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Whats your opinion about theese too jazz combo? any thoghts?
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01-15-2010 10:13 AM
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i've only played the tomcat model, and i liked it a whole lot. for my purposes, i didn't like it enough to replace my polytone, which has a little more low end thump for solo gigs because of the 15" speaker.
the jazzkat was even more portable--really small and light. i've never heard anything bad about jazzkat--whereas polytones seem to fall into two categories: ones like mine that are a good 15 years old and still work like day 1, and ones that suffer from every electrical glitch under the sun.
one thing to consider about polytone is that they regularly go for peanuts used. you can have a professional quality amp for around 300 bucks much of the time.
as an aside, don't forget to check out henriksen. i have a henriksen head/redstone audio cab rig that's my go to for pretty much any playing situation other than solo, and i love it's sound and portability. both pieces, lightly used, cost me about $700 total.Last edited by mr. beaumont; 01-15-2010 at 10:23 AM.
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Thank you MR. Beaumont and maybe you can tell your opinion - which Plytone model will be the best for semi-hollow (by sadowsky) - i just live in Latvia and there is no possibilities to check any combos like polytone, henriksen or jazzkat. Thank you in advance for answer
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sadowsky? sweet guitars.
what's your playing situation? large group? solo? student who needs something ultra portable?
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jazz - fusion quintet, trio gigs
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yes sadowsky - semi-hollow
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hmmm...when you say fusion, are you playing with a distorted tone? polytones and henriksen's don't really take well to that...
there is a model (check their website) of jazzkat that now has a tube preamp--maybe that's more up your alley...
and oh, by the way, what are you using now?
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Roland Cube 60 - but this combo sounds like "plastic" , it doesnt "breathe"
- did you mean AKustiKat fram JazzKAT?
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I have had a JazzKat, which I bought when they first came out 4-5 years ago. I really like the portability, dependability, and the tone mostly. However, it sounds too boxy to me now. I would buy either a RE/AI combo, or a Henricksen at this point.
I know Sheryl Bailey really likes the TomKat, and it has a fuller sound than mine. There are a couple of things that JazzKat amps has going for it over Polytone. First is the extra channel with XLR/1/4" input for vocals if you wish. The other thing is the customer service/dependability issue.
The JazzKat guys are very responsive to any issues, and have built a very reliable amp. Polytone is notorious for little or no customer service, and while some amps have lasted forever, the guy I studied with here locally was always having trouble with his two.
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I think the original JazzKat just had a 8" speaker which may have lead to these comments about its boxy sound. They don't sell it anymore. Now they have a model with a 12" (PhatKat) and a 2x10" (TwinKat) that has the 12AX7.
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I may be wrong, but I thought the tube preamp just adds some tubey "warmth" to the JazzKat models (they used to have the tube in only one or two models, now most of their line up has the 12AX7: TomKat, BassKat, BluesKat, PhatKat and TwinKat). Maybe someone with one can chip in.
Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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I was about to suggest a Roland Cube as a cheaper option. Originally Posted by Marcis
Roland Cube 60 - but this combo sounds like "plastic" , it doesnt "breathe"
- did you mean AKustiKat fram JazzKAT?
One tried and tested choice is to use a JC-120 (very different from the Cubes!) for its clean sound and use pedals for a distorted fusion sound. The JC-120's own distortion may be the worse ever!
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no, i think you're right. my speculation was that an amp with a tube preamp might take to a distortion or boost type pedal better--but that's only speculation... Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
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I compared a JazzKat PhatKat (1-12) directly to a Henriksen JazzAmp112 and bought the Henriksen. To me it had far more openess, depth, and clarity, if less versatility. The 12AX7 does make a difference though, and you can switch it in and out (it's only on channel 1). Built-in digital effects might be nice to have, too. If I had unlimited funds, I'd get the TwinKat model (2-10's), but I'd sure as H _ _ _ keep the Henriksen!
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What? The Evans dealer hasn't intervened on this thread, yet, too,, asking you to forget about the mentioned choices and instead check out the amp that is priced double what these amps usually cost?
Very strange, indeed.
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Seriously? Has someone from Evans done that before? Do you have the link?
Last edited by BigDaddyLoveHandles; 01-15-2010 at 02:39 PM.
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oh, is that what that's about?
shoot, and i even agreed with him that evans' are pretty sweet...
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
oh, is that what that's about?
shoot, and i even agreed with him that evans' are pretty sweet...
Huh. I missed that also. I have played a couple of Evans before, and thought them nice, but pricey as NSJ points out.
Yeah, I think the reason for the boxiness on the JazzKat is the small cab and 8" speaker. However, 23lb and 110 watts is pretty sweet. I never use the extra channel, but do use the reverb, just enough that you can hear it.
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The tube preamp must be working out well for them, because they have extended it to most of their amps (except the AcoustiKat, of course).
And I read somewhere that adding a tube preamp to a SS amp is an easy thing for an amp manufacturer to do: the 12AX7 tube is cheap and it's certainly easier than involving the big iron a tube power amp would need.Last edited by BigDaddyLoveHandles; 01-15-2010 at 03:28 PM.
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I believe there was a gentleman who was offering some reissue Evans amps whose posting style was maybe a little "proactive" and as I recall the posts were removed. Originally Posted by NSJ
What? The Evans dealer hasn't intervened on this thread, yet, too,, asking you to forget about the mentioned choices and instead check out the amp that is priced double what these amps usually cost?
Very strange, indeed.
I recently purchased an Evans amp direct from Evans. In my opinion they are great people to deal with and the build quality of the amp is very high. In my opinion it's fairly priced considering the quality of the product. It's without any doubt the best jazz guitar amp I've owned.Last edited by Bill C; 01-15-2010 at 03:19 PM.
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Nice! Instant warmth for any SS amp.
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This configuration is good for about 80 watts, tube preamplifier included (but no effects):
There's another one "on my drawing board" that will produce 150 watts, also with the tube preamp. I never seem to get around to actually building them, unfortunately
It's, as BDLH suggested, quite simple and quite economical to add the preamplifier to an existing solid-state amplifier or to a new design. After trying out the tube preamplifier that I built (the one shown on the thread referenced above) on several solid state amplifiers, I just didn't see enough difference to invest the time in building a full-up prototype.
That pre-amp, however, is still in use after six years or so and the owner claims that it makes a big difference to his solid-state Fender amplifier. Tastes vary ...
Additionally I believe that the addition of tube pre-amps to solid-state designs creates additional marketing hype that tends to divert attention away from whether or not there is actual improvement.
P.S. I said "see enough difference" in one of the above sentences - of course I meant "hear", LOL.Last edited by randyc; 01-15-2010 at 05:25 PM. Reason: add PS
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Hi randyc, nice to see you again.
I found your design intriguing, to say it mildly.
1) The "bias" of the output transistors (ECG80/81) is all wrong, you've set it at over 900 mV (20/1020*48V=941mV)
; a reasonable value would be that needed to draw around 30 mA or so across them, somewhere around 650mV.
Besides, since those transistors handle power and heat up a lot, bias threshold shifts a lot, and *must* track temperature.
2) Same thing applies to the drivers: ECG188/189: (47/3047*48V=740mV) , closer, but no cigar.
3) A similar approach on gain/active load stage IRF120/9120 is acceptable
because those 100r source resistors limit current to around 10mA, a sensible value.
4) Not having audio feedback (although you supply a subsonic-acting servo centering amplifier) means the gain of the output stage will be the open loop gain of the IRF stage.
Since each IRF acts as a constant current supply (infinite impedance load) for the other, the actual voltage gain is approximately the input impedance of the driver stage divided by those 100 ohms.
That input impedance is a quite undefined parameter, depending on said transistors beta, actual current across them, temperature, etc. so your power amplifier gain will vary wildly.
You should better match those transistors very well, and keep them in close thermal tracking, to make this output stage somewhat usable .......... or leave the preamp as-is and place a real power amp between the volume control and the loudspeaker.
5) I'm dying to see your 150W design.
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