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Questions re: PEAVEY TKO-80 Bass Amp

K

KrisH

Nov 6, 2007
653
14
New Jersey
www.bandmix.com
#1
I've started looking for a smaller rig to drag to rehearsals, one that is light enough for one person to carry comfortably and loud enough to hear. My cover band doesn't rehearse very loudly, so it doesn't need to be hundreds of watts. And I don't want to spend a lot. I came across a craigslist ad for a Peavey TKO-80, which could probably do the job. The description is having a tear in the tolex on top and a sketchy input jack (the ad says: "the input jacks wires are lose Because when u tap on it sometimes the speaker will go on an off") Otherwise looks good from the photos.

First off -- does anybody know how much this amp weighs? I've looked at the manual from the Peavey site, and surprisingly, it doesn't give the size and weight! Secondly -- how much would a reasonable offer be? The ad says "make an offer"; I don't want to rip anyone off, but I don't want to get ripped off, either. I'm thinking $75-100 tops, seeing as I'll have to glue tolex and replace a jack. Too much?

Thanks for any info. :help:
 
#2
I have used one it worked ok for rehearsals as norm peavey stuff is a little over filled in the gravity dept. but you can use it as a jack stand if need be, repairing input jack should be no big deal if you can solder. 80$ 100$ good to me. and all repair parts should be easy to come by. God bless Gig on!!
 
#5
I would give a ballpark weight of 85 pounds! I had a TNT 100 (late 70's, 45watts/15" speaker) and that's what it weighed. I now have a 2004 Peavey BASIC 112 (50 watts @8ohms, 70 watts @4ohms) that I put a MESA/Eminence NeoMag 4ohm speaker from their Powerhouse line of speakers. It's perfect for our basement/garage band! Under 50 pounds, smaller than the 15" combos, and plenty loud with my VT pedal as a pre-amp/booster! It fits in my 2 door Chevy, too!

FWIW,
X8
 
#6
Thanks for the ifo. I'd have to travel a bit to check it out, so want to make it work my while. He says it's about 40 lbs., but that seems like "puffery" now. I have Behringer combos with 15" speakers that weigh 65 lbs. each; I'd really like to get something 20 or 30 lbs. lighter. I wrote him back and asked for an explanation about the "tapping" to get a better feel for what he's talking about. Weight really is the important criteria, though, once I determine that it will be loud enough.
 
#7
KrisH said:
Thanks for the ifo. I'd have to travel a bit to check it out, so want to make it work my while. He says it's about 40 lbs., but that seems like "puffery" now. I have Behringer combos with 15" speakers that weigh 65 lbs. each; I'd really like to get something 20 or 30 lbs. lighter. I wrote him back and asked for an explanation about the "tapping" to get a better feel for what he's talking about. Weight really is the important criteria, though, once I determine that it will be loud enough.
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i have one of those and its a lot more than 40 lbs.....like someone else said for a hundred bux,leave it at the practice house....if your worried about someone messing with it there are lots of ways to disable it when you are not there..... a 2 wheel dolly makes moving it easy
 
#10
KrisH said:
I'm working with three different outfits, and drag my own amp to them. I'm tired of huffing a 65+ lbs. combo around two or three times a week, but can't leave an amp at any one place. Hence my search for a lightweight combo. And at a low price. :D
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65 pounds seems pretty light for a cab,speaker and head all in one box...i use mine daily and i've had it for years,but it never moves, ..is a dolly impractical...tied to the dolly w/a motorcycle strap and i can do stairs myself,no problem,and im old
 
#12
ariff said:
I have a TKO 80 and I can tell ya it weighs more than 45 LBS. It is no fun to carry around... It is not a light combo amp in my opinion..
Click to expand...

I agree (weighs about 80 pounds), but, I would also contend that this is one of the ultimate "can't kill it for love or money" bass amps. I had one (the 15" version) for almost 20 years, and treated it badly, including accidentally punting it off a 5-foot high stage onto a gymnasium floor. Never skipped a beat. It has now been the drum machine amp in my parents C&W band for the past 5 years, and is still going strong. Not much fun to lug around owing to a single top-strap and no side handles, but solid, useable tone for many years, in my experience.
 
#13
Regarding a dolly, I have two combos, and use a dolly board to move them, especially when using both of them stacked and linked (yes, my mini "rig of doom"). For rehearsals I just take one combo, but still, it has to be lifted in and out of the vehicle, onto the dolly, across door thresholds, etc. I don't also always have have help with them. As has been noted, it isn't oppressively heavy, but I've been noticing a twinge in my lower back since I've been rehearsing and gigging more.

Is there a combo amp out there that's about 40 lbs. or less, that could be used for rehearsals?
 
#14
There are at least two TKO 80s -- an early '80s amp with a 12" and meager EQ, and an early '90s amp with either a Black Widow or Scorpion 15" and graphic EQ. I have the later one (picked it up in beat-to-hell condition for $40) and it will do nicely for what you are describing. It is not, as others have said, all that easy to move.

As far as the malfunctioning goes, it's probably an input jack that has passed its' useful lifespan. Mine has the same problem. Peavey can e-mail you a schematic that will help you replace the faulty jack(s) if you're fairly handy with a soldering iron.
 
#15
Well, I'm giving some thought to my options. This thing looks to be in pretty good shape, and it does have the 15" scorpion speaker (he says), so I'm thinking that if I can get it for about $75, I can afford to leave it at the rehearsal space I spend the most time at. As for the jack, I've replaced many of those over the years, as long as it is the jack, which is what it sounds like. So I responded to see when he's available, and I'll at least look at it, if he can accept my offer.

I think I'm resigning myself to the fact that useful bass combos within a moderate price range will always be in the 60+ lbs. range. :crying:
 
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#17
No speaker jack on that model. There's an internal wire from the amp chassis to the leads on the speaker.
The Scorpion-speaker model is supposed to be the good one. Mine sounds fine for what it is. There should be a badge on the front bottom of the grille that says what speaker it's loaded with.
Those tend to go for about $150 in stores, so $75 for an amp with unknown issues sounds fair. personally, I'd wave a $50 bill in his face and negotiate up if necessary, but I'm CHEAP.
 
#18
Ok, I offered the guy $75 andhe said fine. So I drove out there and looked at it. It was in pretty good shape, kinda dirty, but complete with the grill not torn or anything. I plugged into the high gain input, and sure enough, there was a lot of static. Loud! But when we lifted up on the jack, the connection was secure, and the amp worked fine. Also, the low gain input worked fine, and I really couldn't tell any difference in the volume. So I gave him the money and walked out with the amp:

TKO80.jpg


This is a picture from his Craigslist ad; I spent the evening fixing the jack and cleaning it up, and haven't taken any pictures yet. I saw what happened: the amp apparently had been dropped, seriously enough to crunch the back left corner a bit. And it had twisted the chassis on that side, where the jacks were located. I couldn't determine whether the circuit board was twisted, but I straightened the egdes of the chassis out and retightened the jacks in the panel. SOmeone had also used an oversized nut on one of the jacks, so it obviously had been messed with before. So far the fix has worked several dozen plug-ins, but I don't know if feel comfortable stepping on the cord while it was plugged in just yet!

The thing weighs 64 libs. -- a pound less than my other combos. But it's configured differently, and doesn't require as much bending down to pick it up. So until someone comes up with a 25 lbs. 300 watt combo, I guess this is it. I'll say it is loud! It's certainly loud enough for rehearsals, no doubt, just plugging straight in.

I think it was well worth what I paid for it!
 
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#19
KrisH said:
Ok, I offered the guy $75 andhe said fine. So I drove out there and looked at it. It was in pretty good shape, kinda dirty, but complete with the grill not torn or anything. I plugged into the high gain input, and sure enough, there was a lot of static. Loud! But when we lifted up on the jack, the connection was secure, and the amp worked fine. Also, the low gain input worked fine, and I really couldn't tell any difference in the volume. So I gave him the money and walked out with the amp:

TKO80.jpg


This is a picture from his Craigslist ad; I spent the evening fixing the jack and cleaning it up, and haven't taken any pictures yet. I saw what happened: the amp apparently had been dropped, seriously enough to crunch the back left corner a bit. And it had twisted the chassis on that side, where the jacks were located. I couldn't determine whether the circuit board was twisted, but I straightened the egdes of the chassis out and retightened the jacks in the panel. SOmeone had also used an oversized nut on one of the jacks, so it obviously had been messed with before. So far the fix has worked several dozen plug-ins, but I don't know if feel comfortable stepping on the cord while it was plugged in just yet!

The thing weighs 64 libs. -- a pound less than my other combos. But it's configured differently, and doesn't require as much bending down to pick it up. So until someone comes up with a 25 lbs. 300 watt combo, I guess this is it. I'll say it is loud! It's certainly loud enough for rehearsals, no doubt, just plugging straight in.

I think it was well worth what I paid for it!
Click to expand...
75 bux will barely get you a good steak these days.... good deal......
 
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