how do I get the most out of my amp?!

[a7x_rox_12]

hello all,

I bought a peavey xxx head back in the summer of '08 because i needed a louder amp for a gig. I had played them and remembered liking them, but it had been awhile since i had played one when i bought it. (I got it used off ebay) i also bought a cheap peavey windsor cabinet out of haste, but I had always liked peavey products so i figured i couldnt go wrong. But when I hooked everything up, I was dissapointed in the sound. I thought it was the tubes, which were the originals from 2007. I just now got around to putting in some new JJ el34's and though it sounds better, it doesnt sound near good enough to be a mesa alternative like people claim. (I dont want a mesa sound, but I assumed it was of the same quality.) If i stand a good 10 feet away from the amp, it sounds fine, but the louder it gets, the farther away I have to stand. Is that normal for large amps? I had a little crate v1512 before and I'm just trying to get it to sound as good as that did, and i'm not having any luck.

when i record into cubase, I get a decent tone, but I have to dose it up with eq and junk; im using a sm57, I should be able to get a decent raw sound, but i dont.

so my question is, what needs to be done to help me out? do i need a new cabinet, or should the amp go? I want to get an EQ pedal, would that make a whole lot of difference? I'm pretty sure the amp can sound good, i trust it to be atleast better than a valveking, windsor, etc, (which sound good IMO) especially since they have been making them since the early 2000's and people keep buying them.

sorry to take so long to get to the point.

 

[Virtual Kevorkian]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

New cabinet first. Also, get an overdrive pedal like an SD-1 or Maxon OD808 and run it infront with the gain down and level up.

 

[a7x_rox_12]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

i use a ds1 currently, it helps.

how much will a cabinet help, and what should I look for?

 

[Virtual Kevorkian]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

DS-1 and OD pedals are completely different and will sounds worlds apart, with the OD being better for what you're doing.

A cabinet will make a night-and-day difference. Anything with V30's. My favorites are Mesa, Bogner, Splawn, and Marshall, probably in that order.

One of Marshalls MF400 cabs with the G12K100's wouldn't be bad at all, either.

 

[a7x_rox_12]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

oh. well no wonder i was hating the tone

I dont mind if my cab doesnt say "Mesa" or "Marshall," if i found a no-name cab with some v30's or g12's on craigslist would that be a decent alternative.

In theory, the speakers and the brand name are all your paying for right?

 

[supernosher]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

The preamp tubes have a dramatic affect on your amp's sound. You should find the right brand preamp tubes for your amp. JJ, Mullard, GE, RCA, Chinese, Sovtek, etc are all different in sound.

Closed back speakers are more directional than open backed, like in a combo amp. Alot of guys are finding that the new Eminence speakers are better built, and sound better than Celestion's, and they're cheaper too!

You should expect to have to tweak the EQ when you're recording. That's totally normal, totally healthy...

Try the cheapest things first, and then move up in expense.

 

[scottish]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

If you cant EQ it sound good with amp controls itself then i doubt an EQ pedal will help you. I have learned recently, from advice and experience, that in terms of recording, the mic placement makes a world of difference. You could try messing with that.

Considering however, that you dont like the live sound, a new cab might be the first order of business.

 

[Virtual Kevorkian]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

In theory, the speakers and the brand name are all your paying for right?

No, not at all. Not in a million years! The construction and material of the cab makes a HUGE amount of difference, and because of that, I'll take a Recto cabinet over 90% of the other cabinets on the market, regardless of speakers.

 

[CaughtLikeFire]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

so my question is, what needs to be done to help me out? do i need a new cabinet, or should the amp go?

the Peavey XXX can get some great modern metal tones. I wouldn't ditch the amp.

buy a few preamp tubes first like Supernosher said. just try changing V1, the tube farthest away from your power transformer. www.dougstubes.com is the place to go. send them an email to get a few suggestions and you should be able to get away spending no more than $50.

if that helps but it's still not enough, time to get a speaker cab.

used Mesa, VHT, and Bogner are all over Craigslist. I just sold a like new Mesa 4x12 for $600 . . .

and hey, you can always try out a friend's cab or take the XXX head to Guitar Center first. try out some higher end cabs and if that doesn't help, you know it's time for a different amp.

you could also look into Avatar and Ear Candy for new cabs. I'll have an Ear Candy Buzzbomb review up in the next few weeks I hope.

 

[supernosher]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

If you cant EQ it sound good with amp controls itself then i doubt an EQ pedal will help you. I have learned recently, from advice and experience, that in terms of recording, the mic placement makes a world of difference. You could try messing with that.

Considering however, that you dont like the live sound, a new cab might be the first order of business.

Yeah scottish is right, I just assume that everyone knows how important mic placement is. You know what people say about polishing a turd...

That said, you're not going to hear the sounds you hear on your favorite albums without some sort of polish.

 

[super rad stuff]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

i'd also reccomend changing out the v-1 tube, possibly all of your pre-amp tubes. IIRC most peavey amps come with JJs in the pre, and may be the culprit of bad tone- they were in my case anyways. see where that tube change gets you, the results will probably be good. btw that windsor cab isn't half bad once you break it in....

 

[SlowGroove]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

hello all,

I bought a peavey xxx head back in the summer of '08 because i needed a louder amp for a gig. I had played them and remembered liking them, but it had been awhile since i had played one when i bought it. (I got it used off ebay) i also bought a cheap peavey windsor cabinet out of haste, but I had always liked peavey products so i figured i couldnt go wrong. But when I hooked everything up, I was dissapointed in the sound. I thought it was the tubes, which were the originals from 2007. I just now got around to putting in some new JJ el34's and though it sounds better, it doesnt sound near good enough to be a mesa alternative like people claim. (I dont want a mesa sound, but I assumed it was of the same quality.) If i stand a good 10 feet away from the amp, it sounds fine, but the louder it gets, the farther away I have to stand. Is that normal for large amps? I had a little crate v1512 before and I'm just trying to get it to sound as good as that did, and i'm not having any luck.

when i record into cubase, I get a decent tone, but I have to dose it up with eq and junk; im using a sm57, I should be able to get a decent raw sound, but i dont.

so my question is, what needs to be done to help me out? do i need a new cabinet, or should the amp go? I want to get an EQ pedal, would that make a whole lot of difference? I'm pretty sure the amp can sound good, i trust it to be atleast better than a valveking, windsor, etc, (which sound good IMO) especially since they have been making them since the early 2000's and people keep buying them.

sorry to take so long to get to the point.

SPEAKERS :headbang:

Most cost effective up grade for any amp.
If you chose the correct speakers, your amp will sound better, and will be much louder, depending on the efficiency of the chosen driver.


James

 

[a7x_rox_12]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

I put new jj pre amp tubes in when i swapped the power tubes. I've always like the jj's.

as for the speakers, i saw 2 celestion v30's on craigslist for 60 bucks, i'll prolly look into that

 

[lex666]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

+2 SPEAKERS

I'm the proud owner of an amp that nobody seems to like, a Marshall TSL602 combo... I kinda understand why nobody likes 'em... the stock speakers sounded like crap... I swapped them for a pair of V30's and it was nite and day for me... I love this amp now. Smartest thing I've probably done for my tone thus far... Now I'm finally hearing that elusive tone in my head. I can feel confident that if there's something unpleasant about my tone, eq, effects, noise etc... its not my amp.

 

[Fender_Punk]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

to sum up these suggestions in order I would try them:

New pre-amp tubes. (change them all. Others may disagree but I think Sovtek pre-amp tubes are pretty good.)

If not enough try new speakers in the same cab.

Still not enough? sell the cab w/ original speakers and buy an empty cab to put the new speakers in.

 

[JOLLY]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

11.

 

[super rad stuff]

Re: how do I get the most out of my amp?!

11.

mine has more:eyecrazy::naughty: