This is a story in progress. So last week I agreed to help a friend out by using my eBay/PayPal account to buy him a used Peavey Triple XXX head, and he gave me the cash in advance. I'm an experienced eBayer and this would be my friend's first tube amp, so I figured I'd help him out. Plus I'd have the amp for a few days to put it through the paces, possibly record some clips for the Recabinet site using the preamp out with IRs, etc. Totally win-win right? I scored the amp for $525 USD total with shipping from a certified eBay TOP SELLER with 100% positive feedback, my friend was stoked, great deal for a killer amp... or so we thought...
The story so far:
The amp arrives today via UPS, in a totally sketchy box for a fake Christmas tree, wrapped in duct tape. Warning sign #1. So I decide (wisely, as it turns out) to open the package outside on my patio. I had to cut it open with a utility knife, not just to cut the tape, but to cut the box. Inside were tons of packing peanuts that exploded everywhere. Thankfully, the guy put the amp in a taped up plastic bag.
I turn the amp on its side to open the bag, and I hear a sound that resembles a rain stick. WTF?? Turns out, as I open the bag, that the inside of the bag, and the amp itself, are covered in SAND!!! Not only that, but all the switches and pots are grimey with the sand. What kind of "top seller" does this???!!! (UPDATED: pictures are here.)
Mind you, the photo in the eBay listing showed the amp looking clean, near mint, and the only problem visible/described was that the knob caps for the FX send/return levels were missing. Easy to replace, and my friend has no FX units anyway. As it turns out, not just the caps were missing, but the actual posts on the resistors had been sheared off somehow!!! Also, the power cord was severely crimped (thankfully that is replaceable, but it would have been nice to know in advance!)
So I decide to brave it, and see if the amp even works. I cleaned up the amp inside and out with 91% isopropyl alcohol, removing the sand and dust as much as possible. It actually looked near mint after an hour of cleanup work. I also re-seated all the tubes and individually cleaned them.
I notice that while the footswitch is included as per the listing, the cable is missing. Now, the listing didn't mention the footswitch cable, but a responsible eBay seller would note the lack of a cable in the listing, particularly because Peavey's footswitch cables are a proprietary multi-pin connector that requires a special order to replace.
So I fire up the amp, with one of my own power cords, and I notice that the channel volume knobs for the Crunch and Ultra channels are loose and spin infinitely. Fucking great. The amp sounds good on all channels, no dirty pots (unbelievably) but the tubes sound a bit dead and the tone of the amp is a good deal woolier and fizzier than I would like. I didn't expect new tubes, and if everything else about the amp had been good, then I wouldn't have tripped, but it was depressing after all the hard work.
Next, I take my spare Peavey multi-pin cable from my 5150 II and hook it up to the XXX footswitch and head to test it out. The clean channel button on the footswitch doesn't work. At this point I decided enough is enough, and I am demanding a refund. I'm awaiting a reply from the seller.
Once we get the refund money back, my friend is going to be ordering a brand new Peavey 3120 instead from a local dealer.
To be continued soon...
The story so far:
The amp arrives today via UPS, in a totally sketchy box for a fake Christmas tree, wrapped in duct tape. Warning sign #1. So I decide (wisely, as it turns out) to open the package outside on my patio. I had to cut it open with a utility knife, not just to cut the tape, but to cut the box. Inside were tons of packing peanuts that exploded everywhere. Thankfully, the guy put the amp in a taped up plastic bag.
I turn the amp on its side to open the bag, and I hear a sound that resembles a rain stick. WTF?? Turns out, as I open the bag, that the inside of the bag, and the amp itself, are covered in SAND!!! Not only that, but all the switches and pots are grimey with the sand. What kind of "top seller" does this???!!! (UPDATED: pictures are here.)
Mind you, the photo in the eBay listing showed the amp looking clean, near mint, and the only problem visible/described was that the knob caps for the FX send/return levels were missing. Easy to replace, and my friend has no FX units anyway. As it turns out, not just the caps were missing, but the actual posts on the resistors had been sheared off somehow!!! Also, the power cord was severely crimped (thankfully that is replaceable, but it would have been nice to know in advance!)
So I decide to brave it, and see if the amp even works. I cleaned up the amp inside and out with 91% isopropyl alcohol, removing the sand and dust as much as possible. It actually looked near mint after an hour of cleanup work. I also re-seated all the tubes and individually cleaned them.
I notice that while the footswitch is included as per the listing, the cable is missing. Now, the listing didn't mention the footswitch cable, but a responsible eBay seller would note the lack of a cable in the listing, particularly because Peavey's footswitch cables are a proprietary multi-pin connector that requires a special order to replace.
So I fire up the amp, with one of my own power cords, and I notice that the channel volume knobs for the Crunch and Ultra channels are loose and spin infinitely. Fucking great. The amp sounds good on all channels, no dirty pots (unbelievably) but the tubes sound a bit dead and the tone of the amp is a good deal woolier and fizzier than I would like. I didn't expect new tubes, and if everything else about the amp had been good, then I wouldn't have tripped, but it was depressing after all the hard work.
Next, I take my spare Peavey multi-pin cable from my 5150 II and hook it up to the XXX footswitch and head to test it out. The clean channel button on the footswitch doesn't work. At this point I decided enough is enough, and I am demanding a refund. I'm awaiting a reply from the seller.
Once we get the refund money back, my friend is going to be ordering a brand new Peavey 3120 instead from a local dealer.
To be continued soon...
