peavey ultra plus tube amp

[broken81]

anyone ever use these tube amps i just got one and im liking it. My first tube amp and i will never go back my sound has improved so much plus the logo lights up heheheheh:hotjump:

Anyway would a 5150 or some other amp just walk all over this or is this a pretty good amp in your opinion??

I guess these were made before the xxx or 5150 and spossed to be the same setup its 120 watts but i dont know a whole lot about it so any info or little tricks i can do to work good with this amp would be great!!

i got a boss eq pedal too should i run that in effects loop or like a regular pedal?

 

[iekobrid]

I've never tried a pre-XXX Ultra, but I have an opportunity to. Is yours a combo or a head? Is there a way to switch between the Crunch and Ultra settings without needing the footswitch?

 

[black sugar]

I had a 60w original Ultra series head YEARS ago, and I'm still pissed at myself for selling that thing.

Awesome thrash tone, but the 60w was a little underpowered for metal. The 120w version would have been better, for sure.

An Ultra series head would be a great eBay score for someone looking for a good but cheap tube head.

 

[ttiwguitar]

I just got rid of mine and got a Dual Rec, but it was a pretty awesome amp, especially for its price. It blended well with the 5150 the other guitarist in my band plays.

 

[cobhc]

Yeah i've heard they can sound like a 5150

 

[nwright]

I have an Ultra Plus. It is the precursor to the XXX in that it had an active EQ for the Crunch and Ultra channels, but the EQ was shared. The XXX has more gain on tap, but the essential idea I think is similar. You can't access crunch AND ultra without the footswitch. On my amp, if there isn't a footswitch, it defaults to Ultra and clean only, but the peavey logo will be orange when using the gain channel - strange. Plug in the footswitch, and the logo flips to red for ultra.

All in all, it's a great multi purpose amp. IMO, it excels at rock tones, but can do metal if EQ'd right. My main amp is a 6505+, though. The UP is my backup. Again, IMHO, I don't think the Ultra Plus can get real close to 5150/6505 tones. It has traces of Peavey amp heritage in there, really present mids, cuts like crazy, etc., but the rawness and "brutality" if you will of the 5150/6505 is not there in the amp. At least I haven't attained it with mine.

I do really like the power amp in that thing, though. I like the 3 position resonance switch, and the fact that you can crank the master to get some power tube clipping but tame it down with the channel volumes. It's very flexible in that regard. Of course, it sounds waaay better turned up, but it can sound nice at lower volumes as well. I like running the master volume up around 5-7 and then the post gain on the crunch and ultra channels around 4-6. If I could consistently play this amp at those levels, I'd say that it does metal better...But, I usually don't run it that much at those levels.

I've had good luck getting Lamb of God-esque type tones using a JB equipped Strat. It can get some nice dry tight gainy tones with passives for sure.

 

[broken81]

yea there is a half power switch too which is real cool for recording i think so you can drive powertubes harder and get them singing easier it goes from 120 wats to 60:Spin:

Im pretty happy with this amp though and like i said by far the best amp i have owned to date!! But i have not owned the mesa trip. or 5150 just dint know if i was missing out on something great.

Oh i have a bbe 362 and a boss eq pedal and hush noise gate Were and how should i run these things on this amp all through front or some on the effects loop???

 

[nwright]

yea there is a half power switch too which is real cool for recording i think so you can drive powertubes harder and get them singing easier it goes from 120 wats to 60:Spin:

Im pretty happy with this amp though and like i said by far the best amp i have owned to date!! But i have not owned the mesa trip. or 5150 just dint know if i was missing out on something great.

Oh i have a bbe 362 and a boss eq pedal and hush noise gate Were and how should i run these things on this amp all through front or some on the effects loop???

If it's a Hush pedal, I'd run it in front of the amp. If you have an EQ, I'd run it in the loop. I'd leave the 362 out of the rig.

 

[IronApe]

I still have my ultra plus (although I recently went for an Engl Savage SE) and I must say that amp plays pretty sweet. The other guitarist in my band has a 5150 II, so we managed to compare the tones quite often. I agree with nwright, it's not as brutal as the 5150 but I think it's more versatile, at least you can get good cleans with the ultra plus!!
And the color changing logo....aaah!

 

[metalkingdom]

4 days late...

I have an Ultra 212 that I bought in '98 and I love it.

 

[EtherForBreakfast]

word word... true.

i had an ultra 1x12 combo and dug it.. i also dig the ultra heads.

the freakin rockmaster preamp is also pretty tits but it's gotta be dizzled up with a boost pedal to put it into ultra rage.

peavey is good people.

 

[nwright]

I'm actually trying to sell mine locally. It's a great amp, but it's my backup for my 6505+...And, it's never seen gig use. A testament to Peavey quality. I'm looking to replace it with a decent SS head and have some extra cash for other "supplies".

 

[Executioner213]

I think I'm going to sell mine too. I'd like to see what I can get for it to throw towards a new or used Dual Recto, Triple X, or a 6505+. I'm actually hoping I can find someone locally who has one of those that doesn't realize what they have, or what I have, and try to convince em to trade with me. I'm sure it won't happen though. Anyone want it here?.....$500. Lemme know.