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 | | | | Apr30Written by:Daniel Hines
Sunday, April 30, 2000 6:00 PM  Well, it's been a few months since I last reviewed the latest "must-have" gear for ProRec, but I think you'll find the wait was well worth it.
This month's installment features the Dr. Z Carmen Ghia 15 Watt all tube guitar amplifier. For those of you who aren't familiar with Dr. Z amplifiers, think Matchless or TopHat. True boutique amps. Hand-wired. All tube. Class A. Bulletproof. Stunning.
Meet Dr. Z
Dr. Z, known to regular people as Mike Zaite, is the creative genius who blesses us with these incredible amps. Mike has a background in production engineering and medical technology. The result? Hand-crafted amplifiers that are consistent piece to piece, and manufactured to exact specifications.
Mike's intention was to design amps that would be as highly regarded as Matchless (now defunct), but much easier to maintain. As Mike stated, "Matchless amps were great units with superb sound. But they were designed using really esoteric, high-dollar tubes and parts. Once you wore out that first batch of stock tubes it could be hard to recapture the initial magic it had right out of the box."
"I wanted to design an amp that sounded beautiful using easy to find tubes and parts. And I wanted every amp to be consistent. Heck, anyone can design the world's greatest amp in the laboratory, fine tuning every part until it sounds devastating. But, can they reproduce it day after day? That's where my background in production engineering helped." And how!!!
This amp is stunning. Featuring 12AX7 preamp tubes, EL84 power tubes and a genuine rectifier tube, this amp is built like a tank. It is actually based on a Hammond Reverb chassis and some Ghia's actually have tubes taken from Hammond reverbs (you can spot the Hammond Dr. Z amps by their green jewel light, instead of the standard red jewel). It's light, compact, and features two functions: volume and tone. It is deceptively simple. If I had any criticism it would be twofold - I'd like to see a standby switch and a bright switch. Pretty minor details, but that's why I can only rate this amp a 9.95 instead of a 10.
Volume and Tone
How does it sound? Breathtaking? Sure, if you can settle for the understatement of the century.
Volume From extreme low volume settings to maximum wattage this amp delivers full, crisp, piano like tones. The low end is amazingly tight. Even at full tilt the bass strings don't sound flabby or indistinct. The detail and warmth of this amp is fantastic. Every nuance of the guitar sneaks through (in this case we used a Heritage 335 with dual humbuckers, a Hamer Telecaster, and a Danelectro U2 with lipstick pickups). From clean jazz comps, to crunchy Stonesish chords, to full bore leads, this amp is unsurpassed for tone, warmth and clarity.
Tone Incredibly powerful. Counterclockwise adds treble, clockwise darkens the tone AND adds gain (but not too much). If you think you've encountered a powerful tone control, think again. The Carmen Ghia tone pot is so perfectly voiced ANY guitar will sound perfect at ANY setting.
VOLUME and TONE. Here's where this amp becomes a must-have for any studio or working musician. The tonal power of these two controls together means any sound, any idea, any inspiration is only a twist or a turn away. Want a Clapton "woman-tone" to inspire a guitarist? Set the volume midway, the tone on the dark side, and prepare yourself for a little Slowhand. Want Albert Collins? Back off the volume a bit and lean the tone knob to the icy side. It's all there. If you want more coloration, add some pedals in front of the amp.
VOLUME and TONE and SPEAKERS. This is where the amp really set itself apart from other high-end amps. I've never encountered an amp that responded so well with different brands of speakers and different impedances.
Test 1 Carmen Ghia plugged into a 2x12 Sovtek closed back cabinet, loaded with Eminence speakers at 16 ohms. The amp wasn't quite as loud at 16 ohms, but the clarity and detail was truly astonishing. Clean settings were piano like. Notes sustained like the last chord of A Day in the Life. As the amp cranked to full volume (which was still VERY bearable) the clarity remained, but the rich, gristly crunch was Van Halen 1 reincarnate.
Test 2 Carmen Ghia powering a Line 6 1x12 open back cabinet loaded with a Celestion Vintage Goldback 30 watt speaker at 8 ohms. No working guitarist need ever use any other setup, live or in the studio. Superb clarity, long sustain, plenty of growl in the low-mids, and harmonics practically shimmer around the cabinet. Ever play with a band for a one-nighter and had to continually step back to turn up because the amp just couldn't keep up? Never happens with this amp. The tone stays full and punchy, even into the fourth set at 2 AM.
Test 3 Carmen Ghia into an Ampeg 2x12 closed back cabinet loaded with a 1971 Celestion Greenback and a 1988 Celestion G12M70 running at 4 ohms. (Mike Zaite runs his Carmen at 4 ohms on a regular basis) Tons of bark, and the tone control adds back the bite if the tone seems a little dark at first. This is a great little setup for recording punchy rhythm work. It stays crisp and the low end STILL won't get flabby.
Live, this amp never quits. I've now used it at twenty shows ranging from small dives to large venues and the tone is consistent and amazing. It is easily the most consistent amp I've ever played. And more importantly, every soundman has commented on how great the amp sounded.
In the studio this amp is even better. Why? Because it gets so much sound ON TAPE. It has the ability to translate BIG sounds without sounding too thick. Sure, if you want thick this amp will deliver all the cholesterol you want. But that's YOUR choice. And that breeds confidence in the studio - from the engineer and the players.
The Final Word
This amp should be as collectible as a 1959 Bassman, a 1965 Deluxe, a 1963 Vox AC30 Top Boost, or a 1967 Marshall Super Lead.
The ideal studio would have this little amp head and a collection of speakers to run with it - A 2x12 cabinet with different speakers (an Eminence and a Celestion Blue Back) and wiring on hand so you can run it at 4 ohms (two speakers), 8 ohms (one speaker) or 16 ohms (two speakers). The sonic options are amazing.
Oh, and one final point. Did I mention that you can pick one up, direct from Dr. Z amps in Ohio, for about $700?
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