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Peavey Bass Amps

PEAVEY BASS AMPS

  • Worth getting, well made, durable & reliable

    Votes: 306 80.7%

  • Forget it, go with another brand

    Votes: 73 19.3%
  • Total voters
    379
#21
I have always been a fan of Peavey gear. I've owned a TKO 75 for the past 16 years and it is solid as a rock (and weighs a ton too). I am still able to dial up some pretty good tones from it, but it took some time to get used to it's nuances. I am currently playing through an Ampeg SVT3-Pro head and Peavey 115BXBW cab. The cab is very clear and punchy for a 15 and does not get muddy at all, although I am really interested in trying out a BAM 210.
My guitar player is playing through a 5150 head and cab and is able to dial up some of the warmest tones from his amp. The next addition to the Peavey family will hopefully be a Cirrus 5 fretless.
 
#22
I don't know! I'm a Eden user and I found this PV head and it has tone out the butt! I couldn't pass it up, 400 all tube watts. My Eden is still my number 1 rig but this head is fun and massive I have always liked PV gear.
This thing is industructable.
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 
#23
Originally posted by Wounded Paw

As for reliable, I have to shoot that one down too. I had to have my Black Widow 15" driver replaced after a year or so cuz it completely died.
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I'd have to wonder what you were doing to it! BW's are notoriously hard to blow up. I never thought they sounded any good, but they're pretty hard to kill. you may have gotten a bad one, of course, but you can hardly judge reliability on the strength of one bad experience. I've seen equipment from pretty much every manufacturer (both bass amps and pro audio) crap out and I've had to fix lots of it. My experiences reflect a lower failure rate for Peavey than practically any other company. If you want truly unreliable, check out Behringer :D.

I do agree that until recently, Peavey bass stuff was pretty tone dead, but they've really turned it around! Of course, I use an old SVT as well and even the new Peavey stuff doesn't compare to that! using one of those would spoil you!
 
#24
I own a Peavey Combo 115, and it kills. It's my first 'big' amp, and also the first of the resurgence in high-quality Peavey stuff. Heavy as a mofo.

For value, unbeatable. I'd like to try a Firebass head, and one day I'll own a Peavey 410TVX and a 115BXBW. Not sure whether to go with the Firebass or a Hartke 7000 though, they're closely priced here in the UK.
 
#25
If I wasn't totally happy with the sound I am getting with my Ampeg rig that I currently have, I would go straight back to Peavey.

I ran a Firebass II head for a few years, and a Mark VI head prior to that, for many years. I used a 810TX cabinet also. Sure, the rig didn't get the sound like my Ampeg rig does, but it did pretty good. And the cost of the entire setup (Firebass + 810TX) was less than what I paid for my SVT4PRO.

Reliable?? Let's see, I put my gear through a lot of hell in the years that I had it, and none of it ever let me down whatsoever. My band also uses mainly Peavey gear for our PA (power amps and main speakers/subs) and that is reliable as hell.

And after trying the new lines of Peavey bass amps/cabs, I have to say that they have really upped their mark. The new Peavey stuff, IMHO, blows a lot of the "higher end" companies out of the water, especially in terms of sound to value ratios.

This, of course, is just based on my experiences and opinions I have formed because of them.
 
#26
Originally posted by Farley
I am really interested in trying out a BAM 210.
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The Musician's Superstore (ProSound) up near 92nd and Sheridan had one a month or so ago. Soundtown on Alameda just west of I-25 had one in about two weeks ago when I was making my rounds. I don't know where you are in Colorado but those locations are in Denver. The BAM is awesome!
 
#27
I've used a Peavey Basic 60 for about 12 years. Excellent piece of equipment that has never let me down. I have used that amp in just about every situation possible. Lots of people say the tone from Peavey isn't that wonderful, but IMHO I would definately go with Peavey again. The durability of this amp is also a big selling point with me. This little amp has been abused terribly and it still cranks out a great volume.
 
#28
Slighty old thread... but I was thinking about this recently.

I have a Mark VI bass head. I did a comparison of DI'ing through the preamp and straight into the power amp.

I couldn't notice a difference.

The graphic EQ just seems to take or put frequencies, it doesn't really affect 'tone'.

I put something in the input, it makes it louder.

With an average bass or guitar - it sounds well, average.

Hang on - isn;t that what an amp is SUPPOSED to do? And for boom removal or tweaking of sound to get more headroom etc. the EQ is fine. The compressor takes the edge of the peaks if you want.

I have a Bass Driver DI, which makes a hell of a difference in warmth and growl etc. But it totally colorizes the sound. The preamp built in the amp doesn't do much.

When people say peavey is 'plain vanilla' in a derogatory fashion I think its missing the point, the engineers (at least in older stuff) seem to have a more 'textbook' approach to amplification - don;t change it, just amplify it - which goes against
the expectations of most guitarists and bassists I think.

Get a preamp which gives the color you
want and you'll be cooking though ;-)
 
#29
Originally posted by ebozzz


The Musician's Superstore (ProSound) up near 92nd and Sheridan had one a month or so ago. Soundtown on Alameda just west of I-25 had one in about two weeks ago when I was making my rounds. I don't know where you are in Colorado but those locations are in Denver. The BAM is awesome!
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Cool, the store on Wadsworth still hasn't got any in stock. I've heard that the store in Westminster carried some.
 
#31
i am one of those guys who didnt just buy peavey because it was all i could afford... I PREFERED IT! i had 2 2x10's that were older that i retired when i went on the road when i got my ampeg pre and swr goliath sr. when i came off the road i sold the 6x10 but didnt like going back to the "lifeless" 2x10's i had. So i went to the store and ab's just about every 4x10 they had. blind. i picked the eden xlt and the peavey. and i actually i like they peavey a little more. when i saw the price tags i had a heart attack! never questioned my buy for 1 sec... that is after the initial shock of trying to pick up the freakin thing! lol. i will go as far as to say not just god stuff for the money but good stuff period!
 
#32
Originally posted by Turlu
Peavey makes good gear IMHO... I have a T-MAX head with a 210 TXF and a 115 Black widow.
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My setup too, and I'm pretty happy with it.

It rocks, it cranks.

Had a Combo 115 I liked a lot too.

No wild about the lower end of their product line, but frankly I can say the same for the lower end of most manufacturers' lines.
 
#35
Peavey stuff is pretty good accross the board. They've been in business for almost 40 years I think and are still owned by the same people. They employ just about the entire town of Meridian Mississippi and have provided a good living for those folks. To my knowledge, they have never been sold out to any co. in fact, they buy out other companies, (Crest) and don't manage to turn them int sh!t like someother companies we know (Gibson). They came out with the 1st power-amps I remember designed for R&R use. (CS 400-CS800) I know many of you think these amps are crap, but, many of these amps are over 20 years old and still in service, and, if you realize that there was basically nothing before them that could deal with much below 8 ohms. then you realize how good and inovative these amps were. With all that said, (which has nothing to do with their bass amps) If I could only have 1 amp and I had to depend on it for a living (which I don't) I would keep my Peavey 210TX and sell the SWR/Hartke/Alembic/Line6/EV and anything else I have sitting around. :D
 
#38
I've been using a Peavey Firebass II for 2-3 years now with various basses and the Peavey TXF 410 and Peavey 115BXBW running at 2Ohms (parallel). This in itself has given me more than enough tone.

I've tried back to back comparisons with a g-k 800rb, 1001rb and so forth, ampeg SVT's (including 70's CL's) along with a couple SWR heads. None really had any of the clarity that my Peavey rig has.

The only thing I'd consider "upgrading" to would be a BAM 210 combo or BAM head and Peavey Pro cabs or maybe an SWR henry the 8x8" cab.
 
#39
A few years ago I lost a Trace Elliot rig when my band's equipment van caught fire. I was stuck with a borrowed Peavey for awhile that actually sounded better than I'll ever give it credit for. I was in major denial that the Trace really didn't sound all that great - but that's a different story, now :o

Anyway, I think the assessments here are mostly on-target: good value, crummy to downright decent sound depending on the model & vintage, bulletproof reliability.

But the shallow and superficial bottom line for me is that darn Peavey stigma. I don't know if it's the case outside of the southern U.S., but Peavey has always been the brand that everyone starts out with and there's a widely held prejudice that anyone still using it simply hasn't 'graduated' yet. Back in the 80's, Peavey amps were responsible for some of the worst guitar tones to ever offend a human ear. Even now, if I walk into a gig and see the Peavey logo on any of the P.A. gear, I make an instant negative judgement that turns out to be justified more often than not. Same story for rock players (country and jazz musicians qualify for exemption from 'Peavey Prejudgement' for some reason).

So, should you base your buying decision on the snobbery of some random schmuck who posts here? Certainly not... on the other hand, music (popular music where the electric bass is prevalent, anyway) is largely about image and perception, admit it or not. I'd just say that one should be aware of (but NOT ruled by) the subtle statements that brand makes whether you're picking out a pair of tennis shoes, choosing a car - or a bass amp. ;)
 

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