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Classic 30 or Bassman 50w head?


theweight

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I used to play a Peavey Classic 50 (2x12 combo), and now play a Bassman head (with an open back Avatar 2x12).

I prefer the bassman. As a caveat, though, mine does have the bass channel modded to be a tweed/marshall preamp, so I use the normal (AA864) for cleans, and the modded bass channel for o.d. Just a clean Bassman tone w/ an o.d. pushing it is great, too.

The Peavey does have reverb (not sure how important that is to you...), and speakers (you'll have to have a 4 ohm cab w/ the Bassman).

The Classic always sounded muddy to me, but that's been several years ago, and I'm a better player, now. Maybe the Bassman would have sounded muddy if I'd had it then, too.
The other guitarist in my band used to get a killer sound out of one (he gets an even better sound through an Ampeg v-2 though a 2x12 now, but I digress), but he's a monster player and gets his tone out of everything I've ever seen him plug into.

I never tried upgrading the speakers in the Peavey. I think that may have been my biggest problem with the amp. They're well built, good amps. I never had any problem with mine at all.

I'd go with the Bassman, myself, but the Peaveys are great amps, if you need the reverb/speakers.

Steve

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Yeah, I used to have a Classic 50 head, but I sold it. The 30 is a 1x12 combo I believe. I'm probably going to mod one of the Bassman channels, just because I have the option. Plus Dan Russell is near me and he does amazing work (Naylor, Reverend creator).

I have a 2x12 cab that's wired to 8 ohms right now, but I'll rewire it once the head gets here for 4. It's gonna sound great alongside my Musicman.

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If the cab is wired for 8 ohms, there'd be no way to wire it for 4 ohms without changing the speakers. To get 8 ohms, you either have to have two 16 ohm speakers in series, or 2 4 ohm speakers in parallel (I hope I don't have that backward, but either way, the speakers either have to be 16 or 4 ohm speakers). To get a 4 ohm load, you'll need two 8 ohm or two 2 ohm speakers.

Sounds cool. David Allen modded mine, as he's fairly close by (about an hour, give or take a few minutes.)

Steve

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Originally posted by Electric Catfish

If the cab is wired for 8 ohms, there'd be no way to wire it for 4 ohms without changing the speakers. To get 8 ohms, you either have to have two 16 ohm speakers in series, or 2 4 ohm speakers in parallel (I hope I don't have that backward, but either way, the speakers either have to be 16 or 4 ohm speakers). To get a 4 ohm load, you'll need two 8 ohm or two 2 ohm speakers.


Sounds cool. David Allen modded mine, as he's fairly close by (about an hour, give or take a few minutes.)


Steve

 

 

Actually, it's a 3x12, which is weird. The speakers are 8 ohms each, and with the odd number of speakers, the wiring winds up with something like 11.5 ohms. I was told to run my head at 8 ohms since it switches between 4,8, and 16. So I thought about it and I'm dropping one of the speakers to make it a 2x12. In any case, it's completely possible with the setup I have. I did the legwork before considering the Bassman.

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I heard Classic 30 and needed to throw in my two cents.

I have like 8 combo amps. two of them are Classic 30's. Has the best all around sound out of all of them. I checked out my buds boogie the other day, like a 50 cal or DC 50 or something. Peavey tools it.

Not quite the Fender clean or Reverb, but very usable and the drive rips em all! I too have heard that tubes and speakers make a big difference in the tone, but I have never seen the need.

One of these days, I'm gonna get the head just to be thurough. I can't tell you much about the Bassman, but If you want a simple grab and go - do it all ripin' little combo, get the 30.

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Another vote for the Bassman... I had one many years ago and wish I had it back!

mine does have the bass channel modded to be a tweed/marshall preamp, so I use the normal (AA864) for cleans, and the modded bass channel for o.d.

Interesting.. who does that?

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depends on your needs too --- not as to one is the better deal, but which one you should get (if infact its being gotten to fill a need, as opposed to just cuz). for what i'm doing now, the C30 would take it hands down (el84 crunch, less headroom, portability with no cab needed). no argument on the bassman being a 'better' amp in general, but thats not always the question.

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I was debating whether or not it was worth it to get the Peavey and have the portability. If I have to haul more gear I can live with it. I mean, I'll only be using a 2x12 with it. I'm not that old yet. I can manage. My initial thought was the value of the Bassman will only go up, and I've always wanted one. I already have a cab for it, so I'm not out another $250 if I get the Bassman. I'm just going to do it.

The Peavey is in fine shape so far as I know. The Bassman has a slight hum when turned up to loud volumes, which is partially why I got it for $300 (great price). I have a friend who's a tech, and he repairs all my stuff for free when I can't do it myself, so I'm not too worried about it. I don't mind buying new tubes, or a cap or something if it comes down to it. So I've decided that when I go lay down the scratch for a combo amp I'm doing it right and getting a twin. Same thing with my next guitar purchase. No more of this slow searching for a cheap Melody Maker to restore. I'm saving for the exact Jazzmaster that I've been eyeballing for years. So I guess this thread has taught me that sometimes you have to stop being frugal and just go for what you want, which is what I'm doing from now on.

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