Older Peavey heads

[Rumblefisher]

Hey everyone, I was looking for a cheap bass head and found someone selling some old Peavey stuff. He wants the same amount for each amp, but I only need one...should I go with the Century 200H or the Mark III CHS? He wants around $80 per amp, which sounds pretty reasonable. Which is the better deal? I haven't seen either yet, I can't find much info on the internet regarding either. Any help would be appreciated.

[garmenteros]

If I'm not mistaken, the centuries are older. I had a mark III. Great head, got loud and decent tone...

[Rumblefisher]

Originally Posted by garmenteros

If I'm not mistaken, the centuries are older. I had a mark III. Great head, got loud and decent tone...

I think you are right...do you recall how much the mark iii weighed? Thanks.

[BigOldHarry]

The Cent 200H was an *awful* head. I used to hang out in a store that sold them new - heavy with cheap components. Ick.

[Rumblefisher]

Originally Posted by BigOldHarry

The Cent 200H was an *awful* head. I used to hang out in a store that sold them new - heavy with cheap components. Ick.

Haha. Thanks... That's not the ideal combination of traits, is it?

[Rumblefisher]

He's also got an 80s or 90s Kustom KBP 200 bass head... is that one any better than the Peaveys?

[BigOldHarry]

Anything is better than on of those old Peaveys... But those old Kustom heads were crappy too. VERY solid state sounding and kinda gutless.

Just what is it you're trying to do here? Do you need an amp and are shopping, or just thought it might be cool to buy a usable old head cheap?

[Rumblefisher]

More the latter. I just want a beataround amp for a little while to keep in a dorm room...something I don't mind having stolen if the worst happens...

[acebase62]

I used to use a 1978 Mark III (210 w into 4 ohms). It has 2 channels (passive and active) along with a 6 band graphic EQ.

For being old school, its not a bad head (with a good cabinet), and I still have it as an emergency back up. It doesn't have the built in fan that came later, but it could handle 2ohm load if I ran a small external fan on back to keep it cool.

I currently use early 90s Mark VI or VIII heads (9 band graphic, chorus, etc) with 410 txf or 210 tx cabinets. They sound great with my passive J-J or P-J basses. Several people have asked me what kind of pre-amp I have in my bass, ha.

[MNAirHead]

Go with the Mark... it is a total workhorse.

I travelled millions of miles with one --- zero issues (excpet being bulky).

There's absolutely nothing wrong with an old Peavey head... cabinets make a bigger difference.

[JTE]

Yep, the Mark III. It's got a very very reliable power amp section, the same one used on the later Mk IV, the Musician, The Reknown, the M-3000, etc. Peavey used that power amp section (210 WRMS @ 4 Ω, 300 WRMS @ 2 Ω) on a lot of stuff over the years and it was reliable and solid. The Mk III I think also had the AutoMix which allowed you to set the passive EQ channel separate from the active EQ channel, and either mix them, or switch between them with a footswitch. That's a very reliable amp and if you take some time to get used to the controls it sounds pretty good too.

John

[Floyd Eye]

It is heavy, but it sounds decent, has power and is reliable. ( The Mark III)

[etechstan]

Don't let anyone tell you old Peaveys are junk. I had a MKIII years ago, but life threw some changes at me and I gave up playing. The MKIII held up fine while the guitards were miking their amps and I just cranked it. I'm back and rockin it with a MKIV and love it.

[hwystar]

Peavy for sure, had the Mark III before, and have had the Mark IV since '88 , still have the Mark IV for back-up and practice, a work horse for sure.

[MNAirHead]

Originally Posted by etechstan

Don't let anyone tell you old Peaveys are junk. I had a MKIII years ago, but life threw some changes at me and I gave up playing. The MKIII held up fine while the guitards were miking their amps and I just cranked it. I'm back and rockin it with a MKIV and love it.

Sage advice.

I recently poured an entire cup of coffee in a MarkVIII.. didn't have time to swap out heads..

It made a few crackly noises.. kept going along.. after it dried out (next week) sounded great.

I dropped MarkIII heads from tall distances.. I'd never be able to pull this off with a trendy amp.

My preferred head is another Peavey (early 90s) .. will be more than $80

[ZiggyDude]

The Mark III is basically a low cost attempt at making an Acoustic 320. But it adds the crossover. The older ones you could turn the compressor off (not sure you would want to). This was a head that almost everyone was using for a while it seemed - very popular. I still have mine.

[seventhsunbass]

The Mark III is a good head and for $80, it's a great deal. You could literally drop it down a flight of stairs and plug it right in, never miss a beat. Way more gig friendly if others are moving your gear. Still have one as a 'kegger jam' amp and still sounds good.

[thumpbass1]

I still gig a Mark IV head with the matching 2x15 BW loaded cab that I bought new in the mid 80's on occasion. I gigged it hard and steady for at least 15 years or so without any issues. Good solid tones, with good .e.q. options, besides a built in crossover,fx loop, and all the ins and outs one could ever need. I'd hardly call the sound gutless by the way as was posted above. I've had young bass players come up to me after a gig, complimenting the tone and wondering if it was a tube head a couple of times. I won't go that far, but sterile sounding it ain't. The Mark III was an earlier version that delivered much of the same. I'd dismiss the bad rap from most Peavey critics as the toughness of old Peavey gear is legendary, and it doesn't sound bad either. You won't go wrong imo in the used department with a decent Mark III or IV head.

[rok51]

I had a Mark III that I biamped (remember those daze?) with another 400BH series power head into a pair of 1810s for 13 years. Dead reliable. Never a problem being heard...

Kim

[Pilgrim]

The picture should be pretty clear by now....