Peavey Horizon II

Made in USA in 1984. I am the original owner from 1984 to present. Solid body Strat-inspired shape (Naturalite was what it was called though the guitar is far from light), with thin maple neck and fingerboard in a 24 3/4" scale, 24 frets. Natural swamp ash wood body w/ satin finish and black pickup guard. Three pickups, two outer humbuckers wired to a three-way switch, center single-coil wired to its own three-way switch for "off", "in-phase", "out of phase" tones, all three pickups vacuum-sealed with epoxy in plastic cases and with blade pole pieces. Master volume, two tone controls for humbuckers which also split the coils as described in previous reviews, with "P" cast metal knobs. Original Schaller tuners: originally had Peavey Powerbend trem, I later swapped for a Washburn Wonderbar 2001 locking trem. which only added to the already great tone and sustain of the guitar. I still have the original Powerbend. Came complete with a blow-molded heavy-duty hardshell case.

As already described, incredibly flexible in the tone department. Can be used for any type of music I have used it primarily through the years with Peavey amps, but presently run it through a Crate FX120 with a wide range of effects pedals including a Line 6 Pod XTLive.

The fit and finish was great for the 80's, I do however remember not caring for the factory tuning or pickup setup, something that has carried on through the years for other Peaveys I own. While I absolutely love Peaveys and highly recommend them, they really have to be thoroughly tried out in the shop to make an educated decision as to whether the guitar is to your liking, something I'm sure that I'm sure can be said for many guitars.

I've taken care of it well over the years, but it is built like a tank regardless and I have had no problems with it in nearly 25 years of ownership.

Peavey has been absolutely great for the few and minimal issues I've had with their equipment over the years

Been playing off and on for over 25 years though never professionally and not semi-pro for a number of years. I also own Peavey Mystic, Hydra "Jeff Cook" model, 2 Tracers, Rotor, V-type NTB Trem., Generation EXP H/S/H, G-Ninety, Takamine ES531SSC Elec./Acoustic, Yamaha Acoustic, Crate FX120 amp, Peavey Bandit 65 Amp, numerous effects.

1984 USA made solid body strat style Peavey Horizon II ruby red body, rosewood fretboard neck. Non locking Peavey tuners with set screws. Three way toggle for the humbuckers and another three way toggle for the single coil. Two blade humbuckers with a single blade coil in the middle. Coil Taps and the unique Peavey circuitry that turns the humbuckers into single coils gradually. Low wide frets. Oversized strap buttons. Bridge is really thick metal and has a whammy bar setup, which I don't use.The remaining features have been well covered so I will skip further details. I really like Peavey guitars. In my opinion, very well made, durable workhouses with almost limitless sounds. Certain older models seem to be way underpriced so they are good value.

Covers the gamut of rich full humbuckers to bright strat sounds and everything in between. This guitar can play country, classic rock, jazz and probably grunge, whcih is not my bag. Using guitar with a Carvin SX300 amp, Roland JC120 amp and a recently acquired Peavey Backstage Plus amp. Will feedback if you stand in front and close to amp, but that is bad music style to do so. Some might complain of the weight, but no sweat to me. Dense wood=good tone.

It needed a setup, which I did, when first acquired. Was missing three knobs, which I got at a nearby authorized Peavey service store. Has tilt neck adjustment so it can get real close action. I like medium action to counter act buzzing and get good sonics. Frets are well polished. Wood has a lot of dings, scrapes but it is over twenty years old and has probably been through a lot of gigs by former owners. Hardware is solid. Bridge is well built and thick metal.

Peavey makes very good instruments. Compared to Fender, Gibson and others, Peavey is definately in the race. I am planning to use it in an upcoming gig. If the brand holds true, there should be no problem as I have put it through its paces in my home getting ready. Very well built.

No contact with Peavey. I downloaded the operating manual on line.

I have been playing since the mid 1960's. I can and have played oldies up to modern rock. I always keep my eyes open for Peavey stuff as they are very good value. I also own a Peavey T60(a consistent stage guitar with awesome tones), owned a Peavey Bandit amp, now also own a Peavey Backstage Plus amp. I am not a music snob. What drive me is tone, reliability, value for money spent, playability, looks and USA made products. Peavey fills the bill. I also own other guitars and amps, which I rotate regularly to get their playing time in the band I have been in since 1991. This Horizon II has better tone and playability than a Gibson I own! These are uncommon, but can compete with many high priced guitars. If you seen one, it is a worthwhile purchase.

My guitar is from 1982, the version with the blade style pickups. The controls have already been covered but to review it would have:
3 way toggle switch for the humbuckers,
3 way toggle switch for the middle p/u (on, off, out of phase)
2 tone w/ coil tap
1 volume.

The way the coil taps work (this is off of the manual available from the Peavey website)
is that after you bring the tone up to 7 the second coil starts to fade out, when you get to 10 the second coil should be completely off. This guitar has some crazy tones available due to the thought they put into the coil tapping and controls. Not to mention the awesome neck adjustment control so that you can get your action exactly the way you like it. I have mine set so low that when I brought it in to a music store, the gutiar tech told me that it was 'retardedly low'. If I could give this section an 11, I would.

This guitar can get almost any sound someone cold desire. I teach guitar and play all styles from flamenco to rock to classical to extreme down tuned metal, and this guitar can handle it all. With the tone rolled up all the way on the bride position it sounds like a tele, if you leave it at 10 and turn the middle pickup on, it sounds like a strat, move it to the neck position with the tone all the way down and it does a decent les paul sound, and you can even get sort of a rickenbacker type if you use the neck and middle pickups together. Then on top of this yo have the added possibilities of using the middle p/u out of phase. This guitar truly has it all. For an idea of my set-up, I play this into a digitech rp200 and from there into a 1972 peavey vintage with the EQ set at 6 (Peavey amps go to 12, so halfway up) prescence at 10, reverb maxed. There is no master volume or distortion channel.

I bought this guitar used so I can't say much about the factory setups, but the finish is excellent. The pickups were set really close to the strings, but I don't know if this was the guy who owned it before me or if it came set up this way. Also, the strings were set so low that some of the notes wouldn't sound at all, but again I don't know if this was the previous owner or factory set up.

This guitar is built like a tank (and weighs about the same too). You couldn't ask for a better construced instrument. You could drop this thing down an elevator shaft and it would do more damage to the building than to the guitar. The finish on this thing is tough as nails, and the hardware has lasted this long without ever needing to be replaced. The only thing is the pots and switches are a little noisy now due to dirt getting in them, but thats to be expected with the amount of use this thing has had over the years.

Never had to deal with Peavey cutomer support myself, but I have friends who have, and apparently its excellent.

I've only been playing for two 1/2 years, although I've been told I'm somewhat of a prodigy (I'll leave that for others to decide) and I've never played a better quality instrument. I worked at a guitar shop for a while (Long & McQuade) and in all my time there I've yet to see a better quality instrument. My former teachers 2000$ strat (which used to be my dream guitar until I got my hands on this) doesn't play as well as this baby. If it were lost or stolen I would buy one again without a second thought. (Although I'd probably try to find one cheaper.) My favorite feature about this guitar would have to be the phase switch as it gives awesome tone combinations that make for awesome tone switching during songs. I like to set it out of phase for intros so it sounds a little bit 'weak' and then switch it off with one of the humbuckers going so you really get a good volume and tone boost. When I bought this I was considering buying a Gibson Explorer, Fender American Strat, or a Gibson Les Paul Custom. When I found this guitar, it blew the others out of the water, and for less than 1/4 of the price. This guitar is the ultimate bang for your buck, and I've yet to find a guitar I'd rather play. Sure some gutars may get better individual tones, but they are one trick ponies. This does several great tones, as well as many many others that are okay for when you need them.

Made in USA. Made of very heavey wood. Don't know much about the technichal stuff. to be fair, I plead the fith.

It sounds great on any thing from Metallica to Brian Setzer. Between the two switches you can achieve any sound you want. The Horizon II suits me quite well as I play mostly rockabilly and related music.
It's a natural ace for surf and blues.

The third fret is a tiny bit thicker than the others, (as is the 13th) This causes a buzz in the sound every great once in a while. I have no clue how old she is but I suppose she is old enough to have developed fret problems over the years.The action is excellent and takes well to bending.

Ive played the stuffings out of this guitar for hours on end and never had ANY problems.
Don't drop on hard floors if you like a crater free floor.

bought it used. Never had a problem.

I've only been playing since 2002 and this peavey was my first guitar.
I have a Squire Stagemaster with a neck through and a Floydrose, it is junk compared to the Horizon 2. The Peavey works extremly well with my digitec pedal. The peavey is top shape and gets played every day and has since I got it to learn on. I got the pedal last Christmas and both buttons have quit. The peavey has out lived every piece of musical equipment I'vr hooked it up to. If it got stolen, I pay premium for another like it. It works that good.

Features have been well covered. Mine has the pole piece pickups neck and bridge, middle is the bar type. Tremelo, Sperzel locking tuners. The body feels like lead.

I don't have a style, but like clean sounds best and this guitar can make plenty. Overdriven it's pretty nice too! Favourite is the neck humbucking. These pickups are powerful, but you can hear every note in a chord. Tone and volume work great to tailor the sound. I was hoping to get a strat neck sound from it (bought it unheard over the net) but no luck there. It does the 2 and 4 type sounds well and the bridge single coil is not harsh. Played through a Session Rockette 30, friend's Mesa.

The set-up was bad when I got hold of the guitar and I'm still tweaking it. The pickups were too close to the strings and they are powerful, especially the middle. I suspect many guitars suffer from pickups set too high. The trouble people have had with the low E string was there too but went with neck and brige adjustments. The most annoying thing is grounding problems. I get noise off the pickup mounting screws as I'm always touching them when playing. Insulation tape nearly cures it. Finish is superb. The neck is slender and has a thick glossy finish which I find a bit grippy. Paint (black) is tough as nails.

This guitar could withstand anything except fire.

Peavey set the standard too high for most I would guess.

I'm just getting started again really after a false start many years ago. I never lost my fascination with guitars and guitar tone. I also have a USA Predator and a JB Player Sledgehammer Tele, which are both huge bang for your buck, and a Suzuki "three s" 12 string acoustic doing time as a 6.

no clue when or where it was made. 24 frets, solid top, volume, volume, tone (i think). h/s/h pickups. Don't really know the kind of wood, but it's got a rock hard pink! finish which kinda changes in different light, kinda strat lookin, bitchen pick guard, with a string thru bridge, non locking tuners.

for whatever i need to play, from punk, to zappa, to blues, i can get a nasty dry sound, or a beautiful warm sound. i run it through a marshall mini stack, sometimes a peavey practice bass amp. i also use a dunlop wah, and a dod grunge pedal. great variety of sounds, so many contrasting sounds. amazing. sometimes sounds cheap though.
sometimes, keyword

i got it uber used, for 99 bucks at a local shop, but i couldn't ask for a better set up. pickups, great, absolutely perfect, everything. although sometimes it goes out of tune with one or two bends of the tremolo bar.

amazing. holds up like a mutha. it's gonna last as long as it already has, (since the eighties), i think it can take a beating for a lot more years. everything is in great shape, i think it's all original, no info on it's history though

couldn't ask for a better axe at a better price.

I think these guitars were all made in the early 80's in the U.S
unique circuitry H/S/H allows for access to just about any sound.

this guitar can just about get away with anything, beautiful clean sounds rivaling any tele or strat,and great stinging LP sounds also available. Can't believe these guitars aren't more sought after, I've owned a few good guitars but have had more questions/posotive comments about this one than any other.

Build quality is the probably the best I've seen. Solid.
everything on it is to the highest qaulity, mines has a few chips by previous owner, god knows how he achieved this the finish is hard as nails,
I don't mind the chips actually, it would look too "clean" otherwise

Can TOTALLY depend on this

been playing for many years, this is the most adaptable guitar I've owned, with some exceptional sounds available. These seem to be quite rare so I would have a real hard time replacing it, I've seen some come in really garish colours mines is white ,bonus.

i have the same problem w/ the neck, it slightly keeps me from sliding my hand up and down. im not gonna bother saying all the features, except that the body is made of oak and has a clear finish, and as i already said, has a maple neck.

the things sound is great, i can play everything from Heavy Rock to Country on it ...only bad part is that the low E is messed up. for some reason, which many of my guitar fanatic friend cant figure out, the low E is literally impossible to tune, due to (we think) the way the bridge is. cant figure it out, but the low E is hardly ever used, so whatever.

evyerthing is perfect, exactly how its supposed to be.

the guitar is from '84, so obviously its gonna last quite a while linger. i've played live on it before, it was my first guitar. and i didnt have a backup, so i was kinda worried, but the guitar (and me) falling offstage onto concrete floor didnt hurt it in the slightest, just a pinky-finger nail sized dent near the bottom.

dunno, never had problems

i love it, it may not be BEAUTIFUL, but its still cool looking, and plus, that really doesnt matter in a guitar. i wonly wish it wasnt so friggin heavy, it kills my neck when i play live cause of my scoliosis, luckily im getting a MUCH lighter,Schecter S-1 Elite in about 3 weeks or so (on back order @ music123.com for 350, its usually 550-599 everywhere else)
other than the heaviness, its my 2nd favorite guitar

Made in the early 80's, peavey says select hardwoods, but not sure if exact type. Guitar is heavy though and has a super quality feel to it. Three bladed pikups, with all kinds of options as already mentioned. Mine is a bubble gum purple, very pretty, with a real nice maple neck. The frets appear to small, but peavey says they are medium frets. Smallish pickguard, wished it was more asthetic, but it's adequate. A great feeling neck, just right for my hands, feels better than most strats I've played.

All kinds of sounds from this fine guitar from bright strat sounds to les paul humbucker sounds, a little noisy on some settings, but not too much. Play through a johnson jm60, and the sounds are fantastic.
My only complaint is that I wish mine had a rosewood fretboard, as my fingers seem to stick on the gloss finish of the fretboard, but I have this problem with any maple fretboard guitar.

Very well built guitar, I've never seen a tighter neck to body fit on any guitar ever. Super nice finish, one complaint is the outer E strings are fairly close to the edge of the fretboard, for me it hampers some three string bends, sometimes the low E string slips off the fretwure. I could probably remedy this with a new nut, and some saddle mod. Peavey should have put fender out of business with these, I guess the japanese saved em though.

Nice solid strap buttons, great cast non locking tuners, you could throw this all over the floor like SRV, and even light in fire like hendrix, and it will come out better than a start.

Never dealt with, but I hear they have great customer support.

Been playing for 8 years blues mostly, Would definately buy one again if it were lost or stolen as they are hard to find, especially in this purple color, I like owning things that not too many others have. Like everything about this guitar except the E string problem mentioned above. Some one said it looks utilitarian, I don't know,I like the shape myself it is very close to a strat. SUPERB BUILD QUALITY is EMPHASISED. I especially like the location of the pots and switches, I never bump them while playing, unlike my strat. I wear the Peavey badge proudly with this guitar.

I have NO idea what year this guitar is. If any of you know a way to tell please email me! I do know that this is an all U.S.A. made guitar. the piickups are (as far as I know) the original blade pickups. the setup is H/S/H but the different setting allow you to make the humbuckers act as singlecoils. This guitar has a similar cut away as the the strat but it is a little different. The pick guard is much smaller than the strat but you still don't scrath the body. the bridge is alot like the strat but is much heavier. Most of them are equiped with a tremmelo arm (mine broke =(). the tuners are nonlocking, made by peavey with the logo P on it, and look alot like the strat grover tuners. The neck is maple with medium sized frets that are in great condition (all 24 of them).

This guitar is suitably for just about any playing style. Right now I am using a Alesis amp that has built in effects and it sounds great. I plugged it in to a fender deluxe reverb amp and compared it to a $1300 dollar strat and there was no sound that I could not reproduse with it and there was even some that The strat could not get. It has a cool system that allows you to make the humbuckers act like a singlecoil so you get an incredible rang of sounds ( I have beent trying to figure out every thing about this feature but I can't seem to master it)

I'm not sure how it was originaly set up but right now it plays exceptionaly well. A friend of mine has a gibson lespaul that he spent thousands of dollars on and it has very similar action. The extra 2 frets (24 total) always helps when trying to get that ripping lead in for a song. When I first got this guitar I had some buzzing and stuff but after a while the dirt in the knobs cleaned out and I have not had a problem since. The only hardware flaw that I have had is the whammy bar. I bought it used so I dont know how the seller treated it but one of the screws that holds the tremmelo springs in place was busted off and he had the bridge bolted down. I'm not sure if that is a problem many peaple have but I doubt it.

This guitar is a little on the heavy side but it has the durability to back it up. the stap knobs (so far) have seemed very solid. no cracking when I jostle it around a bit. I have played this guitar and never saw the need for a backup in gigs. The only time it goes out of tune is when I leave it in the case for prolonged periods of time. All around a sturdy guitar.

I have never dealt with peavey directly but the music store near me deals with their amps alot and they are VERY very helpful.

Over all this is an excellent guitar for the beginer and the pro. If I ever have a chance (and I have money at the moment) I hope to buy another one to use with a different tuning or action for a gig so I dont have to through out my tuning durring a gig.