Inflames626
New member
Hi all,
Just curious about the lower than usual resale value of Peavey gear over the past few years.
I know a lot of people think they make junk, especially in their solid state/practice range, but I'm thinking more about the mid and high end range of their gear. I think there's a lot of value there that the used market doesn't bear.
Growing up in the South, I saw that most of the shops around here stocked Peavey because Gibson, Fender, Mesa, and Marshall were well out of people's price range. Retail the Peavey stuff was a few hundred dollars cheaper than the others, but it's in the used market where the quality stuff seems to shine, especially used stuff like Dyna basses, Foundations, some of their guitars, the Classic series of amps, etc. Some of the stuff, like the Rudy Sarzo bass, looks really excellent. I was first acquainted with their mixers, PAs, and sound reinforcement as a kid long before I heard their guitars and amps. A lot of that stuff, even from the 70s, is still going strong and seems reliable, although wood paneling and brightly colored knob tips may not seem very stylish these days.
It seems that a lot of Peavey production went to Asia in the 00s, especially to compete on the lower end, starter pack line of the scale targeted to beginners and children in music shops. They also expanded into making nearly everything for a while, like drums, which they later stopped. This may have hurt their credibility.
The only stuff I've seen that really retains value would be the old EVH Wolfgangs, the 5150s, and some of the Cirrus line of basses, especially the six strings. The Grind basses have six strings and are only a few hundred dollars and apparently a step up from things like an Ibanez Gio, which are apparently cheaply made.
I bring this up because I used to consider Carvin the best American deal as far as Ebaying great used stuff for a good price. Since a lot of used Carvin stuff doesn't come with all of the potential custom features Carvin offers, when it comes to a straight up passive J bass copy, I can't help but lean toward an older Peavey instead of a newer Carvin when the features are similar.
Like most metal guys I prefer to usual Jackson/ESP/Ibanez/BC Rich type stuff, but especially when it comes to mid priced import stuff, I can't help but think the Peaveys can be better in some ways in terms of fit and finish. The Peaveys just lack the looks and Floyd Rose bridges, most of the time. That and Peavey proprietary designs, especially on their basses (double dog eared pickups) make it harder to retrofit aftermarket pickups (the stock Peaveys usually aren't bad, though).
An example might be an Indonesian Peavey Rotor I picked up for about $200 some years ago. The stock pups are great (although only two conductor). The licensed Floyd springs needed some WD40, as they were pretty stiff, but I plan on an OFR on it some time. It's mahogany, and the neck, weight, etc., just feel better than a lot of my import Jacksons from the 90s, most of which feature Takeguchi bridges and Duncan Designeds before I changed the pickups and bridges out. They aren't bad guitars, but you can feel a difference when you move toward something better made, even a newer Charvel Desolation neck thru DS1FR I picked up, lately.
Like most brands, it's harder to find American made stuff at a decent price these days ("made in the USA" vs. the ambiguous "crafted in the USA"), but, at least on the older stuff, I think Peavey's a good deal.
So, thoughts on Peavey. Why can't they get any love?
Thanks.
Just curious about the lower than usual resale value of Peavey gear over the past few years.
I know a lot of people think they make junk, especially in their solid state/practice range, but I'm thinking more about the mid and high end range of their gear. I think there's a lot of value there that the used market doesn't bear.
Growing up in the South, I saw that most of the shops around here stocked Peavey because Gibson, Fender, Mesa, and Marshall were well out of people's price range. Retail the Peavey stuff was a few hundred dollars cheaper than the others, but it's in the used market where the quality stuff seems to shine, especially used stuff like Dyna basses, Foundations, some of their guitars, the Classic series of amps, etc. Some of the stuff, like the Rudy Sarzo bass, looks really excellent. I was first acquainted with their mixers, PAs, and sound reinforcement as a kid long before I heard their guitars and amps. A lot of that stuff, even from the 70s, is still going strong and seems reliable, although wood paneling and brightly colored knob tips may not seem very stylish these days.
It seems that a lot of Peavey production went to Asia in the 00s, especially to compete on the lower end, starter pack line of the scale targeted to beginners and children in music shops. They also expanded into making nearly everything for a while, like drums, which they later stopped. This may have hurt their credibility.
The only stuff I've seen that really retains value would be the old EVH Wolfgangs, the 5150s, and some of the Cirrus line of basses, especially the six strings. The Grind basses have six strings and are only a few hundred dollars and apparently a step up from things like an Ibanez Gio, which are apparently cheaply made.
I bring this up because I used to consider Carvin the best American deal as far as Ebaying great used stuff for a good price. Since a lot of used Carvin stuff doesn't come with all of the potential custom features Carvin offers, when it comes to a straight up passive J bass copy, I can't help but lean toward an older Peavey instead of a newer Carvin when the features are similar.
Like most metal guys I prefer to usual Jackson/ESP/Ibanez/BC Rich type stuff, but especially when it comes to mid priced import stuff, I can't help but think the Peaveys can be better in some ways in terms of fit and finish. The Peaveys just lack the looks and Floyd Rose bridges, most of the time. That and Peavey proprietary designs, especially on their basses (double dog eared pickups) make it harder to retrofit aftermarket pickups (the stock Peaveys usually aren't bad, though).
An example might be an Indonesian Peavey Rotor I picked up for about $200 some years ago. The stock pups are great (although only two conductor). The licensed Floyd springs needed some WD40, as they were pretty stiff, but I plan on an OFR on it some time. It's mahogany, and the neck, weight, etc., just feel better than a lot of my import Jacksons from the 90s, most of which feature Takeguchi bridges and Duncan Designeds before I changed the pickups and bridges out. They aren't bad guitars, but you can feel a difference when you move toward something better made, even a newer Charvel Desolation neck thru DS1FR I picked up, lately.
Like most brands, it's harder to find American made stuff at a decent price these days ("made in the USA" vs. the ambiguous "crafted in the USA"), but, at least on the older stuff, I think Peavey's a good deal.
So, thoughts on Peavey. Why can't they get any love?
Thanks.
