There are a lot of problems with electronics repairs these days. They mainly stem from using cheap, mass-building strategies to keep the price down, but which create basically unserviceable devices. Many manufacturers have moved from a "stock service parts and repair under warranty" to a "don't stock service parts and replace under warranty" policy. The problem is that once the warranty is over, the consumer is SOL. I'm sure the operations research analysts have gone over it with a fine toothed comb and found that it's cheaper to simply replace the defectives during warranty than stock parts and repair.
So I think it is profoundly unfair to single out Peavey, which is to my knowledge one of the few manufacturers to continue with a "stock service parts and repair" approach. In fact, I think their service policy is the best I have ever seen - I can still get parts for my 30+ year old LTD 400 amp, and anything newer than that also, and none of this relates to your title about manufacturers who refuse to honor warranties.
On this:
1. We all have known about the top vent and pot shafts breaking since day 1. They obviously had a reason to do things this way (I presume cooling, a la Vox AC15/30, and being able to read the knob descriptors from above), but I agree a different approach would be better. But if I could find a better amp for this application at anywhere near the price-point, I would. 'Nuff said.The Nashville 112, (I have owned two), knobs sheer of or shafts break, plastic vent on the top breaks, reverb tank not even screwed in, grill cloth on crooked, modifications no longer possible with chips, reverb units feed back, just to name a few.
2. Reverb tank issues, crooked grill cloth - well, all the grills I've seen were just fine, and tank reverbs are getting to be a problem, period. Accutronics was bought and moved to Korea - just try to find one of the old American-made units. I assume the problem is that most manufacturers are moving to DSP chips as that technology just gets cheaper and cheaper. Personally, I prefer spring reverb, so I live with the inconveniences.
3. This leaves the only 'serviceability' issue - moving to non-socketed ICs. Of course, I completely agree that socketing the ICs makes servicing and chip mods much easier, and wish they would move back. I assume it's cost-cutting move, probably made because of the insane amount of price-point pressure caused by virtually everyone building things just as cheaply as they can these days - plus perhaps a little consideration of eliminating the slight thermal-contact noise source at the socket. But I will say that most repair people I know have been amazed how long Peavey hung in there with socketed ICs when most of the 'big guys' went the other way a long time ago.
I think this 'serviceability' horse left the barn a long time ago. Except for Peavey, the only amps I buy are hand-wired amps, usually old but occasionally newer. In terms of gig-worthy 'loud and clean' amps, except for a nice old silverface Twin Reverbs, which for some reason seem to still pop up for stupid low money, you're not going to find them for $500-600 like you can most Peavey amps.
The other thing is that new amps for pedal steel are not exactly a 'necessity' - there are lots of old ones in good shape - LTD/Session 400, NV 400/1000/112 as well as Webbs, Evans, and of course the big, old Fenders - that do the job just fine for reasonable $. Between Peavey and several noted repair people that interact with this forum who are able and willing to do their bit to keep them 'on the road' for a very reasonable cost, I have to ask, "What's the problem?"
