I am a Surf Rock newbie, a friend has gotten me into it and I really enjoy playing the music! I have a Peavy Bandit and I use a Fender 63 Reverb pedal w it. Its a very clean sounding amp which I like. Im actually wanting a tube amp but I want one that is not going to breakup at higher volumes.I have a Fender Champ 600 that I use to practice but its way to small to gig. It gets over driven at about half vol. So I guess Im asking what are some good tube amps that are current production?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_inwqzxLqmY

What's your budget like? If you want clean, I'd suggest finding a silverface Fender twin. Depending on what part of the world you're in, they can be had relatively cheap. All the cleans you'll ever need.

Otto & The Ottomans
Kennedy Custom Guitars

Funny, watching Smokey & The Bandit on the tube when I read this

We used a 1st Gen model to record and gig with in the mid 80s. Post punk/Garage was the genre and it worked like a charm.

History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

The Bandit

(1980) The very first Bandit was only made for one year. As subsequent versions became available, the original Bandit came to be known as the "Gunsmoke Bandit" because the font used to silkscreen the logo on the front of the amp resembled the font used in the opening credits of the popular 60's television show, Gunsmoke. The Gunsmoke Bandit was made in Meridian Mississippi USA and had a power rating of 50 watts RMS. It came equipped from the factory with a 12" guitar speaker made for Peavey by Eminence.

Solo Series Bandit

(1981-1983) The Solo Series Bandit soon followed the Gunsmoke Bandit and incorporated a variety of improvements, most notably a much improved sound. The Solo Series Bandit was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 65

(1983-1987) With the Solo Series Bandit 65, large improvements in tone compared to the previous version were again realized and the power rating was increased to 65 watts RMS. The Bandit 65 was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 75

(1987-1989) The Solo Series Bandit 75 saw the power increase by 10 watts to 75 watts RMS and a Bright Switch was added. The Bandit 75 was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 112

(1989-1995) The Solo Series Bandit 112 introduced many new features, the most notable being an increase in power to 80 watts RMS and a choice between Peavey's Scorpion speaker and Peavey's newly introduced Sheffield speaker. Many of the innovations that would later be branded as "Transtube" were included in the Solo Series Bandit 112, but the name "Transtube" had not been adopted yet. There have been several different versions of the Solo Series Bandit 112 but they all share the same manual and the same control layout. One of the more popular variations is known as the "Teal Stripe" or "Blue Stripe" Bandit due to a blue horizontal stripe below the control panel. The Solo Series Bandit 112 was made in Meridian MS USA.

Transtube Series Bandit 112

(1995-1999) The Transtube Series Bandit 112 formally introduced Peavey's proprietary "Transtube" technology that allows a solid state amplifier to perform more like a vacuum tube amplifier. Central to the Transtube concept is a patented "power brake" that allows the user to control the amount of power required for dynamic range compression from the power amp, from 100% all the way down to 10%, thus enabling the amplifier to acheive power amp compression without running at full volume. The Transtube Series Bandit 112 was made in Meridian MS USA and came stock with the Sheffield 1230 speaker. Notably, it was also the first Bandit to have an external speaker jack, allowing external speakers to be run instead of or in parallel with the internal speaker. Running into 8 ohms, power is still 80 watts RMS, but running into 4 ohms (the equivalent of using the internal 8 ohm speaker together with an 8 ohm extension speaker) the power is increased to 100 watts RMS. Due to the horizontal strip of chrome underneath the controls, this version is commonly referred to as the "Silver Stripe" Bandit, but due to the black color and square shape, it is sometimes called the "Blackbox" Bandit (not to be confused with "Blackface", which refers to F*nder products and/or performances in the style of Al Jolson...)

Transtube Series II Bandit 112 Made in USA

(2000-2004) With the Transtube Series II, the metal corners and input jacks that had been standard on all Peavey Bandits up until this time were replaced by plastic corners and plastic jacks. Due to a color scheme incorporating a red stripe across the front of the amplifier, many people refer to the Transtube Series II Bandit as the "Redstripe Bandit". During this time Peavey attempted to adopt a new company logo, and moved away from their traditional "pointy" logo. The new logo came to be known as the "Block Logo". The Block Logo was only used for a limited period of time, and the Block Logo Redstripe Bandits represent the last Peavey Bandits to be made in the USA.

Transtube Series II Bandit 112 Made in China

(2004-2005) This amp is cosmetically nearly identical to the USA version, so it is also referred to as "Redstripe Bandit", but there are several differences between the US built Redstripes and the Chinese ones. First, the Chinese version says, "Designed in the USA" on the front, while the actual USA version says "Designed and Made in the USA". Second, the speaker in the Chinese version is either unlabelled, or is labelled "Blue Marvel", a Peavey code for speakers made outside of Peavey and then rebranded as Peavey. All of the USA Redstripe Bandits shipped from the factory with US made Sheffield 1230 speakers. Another obvious difference is that all Chinese Redstripe Bandits have the "pointy logo", while most - but not all - of the USA Redstripe Bandits shipped with Block Logos.

Peavey Bandit with Transtube Technology

(2006-current) The current version of the Bandit is made in China. It is the first Bandit to incorporate a "simulated output" for recording purposes. This simulated output runs independently of the amp's internal speaker, allowing silent recording. The simulated output can also be used instead of or in addition to a traditional microphone. In this version the spring reverb has been replaced by a digital reverb circuit, and the 10% to 100% T. Dynamics knob is replaced by a 3-way switch, allowing operation at 25%, 50%, and 100% power. Metal corners are reintroduced, but the footswitch is no longer included with the amp and must be purchased separately.

Last edited by GennyFan on Sun Jun 13, 2010 1:09 am, edited 2 times in total.

t on the tube...

http://www.reverbnation.com/thegreasemonkeyz

Aqua Pussies wrote: So I guess Im asking what are some good tube amps that are current production?

The Twin Reverb reissue is in current production. However, you can find a used Twin pretty easy. I have seen some around and they are not selling too good right now. Someone had a red knob Twin on Yardsalr. It was down to $350 last I looked. A Twin can handle a loud drummer.

Also check the for sale section here. Guys are frequently offering excess amps. I have seen some pretty nice amps sell through here.

Talk to you later,
Norm

I use to have a Peavey Bandit, when I was younger and played rock, they are good clean and reliable amps.
Nowdays, I won't play anything unless its a valve amp (some people like chocolate some people like vanilla). 1964 Bandmaster for gigs, and for practice I found a very cool cheap practice amp (pretty loud too) the Bugera (made by Behringer) Vintage 5 watt, they are cheap all valve amp, small and have a great tone (as long as you change the tubes - could be a good starting point for a valve amp.

'Surf Music Lasts Forever'

If you try the extension speaker, make sure the speakers are in phase so they do not cancel each other out.

If surf music was born in Pensacola Fla in the year 1979 the sought after rig would be a T-60 and a Mace amp...

http://www.reverbnation.com/thegreasemonkeyz

I have a reissue twin and it's great, but overkill for most people, especially if you aren't playing big gigs or starting out. If you don't need lots of volume/headroom, look into vintage Ampeg's, they have a great surf sound and are more portable. I love my twin reverb but I'm looking into smaller 15-20 watt amps for band practice/smaller gigs.

Another popular alternative is the Peavey Classic series, but I don't know how much clean headroom they have. Maybe someone who owns one can chime in with some info?>

I used to have the Peavey Classic 50 watt, good amp, nice valve sound and good headroom. Then a friend came over with the Fender Blues Junior, heard the tone of it, straight away sold the Peavey and bought the Fender Blues Junior - amazing tone for a little amp.

'Surf Music Lasts Forever'

To be honest I want an amp I can be proud of. Im 35 and just recently got my first real Strat. Learning on junk guitars actually is cool cuz when you cant your hands on a nice one everything is so much easier. But yeah Im considering other amps other then tube, a Fendr 212 FR Man,Marshall, Ampeg, as far as tube Egnater 60 w range?