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Peavey Foundations - just can't let them go

#21
CAC089DB-CE72-4F0C-A339-5E3AA778A9FC.jpeg
Closeup of the RW
 
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#23
if an instrument meets or exceeds your expectations (playability) = keep it! TB, for all of the help/wisdom we get here, is also a 'graveyard narrative' for bass players who thought they'd like a particular piece only to find out that it wasn't up to snuff for one reason or another. if it plays = it stays! :thumbsup:
 
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#24
Haven’t had a Peavey in a long time but two of my all time favorite basses were Peaveys. A Foundation (my first Peavey), and a five string DynaBass. Both were great basses. I jumped to Fender when they released the Jazz Plus and never looked back. I still keep an eye out though. If i ever run across a Dyna fiver in almost new condition for a realistic price i’m gonna buy it.
 
#25
HeadWind said:
Gotta love those superferrites. I picked this up off of Craigslist just to have a fretless to play aroudn with and was blown away by the sound of those pickups. Here is my vintage Peavey collection. Love that 15 inch Black Widow speaker!
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Super Ferrites into a 70s Century! No question your Peavey signal chain rocks hard! That's nearly my go to rig for a CAN tribute--84 Foundation/flats > Century 200 > Peavey 115 Scorpion Plus or Kustom TnR 2x12". The distortion/fuzz circuit on the Century needs to be in a pedal, it's that good.

fhm555 said:
Haven’t had a Peavey in a long time but two of my all time favorite basses were Peaveys. A Foundation (my first Peavey), and a five string DynaBass. Both were great basses. I jumped to Fender when they released the Jazz Plus and never looked back. I still keep an eye out though. If i ever run across a Dyna fiver in almost new condition for a realistic price i’m gonna buy it.
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My Dyna is tuned BEAD and used for the low stuff in an 80s cover band. I use it to keep the instruments legit 80s, too. I would like to get a Super Ferrite Dyna 5, but it would have to be black or grey, which doesn't come up often at all, and also a reasonable price (like under $400, preferably under $350. The catch is the extra narrow string spacing on the early Peavey 5s (think it's 16mm), is that correct?? As a Fender 18.5-19mm 5 player for 21 years, I may or may not adjust to that really tight feel, as I just sort of got used to my Stingray 5 at 17.5mm.
 
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#26
jpmcbride said:
I hear that a lot. But my 90's Foundation is rock solid and is every bit as good as my 80's Foundation. Better actually.
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My first Peavey was my 93 Foundation, which I picked up for $150 locally. It took a little work and experimentation to arrive at a proper set up, but resulted in a great sounding and playing bass. The catch was that the neck was fairly thin, the nut width was extra narrow (1.4"), the bass was just kind of too light at 8.1 pounds to balance properly on the strap and the neck needed adjustment with most every moderate seasonal change. Despite that, I was most certainly hooked on the Foundation.
I found a matching 84 on GC's website for $250 and took a chance on it. I liked the metal P knobs and more hefty looking bridge and saddles. After setting it up, it was, relatively, most certainly a better bass. It was 1.5 pounds heavier, but balanced perfectly, the neck had more meat on it and was rock solid stable through the seasons. I sold the 93 to finance the 85 fretless Foundation.
 
#27
jpmcbride said:
Best value for the money out there in my opinion.
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jpmcbride said:
Actually, I like the sound of the one with the VFL pickups better than the super ferrites.
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I agree they're the best value in the bass world. There are quite a few that have been beat to death but the good ones are in a class of their own. I also am a big fan of the faux VFL ones. I've tried to love the SF Foundations but haven't found the right one yet. Not to worry, I'll keep on looking for one so I can have both generations of Foundation. The one I really want is a good 5-string Foundation. Five years ago they were a lot more plentiful than they are now.

I don't have a good pic of the one I have but while she's ugly, I've yet to find a bass that sounds and plays like that one. I've got ones as good feeling and as good sounding but not both. Interestingly, I just found out that the strings she was wearing when I got her were TI rounds. While she sounds good with any strings, those truly wake up the sound of my foundation.
 
#31
bigtone23 said:
Super Ferrites into a 70s Century! No question your Peavey signal chain rocks hard! That's nearly my go to rig for a CAN tribute--84 Foundation/flats > Century 200 > Peavey 115 Scorpion Plus or Kustom TnR 2x12". The distortion/fuzz circuit on the Century needs to be in a pedal, it's that good.

My Dyna is tuned BEAD and used for the low stuff in an 80s cover band. I use it to keep the instruments legit 80s, too. I would like to get a Super Ferrite Dyna 5, but it would have to be black or grey, which doesn't come up often at all, and also a reasonable price (like under $400, preferably under $350. The catch is the extra narrow string spacing on the early Peavey 5s (think it's 16mm), is that correct?? As a Fender 18.5-19mm 5 player for 21 years, I may or may not adjust to that really tight feel, as I just sort of got used to my Stingray 5 at 17.5mm.
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Can’t tell you what string spacing is on a Peavey, or my current bass for that matter. Like weight, string spacing has no real bearing on my bass choices. I just adjust to whatever i wind up with.
 
#32
Wes K said:
My first bass was a 1989 Peavey Foundation in red with matching headstock (just like yours). Sadly, I got rid of it long ago. I didn't understand how great an instrument it was until much later. Definitely a better first bass than many others I could have ended up with.
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Same here my Dad bought me a secondhand '79 T-40 for my 21st birthday back in 1988. Sadly it was stolen in 1992 but I didn't know really how good it was at the time & how versatile it was. I would love to find that bass or maybe find another '79 T-40. Still remember how heavy it was though :laugh:.
 
#34
"Off brand" ? Peavey is THE brand.

I totally agree with what everyone already said. The SF Peavey Foundation is a $300 Fender killer that ALSO can do a mean Geddy Lee 1970's Ric tone. Arguably, the best passive bass ever made.

Sometimes I think the neck is a little too thin. I think a T-40 neck on a Foundation would be the PERFECT bass.
 
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#38
mb94952 said:
"Off brand" ? Peavey is THE brand.

I totally agree with what everyone already said. The SF Peavey Foundation is a $300 Fender killer that ALSO can do a mean Geddy Lee 1970's Ric tone. Arguably, the best passive bass ever made.

Sometimes I think the neck is a little too thin. I think a T-40 neck on a Foundation would be the PERFECT bass.
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I agree even though I love that pencil neck!
 
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#39
mb94952 said:
I hate you.
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I got very lucky. My town of about 9,000 has one small used music gear/pawn shop & one small pawn/gun shop. Found both of these in the same pawn/gun shop about 6 months apart. I fell in love with the white color on the foundation when I found it & would have never thought of finding an almost identical white Fury months later
 
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