I bought one for $25 from a local seller. He used as a parts donor for 2 others he had in his rack. It was a mess, bad relays, a broken pot, missing knobs and rack ears dirty switching jacks in all of those EFX loops. I refurbed it and have been rocking it since. I love it for recording. They are great tube preamps that can sound REALLY NICE if you dial them in right. I have a bunch of recordings on my page where I used mine straight into my interface with your Big Hairy Cabs IR's and the Valhalla Supermassive plugin for reverb & delay. Its what I use most. Great preamp.
Hey man, I don't got no issues with my relays apart from the usual which can be fixed by plugging and unplugging a jack in and out of the loop returns. HOWEVER, I'm just curious for future proofing my own Rockmasters, how did you fix your relays? Someone told me I would never be able to replace them. Any advice or tips on possible replacements would be appreciated. Thanks.
@@RabidGerry I used Omron G5V-2-DC12 relays. I just removed the PCB, flipped it over heated the connections and used a desoldering bulb to suck up the solder then pulled out the old P&B relays, carefully plugged the new Omron relays in the same pin locations and flowed a bit of solder in each pin location. Worked like a charm. Omron G6A-274P-ST-US-DC12 would work as well. Same output and the G6 version has a little lower current draw which is good.
I used to own multiples of these. I miss them. they sounded great. especially when you find the right pre-amp tubes for each section. this combo'd with the Peavey Tube Fex rackmount was a ferocious combo back in the 90's.
I miss mine a lot. Highly underrated preamps. However, they are plagued with bad solder joints that pop up. If you notice a weak signal or the sound dropping out, it's because one of the solder joints cracked somewhere in the circuit. If the pots crackle when turning, it can usually be fixed by cleaning the FX loop jacks kinda like with a Peavey 5150. A lot of people ditch them because they don't know about these issues, and you can score them pretty cheap sometimes.
Correct Tom. Add to the solder joints the relays and the switches/loops. I downloaded about 100 pages of user comments about these preamps about 15 years ago, and it only showed what we have pointed out. All the rage about what a piece of shit it was related to "contact" issues like the ones we point out. It was very much either, or. Either they raved about the sound, or it was the biggest pile of shit they ever heard. Of course millions of people out there are biased when it comes to Peavey in general, and psychologically a huge number of people will always find confirmation to whatever they think or believe. All I can say is that this unit is incredibly underrated, and Peavey in general unfortunately have gotten a very undeserved bad reputation.
I still have mine, it's in the shed out back. This was my main amp for many many years, and then the sound started dropping off like you are describing here. I replaced it with an Ultra 120 head, which is also amazing. I wound up selling the Classic 60/60 power amp I had with it. I basically forgot about that preamp. I'll have to pull it out and resolder all the connections in there and try it again. I loved that preamp.
From about 88 until about 93, this preamp running into an Ampeg V4 with A pair of 1960 B 4x12 cabs was my rig… Sounded really great, especially for the time. Only reason I got rid of it was because I got an SLO… Now I kind of wish I had this again. Great video and tremendous playing, as always… Thanks, Michael!🤠
@@BigHairyGuitars you know what? It did! You got a remember this, though: that was back in the day when bigger, more, louder was better in the clubs we were playing. Really doubt you could get away with it now.
@@dangolguitartech Yeah Buddy . Still have my V4, still massive ;-), that darn thing takes anything and makes it stunning. I got mine after a bout with a loud drummer I needed to conquer back then. Good Times.
@@plexidust5101 it could definitely keep up with anything else around at the time. What’s even better is that I got it for $150… It’s when all the older guys were trading in their old gear for the new rack mount stuff and pointy guitars. I got the V4 for $150, a 78 Les Paul deluxe gold top for $400 and the cabinets for $200 each. The RockMaster was the most expensive thing in the rig.
I have had several since the end of the 80s, today to 2021 I still have a Rockmaster preamp in perfect condition, except for one that bothered me the relays, after changing them everything works perfectly. I can say that after using them for more than 30 years and compared to other equipment, they are still unsurpassed by other masrcas, for me they are still valid in sound until now as part of a sound equipment for guitar.
Thank you so much for making this video. I have been using Peavey Rockmasters for about 7 years now and someone needed to do this video. The funny thing is I'm no hair/glam metal fan or player at all. I'm more regular heavy metal/thrash metal kinda guy and the Rockmaster does that for me with ease. It really has a unique sound and clarity to it. Perhaps lacking thick useful low end but this can be gotten from your power amp or an EQ. I have 2 of 'em, one for live and one for studio. Again thanks for the great video, happy to have watched and liked it :)
The Peavey Ultra Plus 120 was my first Tube amp, I think the Rockmaster is the same pre amp. The Ultras are beasts and totally underated. I think EVH ruined them by revoicing to the 5150 tone. I think the Ultra tone is much better.
I have an Ultra 60, I think the cleans is a bit better than this Rockmaster and have quite a bit more bass. I didn't have the plus version, the one I have is unreliable on channel switching, and it weight a ton. 5150 wasn't a bad amp, it have a lot more punch, it only do one type of sound but it did it extremely well. I am looking at Rockmaster to see if it will work well with an IR setup, but it did not sound as good on clean and slightly muddier here on higher gain settings compared to the Ultra.
great video! a good reference video or music of tones using this pre is anything off Guardian Miracle Mile. Tony Palacios used this on his touring rig in this era, always had killer tone Check out Let it roll by Guardian (Miracle Mile) heck the whole album is pretty tasty with some great ballads mixed in i’ll check out the Andy Timmons stuff for whatever reason i missed out on that back in the day
I’ve got an early ‘90’s Peavey Bravo . All tube with El84’s and spring reverb… Killer tone. Better than my Friedman PT-20. And more versatile. Actually decided to sell the Friedman .
I've got the same Bravo one and love it so much I hunted downa Peavey Rockmaster pre amp because they are supposed to be the same but after that my Bravo crapped out sand now I have to get it repaired because it's my favorite amp in the whole world !
Loved my Rockmaster. Ran from 1993 to 2006 for me. After it died I was lucky enough to get the ENGL E530 Pre-Amp to replace it in2007. These days I love the Synergy stuff!
Dude!!! that thing sounds AMAZING!!!!! Kemper profile biught!!! Most excellent and thank you~ Those Friedman gutiars sound killer. Love all the 80's and 90's riffs you randomly whip out..
I’ve owned one forever. The Ultra channel can be full on Metal. I would never use the word chug with AIC or Soundgarden, grunge bands with sludge sounds. The Ultra has balls and can be set to kick ass, not to lick it. If you want to hear a chug, listen to Metallica’s Sad But True. If you want to hear wussy sludge, listen to AIC and Soundgarden. Where are they now? also, those are two bands that would never use a Rock Master and can’t play nearly as well as Andy Timmons.
That is a nice sounding pre-amp. I have almost picked one up a couple of times as I saw them on ebay. Not sure why I didn't. I have a Peavey Tube-Fex and this sounds very similar. Specially the ultra channel. Seems like the Tube-Fex is really just a Rockmaster with Midi and digital effects integrated. On the front of the Tube-Fex the voicing is labeled Bass, Mid, Treble but on the LED screen it is Bottom, body, and edge.
I wish I still had a TubeFex! I used on for years in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Only issue was that dang battery that had to be replaced every few years.
@@seangaskinmusic2300 Yeah those barrel batteries were dangerous. Someone came up with a new ROM chip that reserved some memory to save presets there and the battery could then be removed. Always glad to find someone that used one of them, they were kind of a hidden gem IMO.
the reason so many of these are physically beat-up is because, unlike most peavey gear, their rackmount gear is somewhat fragile. and it seems most of these were never mounted in a rack for protection, so they get scraped and banged up, and the pot shafts break off easily since they are made of plastic so knobs get lost. i got really lucky with mine, i bought it from a guy who bought it new and used it in his home studio, so it's in perfect condition with no damage at all. i immediately installed it into a rack case with front and rear covers so it's still looking like new.
It's nice to see, that my Rockmaster is not faulty, but this is the way it sounds and works. I found that the midle eq on the right side had this well known honky mid range that everyone complains about. And it's not possible to dial it out. And yes, I like it not pulled out too. If I do, it just takes out too much midrange, like a too wide Q on an EQ. Well, I will retune that circuit with different value capacitors. Also, I will try to adjust all channels to each other EQ -vise, cause now, if you switch channels, the EQ settings wont work in both of them... I know from the schematics, that this is a very clever, sophisticated design, not doing things in the traditional tube circuit way! The clean channel's presence is an active EQ, and the right side EQ is active. It has diode clipping too, which is mixed to the tube distortion. I think with some careful redesign (modding) and tuning this can be turned to be a very useful workhorse for any rock guitarist.
Brett Michaels of Poison also used it on the Open Up tour when he was playing rhythm on Fallen Angel. Also, it was Tony Rey of Saraya who played on the first D2 album before Andy came in and took over (the world). And yea, those stupid knobs break off WAYYYYY too easy. I'm still trying to find replacement parts for my RM - that push / pull for the Ultra channel is impossible to find now. :(
Sounds awesome! Good luck finding one, though. My favorite amp I ever gigged with was the Peavey Stereo Chorus 212. Before that, I had a Peavey Encore 65. They were my go-to back in the 1980s. 😎👍
Yes, indeed - great little preamp. I recorded my Lovewar "Soak Your Brain" album at Pakaderm studios in Los Alamitos in 1993. Dino had one of these in his huge refrigerator rack, and by gum, between the 5150 and this, it's pretty much all over the record. I think we were feeding a big 120w tube power amp into a pair of tall Marshall cabs. This preamp was just s barky and cool as any other 'hot' preamp he had in the rack.
Well bugger me...I've not seen one of these bad boys since I let go of mine back in the early 90's. Used a Peavey power amp of some kind with it. My very first foray into rack stuff! Memories, Michael...good times indeed👍✌️
Man, I love Danger Danger! The song Under the Gun should have been huge, and I'm honestly surprised it wasn't released as a single, probably one of the better songs from their debut album
I wish I had never sold mine. On top of the great tones this thing can produce, it also seems like you could really fine-tune each of the three channels by using the independent effects loops.
I had one of these about 20 years ago. Truly under-appreciated and I regret selling mine, even if it needs assistance working with “modern” MIDI setups. That was why I also had a Peavey MIDI Pro. Even had the same power amp as Andy LOL!
Awesome sounding preamp. The issue with these were the fx loops. They would go bad or something and you had to daisy chain them together or something like that.
yeah the pass through connections on the effects loop jacks will oxidize and cause a disconnect and then you get no audio at all. A little Deoxit usually fixes them, or you can replace the jack or as you stated, short patch cable from send to return. Also the relays and electrolytic caps that assist the relays are prone to failure. Not such an easy fix for those but still serviceable.
I had one and it did exactly what I wanted it to do at the time. It's great for metal but not hugely versatile. I ran mine into a 9005 Marshall 50+50 power amp into two 4x12s and it was crushing.
I've got one and almost always use it with live band settings because it's the most versatile piece in the setup and most impressive part of the tone sculpting and I love mine !
I had one of these in the early to mid 90s and it was kind of blah with a solid state power amp. Later, I sold it on ebay and got ready for one final test before shipping it- paired with a Peavey Classic 60 or 120 power Amp (don't remember).. I was blown away, having never used them together. It was like they were made for each other haha. Really regretted selling them but had already been paid.
Great video. Good balance of great playing and preamp exploration. The control panel at the bottom is a nice touch. My only complaint is common with all videos of preamps and distortion pedals which is the lack of showing the length of sustain they produce.
Hell yeah! I love my Rockmaster but I wish I had a low-watt power amp to pair with it. The Peavey Classic 50/50 is pretty loud! :D Guess I need the Fryette Power Station. But, yeah... the Peavey gear is underrated. I have and love the Wiggy, JSX and the Delta Blues too. And yeah, Andy Timmon's a badass.
I’m not familiar with Danger Danger but I did use a Rock Master for several years I was using a Rocktron Chameleon but I found the Rock Master for a $150 and never looked back changing the power amp would change the end result 😎best $150 I ever spent !!!
You sound killer on this track!! As usual, but you are for sure in your happy place with this guitar/amp combo. You are also tip-toeing around the edge of a fountain of East Coast guitar heroes, and Danger Danger had it good. Yes, Andy (from NJ) replaced Tony Bruno (from Long Island), who replaced Al Pitrelli (also from Long Island). Al is of course the sound of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and was in Megadeth, Alice Cooper, Asia, and so many more. Tony’s toured with Joan Jett, and I believe was the MD for Rihanna at the time Nuno was brought in, as well as Enrique and a ton of other amazing stuff. East Coast represent!
Add a decent noise suppressor and you're in instant djent country. sneak in some chorus, compression and delay on the clean channel for instant Prince. Push the crunch ever so slightly with a warm tubescreamer and add some reverb. The Rockmaster was the most underrated amp, it (with a little help) could handle pretty much any tone you might want.
I’ve owned 2 of these. It’s Metallica Black album on a budget. I used ultra ch. for rhythm and crunch for solos. Add a TC Electronics GMajor Rx and can use it with MIDI due to the GMajor having channel switching capabilities.
If I am not mistaken,,I first learned about the Peavey Rock Master preamp from Toni Iommi of Black Sabbath! And I believe that he still uses it even today But never know,,confirm it!
I just unlisted one I had on eBay for weeks. I made the decision to keep it due to its condition and just use it with my cab m+. It’s mint and I’ve owned it a long time, the thing is a total beast tone wise and functionality. Thanks for the video.✌🏻❤️
I love rack gear so much, its just so neat. Nostalgia for something I've never experienced... This channel is the absolute boy. Cheers for all the cool content.
3:36 explains why was not such a great experience. I don't think you missed much. Much not very usable or just produce a very specific sound for a recording.
@@estring69 For some of us that's all you need. I'm definitely someone that likes simple options and I'd rather have a solid clean and gain tone rather than a billion paralyzing options. Obviously, this is not the case for everyone!
@@AJPMUSIC_OFFICIAL I would say that there were a lot of options and most were wrong. I guess that is my point. Today you have youtube videos that explain that you start with a proper foundation like a legit tube amp that is not a double stack Marshall :). You then add a tried and true OD of some flavor, etc. You can very cheaply add a Rat, MT-2, DS-1, TS to a decent Tube amp whatever your mood is. That clean on the preamp would probably never be used and be disappointing. This preamp would have been an expensive option back in the day and probably wrong. I watch these videos normally to see a very skilled player make them work.
Stunning playing once again Michael. Thoroughly enjoyed what you have done. Here is an idea. Session guitar tones from the movies. 80s movies / cartoons had some Stella tones. All the best buddy.
@@BigHairyGuitars that was 3 channel as well. Had the black /blue green color scheme. Wasn’t the most popular, but let’s face it , in the 80s most everyone had Marshalls or they were doing the preamp thing.
I would love to see you checking out the crate stealth 50 amp which was designed by lee jackson. Many people in the web claim that it was his best amp. Jeff Blando from slaughter is still using them.
That’s funny. I just asked Jeff what amp he was using. He has an incredible sound! He told me exactly what u said. I really thought he was using the rockmaster.
@@MightyMo519 he is probably the only famous guy that still uses these amps. I loved my Crate Stealth but had to let it go because it’s super tough to dial it in and a bit too brutal for my taste. But for that 80s modded tone it’s a steal! I got mine for 200€ with the original 4x12
I`m on my third Rockmaster Preamp now. 15 years ago I got all the relay`s and switches/loops changed because they where the weak points on these units, I was told. Often I`ve looked for the Mesa Triaxis, the Marshall JMP-1 Preamp, the ADA MP-1, the Soldano/Caswell X99, the Custom Audio Electronics 3+ or similar amps, but why? Why would I honestly buy any of these afforementioned preamps? Do they sound better than the Peavey Rockmaster? In my opinion NO! The only reason I would want or need any of the others like the Triaxis, the JMP-1 or the MP-1 would be the possibility to have 8 channels, or to store a huge number of settings like on the last two. I`m always amazed when I plug into the Rockmaster, and even if I have numbers of other amps, this one brings out my smile, everytime........
I got lucky and found one in really good perfect condition with the foot switch for $300 ,,, only issue I’m having recently is volume loss ,, not sure if it’s a tube or something else ,,, it will work but sometimes I crank the amp and barely hear anything ,,, currently using it with a peavey classic 50/50 power amp
Hmmmm, I'm curious if **DANN HUFF** ever tried one of these out back in the day... perhaps an interview by Michael Nielsen with Dann Huff would see that info provided! ;)
I LOVED my old Rockmaster. I just wished it had stereo outs instead of all the effects loops. And I'd have preferred more footswitching options instead of having to pull the scoop on stage manually ha. I ran it into a vintage Marshall large cabinet 212, and the low end was somewhat ferocious! You should do another video mentioning the versatility of this amp once you've had it for a while.
I’ve had my Rockmaster for over 20 years. I think I bought it for $50 bucks during the Mesa Boogie or bust era. No one wanted it because it said Peavey. It crushes.
Hi there! Indeed yes, the Rockmaster is a monster. The overdrive is so hot, and the distorsion with pulled gain so intense! Nice harmonics, just perfect for soloing. Just wanted to know what kind of 12AX7 you put in your preamp: V1 V2 V3 V4 ?
the preamp of the ultra series, active EQ, best preamp for a cheap price, i got two, one modified to tame the gnarly 80`s mid and now its sounds even more killer. worst parts are the 1000 effectloops that always causing trouble
My "other" guitarist in my band had one of these. He couldn't dial it in for crap for some reason. I had time with it a few times and got the tones you have going. His problem was he dialed with his eyes instead of his ears. Eventually he left it on a setting i dialed. He wasn't long for the band at any rate. This was 87 I think.
@@BigHairyGuitars I contacted Sean about his Peavey pre amp. He said "Bob, you have a terrible memory". "It was 1990 and you joined MY band if you remember.". Clearly I did not. He is correct of course, so I asked him if he still had this Peavey and he said. "Of course I do. I still have every piece of gear I have ever bought. Unlike you and many other guys buying and swapping gear for tones, I would get a piece and keep it. While you guys bought and sold all that gear I kept collecting it and enjoying it all." I sold him my light blue Bedrock combo years ago. Yes, he still has it, and yes I miss that thing.
the gain channels EQ are really sensitive because they are an active EQ channel and not a passive tone stack like on the clean channel and most amps. So yes really sensitive but great! I miss my rockmaster
Sounds better than any 5150 I every heard, I wonder if the ultra plus is the same circuit? Also read that the guys from nile used this preamp on a couple cd's
Peavey Rockmaster, the one that got away 😀 It is good one. Next you have to find Kitty Hawk Testarossa (2 ch) or Quattro (4 Channels), can't remember did they had 3 ch preamp, that would have been probably Beetle? 😀 There was other German preamp/amp maker in late 80's but i cannot remember the name, not H&K or Engl or anything like that. They advertised a lot on Guitar player at that time They had cool stuff also.
@@BigHairyGuitars Yes. The store owner despised the 80s, as well as my taste in kramers and charvels. It was a good teaching gig, though. That was 2009.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Love the separate effect loops as well as universal. That’s where this thing comes alive imo.
I bought one for $25 from a local seller. He used as a parts donor for 2 others he had in his rack. It was a mess, bad relays, a broken pot, missing knobs and rack ears dirty switching jacks in all of those EFX loops. I refurbed it and have been rocking it since. I love it for recording. They are great tube preamps that can sound REALLY NICE if you dial them in right. I have a bunch of recordings on my page where I used mine straight into my interface with your Big Hairy Cabs IR's and the Valhalla Supermassive plugin for reverb & delay. Its what I use most. Great preamp.
Hey man, I don't got no issues with my relays apart from the usual which can be fixed by plugging and unplugging a jack in and out of the loop returns. HOWEVER, I'm just curious for future proofing my own Rockmasters, how did you fix your relays? Someone told me I would never be able to replace them. Any advice or tips on possible replacements would be appreciated. Thanks.
@@RabidGerry I used Omron G5V-2-DC12 relays. I just removed the PCB, flipped it over heated the connections and used a desoldering bulb to suck up the solder then pulled out the old P&B relays, carefully plugged the new Omron relays in the same pin locations and flowed a bit of solder in each pin location. Worked like a charm. Omron G6A-274P-ST-US-DC12 would work as well. Same output and the G6 version has a little lower current draw which is good.
Finally! I have had my Rockmaster since the early 90's. One of the best ever in my opinion.
I used to own multiples of these. I miss them. they sounded great. especially when you find the right pre-amp tubes for each section. this combo'd with the Peavey Tube Fex rackmount was a ferocious combo back in the 90's.
all ran through peavey ultra plus 120 w/ mesa 4x12 vintage 30's. b a l l s n c h u n k
You're right, both are absolute monster units
I miss mine a lot. Highly underrated preamps. However, they are plagued with bad solder joints that pop up. If you notice a weak signal or the sound dropping out, it's because one of the solder joints cracked somewhere in the circuit. If the pots crackle when turning, it can usually be fixed by cleaning the FX loop jacks kinda like with a Peavey 5150. A lot of people ditch them because they don't know about these issues, and you can score them pretty cheap sometimes.
Correct Tom. Add to the solder joints the relays and the switches/loops. I downloaded about 100 pages of user comments about these preamps about 15 years ago, and it only showed what we have pointed out. All the rage about what a piece of shit it was related to "contact" issues like the ones we point out. It was very much either, or. Either they raved about the sound, or it was the biggest pile of shit they ever heard. Of course millions of people out there are biased when it comes to Peavey in general, and psychologically a huge number of people will always find confirmation to whatever they think or believe. All I can say is that this unit is incredibly underrated, and Peavey in general unfortunately have gotten a very undeserved bad reputation.
I still have mine, it's in the shed out back. This was my main amp for many many years, and then the sound started dropping off like you are describing here.
I replaced it with an Ultra 120 head, which is also amazing. I wound up selling the Classic 60/60 power amp I had with it. I basically forgot about that preamp. I'll have to pull it out and resolder all the connections in there and try it again. I loved that preamp.
From about 88 until about 93, this preamp running into an Ampeg V4 with A pair of 1960 B 4x12 cabs was my rig… Sounded really great, especially for the time. Only reason I got rid of it was because I got an SLO… Now I kind of wish I had this again.
Great video and tremendous playing, as always… Thanks, Michael!🤠
Dang! That must’ve sounded amazing
@@BigHairyGuitars you know what? It did! You got a remember this, though: that was back in the day when bigger, more, louder was better in the clubs we were playing. Really doubt you could get away with it now.
@@dangolguitartech Yeah Buddy . Still have my V4, still massive ;-), that darn thing takes anything and makes it stunning. I got mine after a bout with a loud drummer I needed to conquer back then. Good Times.
@@plexidust5101 it could definitely keep up with anything else around at the time. What’s even better is that I got it for $150… It’s when all the older guys were trading in their old gear for the new rack mount stuff and pointy guitars. I got the V4 for $150, a 78 Les Paul deluxe gold top for $400 and the cabinets for $200 each. The RockMaster was the most expensive thing in the rig.
I love old Peavey gear. Especially since it's usually cheap and amazing.
The problem is they use cheap components like IC (Illinois Capacitor) capacitors and they always break, so not reliable!
@user-pg6vv1lp5p I have a Peavey Deuce from 1978 that still works like new. Seems pretty reliable.
Not so cheap anymore. The prices of rack gear like this have gone through the roof, unfortunately.
I have had several since the end of the 80s, today to 2021 I still have a Rockmaster preamp in perfect condition, except for one that bothered me the relays, after changing them everything works perfectly. I can say that after using them for more than 30 years and compared to other equipment, they are still unsurpassed by other masrcas, for me they are still valid in sound until now as part of a sound equipment for guitar.
Wonderful channeling of the 80s vibe, as usual!
YES!!!!!
Thank you so much for making this video. I have been using Peavey Rockmasters for about 7 years now and someone needed to do this video. The funny thing is I'm no hair/glam metal fan or player at all. I'm more regular heavy metal/thrash metal kinda guy and the Rockmaster does that for me with ease. It really has a unique sound and clarity to it. Perhaps lacking thick useful low end but this can be gotten from your power amp or an EQ. I have 2 of 'em, one for live and one for studio. Again thanks for the great video, happy to have watched and liked it :)
The Peavey Ultra Plus 120 was my first Tube amp, I think the Rockmaster is the same pre amp. The Ultras are beasts and totally underated. I think EVH ruined them by revoicing to the 5150 tone. I think the Ultra tone is much better.
Correct! The Rockmaster is the Preamp section of the Ultra!
I have an Ultra 60, I think the cleans is a bit better than this Rockmaster and have quite a bit more bass.
I didn't have the plus version, the one I have is unreliable on channel switching, and it weight a ton.
5150 wasn't a bad amp, it have a lot more punch, it only do one type of sound but it did it extremely well.
I am looking at Rockmaster to see if it will work well with an IR setup, but it did not sound as good on clean and slightly muddier here on higher gain settings compared to the Ultra.
great video! a good reference video or music of tones using this pre is anything off Guardian Miracle Mile. Tony Palacios used this on his touring rig in this era, always had killer tone Check out Let it roll by Guardian (Miracle Mile) heck the whole album is pretty tasty with some great ballads mixed in
i’ll check out the Andy Timmons stuff for whatever reason i missed out on that back in the day
The man with the sweetest sounds from back in the day, never fails to put s smile on my face. 👌
played one for years. people knock the Peavey gear, but this was an amazing unit.
I have one. It's in great shape , all the knobs!! And I have a foot switch.... KILLER preamp!!
All the tones.
I’ve got an early ‘90’s Peavey Bravo . All tube with El84’s and spring reverb… Killer tone. Better than my Friedman PT-20. And more versatile. Actually decided to sell the Friedman .
i have the same exact amp. They are killer!
I've got the same Bravo one and love it so much I hunted downa Peavey Rockmaster pre amp because they are supposed to be the same but after that my Bravo crapped out sand now I have to get it repaired because it's my favorite amp in the whole world !
Brad Hull from Forced Entry used one on "Ad above, do below".
Source: himself when I asked on FB.
This is one of the rare channels I've become to watch always and dunno why exactly
Michael, that is a wonderful rendition of “slipped her the big one”. Awesome!
Loved my Rockmaster. Ran from 1993 to 2006 for me. After it died I was lucky enough to get the ENGL E530 Pre-Amp to replace it in2007. These days I love the Synergy stuff!
NICE! I've got a 530 that I still need to demo. It's very cool! The Synergy stuff is definitely the easiest way into preamp land these days
My first preamp! Man i miss that thing.
Dude, that intro was sick!
Dude!!! that thing sounds AMAZING!!!!! Kemper profile biught!!! Most excellent and thank you~ Those Friedman gutiars sound killer. Love all the 80's and 90's riffs you randomly whip out..
For the metal guys, I know Dallas from the band Nile used one of these for a while with a marshall monoblock
He's back on the Triple XXX which is really close sounding \m/\m/ I jammed with him when he was 13
@RobesonRocks oh shit thays cool as!
I wish Peavey would reissue the Rockmaster...I would absolutely buy one.
The ultra gain chugs like Sound Garden and Alice In Chains, and the crunch would sound good for Black Flag.
I’ve owned one forever. The Ultra channel can be full on Metal. I would never use the word chug with AIC or Soundgarden, grunge bands with sludge sounds. The Ultra has balls and can be set to kick ass, not to lick it. If you want to hear a chug, listen to Metallica’s Sad But True. If you want to hear wussy sludge, listen to AIC and Soundgarden. Where are they now? also, those are two bands that would never use a Rock Master and can’t play nearly as well as Andy Timmons.
That is a nice sounding pre-amp. I have almost picked one up a couple of times as I saw them on ebay. Not sure why I didn't. I have a Peavey Tube-Fex and this sounds very similar. Specially the ultra channel. Seems like the Tube-Fex is really just a Rockmaster with Midi and digital effects integrated. On the front of the Tube-Fex the voicing is labeled Bass, Mid, Treble but on the LED screen it is Bottom, body, and edge.
I wish I still had a TubeFex! I used on for years in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Only issue was that dang battery that had to be replaced every few years.
@@seangaskinmusic2300 Yeah those barrel batteries were dangerous. Someone came up with a new ROM chip that reserved some memory to save presets there and the battery could then be removed. Always glad to find someone that used one of them, they were kind of a hidden gem IMO.
the reason so many of these are physically beat-up is because, unlike most peavey gear, their rackmount gear is somewhat fragile. and it seems most of these were never mounted in a rack for protection, so they get scraped and banged up, and the pot shafts break off easily since they are made of plastic so knobs get lost. i got really lucky with mine, i bought it from a guy who bought it new and used it in his home studio, so it's in perfect condition with no damage at all. i immediately installed it into a rack case with front and rear covers so it's still looking like new.
It's nice to see, that my Rockmaster is not faulty, but this is the way it sounds and works.
I found that the midle eq on the right side had this well known honky mid range that everyone complains about. And it's not possible to dial it out. And yes, I like it not pulled out too. If I do, it just takes out too much midrange, like a too wide Q on an EQ. Well, I will retune that circuit with different value capacitors.
Also, I will try to adjust all channels to each other EQ -vise, cause now, if you switch channels, the EQ settings wont work in both of them...
I know from the schematics, that this is a very clever, sophisticated design, not doing things in the traditional tube circuit way! The clean channel's presence is an active EQ, and the right side EQ is active. It has diode clipping too, which is mixed to the tube distortion.
I think with some careful redesign (modding) and tuning this can be turned to be a very useful workhorse for any rock guitarist.
This was my first rack, my first preamp. Right after this, i found a used triaxis, from deep purple. Used those for years. Wish I kept the pre amps.
Brett Michaels of Poison also used it on the Open Up tour when he was playing rhythm on Fallen Angel. Also, it was Tony Rey of Saraya who played on the first D2 album before Andy came in and took over (the world). And yea, those stupid knobs break off WAYYYYY too easy. I'm still trying to find replacement parts for my RM - that push / pull for the Ultra channel is impossible to find now. :(
Very good sound.
Sounds awesome! Good luck finding one, though. My favorite amp I ever gigged with was the Peavey Stereo Chorus 212. Before that, I had a Peavey Encore 65. They were my go-to back in the 1980s. 😎👍
Yes, indeed - great little preamp. I recorded my Lovewar "Soak Your Brain" album at Pakaderm studios in Los Alamitos in 1993. Dino had one of these in his huge refrigerator rack, and by gum, between the 5150 and this, it's pretty much all over the record. I think we were feeding a big 120w tube power amp into a pair of tall Marshall cabs. This preamp was just s barky and cool as any other 'hot' preamp he had in the rack.
Well bugger me...I've not seen one of these bad boys since I let go of mine back in the early 90's. Used a Peavey power amp of some kind with it. My very first foray into rack stuff! Memories, Michael...good times indeed👍✌️
Man, I love Danger Danger! The song Under the Gun should have been huge, and I'm honestly surprised it wasn't released as a single, probably one of the better songs from their debut album
They sucq
I wish I had never sold mine. On top of the great tones this thing can produce, it also seems like you could really fine-tune each of the three channels by using the independent effects loops.
I had one of these about 20 years ago. Truly under-appreciated and I regret selling mine, even if it needs assistance working with “modern” MIDI setups. That was why I also had a Peavey MIDI Pro.
Even had the same power amp as Andy LOL!
Bet that was a killer rig.
@@brpadington
It was a lot of fun LOL! Used an old ART effects unit with it.
@@nicholastotoro7721 Awesome. I love the old 80s rack gear. I recently got a used Midiverb that sounds great.
Awesome sounding preamp. The issue with these were the fx loops. They would go bad or something and you had to daisy chain them together or something like that.
yeah the pass through connections on the effects loop jacks will oxidize and cause a disconnect and then you get no audio at all. A little Deoxit usually fixes them, or you can replace the jack or as you stated, short patch cable from send to return. Also the relays and electrolytic caps that assist the relays are prone to failure. Not such an easy fix for those but still serviceable.
@@LawrencePetross Thank you! A much better version of the point I was trying to make. 👍
Michael the end of this video is crazy hahaahahah you’ve got some killer riffs.
I love mine. I'll never get rid of it.
I had one and it did exactly what I wanted it to do at the time. It's great for metal but not hugely versatile. I ran mine into a 9005 Marshall 50+50 power amp into two 4x12s and it was crushing.
I've got one and almost always use it with live band settings because it's the most versatile piece in the setup and most impressive part of the tone sculpting and I love mine !
I had one of these in the early to mid 90s and it was kind of blah with a solid state power amp. Later, I sold it on ebay and got ready for one final test before shipping it- paired with a Peavey Classic 60 or 120 power Amp (don't remember).. I was blown away, having never used them together. It was like they were made for each other haha. Really regretted selling them but had already been paid.
Great video. Good balance of great playing and preamp exploration. The control panel at the bottom is a nice touch. My only complaint is common with all videos of preamps and distortion pedals which is the lack of showing the length of sustain they produce.
Hi Hector. Thank you. I've never considered that (about the sustain). I'll try to show that in future vids.
Hell yeah! I love my Rockmaster but I wish I had a low-watt power amp to pair with it. The Peavey Classic 50/50 is pretty loud! :D Guess I need the Fryette Power Station.
But, yeah... the Peavey gear is underrated. I have and love the Wiggy, JSX and the Delta Blues too. And yeah, Andy Timmon's a badass.
I have one of these and a Peavey 120/120 power amp. The preamp needs a little TLC to get it back to 100% -- this video helped light a fire under.
I’m not familiar with Danger Danger but I did use a Rock Master for several years I was using a Rocktron Chameleon but I found the Rock Master for a $150 and never looked back changing the power amp would change the end result 😎best $150 I ever spent !!!
File this under "Gear I Should Have Never Gotten Rid Of."
The older I get bigger that folder gets. I finally learned my lesson.
Same here! We couldn't even sell it for 50 bucks!
Now were are talking! I have a all Peavey rack with two of these preamps, two PV EQ31's and a PV Classic 50/50 power amp...love these preamps
I had a bunch of these, 1 left. Love it, ultimate crunch
You sound killer on this track!! As usual, but you are for sure in your happy place with this guitar/amp combo.
You are also tip-toeing around the edge of a fountain of East Coast guitar heroes, and Danger Danger had it good. Yes, Andy (from NJ) replaced Tony Bruno (from Long Island), who replaced Al Pitrelli (also from Long Island). Al is of course the sound of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and was in Megadeth, Alice Cooper, Asia, and so many more. Tony’s toured with Joan Jett, and I believe was the MD for Rihanna at the time Nuno was brought in, as well as Enrique and a ton of other amazing stuff. East Coast represent!
do you know whats the song he plays 0:00 - 0:56 ?
This and the peavey triumph from the late 80’s/early 90’s were so underrated. Sweet playing buddy keep up the good work 🤘🏽
Add a decent noise suppressor and you're in instant djent country.
sneak in some chorus, compression and delay on the clean channel for instant Prince.
Push the crunch ever so slightly with a warm tubescreamer and add some reverb.
The Rockmaster was the most underrated amp, it (with a little help) could handle pretty much any tone you might want.
I’ve owned 2 of these. It’s Metallica Black album on a budget. I used ultra ch. for rhythm and crunch for solos. Add a TC Electronics GMajor Rx and can use it with MIDI due to the GMajor having channel switching capabilities.
If I am not mistaken,,I first learned about the Peavey Rock Master preamp from Toni Iommi of Black Sabbath!
And I believe that he still uses it even today But never know,,confirm it!
I just unlisted one I had on eBay for weeks. I made the decision to keep it due to its condition and just use it with my cab m+. It’s mint and I’ve owned it a long time, the thing is a total beast tone wise and functionality. Thanks for the video.✌🏻❤️
I appreciate all the kemper packs. Very nice. Thank you.
I had one twenty years ago, was great
Best Rock Master demo out there. Leads rule, LA lead Sound in bounds, I'm sure it's nothing to do with the tone in your hands and phrasing. ;)
I had 2 of these. I sold 2 of these..... Modded my main and the second was stock. I'll find one again one day or an Ultra head.
I love rack gear so much, its just so neat. Nostalgia for something I've never experienced... This channel is the absolute boy. Cheers for all the cool content.
3:36 explains why was not such a great experience. I don't think you missed much. Much not very usable or just produce a very specific sound for a recording.
@@estring69 For some of us that's all you need. I'm definitely someone that likes simple options and I'd rather have a solid clean and gain tone rather than a billion paralyzing options. Obviously, this is not the case for everyone!
@@AJPMUSIC_OFFICIAL I would say that there were a lot of options and most were wrong. I guess that is my point. Today you have youtube videos that explain that you start with a proper foundation like a legit tube amp that is not a double stack Marshall :). You then add a tried and true OD of some flavor, etc. You can very cheaply add a Rat, MT-2, DS-1, TS to a decent Tube amp whatever your mood is. That clean on the preamp would probably never be used and be disappointing. This preamp would have been an expensive option back in the day and probably wrong. I watch these videos normally to see a very skilled player make them work.
Stunning playing once again Michael. Thoroughly enjoyed what you have done. Here is an idea. Session guitar tones from the movies. 80s movies / cartoons had some Stella tones. All the best buddy.
Danger Danger are still in my top 5 bands of all the 'Poodle Rock' genre 😛
I so wanted that preamp or the peavey supreme 120 head back in the day. It never did happen, sadly
🥲 I did too. I’m not familiar with the Supreme head
@@BigHairyGuitars that was 3 channel as well. Had the black /blue green color scheme. Wasn’t the most popular, but let’s face it , in the 80s most everyone had Marshalls or they were doing the preamp thing.
I would love to see you checking out the crate stealth 50 amp which was designed by lee jackson. Many people in the web claim that it was his best amp. Jeff Blando from slaughter is still using them.
That’s funny. I just asked Jeff what amp he was using. He has an incredible sound! He told me exactly what u said. I really thought he was using the rockmaster.
@@MightyMo519 he is probably the only famous guy that still uses these amps. I loved my Crate Stealth but had to let it go because it’s super tough to dial it in and a bit too brutal for my taste. But for that 80s modded tone it’s a steal! I got mine for 200€ with the original 4x12
Looking for mine again suddenly
Great piece of gear!!!!
0:00 I can listen to this over and over again 0:56 What is it ?
It's a variation on Slipped Her the Big one, from Danger Danger (Andy Timmons)
I paid $110 for mine from a GC 5 years ago and it was pristine. It's awesome.
I was about to ask you if you had any plans to buy a Rockmaster and release a Kemper pack. I'm glad you did. I will buy it for sure! Thanks!
I`m on my third Rockmaster Preamp now. 15 years ago I got all the relay`s and switches/loops changed because they where the weak points on these units, I was told. Often I`ve looked for the Mesa Triaxis, the Marshall JMP-1 Preamp, the ADA MP-1, the Soldano/Caswell X99, the Custom Audio Electronics 3+ or similar amps, but why? Why would I honestly buy any of these afforementioned preamps? Do they sound better than the Peavey Rockmaster? In my opinion NO! The only reason I would want or need any of the others like the Triaxis, the JMP-1 or the MP-1 would be the possibility to have 8 channels, or to store a huge number of settings like on the last two. I`m always amazed when I plug into the Rockmaster, and even if I have numbers of other amps, this one brings out my smile, everytime........
I got lucky and found one in really good perfect condition with the foot switch for $300 ,,, only issue I’m having recently is volume loss ,, not sure if it’s a tube or something else ,,, it will work but sometimes I crank the amp and barely hear anything ,,, currently using it with a peavey classic 50/50 power amp
sounds like tubes to me
Adrian Vandenberg, Jason Becker, Steve Morse, Rex Carroll, Tony MacAlpine, Al Pitrelli, Brett Michaels...
Hmmmm, I'm curious if **DANN HUFF** ever tried one of these out back in the day... perhaps an interview by Michael Nielsen with Dann Huff would see that info provided! ;)
Haha
In 1981 I had a Peavey Musician head, it was a 2 channel SS head. It would be cool if you ever come across one of those and give your take on it.
Tony Bruno designed the original Sovtek Mig 50 amplifier!
I LOVED my old Rockmaster.
I just wished it had stereo outs instead of all the effects loops.
And I'd have preferred more footswitching options instead of having to pull the scoop on stage manually ha.
I ran it into a vintage Marshall large cabinet 212, and the low end was somewhat ferocious!
You should do another video mentioning the versatility of this amp once you've had it for a while.
I’ve had my Rockmaster for over 20 years. I think I bought it for $50 bucks during the Mesa Boogie or bust era. No one wanted it because it said Peavey. It crushes.
Yeah, it chugs.
I use to have 2. Love them
Hi there! Indeed yes, the Rockmaster is a monster. The overdrive is so hot, and the distorsion with pulled gain so intense! Nice harmonics, just perfect for soloing. Just wanted to know what kind of 12AX7 you put in your preamp: V1 V2 V3 V4 ?
How coincidence.. the toneking just mentioned this preamp on his livestream
sounds freaking awesome 👌 agreed on most under-rated
Amazing sound.
Tony Bruno went to Saraya.
I have mine still and it’s mint!
the preamp of the ultra series, active EQ, best preamp for a cheap price, i got two, one modified to tame the gnarly 80`s mid and now its sounds even more killer. worst parts are the 1000 effectloops that always causing trouble
Well, the second hand market price of these just went up!
My "other" guitarist in my band had one of these. He couldn't dial it in for crap for some reason. I had time with it a few times and got the tones you have going. His problem was he dialed with his eyes instead of his ears. Eventually he left it on a setting i dialed. He wasn't long for the band at any rate. This was 87 I think.
Ha!
@@BigHairyGuitars I contacted Sean about his Peavey pre amp. He said "Bob, you have a terrible memory". "It was 1990 and you joined MY band if you remember.". Clearly I did not. He is correct of course, so I asked him if he still had this Peavey and he said. "Of course I do. I still have every piece of gear I have ever bought. Unlike you and many other guys buying and swapping gear for tones, I would get a piece and keep it. While you guys bought and sold all that gear I kept collecting it and enjoying it all." I sold him my light blue Bedrock combo years ago. Yes, he still has it, and yes I miss that thing.
the gain channels EQ are really sensitive because they are an active EQ channel and not a passive tone stack like on the clean channel and most amps. So yes really sensitive but great!
I miss my rockmaster
The texture reminds me sooo much the peavey 5150. Is this maybe it's precursor?
I remember reading Shawn Lane used one of these
Sounds better than any 5150 I every heard, I wonder if the ultra plus is the same circuit? Also read that the guys from nile used this preamp on a couple cd's
If I was in an aggressive metal band, this would be in my arsenal for sure!
@@BigHairyGuitars A boost upfront and para eq in the loop would be insaine awesome
Peavey Rockmaster, the one that got away 😀
It is good one.
Next you have to find Kitty Hawk Testarossa (2 ch) or Quattro (4 Channels), can't remember did they had 3 ch preamp, that would have been probably Beetle? 😀
There was other German preamp/amp maker in late 80's but i cannot remember the name, not H&K or Engl or anything like that.
They advertised a lot on Guitar player at that time
They had cool stuff also.
Steavens was also German like ENGL, Hughes & Kettner and Kitty Hawk
A music store I used to teach in let me have one found in the basement for 10 bucks. Great sound. Still wish I hadn't let it go.
$10!!!
@@BigHairyGuitars Yes. The store owner despised the 80s, as well as my taste in kramers and charvels. It was a good teaching gig, though. That was 2009.
Interesting sounding for sure. Def a lot of gain! I would snag one of these if I see one now if the price is right.
I'm pickin' up some George Lynch in there. Can't go wrong with Mr. Scary. Thanks
That was one tasty into man!
Amazing!
Tony Bruno = Saraya. When The Blackbird Sings is classic.
Incredible album.
Damn now you're making me regret selling mine years back. The ultra channel was broken though - crunch had plenty of gain!