Inflames626
New member
Hi guys,
As a resident of a Southern state, I remember growing up and noticing that all music gear in my area was Peavey (back in the 80s-90s with the jagged logo).
Yet, it seems the perception of Peavey gear has always been that it's inferior, or at least, not up to boutique brands. It's stuff is for "working musicians."
I admit being rather snobbish toward them at times, especially when they tried breaking into drums. Their PAs and mixers always sounded like quality working musician stuff, but they never seemed to break into the boutique territory like Mesa (with exception of maybe the Wolfgang, the 5150 head, and the Classic amp line).
These past few years, I've really been getting into them. My first bass was a Foundation 5 string, and I still have it and love the tone. I also have a Rotor EXP Explorer with floating bridge, and I love pickups, fit, finish, etc., even though it is made in Indonesia and everything on it is proprietary.
The only complaint I have with Peavey is that, because everything is proprietary, it's hard to find replacement parts that aren't Peavey. But, for the money, their mid line stuff seems to be a great value, especially used. It's not up there with Carvin, but it doesn't cost as much, either. I think I'd rather have a nice Peavey axe than a cheaper Fender import, as far as quality. That said, I've also played some really bad low end Raptors and Patriots, so I don't want to give them too much slack. But the mid to high level stuff seems solid.
I'm not a fan of their lineup right now, but when the Rotor and V type Strat copy were being made back around 2005 or so, I thought they made some neat alternatives to the usual stuff. Their roots in the rock/blues deep South, though, kind of bores metalheads like me who are out for value in a Jackson/ESP/Ibanez/BC Rich package. Their new stuff that Devin Townsend is pushing, quite bluntly, looks terrible.
What do you guys think? Does Peavey get a bad rap from guys who take pride in their Warwicks, Conklins, Gibsons, Soldanos, Bogners, Diezels, and Engls?
As a resident of a Southern state, I remember growing up and noticing that all music gear in my area was Peavey (back in the 80s-90s with the jagged logo).
Yet, it seems the perception of Peavey gear has always been that it's inferior, or at least, not up to boutique brands. It's stuff is for "working musicians."
I admit being rather snobbish toward them at times, especially when they tried breaking into drums. Their PAs and mixers always sounded like quality working musician stuff, but they never seemed to break into the boutique territory like Mesa (with exception of maybe the Wolfgang, the 5150 head, and the Classic amp line).
These past few years, I've really been getting into them. My first bass was a Foundation 5 string, and I still have it and love the tone. I also have a Rotor EXP Explorer with floating bridge, and I love pickups, fit, finish, etc., even though it is made in Indonesia and everything on it is proprietary.
The only complaint I have with Peavey is that, because everything is proprietary, it's hard to find replacement parts that aren't Peavey. But, for the money, their mid line stuff seems to be a great value, especially used. It's not up there with Carvin, but it doesn't cost as much, either. I think I'd rather have a nice Peavey axe than a cheaper Fender import, as far as quality. That said, I've also played some really bad low end Raptors and Patriots, so I don't want to give them too much slack. But the mid to high level stuff seems solid.
I'm not a fan of their lineup right now, but when the Rotor and V type Strat copy were being made back around 2005 or so, I thought they made some neat alternatives to the usual stuff. Their roots in the rock/blues deep South, though, kind of bores metalheads like me who are out for value in a Jackson/ESP/Ibanez/BC Rich package. Their new stuff that Devin Townsend is pushing, quite bluntly, looks terrible.
What do you guys think? Does Peavey get a bad rap from guys who take pride in their Warwicks, Conklins, Gibsons, Soldanos, Bogners, Diezels, and Engls?
