Blackstar HT Series MKIII HT-20, HT-5 and HT-1

By Chris Gill, Guitar World, October 2024

There will always be a time and a place for big, powerful 100 ‐watt tube amps, but for a vast majority of guitarists today a smaller amp is much more practical for everyday recording, practice and performance applications. As with Blackstar’s MK II versions, the MK III HT Series consists of a 1-watt head (HT ‐1RH) and combo (HT-1R), a 5-watt head (HT-5RH) and combo (HT-5R) and a 20-watt head (HT-20RH) and combo (HT ‐20R). Each combo has a single speaker — an 8-inch speaker for the HT-1R or a 12-inch speaker for the HT-5RH and HT-20H. Blackstar also offers matching 1x12 and 2x12 extension cabinets. The 1-watt, 5-watt and 20-watt models each have different tube complements, which gives each version its own distinctive tonal range and character, although there is an overlapping “Blackstar” personality throughout. The HT-1 amps have single ECC83 (12AX7) preamp and ECC82 (12AU7) power amp tubes; the HT-5 amps feature an ECC83 preamp and 12BH7 power amp tube; and the HT-20 amps provide a pair of ECC82 preamp and dual EL84 power amp tubes. HT-20 $749, HT-5 $679, HT-1 $449, blackstaramps.com

Dr. Z Z-80

By Dave Hunter, Guitar Player, May 2024

While Dr. Z has a strong reputation for originality, the Z-80 has its roots in Brad Paisley’s beloved and ultra-rare Vox AC80. Designed by Dick Denney in 1963, the AC80 (also called the AC80/100 or AC100 “80 to 100-watt amp”) was created to help the Beatles rise above the noise of screaming teenage girls for the North American tours of the mid ’60s. Fewer than 300 units of this 80-watt masterpiece of cathode-biased sonic splendor were built before the more familiar fixed-bias, 100-watt AC100 was introduced around mid 1965. Following the urging of Paisley, a frequent Dr. Z collaborator, and six years of development, the Z-80 tracks the circuit of the best-sounding of these early AC80s and adds a few features to suit the needs of 2024, without adversely impacting the tonal blueprint. At its heart it’s an 80-watt, four-EL34 amp with two 12AX7s in the preamp and a 12AU7 phase inverter, with a single channel and a simple control set featuring volume, treble, middle, bass, and master. $3,599, drzamps.com