The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
  1. #1

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    I recently got my hands on a Quilter 101 Reverb. I currently have it paired with a Junior Barnyard pedal and, through the headphone out, an acoustic PA. The tone is decent, but, as you might expect, it's still relatively high-fidelity even with the "fuzz" on the Jr Barnyard cranked up. In essence, I'm trying to get this setup to sound as close to an octal tube amp as I can without having to go the tubular route.

    As for my practical needs, I'm more of a hobbyist than a gigger, although I may play in loud settings at some point. I presume that a decent mic set up can take care of any lack-of-power issues in that regard.

    Suggestions? Hoping to keep the budget to $300 or less, but I'm happy to hear about wunderproducts that will tempt me to claim that the number was a typo.

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  3. #2

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    Bypass the Quilter's Input preamp stage: plug your Jr Banyard directly into the FX Return of the 101 Reverb. I think that allows you to use the 101 Rev strictly as a power amp. You may lose the Reverb effect.

    Your Jr Banyard becomes the preamp gain stage then. Watch the gain control knob on the Jr Banyard.

  4. #3

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    I've used the Junior Barnyard direct into a full frequency PA-type system, and it worked in my setting, but there's definitely something missing when you're not hearing the tone coming our of a guitar speaker cabinet. Part of it is the coloration provided by the speaker, and part of it is hearing the sound in the physical space.

    I'm a big fan of the Eminence 'Lil Texas Speaker, which I have in a Vintage '47 Cabinet, and I use that with a Quilter 101 (sans reverb) and the Jr Barnyard. While I would love to send as much business as possible to Vintage '47, basically you could put that speaker in any open 1x12 cab, and it's gonna do the job. Given your budget, any reputable cab will work.

  5. #4

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    The answer to that Quilter sound I came up with is the pedal preamp made by jazzmus here, you can search on his user name.
    its essentially the front end of a Polytone amp with very good control over tone, enough to mellow out the Quilter into a nice usable jazz amp. It’s just in your price range and really suggest you check it out. You can search for the thread that has info and pics.
    I experimented with the Quilter and some speakers and cabinets but even going into a Mesa Boogie Theil cabinet with an EVM 12L the quilter still sounded like shredding glass. If that speaker and cab can’t mellow it none other will)))
    you can email Ras at brohammerrasmus@gmail.com he’s a good guy, builds a great product that really gives you a good jazz sound.
    good luck,
    dave

  6. #5

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    If you want an ultra-light, utterly portable solution, my clients have been happy with the Quilter 101R - TOOB 12J combination.

  7. #6

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    A lot of the vintage Gibson amp sound comes from the speaker. Those original speakers did a lot to shape the EQ and respond to input gain in a unique way. You are right to be searching because a PA will not do the barnyard pedal justice. The exact cabinet you use is less important important than the speaker. As to the speaker, I trust campusfive's research into this more than just about anyones when he says the lil texas is the closest to approximate it.

    I dug my setup of barnyard > 101 > cannabis rex but now that rex is in a '48 GA 25. I'm also into the 1258 from eminence. I've never tried the lil texas, but I trust campusfive.

    As for cabinets, mojotone make some good ones. Some of their cheaper ones are birch ply and sound decent. Their solid pine cabinets sound amazing. You might be able to snag one cheap used somehwere on the internet.

  8. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by campusfive
    I'm a big fan of the Eminence 'Lil Texas Speaker, which I have in a Vintage '47 Cabinet, and I use that with a Quilter 101 (sans reverb) and the Jr Barnyard. While I would love to send as much business as possible to Vintage '47, basically you could put that speaker in any open 1x12 cab, and it's gonna do the job. Given your budget, any reputable cab will work.
    Jonathan, I figured you might comment on this thread! I tossed around the idea of just going for the VA-185G. ($1.1k shipped isn't that far off of where I'll be if I drop the cash on a speaker/cab.) But I ended up deciding that I didn't want to deal with tubes. Plus, I already have everything but the speaker/cab right now.

    I know you recommended the Lil' Texas on your blog. I couldn't really find prefilled cabs with that speaker, so I was looking at cabs with neodymium speakers. Nearly pulled the trigger on a DV Mark Neoclassic but decided I could be a little more deliberate with the search. Might just go with your advice and see about finding a cabinet to stuff the Lil Texas into.

    Quote Originally Posted by Gitterbug
    If you want an ultra-light, utterly portable solution, my clients have been happy with the Quilter 101R - TOOB 12J combination.
    Those are fascinatingly unique cabinets! Looks like they don't have dealers in the US, though.

    Quote Originally Posted by omphalopsychos
    As for cabinets, mojotone make some good ones. Some of their cheaper ones are birch ply and sound decent. Their solid pine cabinets sound amazing. You might be able to snag one cheap used somehwere on the internet.
    I'll take a look. Thanks for the suggestion!

  9. #8

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    [Those are fascinatingly unique cabinets! Looks like they don't have dealers in the US, though.]

    True, no US dealers for TOOB, but some 30 units sold direct so far. Shipping is challenging right now due to the Covid; UPS is OK for the East Coast but charges excessively for the West. Finnish Post is a lot cheaper but experiences long delays because there are so few outbound flights.

    Our standard 12" speaker is the Jensen Tornado. Lil Texas was a strong contender, and we like it very much. Shipping them to Europe and back makes little sense, financially and otherwise. One way to go about this is to get an unloaded cab from us. Installing the Lil Texas takes about five minutes - just two bolts. Send me a PM if interested.

  10. #9

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    Here's another thought: Jr Barnyard into DV Mark Little Jazz for that octal tube tone under $300. Musician's Friend have it on sale for $299 at the moment. Photos show the older model with the noisy fan so call to find out if MF are shipping the most current model.

    The DV Mark LJ has that rather dark octal tube sound already with the treble turned down. Plug the Jr Barnyard into it. If it doesn't work, well, send it back. You may still find out that you like it enough to keep it as it is.