Dr Z Maz 18 (NR) Guitar Amplifier.

Description

UK (Scotland) Based.

REPOSTED DUE TO TIMEWASTER

Dr Z Maz 18 NR. Some proclaim is the flagship of the Dr Z range. That claim is justified due to its versatility and reliability. An amazing amp that straight off the bat has pure amazing clean tones that can be teased and encouraged to offer natural crunch. If you aren’t familiar, NR means Non Reverb so this amp doesn’t come with an onboard reverb. Depending what you are looking for, while it doesn’t have an onboard reverb (no shit Sherlock), the upside is that the valve circuitry is not impacted by a drop in power caused by a reverb unit and therefore gives a little more when you might need that grit and breakup. The amp takes pedals very well so add a good reverb to your board and you have the best of both.

My amp is in perfect condition, unmarked and looks like new. Comes with the EQ bypass footswitch that adds an extra level of brilliance to this masterpiece.

Below is a copy/paste of an online review.

Dr. Z Maz 18 Jr NR Review

The Maz 18 Jr NR received the Guitar Player Editor’s Pick Award when it was first released and won the Reader's Choice Award for Combo Amp of the Year. The first time you plug into one, it is hard to stop. Each note is rich and full, and the tones are very smooth.

The setup of the amp is appreciatively simple. It has Master, Bass, Middle, Treble, Volume, and “Cut”. The Maz 18 also features hi and lo inputs.

Starting with the EQ. The controls are very linear which makes them intuitive and easy to operate. They are very musical and never overpowering. It seems easier on this amp than others to get a great EQ setting right after plugging in. With many amps, particularly in this wattage range, the low end seems to get muddy and lack proper response. Not so with the Maz. The amp has a tight low end that retains its punch throughout the range of the “Bass” EQ control. As well, the “Treble” control never gets too harsh.

As for volume controls, turning up the Master increases the volume. Turning up the volume pushes the preamp section into overdrive, making it more of a gain control.

The “Cut” knob of the amp is a rather unique feature among amps. It’s not exactly a presence control. It more serves as a kind of overall EQ after setting the standard bass, mid, and treble knobs. I’ve found it best to get the setting that I like with those three knobs, and then dial in the “cut” knob accordingly. Turning it clockwise adds some bite to the amp and rolling it back gives the amp more overall warmth. This knob alone can really change the amp a great deal, thus adding to the versatility.

The inputs are about as expected. Plugging into the “lo” input provides a smoother, more rounded top end and plugging into the “hi” input gives a crisper, more driven and grittier sound when playing.

One of the qualities about this amp is its ability to accommodate a wide variety of guitars, and to do it well. Guitars through with both humbuckers and single coils all sound great without losing their character. A Strat still sounds like a Strat. A Tele sounds like a Tele, and a Les Paul still sounds like itself. Too many amps lose the sound of the guitar when they “do their thing”. No matter where the amp’s controls are set, any guitar sounds good when you plug it in. Then, just dial in the EQ and Cut to get the desired tone from the amp and you are ready to go. Another very important quality is how well it takes pedals. If you are a fan of guitar effects. Delays are smooth and present, reverbs ring out naturally, overdrives are tight and focused, and the amp still holds its integrity. If you run a lot of pedals, the amp never becomes “over-loaded” or choked, the quality tones are all there even after going through a long signal chain of effects.

Some people have questioned the volume capability at 18 Watts. The amp is very loud for 18 watts, but that’s the result of being a Class A, hand-wired boutique amplifier. No worries though, with a musically functioning master volume control, it’s never too loud. You can play small gigs without having to mic it and or larger venues where an SM57 on the front mic’d to the PA gives you all of the volume you could ask for.

Now to the most important aspect of the amp – its tone. In trying to describe the tone of the amp, the first word that comes mind is “pure.” It has a natural and pure tone with authority and punch, from its cleaner offerings to the breakup of the preamp stage. Someone once described it as being somewhere between a Fender and a Vox, and I think that is a great start when discussing its tone. The drive of the amp is smooth but also has a nice, bold bite. It can get chimey, and of course with its EL84’s in the power section, it does the British crunch very nicely. Plugging into the hi input only increases this quality and allows the amp to break up earlier, giving it more detailed gain. The amp has great sustain and an overall warmth that is pretty hard to compare. Again, this amp has such a natural and pure sound that descriptions will not do it justice. It really has to be heard.

Many have said this amp sounds the way a guitar amp should, and believe that those words really capture what it’s like to play it.

The amp is a pleasure, and when you plug in to play, it's hard to stop.

Posted: 31 days ago

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