3) Been running in the high setting, almost exclusively. More so to get a little more breakup. I have been pushing the volume and treble harder to get some grit and that has been nice. It sure is a LOUD 12 watts though. Last but not least, I just picked up an RX Jr in amazing shape on Reverb for $825 NOS glass and all. Comes in tomorrow. That may be more what I am looking for (a touch more gain and a PPIMV). Then again, it may make for a nice stereo arrangement if I can convince the wife to let me keep both. Appreciate you guys and your input. Honored to be part of the community.
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Post by Maddog on Aug 9, 2017 4:30:27 GMT -7
When you described your previous amp, you said is was more Marshall with a little Vox thrown in. That sound in your head is a far cry from the M12, yer almost perfectly describing the Maz Jr you have coming. I'll be anxious to see if you dig the Maz. As above stated, tweak the M12's knob AFTER you've installed a fresh set of recommended tubes. And get an extra set for yer new Maz too since it's a used amp. I've never received a used EL84 amp that didn't sound significantly better with new power tubes. Good luck! OBTW, unlike most folks, I ran my M12 cranked up loud and crunchy, and loved it. Sounded like a Z Wreck....
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Post by Deleted on Aug 9, 2017 7:43:12 GMT -7
Yeah--that Winged C is a pretty harsh-sounding EF86, iirc. If you do a WTB in the BST section you can probably locate a good NOS V1 for that amp. Also, yeah, I'd go with JJs for the power section, not the Sovteks Mesa uses.
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Post by jhen86 (jordan) on Aug 28, 2017 20:53:11 GMT -7
Just an update: I've actually been really enjoying the M12 lately and have been finding settings on the tone stack that work really well for me. I've even been able to get the klone sounding good.
Secret for me was to run the bass and treble lower (between 9-11 o clock) and the volume higher (past noon). To my ears, this sort of mid emphasized approach got the pedals feeling more like part of the amp. Really enjoying it. I recant all previous doubts.
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Post by Chilly Gibbons (Todd T.) on Sept 23, 2017 18:17:49 GMT -7
Old thread, I know. Just wanted to say as a Maz 8, Z-Lux, and Cure owner I too thought the Zs would be the perfect pedal platform due to their crisp, complex tone. They are, but since getting back into the Z game I find I don't use any boost/overdrive/distortion pedals with them. Modulation, delay, reverb (only on the non-Reverb Cure) or if I need to totally fuzz it up sure, but pedals like our favorite overdrives just seem to color, compress, and limit frequency response - degrading an otherwise great signal. A high quality cable straight into the Zs still amazes me. I still use pedals on my inferior amps to "goose" them though.
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