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Peavey Classic 400 - HEAVY!!

bass7858

bass7858

Apr 11, 2009
112
0
central florida
#1
Had some time to kill today. Went to the GC here in Lakeland, Fl. Checked out the Mark Bass 112 combo. Pretty impressive, nice tone.
Was just fixin to walk out and was scanning the used gear when i spotted it!! From what i gather they r pretty rare?
Grabbed a p bass and chord and got busy!!
1st made sure it was plugged into a cab and that the ohmage was set correct. Went around to front and connected guitar and pulled a stool over.
Was hoping to step into the pearly gates of tonal bliss....but alas....hit the power switch and all the lights came on....and just as quick went back off. zip/zilch/nada!!
Flagged down a sales person who basically verified that all was plugged correct and power was available. Checked the fuse and was good. Lots of head scratching and the sales person assured me it was playin just fine "a day or 2 ago"
So no test drive.
But heres my "physical impression"
1st) You will need at least a 1/2 ton pick up truck to haul it in.
YES. it will make the springs sag!
2nd) I am in pretty good physical condition...so i decided to give it a lift to check the weight. i estimate it weighs well over 100 lbs!
3rd) Biggest bass head i have ever seen. HUGE!!
Their price tag was $1299. Dont think i'd pay that for it with its probs. And dont think i'd haul it out on 2 many gigs.
If someone says they can one hand that dude all i got to say is.....
SALUTE!!!;)
 
#2
That's a funny price.

I paid $700 for mine and sold it for $400; I'd started at $700 and had to go down that low (AND drive 4 hours to deliver it) to find someone who would take it. I tried everything I could to make it work for me, but I just couldn't get any happy out of it. Many people find them to be filled with happy, it's a matter of opinion I guess. I doubt even the people who are into them would pay $1300 for a broken one. They turn up much cheaper here and on Ebay, but shipping costs will kill you and odds are they won't be near enough to try out before buying.

It's heavy and hard to carry. The hardest to move of the 3 ~100 lb amps I've owned.
 
#3
For sure!! The size is mega awkward! R u still playin tubes? if so what have u settled on?
For the price (and warranty) the Eden and Peavey vb-2 r lookin pretty good!! I'm reading pros and cons on both.....u know the ol saying...cant please everybody.
i'd kinda like to end up with a tube head that was switchable from 2-4-8 ohms. And leaning toward the lite side. With 8 ohm small cabs u could have a fairly portable tube rig with one cab....but as needed u could add additional small cabs.
May not be possible but seems like the theory would work!!!!!!!!:bassist:
 
#5
100+ lb. !! wow!!
this is a rare beast, guess I will never see one in Toronto.
400 watt tube amp always intrigues me

for those that played this head
what is the tone like?

I have only ever played the orange ad200, the mesa 400+ and the fender/sunn 300; how does this 400 watt beast compare to those?
 
#6
babebambi said:
100+ lb. !! wow!!
this is a rare beast, guess I will never see one in Toronto.
400 watt tube amp always intrigues me

for those that played this head
what is the tone like?
Click to expand...

The only reason I sold mine after eight years of owing it was because of its excessive 93 lb weight. This thing had great tone, and was very reliable once I changed the factory supplied Chinese coke bottle tubes with good ones. It was measuring 443 watts RMS of output power.

I bought mine in Portland, Oregon and had it shipped to me. I think that I was the only person in the GTA with one. Sold it three years ago to a fellow TB member in the USA.

Can't say that I miss hauling it around, but I do miss it. It's probably one of Peavey's best amps.

TD
 
#8
Thornton Davis said:
The only reason I sold mine after eight years of owing it was because of its excessive 93 lb weight. This thing had great tone, and was very reliable once I changed the factory supplied Chinese coke bottle tubes with good ones. It was measuring 443 watts RMS of output power.

I bought mine in Portland, Oregon and had it shipped to me. I think that I was the only person in the GTA with one. Sold it three years ago to a fellow TB member in the USA.

Can't say that I miss hauling it around, but I do miss it. It's probably one of Peavey's best amps.

TD
Click to expand...

good god, how much was the shipping charge?
as much as the value of the unit itself?

443 watts was before the power amp starting to breaking up?
 
#10
babebambi said:
100+ lb. !! wow!!
this is a rare beast, guess I will never see one in Toronto.
400 watt tube amp always intrigues me

for those that played this head
what is the tone like?

I have only ever played the orange ad200, the mesa 400+ and the fender/sunn 300; how does this 400 watt beast compare to those?
Click to expand...

I wasn't nuts about the tone, but then again one of the reasons I sold it was because I couldn't find a tech who would work on it; I hear the guy I sold it to ended up putting $300 into it and really liked the tone. I've played the Mesa and Sunn you mention, and preferred the Mesa, then the Sunn, over the 400. I have never heard a properly tuned up Classic 400 though. The Sunn was also easier to transport (though still big and heavy) while the Mesa feels like an ultralight pocket amp compared to either.
 

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