Peavey BAM 210 Combo

Clever thing, this box. I've had Peavey stuff before where I've wished they'd left out the on board effect(s) but included a top handle. Well there is no top handle on this either (more on that later) but the inbuilt effects are brilliant.
The key feature for me is the ease with which I can get a great sound and then, a little tap dancing on the clear footswitch and, clunk click, another great sound.
Personally I love the sound of 15 inch speakers and I was very pleased to find the emulation so good. I've never actually owned any of the amp or cabs on the model list except for the Bassman. That sounds absolutely spot on, but the other amp models sound great anyway, whether they actually resemble the real thing is beyond me but the review reproduced on the Peavey website compared the BAM with a real SVT, 360 etc and rated it highly.
It is very easy to set up one's own sounds in the 16 available "user" settings channels and switching between them is easy.
The "boost" button is great. With this you can have two totally different sets of tone and pre/post settings within one user set channel and toggle between them. This is very useful.

I like simple amps, pre, post and 3 tone controls is my ideal but this amp makes it really easy to get a good sound.
I've never been good with 12 band eq etc. With this you just select an amp and cab and turn it up. It has good tone controls as well of course so you can modify the sound that way but trying to make these types of soound transitions during gigs (or even during songs) with a normal amp would be impossible for me. Some of my fellow band members have described it as sophisitcated tone changing for idiots - yep, that's me :)


Drawbacks? Well there are a few. You can only have one effect at a time so Flanger plus Octave device with a little added distortion? Er no can do. The -can- toggle between two different settings for the same effect but if you want to move between say, Flanger and Chorus on the same amp/cab settings using the footswitch, you have to use another of the 16 user channels. With so many amp/cab/effect possibilities this can prove to be something of a limitation.

The other big pain in the lower back is the weight. This is a very heavey combo. The "shopping trolley" handle and wheels that Peavey have come up with is rubbish on all but the smoothest of surfaces and useless in tight spaces. Moving this amp sideways in a lift full of gear, the back of a van or on a crowded club stage is really hard and no, it doesn't have a top handle, just a couple if side ones - Why, Peavey? You'll be hearing from my chiropractor. :))
I'll be fittng a set of peavey pop out castors as soon as they confirm it will not effect the 5 year warrenty (another good feature)
You might want to check out the BAM head plus a seperate cab if you are of a delicate nature ...
It's loud. It's louder than all of the 350 watt combos I've had before (Laney, TE, Ashdown) and, as my favorite sound is the bassman + 2x12 or 1x15 which was about 80 watts, it's massively louder than a real one would ever be. Not as pretty of course well apart from the very cool light display it does on start up and when using the built-in tuner.

The amp has something called MIDI too but as a simple bass player I don't understand that sort of thing. :)

I use a contemporary USA Precision. Plain and simple

Sounds? We have sounds! 8 amps, 8 cabs, 8 effects and compression. This is ideal for people who like to use different sounds. I love the bassman sound and the 360+1x18 cab sound is amazing - clever too from a tranny amp with 2x10 speakers ...
Of the 8 effects the Wah, synth and fretless are Ok but, unless your in a Parliament tribute band, not a lot of use. The Chorus, Flanger and Phase are great. The octave device is a lot less subtle than the Ashdown ABM one but you do get controls on the Peavey version. It's a monster sound though. I've not used the distortion effect, just the natural stuff available from the valve (tube) amp models.

Too new to tell but someone on the Peavey forum reported a broken fan.
All my previous Peavey gear has been bullet proof and my brother inlaw still gigs his one owner, hammered and totally unserviced 25+ year old Peavey bass combo so I am expecting no problems. It's got a 5 year warrenty anyway so I am not really too worried.

Customer support at Peavey now seems to be user forum based. This has its pros and cons. I have had exchanges with several owners and one of the designers of the amp. This is a rare experience and it's been fascinating to discuss features and recommend things for future versions ..
The manual is available as a PDF download but could be better but for such a complex piece of kit it does a reasonable job.

I am a very critical user, I have no qualms about saying gear is not good if I believe it but this combo is awesome - no, it really is. Several big and famous rigs in a relatively small box and a very good user interface (ie the foot switchboard and control panel are very good too) You really do owe it to yourself to try one of these if a 350 watt combo is your kind of amp. Hire a roadie though:)

It's a lot of money but it's worth it. At used prices it would be a steal.

Made in 2001. Modeling 350watt RMS 210 combo with built in digital effects. Lots of toys. Amp models are, SVT w/ 8x10, portaflex, super redhead, eden w/ 4x10, GK w/ hartke 4x10, Acoustic 360 w/ 1x18 (Rick 4001 loves that one), bassman 2x12 and unmodeled peavey 2x10 (surprisingly fantastic sound). Effects are: chorus, flange, phase, auto-wah, octaver, fretless (ugh), distortion, and synth.

2x10 Eminence speakers with Fostex horn.

The sounds are a mixed bag. Some great, some leave you scratching your head. Why a fretless effect? I agree with the BP assessment. My frets didn't miraculously disappear. I love the models. Most worked great in a rock setting, especially the SVT. THe unmodeled amp sound is pretty good too.

Too new to tell.

No need to deal w/ customer support yet. Online forums seem fairly helpful. 3 yr warranty.

What an amp! Plenty-O-Power, All models have their merit. I prefer the Eden, SVT and super redhead. Don't let the price tag scare you. It seems high for a Peavey product but they've hit a home run with this one. It's worth checking out.