Big things, Small Packages - ZT Amplifiers

<strong>Big</strong> <strong>things</strong>,<br />

<strong>Small</strong> <strong>Packages</strong><br />

<strong>ZT</strong> <strong>Amplifiers</strong>’ Club and Lunchbox Acoustic<br />

in two short years of existence, <strong>ZT</strong><br />

<strong>Amplifiers</strong> has found a unique place<br />

for itself in the world of boutique<br />

amplification. <strong>ZT</strong> engineering guru<br />

Ken Kantor’s flagship amp is called<br />

The Lunchbox, so named because<br />

of its compact physical size. But the<br />

moniker utterly belies the fact the amp<br />

can pump out 200 watts of power.<br />

<strong>ZT</strong> recently launched two new<br />

models – the still-tiny Lunchbox<br />

Acoustic, and the slightly larger (but<br />

muscular) The Club. Expanding on<br />

the compact design of the flagship,<br />

the Lunchbox Acoustic is <strong>ZT</strong>’s first<br />

two-channel amp, with one channel<br />

dedicated to vocals, making it a<br />

suitable all-in-one rig for small- and<br />

mid-sized venues; imagine, all you<br />

singer/songwriters, having a 200-watt<br />

Class A/B amplifier that weighs 12<br />

pounds and is able to easily fill even<br />

the most discriminating coffeehouse<br />

through its 6.5" speaker.<br />

<strong>ZT</strong> <strong>Amplifiers</strong>’ lunchbox<br />

AcousTic And club<br />

Price: $549 (Lunchbox Acoustic [Below],<br />

list), $599 (The Club, list).<br />

Contact: ztamplifiers.com.<br />

The featurepackedLunchbox<br />

Acoustic<br />

has a number of<br />

options players<br />

need to effectively<br />

do their<br />

jobs. The Mic<br />

(vocal) channel<br />

can be used<br />

with any microphone<br />

or other<br />

devices, like a<br />

drum machine,<br />

keyboard, etc.<br />

This gem also<br />

has dedicated<br />

controls for Mic<br />

Gain and Instrument<br />

Gain,<br />

as well as a platestyle<br />

reverb with<br />

independent<br />

channel controls.<br />

You also<br />

have individual<br />

Bass and Treble<br />

controls to tailor<br />

Gear Reviews<br />

the sound of each channel. There’s an<br />

effects loop, phantom power, threeposition<br />

Anti-Feedback Control with<br />

bypass, Anti-Clip limiting circuit,<br />

phantom power, variable headphone/<br />

DI output, and even external speaker<br />

outputs. There is even an 1 /8" auxiliary<br />

input jack for plugging in external<br />

devices like an iPod or other portable<br />

music player.<br />

Weighing in at only an additional 10<br />

pounds, The Club is designed for<br />

playerslooking<br />

for a more-traditional<br />

sound, but who still<br />

want a lightweight rig with plenty of<br />

headroom. The basic controls and<br />

features are similar, and it adds a<br />

vintage-voiced tone stack to make<br />

for a compact rig with lots of might.<br />

Starting with the tiniest of the two,<br />

the Lunchbox Acoustic is a very cool<br />

addition to the <strong>ZT</strong> line. For entirely<br />

too long, manufacturers have missed<br />

the boat in supporting the singer/<br />

songwriter to its full potential. This<br />

is where the Lunchbox Acoustic is<br />

absolutely brilliant. With a number of<br />

different instruments plugged into it<br />

the LB Acoustic had a nice, warm tone<br />

that was very usable. It will not replace<br />

a PA and a good DI, mind you, but<br />

this little dude will especially shine in<br />

the “house concert” and coffeehouse<br />

realms. And it’s difficult to overstate<br />

the convenience of a complete rig that<br />

can be carried in one hand!<br />

The amp’s plate reverb is conceived<br />

for acoustic guitar and for vocals,<br />

again making it convenient for players<br />

on the go. And the anti-feedback<br />

Vintage guitar January 2011 Vintageguitar.com

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is a godsend – it’s easy<br />

to adjust to the room,<br />

for both instrument and<br />

vocals. It could use a little<br />

more top-end on vocals<br />

and a Midrange control<br />

would be helpful on both<br />

channels, but when you<br />

consider what this is and<br />

what you’re getting, it’s<br />

hard to complain.<br />

Equally as cool and a<br />

bit more diverse, sonically,<br />

The Club sounds<br />

good with a number of<br />

instruments. It excels at<br />

cleaner tones, but hitting<br />

it with a good overdrive<br />

pedal also reveals a number of<br />

usable tones. Its shining<br />

moment happens when<br />

it’s asked to serve as a<br />

high-output jazz amp.<br />

Sonically reminiscent of<br />

an old Polytone, with lots<br />

of headroom, its overall<br />

voicing is very pleasant,<br />

and hollowbody instruments<br />

sound wonderful<br />

through it; there’s a nice,<br />

natural articulation and<br />

attack with tube-like tendencies. In<br />

our tests, it responded particularly<br />

well to a ’56 Guild archtop, and also<br />

worked well for upright bass (the<br />

Lunchbox Acoustic did likewise,<br />

which was a pleasant surprise).<br />

<strong>ZT</strong> <strong>Amplifiers</strong> Acoustic<br />

Compared to the original Lunchbox,<br />

it’s fun to see how <strong>ZT</strong>’s line had<br />

progressed. Most notable are the<br />

improvements in tone, especially<br />

how low-end has improved in both<br />

models. Both of these amps are<br />

Gear Reviews<br />

<strong>ZT</strong> <strong>Amplifiers</strong> Club<br />

also significantly quieter at higher<br />

volumes.<br />

Neither of these will replace a<br />

high-end boutique amp or small PA.<br />

But if you’re looking for better-thanaverage<br />

tone in a tiny package, they’re<br />

worth checking out. The sounds are<br />

warm and full. And while The Club is<br />

obviously the better choice for electric<br />

players, the Lunchbox Acoustic is<br />

perfect for traveling songwriters. –<br />

Sean O’Bryan Smith<br />

Vintage guitar January 2011 Vintageguitar.com