Whats the difference? NV400 and Session 400

Darrell Hendrix · Post by **Darrell Hendrix** » 1 Apr 2004 7:03 pm

Could someone please tell me whats the difference between a Nashville 400 and a Session 400?
Thanks.....Darrell

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I would almost give anything to play just a little like John Hughey !

Larry Bell · Post by **Larry Bell** » 2 Apr 2004 7:32 am

http://www.peavey.com/support/steelguitaristinfo/
Go to '27 Years of Stainless Steel Production'
Our buddy Mike Brown has summed it all up.

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Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
2003 Fessenden S/D-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S-12 6x6, 1971 Dobro, Standel and Peavey Amps

Chick Donner · Post by **Chick Donner** » 2 Apr 2004 8:54 am

Electronically, a bunch. Don't have schematics in front of me, but the preamp and power amps are both very different from each other. Oddly, the NV400 and Session 500 have almost identical power amps.

Nicholas Dedring · Post by **Nicholas Dedring** » 2 Apr 2004 10:47 am

I think the Session 400 and the Session 400 LTD have the same dimensions, and if my s400LTD is any indication, the Session has a substantially bigger cabinet to the sides of the speaker. The whole amp is significantly wider than the Nash is. Don't know what difference that makes acoustically, but it sure makes it harder for me drag through doorways on a handcart

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 2 Apr 2004 2:48 pm

Electronically they're quite different. The old Session 400 uses all discrete (individual) transistors in the preamp and power section. The midrange control operates differently in that you can't boost, you can only cut the selected midrange frequency. The old Session 400 also has a different tone, it's got more character and growl, perhaps a bit more musical grit in the sound. They've got a real natural sweetness and warmth to them. There is no power amp or speaker protection circuitry to speak of, other than a thermal switch for overheating.

The Nashville 400 is the newer preamp design that uses opamps instead of discrete transistors. The midrange control is an active quasi-parametric type. It lets you pick the frequency and either boost or cut at that chosen frequency. The power section of the Nashville has a peak limiter in it to protect the amp and speaker.

The Nashville 400 is a small cabinet whose proportions were originally based on the use of a 12" speaker. It doesn't have the deep full bass response of the larger Session 400 cabinet. No matter how much bass you add to the Nashville 400, it still wont give that fullness that only the larger cabinet can acoustically generate. It's smaller and easier to throw into your back seat. But, it is made of very dense partical board so it's quite heavy. I think it's about the same weight as the Session 400 or the new Nashville 1000.

Both great and extremely rugged/reliable clean amps that have proven to be timeless for steel players. I prefer the sound of the old Session 400.

Brad Sarno[This message was edited by Brad Sarno on 02 April 2004 at 02:49 PM.]

Bob Watson · Post by **Bob Watson** » 3 Apr 2004 2:24 am

To answer your question in the simplest manner.... tone. The Sessions and Ltd's sound a lot better IMHO.

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 3 Apr 2004 3:02 pm

Yea, what Bob said.

Brad Sarno

Frank Parish · Post by **Frank Parish** » 3 Apr 2004 3:38 pm

I think the old Session 400's were the best amp Peavey has made to date for the PSG. The LTD was the same amp in a smaller cabinet and therefore less bass response. My second choice would be the Vegas 400. I've used the Nashvilles and never got what I wanted from them.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 4 Apr 2004 9:01 am

I totally agree with Frank and Brad. The small cabinet just does not cut it for bass response. Even the LTD 400 (same schematic as a Session 400 and cabinet size of a Nashville) had less bass response. Still I would rather have an LTD400 any day over a Nashville 400 amp, sweeter tone IMHO. The best LTD 400 I have heard yet was one I put in a Pacer cabinet (same as LTD400, but a 12" speaker opening). I loaded it with a 1203-4 BW. It had more bass than I have ever heard from an LTD 400 amp.

Nicholas Dedring · Post by **Nicholas Dedring** » 4 Apr 2004 10:33 am

just to add a clarifying point: unless i'm not remembering this right, there are more than three things in the game here...

Session 400 (original release)

LTD 400 (smaller cabinet version)

Nashville 400 (new design, smaller cabinet)

Session 400 Limited (rerelease of large cabinet, don't know how the electronics compare with the original model)

I have the Session 400 Limited... and if the original Session 400s were any bigger than the size of the cabinet on this, that's staggering

Mine has about 5 inches of extra baffle width on each side of the speaker... so while the Nash has a roughly square shape on the front, this one is substantially wider... I don't know how the S400Limited compares sonically to the original models... not having had any experience with 'em.

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 4 Apr 2004 11:03 am

Nicholas, you bring up a point of great confusion. The Session 400 and the LTD 400 were the same amp, different cabinet. These are the old and seemingly favorite designs. The confusion came when Peavey made the Session 400 Limited. This was a large cabinet amp with the modern circuit. It's not at all like a Session 400 or a LTD 400 electronically or sonically. The LTD 400 and the Session 400 LTD are very distinctly different amps. I believe that the Session 400 and the Session 400 Limited have the same sized cabinets.

Brad Sarno

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 4 Apr 2004 11:09 am

Check out this page I made. Also look toward the bottom of the page for the "History of the LTD" page link. This will clear some things up.
http://home.earthlink.net/~bradsarno/session_400page.html

Ken, you bring up a major point. The cabinet size used in the LTD and the Nashville 400 was based on the old 12" loaded Pacer amp. Acoustically that cabinet is suited for a 12" speaker. Even though you can cut the hole bigger and squeeze in a 15", the math is bad and the low end response suffers. It makes sense that a 12" in that cabinet sounds bassier than the 15". The tradeoff was made for the sake of portability and compactness. For most E9 players, that low end isn't a big issue. For C6 players, the little cabinets just will not get fat. Even with the mod kit and the bass on 10, there are still laws of acoustic phyisics at work keeping the low frequencies from happening optimally.

Brad Sarno

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 4 Apr 2004 11:16 am

I had the LTD with the 1203-4 BW for just a few days. I turned a friend of mine on to the old Sessions 400 amps for jazz guitar, he bought two them. He plugged into the LTD 400 with the 12" speaker and the rest is history, I never saw it again! He loves that amp. I recovered it in Fender rough Brown, leather handle, oxblood cloth, small Peavey logo, three spring reverb tank, removed the aluminum trims off the baffle and put black piping around the baffle. It looked like a custom parlor amp. Dynamite and tone in a small package. I hope to do another like it in the near future.