The Steel Guitar Forum

Does anybody know of a solid state preamp with similar tone characteristics to the Peavey steel amps? I'd like to come up with a tube/ss hybrid setup for going direct (with Brad Sarno's black box and a Williams guitar). Any advice appreciated, other than gutting my Peavey!

David Mansfield

StereoSteel.

John Hughey used a preamp made by Evans, a HVRP or something like that.

Same issue with HVRP (I'm looking for something in a smaller box, not a rack mountable unit).

Ditto on the Walker Stereo Steel. If I'm not mistaken he designed the tone stack from an early Session 400. I love 'em.

David if your looking for a non-rackmountable small Preamp you might want to look at the new Octal V8 that Brad Sarno has just released ... it is a tube Pre but is small and may be ideal for what you want.

Any steel guitar players using the Octal V8 yet? Wondering how the EQ is for steel.

David I think Randy Beavers has been using it on his Lee Ann Womack gig for quite a while ...glowing reports by all accounts.

If Brad makes it, it's gonna be top notch! Of course it's not SS though. For something really small to throw in your Pak-a-Seat,
you can't beat the Tech 21 Blonde preamp. I think Randy's got one of those too.

I need something more than a Tech 21 simulator, good as they are. Probably the Octal V8 is the ticket; Brad is (by all reports) amazing. I just thought that it may be more of a guitar-style preamp compared to his rack-mount units which I've heard are perfect for steel guitar.

The SMS V8-G is most definitely, primarily a steel guitar preamp!


Brad


www.sarnomusicsolutions.com/products/V8G.html

Thanks, Brad! Does the Octal V8 have a black box circuit built in like the Revelation does?

No, the V8 preamp is ULTRA minimal. No loops, no buffers, just gain, bass, and treble. The extreme in octal tube tone minimalism.


B