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The 101R may be a bit brighter than you like. If so, the tube front end of the Raw Dawg should do it. I’ve had a Raw Dawg 250 with the same preamp in it for about 3 years, and the tone is beautiful - warm, rich, and clear and it lets effects sound like they’re supposed to sound. My Smokin’ Amp Company zen clone really sings through it, and it makes the Toob Metro BG+ come alive.
Originally Posted by Cunamara
I’m pretty sure I recorded an audio track of my 250 through the Metro and posted it maybe 2 years ago. I’ll look for it when we finish breakfast - I’m about to make my second cappuccino
FWIW, the 250 has serious power compared to the 60. It makes music with the same effortless quality that makes a Twin sound like a Twin at any volume. They’re often on sale at MF et al, and I think it’s one of the great bargains in the tier above the 50 & 60 Watt heads. It sounds even better than my BAM200 does, and I think it sounds as great as the big Quilters. I use my 202 on gigs only because the Quilter is much more versatile and (in the Block Dock) a one piece carry.
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05-29-2025 09:49 AM
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Strong indications suggest that the DV Mark line is on its way to the sunset. There's never been much service to speak of - or need for it - so better act fast. Trump's tariffs roller coaster - TACO or not - may have induced some stockpiling by the US importer - or then again the opposite. The EG 250 is too heavy and bulky to dock comfortably on a Metro, but it would have been considered featherweight only a few years ago. Quilter and TC Electronic, please arrange a shotgun wedding of the SuperBlock US and BAM200 asap!
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I had a 101R for a short time, and hated it. I bought a Superblock US and love it. Very different sounds to my ears. I don't need hundreds of watts of power for playing at home, so the SBUS is more than loud enough for me. I also use the DI feature for running to a PA outside, and that also provides plenty of power to the PA.
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I respectfully disagree, my friend. I’ve used it on one several times - it’s fine if kept out of traffic. It even makes a great Twin clone. Just don’t bump into it Originally Posted by Gitterbug
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Sneezing prohibited!
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I found those clips. Here's what the Raw Dawg amps sound like pushing a classic CES tone through a Metro BG+. Mine is an EG250, but I'm pretty sure the preamps are the same in the 60W and 250w versions. This was played on my Ibanez AF207, a thick laminated box slathered in poly, with a set Benedetto B7 pickup and TI strings (JS113s at the time, IIRC - I've since switched to GB114s for even better tone). Originally Posted by Cunamara
If you want this kind of classic tone, I don't think you'll get it from a 101R. The EG heads are very versatile and also make a woodier acoustic sound from my 17" carved box with a floater. The Metro BG+ is a perfect match for the EG heads and will put out everything from this to a creamy fusiony Robben Ford tone. Here's my Tele 7 with Lace Alumitones through the same amp and speaker with a Zensation pedal -
The head on which I have my eye to replace the EG250 is the new Fuchs ODH Hybrid. I like being able to go to a gig with just an amp and a guitar - the less I have to carry, the happier I am these days. The Fuchs is like the Quilter OD202 in that I wouldn't have to carry my Zensation pedal and a power supply. Like the EG250, it'll fit in the bags in which I carry my Toobs and my RevSound RS8. I know it does a great ODS. But it would have to sound as sweet as the EG250 for jazz, and I haven't heard a demo of it yet that comes close. I have to find a dealer and go try one.
To date, the DV Mark Raw Dawg heads sound the best to me for jazz of any of the small heads I've tried (including the SBUS, BAM200, Elf, Gnome, and Vox MV-50). I far prefer either one to a 101R
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The Quilter 101 Mini Reverb arrived today, just in time for me to throw it in a bag and take it to rehearsal. I plugged it into my Toob Metro BG+. A little bright, as others have noticed, but plugging a cable jack wired with an .047 cap into the send output tamed it and rounded off the top end nicely. The tone was plenty warm with my ES-175. I didn't want to spend a lot of time tweaking the amp during rehearsal, but I'm looking forward to that.
I was impressed with the "feel" of the amp- much more like a tube amp compared to my AI Clarus 2R. It may be underpowered for playing in a combo, however, through that speaker. More experimentation will be necessary.
I should also note that I used the included legs to stand the Toob upright and really enjoyed that. The tube appears to act as a passive radiator in addition to the speaker, so coverage of the space was pretty good. I presume the port on the back of the speaker also provides some coupling to the floor. There was only one other musician this time, a violinist since the bassist was out of town and the saxophonist is recovering from health problems, so I didn't push the volume much. Even still I had to almost dime the master volume (marked as 50W according to the manual) and play with the gain to get loud enough, but that introduced some distortion on the bass notes. I should be used to that, using a tweed Deluxe most of the time!
Overall, it was a very promising first experience and I look forward to experimenting with it and tweaking things a little more. We'll see over the next few days if it is a keeper. The first flush of excitement with a new purchase often wears off, after all.
To speak about the Toob BG+, I've use that with the AI head and plugged it into the Deluxe until the Quilter arrived. It's a very good speaker with even tonal response, not quite FRFR but it does not overly accentuate any particular range of notes. I really like standing it vertically in the "fountain of sound" position, at least in small rooms. I bought it with a little bit of trepidation about speaker size; I have not liked 8" guitar speakers very much and prefer 12" to those. I've never tried 10". I was a little skeptical about a 6.5" speaker, but Markku assured me it would be fine and indeed it is. It sounds very good to my ears. The Toob is an outstanding product, as many before may have noted.
The AI head, the Toob and my nylon string guitar were outstanding together, the best sound I have ever gotten amplifying that instrument; it was natural and faithful to the instrument, unlike any other speaker I have played that guitar through. The high-end "clank" that is often present on amplified nylon string guitars was not there. I have not tried it with the Quilter yet.
I'm looking forward to a morning of enjoyable experimentation with different guitars, app settings, etc., tomorrow.
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Well, I don't think the 101R is a keeper simply because it won't get loud enough clean enough. I have to dime the master volume (marked 50W on the face panel) and then bring the gain up to get louder, but then it begins to add overdrive. The clean tone is just fine, my experience seeming contrary to that of many other posters here- with the capacitor trick, the nasal high end is tamed and it sounds like a nice warm tube-y amp. I also wonder if the speaker rounds off some of the objectionable high end as the listed upper frequency range is 4 kHz. Without using the capacitor trick, I probably wouldn't particularly care for it. Were it purely a matter of tone, I'd keep it; but it has to be loud enough while clean to keep up with a band and it isn't.
So- Quilter Tone Block 202, Tone Block 202 OD (which is cheaper despite 2 channels), or DV Mark Raw Dawg (few dollars cheaper than the Quilters)? I have concerns that the DV Mark RD 60W also would not be loud enough versus the 250W version, but by reputation would go all the way up to full volume with a clean sound.Last edited by Cunamara; 05-30-2025 at 07:07 PM.
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An under appreciated voice of the TB202 is FRFR. It still works like a guitar amp. Our old friend JazzKritter turned me onto that. He talked to Pat directly and asked which of his amps would be the best replacement for his ancient Walter Woods. That was Pat's suggestion, which the Kritter liked very much. Me as well. Especially for archtop.
It's a much flatter thing. I guess maybe more like Henriksons, but I wouldn't know since I've never played one of those.
That said, lately I've been enjoying Vintage (scoopy fender sound). I've been loving the 202 for some years now. It's worth the extra bucks if you ask me.
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You’re on the same track I took. The EG250 is a little Twin. It puts out a big, sweet, rich tone and is seriously loud if you need it to be - it really is a 250 Watt amp through a pair of 8 Ohm speakers in parallel. The EQ is very useful, and the reverb is fine. I bought it during Covid when the SBUS I’d ordered in July was still backordered in December and sitting on a boat off San Diego with no delivery time in sight. MF had them on sale and I needed a small head - so I changed my order and got it. It’s a wonderful jazz amp through MetroBG+, RevSound RS8, and 10” RE cab (my small, medium, and large gigging cabs). Originally Posted by Cunamara
I bought my Tone Block about a year ago when I needed a more versatile amp to replace the 65 pound Boogie I sold a few years before. The TB202 and OD202 are both as powerful as the EG250, and their clean tones are very close to the big Dawg’s. I think I can dial in a slightly fatter tone on the Dawg, but the difference is very very small. I bought the OD202 because of its versatility. There are 3 voices for each channel, and they’re all usable. I have 2 Docks (10” & 12”), so I can use it on almost any gig that calls for a one box amp with high power. The clean jazz tone is the same as the Tone Block 202’s, and the OD channel adds a variety of overdriven tones from smooth and chimey to crunchy. The limiter adds control over sustain, and it’s very effective. In the 12” Dock, the OD202 is a Boogie Mk II clone.
If you don’t need the O/D and the multiple voices in the OD202, the big Raw Dawg is perfect for jazz. If you need what the Quilter adds, get it. I think the TB202 is a great amp and a toss up against the EG250. The TB has more voices, and the tube preamp in the EG250 is maybe a tiny bit fatter for jazz. But the choice between them is based as much on esthetics and little things like the knobs and switches as it is on tone.
If I’d gotten the Quilter first, I would not have bought the DVM. Truth be told, I don’t need them both. I have to say that I was shocked to see the current price on the Dawg yesterday when I checked it. But it’s still less than the Quilters, which would tilt me to it if I didn’t need the O/D.
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A great choice for a bit more money (made by a well regarded Boutique amp builder here in San Francisco) is the Milkman the Amp 100.
You get fantastic hybrid tube tone, light weight and top notch reverb.
The Amp 100: 100W Guitar Amplifier pedal by Milkman Sound
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This morning I placed an order for the DVM Raw Dawg 250. With the 20% discount Musician's Friend was offering on it, it was almost $250 cheaper than the Quilter 202. But it was a difficult choice, because I liked the sound and feel of the Quilter 101 except that it won't get cleanly loud enough through the Toob for gigging. I got the Quilter through Guitar Center, so it'll be easy to return. From never's input, tone-wise it's kind of a tossup between the two for jazz, so price won out. Part of my dithering was the relative size of the amps compared to the size of the speaker cabinet; the DVM is a little bigger than the cab. I don't play rock or normal blues gigs, so I don't need to get that overdrive. And if I don't like the DVM, it might go back and I might try the Quilter TB202. I hate doing that, but that's life in the 21st-century with musical gear, isn't it? You can't just go to the store and try all these things out because nobody ever has them all in stock.
This was my first experience playing through a Quilter* and I have to say I was impressed at the tube-y-ess of it. More so than any other solid state amp I've ever tried. It sounded like they succeeded in compensating quite well for the even versus odd order harmonics issue in harmonic distortion. The feel of the amp was remarkably like a tube amp. The capacitor trick was very effective in removing the high frequency bite that many of us have complained about.
* I have played using a QSC powered speaker and a SansAmp Para Driver DI with a remarkably good sound coming out of that. It was surprisingly guitar amp-like. So I suppose technically I have played through a Pat Quilter product before.
I did not go with the Milkman amp but they've certainly had very, very positive reviews from folks here on the forum that have used them. I watched a few videos and they do sound excellent in those (to the extent that you can tell on eBay with all the audio compression).
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+1 Superblock US
Originally Posted by sgosnell
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I agree that Quilter has done the tube amp sound without going digital better than anyone else. I still think a real tube amp delivers something extra, but I doubt anyone could hear that at a gig. Originally Posted by Cunamara
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Yeah, that is a thing. In the living room or on the bandstand are such different contexts, and what might be obvious at home is completely overshadowed once there are drums, horns, a bassist, pianist, etc. Nuance of tone is right out the window. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
Maybe hot glass tubes result in just a slightly smoother sound or something. Maybe a little more 3D. So hard to quantify, but we all know what it is.
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