High powered super compact amp for ukulele...

I headed over to Guitar Center after work yesterday, to see if they had
a Roland BA330 battery powered P.A. I could test out. They had not
even heard of them yet and were as curious about it's claimed efficiency
as I was... BUT, they did have another piece of technology that sparked
my interest. Introducing the ZT Lunchbox:

http://www.ztamplifiers.com/products/lunchbox.html

It's a 200 watt musical instrument combo amplifier in a cabinet the size
of a lunchbox. I started jamming through it with some space aged
looking axe they had on display close by. Then, one at a time I tried a
Telecaster, Stratocaster and a Les Paul Standard. I played Dust in the
Wind, Zep's Rock 'n Roll, House of the Rising Sun and Maybelle
Carter's Carter Scratch Wildwood Flower to test the dynamics and
articulation of the Lunchbox. Then for the ultimate test, I went out to my
car and brought my Ovation Applause UAE20 acoustic/electric soprano
ukulele inside and played Sophisticated Hula and Hanale Moon. That really
drew a crowd. Several of the employees grabbed ukes of the wall and
asked me to teach them the basics (Guitar Center is starting to carry
severalmodels of ukuleles locally). I showed them the relationship, where
the uke is like putting a capo on the 5th fret of a guitar - half of them
started jamming instantly with that knowledge. Then I explained the
reentrant octave tuning of the first string, followed by showing them
several vamp progressions. This tiny amp will hold it's own with much
larger 65 watt combos on a stage. If you ever need an amp to sit in with
a band for a couple of songs, this is the ticket. The Gain is used to
control the clarity and crunch and the Volume is used to control the sound
level. The Tone is subtle and varies the bass and treble balance slightly.
The Ambience is like a mild Reverb. There is a Speaker Out and a
Speaker On/Off switch, which allows you to use several combinations of
internal and external speakers. There's also a 1/4" headphone output
with it's own volume control, for headphones or as a send to the P.A.. A
1/8" stereo input can be used to play music from an I-Pod or other stereo
device.

This also is a great setup for traveling. At 9.5 pounds, it won't take a lot
away from your baggage weight limit. It has a switch on the back above
the AC power plug for 115 volt/230 volt power, which is ideal for my
travels to the Philippines and other countries where the higher voltage is
standard. The small size won't take up much of the luggage space,
either. Don't just take my word for it, get out and try one! Ric

..........$?

Thanks for the review. Looks promising!

scottie said:

..........$?

Click to expand...

$259 bucks:

http://www.guitarcenter.com/ZT-Lunchbox-200W-1x6-5-Guitar-Combo-Amp-105497689-i1475411.gc

Unbelievable tone and power from a super-compact combo.
The 200W ultra-compact ZT Lunchbox Guitar Combo Amplifier has changed the way many players think about amps. The Lunchbox has proves that an amp does not need to be big to be loud—or expensive to sound great. Thanks to the Lunchbox, you can actually gig with an amp that weighs less than 10 pounds.

Packing 200W of power, the ZT Lunchbox has enough output for a jam or live gig. The Lunchbox amp's world-class tone has pros using it in the studio as well as onstage. In fact, the ZT Lunchbox combo amp has the muscle to handle any effects you throw in front of it, and the warmth and depth to sound great with single-coil as well as humbucker pickups on your guitar.

With our Guaranteed Lowest Price, you can be assured of complete satisfaction and the lowest available price, or your money back!
ZT Lunchbox 200W 1x6.5 Guitar Combo Amp Features:
•200 watts
•Custom ultra-power 6.5" speaker
•Analog front-end with Class A/B output stage
•External cab out
•Internal speaker mute switch
•Headphone out with volume control
•Aux in
•Dimensions: 7.3"H x 9.8"W x 4.4"D
•Weight: 9.5 lb.
ZT Lunchbox 200W 1x6.5 Guitar Combo Amp Specifications:
•Peak Output: 120 dB at 1 meter
•Controls: Volume, Gain, Tone, Ambience, Line Out/Headphone Level
•Aux Input, Switchable 115V/230V

Love to hear a sound sample if possible!

Sound samples:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=zt+lunchbox&search_type=

Hah, see, that's what happens when you go to the music store without a set purchase list: you end up trying a new toy and walking out with something that you hadn't planned to buy. Last time I went, I had to get an XLR cable, 2 humidifiers, and one stick of Fast Fret. I bought it, and left. I generally don't shop without a list anymore to avoid letting money escape from my pockets.

But anyway, that amp sounds like the most power per pound of any combo amp I've seen. The voltage adjust switch is also a cool feature. If I ever move, my amps will become useless without an external transformer which I heard isn't good for sound quality.

Do you know if the speaker in that XT is a full range speaker, or optimized for electric guitar?

I've played guitar and ukulele through mine. I have not tried a keyboard, yet. I'm 60 years old, so everything's full range! LOL! Ric

I have my doubts on the 200W figure, because if that's what goes in the inlet, there's no way 100% of it is making it to the speaker.

Other than that, it looks like a dynamite little amp. Thanks for the tip and the review.

--Mark

Here it is with a bass:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVLiWqDO17Y

With a sax:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4HZtJuJiks

Good review, thanks. Will look into one of these later on

Blrfl said:

I have my doubts on the 200W figure, because if that's what goes in the inlet, there's no way 100% of it is making it to the speaker.

Click to expand...

From the owners manual:

http://www.ztamplifiers.com/pdf/ZT_Amplifiers_Lunchbox_Manual.pdf

Understanding amplifer power

Nobody has come up with one number that can fully represent the power capability of a guitar amp. RMS is a very conservative approach, but it misses the issue of dynamic power and real world musical signals. At the other extreme, Peak Power can readilly be inflated to a point where it is not a reliable indicator of anything. In fact, the actual power of any given amplifier varies widely at different frequencies. Every amplifier company has their own procedure for stating the power capability of their products, which ideally should be done within the boundaries of acceptable technical standards and legal requirements. Here is our thinking on the matter, which we believe results in specifications that are both conservative and useful.

Maximum Instantanious Peak Power: 221W.

Musical Peak Power: 220W.

RMS Power: 120W.

Sustained Average Music Power: 180W.


I'll just add to this that it will hold it's own with most 50 to 65 watt amps I own. The acoustical output and sound quality has to be played and heard personally. Don't take my word for it. Go to your nearest Guitar Center or other music store that has one and give it a test drive. Ric

experimentjon said:

Do you know if the speaker in that XT is a full range speaker, or optimized for electric guitar?

Click to expand...

From the manual:

The Lunchbox is not just for guitars. In fact the Lunchbox loves a very wide variety of instruments and sound sources. Excellent results have been achieved with acoustic guitar pickups, harmonica, electric piano, sax, accordian, electronic organ, traditional string instruments, and synths. We've even seen people successfully run an electric bass through a lunchbox in a small venue.


I've already played electric guitars, acoustic/electric guitars, ukuleles and an I-Pod through mine with superb results. Ric

ricdoug said:

Understanding amplifer power
...

Click to expand...

The RMS number I can buy, but to say it's a 200W amp is like saying a Yugo goes real fast, but only down hill with a tail wind. (Or that with sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine.) There isn't a standard for what "musical peak power" means, nor is there a piece of test equipment on the market that measures it, which puts it under the heading of things ad writers use to sell products. But at least they're up front about it, and what really matters is whether or not it does what you want it to when you plug in.

One question: Is there room for my lunch in that thing or do I have to pack that separately?

--Mark

I don't think they could pack anything else in there! LOL! As far as the wattage figure goes, there's no standard for guitar amps, so I just play through them and draw my opinion from that. This Lunchbox has as much output as most full size 50 to 60 watt combos I own and that's impressive to me, based on it's tiny size. Ric