New Z-28 MkII Head - Had it for a few days now. :)

[Snax Panther]

Greetings, all!

So, I've been through a lot of Z's - Jetta, Carmen Ghia, Maz, EZG-50 and others. I've gotta say, the Z-28 MkII may be my favorite to date.

THAT SAID, I was worried I didn't like it at first. I got a Dr Z 1x12 Convertible to go with it loaded with a Creamback M-65. It sounded damn good, but it wasn't blowing me away, so I took the middle panel off to open the cab up. This helped a bit, but after going back, I actually preferred it closed.

I decided to try some other cabs, so I got a hold of a Suhr Hedgehog vertical open back 2x12 loaded with G12-65's. This sounded harsh and sort of... distant? Hollow? I don't know how to describe it, but it didn't thrill me. I was getting a touched discouraged at this point.

Finally, I tried a Mather (someone put a Marshall badge on the front, which I am not thrilled with - lol) vertical 2x12 loaded with Greenbacks. This one is closed back. THIS was the ticket. The amp sounds absolutely INCREDIBLE with this cab. Every pedal sounds unreal, the natural breakup is exactly what I kept hearing about. I'm over the moon about this.

I plan on doing a wet/dry setup with my trust Katana MkII head into the Hedgehog cabinet. My ABY-Baby should be here this next week, hopefully.

Either way, I am so freaking happy with this amp now.

Once I've spent a bit more time with it and my board, I'll circle back with some clips.

Thanks, Dr. Z!

 

[jellodog]

Sweet amp!

You know what? The older I get, the more I'm convinced that "greenbacks are always the answer". I rarely bother with anything else now

How are you finding the active EQ on the amp? My understanding is that as you increase bass and treble it also increases gain in those bands?

I've been obsessed with the Blonde Bassman for a while which also used 5881s. I wonder if this amp could get into that coveted ballpark

That's a very tidy pedalboard. Nice. Was the Dude finally relegated to the B rig?

 

[Snax Panther]

Sweet amp!

You know what? The older I get, the more I'm convinced that "greenbacks are always the answer". I rarely bother with anything else now

How are you finding the active EQ on the amp? My understanding is that as you increase bass and treble it also increases gain in those bands?

I've been obsessed with the Blonde Bassman for a while which also used 5881s. I wonder if this amp could get into that coveted ballpark

That's a very tidy pedalboard. Nice. Was the Dude finally relegated to the B rig?

It's funny, I haven't had a straight GB cab in AGES. I did have the Suhr 2x12 and 4x12 that mixed GB's and V30's. I loved both of those.

The active EQ surprised me. I hadn't done too much research into the amp. I just knew it was amazing with pedals, for which I am a Wh*re.

The amp stays fairly clean with everything at noon and back. I did try the '3 3 3' method and with both treble, bass and volume at 3, it produces a good bit of grit. The best part about this amp is that you can't make it sound bad (cab choice aside - lol).

I am not sure I've played a blonde Bassman, so I can't say for sure. :)

I did a MASSIVE gear purge a bit back and The Dude went with it. Funny enough, I had one in my cart when I ordered the stuff for this board and was like, "I should mix it up. I've had The Dude like 5 times"

Annnnnd I wish I had The Dude again. I'll likely be ordering one since I have some space left.

One thing - I am shocked at how well every single thing on the board stacks. No two pedals dislike each other. It's marvelous. :)

 

[jellodog]

"I should mix it up. I've had The Dude like 5 times"

Annnnnd I wish I had The Dude again. I'll likely be ordering one since I have some space left.

 

[banned]

I always say this - it's the Greenbacks. That's what you're hearing. If you have a tone issue - try Greenbacks first. They're a very musical guitar speaker with major rock attitude. (might not work for brootalz if that's your thing)

 

[Snax Panther]

I always say this - it's the Greenbacks. That's what you're hearing. If you have a tone issue - try Greenbacks first. They're a very musical guitar speaker with major rock attitude. (might not work for brootalz if that's your thing)

Yeah, I definitely don't do brutal. I do loose and nasty heavy stuff like post rock, stoner rock, etc, but I don't need tight lows and all that jazz.

That said, I spend most of my time either clean or up to Rush levels of gain.

My favorite heavy sounds are definitely those I get from stacking my big muff with various other pedals for flavor. :)

 

[metropolis_4]

I’ve been wanting to try one of these since I first heard about them! I’m a big fan of Z’s. They’re such punchy amps