racman
Ok, after looking at a Fender DRRI, Princeton, Supersonic, and more amps tahn I can remember in the last few weeks I am still hankering after a Dr.Z Carmen Ghia which I can get for the same price as a Fender DRRI.
I am about to "pull the trigger" on a DrZ Carmen Ghia with installed "Brake Lite" but only two things need deciding - Color (personal choice so I will just have to do that myself) and Speaker config.
So what are the pros and cons of 1x12 vs 1x10?
Keira-WitherKay
i'm also a dr Z fan since i am a brad paisley fan ...and of his tone.... ?
and he uses the dr Z Zwreck i think
check out the stack of DrZ's behind him on the stage........ not the fake dr z amp tv screens which is cool too..... but he has this pile just behind him ...wow what a tone...and wow they so simple volume /treble / bass and the carmen gia is even less complicated just volume and one tone knob....... mnimalist but toneful
as for your speaker question
personally i like the sound of a 10 ... like the princeton and it cuts more...... my cub was a 10 and it surpised me with how much bass it had...... for a tiny amp when played alost full ........ so don't underestimate the bass in a 10 .......and it projected a focussed sound that carried well ...... in a noisy room . but i know from using my elk 30 that the 1x12 sounds much more open but again it in it's turn lacks that focussed sound of the 10 ....and seems to disperse quicker .. ...........like the 12 gives a fatter but less punchy sound......and for a small amp punch is what you need cos you don't have that raw power to rely on ......so buy the carmen gia head and both cabs hehhehe a 10 and a 12 ?
as for colour....... hey man whatever floats your boat ..... ? cos it's that tone that is tantamount ......... actually ask for one in custom 'Fake" rattlesnake skin man that would turn heads ........ i recently at sun city saw a band in the theatre there and one dude had a fake snakeskin covered fender deluxe....man was it the coolest amp i've ever seen , and everyone who saw it commented on it muso's and non muso's .... so maybe pick something to get the audience talking
but more importantly what colour stetson are you gonna buy .............. i have a white one ? the day i bought my tele i bought a stetson ...
now a stetson..... a tele and a DrZ man thats chemistry
racman
? ? @ Keira - NO! Eish - I can't believe you bought a stetson!!!
Thx Keira - great advice and a smile as well. Actually I was thinking that for low volumes a 1x12 might be sweeter and a 1x10 might have the projection you commented on. Of course the 1x10 is cheaper but by not much. The local agents are really giving me a good deal in my opinion, if I bite .... and I ceratinly am getting tempted!!!
Reinhard
I'd say go for the 1x12. Played a Mesa with a 10" and it sounded boxy.
10"s are nice if you have more than one, like the 4x10 in a Super Reverb.
MikeM
+1 on a 112. You have far more (and more iconic) speakers to choose from.
The openness and bassiness varies more from speaker to speaker than from 10" to 12".
MIKA-the-better-one
Why not 210..... that sounds best to me..... best response for this amp I think
racman
Mmmm - I think the price is the same for the 1x12 nd the 2x10.
Any more thumbs up for the 2x10.
I should say at this point that the amp's primary purpose will be for home use if that helps.
AlanRatcliffe
1 x 12 or 2 x 10, but not a 1 x 10.
A 12 will generally be smoother (especially on the highs), the 10s will have a tighter low end and more punch and attack. Multiple speakers also give you a more 3D sound, and let you mix and match different models together, but there are far fewer speakers to choose from in 10".
It's also worth noting that Mike Zaite designed the Carmen Ghia specifically with the 12" Celestion V30 in mind and many users still think that it is the speaker best suited to the Ghia. Celestion Blues and Golds are also very popular, but most agree that it is an excellent amp for speaker swapping, because it sounds good with most speakers - just different.
bottledtone
Not really Dr Z design..... He copied a hammond AO-35 reverb amp.
Put in a tone stack though. Very different phase inverter than the standard used by others
Simply designed amps just don't get in your way, they allow you to get a good tone almost instantly ?
But sometimes I find beginners can hide behind the dynamic'ness of SS though. ?
AlanRatcliffe
Based on a Hammond (like an early Marshall is based on a Fender Bassman). The input section differs, different filter caps, different PI and the tonestack is unique (some compare the tonestack to one of the Matchless amps - but one that came out after the Ghia). It's derivative (what isn't), but well-evolved. And it still keeps the signal path simple.
bottledtone
Its exactly the hammond PI? He even built the first carmen ghia on the hammond chassis, well played with the preamp abit, but the sound it gets comes from the ouput stage. But I'm not saying that they aren't great amps. Built with quaility components and handwired.
MikeM
BT, care to link us to which hammond he copied so we can compare?
Attila
Dr.Z also uses own design transformers and Caps..... to add a bit of mistery
I have most of his schematic's if anyone's interested