Favorite Amps?

William Gwynn · From: Pennsylvania, USA

Looking into getting an amp for my pedal steel. Would like to know what everybody else uses.........I know there are varied tastes........anybody have experience with roland's Blues Cube 80W?

Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

If you want an amp for Pedal Steel, the best option is to get a "pedal steel amp" and not a "guitar amp". Steel Guitar amps are "voiced" for steel which requires a different "voicing" than a guitar. Depending on your budget the Peavey Nashville 112 is a good amp to start with (and really works well for stage too). You can buy new or there are used ones that come up for sale on the forum.

Nathan Guilford · From: Oklahoma City

I mean no disrespect at all Jack, and you've got many years experience on me, but you and I both play through bass guitar amps right? (and love the sound) I don't want to alienate a new player. There are quite a few folks that play through a Cube 80X. I haven't ever played one, but suspect they like that it is lightweight, and has onboard effects. I've never heard of the blues cube, but you want a super clean sound. I started out with a peavey bandit that I bought (cheap) from a friend because I only had a Fender blues deluxe that I couldn't get a clean enough tone. The bandit served me well, until I got enough money together for a peavey nashville 112 -- and even used it a lot after as a practice amp.
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William Gwynn · From: Pennsylvania, USA

Thanks, Nathan.........that was going to be my follow up question. I have a 60's fender precision bass. Could I get the Fender Rumble series 200W combo amp and use it for both my bass and my soon to be acquired pedal steel?

Nathan Guilford · From: Oklahoma City

I don't know anything about that particular amp. I know that Jack likes the Carvin BX500 (as do I) because it has a "real" preamp tube (not starved plate design) and the eq adjustments are endless. The nice thing about bass amps is that they are often built to take strong input signals and not distort. It's not that pedal steel players want a lot of low end thump, for a traditional sound, we want distortion free singing tone. In the Carvin, you still get the warmness and the tube compression feel, but not the distortion. What (I think) Jack was pointing out is that typical guitar amps want to get pushed into distortion easily and that just doesn't sound pleasant to most pedal steel players
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Glenn Demichele · From: (20mi N of) Chicago Illinois, USA

Hi William: I'm a bass player too, and I use the Carvin BX500 bass amp for both steel and bass - but with 18's for bass and a Peavey BW 15 for steel. Last weekend I was looking for a backup bass amp for my jazz gigs and was blown away by the rumble series. I was going to buy a 500W combo, but it was way too much amp. The 40W combo was small, loud and 18lbs light, so I got it instead. I tried playing steel through it, and it sounds great - plenty of high end (almost like a twin) and a solid bottom of course. No effects, and maybe not loud enough for a loud band gig, but still plenty loud. I'm sure the 100W 12 would be a useable steel amp that would of course work for bass.
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Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

I'd suspect that the Blues Cube, with blues in the name might break up too much. The 80 GX might be better suis
Bass amps work great, better than guitar amps.
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Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

Many bass amps do good for steel. I've got a Cube 80GX and it works good with my Telecaster, not so much with steel.

But for a newbie I still say start with a "steel" amp.

Mark Fowler · From: Minnesota, USA

Would using a Boss graphic equalizer (GE7) be helpful to get any amp into tuned for Pedal Steel arena?

Just asking if such EQ would help.

Mark

Nathan Guilford · From: Oklahoma City

Sure! an eq pedal will help get you any tone that you want, but you gotta remember anytime you add electronics you also add noise to the signal. Plus it's just one more thing to bring cables to and from, and set up.

If your convinced that you've got to use this one amp that you have and yet you want to drastically change the sound of it? It might be better to reconsider and buy a GREAT steel amp, like a Nashville 400, used for about $350-400 (at least where I live).

Probably better to go that route if you can instead of an eq pedal for $100.
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Cory Dolinsky · From: Old Saybrook, Connecticut, USA

Hi William,

I just bought a rumble 500 head and I'm really liking it. I've played the last four or five gigs with it. It's amazing the difference with different speaker set ups. My favorite right now with it is the Travis Toy speaker. I had a 2x12 cabinet with some old eminence speakers that sounded great two. For the last ten years I have been using a sarno revelation and a vht 2/90/2 which is great, but I bought the rumble as a back up amp and have been enjoying it. The eq seems to work for me with this amp. Here's a clip of sleepwalk someone recorded at the gig last night and sent it to me.
https://www.facebook.com/scott.andreoli/posts/1449772148368965

Nathan Guilford · From: Oklahoma City

Just re-read my last post. Sounded angry to me. I'm not. not at all. Didn't mean it to sound that way! Love y'all!
Really dig that clip of sleepwalk!
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William Gwynn · From: Pennsylvania, USA

Kinda leaning towards the fender rumble series........so I can use it with my fender bass and my pedal steel...........another decision. An amp with 2 10's........or 1 15?

William Gwynn · From: Pennsylvania, USA

Or.......would I have more flexability by sticking with a steel guitar amp........like the new peavey 112 or sessions 115, and picking up a separate bass amp

Tom Gorr · From: Three Hills, Alberta

I play double duty guitar and steel. The goal is the same. Find a two channel amp that has eq characteristics suitable to both instruments and a speaker that sounds good for both.

I haven't spent enough time demoing bass amps. .played bass through a 100W cube and thought it was great for the gig sizes I played.. halls mostly with PA support.....and portable... . I used a Peavey Vegas with the BW1502 speaker one time for bass guitar. .. and of course. .. it is one of Peavey well known steel amps. Didn't think it was great for bass in spite of the bass voiced speaker. Needed the punch of a closed cab IMO.

My gut suggestion as a start point for thinking would be to find a 70s Fender Bassman Head and a closed back 1x15 cab with a JBL d140F. Those have a bass and normal input and point to point wiring that is moddable by an amp builder to voice the circuit to your preference for a few bucks.

The other option might be the Bass amp of your choice single channel likely... with an power amp input that you could use a dedicated steel preamp as an insert.

John Billings · From: Ohio, USA

Dr. Z Surgical Steel Amp
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Ian Rae · From: Redditch, England

When I needed to get an amp I got what was available at a price I could afford and which I trusted. This turned out to be a Fender 112 old enough to have been made in the USA. I liked it so much that when another one came along I bought that too so I could annoy the neighbours in stereo. There isn't a load of used Peavey Nashvilles cluttering up the stores over here.

I sold my bass amp when I sold my bass - how was I to know I should have kept it?.... Mad

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Ron Hogan · From: Nashville, TN, usa

I have to say Jack is right, but I've been experimenting here lately in Nashville for an alternative amp. I've always been a Peavey guy in my over 30 years here playing in Nashville. I compare most amps to my Peavey sound as most here in Nashville developed that sound that we all love. Anyway, give a read on what I've been testing and reviewing. It still needs to be tested out yet on stage. Take it with a grain of salt.

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=313107

Regards,
Ron

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

Back to the question...

Quentin Hickey · From: Nova Scotia, Canada

I played through a cube 80 on the weekend. Didn't like what I was hearing at all for my taste. I just found it too ice picky and brittle with no warmth.
On the other hand I've heard the blues cube played on YouTube with a profex 2 in front of it and did have that warmth.
If you are a new steel player and than I would recommend not make any big purchases until you know exactly what you want.
If you already have a guitar amp and not in a rush than wait for a used steel amp to come up for sale locally. You can get a reasonable deal on one.

Ron Hogan · From: Nashville, TN, usa

William,
When it comes down to it, it's hard to beat Peavey. They've been there for a long time for us steel players and have kept their pricing down and quality there. With today's new steel amps costing 2 to $3,000.00, it makes Peavey even more attractive.

And their support has been great and at onetime you only saw Peavey here in Nashville. Go ahead and either get a used Peavey or go for the 112 as you can't go wrong.

George Macdonald · From: Vancouver Island BC Canada

My favorite is the Peavey Nashville 112. I do have a 500 watt bass amp head and cab with a premium 15" speaker, but I find I just really like the 112. Just over a year ago I bought a 112 back from my Brother-In-Law that I sold to him a few years ago. [He doesn't play steel]. The stock 112s are fine, but I did put a MOD brand reverb tank and an Eminence Travis Toy speaker in it. It has plenty of power for occasional concerts at our large Church, and the tone, using Bill Ferguson's settings is great.

Rich Upright · From: Florida, USA

Ya know; a couple years ago I bought a new Fender Rumble 200 bass amp w/1-15" Eminence, because I was facing heart surgery & thought if I got a bass gig, I would never again be able to lift my Combo 300. Ive never used the Rumble, as every bass gig I've had since then had an amp already there. Still has the hang tags on it. I've been tempted to yank it outta the closet & try it with my steel, as I've been hearing so much about steel through bass amps.
A couple years ago, I went to a rehearsal with a band I was doing some shows with, and I played through an old Ampeg B-15. Best steel sound I ever got, although not enough clean power for a live situation.
Yea; I gotta get motivated to yank that Rumble outta the closet soon.
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Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

Dave Campbell · From: Nova Scotia, Canada

i'm beginning to think you'll just end up owning every kind of amp there is at some point. every amp i buy is my favourite until another one comes along.

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