Peavey Bandit Club

[Higgs F. Boson]

Solo Series Bandit 112, no blue/teal stripe. Just got it a couple of weeks ago. Lovin' it.

 

[dguitar3]

Got one yesterday for 150. I like the clean channel a lot. Not so much the dirty side, but I rarely like the gain channel on any amp, preferring pedals for that. This amp likes pedals too. The reverb is a bit choppy too, but hey it was only 150 bucks. It's one of the old USA versions.

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[dguitar3]

Anyone else had issues with the reverb sounding "choppy" for lack of a better term? I wonder if it's just this one or what. I need to just get a good pedal I guess.

 

[skinnyguy]

I've got a Solo Series Bandit 65 - bought it brand new in 1983. The reverb is a little sketchy at times, but other than that it still sounds like it did the day I bought it. It will not die! Truly one of the all-time great "bang for the buck" amps.

 

[dguitar3]

...Truly one of the all-time great "bang for the buck" amps.

Agreed. Thanks man.

 

[tgfmike]

25 posts and only 1 pic. WTH?

 

[JayFreddy]

Anyone else had issues with the reverb sounding "choppy" for lack of a better term? I wonder if it's just this one or what.

I like the spring reverb in the black boxes better than the digital reverb in the new ones. It's not quite surf city like a DRRI, but it's pretty wet. If yours is "choppy" you probably have a bad connection or a bad reverb tank. The springs inside those are pretty fragile and they will break if you toss the amp around too hard. Luckily they're cheap to replace, I think around $20 for a brand new tank.

 

[birv2]

I have an Envoy 110. Can I join the club? Or do I need to start my own club?

 

[Daddydex]

I have an Envoy 110. Can I join the club? Or do I need to start my own club?

Sure you can! I have my sights set on one of those too!

 

[birv2]

Sure you can! I have my sights set on one of those too!

Alright! Though I have a Pro Jr and a HRDx, I think that little Envoy is a terrific SS amp. I know a local guitarist who uses one at every jam, and it sounds terrific. Nice overdrive and reverb. Always confounds the tube amp snobs, and I"m one of them.

 

[LGOberean]

Man, this is a great thread! Count me in: I also have a Bandit 65, 1984 vintage.

I have an Envoy 110. Can I join the club? Or do I need to start my own club?

I have two Envoy 110s, one circa 1995, TransTube, the other early 90s but pre-TT. What about yours, birv2?

Oh, BTW, pics of these amps to follow. I agree with tgfmike on this one; there aren't nearly enough pics in this thread. But my oldest daughter and her family are here for a visit, just pulled up in the driveway, so later.

 

[Daddydex]

Pics you say? Here is mine with the 112SX cabinet I found at Musicgoround!

Dan

 

[birv2]

Here's the Envoy:

 

[dguitar3]

I like the spring reverb in the black boxes better than the digital reverb in the new ones. It's not quite surf city like a DRRI, but it's pretty wet. If yours is "choppy" you probably have a bad connection or a bad reverb tank. The springs inside those are pretty fragile and they will break if you toss the amp around too hard. Luckily they're cheap to replace, I think around $20 for a brand new tank.

Thanks man. Do you mean from the factory or what?

 

[Meowy]

I have an opportunity to buy what I believe to be A Silver Stripe series for $75 on Craigslist. I would not be able to try it before I buy it because of distance - we would be meeting halfway. Is this a good deal? Here it is:

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[JayFreddy]

Thanks man. Do you mean from the factory or what?

Yes. However, it might not be the reverb pan. Are you handy with a soldering iron? If not, I would bring it to a local electronics place to get diagnosed properly. Those are pretty easy to work on, and whether it's the reverb pan or a bad connection, it shouldn't cost more than the minimum bench charge, not counting parts.

I have an opportunity to buy what I believe to be A Silver Stripe series for $75 on Craigslist. I would not be able to try it before I buy it because of distance - we would be meeting halfway. Is this a good deal? Here it is:

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If it works, yes, that's a nice price. Typically they go for twice that in Dallas. However, it would be nice to make sure it works.

The most common problem I've seen with the black box Bandits is the circuit board comes loose at one of the jacks, which in turn starts to loosen up anything else connected to the circuit board.

For example, say the footswitch cable gets yanked hard a few too many times. The jack for the footswitch is soldered directly to the main board, so hitting the jack (or any of the knobs) too hard will jar the main board loose from anything connected to it, i.e., all of the knobs and all the other jacks. These will then need to be resoldered to restore integrity to the amp.

This is very common with these. I suspect that's what's going on with dguitar3's reverb too, but that could also be a bad reverb pan.

The way I would test for that would be to plug the amp in, turn down the reverb, play a chord, then bump the amp a little bit. It shouldn't affect the sound in any way. If the sound sputters or otherwise changes when you bump the amp, something is loose inside and it will need to be resoldered.

If you use a little extra solder when you redo everything, you shouldn't have any more problems. The super thin solder was a result of the wave solder process that was used to manufacture these.

If you can meet halfway at a music store of some kind, that would be ideal. The music store might not like you "trying before you buy" something that's not theirs, so you might say you are guitar shopping but want to demo their guitars through "your amp"... Maybe buy some strings or picks while you're there, what comes around goes around, etc.

 

[dguitar3]

Yes. However, it might not be the reverb pan. Are you handy with a soldering iron? If not, I would bring it to a local electronics place to get diagnosed properly. Those are pretty easy to work on, and whether it's the reverb pan or a bad connection, it shouldn't cost more than the minimum bench charge, not counting parts.

Thanks man. I'm fine with a soldering iron so that's not a problem. Good to know they're easy though!

I should clarify, when I say "choppy" I don't mean as in an electrical short. It's more just the quality of the verb. For instance, if I strike the muted strings, the verb sounds almost like a delay with fast repeats within reverb. It's a rather subtle problem (if it's even a problem). Make any sense? It's just not as smooth as my Roland Cube (which you're familiar with as well).

Thanks a lot for the help man.

D.

 

[JayFreddy]

I should clarify, when I say "choppy" I don't mean as in an electrical short. It's more just the quality of the verb. For instance, if I strike the muted strings, the verb sounds almost like a delay with fast repeats within reverb. It's a rather subtle problem (if it's even a problem). Make any sense? It's just not as smooth as my Roland Cube (which you're familiar with as well).

Does your reverb sound like this? The reverb in this clip is a pretty accurate representation of how my mine sounds at around 8 on the dial. I don't care for the overdrive settings here, but I think this guy (hello Greg!) gets some nice clean tones...



The reverb in my Cube 60 sounds more digital to me, so if you're looking for a digital reverb sound, you might like that better. If you want spring reverb, I think the Peavey will probably sound better. Ultimately it depends what you want.

 

[Big Tony]

I've never owned a Bandit, but I've played and recorded thru one on numerous occations.
Both the 80s models, and the new ones, are great amps, if you avoid the built-in saturation/distortion. Use a pedal for those tones.
The clean sounds are great. And it's LOUD!

/ Tony

 

[dguitar3]

JayFreddy,

Thanks for all the help man. Yeah, I guess it's just the way the reverb sounds. It's actually not all that bad. I'm just being picky.