opinions on the Peavey XXX

[gravfed]

I'm debating on weather or not, having it AND the 5150 would be overkill.

Is there enough tonal difference between it and the 5150? or are they too close?

I'm probably in the minority here, but I think they sound quite a bit different. The XXX has more of a low mids thing going for it, the 5150....well sounds like a 5150 .

 

[vultures]

studio recordings - 2 XXX's, ESPs, Ibanez's

basement recording - 1 XXX, ESP MH1000

 

[Juggernaut]

Thanks bro.....I'll check 'em in the morning when I get home. I'm at work right now, and they block all MP3 links....





I think I may go ahead and get it anyways. I HAVE got to get my other guitar player a tube amp, SO, I'm thinking if I get this, I'll let him play through it, and if he likes it, I may sell it to him, or make him get his own, depending on how much I like it

 

[Juggernaut]

Looks like I'm getting the XXX next week.





hope it's as cool as I hope it is.

 

[mysticaxe]

My other guitar player uses either a XXX or a 5150 (now a 5150 II) through a Marshall cab w/ 75's. The 5150 has more higher mids, which means that we are in a closer sonic space (I'm using a Splawn Competition). The XXX is a little more congested sounding and the mids are definately centered lower. I would say the 5150 has more of a Marshallesque roar, where the XXX is like a saturated recto (he had one of those for a while too). I think the crunch channel on the XXX is better than the lead (or ultra, or whatever). For $575, check it out. If you don't like it, you should be able to easily unload it for that price.

One word of warning - my guitar player has gone through 3 cables that connect the footswitch to the amp. They are about $40 each and only available through Peavey (according to him). It makes the TSL footswitch look like a Diezel!!!

 

[tnourse]

I had a XXX for a few years. I bought one the first year they came out. The cool thing is that you can use 6L6 or EL34 tubes. I liked it with the EL34s!

It sounded pretty good, but I preferred the 5150 I had.

 

[Juggernaut]

Hell I figure if it sounds different enough from the 5150, then I'll be cool with it. Guess I'll find out pretty soon

 

[tweed]

The XXX is a great amp, lots of versatility and lots of tone in there. Change out V1 with a lower gain tube. I put one of those GT 12ax7m in mine and it sounds great. The crunch channel is where I usually stay but the other 2 channels are damn nice as well.

 

[The_Kid]

I have played the XXX enough to know its versatility, and also own a JSX.

THe XXX to me has more 'balls'. Definately more gain than the JSX. To me the XXX has more "presence" in its voicing and sounds a bit fizzy. You can dial some of it out with the treble knob or a little more with a decent EQ, but definately changing that V1 tube with a lower gain will help you get more variety out of the gain knob. I also heard a few people changing the tube in the PI slot got rid of some of the fizziness.

THe JSX to me sounds more midsy. The crunch channel can be set to sound like a Marshall type sound, and the ULtra can cover both channels of the XXX decently well. I think the EQ'ing on the JSX is a little more detectable, at least to me ears. Let me explain what i mean by that now that I read it and it could be confusing. The JSX sounds 'to me' that when you tweak the EQ you really hear the active EQ's kick in and going from 5 to 8 on your bass knob makes a pretty good difference. On the XXX, not sure if it has the active EQ's, it seems less accessible to different tones/voicings by just tweaking the EQ's. To me it seems that unless you crank the mids it still seems to have a 'metal' kind of attitude.

Overall I like both amps and have used both in a variety of musical situations playing everything from country to more modern rock.

(yes it is weird to be using a Peavey XXX while playing Carrie Underwood)

 

[bigangryguitar]

I really, really dug the one I had for a couple years. They are very sensitive to tubes, pups, speakers and etc. more so than any other amp I have ever used. Also the active eq's are a bit tricky and it's easy to mess up the tone if you dial it in like a normal eq. Really the only issue I had ever with it was the lack of good inbetween stuff since it's quite agressive. For the money it is built like a tank and has some great tones on board. Also you can replace the mudflap chicks with diamond plate very easily and it really classes up the looks. I always thought those were too gimicky.

 

[mchn13]

juggy, i actually liked it more than the 5150II i had. fizz was pretty much the same to me on both amps, and could be dealt with. unfortunately, i was supposed to buy it off a friend of mine, and he ended up trading for a recto.
btw, it hd el34's in it, and i thought it was a pretty sick amp. also liked the crunch channel better. both have about the same gain level.

 

[bigangryguitar]

juggy, i actually liked it more than the 5150II i had. fizz was pretty much the same to me on both amps, and could be dealt with. unfortunately, i was supposed to buy it off a friend of mine, and he ended up trading for a recto.
btw, it hd el34's in it, and i thought it was a pretty sick amp. also liked the crunch channel better. both have about the same gain level.

That was my experience as well and i know others disagree. When I had my XXX the other guitarist in the band had a 5150II and I thought the XXX sounded a lot bigger and fuller and the guys in the band agreed. I love 5150's and 5150II's but for me the XXX just did it for me more.

 

[Juggernaut]

very cool guys, I made the deal should be here next week. I'll post my thoughts after I get it.

 

[vultures]

The XXX is sweet because its got a "damping" switch on the back which goes from loose to mid to tight. You can have it looser or tighter, the tighter you go the more 'Recto' it sounds, I always kept it in the middle. Have fun with it dude