matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 18, 2021 18:09:33 GMT -7
Hello all New guy here. Just ordered a CAZ-45 and am waiting on its arrival. So I really didn’t plan on buying an amp. Let alone this amp. But man do the demos sound good.
Since I didn’t see much of a new member section I’ll just post it here. Haha. So learned to play guitar from my dad who was self taught. So I don’t know much about what I’m doing. But have been doing it for 30 years or so now. But my playing probably doesn’t show it. Anyway 20 years ago I was playing in rock bands with a Dual Recto. It was cool but I never really loved it. Later got a Stiletto Ace and that thing was a beast. Over time wasn’t playing out much. And have gone down the path of modelers. Although I did have a Johnson Millenium JM250 before the Mesas. Actually still have it.
Anyway I recently found a deal on an Egnater Tweaker 15 combo. I had a Rebel 15 head back on the day too. Anyway it got me back in the real tube amp world. I’ve really been enjoying it. I bought a Wampler Paisley drive to put in front of the tweaker. It works quite well. But in a video Brad mentioned he did a test in the studio and it sounded almost identical to one of his amps. That got me to checking out Dr Z amps again. There’s a local restaurant with live stage and the owner has had quite a few Z amps over the years. So I’ve checked them out before. Anyway this time I was actually thinking about a Z-wreck junior. I figure that was probably the amp he compared it too. That’s when I found the CAZ-45. And while they’re obviously two different amps, I couldn’t shake the itch for the CAZ. If I would have had it instead of the Mesa years ago I could have ruled the world. Haha. I then noticed Sweetwater had a demo model. So I called my guy, and fedex should be here early next week.
Anyway I guess if this post is to have a point, what are your thoughts on speakers/cabs? I’ll probably eventually get a z-best to go with it. But for now I have a Marshall 2061cx with g12h anniversaries. I love it’s weight and portability and it slayed with the Stiletto Ace. I also have an old Soldano 412 w/v30’s. It’s one of the few v30 cabs I’ve loved. Most of the time they seem harsh and dark. Weird combo I know. I also put a Tone Tubby Chicago Blue Alnico in the tweaker. As I’ve never tried Alnicos before. I dig it. I also have a Yamaha 412 with g12t75’s. It came with a Yamaha t100 I owned for a bit. Plus the Johnson 412 with v30’s
So I have a few choices. And I’ve owned other cabs. Including a mesa vert 212 w/v30’s. But I’ve never owned anything with greenbacks. Which is kind of surprising now that I think about it. I’ve read the cream back is supposed to be kind of like a higher power greenback?
I guess the obvious choice is to just get the z-best. But I had been eyeing greenbacks already. So I feel kind of torn between the z best and something with greenbacks. I mean I could run it through the soldano 412 and a greenback 412. That should be about the same as a z-best???
And again I don’t play out much. So yes two 412’s is overkill. But....
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Post by adam on Feb 18, 2021 19:25:55 GMT -7
Congrats! I'd say just try the amp with what you have and see if you like it. I have a couple 4x12's with v30's and the caz sounds good in those. A 4x12 greenback is always kind of my number one choice until I combined green and cream in another 4x12, now I like that one the best. Have a 2x12 splawn cab which came with a v30 and creamback and I didn't like that, then I had 2 cream backs in that and didn't like it, then 2 h30's and didn't like it, and now it has a v30 and h30 and that's the best it's been, but I still don' reallyt like it, and that's with any amp. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I thought I didn't like cream backs, but really I just don't care for that cab. On the plus side, nobody seems to want 4x12's anymore so maybe you can pick up something fairly cheap if you want to try something new.
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Post by purpletele on Feb 18, 2021 21:25:38 GMT -7
Cool choice on a First Z amp!!
Let us know if your face gets deformed.
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Post by notscottagain on Feb 18, 2021 21:26:29 GMT -7
Welcome to the club!
If you dug your Mesa, you are going to LOVE the CAZ. It is way more dynamic and responsive than any Mesa but IMO, the best thing about the CAZ is that it is so versatile. It will work with practically any cab/speaker combo by simply adjusting the Aggression control. The Aggression control will take you from smooth, sonorous tones when at min to raging new metal Marshall aggression at max and anything in between.
Adam, who replied above, is a killer player and knows tone, so his suggestions and recommendations are always worth careful consideration. As for my experience, I favor more smoother, less distorted tones. About as aggressive as I get is Gary Moore's amped-up blues tones. For what I like, I find the CAZ works great with a 1960TV loaded with 4 G12Cs, a 1960B loaded with 4 Red Fangs and a 2x12 Bluesbreaker open-back extension cab loaded with 2 Celestion Alnico Creams. I can make the head do what I want with any of those cabs but I am really partial to open backs and I LOVE alnicos, particularly alnico creams.
You are in for a world of tonal discoveries!
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 19, 2021 2:49:45 GMT -7
Cool choice on a First Z amp!! Let us know if your face gets deformed. I surely will. And kind of hope it does. Could be an improvement. Haha.
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 19, 2021 2:54:43 GMT -7
Welcome to the club! If you dug your Mesa, you are going to LOVE the CAZ. It is way more dynamic and responsive than any Mesa but IMO, the best thing about the CAZ is that it is so versatile. It will work with practically any cab/speaker combo by simply adjusting the Aggression control. The Aggression control will take you from smooth, sonorous tones when at min to raging new metal Marshall aggression at max and anything in between. Adam, who replied above, is a killer player and knows tone, so his suggestions and recommendations are always worth careful consideration. As for my experience, I favor more smoother, less distorted tones. About as aggressive as I get is Gary Moore's amped-up blues tones. For what I like, I find the CAZ works great with a 1960TV loaded with 4 G12Cs, a 1960B loaded with 4 Red Fangs and a 2x12 Bluesbreaker open-back extension cab loaded with 2 Celestion Alnico Creams. I can make the head do what I want with any of those cabs but I am really partial to open backs and I LOVE alnicos, particularly alnico creams. You are in for a world of tonal discoveries! Yeah the Dual Recto was cool. Just never could get it 100% dialed in. The stiletto was a different beast. Loved it. And the demos of the caz sound exactly like the tone I always wanted in my head. And good to know about the different speakers. I’ve always appreciated how they can help sculpt the tone. It’s why I tried the tone tubby. I’ve never had an alnico before. And I really like it. So good to know you like the alnico creams. May try some of those also. I’ll no doubt try the soldano can first. And then the Marshall. And I didn’t mention but I grew up on rock from the 70’s, Thanks to my dad. And then the 90’s were my school years. So I love a lot of music from that era. Mark Tremonti is a big reason I had the dual recto. So I’m down with higher gain too. I just always wanted it to be cleaner and clearer. I guess like the 70’s tones on steroids.
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Post by Russell B on Feb 19, 2021 4:42:37 GMT -7
Congrats on the new amp coming! As everyone has said, the amp is very versatile I'm mostly playing mine through a single V30 in a Z 1x12 cab. I also like it through a Gold at lower gain settings.
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 19, 2021 8:13:24 GMT -7
Congrats! I'd say just try the amp with what you have and see if you like it. I have a couple 4x12's with v30's and the caz sounds good in those. A 4x12 greenback is always kind of my number one choice until I combined green and cream in another 4x12, now I like that one the best. Have a 2x12 splawn cab which came with a v30 and creamback and I didn't like that, then I had 2 cream backs in that and didn't like it, then 2 h30's and didn't like it, and now it has a v30 and h30 and that's the best it's been, but I still don' reallyt like it, and that's with any amp. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I thought I didn't like cream backs, but really I just don't care for that cab. On the plus side, nobody seems to want 4x12's anymore so maybe you can pick up something fairly cheap if you want to try something new. Man I don’t know how I missed this the first time. Must be the early hour. Anyway good to know. I figure the Soldano will work well with it. It’s somehow doesn’t have that harshness that a lot of v30 cabs have to me. But it’s not as dark and dull as the Mesa cabs always seemed to me. I think I want greenbacks because I never have had them. And I missed out on a lot of good stuff trying to avoid “vintage” things. Like I just recently discovered how much I like alnico 2 paf style pickups. I always thought I wanted more “modern” high output gear. So dismissed a bunch of stuff I shouldn’t have. Anyway thanks again. And fwiw it’s your demos that did most of the talking to me. They’re fantastic.
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Post by adam on Feb 19, 2021 21:59:04 GMT -7
Matte - You'll be good with what you have. The eq on the amp is fantastic. I'm a big fan of greenbacks FWIW. Also a fan of the SW demo section, I've purchased a ton of stuff that way. And thanks for the kind words. I tried to show the sound of the amp in some different contexts while erring on the higher gain side of things, but it certainly goes clean if you want it to also. Have fun with it!
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Post by nicholas on Feb 23, 2021 17:31:59 GMT -7
Congrats. Definitely looking forward to your thoughts on it. Most of the guys here with one aren't really into the high gain stuff. So I'm curious on someone's take that's familiar with recto's , stiletto's and the like.
Enjoy it! Keep us posted and clips please!
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 23, 2021 18:57:51 GMT -7
Congrats. Definitely looking forward to your thoughts on it. Most of the guys here with one aren't really into the high gain stuff. So I'm curious on someone's take that's familiar with recto's , stiletto's and the like. Enjoy it! Keep us posted and clips please! Well it was delivered earlier. I work two jobs and it was delivered at my day job around 5pm. I got off at 6, but have to be at my first job at 4am. So not much free time, but I was able to get in a quick jam session. No where near enough to really comprehend all it can do. But wow. I was using a HSH kit guitar I built with thornbuckers in it. I did swap the bridge magnet for an alnico 2. Anyway I was mostly using the bridge pickup. And yeah it just slays. In a way it actually does remind me of the Stiletto quite a bit. Both are very tight and articulate. But so much more control with the CAZ. That agression knob is something else. I can’t wait to try it in a band setting (which unfortunately could be a while). But it’s almost like a “push the sound out front” knob. So cool. And while the eq is very responsive, there doesn’t seem to be a “bad” setting. At least that I could find. I’m pretty sure I could easily dial in a very similar sound to either one of the Mesa’s. But just better and clearer. And as advertised it cleans up amazing well. And it’s super quiet. Even with the sensitivity and gain fairly high. Now if you get them both up past 3 it definitely gets some hiss, but you’re way past the amount of gain anyone would reasonably need. At least IMO. And I was using the soldano 412 w/v30’s. I’ll probably try the Marshall 212 with g12h30s tomorrow. And probably my McCarty soapbar. I have a feeling that guitar will sing through this amp. Also I never had it really cranked either. I had the level around 9 o’clock most of the time. I could crank it, but just didn’t feel the need. At least right now. I’ll definitely do that later. I’m sure it will just roar as it gets louder. But yeah it sound really good at reasonable volume too. Anyway as I play it more I’ll keep this updated. I may even record some stuff. Not sure about videos though. I’ve just never really got into that. And there’s already some really solid demos out there. But who knows. I’m definitely willing. Especially if there’s some kind of request for something specific.
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Post by Russell B on Feb 23, 2021 19:24:31 GMT -7
Congrats on getting it! Looks like more fun is coming!
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Post by adam on Feb 24, 2021 5:38:28 GMT -7
That agression knob is something else. I can’t wait to try it in a band setting (which unfortunately could be a while). But it’s almost like a “push the sound out front” knob. So cool. And while the eq is very responsive, there doesn’t seem to be a “bad” setting. At least that I could find. I’m pretty sure I could easily dial in a very similar sound to either one of the Mesa’s. But just better and clearer. And as advertised it cleans up amazing well. And it’s super quiet... Also I never had it really cranked either. I had the level around 9 o’clock most of the time. I could crank it, but just didn’t feel the need. At least right now. I’ll definitely do that later. I’m sure it will just roar as it gets louder. But yeah it sound really good at reasonable volume too. Ditto everything you said! The level control, when I first got it I was running the amp out into a di into a recording setup and in that setting, you can really hear what the level control is doing because the volume in the room or the cab and speaker component isn't in the equation. It basically does nothing to the tone, just controls the level which is pretty cool. If you are running the preamp pretty high, you start to hear or feel some power amp compression with the master around 1pm-2pm, but otherwise, it's so transparent a control and really welcome. And yes, in the room in a cab, sounds great around 9pm which isn't loud at all. So congrats! I still mess around with the 3 gain type controls. They impart something quite different in the character of the gain. And that eq circuit is top notch.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Feb 24, 2021 9:16:05 GMT -7
I dig your description of the Aggression control, "Push the sound out front knob." That's just what it feels like, it's like a Presence control but with a ton of balls. Combined with the Gain and especially the Sensitivity controls, I can get a new sound every day out of mine. Love this amp, just love it.
Right now I'm not in a band that I can crank this amp with and I'm really looking forward to getting to do it. Until then, please do fill us in with your impressions as a former Mesa user. I've owned Mesas (still have a Subway Rocket and a Subway Blues) and the thing that always drove me nuts was the endless tweaking with the EQ and Tone stack. I'd get the amp to where I liked it, and then come back the next day and it wouldn't satisfy. So I'd start tweaking again. Not so with my CAZ. It's the opposite of my experience with Mesas in that it's hard to get a bad sound.
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Post by doctorice on Feb 24, 2021 14:48:30 GMT -7
Congrats on the new CAZ. I really love mine. There are so many great sounds inside. Z and Alan did an extraordinary job designing this one. I'm one of those "not really into high gain" guys nicholas mentioned. But I love having that gain on tap. My (adult) son is very into metal, and he adored the sound of the amp cranked up with a dual humbucker guitar plugged straight in.
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 24, 2021 14:54:50 GMT -7
I dig your description of the Aggression control, "Push the sound out front knob." That's just what it feels like, it's like a Presence control but with a ton of balls. Combined with the Gain and especially the Sensitivity controls, I can get a new sound every day out of mine. Love this amp, just love it. Right now I'm not in a band that I can crank this amp with and I'm really looking forward to getting to do it. Until then, please do fill us in with your impressions as a former Mesa user. I've owned Mesas (still have a Subway Rocket and a Subway Blues) and the thing that always drove me nuts was the endless tweaking with the EQ and Tone stack. I'd get the amp to where I liked it, and then come back the next day and it wouldn't satisfy. So I'd start tweaking again. Not so with my CAZ. It's the opposite of my experience with Mesas in that it's hard to get a bad sound.
Yeah the Aggression control is the "secret sauce" to this amp. At least imo so far. I had about 30 mins at lunch to jam a bit more. Hooked it up to the Marshall cab. I can def dig it with that cab too. However it did need to be a very small bit louder to really get to singing. I didn't have to push it up much, but it was surprisingly a bit flat sounding at first. But I turned the level up to maybe 9:30 and then it came to life. With the Soldano cab it just keeps getting quieter and obviously loses some punch at some point, but not quite like the 212. Anyway I hope none of that makes it sound like it ever sounded bad. It didn't. Just that cab needs to be pushed a bit to sing. Still not terribly loud, but loud enough you'd have to shout over it.
And yes the tone stack on my Dual Recto drove me nuts. The stiletto was pretty straight forward like this amp. The most interesting thing I learned about the Recto, was to turn the treble all the way off. Sounds absurd I know, but it brings the amp to life. Then you can use the mids and presence to get enough clarity. But it sounded way less compressed and punchy with the treble turned off. I wouldn't have believed it if I had never tried it.
I also am starting to think I like the sensitivity lower and the gain higher for higher gain sounds. To me the higher I set the sensitivity the more top end sizzle and compression the amp seems to have, but with it lower and the gain up, it's just big huge raw sounding.
The journey continues...
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Post by adam on Feb 25, 2021 5:58:59 GMT -7
The most interesting thing I learned about the Recto, was to turn the treble all the way off. Sounds absurd I know, but it brings the amp to life. Then you can use the mids and presence to get enough clarity. But it sounded way less compressed and punchy with the treble turned off. I wouldn't have believed it if I had never tried it.
I also am starting to think I like the sensitivity lower and the gain higher for higher gain sounds. To me the higher I set the sensitivity the more top end sizzle and compression the amp seems to have, but with it lower and the gain up, it's just big huge raw sounding. Treble off on the recto - I've become a real fan of stuff like this, like just blindly put controls wherever and just see what it sounds like rather than using the eyes or "common" sense. Sizzle on the sensitivity - yes, and it can add some "spit" to the attack too. All 3 of those gain controls have a completely different tonal character and (I think), is part of what makes the amp really unique.
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Post by nicholas on Feb 25, 2021 10:07:07 GMT -7
Congrats. Definitely looking forward to your thoughts on it. Most of the guys here with one aren't really into the high gain stuff. So I'm curious on someone's take that's familiar with recto's , stiletto's and the like. Enjoy it! Keep us posted and clips please! Well it was delivered earlier. I work two jobs and it was delivered at my day job around 5pm. I got off at 6, but have to be at my first job at 4am. So not much free time, but I was able to get in a quick jam session. No where near enough to really comprehend all it can do. But wow. I was using a HSH kit guitar I built with thornbuckers in it. I did swap the bridge magnet for an alnico 2. Anyway I was mostly using the bridge pickup. And yeah it just slays. In a way it actually does remind me of the Stiletto quite a bit. Both are very tight and articulate. But so much more control with the CAZ. That agression knob is something else. I can’t wait to try it in a band setting (which unfortunately could be a while). But it’s almost like a “push the sound out front” knob. So cool. And while the eq is very responsive, there doesn’t seem to be a “bad” setting. At least that I could find. I’m pretty sure I could easily dial in a very similar sound to either one of the Mesa’s. But just better and clearer. And as advertised it cleans up amazing well. And it’s super quiet. Even with the sensitivity and gain fairly high. Now if you get them both up past 3 it definitely gets some hiss, but you’re way past the amount of gain anyone would reasonably need. At least IMO. And I was using the soldano 412 w/v30’s. I’ll probably try the Marshall 212 with g12h30s tomorrow. And probably my McCarty soapbar. I have a feeling that guitar will sing through this amp. Also I never had it really cranked either. I had the level around 9 o’clock most of the time. I could crank it, but just didn’t feel the need. At least right now. I’ll definitely do that later. I’m sure it will just roar as it gets louder. But yeah it sound really good at reasonable volume too. Anyway as I play it more I’ll keep this updated. I may even record some stuff. Not sure about videos though. I’ve just never really got into that. And there’s already some really solid demos out there. But who knows. I’m definitely willing. Especially if there’s some kind of request for something specific. Thanks for the info Matte! Keep us posted on your experiences! I sent ya a PM
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Feb 25, 2021 16:34:38 GMT -7
The most interesting thing I learned about the Recto, was to turn the treble all the way off. Sounds absurd I know, but it brings the amp to life. Then you can use the mids and presence to get enough clarity. But it sounded way less compressed and punchy with the treble turned off. I wouldn't have believed it if I had never tried it.
I also am starting to think I like the sensitivity lower and the gain higher for higher gain sounds. To me the higher I set the sensitivity the more top end sizzle and compression the amp seems to have, but with it lower and the gain up, it's just big huge raw sounding. Treble off on the recto - I've become a real fan of stuff like this, like just blindly put controls wherever and just see what it sounds like rather than using the eyes or "common" sense. Sizzle on the sensitivity - yes, and it can add some "spit" to the attack too. All 3 of those gain controls have a completely different tonal character and (I think), is part of what makes the amp really unique. Yeah I don't even remember where I saw the "no treble" trick. But if I remember in the manual it explains that the treble is very powerful and determines how much signal is going through the preamp. So you'd think it wouldn't work, but whatever happens really makes the amp less compressed and warmer. And with the mids and presence can get very usable, but not recto, tones out of it. But I also sold that amp probably 10 years ago. So my memory is a bit fuzzy with how it truly sounded. But I definitely remember it being less compressed and punchier.
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Post by adam on Feb 25, 2021 17:57:53 GMT -7
So you'd think it wouldn't work, but whatever happens really makes the amp less compressed and warmer.
I don't know how any of this stuff works. I have some stuff where the eq completely effects the distortion character and gain and some stuff that feels post gain. The post gain stuff, is like "I'm flubby, turn down the bass", but then it's still flubby, but now thin. That drives me crackers with the synergy modules. But I could be 100% wrong on what the real issue is. What the simpleton in me HAS figured out is that Z figured this stuff out and it just works and I can be happy. They are just amazing amps.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Feb 26, 2021 8:13:15 GMT -7
So you'd think it wouldn't work, but whatever happens really makes the amp less compressed and warmer.
I don't know how any of this stuff works. I have some stuff where the eq completely effects the distortion character and gain and some stuff that feels post gain. The post gain stuff, is like "I'm flubby, turn down the bass", but then it's still flubby, but now thin. That drives me crackers with the synergy modules. But I could be 100% wrong on what the real issue is. What the simpleton in me HAS figured out is that Z figured this stuff out and it just works and I can be happy. They are just amazing amps. It's because if you eq before gain, you can shape the frequencies that the amp is going to break up in. Post gain eq isn't as effective as pre gain because any flubby stuff is already intensified and you can't get it out. It is always easier to add something to a signal (or pre-shape it if you will) than it is to remove it...kind of like trying to unscramble an egg.
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Mar 26, 2021 15:54:38 GMT -7
So it's been a bit since I posted. Haven't gotten to play it too much. I did however add a cab to my collection. A "Brown"open back 212 with Tone Tubby Alnico Reds. And the first (and so far only) amp that I plugged into it was the CAZ-45. I recently put a TT Chicago Blue into a litter Egnater 15w 112 combo and liked it. So I found this for a deal and couldn't pass it up.
First response was that I was a bit surprised. Admittedly this is my first open back cab. Well except the Egnater, but it's new to me too. But the first thing I noticed was the bottom end. It's not necessarily lacking, but it's not even as thick as my Marshall 2061 cab with G12H30 Annie's. And after about 3 (9 o'clock or so) the bass doesn't seemingly increase.
Then there's the top end. And this actually lead to a bit of discover about the CAZ-45. Anyway the top end is clear and present and not harsh. But the Treble and Presence control didn't "seem" to affect the tone. Like I could turn them to zero and nothing changed. But then I turned them the other way. And the presence control is still very subtle. But once you get the highs around 7-8 (3 o'clock) the top end really opens up. In a nice way. So I had to plug it into the Soldano 412 w/V30's. And while you can hear the treble as you turn it up. It does the same thing and gets really clear when it's cranked. Still not harsh either.
Then obviously the mids. No doubt probably the most important knob for the guitar. With these speakers it's almost like it does a lot of what the aggression control does. It makes the guitar start to jump out of the speakers. Use the two together and it gets quite interesting. It's not exactly what I would probably normally go for. At least with Humbuckers. But sc's could be really cool.
This also lead me to trying to get as clean a tone as I could. And the guitar I had with me has a Humbuckers that can be split. So not ideal single coil sounds. But I got a decently spanky clean with the neck split. I could actually run the gain and sensitivity upwards of 5 (12 o'clock) and it was still clean. I had to keep the mids really low or it got honky
So long story longer, I'm still learning both pieces. But the cab is definitely different than I'm used to. I'm thinking it and single coils might be good friends. Especially for mid gain tones. So that will be my next on my agenda. Trying a strat with it. Heck, now that I think about it, haven't even tried single coils through the amp at all. I am behind haha.
I may also try putting the speakers in my marshall 212 and see what that does for the tone. It's also less "3D" and "immersive" than I expected from an open back cab. In fact it's still quite directional. Just not beamy or harsh on the top end. Which is cool.
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Post by adam on Mar 26, 2021 17:49:37 GMT -7
Matte - not really sure I can add anything to this, but I'll try.
It sounds like maybe you don't dig the speakers or the cab with that amp, but sometimes with that stuff the thing you thought sounded awful sounds great in combination with something else. Sometimes it's just the day and what you feel like, or sometimes it sounds terrible by itself, but perfect with a band. I really trust what the Z team does in that regard, like when they decide to pair a cab/speakers with an amp, I guarantee you they don't do that in a haphazard manner as an afterthought. Like I don't know know what the Z-best with those speakers sounds like with the CAZ and in horizontal config, but I bet it sounds great, and probably a lot different from my experience with the amp.
Open back cabs - I have only ever owned 1 (a music man 1x12), besides some combos I have, anyway, I thought I always hated those, but my 1x12 MAZ open back combo sounds fantastic. I run that through various 4x12's and 2x12's and it's all good, but not as good as in that combo even when I'm using the same speakers in other cabs. So there's kind of my revelation that it's not just the speakers, it's what they do with the cabinet that has a huge contribution to the sound. I'm sure if the Z guys read this, they would just think I'm an idiot, but they have designed and tried and played about everything under the sun, and my experience is really quite limited in comparison. I really wish I had their open back 1x12 cab, even the open back 2x12 and 4x10, because I know they would sound fantastic based on my experience with the MAZ cabinet.
So maybe what I can add is that in my old age wisdom, trust what the Z guys say some of the long time users in this forum. You'll get to a good result quicker than trying to figure it out from random info on the internet. DRZ in particular is such a wealth of knowledge, I feel like I should be paying him $500/hr whenever I talk to him. "Use your 4x12 greenback Marshall for that, it doesn't really get any better than that for that amp", or "you have no idea how many Fender Super's I worked on, 1 in 10 were really good, the rest, 'eh'". Or Don, the main repair guy, "hey Adam, I fixed your amp and I don't think it's where it needs to be. Give me a few days and I'm going to try a few other things". When I got that back and played it, my jaw was on the ground, like I had no idea an amp like that could ever sound that good. Just trust these guys and listen closely to what they have to say. We are really blessed to have this company around in their current state.
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matte
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Post by matte on Mar 30, 2021 13:54:23 GMT -7
Matte - not really sure I can add anything to this, but I'll try. It sounds like maybe you don't dig the speakers or the cab with that amp, but sometimes with that stuff the thing you thought sounded awful sounds great in combination with something else. Sometimes it's just the day and what you feel like, or sometimes it sounds terrible by itself, but perfect with a band. I really trust what the Z team does in that regard, like when they decide to pair a cab/speakers with an amp, I guarantee you they don't do that in a haphazard manner as an afterthought. Like I don't know know what the Z-best with those speakers sounds like with the CAZ and in horizontal config, but I bet it sounds great, and probably a lot different from my experience with the amp. Open back cabs - I have only ever owned 1 (a music man 1x12), besides some combos I have, anyway, I thought I always hated those, but my 1x12 MAZ open back combo sounds fantastic. I run that through various 4x12's and 2x12's and it's all good, but not as good as in that combo even when I'm using the same speakers in other cabs. So there's kind of my revelation that it's not just the speakers, it's what they do with the cabinet that has a huge contribution to the sound. I'm sure if the Z guys read this, they would just think I'm an idiot, but they have designed and tried and played about everything under the sun, and my experience is really quite limited in comparison. I really wish I had their open back 1x12 cab, even the open back 2x12 and 4x10, because I know they would sound fantastic based on my experience with the MAZ cabinet. So maybe what I can add is that in my old age wisdom, trust what the Z guys say some of the long time users in this forum. You'll get to a good result quicker than trying to figure it out from random info on the internet. DRZ in particular is such a wealth of knowledge, I feel like I should be paying him $500/hr whenever I talk to him. "Use your 4x12 greenback Marshall for that, it doesn't really get any better than that for that amp", or "you have no idea how many Fender Super's I worked on, 1 in 10 were really good, the rest, 'eh'". Or Don, the main repair guy, "hey Adam, I fixed your amp and I don't think it's where it needs to be. Give me a few days and I'm going to try a few other things". When I got that back and played it, my jaw was on the ground, like I had no idea an amp like that could ever sound that good. Just trust these guys and listen closely to what they have to say. We are really blessed to have this company around in their current state. Oh I hope my post didn’t imply the CAZ-45 was the issue. It’s true I’m not in love with the cab, but it’s def no fault of the amp. I’m just at a point where I’m trying to collect amps and cabs for a variety of sounds. I’ve actually tried quite a few cabs over the years. And always appreciated the difference they make. IMO they’re often overlooked in how important they can be. I also have no doubt all of Dr Z’s offerings are superb. I def wouldn’t hesitate to grab one of the right deal comes along. And don’t get me wrong, the TT cab sounds good. Just not exactly what I expected. At least with my limited time with it. I’m sure with some more time I’ll get it better figured out. I’ve just seen a few posts on here asking about tone tubbies, and I found my experience surprising. Especially as they’re the alnico reds. The original ones that put TT on the map. So thought I’d share. But make no mistake as my collection grows I’m sure some pieces will come and go. However the Soldano 412 and CAZ-45 aren’t going anywhere. They’re both too good to let go.
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Post by nicholas on Mar 30, 2021 16:26:19 GMT -7
Those Soldano cabs are great. They don't get talked about much. They have front loaded speakers and the grill is attached to a wooden frame that just pulls off. Held on with velcro. They are smaller sized for a 412 and really punchy. Bet that sounds excellent with the Caz45.
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matte
New Member
Posts: 45
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Post by matte on Mar 30, 2021 17:44:45 GMT -7
Those Soldano cabs are great. They don't get talked about much. They have front loaded speakers and the grill is attached to a wooden frame that just pulls off. Held on with velcro. They are smaller sized for a 412 and really punchy. Bet that sounds excellent with the Caz45. Yes they are fantastic. I actually bought it years ago when eBay was just becoming a thing. A Guitar Center salesman had told me he could give me $300 trade in on any 412 with Celestions. So I saw the cab and bid $300. Maybe even $250+$50 shipping or something. I mean even if I didn’t like it I could break even. The auction still had 5-6 days to go. This was well before “buy it now”. So I bid and had pretty much forgotten about it. Until I check my email and had a “congratulations you’ve won this auction” email. So then I had to come up with the money haha. Anyway once it arrived I plugged in the Dual Recto I had at the time and knew it was a keeper. It was the best that amp ever sounded. And I had another 412 w/v30’s and even bought a Mesa vert 212 w/v30’s. But this 412 just sang. Told myself then and there to only sell it in an emergency.
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Post by notscottagain on Mar 30, 2021 17:52:27 GMT -7
I love my CAZ. I love my open-back cabs. I love AlNiCos. I love them all together. But I have no love for Tone Tubbies. They just sound too muddy and unresponsive to my ears.
Personal preferences aside, if you are a high-gain player and want that big but tight bottom, you really need a sealed cab. I have a 1960TV loaded with G12Cs and a 1960B repro loaded with Eminence Red Fangs. The CAZ loves them both.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Mar 31, 2021 6:43:29 GMT -7
I took my CAZ-45 over to the local Guitar Center yesterday to show it to the crew and we plugged it into an Orange 2x12 loaded with V-30 speakers. It really sounded great, way different than my open back 2x12 cabs here at home. It had a shimmering rich harmonic tone that rang out on open G chords like crazy. So when I got home I put the rear panel back on my Z 1x12 cab that I have recently converted to a 1x15, loaded with an Altec Lansing 418b speaker. It sounds incredible. Punchy, shimmery, fat and sweet but nasty. Man, I dig this amp. I'm a huge fan of open back cabs but no doubt the CAZ really benefits from a good closed back speaker cab.
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Post by doctorice on Mar 31, 2021 8:54:16 GMT -7
Running my CAZ into a 12" Creamback M65 in a closed-back cab. Sounds great and probably will be fantastic with an additional cab.
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Post by frankie on Apr 2, 2021 13:07:05 GMT -7
Running my CAZ into a 12" Creamback M65 in a closed-back cab. Sounds great and probably will be fantastic with an additional cab. I find this is the best choice in speaker for the CAZ if you go the route of a 1x12 mini stack. The head will fit no problem. It lets you get the Level control up cooking without being overbearingly loud, and lets the speaker and amp really open up.
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