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Post by donnoj on Jan 25, 2019 11:43:18 GMT -7
Hello, Looking for owners who have had experience with both. I've been watching a few videos on the Z-Plus and love what I'm hearing. I also couldn't help but notice how similar it sound to my Princeton Reverb Reissue. The tone I love and get at band volumes is sort of a bold semi clean chime-y-ness. From what I've read it seems the Z-Plus design is an extension of a Fender Champ though. Have any owners noticed a similarity to the tone and playability of PRRI I'm trying to figure out if the Z-Plus will be a worthwhile upgrade. My PRRI has an upgraded output transformer and Jensen C10R. It sounds great, but doesn't stay squeaky clean in a live setting. It does boost out of the semi-clean into a nice lead tone. The reverb and tremolo obviously sounds great on the PRRI, and the Z-Pus appears to have stellar reverb as well. I would like to know if the Z-Pus is capable of playing at band volumes and staying fairly clean. It would be nice to get the lower volume cleans I get with my PRRI at band levels and also have the option of getting dirty. Thanks!
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Post by justjoshinya on Jan 25, 2019 14:39:42 GMT -7
I’ve had both... I’ve had a 1979, and an amazing 1967 Princeton Reverb the Aa764 circuit which does or does not exist... anyway I loved the sound of the 67 it was the best sounding amp I had came across until catastrophic tube failure... got it fixed but it wasn’t quite the same.... the Z-Plus has that something special that the 67 had, plus some! As great of an amp as the 67 was the Blows it out of the water! I can get the sound of a cranked Princeton at low volume, with the best Reverb I’ve ever heard! So my answer is YES the Z-Plus is definitely worth it!
I usually play at the edge of breakup and if I dig in the amp breaks up a little, I have been able to get squeaky clean with with my tele and Gretsch and have plenty volume at church 60x60 room with 200 seats or so, I find this amp way easier to mix too, it’s hard to get a bad sound out of it!
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Post by donnoj on Jan 25, 2019 19:53:53 GMT -7
Thanks for the response!
Do you recommend the LT or Studio and what speaker? I'm leaning toward the studio w/ Z-12.
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Post by justjoshinya on Jan 25, 2019 20:17:08 GMT -7
Mine is a studio with a creamback in it, ive had that speaker in a couple other amps and didn’t like it, but it fantastic with the plus, I have a Z12 in my Maz 8, I’ll hook that cab to the Z Plus tomorrow and give it a try. I’ve not heard the bigger cab in person, this thing sounds big with the small cab!
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jan 25, 2019 21:17:26 GMT -7
Mine is a studio with a creamback in it, ive had that speaker in a couple other amps and didn’t like it, but it fantastic with the plus, I have a Z12 in my Maz 8, I’ll hook that cab to the Z Plus tomorrow and give it a try. I’ve not heard the bigger cab in person, this thing sounds big with the small cab! Which Creamback? 65, 75, Alnico? I've got the stock Z-12 in mine right now and love it. But I do have a 65 Creamback that's not doing anything right now...
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Post by donnoj on Jan 25, 2019 22:14:25 GMT -7
Mine is a studio with a creamback in it, ive had that speaker in a couple other amps and didn’t like it, but it fantastic with the plus, I have a Z12 in my Maz 8, I’ll hook that cab to the Z Plus tomorrow and give it a try. I’ve not heard the bigger cab in person, this thing sounds big with the small cab! Cool...thanks in advance! I found some amps and some speakers just work better in small cabs. I think they sit in a band mix good. Some may complain about boxiness but what sounds great by itself isn't necessarily gonna work in a mix. That's what I love about my PRRI, it just pops out in the mix. I've become a fan of bright speakers as well...Jensen C12N and C10R. Not necessarily the best speakers to practice with but heaven with a band.
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Post by justjoshinya on Jan 26, 2019 6:54:52 GMT -7
Mine is a studio with a creamback in it, ive had that speaker in a couple other amps and didn’t like it, but it fantastic with the plus, I have a Z12 in my Maz 8, I’ll hook that cab to the Z Plus tomorrow and give it a try. I’ve not heard the bigger cab in person, this thing sounds big with the small cab! Which Creamback? 65, 75, Alnico? I've got the stock Z-12 in mine right now and love it. But I do have a 65 Creamback that's not doing anything right now... I believe it’s a 65, I’ll have to look after while. It sounds heavenly though!
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Post by justjoshinya on Jan 26, 2019 15:09:24 GMT -7
It is in fact a 65! So I tried the Z12 mounted in my Maz 8 Studio cab, and it is quite a bit brighter, over the last few years with hearing loss in my left ear (not from loud music, other loud banging noises) I have noticed my other seems to be more sensitive to highs, to the point that it hurts, even at lower volumes. The Z12 sound rich and creamy in my Maz8 but a bit too bright for me in the Z-Plus... I’m sure I could tame it easily with the cut and EQ, but why mess with a perfect combo! If you love a PRRI, you will be blown away by the Z-Plus, I was!
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jan 28, 2019 8:23:45 GMT -7
It is in fact a 65! So I tried the Z12 mounted in my Maz 8 Studio cab, and it is quite a bit brighter, over the last few years with hearing loss in my left ear (not from loud music, other loud banging noises) I have noticed my other seems to be more sensitive to highs, to the point that it hurts, even at lower volumes. The Z12 sound rich and creamy in my Maz8 but a bit too bright for me in the Z-Plus... I’m sure I could tame it easily with the cut and EQ, but why mess with a perfect combo! If you love a PRRI, you will be blown away by the Z-Plus, I was! Thanks to this thread I did put a Creamback 65 in my Z Plus and it really does sound great. It's a great combination; just like the V-30 works with the Therapy. The speaker compliments the amplifier and the package sounds sweet.
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Post by justjoshinya on Jan 28, 2019 8:47:49 GMT -7
It is in fact a 65! So I tried the Z12 mounted in my Maz 8 Studio cab, and it is quite a bit brighter, over the last few years with hearing loss in my left ear (not from loud music, other loud banging noises) I have noticed my other seems to be more sensitive to highs, to the point that it hurts, even at lower volumes. The Z12 sound rich and creamy in my Maz8 but a bit too bright for me in the Z-Plus... I’m sure I could tame it easily with the cut and EQ, but why mess with a perfect combo! If you love a PRRI, you will be blown away by the Z-Plus, I was! Thanks to this thread I did put a Creamback 65 in my Z Plus and it really does sound great. It's a great combination; just like the V-30 works with the Therapy. The speaker compliments the amplifier and the package sounds sweet. To me it kinda gives it a nudge toward the Z28, which was my favorite sounding Z till now! The Z28 had to be so loud to get to that sound I loved that it just wouldn’t work for me... I’m extremely happy with the Z Plus!
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jmg
Junior Member
Posts: 53
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Post by jmg on Feb 28, 2019 0:37:24 GMT -7
Interesting. My Z Plus LT and Princeton (12 inch speaker and tweed) do sound pretty different. I'd say the LT is significantly bigger sounding with more harmonics and mids. The Princeton has that lovely Fender low and high end chime, light on the mids. Both have lush reverb, but the Z Plus allows for a little more control, whereas the Princeton has a pretty splashy verb, even at low settings.
Both are special amps. I love my Z. First one I've ever owned. I've had more than a few Fenders, and never want to be without one. The Princeton is a classic Fender tone. Beautiful. Yet, the Z, if I'm honest, sounds even better in several ways.
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