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Post by benmaz on Feb 6, 2020 12:22:49 GMT -7
I've been reading through these posts to find out what tubes are best in my Maz. 18 Jr. There are some indicating that Dr. Z isn't using JJ anymore, but they are from years ago. I think a saw a post by Dr. Z with a favorable review of Svetlana 12ax7's in all three positions, but that's old too. On the website it looks like JJ is the right tube for V1 and V2. And I guess the 12ax7lps is recommended for V3 (phase inverter). But I've also seen posts recommending either a Tung Sol or a Chinese 12ax7 as a phase inverter for a warmer tone. As for the El84's, my understanding is some amps were shipped with EH El84's, not JJ's, but, again, that was a while ago. Now the Reflector (Sovtek) 6n14n appears to be standard. Also, the Sovtek 5ar4 seems pretty consistently used, but for a warmer blues tone a 5v4 might be better.
Anyway, I'm running all JJ's except the phase inverter is a 12ax7lps. My clean tone is really nice. But I'm trying to get as much gain as possible, and something a little warmer would be fine with me. At low volumes its really hard to get much break up out of this amp with a strat. Again, the clean tone is really nice I just wish I could put more hair on it.
Any recommendations? Anyone know what tubes Dr. Z is shipping with now?
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Post by digs57 on Feb 6, 2020 12:41:04 GMT -7
6n14n power tubes...the mod/volume gives you the nice breakup at lower volumes...I do use jan 12ax7 wa for v1 though...in all maz18
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Post by benmaz on Feb 6, 2020 13:03:31 GMT -7
I think a JAN 12ax7 in V1 would make even brighter than it already is, but I'll give it a try. Thanks!
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Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Feb 6, 2020 13:48:12 GMT -7
For current-production 12AX7's, I've seen the Tung-Sol "reissue," Electro-Harmonix, and Svetlana all getting good marks in the last 5 years. And for the phase inverter position, specifically, yeah the Sovtek LPS is still the king here.
NOS 12AX7's, well, I don't know... they seem to be all drying up, or that's what Doc has said. I've had just as many of these go bad lately as I've had new-production ones go bad. Doesn't make me feel great about having spent the extra $.
For current-production EL84's, Doc always liked the JJ's (until, for a couple of years, their quality was down; but apparently it came back up) and I like the Electro-Harmonix, too. But if you can find them, the NOS 6N14N that Doc uses are amazing, too, and will last forever.
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Post by benmaz on Feb 6, 2020 13:54:31 GMT -7
Is there any way to get overdrive out of the amp with a strat at low volume?
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Post by digs57 on Feb 6, 2020 18:52:25 GMT -7
crank pre/vol ?...keep master low
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Post by Russell B on Feb 6, 2020 19:17:51 GMT -7
If it doesn’t have enough overdrive with the volume all the way up, get a transparent clean boost. That should get you where you want.
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Post by benmaz on Feb 6, 2020 20:48:10 GMT -7
I notice on my amp the tone gets considerably brighter if I turn the volume past 3:00. So there seems to be a trade off. More gain is brighter; less gain is warmer. Anyway, I'll try a boost.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Feb 6, 2020 20:53:00 GMT -7
If you don't have a transparent boost the Flying Dragon is great with Zs.
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Post by runninwiththerevil (Matthew) on Feb 6, 2020 20:53:11 GMT -7
I notice on my amp the tone gets considerably brighter if I turn the volume past 3:00. So there seems to be a trade off. More gain is brighter; less gain is warmer. Anyway, I'll try a boost. Boost is a great idea, I found the Maz is really responsive and I've tried a few flavors. I've been able to really tune in the amp by playing around with the preamp tubes. You said you've been reading posts so you've probably already seen my thoughts, but I'll include them: V3 getting a Sovtek 12AX7 is a must. I know that is what is suggested, but I had a JJECC83s in there and I was having issues with tone going flat when the volume was under 11:00. I think this was at the heart of the issue when I didn't care for the amp as much after the update. V2 I didn't find a positive change by messing with this tube. The JJECC83s sounded best here. V1 This was interesting. I liked it well enough with the JJECC83s, but tried a EH 12AX7 Gold, and a GE Jan 6072A. Both made a big difference in the highs. I had the EH from way back when I was first playing with tubes in a Blues Jr, I didn't like it there because it made the amp too hi-fi. I like what it does here very much. I don't think it did much to alter the gain, just crisped up the highs really nice. The GE was good too, but not as much. Read more: ztalk.proboards.com/thread/83792/maz-tone-chasing-results-winner#ixzz6DEk5rzAN
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Post by benmaz on Feb 7, 2020 9:42:35 GMT -7
I tried an Xotic EP Boost and that definitely does the trick in the "vintage setting" (both dip switches down).
So what I have learned so far is this:
If the tone is too bright, try Chinese tubes. I put in all Chinese 12ax7's and Chinese EL84's and BOOM. The ice pick highs were completely gone.
If you want to go the other way, try Sovtek long plates. I put in Gold Lion 12ax7's and Mullard reissue El84's. Lord have mercy that is bright.
Gain isn't a problem with a les paul. The top input jack works great. But with a strat I guess you need a boost to overdrive the pre-amp tubes, if you want more gain at low volume. An Exotic EP Booster worked for me.
As for speakers, I never liked the Celestion G12H. I've been a Greenback fan for a vintage strat tone; and I like the Vintage 30 for a modern les paul tone. But I think the Celestion G12H works best in this amp.
So I say stick with the stock setup: JJ ECC83's and a Sovtek 12ax7lps, then either JJ's (if you can find a set that is reliable) or the 6n14n for El84's, and a G12H Anniversary in the cab. Run a reverb pedal through the loop and a booster out front; and you're all set!
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Post by gbowman on Feb 7, 2020 10:06:33 GMT -7
Just to throw some extra gas on the fire, I swapped the rectifier to a 5V4 (NOS RCA 5V4GA) and really really like how it sags and softens the amp a bit. Not a huge amount, but certainly there. There is some good info here: ztalk.proboards.com/thread/6263/on-tube-rectifiers
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Post by GuitarZ on Feb 7, 2020 10:38:33 GMT -7
Consider an AirBrake. I was a long time Les Paul/Marshall player. No problem with gain/crunch there.
After I got my Strat, I figured i'd need a 'strat' amp and found Dr Z. I'll admit my one struggle was getting where I wanted to be with gain/crunch. I finally bought an AirBrake and turned up the master. It was like getting a whole new amp. Looking back, I really liked the tone I was getting with my Maz Jr. Now, I can truly say I love that tone.
That's my two cents. Also, realize I'm not a pedal guy. So, I've got to figure it out with the amp. Oh. And, my Les Paul does sound great through the Dr Z's too.
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Post by benmaz on Feb 8, 2020 13:49:35 GMT -7
For current-production 12AX7's, I've seen the Tung-Sol "reissue," Electro-Harmonix, and Svetlana all getting good marks in the last 5 years. And for the phase inverter position, specifically, yeah the Sovtek LPS is still the king here. NOS 12AX7's, well, I don't know... they seem to be all drying up, or that's what Doc has said. I've had just as many of these go bad lately as I've had new-production ones go bad. Doesn't make me feel great about having spent the extra $. For current-production EL84's, Doc always liked the JJ's (until, for a couple of years, their quality was down; but apparently it came back up) and I like the Electro-Harmonix, too. But if you can find them, the NOS 6N14N that Doc uses are amazing, too, and will last forever. That makes sense. The long plates have a lot of gain, but I think they are way too bright for VI and V2. The Tung-Sol, EH and Svetlana are also high gain tubes. I think probably higher than JJ's. But they are short plates, so they should perform better. The Svetlanas are supposed to be nice and smooth but less gain. I think I'll try the Mullard short plate cv4004's. They are supposed to be warmer than the Tung Sol's but have about the same gain.
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Post by StonySparrow on Feb 9, 2020 20:07:27 GMT -7
In my used 2005 Maz 18, I swapped the tubes for 6n14n's, JJ's, and Sovteks per recommendations and this amp sound GREAT!
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