The other week i picked up a few new toys.
First was a Dr Z Air Brake. its an attenuator that sits inside the speaker cab. It has 4 positions upto 11db reduction.
This isnt a massive amount but what its done is allow me to turn my amp up 2-3 hours and get a better sound as the tubes are working harder.
I havent noticed any depreciation in sound quality. I know the speaker is not moving as much as it would at this volume but its moving the same amount at the volume i can normally play at home, but the tubes are working more so I get the qualities of this effect coming through.
I based my decision on a review of the DR Z and the Hotplate on the DR Z forum. On the Dr Z forum one of the forum members did a recording of both devices with out attenuation and then at set db levels. They then normalised the volume level on all the recordings so you can compare the sound quality to hear the impact of the attenuation. The effects are really minimal. You cant really hear it upto 12db. v impressive both devices.
Overall a good investment. Especially since it was £140 which is much cheaper then other attenuators. It is the same insides as the Dr Z Air brake.
Second buy was the VOX Tonelab ST. I needed something for playing late at night and also with my amp to get a variety of sounds when playing along to various artists. Im mainly just using the amp sounds and not the effects.
As a live device it would be pants. The effects are only activated via a button not a footswtich and you can only have one from each bank not multiple effects. You could set two sounds and click up and down on the pedal and use it for two amp sounds which would be good but multi effects swtiching it wont do live.
However, both through my headphones, montors and especially my amp it sounds so so good. There is a switch on the back to set it for monitors/heaphones, and a variety of types of cabinets so it works well with each and adjusts the qualities of the sound to match the output device.
It was cheap compared to the other tonelabs and other complex multi effects. It is so easy to use and it sounds great. The effects are also good if required.
The actual pedal is tiny. Its about 10 inches long. I actually thought its was designed for kids since the wah/volume pedal is about half the size of a normal one. It is built like a brick though. Really convincing sounds and great value (@£170) + ease of use I would recommend it to anyone looking for really good impressions of multiple amps. The sounds are much better then my Boss GT6.
