Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Gr8Scott

Gr8Scott

Wookieologist
Ears are ringing like mad. I really need to wear ear plugs when I use this amp. I've modded the heck out of this amp and it sounds pretty darned good thus far. Much more like a real deal JCM-800 with that customary Marshall roar. I completely retubed it when I finished the mods and two of the new pre-tubes died in the V2 slot (actually V5 according to Peavey) after roughly two hours of play time each. I could have gotten two bad tubes because I can't see anything obviously wrong with what I've done mod-wise and it sounds great until the volume fades out. I'm trying a pre-tube now that has been used in other amps with success to see if it lives very long. If it lasts for while, I'm gonna call it quits and button the amp up for now. If it dies, I'll test each tube pin and see if I can find strange voltages etc.

I've found a way to put a LAR/MAR PPIMV in place of the existing master volume. I'll probably do that before I finally button this amp up for good and have a custom enclosure made for me by a friend with a cabinet shop. It would be nice to tame this 120 watt monster's volume down to more manageable levels without destroying the tone it has. The custom enclosure will allow me to shed a ton of excess weight this amp has as the original enclosure literally weighs the same as the chassis loaded with transformers and tubes etc. I'll find something lightweight and durable to use. Most enclosures are maybe 1/5 of the total weight of the amp head.

I've been looking to see if the master volume has a bright cap installed somewhere to make it sound really piercing at lower volumes. I can't see anything in the schematic or on the layout that really catches my eye other than the fact that the master volume is built in to the EQ section and is definitely pre-phase inverter. Being that close to the EQ section must be having an adverse effect on the tone of the amp when the volume is low. Cranked up, the tone is awe-inspiring and thick.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Sounds great and should look good with a custom enclosure...

These are supposedly very cool amps for very little dough.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

I had great tinkering with both a Butcher and VTM. Once you get the upper mid junk out of there, they roar really nicely!
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Too bad you can't post up some sound clips. I would love to hear it.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Sounds like a bright JCM-800 at less than ear destroying volumes. Tons of character and bluesy as can be. I really want to get this one ironed out so I can use it more. It has sooo much potential. It would make such a great addition to my arsenal of amps. The Edana is a great head but it's more refined than this amp and has less lower mids. To me, the ultimate amp has always been the JCM-800 and I'd love for this head to give me that tone consistently. It would be one heck of a coup to have that tone out of an amp that cost me $200 in a pawn shop. With some massaging, this amp could easily be my #1 distortion amp if I can make it reliable.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Gr8Scott said:
Sounds like a bright JCM-800 at less than ear destroying volumes. Tons of character and bluesy as can be. I really want to get this one ironed out so I can use it more. It has sooo much potential. It would make such a great addition to my arsenal of amps. The Edana is a great head but it's more refined than this amp and has less lower mids. To me, the ultimate amp has always been the JCM-800 and I'd love for this head to give me that tone consistently. It would be one heck of a coup to have that tone out of an amp that cost me $200 in a pawn shop. With some massaging, this amp could easily be my #1 distortion amp if I can make it reliable.
Click to expand...

Don't worry, Skynyrd Rocked Peavey. Thats waht I meant by my 'Free Bird' comment in case no one got it . I'm sure Hartley had those Peavey amps tweaked fro Skynyrd to be as Marshallesque as possible, because thats the sound Skynyrd finally ended up with I think, was Marshall.
Thiose Butchers also make fairly Good bass amps with the six 6l6's- I mena, they are no SVT, but can get some low end punch and rumble.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

I played a Butcher in a pawn shop once, through a 1960 cab. That thing sounded great, but it took all I had to pick it up. I see they have done a re-issue of it. sounds like a killer amp. Rock that thang bro!
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

I've done some further mods while I'm testing the middle pre to see if it lasts. It's lasted OK thus far. The tube doesn't light up much, so maybe I've got a problem with the heaters on that one for some reason. I'll have to check it out with the multi-tester. It's running fine thus far though. My ears sure are getting a workout.

So I upgraded the bass control capacitor C19 from a .022uf to a .047uf as well as removed the treble peaking circuit going from the input jacks to the volume putting a 65k resistor in it's place. I also snipped the treble bleed cap on the volume. I removed the 470pf grid cap from the second pre tube. This gave the rig much better bass response and the excessive treble has been tamed. It's amazing now. It's thick enough that I might just have to dial back the bass knob just a hair. Each mod along the way did it's part to give this amp the thump and authority it needs to sound it's best. I tested it after each and every mod to hear it coming along and each mod was noticeable and definitely necessary.

This was one seriously bright amp before the mods. Now she's throaty and full with the gravelly whiskey-soaked voice that previously only a Marshall could provide. I am in awe of the tone thus far. I don't see myself making any other internal changes other than for reliability if needed. I don't think anyone could tell the difference between this amp and a real JCM-800 if they were blindfolded. Now I just need to make sure she's reliable and then get my friend to make an enclosure for me.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Ive heard for years that the Butcher is a killer amp.. Are they good on their own, or only after you mod em?
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

the new ones are supposed to be much different ....
don't have em in the store yet ... don't know when they're shipping yet either ....

put em on yer radar, is the word on the playground
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

BloodRose said:
Ive heard for years that the Butcher is a killer amp.. Are they good on their own, or only after you mod em?
Click to expand...

They are good stock with the right speakers and the right tubes. They are very close to a JCM-800. Very close, but different sounding enough due to the output tubes. With the exception of the output stage of the amp and the bias setup, the preamp is completely identical to a JCM-800 and the transformers are sooooo close to being the same thing. It isn't very hard at all to mod the circuit to be an exact copy of a Marshall JCM-800. Just got to know what you are doing.



This should give you an idea. Really sounds like a cross between a fender and a marshall given the tone this guy is getting. The one I bought sounded more like a marshall initially than the example in the vid. Now it's identical if you don't look at it.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

MetalManiac said:
Don't worry, Skynyrd Rocked Peavey. Thats waht I meant by my 'Free Bird' comment in case no one got it . I'm sure Hartley had those Peavey amps tweaked fro Skynyrd to be as Marshallesque as possible, because thats the sound Skynyrd finally ended up with I think, was Marshall.
Thiose Butchers also make fairly Good bass amps with the six 6l6's- I mena, they are no SVT, but can get some low end punch and rumble.
Click to expand...

Not to go too OT, but:

f you look at the footage back then you'll often see Marshalls sitting with those Peavey heads. The story is they played the Marshalls & Fenders, and the Peaveys were mostly for show/there as backups due to the endorsement deal. Allen & Gary in particular.

You can see the wall of Marshalls behind the Peaveys in this vid at several points.

 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Gr8Scott said:
I've done some further mods while I'm testing the middle pre to see if it lasts. It's lasted OK thus far. The tube doesn't light up much, so maybe I've got a problem with the heaters on that one for some reason. I'll have to check it out with the multi-tester. It's running fine thus far though. My ears sure are getting a workout.

So I upgraded the bass control capacitor C19 from a .022uf to a .047uf as well as removed the treble peaking circuit going from the input jacks to the volume putting a 65k resistor in it's place. I also snipped the treble bleed cap on the volume. I removed the 470pf grid cap from the second pre tube. This gave the rig much better bass response and the excessive treble has been tamed. It's amazing now. It's thick enough that I might just have to dial back the bass knob just a hair. Each mod along the way did it's part to give this amp the thump and authority it needs to sound it's best. I tested it after each and every mod to hear it coming along and each mod was noticeable and definitely necessary.

This was one seriously bright amp before the mods. Now she's throaty and full with the gravelly whiskey-soaked voice that previously only a Marshall could provide. I am in awe of the tone thus far. I don't see myself making any other internal changes other than for reliability if needed. I don't think anyone could tell the difference between this amp and a real JCM-800 if they were blindfolded. Now I just need to make sure she's reliable and then get my friend to make an enclosure for me.
Click to expand...

That is where the magic is in those monsters. Getting em warm and fat, they can do a nice Super Bass impersonation...
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

Gr8Scott said:
They are good stock with the right speakers and the right tubes. They are very close to a JCM-800. Very close, but different sounding enough due to the output tubes. With the exception of the output stage of the amp and the bias setup, the preamp is completely identical to a JCM-800 and the transformers are sooooo close to being the same thing. It isn't very hard at all to mod the circuit to be an exact copy of a Marshall JCM-800. Just got to know what you are doing.



This should give you an idea. Really sounds like a cross between a fender and a marshall given the tone this guy is getting. The one I bought sounded more like a marshall initially than the example in the vid. Now it's identical if you don't look at it.
Click to expand...

thanks for the info! I know that JCM800s seemed to be modder's dreams.. It seems like everyone in the 80s had their 800s modded..
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

One quick caveat. I said that I can't imagine making any further internal changes and that isn't correct. I am going to hard wire the current master volume wide open and then remove the pot and install a LAR/MAR PPIMV in it's place. I've got to do something about the volume. It has to be loud to sound it's best. I would really enjoy being able to use it without giving myself hearing loss in the process.

Bloodrose - I don't recall any stock JCM-800 ever being as bright as this amp was, but I can fully understand why someone would have one modded if it were like that. I'm running it through V30 clones that are broken in.

One additional bonus to removing both the treble peak circuits was it added small amounts of gain along the signal path. The lower frequencies aren't being filtered out anymore and are able to push the amp a bit more now. Lots of guys tried to get more gain out of the JCM-800 back in the day by adding tubes and punching holes in their chassis etc. Subtly adding gain by removing the treble peak circuits does far more good IMHO and doesn't introduce noise to the circuit.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

JeffB said:
Not to go too OT, but:

f you look at the footage back then you'll often see Marshalls sitting with those Peavey heads. The story is they played the Marshalls & Fenders, and the Peaveys were mostly for show/there as backups due to the endorsement deal. Allen & Gary in particular.

You can see the wall of Marshalls behind the Peaveys in this vid at several points.

Click to expand...

Not sure, but I think I see Jolly at that concert at 1.50 seconds.
 
Re: Fired up the old Peavey Butcher tonight.

All of those old Peavey amps are monsters: The Rock Master and Road Master; the Mace, the Butcher, the VTM 60 and 120 and the Triumph; they're some of the best deals around if you just want a basic amp for rock and roll. Most of the distortion circuits ("Saturation") aren' that great, but if you're just needing clean power for your pedals, they work well. Even the Hybrids, like the VT Classic and MX, or the Heritage can be great finds.

Bill
 
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