Hey, I'm new here.. so I'm sorry if this is asked alot. But, I'm looking for some suggestions for a new amp. I want to upgrade from my Crate SS to a tube amp. I was looking mainly for used amps. I play mostly Metallica, Black Sabbath, and Slayer. And, I want it to be loud enough to play at least a small gig. My guitar is a Jackson Warrior, which has an alder body and duncan designed detonator pickups. I've been lookin mainly at Peaveys so far, mainly the 5150 combo. I'd like to spend no more than 600 dollars (including shipping) but I'd preferably keep it under 500. Thank's in advace.

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well that narows it down alot theres no way you could get a half stack for that...well the line 6 one but i wouldnt suggest it.

the 5150 are not bad i like the 5150 II better cause of the seperate knobs for the channels but really depends on if your gonna use both channels.

are there any music stores near by? if so i suggest going in and just trying them out and see what you like/dont like

if you want a slayer tone, the you gotta go marshall but they use the jcm900 (i think)

also check ebay for good deals on used gear

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SLayer use JCM 800's

a 5150 can easily pull off a slayer sound.. slayer's tone isent unique or anything.

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800 900 close enough

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Well.. I think the JCM 800 is a little out of my price range. But, the JCM 900 isn't, how does it sound? Mainly the 50w combo.

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i didnt even know there was a 900 combo. i have never played one presonally but from what i hear from others there lacking a bit in the distortion section so you just run a distortion pedal through it for a little extra boots. zach wylde and others do this to remedy that problem

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Ok, (in MY opinion) A JCM 800 sounds pretty good for guitar.
And a Fender Frontman 15B sounds good for a bass.

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frontman 15B? thats a fuckin 15 watt practice amp

Ok, I REALLY don't want to use a pedal. What I really need is a good amp distortion. Oh, and you say that this is what Zakk does.. but, doesn't he use the 800?

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yup zakk uses a jcm 800 (custom i think) and a overdrive pedal. You should check out
the crate blue voodoo 60 watt combo. They go around 250$ on ebay. Here's a 5150 combo http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...3763472214&rd=1

Aren't the Blue Voodoos ungodly sludgy/muddy? And, I really like the 5150's, but that insane shipping is gonna kill me. I doubt I'd be able to find one used at a pawn shop. I'd still like to know more about those JCM 900's. The price on Ebay is very attractive to me, and their shipping cost is 30+ dollars less than the 5150.

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When i tried the blue voodoo combo it wasn't muddy. It sounded pretty badass because i had the volume pretty loud. as for the jcm 900's..i dont know..Just wait for xdislexicx or def to help you out. As for the 5150's..BLS is the guy to talk to.

What do you want to know about the JCM 800??

What do you want to know about the 5150??

If you ask QUESTIONS you will get ANSWERS, simply saying you want to know more dosent help.

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OK, excuse me for not being more specific. What I really want to know, is how well do they do what I'm wanting. I thought it was implied, but i guess not. My big issue is distortion. What is the distortion like on these amps? And how loud are they? (The 5150 and Blue Voodoo's at least)

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the blue voodoo's fucking rawk...
hunt down a used bv60h(60w) and a used peavey ms412(4x12 cab)... you could probably snag that setup for under $600 bones... even $500 if you find them covered in rock n' roll spots.

otherwise you could probably grab a 5150 2x12 combo for that much.

the thing about the jcm 800 & 900 is you can't get a good amount of gain out of them without cranking them to ten. the jcm 900 has quite a bit more, but it's more of a medium gain amp(why it says hi gain on it i do not know).

a jcm 900 is beautiful teamed up with a proco rat.

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that bv300 is pretty nice.i cant even imagine needing 300 tube watts!its got 16 friggin tubes.

Excellent.. I'll try and check out the Blue Voodoos now. How does the head compare to the combo in terms of what I'm looking for?

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pretty much the same circutry, but the main difference in sound would be what speakers/cab configuration you'd be using.

i've owned the ms412(bought it used for $200) it sounded really good. handles lows really well...

my guitarist has owned the bv120h(the 120w version of the bv60h) and it was really good... i've barrowed a friends before when i was undergoing rig changes, it did great.

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if your looking... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...3763037227&rd=1
1 day left hurry
or...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...3764504588&rd=1 its the 2003 model looks different

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the first one is the bv60h.
the second one is the bv120h.

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i was just sayin

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Which would be the most cost effective? The combo, a half stack, or a head and 2x12 cab? I'm not sure if the better speakers in a stack would mark much of an improvement in sound or not. (I haven't found any to play for myself as of yet)

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the kind of speakers can make a big difference... cost wise, depends on which ones you want

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i'm not sure what speakers are in the combos, if they're anything like the speakers in the standard bv412 cabs(not the vintage 30 ones) then they arent very good...
but that can be changed.

i prefer head and cab setups though... its much easier to transport. and i usually like the sounds better.

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So, would you recomended changing the speakers in the combo, or getting a 2x12 cab with the head? I'm really hoping to find the perfect balance of cheap-ness and sound. A 4x12 I think would be a little much, becuase I have to play at home too, and I'm worried a halfstack might be overkill. Thanks for putting up with all these questions by the way..

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i dont thyink any of th combos come with the vintage 30s but im not sure.
i would go with a head and(since your stuck on 2x12)find one on ebay.if you canfind a good deal,witch you might not since they're really pricy,get a genz-benz g-force 2x12

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you said you didnt need it but you coudl probably find a good 4x12 used on ebay for the price of a new 2x12

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Something just occured to me.. wouldn't a Blue Voodoo and cabinet cost about the same as a 5150 combo? So, wouldn't that defeat the purpose of buying the Crate to save money? Therefore, would I not be better off getting the 5150, considering the proximity in price?

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only if you like the 5150 more than the blue voodoo... different strokes for different folks... i wouldnt say one is much better than the other.

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I see... another thing I've just thought of is; what are the Peavey XXX combos like, especially the 40w ones, and how much do they run used; I don't see any on Ebay. (sorry I keep asking things, but I wanna make sure I consider every option)

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I havent seen a XXX combo. If its anyything like the head, then its pretty decent.

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I own a 60 watt peavey xxx and it's pretty good. It doesn't have a lot of distortion like a 5150 combo but it has better cleans. I bought mine for 340$ but mine came with an extra pair of tubes . Anyways..that sucker can get pretty mean.

About practicing at home and not wanting a 4x12 cab...

To my ear, a jcm 900 and 4x12 cab with g12 speakers sounds just as good at low volume as a 5150 2x12 combo. Just my opinion, but don't automatically count something out just because it's a 4x12 cab.

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