Operating Theater: Peavey Century 200H

2012/09/212015/01/12 Doktor Ross SewageLeave a comment

I almost feel guilty for writing about this, as the fix was so damn easy. Actually, that says a lot of good things about the manufacturer of this amp, Peavey. Behold, the Peavey Century (which was produced about twenty years shy of the turn of…)

I had a Peavey XR 400B PA head that I used to call “the amp that will not die.” I used it as a back up bass head before I had a proper bass amp to rely on. It was about the same era as this Century, used the same solid state power amp section, and could get kicked down a flight of stairs and still work. Sure, it never sounded that great, but it was unbreakable. This Century broke when my friend Mark, after seeing a documentary on Keith Moon, decided he was in the Who and sent it tumbling. So, WTF?

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Oh, Snap! Sennheiser MZS-421 shockmount

2012/09/142015/01/12 Doktor Ross Sewage8 Comments

In my Low End Theory 1 article, I expressed my overwhelming satisfaction with the Low End Theory 2 article, I explained the custom mounting of my sweet MD-421 using a Bass Hangar from basshanger.com, a common microphone gooseneck, and the Sennheiser MZS-421 shockmount. In all their wisdom, Sennheiser did not make the MD-421 fit in a standard mic clip. But at least they did make this mount that would isolate the microphone from nasty bass vibrations. It is perfect for my “on the cab” mic set up.

That is, until one of the rubber bands broke while I was on tour. Then a second rubber band broke. The remaining bands held the mount together until the end of tour, but the shock absorption was nil. Luckily, one of the broken bands was stuck in the divots of the mount. With that and the help of some photos, I was able to trace its original path and re-thread replacements.

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Class or Ass: Tel-Ray Morley VOL volume pedal

2012/08/172015/01/14 Doktor Ross Sewage4 Comments

This is by far the biggest pedal you’ll ever find that does so little. The Morley VOL volume pedal is a gigantic chrome monstrosity, powered directly by AC and it does one thing: turn you down. Looking at an original from the ’70s, gleaming and polished, it’s definitely a beauty, but is it worth it?

The first thing ya gotta ask yerself, do you need a volume pedal? Guitars and basses usually have a knob that does the same thing right there next to your hand. You should try using it! There are those, however, who might use a volume pedal for swells and, uh… that’s pretty much it. Presuming you need a volume pedal, it’s best to take a closer look before you make room on your pedal board for this one-trick pony that’s the size of a pony.

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Operating Theater: Ampeg SVT-200T

2012/08/102015/01/13 Doktor Ross Sewage13 Comments

Ampeg rewrote the book on high power amplification in 1969 with the introduction of the SVT. That was the Super Valve Technology amp which pumped out, a then unheard of, massive 300 watts from six huge valves (or “tubes”). Marshall invented THE rock guitar amp and Ampeg followed it with THE rock bass amp. And then… through the ’70s and ’80s, they never topped the SVT. Sure, they had a few other good products, in-between changing ownership as numerously as Michael Jackson was changing his nose. So in the late eighties, they just started throwing the SVT name around like baby batter at a bukkake convention. And hence, the SVT-200T, produced from 1987-1994: featuring no valves at all.

I like to think I’m less dumb than I used to be. When I bought this SVT-200T solid-state amplifier, I thought I had an SVT. It was loud, the right shape, it said SVT… shit, I just played grind core, what did I know? It had that “Ampeg” tone they dial all their amps towards and it sounded awesome. Sounded. One night in 2005 it took a dump. Or maybe I took a dump. Did I have the wrong speaker set up? Was the club’s power screwy? Was it just old? It took me a lot of learning over seven years, but I finally got this tubeless, sad sack out of the closet and farting again.

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Tools of the Trade: Light Bulb Limiter

2012/07/272015/01/23 Doktor Ross Sewage5 Comments

It’s easy to slap an LED onto a pedal. At least, it’s easy for me now. I’ve moved onto bigger and badder. Largely through trial and error, I’ve managed to make a few sick amps well again. I’m still a novice, but I’m learning and it’s fun. The online world is a treasure trove of knowledge and helpful people. Those helpful people told me I was doing some stupid things. I was able to rectify at least one of those things.

This is a light bulb limiter. You can’t buy one and they’re all built a little different. It’s extremely helpful when dealing with a broken amp. In a previous repair of a Peavey XXX guitar amplifier, I was blowing fuses left and right (maybe center, too). The light bulb limiter is a D.I.Y. device that coulda saved me a lotta pain.

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Building a better Rat trap 2

2012/07/132013/09/23 Doktor Ross Sewage3 Comments

Just why does Pro Co only make one pedal? Because they got it right the first time. The Rat distortion box is legendary and it sounds killer, in my humble opinion. Okay, okay, Pro Co has made a few other stomp boxes, but they’re all based around the original Rat circuit and the legendary LM308 IC op-amp. The Turbo Rat, the Rat2, the You Dirty Rat, the Deucetone Rat, and the Rat R2DU rack mount are all descendant of the original: the gnarlier then gnarl white face Rat.

This is a white face Rat from around 1984. There are a few cosmetic differences, however, as I put some modifications into this little guy. A fella I knew asked me to do this before either of us realized the value this pedal could have probably scored on the eBay marketplace. So be it… he ended up trading it to me for some other work I did and I’m happy to call it “mine.” One of my earlier forays into pedal modifications, I’m pleased with the simple changes I made.

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Class or ass: Morley SEL Select-Effect

2012/07/062015/01/19 Doktor Ross SewageLeave a comment

When Tel-Ray Morley was started, guitar effects were in their infancy. It was novel for a guitar player to have even one effect on stage. The Morley design didn’t seem so ridiculous then. Wouldn’t you want your one pedal to be a nice, big, beautiful chrome monster? As the 1970s continued, guitar players only added a couple pedals to their line-up, the price being prohibitive and the pedals being enormous. Then BOSS introduced their still distinctive line of affordable, compact pedals in the 1980s; the world of ridiculously large pedal boards began. Enter the Morley SEL.

As far as I can tell, this must’ve been Morley’s attempt to keep up with the times. It’s got that distinctly enormous Morley look they kept for over a decade, but it doesn’t do something new. It’s an effect switcher. It’s not a true-bypass box, it just bypasses up to five effects. So do those effects’ on-off switches. Pointless? You can see where this is going.

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Operating Theatre: Peavey XXX

2012/06/292015/01/15 Doktor Ross Sewage2 Comments

During the months we traveled with GWAR, Sean “Bloodbath” McGrath’s Peavey XXX performed robustly. It’s modeled after a Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier, but minus the almost baffling amounts of bells and whistles and the outrageous price tag. Sean likes his stuff simple and cheap. Other than the embarrassing faceplate I replaced previously and the goofy knob names, it’s been a champ and sounded awesome.

And then the XXX crapped out. It stopped working two minutes before stage time at one of the last dates on our headlining tour. Sean was supposed to take his head into the shop upon our return, but was aghast to find it under a dog pile of costumes in our practice place. He said, “Nah.” Well, I dug it out to see what I could accomplish.

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