5150 II or Peavey XXX

[CatharsisStudios]

which one should i choose,
which one has a better power amp
i use my fx send alot,
and i am going to use my engl 520 through it
Which one is better for me to buy?
i don't like the traditonal 5150 tone btw.

 

[JJO]

...then buy the peavey XXX

 

[CatharsisStudios]

haha alright. i just wanted some feed back. (i have trust issues D

 

[006]

Uhh....why would you buy either amp just to use it's power section? Why not get a dedicated power amp like a Mesa 2:90 or something? IMO that would suit your needs a lot better...

~006

 

[CatharsisStudios]

well i want more options in my studio for bands, so i am going to be using the XXX preamp and crap. also i like its tone, and i also like my engls, i mean i could always pick up a 6505+ later on right?

 

[006]

Hmm, I would say 6505+ to start with actually...but that is just me. The XXX really lacks in the mids, and the mid knob doesn't really do much TBH. It sounds good, I like them, they are just not very versatile. The 6505+ would be more versatile as far as the heavy tones you can get from it, it's up in the air as to which amp has better cleans but with the JSX being based on the XXX I would say the XXX probably has better cleans than the 6505+, then again the e530 has good cleans from what I hear so the 6505+ would be mainly used for it's distortion.

What kind of budget are you working with and where are you located?

~006

 

[RockGuitarX]

I'm really interested in buying a 6505+ and trading in my JSX. Still lookin into it... I really need to try one out. I'm a metal head so it might work better for me?

I owned a XXX head before my JSX and thought it was pretty sick. The mids are slightly weak as mentioned but its voiced to be pretty ballsy. I have an old vid I'll try to find to show you the tone.

 

[egan.]

I have been working with both of those amps for a number of years. I'll try to outline my opinions here:

5150 II
clean - neither vibey nor particularly clean. I think it can work alright live but given a choice....
crunch - does some cool mid gain stuff or cranked it sounds like a less scooped lead channel
lead - great...we've all heard it a million times.

xxx
clean - cool for that "sterile" clean sound. It takes pedals well if you need to add some character.
crunch - tons of gain. The EQ is touchy but capable of some cool stuff if you take the time to dial it in.
ultra - too much gain and too scooped for me to ever find a use for it. Maybe others have had some luck, but I sure haven't.
One thing to note is that the damping switch on this head does a lot to the character of the distortion. Set to 'tight' things get a more mid-centric and the lows are greatly reduced. I'll also say that I have found the poweramp section imparts less character than the 5150's.

Overall I actually think that the xxx is more flexible but the 5150 has the undeniable instant awesome factor (unless you hate the way they sound).
Either way I don't think you can go wrong.

 

[CatharsisStudios]

Dude i got the XXX for a fucking epic 684.78 used from guitar center i had them match music go rounds price of 599 DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Fucking win. so 724 with out shipping to 684 with shipping
legit.

 

[vespiz]

I heard that Peavey is discontinuing the XXX...

 

[jesus69lol]

I have had my xxx for like 3 years now and it's funny because when I got it I didn't know nearly as much about amps and getting good tone as I do now, but I am very happy with my decision because the xxx absolutely has some fucking stellar tones in it if you know how to dig them out. Here's one that I use:

Basically I take all the knobs and put them at 0, the turn the master volume and channel volume all the way, and put the gain at like 3/10 something very low. Then what you want to do is turn the bass up just a hair, like to .5/10 or so, just enough to where you hear the sound compress a good bit. Then I just use the line out and run it into an impulse and the tone is absolutely slamming. I want to try adding a tubescreamer into this mix but even as it stands its a great metal tone. This almost makes the xxx sound like a recto.

 

[RockGuitarX]

Wow... I feel like a dumbass. I never thought of trying that. I read your advice and tried it on my JSX and it sounded pretty fuckin sick!

 

[006]

Hmm...I think I may have to try that out now with my Bugera 333.

~006

 

[jesus69lol]

Hmm...I think I may have to try that out now with my Bugera 333.

~006

i have no idea whether it will work with a bugera because I think the reason it works like that on the xxx is because it has that active eq which is just an absolute bitch to tame.

 

[Jaymz]

Id say XXX

 

[musickey]

Hmm...I think I may have to try that out now with my Bugera 333.

~006

Hey 006 i tried out a 6262 and thought it sounded pretty sick, didnt get to crank it up though.

 

[kaomao]

i have no idea whether it will work with a bugera because I think the reason it works like that on the xxx is because it has that active eq which is just an absolute bitch to tame.

Bugera 333 is based on the triplexxx, actually is a rip off better mids and better top end, strange enough lol
Better than the triplexxx, just my 2 cents, and yes I played a while with both of them (I own the 333).

 

[006]

+1 when I A/B'ed against a friend's XXX through the same cab and using the same guitar. But I still like the XXX, overall I prefer the 333 because it does have better mids and top end on it somehow.

~006

 

[jesus69lol]

+1 when I A/B'ed against a friend's XXX through the same cab and using the same guitar. But I still like the XXX, overall I prefer the 333 because it does have better mids and top end on it somehow.

~006

Odd. I'll have to try one of those out. I used to not like my xxx that much. Then I got some emgs in my guitar and started fooling with the eq in unconventional ways (like setting everything at 0) and now I am MUCH happier.