All user reviews for the Peavey Ultra Plus Head

Here's an all tube 120watt 6L6 head. It has a half power switch which will knock it down to 60 watts (awesome feature). It has 3 channels: clean, crunch, and Ultra. The eq is active which is a stark contrast to the typical passive eq I am used to on other amps. This active eq creates dramatic eq changes. There is a Resonance Switch for the low end that can be set to Tight, medium, or loose. This is a great feature that can really come in handy depending on the size of the room and volume you need. Low Gain and high gain inputs offer usable changes that can expand the tonal pallette. The logo changes from green to orange to red- a cosmetic feature that I love (though some may dislike)

UTILIZATION

This amp sounds great right away: super thick and articulate. I never saw the manual, but the controls are intuitive.

SOUNDS

I use a wide array of guitars including Gibson Les Paul, Gibson SG, Fender Strats, Peavey Wolfgang, and Peavey HP Special. They all sound great and deliver huge tone. I believe the guy from Soldano amps came over and designed this amp; the quality shows. I bought this amp cheap on craig's list, almost as an afterthought...I was aiming for an older recto but failed, so my GAS pushed me to get something...I saw a video clip of a guy a/bing it against a Mesa Mark, and then found a video that showed some real killer modern metal tones. I thought 300 bucks was worth a test drive. I loved the tone and immediately spent the cash to retube the whole amp. The cleans are crystal clean- just a volume, 3 way passive eq, and bright switch. Great cleans for a hard rock metal setup, but admittedly a drawback if you're seeking a character gritty clean for bluesy jams.The crunch gets ridiculous levels of gain for a crunch channel...not that you need it, but placing a clean boost in front makes this channel the shining star of the amp. It has a gain button, so perhaps with the gain off and the gain controls down, you could get that bluesy vibe...but for me, this is a rock/metal beast and i crank it up. This orange channel is breathtaking- nice blend of reactivity and saturation. the Ultra red channel takes it a step beyond- lethal levels of gain that will slay any tune you are working on.

OVERALL OPINION

My favorite application is lead guitar- this amp just sings and sings for me and is a pefect compliment for my mid to hi gain leads. Very Mark-ish in its voicings, this lead response is wonderful. I like the rhythm gain, and the active eq allows one to dial in smoother gains to cutting chainsaw. In comparison, I tried a 6505+ in a store and totally disliked it- the lows were so boomy and the gains were so extreme I sort of found it unusable. Perhaps if I spent more time dialing it in, but this Ultra+ dials in very quickly. It lacks a bit of the edge and chainsaw of a recto, but let's be honest, a Modern Recto sucks for lead players.compare this to the 5150/6505 series and you will be super impressed. All of this and then realize (if you can find one), the amps refquently resell for $250-400. I've played lots of expensive amps costing thousands, and let me tell you, price does not always equal tone. This amp will eat a modern Marshall alive in terms of tone and reliablility. The cost benefit ratio is unbelievable, but even throwing out the price factor, this amp stands alone as a great tone machine.

All Tube Amplifier Head:
4 12AX7 (preamp) and four 6L6GC lamps (Power)

- Power: 120 Watts @ 4.8, or 16 ohm impedance selectable
- Channels: Ultra, Crunch and Clean with Footswitch (the logo on the front panel changes color ...)
- Footswitchable Reverb
- Effects Loop
- Master volume
- Clean Channel: Volume, Bright switch, Low, Mid, and High
- Crunch and Ultra channels: Gain & Volume, Gain Boost Switch, Bottom, Body and EQ Edge
- Preamp Output Jack
- 3-Position Switch Resonance
- 2 Input: High and Low Gain
- Footswitch included
- Dimensions: 11 "H x 26.5" W x 11 "D
- Weight: 50.1 Lbs

UTILIZATION

The configuration is not a problem ... No need to spend time to make adjustments to get good sound ... The manual is somewhat succinct but it has the merit of being clear ...

SOUNDS

Well, here we go ... My amp on, the lamps warm, I start with the clean channel ... The logo on the front panel turns green, and I chipotte few chords with my Ibanez Sabre ... A bit of reverb to make the sound more air, and the result is nickel ... No complaints about the sound clean ...

Then comes the urge to let off steam a bit ... I spin a kick on my footswitch, and passes the canal Crunch ... The logo on the front turns orange, and I begin to improvise solos on blues accompaniments ... Here, again, is pure happiness, the distortion is super hot and it's really hard ...

I then decided to drop a little distortion for soloing over power peacefully ... Unfortunately, when the gain of the distortion is small, the sound becomes soft, tasteless and cold ... In short, it's worth anything ... Apparently, the distortion was not designed for that ... It's high-gain or anything ...

In fact, if I chose this amp, but rather to play metal ... I turn the channel Ultra, Peavey logo turns red ... I tune my guitar in open tuning in C, and off you go ... Ooh, the big bad and heavy distortion well ... Here we see that for which this amp was designed!

OVERALL OPINION

It's been four years since I use this amp ... And there is no photo, this unit addresses audiences to those who love the big tear that disto ... For others, go your way, or else, go for effects pedals ... Before this amp, I played a Marshall Valvestate ... Nothing comparable course, except that the transition from transistors to the lamps is feeling well ... Value just fine, with experience, I think I would try still more models before I decide ...

All Tube Amplifier Head (pre 4 * 12AX7, 6L6 * 4 power (all in Sovtek)) 120W.
3 channels: clean and crunch lead.EQ separate clean and crunch / lead.Volume separately on each channel and master general (redundant).
Accutronics reverb, mono effects loop, preamp output (without simulation hp, is not messing around either!).
Input high / low gain, half power switch / full power switch 3 positions resonance.
Footswitch peavey 3 selectors.
Purchased in January 2000 in leadguitars for 6000Frs neuve.Le cabinet used is a 1960 Marshall 4 * 12 ".

UTILIZATION

It's a fairly old-school head: one is not lost in the settings ... Gain, Volume, 3 band eq, master ... it goes fast (and it is quickly turn). Only the resonance switch may seem enigmatic and it is basically an adjustable bass boost for (or low-cut adjustable).
The volume of each channel is handy.
The half power switch can save 2 of 4 power tubes when you play a low volume, convenient ...
At full power is the Feast of the slip so we can push this amp (I have never exceeded 6 and was in a room of 200m ² with sound not ...) So those who feared the brand peavey can reassure c 'is a tube amp ....
As against red card (houuuu! hooouuu!) For the footswitch ridiculously small (3 cm in 15 switches: record to beat) and poorly thought lead / crunch left clean on / off and reverb to right center, IT'S IN CONCERT A CALVARY !!!!! Actually seen the size of the switch happens to press the clean has priority over other canaux.Résultat: CLUNG! CLUNG! when we wanted to spend crunch lead.
In addition, for 6000 balls we head right to expect anything but a piece of plastoc perrave.
So as this retail sanction me ruined pieces together like I send the big solo, not you got a clean perrave (and here, the public shows you the finger and does not care about your face ... it's been part of my therapy to write this opinion ...)
One can also regret the absence of level control loop effect and the fact that it is not switchable.
More (décidément!) peavey logo in lights and facade changes color depending on the channel: a beautiful bright green for clean, a very trendy for the orange crunch and finally a red blood DEATH for lead . It is certain that some players like to, but I have a Christmas tree peavey plu.Enfin ca me too ...
Note severe is mainly due to a footswitch sad, ashamed ... (I was clear enough?) But the head remains pleasant to use ...
I would add that it is rock solid and heavy as an anvil ..
It goes without saying that in the peavey manual is succinct as NUL.

SOUNDS

Here I play the head of métaaaaaalllll and frankly a good distortion (crunch and lead), although incisive while keeping the color "lamps" my faith strong agréable.Le gain can be pushed too far (more than a jcm 900) : lovers apprécieront.D Moreover a high volume I recommend using the crunch has pushed Burns made a gain that interesting. For lack of clean against the mouth and is quite banal so blah.
The EQ is very effective and large nag was surprised that I quickly cut up the bass and midrange (God knows it's hard to get a metal switch mediums !!!). The "resonance" is used with a parcimonie.Il must therefore spend time in groups but you can sculpt his sound well (!) and this is one of the strengths of this amp (especially when there are two scratch in the group).
The reverb sounds good (Because Accutronics) and is quite usable.
Also noteworthy is the relative transparency of the head that really respect the sound and personality of the guitar, so scratch the shit = rotten (Jim Harley enthusiasts are disappointed at the back of the room, I see you well). For cons with a Les Paul (same studio) it sounds really GOOD (You amaze me! And with a PRS, asshole?). I tried several guitars on it even though my guitar is a jackson ps4 main bofbof (to be polite ) and it feels really.

OVERALL OPINION

Here, I use the head more or less intensively for 4 years and I'm pretty satisfait.Je have preferred a more polyvalente.Je since 5150 have had no problems (if n ' is the inevitable change of lamp).
I do not find it particularly expensive for the proposed but do not expect to have the biggest guitar sound in the world because it has a more neutral than the grain or other marshall mesa, a personality that marks less marked nommées.C above is therefore knowingly choose the head must be knowing, for against, the instrument will be dominant in the personality of her (uh, I do not know if chuis clear here!).
If you play several different styles, the versatility offered is attractive.
So it's a very nice amp head and 7 seems to be a note that's not enough juste.Et peavey guitar rotten gentlemen !!!!!

The Peavey Ultra Plus is a 120 watt, 3 channel all tube amp head. Channels 2 and 3 have shared eq. It has foot-switchable on board reverb and an effects loop. There are high and low inputs.

It has a 'resonance' switch on the back. You can switch between tight, med, and loose. It basically tweaks the low end response. Its a cool little feature, but in my opinion it doesn't change the sound enough to make a noticeable difference in the mix.

UTILIZATION

Its really easy to get a good sound out of this amp on all three channels. Manual is really straight forward.

This is a fixed bias amp, which mean you can just put in a new matched quartet of 6L6s tubes whenever you need to replace the tubes. This feature makes it a great first tube amp.

SOUNDS

I used it with delay and a noise gate. The loop is fairly transparent but definitely tweaks the sound some, nothing noticeable in a mix though.

Channel 1 is very clean, I really liked it. Its an almost Fender sounding clean, very clear and bright. I used it a couple different times when tracking guitars in the studio and to this day its still one of my favorite clean tones.

Channel 2 is also really impressive. It has the typical Peavey eq curve, nice full sound with an upper mid spike. This channel is nice and crunchy without reaching high gain levels. Very nice tone.

As far as I understand it, channel 3 is the exact same circuit as channel 2, the only difference is the gain pot. This means it sound good, but it also means it sounds near identical to channel 2, especially since they share an EQ. I don't really consider this a 3 channel amp, more like a 2 channel amp with a gain boost. That sound, channel 3 sounds great. Its a killer metal sound.

OVERALL OPINION

What I like least about the amp is the shared EQ. It makes it so channels 2 and 3 do not have much tonal distinction. However, its still a good tone. For the price its a killer deal. These things can be had for $300-400 easily.

All in all this is a great tube amp, it has great tone and its built like a tank. I gigged this for months and I never had any issues, and the fixed bias makes it really easy to maintain. It makes a great first tube amp, or a great amp for those who want killer metal tone on the cheap.

Features the same.
my lights are:
- Power: 4 Svetlana 6L6 GC
- Preamp: 12AX7 Ei 1, 2 12ax7EH Electro-Harmonix, Sovtek 12ax7LPS 1

UTILIZATION

Tete super easy with 3-band per channel
very accurate equalization except for the earnings from a 7 is more highly differentiated.
manual: non-existent, the dismemberment site builder does the reference even more!

the foot-swich ... no comment!

SOUNDS

is clean through with a special brilliance.
really nice crunch! the big rock by the low gain entry to the maiden hi gain through the Van Hallen ... al what!
disto (ultra) BIG SOUND, more than fender, marshall. less typical mesa that not as much punch as the 5150.
remains a very good amp for the large metal!

Cabinet: Peavey 412m
scratch: ESP M2 Deluxe (EMG 81)

OVERALL OPINION

Quality / price ratio: HUGE big sound for cheap! and more ... OCCAZ

a choice not regret if a re ...

The whole description is made by my prdcesseur.

UTILIZATION

Super easy to use, it would be Lego or Playmobil, which would have done the same thing happened, a real treat for maneuverability.
To get a good sound? ben connect the d
the Maniel I took it on the net because I bought used in 2001 and no booklet.

SOUNDS

Bon ben Here is the topic to what we are.
I play death metal genre in the At The Gates, Amon Amarth etc., and also jazz metal (atheist. ..).
For the metal I play on a blackjack Schekter 007, metal and jazz on a Lag The Beast Custom MODEL. While the passive DiMarzio and Seymour Duncan.
I use a Digitech RP2000 with all this, but I did not test, not to disturb the cards.

To death (with my Scheckter) it's going pretty well, we can draw a big juice very deep in the bass, the grain is wild.
jaz for metal (with my custom lag) I get to take advantage of two distos crunch and ultra-efficient clean sound with the pedal support otherwise the clear lack of charm.

Properties of the ca mtal cartonne well, peavey is the height of his reputation.

OVERALL OPINION

Since 2001 I always use, low volume (evening) or volume (repeated), it has always performed well.
What I like most is the application of metal though, and I think that no one buys to make the country
I try the peavey 5150 (less versatile), the Marshall heads (for the same price their sound is really bad for the death)
The price quality ratio is simply EXCELLENT.
I would do if I had the choice I repay a head in this price range (7000fr at the time)
Of course I hear guys say "yeah I prefer mesa" poor nazes you pass me the ball 20 miles (sorry Bieil a grudge

Amplifier always lamp: 4 12AX7 preamp in & 4 6L6GC power amp in
Amp-120w lamp (ie more in reality)
- Level connection we have: 2 inputs & low gain high gain
2 hp output with variable impedance
an effects loop
a din connector 7-pin for the footswitch
We have all the settings of such ypically amp: volume & gain for each channel, a passive EQ for clean & 3bandes another identical crunch & ultra channels

after a master volume, a master reverb (Accutronics)
important: a boost for each channel: gain boost for crunch, boost gain for the ultra, and boost the clean bright

and as important a 3 position switch for resonance

yes as a simpa: a switch to divide the power by 2 =)

UTILIZATION

-Config is pretty simple
A-side, j'aaaaaadore
-No manual but what it could be used

SOUNDS

-To everything that goes from rock to metal of all kinds is extremely effective in my opinion!
I use it with an ibanez rg 3120 prestige and vigier exca.
- Saturated the channels are really great .. clean on him is not bad but nothing special ..

OVERALL OPINION

-This has to 8 months that I use
-I like everything about this amp Quazi
-The value for money, I'd had to OCCAZ so it was very good ... then I had trouble with that is Quazi doubled its price .. but I'm still not disappointed

EDIT: {number} me later another problem rears its nose, the reverb has occasional moments of madness: it produces a sound very loud and Quazi removes all low, it gives her a very strange a caricature of his trident ultra punk xD
I could try some head brunetti (XI 120 & r evo pirata among others ...) and I admit unashamedly, I much prefer the texture of the ultra +! Other heads are certainly very good too (hand made in Italy and everyone says the greater good) but in any case is much the ultra precise and grain very different ... Comtpte I also find myself a combo to avoid having to move the big stack to repeat them and guess what I intended .... bah Ultra 212 course; D

New edit: after testing a single-sided ... the ultra is still my favorite; D
mesa fan does not upset you, I'm just saying I prefer the texture of the ultra was that of a duplex, I say that the front is the shit; D

Already said many times!
The footswitch is really shit but otherwise it's a vamp!

UTILIZATION

The "dashboard" is perfect!
no worries on that side! It took me 2 minutes chrono to find the sound I was dreaming with my head Warp7 transistor! what a slap, what a shock my friends! I still can not!
For the manual, I can not say I buy today has a Broc'n'roll Nimes (best shop in France by the way).

SOUNDS

You guessed it, I metalheads! And no, nobody buys this stuff for its clear! (Rather bland it is true)
My config is simple: - emg 81 in the m1000 LTD
LAG-7 string custom shop
Zoom-g9 I used to ring my warp7 but am I doing now in the effects loop of the head.
- A bad horsie wah
- And a marshall 8412 cabinet

one can obtain its root and rock and roll with the crunch (which saturates even when more than my head thrust back warp7) via van halen and finally a lamb of god and all that stuff the big Bourin!
I do not like light, like most people they have, it's the same problem on 6505, but other channels! MAGIC

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for today!
I tried a head of THERMION Ibanez, 6505 and 6505 +, laney gh100, line6/bogner ... nothing comparable to the ultra more!
RAPORT very good value for money especially after a dozen years since its release! 800 euro is not bad!
after the shock and sensory hearing my choice I would do a million times if I had money!

Peavey is certainly one of my favorite amp builders. Simply for two reason..the first being they make inexpensive amp competitively priced for low budget consumers. In this economic climate that is a great thing. The second is that their high gain amps are just perfect sounding for the price. Those amps that I am particularly impressed with are the 5150's, 65606's, and the 6534's. These amp are Peavey's bread and butter amp and they have some a great character and voicing to them that makes them very appealing to a lot of rock players.

This amp though not as impressive as the above mentioned still has a great sound a a solid tone for hard rock and metal playing.

UTILIZATION

Peavey Ultra Plus 120 Head Specs:
-Four 12AX7 premap tubes
-Four 6L6GC output tubes
-120 watts RMS @ 4,8, or 16 ohms
-Three switchable channels
-Master Reverb
-Master level control
-Three-position resonance switch
-half-power switch
-Peavey Ultra Plus online PDF Manual

Clean Channel:
-Level control
-Push bright
-Three-band EQ

Crunch & Ultra Channels:
-Pre & post gain
-Gain boost switch
-Three-band EQ

SOUNDS

This amp sounds more like a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier than any other amp they have produced. Though it isn't exactly like e Dual Rectifier there are similarities that would make it a close competitor for someone looking into either one of these amps.

I like all Peavey amps with a good humbucker pickup installed guitar. I find that the Peavey's to be a little fizzy and nasally in their voicing and a decent thick guitar with a humbucker helps tame some of that noise in my opinion. Some of that noise is actually appealing in some ways and sometimes annoying to others. I personally like the way their distortions react and sound.

OVERALL OPINION

I don't Peavey is making these amps anymore and have new series amps that have replaced them. I think they can be found pretty inexpensively in the classifieds or on evilbay.

These are good amps but if I have the choice i would get a 6505+ head or maybe a 6534 instead of this amp.They are good amps but the 65605 used would be just about the same price or maybe a few hundred more but certainly a much better amp than this one.

The Peavey Ultra Plus is a 3 channel, 120 watt tube amplifier. It's considered the precursor to the Triple X and the Joe Satriani JSX lines of amps. The amp is powered by the fairly standard compliment of 12AX7s in the preamp section and 6L6s in the power section. There is also an effects loop and a reverb on the head, as well as a full/half power switch and a three position Resonance switch for a tighter or looser feel.

There are three channels on the amp: Clean, Crunch, and Ultra. They are each footswitchable as well. Each channel has its own gain and volume control, and they all share the same set of standard bass, middle and treble controls. It can be somewhat difficult to dial in each channel with only one shared EQ, but once it's dialed in it was pretty killer. I haven't used the effects loop enough to comment on it. The reverb was nice... not too cavernous but also audible enough that you could hear it easily. All in all I felt that it was very well laid out amp and its modern voicing contrasted nicely to my Mesa Boogie Mark III head that I ran in stereo with it.

(The amp also has a really funky logo that lights up and changes colours depending on the channel you're on. Green is clean, Orange is crunch, and Red is ultra. How cool is that?)



UTILIZATION

As far as the amp's setup, It was fairly simple to do. The channels are laid out very simply. The clean was, well... clean. The crunch channel was akin to more of a Marshall-y vibe... think classic L.A rock gunslinger tone, very brown. The ultra channel was the highest gain of the three channels and it was kind of like the supersaturated modern tone that so many bands used in the late nineties and early in the 2000's. I found it to be a little bit tighter sounding than the Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier, but a different, more restrained voicing when compared to the 5150/5150II.

I'd say the biggest hurdle I had with the initial setup was getting each channel to work with the shared equalization controls. The amp naturally had a fair bit of high end in the distortion channels... so I would turn down the treble, but it made the cleans then rather dark. In the end I had to compromise with slightly brighter distortion tones than I would've liked just to make the cleans have some sparkle... but all in all I was happy enough with the tones. I found that the rig took to humbuckers better than single coils, so that's what I'm basing my tonal opinions off of.

SOUNDS

When I had the Ultra Plus head, I was using it with either a Basson 2x12 or an old Traynor 2x12. Guitar wise I had a Parker Fly Deluxe, a Warmoth Telecaster with DiMarzio Twang Kings and an eighties Yamaha RGX 612a with stock active electronics. Here's a breakdown of how I found each channel with my main rig (Parker Fly, U+, and the Basson cabinet):

Clean - Fairly neutral sounding channel. It had a bit of sparkle to it as you turned the treble up, but overall I didn't find it to be quite that remarkable. I'd say it was somewhat scooped in nature, so it lacked a bit of that midrange texture that I find so great. It sounded decent when I added in a bit of reverb... but most things generally do, so...

Crunch - I liked this channel quite a bit. It reminded me a lot of that classic L.A rock sound. Very biting and articulate and great for the Van Halen/Dokken/Loudness type of vibe. I found it to be best in the "loose" resonance setting which made it react more like a British amp. If you tightened up the Resonance and added a bit more gain I found that the channel worked fairly well for modern tones as well... just with a slightly more vintage flavour.

Ultra - This was definitely my favourite channel on the amp. It was extremely good for high gain riffage and soloing, but it was also quite dynamic and worked really well when I would roll my guitar volume back. The only caveat is that it sounded a bit too compressed when I had it in the tightest Resonance setting, but otherwise I quite enjoyed this channel. It was great for dropped D type stuff as well as a bunch of modern lead based passages. It compared very favourably to my Mesa Mark III as well... the pair of them made a very nice contrast!

OVERALL OPINION

Overall I feel like the Ultra Plus a killer value for the money. I think they're an extremely cool and underrated amp that are overshadowed next to the 5150s. The dirty tones were really cool, very modern and crunchy... and the Resonance switch allowed me to go from more of a classic voicing to modern. Like I said prior, the amp sounded killer in tandem with my Mesa Mark III head. The Mesa was more of a smooth, lead based voicing, so I set up the Ultra plus for more chunk and saturation... and the two of them blended together quite nicely. They're a real sleeper amp that can usually be had for under $400 if you look... I paid $300 for mine and I felt it was worth every penny. If you're looking for a well built, durable alternative to something like a 5150 or Dual Rec for high gains... give the Ultra Plus a shot for sure!

(For those interested, I did a video demo comparing the two amps a while back which can be seen here

(Originally written by Nevercold/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
Everything has been already said about this product! I agree that the footswitch is a bit annoying (when you want to switch to an ultra distortion you get a clean sound instead because you have long feet.

UTILIZATION

Easy configuration:

- Treble, mid and bass controls on the clean channel!

- Bottom, body an edge controls for crunch and ultra!

Just turn the knobs and you'll find your sound!

SOUNDS

The most important paragraph:

Clean: In the beginning I found the clean sound rather dull, almost as if it were damped by a pillow. But I've found a good treble/middle/bass and bright setting. I get a nice clean sound good enough for heavy metal, which is the main purpose of this head.

- Crunch: very nice sound. I personally don't play ACDC or Silver Dirt but if it were the case I'd use this channel. If you max the drive and use adequate settings, you'll even get a powerful and accurate death metal, thrash metal and hardcore sound (compared with the imprecise response of a mesa). I use this channel for rhythm parts with distortion and it's good enough to play some Through the Eyes of the Dead, Chimaira or August Burns Red (if you previously engaged the boost switch .

- Ultra: It's worthy of its name! It provides a warm and punchy sound with powerful lows! The boost function adds a bit of punch to the sound but it's not necessary unless you want to have feedbacks! I use this channel only for solos. It can give you strong attacks (especially if you use the neck pickup of your guitar) and much more precision than a Mesa amp! This sound has too much lows to be used for rhythm parts.

OVERALL OPINION

- I've been using it for eight months.

- I upgraded the power tubes three months ago. I still use the original preamp tubes. I installed Groove 6L6 power tubes. And you can clearly hear the difference!

- Pros: sound precision and color. It's a Peavey so either you'll like it or not at all! I play a Jackson JS30 KV. If you want to play deathcore, thrash or black metal stuff with a precise sound and good palm mutes it's the perfect amp head for you!

- Cons: Very heavy (don't take it out of your rehearsal room)!

I tested a Dual Rectifier, several Marshalls, a Peavey Valveking, an Engl Fireball 60... The Dual rectifier produces too much noise and Marshall amps have not enough gain! The Engl could compete with Peavey because it has the same properties (accuracy, attacks, warmth, etc.) but provides a higher distortion and a more present sound.

I bought it secondhand and I think it was a good deal! Especially after replacing the tubes.



I would buy it again!

(Originally written by nihilsbajo/translated from Audiofanzine FR)

120-watt tube amp with 6l6 and 4 preamp valves. Integrated reverb, ridiculously small footswitch, effect loop, 2 inputs (high/low), switch to halve the output power, 3-position switch to adjust the lows to the room. You won't miss anything.
The transformers seem to be good (they are really big). It doesn't look fragile. It's made in the USA. Anyway it seems to be really sturdy. I heard Peavey had a faulty series and did a recall but not all customers had sent in their warranty cards so problems arose after a while.

UTILIZATION

It's very easy to setup the amp: the clean channel is set in a few seconds (EQ placed before the preamp in the signal path) and the lead channels have separate gain and volume controls (one for crunch sound and one for hi-gain distortion). You have the usual treble, mid and bass EQs and a very effective master control! The user's manual is short but concise.

SOUNDS

Clean channel: Quite simple. The EQ lets you boost some frequencies before the signal goes into the preamp but you cannot shape the sound. This means that you'll have to use your guitar's pickup selector—which isn't necessary a bad thing since you'll get your instrument's real sound!
Crunch channel: my favorite. Rather old-school with a real Marshall character. I don't know if they drew their inspiration from the JCM800 but it sounds suspiciously similar, with a tighter and more pleasant character though! The gain can be huge and you actually have an integrated level boost to play all music styles! The mid frequency range is very present but you can really craft the sound. Personally I set it almost to the max. You can play anything from Alice in Chains to Darkthrone.
Hi Gain channel: Shares the same EQ as the crunch channel and also has a gain-boost switch which is virtually wasted because the gain level is already too hot. This channel sounds very different compared to the crunch channel because the emphasized frequencies aren't the same. The sound is definitely modern with powerful lows and less presence. It's perfect for solos I guess (I loathe them), or for a big death-metal sound. The sound is very american without being grotesque.

Not an ultra versatile sound but a good solution for things like rock, black metal, thrash, death and so on... It's the sound I was looking for!

OVERALL OPINION

I haven't actually used for such a long time. But if I ever change my mind I'll edit my review. Anyway it's perfect with my 2x12" cabinet (V30)!
The biggest turnoff is the footswitch. I think I will try to fit it in a homemade case...
I already tested several amps: small solid-state amps, Randall RG50T (which I sold to get this amp), Peavey 5150 combo (I didn't like it), Engl Powerball and Mesa Rectifier. It's the best at what it does! Of course a Mesa would have been good but I got intoxicated by its outrageously fat sound. I guess if I get a Rectifier simulation pedal it'll do.
Till now I've been totally satisfied with my choice! I bought it by chance after I sold my Randall and I had second thoughts about other amp heads like Laboga Alligator, Hiwatt Hi Gain, Marshall JVM and Vintage Modern; I'm really happy.