NBD - It's a dinosaur from the 80s, Peavey Dynabass.

[Maxdusty]

Is this some kind of joke that Peavey refers to the bass as an "appliance" in the Warning?

Am I missing some kind of pun?

ha ha....just noticed that. An appliance that should not be exposed to moisture and water.

 

[rtslinger]

congrats on the new addition, just love the matching head stock

 

[TerribleTim68]

You had me at "Tremolo"....

 

[Maxdusty]

I'm admittedly rather clueless about the different bass bridges out there compared to most people on TB (which is why I go on this site to learn more, such a knowledge base we have here) but I will say I found the Kahler bridge easier to adjust than any bridge I've run into so far ( I had to do very minor tweaks to it to get the bass up to my preferences in string height, and even nudged the spacing a bit).
I've attached a video about the bridge where you can turn the four string bridge into a five string bridge, so if you had such a bridge installed on a bass body, you could go from a four string and five string bass rather easily if you had separate necks with the strings already attached to the tuners. Not to mention you'd get that whammy bar feature too for both...er...still figuring how to incorporate that into the kind of music I play but I'll get there I hope.

Watch the video at around the 2:30 mark to see how to easily convert the bridge from a four string to a five string. Might be a good bridge option for the modders out there. While he's doing the adjustment on an unattached bridge, the same can be done easily on one that's already attached to a bass. Most of you probably know all about this about Kahler bridges but for clueless me, it was like a revelation.

 

[bassbrad]

My Dyna Bass Five was among the first produced and has been my one and only Lo B five string since day 1 it has that perfect super jazz tone that sits perfectly in every mix and has a punchy and focused Lo B. I cannot say how many shows and recordings it has been used on.

 

[Shawn Luckman]

Love Peavey basses from the 80's especially the, Foundation/Dyna bass with that classic body styling & pointy headstock. I've never seen a Dyna bass with a trem in the flesh, only in video's but they do look fun though enjoy it.

 

[Maxdusty]

I've been keeping an eye out for older Peavey basses, this Dynabass was apparently on our FB Marketplace sitting there unsold for seven weeks. I don't know why I didn't see it before, I don't know how FB determines what's in your local market, but a few days ago was the first time I even saw the listing for it - when the price was lowered.

 

[Williethump]

Peaveys may not be boutique, sexy, trendy or lightweight but they are appliances that rock on and on. From Mississippi USA, hotbed of cutting edge musical technology. Peavey never says die. Though this 1996 Korean Milestone II almost did until I relic-ed it back to life. Long live Peavey.

 

[Reedt2000]

Peaveys may not be boutique, sexy, trendy or lightweight but they are appliances that rock on and on. From Mississippi USA, hotbed of cutting edge musical technology. Peavey never says die. Though this 1996 Korean Milestone II almost did until I relic-ed it back to life. Long live Peavey.
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Did you cast your own pickup covers?

 

[Smooth_bass88]

No fair I want a bass tremolo!

 

[Pauly 4001]

Ohhh the memories!! I was in high school in the 80's and all my buddies were into RR & EVH and for them a Floyd Rose was the ultimate!! then one day at the local music store they got A bass with a bar! I got so excited!! until Brrrummm blat! it was useless You maybe could drop a whole step until the pickups snatched the strings and nothing I think I spent 15 minutes trying to figure out how to best use it then gave up my guitar playing buddy tried & gave up faster! I never gave it another thought. I figured I d leave it up to someone else to figure it out. then id give it another try! but alas no one did. I saw Billy sheehan put one on his bass, but he never did anything with it. so it was the last time I saw or played one! GL! Nice bass. maybe youll be the one to figure it out!

What's to figure out? Some sustaining distortion should help.

No fair I want a bass tremolo!

Here's my whammy bass in all its glory:

 

[dabbler]

I guess Dyna basses also came in two neck sizes, 1 11/16" and 1 1/2". I have the 1 1/2" but with the neck radius being 8" it makes it feel even slimmer.
View attachment 4256877

LOL I can't believe they sold the bass withOUT a battery! Waitaminute... yes, I can.

 

[Williethump]

Did you cast your own pickup covers?

That was apparently an unfortunate localized heating and/or corrosive liquid spill incident. This resulted in partial pup meltation covered up massively by 2.5 cans runny spackled Rustoleum jingle can spray paint. And they still sound great! Peavey!
Here's what I found in back after relic-ing off the silver mud. Somebody loved this Peavey about to death. Who would cover up such folk art?
I did make the PG though, from a broken uke. And sprayed it with hi-temp engine block dark seafoam ceramic/enamel paint in case my bassing gets too hot. Chrysler? Ford? Nice tone.

 

[filwitheneff]

Realized I didn't do an NBD post for this bass I got a couple of days ago as I'm really enjoying the bass.

I commented on that recent post regarding cutting back on the number of basses - I have been in the process of paring down my collection and down to essentially two basses as players ( four basses in total but one is only being kept for sentimental reasons, another will be given to my son). One of the keepers is my US Fender P bass, the other one I was a little on the fence about, a G&L Tribute L2000. I love the Tribute but ultimately, it had too much of a modern sound and aggressiveness for this old guy. I decided to look for a Fender Jazz bass and having that as the other bass.
I was also reading the post about the demise of the US Peavey basses.

Come to think of it, both these posts were by a particular and well regarded member of the TB community named after a dairy product with a post graduate degree. Yes, I both blame and thank you Dr. Cheese for this. lol

In a weird twist, a US Peavey bass that I was curious about showed up on my local FB Marketplace, and reading some posts regarding the model in the Peavey group, I decided on a lark to take a chance on asking to see if the other person was interested in a trade. I have previously owned a bass with the Super Ferrite pickups (a Foundation) so knew what to expect. it wasn't the Jazz bass I had planned to have but two single coil pickups with a more beefy tone to it seemed more up my alley.
The Dynabass also had the option to go active or passive (okay, that's a check mark in its favor), It was a 1986 model (good year, good year fond HS memories), the bass was in great shape according to the Ad (sounding better and better) ......and it had a Kahler tremolo bridge. (okay, that was it, sounded too enticing, I had to try to get it).

Well, the seller was open to the trade, so we did it - each one of us happy at the prospect of what we would be getting.

It was better than I had expected, the neck is super slim. It's 1.5" but the radius of 8" made it seem even slimmer and pretty comfortable....oh and the sound, absolutely glorious. It was also in terrific condition, much better than I could have hoped for, other than a little bit of tarnish on the bridge, the bass looked like it was just bought a couple of years ago, not the 35 years the bass has been around. I know Peavey basses aren't the most expensive nor are they the highest quality boutique basses or even highly regarded by some, but let me tell you, some of these old Peavey basses are true gems and great players that were affordable even when they were sold new and more so today as often one of best deals you can find in a used bass. Wish I knew about Peavey basses when I was just starting out on the bass, I only thought Peavey made amps where I used to live.

While the G&L had terrific versatility and still feel is a great option, the Peavey Dynabass has a more subdued and for lack of a better description, an old school kind of active bass sound, a little like an Ibanez Musician I used to own in the 80s. I haven't really used the tremolo yet as I need to find a Kahler 1/4" one to put on it (I can put the one I have for a guitar on it, but it's not the right size for it to stay without falling off) but I don't think I'll be using that very often anyway.

While I'm going to be happy with my two basses for a while, I have to admit, some of these other Peavey models, the TL, the Cirrus or the Peavey Cyberbass...have piqued my interest.
View attachment 4256835

View attachment 4256836

and then there were three....well, four. (one is just for sentimental reasons and not really one I would play)
View attachment 4256837

Congrats! That's a fine bass!

I got a 1986 Dyna-Bass in pearl-white brand new for Christmas in 1986 (just like yours, but no Kahler). It was my first "good" bass. I beat the crap out of that thing for about a decade, toured the midwest coverband circuit with it. I still have it, although it's pretty much unplayable right now (neck needs professional help, and the electronics are too dirty to make a usable sound). I keep it for sentimental reasons, and I may one day have it restored.

However, a good friend of mine, that lives right down the road from me, has the exact same bass as yours (with the Kahler). He still gigs it as his "only" bass.

 

[filwitheneff]

I have 2 Sarzos and one in particular is a Top Ten. Just amazing in every way. I think I read somewhere they share the same preamp with Dynas. I need a historian to verify.

I'm not a historian, but I can tell you this:
I owned a Sarzo (and still regret selling it). When I took off the back plate to access the electronics, the circuit board literally says "Dyna-Bass" right on it.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Like the gold patina

 

[Killing Floor]

That's friggin' Awesome!!! Love it. Dime that mother.

 

[Maxdusty]

I'm not a historian, but I can tell you this:
I owned a Sarzo (and still regret selling it). When I took off the back plate to access the electronics, the circuit board literally says "Dyna-Bass" right on it.

That explains a lot. Whatever the preamp on this is just blowing me away, if the Sarzo is an even better bass with this same preamp, I'm hocking a lung and to get if I ever see one. lol I've been playing for over 30 years and have tried quite a few basses over the years, why am I feeling like a kid who just got his first set of flashy wheels??
There are definitely many great basses out there, many are out of my price range but this is one of the best surprises I've had in a while considering how inexpensive these basses can be found these days.

 

[Maxdusty]

Finally got a real Kahler tremolo bar for the bridge and boy, it makes a huge difference. The temporary Floyd Rose I was using wasn't really usable, the extra length of the Kahler, the angle of the bar makes it so much easier. So I would highly recommend sticking with a true Kahler bar if you do have a bass with a Kahler bass bridge in need of a tremolo bar.
Terrific bridge on a great sounding bass. I would unconditionally recommend a Dynabass with the Super Ferrite pickups with or without the Kahler bridge. Given the price these go for or may be found, I would snag more of them if I could.
For reference, this replaced my G&L Tribute L2000 which is a great bass in its own right, but I love the warmer tone of the Peavey. Be aware there are two different size necks available for the Dynabass, the 1.5" does indeed feel very slim especially with the 8" fretboard radius, I think the standard or the 1 11/16" might be better suited for those with normal to large hands.

 

[bassclef112]

That explains a lot. Whatever the preamp on this is just blowing me away, if the Sarzo is an even better bass with this same preamp, I'm hocking a lung and to get if I ever see one. lol

Better? Maybe because they went a bit further for the Sig aspect. The difference is the pickups. Sarzo tried an Alembic, fell in love and told Peavey about it. They're not Alembics (and some folks don't care for them) but I think it sounds great!!!
Truth be told, since I got the Sarzos I've kept an eye out for a Dyno. Right now I'm in a glut because I filled some other slots during lockdown. One day....
Enjoy it!!!