Peavey special 130

[Matthew Jackson]

I am pretty new here and wanted to know if anyone has used a Peavy special 130 with good results.
It has been a solid back up amp for years (a $ 50.00 pawn shop job) it has a 12 inche scropion speaker while it is pretty heavy and did not have great guitar sound the clean channel is pretty darn good, would it be worth a speaaker upgrade to use a a steel amp?

[Michael Robertson]

I loved mine I don’t know why I got rid of it.
I put a JBL it and it sounded great.
There are lighter speakers today but I’m sure it will serve you well.

[Dan Beller-McKenna]

Great amp for steel. I never found any improvement by changing the speaker, even though that Scorpion should not have sounded that good. I only sold mine because it was only marginally smaller/lighter than a NV 400 and I got one of those quite cheap.

[Curry Coster]

I've been using a Special 130 chassis in a Nashville 400 cabinet with a JBL M30 for 12 years--can't beat the the tone, and it's a pretty light rig.........

Curry

[Tom Cooper]

I just got one from Guitar ctr after researching old peavey ss amps. found it at GC in st louis for 2 bills. still had original 1982 manual and foot switch. stripped the aluminum bars and peavey logo off like I always do and may change grill clothe as well. It is in shop now getting new caps and overhaul. I think it sat a long time. not a scratch. as far as tone, I totally dig mine. I think it sounds better than my nash 400. the weight to me is way different. gotta be 30lb weight difference. that was the main reason I got it. Loud as hell and great tone and headroom for steel. I am over tubes for giging. give me an old ss peavey and let me get on with it. great tone and no surprises. not as many anyway. will never part with mine. beats the hell out of dragging around a nash 400 or twin. 130 special fan here.

[Matthew Jackson]

first I just gotta thank everyone here for taking time to answer questions from a newbie. I have gotten some very good advise, that really hits home. A member here said the first up grade he would do is to have Ken Fox mods done (said it is the most bang for the buck)and that the original speaker in his really worked as well as any thing else.
But the best advise I have gotten is just this "why upgrade? Every one has good and different opinions, and it can be a very expensive fishing trip searching for what you belive is the right sound untill yoou know what it is you are searching for. spend your money on lessons and your time playing the darn thing. The amp you have is a good one and most great players could make it work without doing a darn thing."

[Bill Moore]

I'd suggest installing the Burr Brown OPA2134 chips, which is basically the Fox mod. It would probably do a lot for the sound of the amp. I used to have one, and found that I preferred the sound of the Nashville 112 over the 130. But I did not change the chips in my 130, if I still had it, that's what I would do.

[Mike Neer]

Never thought I'd say this, but I miss mine.

I used one from about 1990 to 2004 and probably did over 1000 gigs with it.

[Matthew Jackson]

I called Ken Fox today and left a message, he called me back explained the whoe process and I got one of kits. He assured me that it was simple and I did not need to hir a tech, of course I did not tell him I play the banjo, so he had faith a normal person could do it...lol What a great guy, he has a great passion for steel players and spent some time talking about things comming up that I should not miss. It is great the way many people take an interest and will spend time with a new guy like myself. Just wnat to say thanks for all you guys do.
Now if I can just find a good teacher in Memphis......

[Garry Simpson]

I've got an ole 130 that I played a telecaster through with a compressor in front of for a long time. Loved it for guitar. I started playing steel so I figured I needed a steel amp and bought a 112. Turns out I like the 130 for steel better than the 112.