Koch Jupiter Jr

[SierraTango]

While I was pretty happy with my Quilter Cub, there was something missing. Guess I was missing the lush sound of my Evans JE200, which I still have however, it's a bit heavy. Hence the Cub purchase. I have been interested in the Koch Jupiter Jr which has two tubes. This is from their website:

"Driven by two 12AX7 tubes, split between the power amp and pre-amp sections, the Jupiter Junior is a flexible hybrid amplifier. Using Koch's ATR (Authentic Tube Response) technology, the rest of the solid-state circuit simulates the feel of a full-fledged tube amp."

They are a bit rare in the USA, however one popped up on Reverb. It arrived in immaculate condition. It does have some noticeable differences from the Cub:

10"vs 12" Speaker
Closed back vs Open back cabinet
20 W vs 50 W
Front mounted controls vs top mounted
I'm super impressed with this amp for my application. More focused low end, excellent clean tone (all I'm really interested in). All this at 26 lbs.

I know there is a on going thread on the forum Tube vs SS. Good and bad for both. I owned a Music Man RD50 with a EV speaker and gigged a lot with it. I know they were a different design, however it sure was a fine amp. Maybe there is something to be said about these "hybrid" amps.

[Stringswinger]

I have a Milkman The Amp 100 Pedal Amp/Head that uses one 12 AX7 in the pre amp and uses a Class D power supply for the power amp. Unlike my Quilter or either of my Henriksens, the Milman delivers that certain "glassy" sound that only real tubes deliver. For jazz the tube pre-amp/SS Power amp (which is the opposite of what Leo Fender did with the Musicman amps BTW), is a great compromise for getting great tone with lighter weight.

ST, use that Koch on a few gigs and let us know what you think. My experience with Quilter is that it is great on the bandstand, but in the living room, it falls a bit short replicating the performance of an amp that uses tubes.

[Woody Sound]

I had the original DV Mark Frank Gambale, which had the same lightweight tube/ss setup. I think not Class D at that time, but It sounded awesome. (And it looked d*** cool .). I had to sell it only because it was hard to get a really clean tone at the vol that I needed at that time. Probably the amp I now most wish I hadn't sold.

DV MARK Frank Gambale Combo 112 | Strumenti Musicali .net

[jads57]

So for a more rounded tone I use the following before the input of my various Quilters Aviators and 202TB

T.C. Jauernig Luury Drive set to low.
Xotic Sweet Boost
5 to 7 band EQ

Running even an extra small cab along can really open up the Aviator as well

[Hammertone]

...I have been interested in the Koch Jupiter Jr which has two tubes. This is from their website:
"Driven by two 12AX7 tubes, split between the power amp and pre-amp sections, the Jupiter Junior is a flexible hybrid amplifier. Using Koch's ATR (Authentic Tube Response) technology, the rest of the solid-state circuit simulates the feel of a full-fledged tube amp."
They are a bit rare in the USA, however one popped up on Reverb. ...
I'm super impressed with this amp for my application. More focused low end, excellent clean tone (all I'm really interested in). All this at 26 lbs. ...

Congrats! These are really versatile and lovely little amps. The Jupiter (bigger, more power, available in combo and head formats) is also a great little amp. I've played both extensively.

As far as availability, well, Edwin and his guys in Holland have their hands full just dealing with existing business in Europe, Japan and so forth. The US will come later, maybe.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

I had the original DV Mark Frank Gambale, which had the same lightweight tube/ss setup. I think not Class D at that time, but It sounded awesome. (And it looked d*** cool .). I had to sell it only because it was hard to get a really clean tone at the vol that I needed at that time. Probably the amp I now most wish I hadn't sold.

I love my DV Mark EG250 for the big, warm sound at any level. The micro tube front end could easily be a 12AX7, and the power stage is an honest 125+ Watts Cl D into 8 Ohms. It’s one killer jazz amp, and it’s the equal of a Twin through a 2x12.

[SierraTango]

I have a Milkman The Amp 100 Pedal Amp/Head that uses one 12 AX7 in the pre amp and uses a Class D power supply for the power amp. Unlike my Quilter or either of my Henriksens, the Milman delivers that certain "glassy" sound that only real tubes deliver. For jazz the tube pre-amp/SS Power amp (which is the opposite of what Leo Fender did with the Musicman amps BTW), is a great compromise for getting great tone with lighter weight.

ST, use that Koch on a few gigs and let us know what you think. My experience with Quilter is that it is great on the bandstand, but in the living room, it falls a bit short replicating the performance of an amp that uses tubes.

I've had three gigs with the Jupiter Jr. Two of them were in familiar venues we've played in many times and one was new to us.
Just a reminder my "set-up" is one patch cord between the guitar and amp-no effects other than a small dash of amp reverb. The Koch (or any amp I'm using) is lined out to FOH 90% of the time.

I've got to say this is a really wonderful amp. I did learn that the amp sounds best on the carpet and wood stage with no wedge. The new venue with a tile floor it sounded better with the wedge.

The Cub is really a great amp that sounds better at higher volumes. The Jupiter sounds better and fuller at low volumes to me. Still highly recommended. Cheers!

[AllAboutMusic]

I’ve been playing a Jupiter Junior for about 5 years now almost daily.

if you want to pimp it beyond its standard excellence I can recommend Genalex Gold Lion tubes. Opens up harmonics enormously and keeps you playing.

I recently upgraded the tubes again to Tesla NOS, which at first were disappointing, and or surprising - it revealed some of my slack technique relentlessly and tone was all over the place, too much of everything. now after about 50 hrs I have to say I love them. While I used the reverb quite a bit, I leave that out more often as the tubes keep the tone so nicely and the purity of it just shines both in comping and soloing mode. With the tone nobs you can also nicely adjust with any band instruments to overcome frequency interference.

The Jupiter is a keeper for me and has outshined most of my detours looking for even better tones. Barely found them. It just recently had to give space to a low wattage full tube amp from a German manufacturer to boost my joy for home evening plays.