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Miscellaneous => ADA Sound/Audio Clips & Bits => Non-ADA Amps and Preamps => Topic started by: rabidgerry on September 16, 2015, 02:52:28 PM

Title: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 16, 2015, 02:52:28 PM
Hi guy's just letting you hear some noodling around and noise from the Peavey Rockmaster.  I dunno what anyone thinks of these pre's on here but I really love them since I have owned mine and they have a superb simplicity to them and massive amount of tone on offer.  I'll do as much variety as I can over the next while.  So far I have clean and Ultra Gain clips.

Gain here has push pull knob engaged for extra boost, gain knob is at 5.8 (not quite at 6)
Bottom about 6.5  Body 3 (push pull not engaged) Edge 7

Guitar is a Squier Showmaster with dp100 in the bridge.  Boss GT5 providing reverb and nothing else.  EPSI providing speaker impulse.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 16, 2015, 03:02:09 PM
Some new riffs I I'm working on.  I haven't nailed this yet and it hurts my fingers at the moment so I will need practice to get over that and make it smoother.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 16, 2015, 03:12:17 PM
some clean.  The clean channel on this is really nice.  Not often I give a shit about clean.

setting are all in the middle bar the presence which is up full.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Soloist on September 16, 2015, 08:45:47 PM
Yeah that Rockmaster sounds F'ing sweet! :thumb-up: Excelllent tone! :bow:

I like the ultra gain riff! Love the gallups :metal:
Clean 2 sounds like an Irish jig :banana-guitar: lol...I know I should have expected it from you! :lol:
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 17, 2015, 12:45:29 AM
Yeah I love the tone.  I don't scoop really.  Most people I have read about scoop the hell out of this preamp and then complain that it's fizzy.  Well some people should learn how to EQ  :facepalm:

The push pull in the Body control, gives a different tonality again.  So I should record with that pulled out.  It adds a tonne of low mid range.  It becomes even more gutsy.  You can then adjust the edge and bottom controls to suit the shift engaged.  I really like it and it's a simple preamp, althought it has so many effects loops its actually a bit crazy!!!

Feel wise it feels a bit stiffer to play than the 3TM, but not in a bad way.  I'm sure if you wanted a stickier feel certain tubes would change that.  What I have in there at the moment are 1 EHX in the front and the rest are the stock chinese valves from what I can see.


I don't normally play anything clean, but I feel I ignore that side of playing pretty much %100.

I didn't think it sounded Irish traditional at all  :lol:  I have never played anything at all like that, I swear I haven't the faintest idea how to.  Made that up for an intro a long time ago but I can't remember it exactly so I had to just play it they way I thought it went.  May be it is and Irish sounding, I may be would have said "folkish"?  Open to suggestions.  I hate Irish trad music, but I like medieval sounding stuff of classical.  None of which I can play either.

Even though I don't play anything like that, I still think that is a great clean tone from a crazy hi gain monster preamp.  I just wanted to show that it can have a nice clean sound and is not just a gain machine.  It pretty much covers clean, lo, medium and hi gain.  More clips on the way when I get a chance.

Perhaps Richard might like the clean tone?  Anyone like the clean sound?  Last time I bother with that shit  :dunno:  :lol:
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: kawai2g4b on September 17, 2015, 01:09:43 AM
I have a rockmaster myself (in fact it's sitting in place of my MP1, which is in for repair). I tend to favor my les Paul-ish instruments with it. And you are right Rabidgerry, you have to keep the midrange strong on the ultra channels.  I tend to back off the highs a little on my brighter guitars as the highs tend to overshadow the rest of the tone on it. The cleans are great but a good brighter analog delay really completes the clean channel.

I use my Aria Pro lc-550 with it normally and can get a really brutal tone with the right EQ settings. 
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 17, 2015, 01:48:23 AM
I have a rockmaster myself (in fact it's sitting in place of my MP1, which is in for repair). I tend to favor my les Paul-ish instruments with it. And you are right Rabidgerry, you have to keep the midrange strong on the ultra channels.  I tend to back off the highs a little on my brighter guitars as the highs tend to overshadow the rest of the tone on it. The cleans are great but a good brighter analog delay really completes the clean channel.

I use my Aria Pro lc-550 with it normally and can get a really brutal tone with the right EQ settings.

Yeah I could hear a nice delay going on that clean channel and complimenting, but only if I was wanting a delay effect.  I still liked how it sounded off the bat though with a subtle bit of reverb like my clips.  I mean I hadn't done anything to that EQ, just bumped the presence up.  Also the speaker selection and mic position can factor in a lot, I just kept it the same as what I did the gain stuff at.  I personnaly would be very happy with that clean tone.

I've noticed some setups can sound too bright and yes you need to keep the edge control in check.  However I noticed with the setup and speaker I was using I was able to dial in a lot more than I ever had with the rockmaster.  I used to only ever have it at like 2.5ish.  I was up to 7 when I did those clips.

Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Soloist on September 17, 2015, 08:18:14 AM
Your clean tone sounds great. Way better than the cleans I get out of my JMP1.
That clean riff would make and excellent intro, add some chorus and delay and your good to go! :thumb-up:
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 17, 2015, 09:11:30 AM
May be I will :)  Chorus has to be my fav effect.  I pretty much use a subtle stereo chorus live for my entire set now.  Different degrees of it.

Will record some more later.  I should do a track up again using the rockmaster.

Soloist, have you come across any yet on ebay?
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Soloist on September 17, 2015, 02:56:11 PM
The 2 I found they want $250. Waiting for a better price.
Chorus I use almost always as well. If not chorus then a pitch shifter/detuner for a chorus effect.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 18, 2015, 12:42:49 AM
The 2 I found they want $250. Waiting for a better price.
Chorus I use almost always as well. If not chorus then a pitch shifter/detuner for a chorus effect.

No way!!!

Me n you.....we is the same...............


There is only one guitar in my band and personally having a stereo effect on the guitar the whole time makes it sound better in my opinion.   I have two main setting of chorus. One that makes a chorus sound, but subtle.  Then another that is purely for givin stereo width but doesn't sound too heavily chorus chorus if you know what I mean?

Usually I use a delay unit and delay one side but I'm operating on that unit at the moment trying to install a bypass.  I really must get that fixed  :dunno:

I also dabble with the harmonizer on my Boss, I don't care what anyone says, I like it.  It too can create that detuner effect that's pretty chorus esque.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Chip Roberts on September 09, 2020, 12:30:50 PM
Just picked one of these up a few weeks ago from the "as is" pile at Trading Musician in Seattle.  $70, a few knobs/pots busted BUT still functional if you grab a pair of pliers.

This thing sounds MASSIVE.  Gets your 5150 tones with the Ultra pulled out.  I run it through my 40 watt Bogner power amp and it sounds HUGE.  Only problem is I had a power failure in my office the other day and I'm pretty sure it blew out the V1 tube.  Cracked the top open and it was a Mesa 12AX7 Russian 2.  I had a few other tubes around that I swapped in and out, but nope, that little Mesa is where the beef comes from.  The other 3 are Sovteks of some sort.  I went ahead and ordered a replacement via NessTone, but I'm very excited to put this in my studio rack and get some hi gain modern tones out of it.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on September 30, 2020, 07:03:53 AM
Well I'm chasing a 3rd so I know what you mean!  I put a cool mod in one of mine that acts as a lo pass filter and helps tame the hi's should you be recording DI like me.  I have two tung sols in T1 and T2 then two cryo JJ's in T3 and T4.  Been messing with cap mods to allow more Lo end through also but nothing permanent as yet.  This preamp is what I've built my tone around for the last 5-6 years.

I use with either a Koch ATR4502 or a Peavey Classic 50/50.

PS If anyone knows what year the classic 50/50 amps are from I would love to know.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rnolan on October 01, 2020, 12:19:51 AM
Aren't they from the 50's ? LoL
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Chip Roberts on October 01, 2020, 10:10:59 AM
Well I'm chasing a 3rd so I know what you mean!  I put a cool mod in one of mine that acts as a lo pass filter and helps tame the hi's should you be recording DI like me.  I have two tung sols in T1 and T2 then two cryo JJ's in T3 and T4.  Been messing with cap mods to allow more Lo end through also but nothing permanent as yet.  This preamp is what I've built my tone around for the last 5-6 years.

RE: JJ tubes.

When I took my unit in to get serviced (turned out all it needed was a bit of cleaning and works fine now), the tech said JJs are some of the worst tubes you can buy and they fry your circuit boards or something to that effect?  Have any of you guys ever heard of such a thing?  I swapped my GTs in my '89 MP1 with JJs and haven't noticed any problems outside of more noise due to the higher gain.

I'm fairly certain my guy doesn't get a commission or a kickback from selling GTs or any other tube; most of his business comes from repairs and maintenance, so I don't think he's just trying to upsell his partner brands for the kickback incentive.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: Kim on October 01, 2020, 01:45:35 PM
......the tech said JJs are some of the worst tubes you can buy and they fry your circuit boards or something to that effect?  Have any of you guys ever heard of such a thing? 

I know people like to get hung up on certain brands and that is fine, but it's important to also remember that a lot of those brands do not manufacture their own tubes.   There are only 3 actual tube manufacturers left operating in the world at present and Groove Tubes, MesaBoogie, Fender, Ruby, etc. are NOT one of them. Those are relabeled.
https://www.amplifiedparts.com/tube-factories (https://www.amplifiedparts.com/tube-factories)

That said, I completely trust JJ/Tesla factory to make quality tubes.  I also only buy new tubes from a reputable dealer who tests/grades/matches the tubes they sell. 
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rnolan on October 01, 2020, 11:26:22 PM
Maybe he's had a few dud JJs to cause him to have that opinion  :dunno: .  Allot of Boogie tubes are rebadged JJs, they do allot of testing on any tubes they rebadge and discard any that aren't up to scratch.  RGs approach should ensure that whatever tubes you buy are good quality and thus shouldn't cause any issues to your circuit boards.  BTW that's the first time I've ever heard that about JJs.
Title: Re: Peavey Rockmaster
Post by: rabidgerry on October 13, 2020, 08:46:16 AM
Never heard of anything like that about JJ's before.  Very weird indeed.

I do know I had a batch of ordinary JJ's the last ones I bought in fact and they were garbage.  Some didn't work at all and give me a weak output.

I literally have tried lots of combos and in one Rockmaster I have 4 Groove Tubes (came with something I bought) and it sounds great.  And in the other two tung sols in 1 and 2 then I have those cryo JJ's from watford valves in the UK.  The JJ's came with something I bought also and I decided I liked them.  I had 4 JJ cryos in that unit at one point then experiments with the Tung Sols for more warmth for the rockmaster.

For me I have to say tubes seems to be expensive experiments.  I hope they next time I buy some and go with those brands I currently a using I get some consistency with the sound.