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What's So Special About The 5150?


Californiaman

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Posted

Somebody clue me in please.

What's so special about the 5150?

There's this guy on craigslist in my area who has two full stacks and one half stack for sale. Why the obsession with this rig?

Just curious.

5150 Stacks

Posted

I’ve heard the 5150’s often referred to as the ‘poor man’s Mesa’. I don’t know if there’s any truth to that or not. My band’s other guitar player has a Mesa Boogie Single Rectifier, and my 5150 really sounds good with it. I got mine mainly because I couldn’t afford a Marshall or a Mesa, and I like Van Halen. I know a lot of people like them because they’re a pretty high-gain amp. I don’t really set mine that way, I get a really nice AC/DC type distortion out of it. I’ll be the first to admit, the rhythm (clean) channel sucks. You really can’t get a good clean sound out of it, I can’t anyway, but it’s fine for what I play. It’s a really solid, reliable amplifier. The only complaint I’d have about it is it’s probably the heaviest (literally) amp I’ve ever had. It weighs about 58 pounds.

Posted
Somebody clue me in please.

What's so special about the 5150?

There's this guy on craigslist in my area who has two full stacks and one half stack for sale. Why the obsession with this rig?

Just curious.

 

I guess he's dumping his, eh?

 

Obsession over.....

 

;)

 

I actually thought of buying one lately.

 

1; They ain't making anymore. (6505 ain't got the mojo, sorry).

2; It's from a fun point in time.

3; I've played them, and they are pretty bada$$......

4; It's Peavey's peak of quality, after Eddie they have gone steadily downhill, building $400.00, 100 watt tube halfstacks in China. Junk. Even their mixers are now made in China. Peavey was NEVER know to be great sounding gear, but they WERE known (at one time) to be TOUGH, AND MADE IN U.S.A. They are now just Behringer.

5; Eddie ain't gettin' any younger. Neither am I, but he's older than me.....

 

Murph.

Posted

The big obsession with them mostly comes from 'metal' players...and I use that term loosely. They're very hi-gain amps. I'll admit I wanted one for a very long time, but after I finally got a chance to sit down and mess with one I found I couldn't get the kind of distorted tone, or clean sound I really liked. Maybe because the distorted and clean sound I love comes from Marshall. Mesa's clean sounds too bitey/sparkley. I understand why people like the amps, but like anything, Marshall, Mesa, Peavey, Fender, Randall, etc, just like anything, they're an acquired taste.

Posted
Mesa's clean sounds too bitey/sparkley.

 

Whoa....

 

That's bad......

 

Thanks for your knowledge, Mr. genius guy....

 

I'll call you about a Real Estate deal I'm working on.......

 

Sheeze.......

 

Murph.....

Posted

They sound freakin' GREAT if you're into high gain sounds plus they're relatively inexpensive. When I worked in a music store back in the early 90's, I used to plug players shopping for guitars into a 5150 if they looked like rockers. The only downside to those amps is that they're a bit noisy, but that kind of goes with the territory when it comes to gain.

Posted

 

Whoa....

 

That's bad......

 

Thanks for your knowledge' date=' Mr. genius guy....

 

I'll call you about a Real Estate deal I'm working on.......

 

Sheeze.......

 

Murph.....[/quote']

 

There there Murph, don't take it personal. Didn't say the amps sucked, just not my bag

Posted

the 5150/6505 is one of my favorite amps. My other "Metal" guitar setup uses a 6505. They have some of the clearest/thickest distortion IMO out of any amp on the market. To top that they're cheap too (new they run around 1k). Only downsides are its weight, and the fact that it has the tendency to be tough to keep quiet (noise suppressor required!)

Posted
IDK' date=' ask damienazrael... he seems to be the 5150 expert O:)

 

He has had endorsements... you know...

 

:- [/quote']

 

Yeah...I do...that's what happens when you make the effort to go on tour with bigger bands rather than the local bar....It's cool though Thunder I still like you.

 

 

Didn't say the amps sucked' date=' just not my bag[/quote']

 

Yeah Murph....I wouldn't worry too much on this guys idea of "tone"....I'm sure you've got a better handle on that...As for only metal players being into those amps, I find that funny because I don't really consider guys like Reeves Gabrels, the guys from Molly Hatchet, and Bo Garrett from Montgomery Gentry to be "metal players"....It's actually a quite versatile amp...I know it was based off the Soldano SLO-100 which is also a pretty versatile amp.

Posted

 

There there Murph' date=' don't take it personal. Didn't say the amps sucked, just not my bag[/quote']

 

Sorry.

 

No offense.

 

I drink a little sometimes.......

 

Not as a rule...

 

It's more of a habit.

 

O:)

 

Murph.

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