So what kind of amp do you Suggest?

Bobby McCauley · Post by **Bobby McCauley** » 26 Jul 2010 12:28 pm

I'm just getting into this wonderful/crazy instrument and I'm looking at getting an amp. As a bass player for many years I have grown to loath the brand Peavey, Come on we have all heard the jokes. But this seems to be almost a standard in the pedal steel world. They also see to be plentiful and cheap but dang its hard for me to give in. I don't know if I'm ready to spend the money for one of the boutique amps yet so my thoughts are a good old Fender Twin. Who is or has played through one and whats your thoughts? If I go that way should I stay 2X12 or a twin with a 15? Too many questions and now I'm asking the players that have done this before. Thanks for any help.

Jerry Roller · Post by **Jerry Roller** » 26 Jul 2010 1:02 pm

Peavey Nashville 112.

Jerry

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 26 Jul 2010 1:29 pm

My favorite with a pair of 15" JBL K130's.

Bobby McCauley · Post by **Bobby McCauley** » 26 Jul 2010 1:40 pm

I should also add that I'm not to concerned about weight issues because as a bass player I lug around an Ampeg 8x10 in a road case plus another rack that includes a crown power amp, any amp has got to be smaller then that.

Paddy Long · Post by **Paddy Long** » 26 Jul 2010 1:44 pm

A Fender Twin with 2 x 12's would be the worst choice for a steel guitar amp you could make !!!

Get a Peavey NV112 or NV1000 and you will understand why everyone uses them !

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 26 Jul 2010 1:47 pm

Paddy Long wrote:A Fender Twin with 2 x 12's would be the worst choice for a steel guitar amp you could make !!!

Get a Peavey NV112 or NV1000 and you will understand why everyone uses them !

Bobby McCauley · Post by **Bobby McCauley** » 26 Jul 2010 1:54 pm

James I like your rig a lot. I guess this is a big debate for everyone not just in my head. I had one guy tell me " hell a twin and a Sho~Bud that's as classic as it gets"

Cartwright Thompson · Post by **Cartwright Thompson** » 26 Jul 2010 2:12 pm

If you want something that is reliable with zero maintenance, get a solid state Peavey and do every mod possible for it. I would also recommend an outboard reverb unit.
If you want something that sounds great, get a tube amp, preferably a point to point wired one, new (if you can afford it) or old (think silver face fender).
Sit a Twin Reverb next to a Peavey and decide for yourself...I'll bet I know which one wins.

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 26 Jul 2010 2:15 pm

Oh, You must be refering to THIS. Nothing cooler in my book---but that's just me.

Paul Sutherland · Post by **Paul Sutherland** » 26 Jul 2010 2:22 pm

Your bias against Peavey is silly. Get over it!! I am particularly fond of my 1979 Peavey Session 400 with a Black Widow 1501 SB. It sounds fantastic with my Emmons. Plus the service Peavey provides to steel players is outstanding.

No steel players will look down on you for playing through a Peavey. Only rocker types would be such snobs. Do you really care what such people think?

Danny Letz · Post by **Danny Letz** » 26 Jul 2010 2:36 pm

Why not a Fender Steel King?

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 26 Jul 2010 2:38 pm

Paul Sutherland wrote:Your bias against Peavey is silly. Get over it!! I am particularly fond of my 1979 Peavey Session 400 with a Black Widow 1501 SB. It sounds fantastic with my Emmons. Plus the service Peavey provides to steel players is outstanding.

No steel players will look down on you for playing through a Peavey. Only rocker types would be such snobs. Do you really care what such people think?

Well Paul, We are just having a little fun. Cartwright T. said it best. And if you were to look at my picture a little closer, you will notice a FINE Peavey Session 400 sitting next to my Fender rig. It's the older chrome knob version loaded with a K130 JBL and sounds fantastic with my 'bud. My Fender suits me a little more, though. But like I said, that's just me.

Bobby McCauley · Post by **Bobby McCauley** » 26 Jul 2010 2:47 pm

Well Paul, I'm not really concerned about other looking down at me or looking up. I know from my past that I've hard a hard time getting a good tone out of a Peavey for bass and guitar but the Nashville series stuff seemed to be aimed towards the steel more then any amps out there I've seen and thats why I'm here asking the people that know. I' not here to offend any users of a certain brand just trying to get as much info as I can before I make a purchase.

Danny, as far as the Steel King, I have heard good things about them but just not enough info. Thats something I need to look into farther.

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 26 Jul 2010 3:30 pm

Bobby, You probably know this stuff anyways, but for the benefit of those aquiring some information, here's my take.

Twins, Dual Showmans and Vibrosonics of the early '70's are great amps for steel guitar. In '77 to the early '80s, they upped the power with an ultralinear transformer which also made the twin "too clean"(lack of early breakup/crunch) for most guitar players, but great for steel guitar because "clean" headroom is a steel player's friend. And I am only refering in the older twins with point to point wiring, with my comments here, as I have never owned any of the reissue Fender amps. Do a research on the reissued amps reliability before you buy one--.

But, when you buy an older Fender amp, there will likely be maintenance required, as the old electrolics "age out" after 15-20 years, But once that maintenance is done, your good for another 15-20 years.

When I buy an old twin or vibrosonic, I figure on going through it top to bottom and recapping it and voicing it for steel guitar specificly, and forumite Ken Fox does a superb job of that sort of work. Ken is also a steel player, and understands what a steel should sound like through a twin.

Twins, without this sort of servicing, are usually a little harsh for steel, but better guitar amps, IMHO. Many Fender amps are not turnkey--they will need to be serviced and upgraded, then they are as safe and reliable as any fine amp out there. Why do we bother messing with the old fenders?---tube tone is ultimate to many of us, especially with an old 'bud or emmons push-pull.

Ryan Barwin · Post by **Ryan Barwin** » 26 Jul 2010 3:32 pm

I disagree...a Fender Twin is a great steel amp. The reissues especially, but the original ones too. It is voiced for steel IMO, you dial in the right settings. I definitely prefer it to a Peavey.

Dave Grafe · Post by **Dave Grafe** » 26 Jul 2010 4:07 pm

A good used Randall SGA "Steel Man" 500 with a JBL E130 and a functioning reverb tank. All you will ever need for tone and power and it comes with its own wheels!

Stephen Cordingley · Post by **Stephen Cordingley** » 26 Jul 2010 4:19 pm

my 2 cents worth:
get a Peavey Session 400, or Session 500, or a Nashville 400
these amps just have a "classic" (countryish) sound that oozes pedal steel, to my ears
a 15 inch speaker is desirable to get full frequency range
my Nashville has something called a "Lemay mod" which supposedly smooths out the mids (amp sounds great)
I bought a Fender Steel King, but it doesn't quite have "that sound": it has a 15 inch speaker, is clean and powerful, has a distinctive reverb, but lacks some subtle tone that draws me back to the Peaveys
I agree with others who suggest sitting down in front of a couple of amps and letting your ears decide what turns your crank...

Brick Spieth · Post by **Brick Spieth** » 26 Jul 2010 4:25 pm

I'll bet about now you know exactly what you should get.

Tony Glassman · Post by **Tony Glassman** » 26 Jul 2010 5:04 pm

I'd say a used N-112 or N-400 for several reasons

1] they're cheap and plentiful

2] you'll be able to recapture most of your investment at resale, if you hate the amp.

3] the Peavey sound is the Nashville standard, so it's a good starting point.

4] It will serve you well for now. As your steel chops and ear develop, you'll know when it is time to upgrade (if ever).

That said, I use a rack system (Rev preamp/ Stewart 1.2 poweramp and dual cabinets w/ BW-1501's). I do use a N-112 for small gigs and have a N-400 for back-up. Most guys use Peaveys.

Caveat: don't spend a bunch of money on an amp until you know exactly what it is that you want.

Jack Ritter · Post by **Jack Ritter** » 26 Jul 2010 6:08 pm

Nashville 112 and get the Fox mod. You won't regret it. Just my opinion. Jack

Jeremy Threlfall · Post by **Jeremy Threlfall** » 26 Jul 2010 6:22 pm

I have a bunch of old fender tube amps, and a musicman and a reissue blues deluxe and power amps and bass heads ....

...and a Steel King

With respect, if you need to pose the question,

get a Steel King

or a Peavey (same thing isn't it

)?

Paul Sutherland · Post by **Paul Sutherland** » 26 Jul 2010 6:44 pm

In the last several years I have, on a number of occasions, been confronted with anti-Peavey bias. It was always in the context of a new guitar player showing up to try out for the country band in which I was playing steel. They would pull out their Dr. Z or similar amps, along with thousands of dollars worth of exotic pedals, and high end American made Teles. They all came from a rock background, and had never played country before. None of them were steel players.

They all did a double take when they saw my old Peavey Session 400. They made comments to me that made it clear they were startled to think that a serious musician would play through a Peavey. In later conversations they admitted they thought of Peavey gear as low cost equipment made for beginners.

In each case, after playing a couple tunes they all commented on how good the steel sounded through the Peavey.

I am convinced there are a lot of musicians that are biased against Peavey gear. I detected that bias in the opening lines of this thread.

If the purpose of this thread is to get advice on selecting a good first steel amp, then you should listen to Tony Glassman. You could spend the money you save, by buying a Peavey, on private lessons from one of the many fine steel teachers in Texas. Or perhaps buy a bit better steel.

If, however, the purpose of the thread is to determine what is the ultimate steel guitar amp, when money is no object, then you will really need to play through each of the many different amps that are being sold, as your ears may tell you something very different than anyone else's.

I am not meaning to disparage any other brand of amplifier. I would love to have enough money to buy a mid-70 twin and restore it, and maybe try a Webb, & a Steel King, & a Randall, & a rack set-up, etc. I would particularly like to try out one of Ken Fox's new tube amps. I might find something I liked better than my Session 400. But for now, my Peavey sounds great, it's reliable, and it's paid for. And it didn't cost an arm and a leg to buy!!!

PS: Just as not all Fender Twins sound the same, not all Peavey amps sound the same. As I said before, I particularly like my Session 400 with the shallow basket Black Widow, 1501.

I also own a Nashville 400 with a 1502 Black Widow. (It cost me $100 off of Craiglist.) I have tried repeatedly to like the Nashville 400, and I just can't. It doesn't sound as good as the Session. I have ordered the Ken Fox mod kit so that might help it.

I compared my Black Widow speakers this afternoon using the Session power-head. I definitely prefer the shallow basket 1501 over the 1502. The highs are smoother.

Good luck on the journey.

Bill Howard · Post by **Bill Howard** » 26 Jul 2010 7:52 pm

Asking these guys on the forum what Amp to buy is sort of like asking someone what kind of Car to buy,of course the chevy guys will tell you nothing like a Chevy and Ford guys ditto.
As far as a Tiwn being totally WRONG this shows that this person hasn't been around music to long, Twin Reverbs were the Holy grail of Steel players,the question of 2 12's or 1 15" is another get a thousand answers question,the answer is take your steel play thru several Amps and buy the one that sounds good to you,I have a 1987 Nashville 400 with a JBL in it (15").I had a 1965 twin (not a repo),my Steel sound beautiful thru it. believe it or not I have a Behringer Blue Devil 60 Watts with a jensen special design speaker and my little behringer will blow a NV 112 off the stage tone AND volume,it is 60 Underated watts,Behringers suffer from no resale,just like a lot of Pedal Steels that are good ones yet no one wants them,basically if it isn't a Mullen Emmons Franklin or Zum,No one beats your door down for it.
So the answer?Buy one that suits you unless someone wants to pay for it for you:). PS if you have a bass amp hook a delay thru iut and try it a delay really changes tone,a lot of Bass Amps are used for Pedal Steels

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 26 Jul 2010 8:26 pm

Peavey: When it's not about "The Sound"....

-or-

Peavey: Whaddya expect for 500 Bucks...?

-Eric West-

Steel Kings Suck. They never proved up. I think the HArmony Central Reviews show the story on them, besides a few victims posting here on them over the years.

Actually if you use any kind of modeller the Nashville 400 or I guess it's successor the 1000 is REALLY hard to beat. You'r gonna need a lot of watts if you want it CLEAN, and you can dress it up with a Pod Zoom or whatever. Peavey Reverb sucks for sure so you're gonna have some kind of processor. So does Fender, so there you have that.. Don't even THINK of a Hot Rodxxxx.

112s unless you get two of them, (which ain't a bad choise) aren't strong enough. The compressors squish everything when they get stressed by loud sound..

If you can find an OLD Fender SUPER TWIN since you don't mind the weight, it's THE amp.

If you've got the bux get a Standell 15. About 3000$.

My suggestion is still a Peavey Nvl 400/1000 with a Pod or other processor for stage mix, all things considered, price, reliability, ease of finding one.

I use a MIKED Stereo Setup. Blues Jr with a Weber BD in stereo with a Fender Frontman65r MIKED in stereo from a Podxt or a Zoom G2NU. I've got two spare 65rs if it craps from all the hard use, but so far it's held up good. The Blues Jr needed NOS tube sockets after a year, but WTF. I also put a 100$ Weber Silver Bell in the 200$ Frontman.. Go figure..

I've had in the last thirty years a Session 500, a Nvl400, a Nvl112 TRIED a sucko Hot Rod Deluxe, and Finally decided to trim down to my latest combo.

Works for me.

Whatever works for you, but the Steel Kings suck just like the HRDlxs.

An old Twin ain't bad, but it's gotta have more than 60 watts and you might marry a suck reverb..

The steerings to Ken Fox are right on. Edited to reflect that.

EJL

Dean Holman · Post by **Dean Holman** » 26 Jul 2010 9:15 pm

I just put a black widow in my fender steel king and it sounds better than the stock speaker. Plus, it made my amp about 8 pounds lighter. Steel kings don't suck.