Peavey Bandit 112

this is a spankin' new (1999) transtube bandit 112. overall i like it. it takes some getting used to the idea of a "tube emulated" sound if you come from a small practice amp like me (owned a 50 watt 2x10 crate). the sound is hi-quality but tube it is not. im pretty much into the chunky rock type scene so a solid state amp would do the trick anyway, i'm not arguing however, though to me the tube emulation is just another knob to turn. this amp has 2 channels, an eq for each, a lameass reverb, a couple fancy buttons that really do change the gain settings and shape, a presence control, and the aforementioned tube emulator. as far as wanting more features all i could hope for would be a chorus. ummm, what else? oh, 80 ASS KICKING WATTS, this son of a bitch is loud loud loud. i pretty much bought it for the garage band thing but i know that it could be used for gigging as well. you will never again be drowned out by a drummer.

i've got a basswood ibanez loaded with dimarzio pickups going into this, ive had some trouble dealing with settings on the amp so i just decided to run my boss me-30 strait into the effect loop return, though it shuts the peavy preamp and eq settings completely off i can still use the tube emulator and presence knob. as far as just plugging into the amps hi gain or lo gain input you can sound pretty good depending on what type of stuff you play.

this thing does have some variable distortion that can be used for many styles from muddy blues to screaming lead (kinda found wanting though for this) with plenty of chop and authority (in your face and down your throat chop). the clean channel is kinda shitty however. if you're gonna use it alot you better look into some stompers to liven things up a bit.

as far as i can tell the thing has little or no noise on either channel. i personally haven't been able to get it up past 4 on the post gain switch though. havent had any problems with being near power sources or any of that.

like i mentioned, the tube emulation is just another dial to adjust, it does really make a difference though. i still haven't heard anything quite like a tube amp no matter what peavy says, hey, it isn't a tube amp and in my opinion is no where near as dynamic, sorry guys. i mean, i'm no professional musician but i know what i hear in the music shop and tubes just sound better to me, that's all.
keep in mind i am in no way knocking this amp, it takes minimal effort and little support from effects to make this baby sound damn nice. it does sound shitloads better than the old solid states.

this thing is built pretty solid, seems no amp company is making the cabs like they used to though. a friend of mine has an old peavy bass amp he bought from a pawnshop before i met him, never needed it serviced. that was 15 years ago, any questions? not based on my own experience i can say they are very reliable

i've never owned a peavy in my life but know that they really stand behind their products. peavy also has an interactive forum at their website where other players as well as company techs answer your specific questions. one thing i was kinda "peaved" about was they crappy manual that came with it however. they could have done not just a better job but a job PERIOD in explaining the FX loop and "all the little holes in the back".

i've been playing for a couple of years. the only other amp i've owned is a crate that i mentioned above. it was decent and got loud but could not come close to the massive bottom end that the bandit delivers. my main thing is a boss me-30 that i run into this and find that it is very compatible with the bandit. even though i don't use the amps preamp it still retains it's characteristics while used with the boss, perhaps it's the speaker type, i don't know.

what do i love? the fact that i don't need to spend a fortune on tubes to get a sound that pretty much a solid state amp would do for me anyway (though i stress again that this is SOOOOOOO much better). also that i don't have to be so damn careful with it and that it isn't super heavy for the size of the sound.

what do i hate? NO CHORUS and a lame reverb, hey guys, i would have paid more for a chorus, an amps chorus sounds so much better that a pedals, also that would be one less tone sucking device to through in the loop. also, the fx loop doesn't work so well with gain type effects, if you're gonna use a multi fx you might as well plug right into the return of the loop. preamp stacking isn't really a good idea and while it does sound ok through the clean channel it still isn't "right sounding". also, keep in mind that if you do go into the return of the loop that you will still have the ability to use presence and the tube emulator, no direct volume control though however.

compared to any other solid state out there it got more bang for the buck as far as raw power and quality craftsmanship. you may find an onboard fx crate for about the same price but it to me they just didn't have the SPANK that the bandit has. for what it is, it is perfect.

oh yah, i agree with the other submission, THE LOGO HAS GOT TO GO!!!

This amp was made in the early `90's (pre-TransTube)... an 80W RMS solid-state combo with a 12" Scorpion speaker. It provides high/low gain inputs, an effects loop, and pre-amp out/power-amp in jacks. It has 2 footswitchable channels (Normal & Lead). The Normal channel has a 3 band passive EQ with active Presence control and a "Bright" switch. The Lead (distortion) channel has Peavey's trademark "Supersat" gain control with a 3 band active EQ. It also has a "Gain" and "Shift" control (for Lead channel). Features built-in reverb (with override on footswitch) No headphone jack (too bad). A para-mid EQ would have been nice on the Lead channel. Overall, it does the job.

I play an early `80's Vantage VS696 (basically a re-badged Ibanez Artist) with 2 humbuckers. The clean (Normal) sound is... well... clean. The EQ doesn't do much to augment the sound. It feels like I've plugged my guitar into the back of my stereo receiver. I'm assuming that the EQ would have a better effect if there was a distortion pedal in front of the amp (which I don't have).

When I first got this amp, I had a bit of trouble with the distortion. Everything I played, whether it was the Beatles or the Black Crowes, came out sounding like Prong or Megadeth (respectively:).... then I discovered this "Gain" switch which (when depressed) eases back on the distortion. The distortion is much more versatile with the "Gain" switch depressed. With the Supersat at 100%, you can get a good hard/classic rock overdrive. With the Supersat at about 25%, you can enjoy a nice fat-cat sound... perfect for jazz solos on the neck pick-up. The active tone controls are ver effective.

The effects loop works (what more can I say). When I use my Danelectro Cool Cat chorus with the dreaded "Gain" switch pressed, I can (almost) nail that Van Halen sound. I don't know if this thing sounds like a tube amp (I've never owned one). I honestly believe that in a noisy club or sloppy rehearsal, all that fancy tube-warmth/compression/soft-clipping means nothing. The distortion is useable.. `nuff said.

The reverb is okay when set at 50% or less. Anything more will sound like you're playing out of an empty oil drum.

The owner's manual has suggested settings for jazz, metal, medium-distortion, country, and country-lead.... all useless info.

I also own a wee Peavey Rage and a Peavey Mark IV Bass head (w/ a Black Widow 115). Both have lasted over 10 years though all kinds of abuse. This Bandit is no different. Peaveys have always been known as the "amps you can't kill".

I've never dealt with Peavey.

I've been playing for 10 years. Through experimenting and adaptation, this amp has become a very satisfying companion. I've compared it to Marshall Valvestates and Crate solid-state combos. The Marshall was a bit better sounding, but I had more trust in Peavey's quality. If it was stolen, I'd look into the new TransTube Bandit 112. If anything, I wish it had built-in chorus.

This amp was made in the late 80's....I find it very versatile, it doesn't have any one thing that stands out. It's just a great amp with lots of kick (85 watts). It has two channels, clean and distortion, it has channel switching but i'd STRONGLY recommend a pedal (other then their stock one) for switching. It has low, mid, high......a bright button (does nothing), pre, gain, reverb(not very useful). I am currently jamming with a buddy and he has a fender blues deville and my amp plays well with it....for household use it has enough power to piss of your neighbours....for live you'd need a bit more.

I use a Peavey Predator with standard pickups....I play everything from Kenny Wayne Shepherd to Creed to Collective Soul and back and I find the sound very good. Don't get me wrong it will NOT rock like a Marshall or Mesa and it will not play blues like a fender but it will give you a good clean sound and a good on amp distortion. The clean channel is very clean even at high volumes however the distortion gets very noisy....but with an effects pedal that cracking noisy is reduced to nil. I find this has the best on amp distortion out of many Marshall's, practically all fenders and a few Mesa's....but again....if you're looking for a distinct Marshall sound.....buy a Marshall....

Never broken down.....no tubes to replace as it is a solid state amp.

very friendly.

I've been playing for 3 years now and i've owned only a peavey rage, however i've played on a great variety of amps. If it were stolen i think i'd buy it again....i got this amp for 250 dollars....an absolute steal!!!!!! Mainly I love the price, it's the best buy for your money that's for sure...I compared it to Marshall's and Fenders and although i REALLY liked the fender clean sound i wasn't going to pay 400 more dollars for just a margin (if any) difference in sound....i was lookin' at the fender Ultra Chorus and Princeton amps. All in all for the price, i think normally around 500 CANADIAN dollars new it's a steal....i HIGHLY recommend it for those who are just starting to get good and aree not in a band that plays live.

I think everyone already knows how long the Peavey Bandits have been around as great workhorse amps. Also there are plenty of reviews here already for the newer Transtube model so I thought I would offer a few tips I have figured out with mine.

I play a 72 Gibson SG loaded up with a 500T and 496R ceramic hot Gibson humbukers. I see these reviews where people bitch and whine about an amp not sounding good and then they reveal they are playing some Strat copy with microphonic weak pickups and expecting the amp to make up for it. Here's the formula kids: Crap in = crap out. At least stick some halfway decent pickups in your guitar before you start whining and breaking out the distortion pedals. The reason a distortion pedal like the Metal Zone, etc makes it sound better is because its putting more into the input on the amp to beef up the signal, something crappy pickups, especially something like a Squire Strat pickups just can't do. Sod the pedals and spend the money you would blow on a tone sucking fuzzbox for a set of nice pickups, you will be doing yourself and your guitar a big favor. I play mostly punk along the lines of The Damned, Bad Religion, and Rocket from the Cypt but I listen to everything from rockabilly to psychedelic so I do get a little "versatile" when the mood strikes. One way I have found to get a really nice smooth and fat harmonic sound is to turn the cheesey named "thrash" switch on which scoops the mids out -20db, but then I crank the mid knob up at least past 5. If you want to smooth out the gain but not sound like typical "thrash" metal, this works very well. Reminds me even of my old modded JCM 800 that burned out on me. Also, the Resonance switch is there to make the sound deeper with more of big cabinet thump out of the 1X12 size. When this amp is used along with an extension cab...a 2X12 or 4X12 turn the resonance switch off, otherwise your tone tends to get swallowed by too much low end. I have had 2 Marshall JCM 800 heads and even a Mesa Boogie for a short time, this little Transtube Bandit hangs well with the best of them especially when used with a good guitar and extension cab. No, of course it doesn't have the same great tones of these tube amps but it does its job and does it well. I gave up on the tubes, unless you are a pro player who has the cash to burn up on tubes why bother? I got this amp for $300 and have no complaints. This amp really reacts well for a tube amp, Peavey has really done their homework. DON'T, I repeat DON'T go the hybrid route, the Transtube technology that Peavey has developed sounds much warmer than a preamp tube stuck in a solid state amp...harsh and sterile, not to mention the tube over heating and burning up solder joints etc. The only thing Peavey needs to do is get rid of that wretched logo they have held on to for decades...c'mon guys, it looks like a bad 80's hair metal logo, I like your products but I had to take a screwdriver to the logo, thankfully its removable! I also don't care much for cheesey control titles like "THRASH" wouldn't "gain boost" or even the old "supersat" sound a bit better?

Peavey's are tough workhorse amps, at least the solid state models. My first Peavey 10 years ago got kicked down some stairs, the speaker got ripped but the amp never faltered. I recommend kicking your drummer instead of your amp kids :)

Peavey has a great reputation for service and support. They also have a great website with forums where you can post questions that Peavey techs will answer. Hartley Peavey stands behind his goods.

Its a great versatile little workhorse with nice tone. And for the money you can't beat it. Its a great amp for any level of player in my opinion who wants a versitile nice sounding amp without tube hassles and expense.

Two Channels. Clean and Lead sound pretty good. It has the Transtube Tecnology,and external speaker jack, effects loop, and so on. It would be nice to have chorus though

I use an Ibanez rg-270 and it seems to sound really well for the type of music I play(metal..all metal) But it still seems to be very

Mine is built like a rock. Its very dependable...never broken down...never killed anybody...

Never had to deal with em

Very good amp for the price. It can get REALLY loud.

Nice big Amp (80 watts 12 inch speaker)A decent sound for a decent price. You can play almost any style. But its not a marshall or mesa boogie tube amp that screams. All that I can say is for a first amp or a stage amp its good. It has a jack in the back to hook up to a real amp so you can use it as a cab

I use a SG which gives mean distortion is thrash mode (highs and lows on 10 and mid on 0) In fact sounds just like a Big Muff. Great for metal but it has a lot of feedback when at high voluumes

Its a tank. Gives me hemaroids but it will never break. I think raccoons lived in there for a while and maybe it was in a tornado

Never dealt

It is a good amp for the money If it broke I would buy something else but all in all I dont regret it

I loved this guitar.. now im not going to rave on how great the distortion sounds and how cr@ppy the reverb is so i'll explain it simply 2 channels 1 distortion (I like it ALOT) 1 reverb (I dont find a real problem) now I have a Big Muff distortion pedal and I play alot of darkwave to rock music.. I like leaving the distortion channel on but distorted VERY low so that during a heavy chorus I can hit my distortion pedal and let her rip without the damn amp squealing now I dont really see a problem with the reverb (if your a reverb guy that is) I dont EVER use reverb so it doesnt really matter to me generally I LIKED the distortion very vintage sounding.. I gave it a 9 because if it had Chorus instead of reverb I would have LOVED THIS AMP

Well I have a Les Paul custom im not sure of the pick ups though they costed $150 each very soft sounding.. no flaw in the guitar but the high and the low dials really fuel my fire on this amp same with all the other peavey amps now I dont just use this as a practice amp I use to practice with the band and for gigs.. now about the high and low I usually put my guitar on the treble pick up because I play lead now when playing with the band practcing I need to put the amp up load to get over the drums a bit but I keep getting this horrid distortion from the ap from it being so high pitched now I have a wah pedal set on high and im sure it effects the sound if I turned it off i'd be fine but everyone needs their wah-wah at some point and I use mine alot in songs so I cant leave it off and have the high and low set to full or my guitar sounds too bassy this really bothered me other then that I love the sound oh I use the bandit (80 watts) then I have a no name cabinet (bring the amp up just over 120 watts) and 2 monitor speakers - the cheap king that u can make yourself all parts supplied from the local hardware store costs in total under $30 to make each (so with the 2 monitor speakers it brings my guitar up to about 140 watts) so I have alot of power I suggest u buy the amp aone and then get a nice cabinet seperate of yah word of advice my cabinet is the best I have ever heard in my whole 10 years of playing and its a NO NAME! dont go by brand names and dont go to what fits in ur budget if u have too pay it off slowly its better to get the best of the best first and not pay for it later trust me

I love this amp i've put it through hell and back in the last month and it has taken at least 10 times the pain my Marshall has and still is in perfect condition it has actually been dropped twice rained on thousands of times, it has also had a small sound stage collapse on top of it and came out in perfect condtion (except the pleathery kind of cover on it has started to rip a lil expected with light wear and tear easy to patch up with one of mans best inventions black electrical tape or duck tape)

never had a problem with peavey they give a 2 year warranty

I have been playing for 10 years coming up thsi Christmas I play 24/7 I am lead guitars and vocals my band has actually opened for Alanis Morisette and Crash Test Dummies once before and we are ALWAYS doing shows all over the play my band has 2 seperate demo discs im waiting to finish school and become a music producer I used to only use Marshall amps and then I stopped because they are slowly getting worse in quality.. and yah I wish the d@amned amp had a chorus built into it and not that horrid Reverb (its not that bad I just DONT LIKE REVERB sorry) this is actually the first transistorized amplifier I have bought in the last well WHILE!.. I love it a beautiful amp If I could give u one word of advice BUY THE BEST EQUIPMENT DONT GO WITH THE HALF CUTS YOU WILL PAY FOR IT LATER WHO CARES IF ITS OUT OF YOUR BUDGET PAY IT OFF SLOWLY (put her on lay way) AND DONT WORRY ABOUT IT

This is a two-channel combo with power amp in pre amp out jacks and an effects loop. My Peavey has an scorpion speaker, it was one of the first. I think it sounds better (dirtier) than the new transtube combo's.

Like above, you can play metal,as well as blues. The overdrive channel sounds better then the clean channel. Someone once told me the reverb sounds better then one of a Fender amp. A little problem is that it's not loud enough sometimes. But with a mike in front of it, that should'nt be a problem

My Bandit broke down a few times. It seems like the jack inputs are not that reliable. A friend of mine and my dad could repare it though, nothing really serious.

If I'd had to buy it again right now, I think I'd rather have an all tube amp. But all in all the little Peavey has stood by me in almost eight years and it was used! It's a great amp...

This is a two channel solid-state amp with "transtube" (tube emulation), 80watts, footswitchable channels and effects loop. Two knobs in the power amp section control presence (this is the most worthless presence control I've ever used, and I think it might be broken), and T-dynamics, which controls the level of tube emulation. It has high and low gain inputs, a bright switch, and a Thrash switch on the gain channel, which boosts distortion levels. Giving it a nine because of the shitty presence.

I use a custom strat with it (my roommate's), when I'm not using my amp (Marshall JCM800 half-stack). I must say, when the T-dynamics is all on the tube side, this amp puts out an amazingly smooth, rich distortion. The clean channel is lifeless, and can be made to break up into a great edge-tone on maximum volume (a tube characteristic). Great for blues. The reverb can sound like a shitty flange, though. I'd give this amp a 10 for bang for your buck, except for the flat, dead clean channel and the reverb. By far, the best solid state amp out there (with the possible exception of the very rare PRS solid-state heads).

It's spiffy...generally solid state amps don't have many problems.

If you want a practice amp without spending a fortune, and don't want the hassle of tube replacement, this is the best out there. I've always been very impressed with it. There is a hiss with single coils, but my roommate's Les Paul is silent with this amp. GREAT for Stevie Ray, good for anything else. Distortion sounds like an affordable Matchless (minus the harmonic richness that ONLY comes from buying a several thousand dollar amp).

I bought this amp in 1996, and here it is 1999 and it's still rocking just as hard. I play in a punk band that incorporates just about ever style you can imagine into our music (some examples include metal, reggae, alternative, pop ballads [I love Styx], Jazz, classical)...but the bottom line I look for in an amp is a heavy "justice for all and before" Metallica-ish low, heavy distortion. I love palm muting, but since I am on a budget, this amp has to do other things too. I love the distorted channel on this amp. My amp before this was a Peavey rage...but then I borrowed a friend's Bandit 65 for a tape we recorded, and I was hooked. Two channels (clean and dirty), a footswitchable effects loop (which I love because I can put my Ibanez soundtank chorus, which also kicks behind, in there in the "on" mode, and I use the heavy-duty footswitch to select it...so I save wear-and-tear on the somewhat fragile Ibanez soundtank). I wish this amp had built-in chorus so I could use the effects loop for something else, like my otherwise unuseable Maestro Rhythm N' sound. 100w of solid state power give me all that I need, although I use a 4-10" cab to distribute the sound better (that way I don't have to turn up as loud, and the sound is better without having to crank it). I have used this amp over and over again in rehearsal, in live performance (I live for the live show), and on two recordings and numerous times we record rehearsals.

I started using this japanese-made 70's Les Paul copy with a Bill Lawrence XL500 pickup in the bridge (the only position I used, after my experiementation left it as the only usable pickup). It functioned incredibly under the circumstances. I plugged into the low gain, as the pickup was very hot. Now I use the Carvin SC90, a Les Paul shaped two-humbucker affair...the bridge pickup is the hottest Carvin makes, and I have succeeded in getting a great sound with the new guitar. I don't use any coil-splitters, or phase switches, as they tend to cut the sound down. I love the way my chorus lights up the clean tone (otherwise, the clean tone is flat, and dead-sounding to me). This amp does hiss at high volume (especially at high distortion levels), but that is to be expected. The clean channel is clean all the way up, unless you turn the "T-dynamics" down past 12:00, at which the clean channel will distort at high volumes...it is a warm usable distortion though...as I understand it, the T-dynamics determines how "tube-like" the amp gets...if it's maxed out, you're at 100% solid state...but backed off it sounds and reacts more like a tube amp...hence the distortion in the clean channel at higher volumes. I don't particularly like the way it sounds with the T-dynamics down on the distortion...but I dig the hell out of the way it sounds with the T-dynamics down on clean tone...but that's a dilemma. One knob...two channels. Hence, my dream rig would be a couple of Bandits...one with the T-dynamics all the way down for "clean" only and another with the knob all the way up. That would be my dream set-up. I love the hell out of the distorted channel...meaty, quick, tight. My benchmarks of tone are Brian May, James Hetfield (1991 and before, PLEASE!), James Young and Tommy Shaw of Styx, Alex Lifeson, The guitarists of Rob Halford's post-Priest band Fight, Kai Hansen and Michael Weikath of Helloween/Gamma Ray, and Adrian Smith and Dave Murray of Iron Maiden. I also like punk guitar sounds, like Fletcher Dragge's of Pennywise...in light of those tone influences, this amp really makes me happy. I didn't really like the clean channel, until I bought a chorus pedal...now it is great. The distortion is as brutal as you want it for most heavy metal where precision is involved. If you want all-out, incoherent fuzz...(ala Siamese Dream-era Smashing Pumpkins), this amp will not get you there...however, it is a great building block to add distortion pedals to to achieve that oversaturated tone. I however prefer a precise, yet heavy tone for the high-speed punk my band prefers.

Never had a problem. Never broken down...and it still delivers all the goods, even having been exposed to rain, snow, cold and hot temperatures, and having been accidently dropped from waist-level once.

Never had a problem...I think the warranty is 2 years...and it's over now. I've heard good things about Peavey though, and having used one before, I liked the sounds and features inherent in every Peavey..

I've been playing guitar since 1992, and I have never found anything better in my budget range. I would buy it again...no problem. I only hate that it doesn't have three channels. I also hated the factoryfootswitch...with it's annoying clicks and--as compared to the high quality of the amp--cheap construction. I switched to $20 Carvin footswitches as soon as the crappy Peavey one broke (about a year after I had it). It should also be noted, I am not an equipment abuser. I stomp my pedals, but not harder than any one else. Footswitches aside, this is a great amp to buy if you want to join a band, and the practice amp you bought 3 years ago ain't cuttin it....an incredible amp...hardworking and kick ass. Sure, this amp is not for everyone (40-year-old narrow-minded tube-o-philes with enough money to get original Vox AC30's will hate it, of course...but pissing off old narrowminded people is what rock music is all about, right?), but for punk, alternative, and metal bands (especially those that are on low budgets), this is the real deal.

there's a clean, a lead channel, an effects loop, high and low gain inputs and the famous tube emulation and others buttons who boost some different EQ on the amp

ok I use a single coil pick up and when your on the lead channel the hissing is very present but with humbuckers maybe it's noiseless. the clean channel is ok like others I used in the past. The lead channel is good enough for metal distortion but works best for kenny wayne Sheppard and SRV. If you use a pedal distortion on the clean channel of the amp, then you'll very good heavy distortion and give awesome palm muting (I think this is because of the T-Dynamics) Clean channel don't distort on High volume level and this is good. the only thing I'd like to have on this amp is that they should had put a boost for the "presence" button because when you put the "bright" button out (this button boost the treble) then you get a very bassy sound then I would have more presence with big bass, but in general the amp with a pedal distortion work on the clean channel of the amp, is very good

I just got it today and for the moment everething is Ok

the warranty from the store is 2 years and from the compagny is 3 years so you get in total 5 years of warranty
(viva mathematics ;) hehehe )

this is the first BIG amp i got (I go from 10 watts to 80 watts!) If it where stolen maybe I'll buy it again but maybe I search for an even best on-amp-distortion. I put it between 0 and 1 (the volume scale out of 10) and it's enough loud for my room so i'm sure that at 4 (out of 10) on show should surely be enough loud so this is extremely LOUD!

This amp suits me very good. I am playing blues,and rock (heavy). There are a footswitch with two channels. One for distortion, and one for effect loops. There is a switch which decide how many percent effect you get from the effect loops. The amp is on 100W, and the 12" speaker is on 300W. This is enough power for me, and I have not heard many amps with more sound. The sound quality is very good, and the soundchoice is wide.

I am using a Fender Telecaster custum and a Levin. It sounds great no matter which guitar I use. It suits my musical style just fine. The amp can make distortion (very good) and reverb. The clean channels can handle very high volumes without being distorted. There is only one problem with the amp. It makes a bang when I turn it off, and it get problems when I have the distortion on maximum. It starts beeping when I get too close etc.

I can absolutely depend on it, and I would not be afraid of using it on a gig without a backup. The amp has never broken down.

I have never had any problems with the amp.

If it got stolen I would not have bought the same amp again. The problem is the bad noices when I use distortion and when I turn it on and off. The users manual was horrible. Eccept from this, it is a very good amp, with lots of sounds and much power.

it's was made to deliver every sound capable and it does well for a solid state amp. It would be good for doing covers of different styles of music as long as you don't have to turn it up real loud

peavey claims that it sounds like a real tube amp, that is just not the case. the clean channel is rather harsh and basically sucks like most peavey amps. the distortion channel is really loud and really sounds like crap the louder you turn it up unlike tubes where the tone seem to get better. it's not a bad sound it just really does not sound like a tube amp.

what can i say it's a solid state. if it works out of the box you should not have any problems with it.

This amp is good for an intermediete player and for the price i have not seen another amp that can beat it. i now play a prs and a 50's style strat and i can't go back to the solid-state harshness after playing my crate bv60. i like a highly compressed pure tone and this amp just can't do it especially at higher volumes.

The 112 has 2 channels, a clean and a dirty, there's nothing wrong with the clean channel but it's not special, I play from blues to hard rock/meatal and the amp copes well. There's a footswitch for channel switching and reverb on/off. A higher banded EQ would be nice, but, as I say, it copes. I use it at gigs, and it performs well, loud and poignent, I enjoy the 'transtube' feature

I use a Washburn N2 with in-house pickups, the combination is quite nice. If I turn the volume down slightly on the guitar, it's great for blues (Wishbone Ash, Gary Moore etc), if I whack it on full, raaaaggh, I get a great rock to soft metal sound for our own stuff and Dreamtheater etc. It copes really well in pubs but can lose the edge in anything a lot bigger. It doesn't offer a real diverse set of sounds but it's good for me. The clean channel has never distorted, in fact I would like it to be a little 'raunchier', but never mind. The distortion isn't a real high gain saturation type but it sounds good.

The amp has never failed me yet and I never use a back-up, the chance would be a fine thing, promises promises and relax. This could be because I treat it with respect or because it's built well, you decide

I've never dealt with customer support ,personally, but I'm sure they're a great bunch o' lads.

I've been playing guitar for 7 years and Peavey are at the top of my list, I love the sound, I'm getting a new Peavey, a renown 112, this sounds even better (see other lad's review-top stuff). I go straight through the amp for the best sound but find that 10 muinite epic guitar solos (my favourite) are enhanced with a simple delay pedal, mmmmm. I like the sound compared to other amps, so ha-ha

My amp is a Bandit 112 Transtube. It has two inputs, a low gain and a high gain. The high gain input adds 6 dB to the instrument. It has one 12" Sheffield speaker (designed to sound like an old Marshall speaker). The power rating is 80 watts RMS, with 100 watts capability if you add an extension cabinet. It has 2 channels; clean has a "bright" button that boosts treble frequencies (I believe its for country-type sounds), and the standard low, mid, high knobs. The distortion channel has two special buttons: "thrash" (which ups the low and high end distortions and sucks down the mids) and "gain," (which gives the channel an additional 6 dB boost). The dist. channel's knobs are in order, pre-gain (channel gain) low, mid, high, and post-gain (channel volume). It has a shock-mounted spring reverb, effects loop with a boost signal button, and a strong presence knob. Two unique features on the Bandit are the "resonance" button and the T-dynamics knob. "Resonance" was originally designed for the 5150, and adusts the dampening factor to the speaker, like a presence control for low end; floppy, not floppy. I wish that the resonance was an adjustable knob like on the 5150, but its just a preset button that ups the bassiness factor overall. T-dynamics is a mystery. It is a knob with settings from 10% to 100%. A Peavey article I read said that it controls the actual output of the power amp into the speaker in literal wattage; i.e. the knob adjusts the watts from about an 8 watt amp to 80 watts. The manual however, says that it adjusts how much the power amp sounds and acts like a tube amp. I've posted a query on this at the Peavey website, and when (if I get an answer I'll add it. I give the amp a 9 for features compared with price.

My current set-up is a wee bit unorthodox, so I'll talk about that last. I was using it with an Epiphone Strat rip-off, playing rock, blues, and a tiny bit of metal. This amp is really good as a blues amp at times. I never pulled off a SRV or a true Hendrixian sound with it, but I got some good tones out of it nonetheless. The tube feel is really great on this amp. It really responds to high vol. = more distortion/low vol. = cleaner sound from the guitar. When I played blues, I would use the clean channel (!) because you can overdrive it when the T-dynamics is set on a lower setting. This was my set-up: clean, low 7-8, mid 6-7, high 4, resonance in, presence custom to room size, T-dynamics on about 30%. Then I'd work with the volume knob to distort it more or to clean it up. Excellent sounds. In between blues and metal was much more difficult and painstaking to accomplish. I would easily spend thirty to forty minutes working to achieve a decent middle of the road distortion that would allow for headroom and volume control. Metal was so easy to get. T-dynamics on full 100% gives the whole amp a perfect Metallica-esque solid-state distortion. Brittle and defined. The thrash and gain buttons also helped custom tailor the works. Thrash will affect the sound on top of your tone settings as said earlier, with a standard smile curve. Very metal. Gain will put the distortion into Van Halen-ish (but not the same) excesses, but you'll lose a ton of definition and your ear's point of reference will be altered for a few hours. You won't be able to go back into calmer, quieter tones after kicking in the gain unless you're earplug equipped. The sensitivity to the guitar's volume knob being adjusted up and down is the single greatest accomplishment of this amp. Even with the dist. channel on high settings (but not flat 10's) you can clean up the sound a lot by flicking the vol. knob on the guitar down. (I love this mainly because I hate channel-switching pedals--oh yes, and it did come with one by the way) I give it a 6, because it can achieve greatness in some areas, but that greatness is canceled out by the lack of versatility in all areas. Metalheads and some mellow bluesmen may take note of this amp though.

This is my only amp, so as far as back-ups go, they don't exist. Peavey is a very reliable company. At the church I play at, we have a powered Peavey mixer. I could have sworn that it was mid-80's to early 90's because of its good condition. That mixer has been put through absolute hell before and after the church acquired it. I was amazed to discover that it is as old as I am-- 1979 and still kicking ass! I have personally destroyed 9 different speakers as of yet, two of which were heavy duty loudspeakers, and I spent four months with the setting going below flat 10's only once or twice, played flat out everyday. The speaker is fine, and my decibel-happy ears are satistified. I figure if I keep the Bandit, I can give it to my future nephews and/or nieces or my (future) kids... I give it a 9, just because perfection is impossible.

I bought it used. Therefore I know nothing of the warranty. Oh, well. (See above columm explaining my lack of concern.) Peavey also has an excellent customer support system, involving dealers, authorized repair dealers, their website, and other ways to get contact with the fine folks in Meridian, Mississippi. If you do develop problems with anything Peavey, find their address, snail-mail or website and they'll help you out. They have consistently been the first company to respond when I send out a wave of letters to music companies requesting information on sundry products. I give them an 8, because I've had good dealings with them, but I haven't had to get anything fixed yet either.

Disclaimer: Junebug Jones is not a paid endorser of Peavey Products... I just like 'em!!! Peavy is a good mid-range type of company in my opinion. They are excellent for up & coming budgeted musicians, touring musicians, semi-pros, churches, small drama theaters, etc. There are some better sounding amps out there, but they also cost more, and they break down more. Peavey is like the workhorse, not the throughrobred. That said, I am not CURRENTLY using the Bandit as intended. I quit playing electric guitar a few months ago, opting instead to play my Applause acoustic/electric full time. My financial resources haven't allowed me to buy a dedicated acoustic amp yet, so I'm running my acoustic into the clean channel for now. For coffeehouse gigs I plug in my mid-priced Sony 1/4 input mic into the high gain and the guitar in low and I play and sing. Working so far. Its not Trace Elliot sound, but I don't have Trace Elliot money. This review is based on past experience, because I figure most people will be utilizing it in an electric guitar context. Good for you. With a bit of tweaking and forgiveness, your acoustic/electric will also work, though the high range will be slightly lacking. I like tilting the amp back with a milk crate, resting the top of the edge on the top of the crate. The resonance is a cool feature. I like another feature that the amp has; there is a three-way grounding switch on the back with + (pos.), 0 (neutral), and - (neg.) settings. If the power source you're running into has no grounding, and you're picking up hum, then switch the switch from + to - and whichever one kills hum, leave it there. If there is grounding, then leave it neutral (0). This feature has helped with my church excursions and gigs in unfamiliar territorities. I soon plan to purchase an acoustic amp, possibly a modified Peavey Ecoustic. Maybe a Trace TA70CR. Who knows. Maybe I'll keep playing the Bandit forever... Its a good amp and has served me well. Perhaps 2 out of 3 pieces of equipment ain't bad ( if you've read my other reviews (S-310, Applause AE-38) you understand. The Bandit gets an overall rating of 8, the average of all the other ratings given.

It rules for everything from metal to country. 2 footswitchable channels. No hedphone jack unfortunately, but can be quiet enough to play without annoying the neighbors. I use almost everything on it. I use this amp in my room. THIS THING IS LOUDER THAN HELL!!! with just 80w? hard to beleive. It is going to be great for gigging. solid state. gain and thrash settings. Has a power amp in it for an external speaker.

I use a yamaha 312. sounds awesome for Metallica. It has some static on the clean channel. It can make any sound you can make with your guitar x10. I have no clue what it is like at high volumes (I haven't gone above 2 without annoying the idiot neighbors. the distortion is brutal like somebody just ripped off your head and shitted down your throat!!!

Dependable...Definetly! Built like a tank! I could definetly gig it without a backup. Solid state so I don't have to worry about tubes. Doesn't look like it'll ever fail.

Never had to, and probably will never need to because
a) got it used in excellent condition b) warranty card never filled out c) as I said, built like a tank

I've played about a year. I play a yamaha 312. Sounds great compared to my old 5-inch squier sidekick. Would definetly buy it again. 50 lbs. is a little heavy though Love everything, hate nothing compared it to a marshall VS30r which sounded like crap compared to this. I wish it had a headphone jack. An extension cab. would be a worthy investment. This amp just kicks ASS!! Try to get it used because you probably won't need the warranty and it will be in the same condition it was new. a must have for any Metal head.

This is a fairly new version of an old amp. Peavey updated it with their patented Transtube process. I've never used tube amps before mainly because of their cost and some reliance factors. The amp has 2 channels. A clean and a lead. The lead has a gain switch which significantly alters the distortion. It came with a pedal to switch effects and the channels on and off. It has an effects loop. I don't think it has a headphone jack. I've never needed to use it, if it did. It has a some weird features concerning resonance and amp power which the manual did not clarify how they are used. A better manual would be nice. I use this band to practice at home, with my band and I've used it at gigs. I played guitar for a musical of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat but I was never allowed to turn up. It has enough power on its own. It can really crank up loud for a single 12 inch speakeramp. It's Solidstate that's supposed to sound like a tube. I wouldn't know.

I use a Hohner Rockwood Strat copy with single coil pickups. Overall, the amp works fairly well for my band. I play in snazcore/ alt-art-core rock band. It is rather noisy on the lead channel with the gain turned up. It has a pretty annoying whooshy-hiss sound. I have found one creative use for it. I use a RAT pedal and the lead channel with a pitch shifter sending my guitar down an octave. It creates a fabulous overtone of chaos and a wind tunnel/sucking type of sound. So while all the noise is going on, you can be playing these ominous riffs and when you're ready to belt the audience, you take one of the distortions and the pitch shifter off and boom! in-your-face distortion. The thing I really enjoy about this amp is the clarity and brightness of the clean channel. The lead channel is quite different from other distortions to me. The amp also feeds back a lot nicer than some other amps. (If you like feedback.) I have a Marshall Valvestate halfstack and instead of making a sweet feedback, it just hisses. That's why I like my Peavey. I can manipulate the feedback a lot better. The clean channel doesn't distort very much even at high volumes. The clean channel is one of the shining aspects of it. It's even better with a slight bit of overdrive. The distortion can be muddy and sometimes sparkly. It depends on what you're playing. I like Marshall's distortion, Peavey's clean channel.

I can ALWAYS depend on this amp. It has never given me a technical problem before. I would use it at a gig without a backup. Sometimes it doesn't sound as good to my ears, but my taste changes from week to week on what sounds good for the occasion and what is so-so.

I've been playing for almost 3 years now. I own a Reverend Avenger GT (11th ever made.) and Marshall Valvestate Halfstack. I think if it was stolen, I'd probably get something else. I don't know why. I don't want to get rid of it though. I really like it. I'd just try something new. I love the dependability. I don't necessarily hate anything. The distortion channel is a bit too sloppy.
If you want a solid reliable amp that can do a lot of things and will work for years on end for you, I'd suggest looking at this amp. It't not a lot of money either.

I got mine 1990, but the box reads 1989, so, i gess the ammp was made that year. It's a solid state combo, 85 wats, FX loop, two channels, one clean, one dirty, a 12 inches speaker.
I use it both live and studio, in fact, my first record was enterely recorded with it. By now, i have a Rocktron velocity 120, and a digitech SGS-2112 and a GSP-21 legend, and im using both amps in paralell. (It's my old combo! i just can't get out of it!).
I think he amp is versatile enough for me, althouhg i've allways used signals processors. I can get any sound out of it.

I've always used it with my Fender stratocaster and lace sensors. It keeps the sound of my guitar (i mean, my strat's own personality). The amp is very noisy compared (specially the lead channel) to others i've used (i/e, fender (tube), crate (solid state)), but i think is a pretty good amp for a amateur player or a beginner. The distortion sucks! so i've always used the distortion of my fxs units. I used it with my ovation, but it sounded too metallic, so i didn't like it.

This is the MOST dependable piece of equipment in the entire world!. I even crashed it twice with my car and it still worked! i used it for almost 8 years without a backup nad had no problems at all! If you need and amp that works for ever, this is your choice!

I've been using it for almost 9 years now, and i'll keep usind it for other 9 years. I have two signal processors, two guitars and a stereo power amp, but, as i said before, it's my old combo and it keeps rocking!, It has a scorpion speaker, but i wish it could be a Celestion or something like that. It had a open back, but i closed it myself, and it sounds damn good

80 w combo , 12' speaker , 2 channels , double footswitch ( reverb , channel ) , effects loop , no headphone jack ( why not ?? ) ,

I use a cheap copy of a Fender Mustang with 3 single coils . I play altrenative rock . It sounds great on the clean channel . The reverb is good around 7 but gets too "chemical" above 7 . The distortion sounds good if you don't push the crunch button . You can get a nice bluesy overdrive if the saturation knob is set around 3 or 4 . If you set it around 7 or 8 you get a fat kinda fuzzy distortion which isn't too noisy . I prefer the saturation knob around 5 . If you push the crunch button , it gets way too fucking noisy , you can hardly hear what you play , and it gets hard on your hears , so don't push it !!!

I used to play on my friends' valvestates or Princetones , and I used to sit on their amps when practicing . Don't ever do that with the Bandit . Mine breaks down every time I put more than 10 lbs on it , and I don't know why .When it breaks down , it takes about 10 minutes to have it back on . I need to turn it allt he way up , until it screams like a beast , then turn it back down to get a decent sound .

Never dealt with em .

I've been playing on it for about a year , and I like it . It's loud , it sounds good if you know how to use the knobs , and it's not too expensive for a poor dude like me .I'd buy it again . I hate the crunch button but I love the overdrive you can get . I wish it had a headphone jack cause my sister is always bitching about it .

The Bandit is an 80 watt 2 channel solid state combo. I got mine with the cheapy plastic footswitch, but it works. I was impressed with the EQs for both channel, and the gain button adds, I think, 12db of attack. The resonance switch gives it that nice wood sound to it. Great value for the price.

I use an Epiphone Les Paul, with the basic pickups. However, I found this sound to be too muddy. Any single-coil pickup makes the clean channel shimmer, and the distortion keep its definition. The Distortion channel is extremely noisy, and I really think the built in distortion kind of sucks. I use a Boss pedal and a multi-effects, then this amp rawks.

I've only had it for a few months, but the solid state design keeps me from having to replace tubes every other day. I've heard there are a few problems with the clean channel breaking-up, but maybe I'll get lucky.

The store I bought it from is an authorized Peavey dealer, and they rock!! Not only did they give me a great deal, they threw in some patch cords and picks and other stuff. I can't remember what the warranty is, but I think it was limited lifetime. Either way, I think I will like Peavey support.

I think if I ever got rid of it, I would buy the Peavey 5150, a tube head. I loved the sound of that, even thought it was much more expensive. It is definitely a better deal than Marshall (don't buy a Valvestate under 500 dollars, they're very limited). Peavey is a good amp, and with a modified Big Muff from SustainPunch (available at starla.org!), I can get that old Pumpkins sound I've wanted for so long. Yippee Skippee!!!

2 channels, cabinet resonator. 1 12" speaker 80 watts of power. New TA dynamics control. Mid cut on the drive chanel.

clean is well, solid state sort of clean with no real feal to it. Responds well at high volumes. The drive chanel suffers from to much treble making it very weedy. The distortion is best used on a low setting as high makes more noise than a fat bloke farting.

never had any probs appart from when i wired a plug the wrong way and blew both the power trannies.

Blew both the power transistors on it (totally my fault) and peavey had it back to me in a week having stripped down the entire amp and rebuilt it. ( they even replaced the sticker on the speaker )

good for a young giiging guitarist without much money. Kicks the marshall valvestates into touch. But i'd probably by a valve combo when i buy my next amp

Two footswitchable channels, each with 3-band eq, efx. loop, 1x12 80 watts solid state, with the transtube circuit. plenty of power for small venue gigs, especially with an extension cabinet. the reverb isn't too bad, but useable. i only wish the footswitch controlled the reverb and not the fx loop.

If you're looking for an amp that can do any kind of style of music, this is for you. I play a jackson ps-4 through a boss metal zone and danelectro chorous. The bandit can do anything from blues to hardcore/metal to classic rock. the clean channel is amazing, and although the lead channel is kind of dull, you can get a very decent heavy sound out of it. and for a cheap peavy combo, that's amazing.

in general peaveys are reliable, but I think i got a lemon. it's been in the shop all summer and i really am getting tired of hauling it to the store and back to get it fixed. I've only had it about a year and untill now it was flawless, if i got a brand new one i would definitely depend on it without a backup.

It's been sent back three times for warranty repairs and it's still not fixed. i haven't had a working amp for 3 months.

If i forget about the quality problems i've had with it, i would have to give this great all around amp a high rating. it had killer sound and features for a great price. if you're in the market for a combo amp and you have to play shows with it, get this one.

2 channel clean/dirty with reverb, effects loop in front. in the back speaker out, mixer out, power amp in. The 100 watt power amp setting is great in club, bars. It has npo headphone jack so i went out and bought a smaller fender combo that does to practice quietly.
The effects loop sounds good but only has a blend button to alter it.

I used a gibson v with a semyour ducan distortion in the bridge, this seems to be a good set up for it. The distortion is warm, even almost fuzzy, i play a melvins-like sytle that fits this amp fairly well. I also use a Fender Big Apple Strat with in which sounds more clean. The amp starts to buzz as the volume increases.

Its fell off of the chair that it was sitting on a couple of times, but that is more my fault then the amps'. It hasn't broken down yet in the two year that i've had it. However, the knob tops do keep coming off, but who cares?

never had to

I paid too much for it in my opinion, i could have bought something better for that price, but i'm satified, Peavey is a good brand if your wanting a step up from a basic practice amp like i did. I own other amp, but all bass stuff like Hartke. A chorus would be nice feature if they added it.

2 channels, FX loop, both foot swithable, loudness swith, Mid cut switch, gain boost switch, 3 band EQ on both channels with seperate volume controls... I must admit I preferred the old Bandit 112 Sheffield over the current model, it had active EQ one the gain channel which made for a tighter crunch. Although the newer model does have an extension cab out jack, and a 100 watt power rating.

Has a wide array of sounds...there is quite a shrill and skreeching though when its cranked past 4 or 5 on the distortion channel with the gain settings maxed...also at these volumes if the loudsness switch is on it gets kinda muddy and distorted on the low end. Over all it sounds pretty good

When I first got it I blew the speaker within the first 4 months, probably due to playing with the gain and volume at 10... I recomend getting the 112 extension cabinet...also a noise gate would be a good idea to kill the shrill on the high gain settings

I've had this amp going on 3 years, 1 year with the extension cab, I also owned the older model. For me this amp is a keeper, I'm planning on getting a high-end half stack (not a peavey) this summer and I intend to keep this amp... For the money, the features and the hundered watts, its a good deal

Well.....it has a lot of knobs and some features to play with but no really cool effects or anything that sets it apart from any other amp. The trans-tube thing is ok but it will never lose all of its solid state sound...I would have preferred some effect like chorus or delay. I also might just be me but I can never turn it loud enough without getting a high pitch whine of feedback. I guess this is OK because I play pop/metal but I could see how other people might be annoyed.

I have a B.C. Rich Virgin with Dimarzio Super Distortion pickups and when I am playing in my dorm room it sounds great. When playing a coffee shop or practicing with the band at a volume greater than 2 1/2 it squeels to much. To be honest I don't use the clean to much but when I do its fine.

It has never broken down for me, it may have for a previous user but how would I know? It's funny, my friend bought one of these new and has had no problem with it but I have. His tends to be a lot louder than mine cranked all the way up and has less whine. IN my opinion either its luck that you get a "good" one or it can't take the abuse of two owners.

never dealt with them. I had no warranty.