What is Peavey's Most Valuable Vintage Amp?

Chris LeDrew · Post by **Chris LeDrew** » 1 Aug 2006 10:24 pm

It seems to me that most older Peavey amps can be obtained for reasonable prices, while other amps of the same vintage are going up in value all the time. Is there a particular early model that is holding a higher value than others these days?

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 1 Aug 2006 11:14 pm

A collectible old Peavey? Probably the "Mace" combo, with two twelves and it's six 6L6's. Some rockers even seem to like it.

Later models...the Data Bass. Good punchy amp in a small package.

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 2 Aug 2006 3:17 am

The Mace is an excellent choice as is the original 2x12 Duece ...

and of course lets not forget the Session 400's and the LTD's...

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Jim Palenscar · Post by **Jim Palenscar** » 2 Aug 2006 6:40 am

I have a Mace head at the shop- quite an amp- lots of 6L6's~~

Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 2 Aug 2006 6:47 am

I picked up a couple of Session 500's a while ago. I believe they will hold their value quite well.

Chris LeDrew · Post by **Chris LeDrew** » 2 Aug 2006 7:03 am

It's my understanding that a '74 Session 400 is a valuable gem with collectors of vintage steel gear. But there's one in the Buy and Sell right now for only $275 with no one moving on it yet.......that seems strange for such a revered amp.

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 2 Aug 2006 7:21 am

I have a mid 80's Jazz Classic ... that I'd never part with.

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Gene Jones · Post by **Gene Jones** » 2 Aug 2006 8:19 am

IMHO the ultimate vintage steel-guitar amp was the Session 500.....but it was too heavy, and had components that were not needed or used by the average steel guitarist.

If I could still lift a Session 500 from the floor to the stage (about 4 feet), I would still award it the "Blue Ribbon" of steel guitar amplifiers.

....but since most of us who appreciate the Sessiom 500 are also "vintage", we will leave it to history to determine it's worth.

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Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 2 Aug 2006 9:43 am

Gene,
My sentiments exactly!!

Jack Stoner · Post by **Jack Stoner** » 2 Aug 2006 9:47 am

I lugged a Session 500 (original small cabinet model) around for 16 years and if wasn't for the weight I'd still have it. I agree the best Steel amp that Peavey built.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 2 Aug 2006 10:53 am

The early (non-VT Series) Mace and Deuce were two of my favorites. I have a Mace VT, 6-6L6GC tubes and original BW speakers. I like it but prefer the early (no IC chip, all discrete transistor amps).

Still holding a good value and not likely to drop that much!

Al Terhune · Post by **Al Terhune** » 2 Aug 2006 9:28 pm

Yep, the 500. I have NO room for another amp, but still always am on the lookout for a cheap 500.

Al

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 3 Aug 2006 1:22 am

I don't think we are limiting this discussion to STEEL amps..

Peavey made some real TWIN Killers back in the early days..that are great bargains today...

t

Michael Haselman · Post by **Michael Haselman** » 3 Aug 2006 8:58 am

Hey, I have an '89 Triumph 60 that's just got to be vintage, so let's start the bidding...

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Tim Harr · Post by **Tim Harr** » 4 Aug 2006 9:38 am

Artist VT

Tube amp with a 15" spkr

Killer guitar and Steel amp.

Michael Holland · Post by **Michael Holland** » 4 Aug 2006 2:35 pm

Peavey made some real TWIN Killers

Don't remember those .... but do remember a tube Peavey Classic that failed on a weekly basis!

Chris LeDrew · Post by **Chris LeDrew** » 4 Aug 2006 10:44 pm

Back in '88, I had a (great-sounding) Duece catch on fire during a club show. The soundman just picked it up and threw it out in the snow.

Maybe I shouldn't have replaced the fuse with a piece of tinfoil 3 gigs back.

Jim Sliff · Post by **Jim Sliff** » 5 Aug 2006 4:44 am

Amp collectors have never considered Peavey as collectable...that would include ALL models. Just not the same as Marshall, Fender, Magnatone, Ampeg, old Gibsons etc.

Hartley started out with the "affordable player's amp" idea, and somehow...even though Leo did essentially the same thing...the fact he did it LATER than Fender killed any colector mystique.

And honestly, there's nothing in the line historically as significant as the Deluxe Reverb, Twin, Super Reverb, Bassman, M10, etc.

Fred Shannon · Post by **Fred Shannon** » 5 Aug 2006 6:33 am

For steel guitar, the Session 500 takes the blue ribbon IMO. I have had mine for several years, and had the power head removed to a seperate cabinet. Made life tolerable when I had to load in or out. It now occupies space in the studio and is never moved except for cleanup. Takes a little effort in the learning curve, but a better sounding steel amp I've never heard.

Look for the new Nashville 112's to move into the limelight shortly. I play through two of them and they're super sounding.
Phred

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Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 5 Aug 2006 11:41 am

Amp collectors have never considered Peavey as collectable...that would include ALL models. Just not the same as Marshall, Fender, Magnatone, Ampeg, old Gibsons etc.

that's true. I remember when Line 6 first came out with a modeling amplifier, I attended an in-store demo seminar by a factory rep. I asked if the amp included a Peavey Session 400 model. He replied "No, we only modeled amps that people actually wanted."

It got a big laugh from the room. For me, it was the first time I realized that there was an anti-Peavey sentiment in the rock guitarist community.

I don't think Peavey ever made an amp that competes in collectible value with a black-face Fender Twin.

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Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 5 Aug 2006 11:50 am

The first issue Dueces, I don't know if they were reliable long term or not, but side by side with a Twin on the bandstand they pretty much went head to head..clearly held there own...and then some.

I worked with a good friend for years who had a few Twins and a new Duece at the time.I played thru Twins. I'm just here to tell ya..they were cookin' amps'. I'm thinkin they still are and you can find them for a couple hundred bucks..

But as stated, Peavey never really made a name for itself back in the early days..it was like they were the black sheep of the music world.

Todays Classic 50's and 30's are GREAT amps..they shine with the best of them.

Oh, and just for good measure, one of my late 60's Twins was no bargain...bought it new from Manny's in NYC for I think $340, it never really rose to the occasion..[This message was edited by Tony Prior on 05 August 2006 at 12:56 PM.]

Chris LeDrew · Post by **Chris LeDrew** » 5 Aug 2006 1:47 pm

Thanks for all the replies - it has put the Peavey thing into perspective for me. It's pretty cool, actually, that Peavey has solely concentrated on being a maker of working man amplifiers for all these years - that's been their main focus instead of how cool/uncool their image is. That fact alone makes the whole vintage collector thing a moot point anyway when discussing old Peaveys. I've never had one die on me (unless it was my fault - see previous post), but can't say the same for Fender. In fact, I think all my Fenders died on me at least once.

FWIW, I think vintage Peavey amps look and sound great, especially the old Dueces, Classics and Sessions. I alway thought Lynyrd Skynyrd stood out with their wall of Peaveys.

The fact that a lot of these amps are still standing is a silent testament to their quality. [This message was edited by Chris LeDrew on 05 August 2006 at 02:53 PM.]

Jim Sliff · Post by **Jim Sliff** » 5 Aug 2006 2:18 pm

"I've never had one die on me (unless it was my fault - see previous post), but can't say the same for Fender. In fact, I think all my Fenders died on me at least once."

If they are tube amps, they almost ALL die at some point unless you are a fanatic about maintenance.

What Bobby said is true - rock/blues guitarists generally consider Peavey at the bottom of the amp heap. OTOH, I've seen a lot of Peavey equipment in country backlines in videos or on TV.

I do give them a lot of credit for making affordable, decent sounding amps. And realistically, the average audience member can't tell the difference between a Classic 50 and a Super Reverb.

I have, however, never seen a Peavey at a jam session, where musicians ARE the audience. I've probably seen more Crates than Peaveys, to be honest. I never realized they had much popularity at all until finding this forum and realizing they're the "soup du jour" for steel. But I wouldn't even know where to find one to try out - All I ever see are stray used amps in music stores.

I play a Fender 400 set up like Sneaky Pete, who used two Peaveys (Session 500's?) live - but that's the only time I've ever seen one (or two). The very few steel players I've ever seen around here seem to be using Twins.

I'm not knocking Peavey (although the one amp and PA board I had years ago both fell apart rapidly, that was a long time ago...) but to get back to the thread title, for an amp (or instrument) to have "vintage value" it really has to have universal or VERY specialized appeal. I'd equate a "collector" Peavey item to be akin to a "collector" Mr. Coffee item. Practical value? Sure. Valuable/collectable? No.

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 5 Aug 2006 8:00 pm

Its very simple.. NO all tube,PTP hand wiring on ANY Peavey ever... The newer all tubes Classics are wonderful, but they are PC board amps and will NEVER be collectable...

If Peavey would have made hand wired ALL TUBE amps[especially with a tube rectifier] back in the 70's they would be going for serious money... Peavey went to a hybrid design very early on for its "tube" models and guitarists are just not all that crazy about old hybrids... They won't pay the big money for them... Music Man hybrids fetch more than Peavey but still are NOT as desirable as Fenders to most players... Look at what old Silvertones, Univox,Traynors,Garnet,Plush, Magnatone,Gibson/Epiphone ,Valco etc are going for... Its the "all tube" syndrome...Some of these amps I mentioned are oddballs,and not really usable by todays standards except to practice or record, but the were all tube, and all hand wired.....guys pay the big bucks to get tube amps..

Just look at Vox.. the tube models sell for 5 times as much as the SS ones... Fender too.. the SS Fenders sell for PEANUTS... It ALL about the tubes ... bob

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 6 Aug 2006 1:46 am

what Bob and Jim state is basically correct..I would only add that the reason the VOX tube amps go for such a CRAZY price is that I believe, most were CLASS A amps.

Back then we bought a TWIN instead of an AC 30..the TWIN had 100 watts , the AC 30 had 30 watts...who in there right mind would buy a 30 watt amp ?

move forward 40 years..

as far as the Peavey Hybrids..I am always on the lookout for a clean one, last year at a guitar show I thought about an original Duece to long and it sold while I was thinking. $299 with TWO EV SRO's...

Theres a place up in DC , Atomic Music up on RT 1 in College Park, they have several old Peavey Hybrid amps from the early era in varying conditions. all under $200.