First real amp.

Re: First real amp.

After looking around it actually looks like the Peavey Studio Chorus 212. Although I can't be sure until I get back there.
 
Re: First real amp.

Mallowpuff said:
The other thing with the Special something is that right on it, It said what it was almost like the Bandit if I can remember correctly. And I'm 99% sure it said Scorpion on it also. Sorry for my forgetfulness, once again..
Click to expand...

Was it a Special 112? could also be a 212 or 130. Most of the specials are basically bandits just 130 watts. Some are 1x12 some are 2x12. Scorpion would fit right with the blue line. In all honest I'm not a fan of those amps but many around here are. If you try and dig it go for it. Though I might hold out for a better price on one... 250 is a bit steep. They can often be found for half that.

Most of the solid state peaveys from that time have the same voicing. What you were choosing was power.. speakers and a few features. The studio pro was 35 watts and 1x12 the express was 65 watts and 1x12 the bandit was 80 watts and 1x12. All had the same voicing and most of the same features. Granted this might have changed I havent paid any attention to these amps since the transtube series was brought out probably 15 years ago.

Here is my honest advice. Growing up my friends and others that I knew who played guitar I saw them all do the same thing. They sort of bought amps in succession, They would get a 15 watt 1x8.. then a 35 watt 1x10 then a 80 watt 1x12 then a 100 watt 2x12... etc... If you add it up its a ton of money spent on amps that you ultimately wont keep. Try to avoid this. Get you something to start out on... Just something solid something you think sounds ok and you have fun with. What it is doesnt matter so much. Then just play. Play your eyeballs out. But dont be so tempted to buy "stepping stone" gear. When you start to develop and understand what you want and need from an amp then set your sights on an amp and save to get that one.

I was smart in that I got a cool amp as my first amp. What I wasnt smart about was I instead of just playing I got caught up in that it wasnt givng me the exact sound I was chasing and I started buying others (Hell i was dumb enough to even buy 2 more heads without being able to demo them first only to be severely disappointed when I got them). If i would have spent time with my first amp i would have learned it had exactly what I wanted I just didnt know yet how to get it out of it.
 
Re: First real amp.

I think it was some kind of Special, it was definitely a 212 and almost definitely Scorpion. If it is a special 212 could it still play on low volume and sound good? Although if they really go for that cheap, I'll look more into the Vyper or if I can find one, a Bandit.

That's one reason I wanted the bandit, There is supposedly a switch on the back making it able to go from 20% power to 40% and so on, But also be able to do the full 100 Watts so that I can keep it for awhile even I do end up doing a gig or something with it.

After looking at everything about the bandit I'm quite sure it will work perfectly for me, And I'll probably test it first.
 
Re: First real amp.

The difference in volume between 20 watts and 100 watts is almost nothing. The difference between 50 watts and 100 watts is only 3db which is only marginally audible. To get twice the volume as a 50 watt amp you need 500 watts. So basically a 100 watt amp is twice as loud as a 10 watt amp. Speaker efficiency in the form of DB's makes much more difference.

Heres the thing is that solid state amps arent like tube amps the amps dont get better sounding as you turn them up. In fact its the opposite as the amp runs out of extra power in the form of headroom and starts to clip it doesnt sound very pleasing to your ears. Now some people will scream that no their solid state amp sounds better when its louder.. and they are right but its not because of the amp its because you are working the speakers and pushing air.

This is where the switch on the back of a bandit doesnt make sense to me. A solid state amp doesnt react like a tube amp does to being turned up. The idea in a tube amp is they use the lower power settings so you can turn it up a bit more and get tube saturation. There are no tubes to saturate in a bandit. I know the earlier transtube bandits had a power knob on the front labeled "T dynamics" and it gave a percentage as its scale and the manual made people think that it was really a way to change the power output. This wasnt true at all, it was a compressor. I'm wondering if the power scaling on the back of the newer bandits is the same thing. As you turn up a tube amp one of the effects you get is compression its a way of simulating a tube amp getting louder. I havent looked at the schematic to verify but what I think happens with the bandit is the switch gives you more compression at lower volumes. (i might be wrong on this but i cant see any other reason why they would put the power scaling)

You can definitely gig with less than 100 watts. A friend of mine gigged for a long time with a Mesa Subway rocket 20 watt amp and never turned it up loud. He hated carrying big amps he liked to be able to walk into a club with a small back pack with cords and pedals and a guitar in one hand and his amp in the other.

There are a ton of amps in the price range and size our looking at. Dont count them all out yet. You can find killer deals on the older crate solid states and they will run right along side the peavey. Vox has put out a series called "valvetronix" I think they knock the vypers junk into the dirt. So look out for those too.
 
Re: First real amp.

I agree with Edgecrusher
I got a Laney solid state amp (GC80A- Acoustic/Electric) for free (Guitar Player Magazine) and thought a tube amp would be so much better

but it was not
the tube amp (Carvin Belair-50 watt Tweed) sounds good mind you

but not better than the Laney
the Laney has a warm British Clean with Marshally grind channel
the Carvin has the sparking cleans of a Fender with a gritty lead channel

I have a Roland Cube30, it was thrown in with another deal with the aforementioned Ascension
it sounds nice
it models the Fender, Marshall, Vox
they are exact replicas but have enough of the flavor to make them recognizable
and it does fit nicely in the vein of a grab-n-go gig/practice amp

I have a modeling pedal as well
the Digitech GNX3000 , headphone out, drum loops, tons of amp models
if I was a beginner this is what I would want
the drum beats alone make it worthwhile
everyone else in the house will appreciate the headphones
a powered speaker will let you practice with your "gang"
it can become your pedal board when you you move up to a guitar amp
if decide to play bass it has five bass amp models as well

Bandits are rock solid
most Peaveys are

solid state amps in general are easier to maintain by a wide margin
 
Re: First real amp.

Well, I really had no idea about that, Edgecrusher!! Thanks!!! Where would you be looking for used Amps? I mean, I like my local guitar shop but they really do seem overpriced, that won't stop me from buying from there, but I would rather get my first amp cheaper because of my So low it's non existent yet budget.

Thanks, Ehdwuld!! About Ascension, is that a member here or something? :?:

Where's/What's the name of his shop? I didn't really understand what you meant on the first post. :p And thanks for the information!!
 
Re: First real amp.

So would something like this work? And without buying "Pro coverage" and I just get it and it doesn't work, They'll take it back?
 
Re: First real amp.

Mallowpuff said:
So would something like this work? And without buying "Pro coverage" and I just get it and it doesn't work, They'll take it back?
Click to expand...

I mean they check it for malfunction in store (theoretically lol) but if it goes funky on you there's a limited return window.
 
Re: First real amp.

if you click this link

on the right hand side
type "Bandit" under Keyword
scroll down to search

you'll see about ten items show up

one is in Montgomery for $99
110539700_lg.jpg
you have 30 days after purchasing it
to decide if you like it or not

if somethings wrong or you just don't like it
then take it to your local GC with the receipt for a refund
tax and all
if it works fine but you just don't want it
they may not refund shipping

but you may be able to pick up the one in Montgomery


if you want the one you linked then thats ok
its one of the newer Chinese made ones with a Blue Marvel speaker I think

they should be fine

looking at the features of the newer ones, I'm impressed
still may benefit from a new speaker
 
Re: First real amp.

Thanks HALENisking and ehdwuld! Yeah, I've been told that GC isn't so great at "Testing" the items they get. :lol:

ehdwuld, if you had a choice between either of those two Bandits, not thinking about price, which one would you pick?
 
Re: First real amp.

I like the power scaling on the newer one
and the emulated line out

for $50 bucks more, if those features are something you might want

figure on a new speaker at some point
but hey it could sound great

scale the power back its a practice/bedroom amp

if it were me
I would take the newer one
 
Re: First real amp.

ehdwuld said:
I like the power scaling on the newer one
and the emulated line out

for $50 bucks more, if those features are something you might want

figure on a new speaker at some point
but hey it could sound great

scale the power back its a practice/bedroom amp

if it were me
I would take the newer one
Click to expand...

Alrighty!!! How much would a new speaker cost? And how hard would it be to find one? And, Is the return period 30 days even for used gear? Oh and is there Layaway on used items that were needed to be shipped to the store there?

Again, thanks so much for all of your help!!!
 
Last edited:
Re: First real amp.

look at the link

theres several on there

you will have to call the store

if you find one you like
you can put a "down payment" ($5 or 10) to hold it

make your payments like its layaway

then they will ship to you when they get the final payment
and 30 days is from when you receive it either new or used

when you receive something like this
play it loud for about an hour or so
put it thru its paces

if the speaker or something has a flaw
the heat will make it show up

down here they had a Peavey Special dirt cheap
but after about twenty mins of playing it it just cut off
sounded good until it didn't
 
Re: First real amp.

Alrighty, I'll probably find something on there to put on layaway if I don't find anything at the guitar shop I go to on Thursday again. :D
 
Re: First real amp.

Alright, I went to the guitar shop. They didn't have a Bandit but the owner leaned me towards a Roland cube 30. He said he could get a bandit, yet he still wanted me to get the Cube so I think he honestly thought it better for me. They have it up for 175$, but they have a 3 month non strict layaway so I think I'm gonna get it. I also tested it out and I thought it sounded great. Do you have anything to say about it?
 
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