# Peavey 6505 vs EVH 5150 III



## Isan (Jun 7, 2009)

Ok, either way one of these will be my new amp before the end of the year.
Unearth was using the EVH 5150s when i saw them. They sounded amazing, 
but i was wondering how different the 5150 is from the 6505. And is the difference worth the price?
Thanks
CTR


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## groph (Jun 7, 2009)

5150 III to me sounds a lot smoother and more refined than the 6505. I imagine the Whitechapel guy will come im here, he's a fan of the 5150III as well as most other people. In my opinion the difference isn't worth the price because I prefer the tone of the 5150/II/6505/+

The 5150III can get just as heavy as the 6505, they just sound different. I happen to prefer the Peavey ones.


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## budda (Jun 7, 2009)

The 5150III has a quality clean channel, plus the other two, no shared EQ's... that spells "win" in my books.

Darkest hour was rocking 5150III's, they sounded good. I'm a fan of more versatility and lovely cleans, so I'd go fender - im sure the dirt side of things will be crushing.


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## Dylan S (Jun 7, 2009)

The Fender definitely is a tad more versatile. As others have said, the clean channel shares no EQ and actually sounds really REALLY nice. It can get super sparkly and the presence knob has a HUGE range.

The distortion channels sound amazing as you'd expect. I was playing one in a shop at relatively high volumes with an Ibanez S 7 string, so it sounded a little dry, but I'm sure at higher volumes, and a guitar with better stock pickups it would sound amazing.

Having said that, if you aren't after a clean channel to use for very much, a 6505+ is a lot cheaper, and can sound just as brutal I'm sure of it, and you still get different EQ for rhythm and lead channels, so it's really about what sound you are after.


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## DrakkarTyrannis (Jun 7, 2009)

I wonder if the 5150III can be modded to 5150 specs..if so you could have the best of both worlds. 3 channel 5150 will great cleans


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## adadglgmut (Jun 7, 2009)

yeah they are definitely completely different sounding. but the 5150III is toootally useable. not quite as br00tal IMO... it has a completely different gain character.
smoother.. more vintagey...
it would be nice if someone could post some clips of NOT Van Halen songs, just to show how it sounds for anything else.
either way, i like it much more than the peavey models


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## Dylan S (Jun 7, 2009)

I am not sure.

I have seen videos about the 5150III on youtube and all of the parts in there are 'amp specific' and you can't get them anywhere else, which I would assume means it's hard to put other stuff in there.

I wouldn't even consider it worth checking out. There is no question the 5150III can sound brutal as all hell, but I juts think the lower mid growl and lower mid voicing of the peaveys might be a bit more pronounced if anything (based on my limited experience and album recordings I've heard), which does make the fender sound a bit smoother.


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## budda (Jun 7, 2009)

No chance of Isan actually trying one out?


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## Harry (Jun 8, 2009)

budda said:


> The 5150III has a quality clean channel, plus the other two, no shared EQ's... that spells "win" in my books.
> 
> Darkest hour was rocking 5150III's, they sounded good. I'm a fan of more versatility and lovely cleans, so I'd go fender - im sure the dirt side of things will be crushing.



How long have DH been using 5150III (that is, if they are still using them)?
Quite like some of their tones.


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## budda (Jun 8, 2009)

Not a damn clue, but they sounded amazing live! Washburn Nuno Bettencourt sigs into 5150III's and everyone was lovin' it


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## Isan (Jun 8, 2009)

I played a 5150 III once and liked it, but never played a 6505. But I asked buz and he said a 6505 would work great.... so that decides it I think


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## Thin_Ice_77 (Jun 8, 2009)

I'd just go for the Peavey, but that's because I don't care very much about cleans.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Jun 9, 2009)

Dylan S said:


> I am not sure.
> 
> I have seen videos about the 5150III on youtube and all of the parts in there are 'amp specific' and you can't get them anywhere else, which I would assume means it's hard to put other stuff in there.
> 
> I wouldn't even consider it worth checking out. There is no question the 5150III can sound brutal as all hell, but I juts think the lower mid growl and lower mid voicing of the peaveys might be a bit more pronounced if anything (based on my limited experience and album recordings I've heard), which does make the fender sound a bit smoother.


 
I know Eric Peterson mentioned using 5150 IIIs on the Formation of Damnation album in an interview, saying it's his current favorite amp. 

That and Gojira have recently picked these up too (though they don't use the clean channel).

I would love to try this amp one day, though I might need to get used to not having a single master volume for all 3 channels.


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## Andii (Jun 9, 2009)

I did a demo of the 6505+ that I feel shows the clean channel off accurately. I was still working on the high gain tone so ignore that. Clean starts at 1:36 

I hope this helps with the clean channel conundrum surrounding the Peavey.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4FyvwRsTJM


I really like the 6505+. It's made in the USA and is pretty invincible from what I've heard and seen. The 5150III is made in Mexico and of course I've heard horror stories about them exploding. Some people like the 5150III for its more refined sound, and I've heard some who say they like the raw sound of the Peavey. I really like the Peavey's sound on Gojira's The Way of all Flesh and Beneath the Massacre's tone with the Peavey matches their style perfectly. A band that uses the amp clean a lot is Dysrhythmia, and I like the tone they're getting too. A lot of times the complaint about the clean channel comes from trying to switch between crunch and clean when the eq is set up for the crunch mode.


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## Leuchty (Jun 9, 2009)

Andii said:


> I did a demo of the 6505+ that I feel shows the clean channel off accurately. I was still working on the high gain tone so ignore that. Clean starts at 1:36
> 
> I hope this helps with the clean channel conundrum surrounding the Peavey.
> 
> ...




Dude! thats awesome. I actually really like the clean sound on the 6505+. with some chorus and slight delay it really shines.

Don't know what the fuss is about


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## budda (Jun 9, 2009)

some people prefer fender cleans, is all.

im still not sure why some metal players think just because they play metal means they should only play with high gain


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## 7slinger (Jun 9, 2009)

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I know Eric Peterson mentioned using 5150 IIIs on the Formation of Damnation album in an interview, saying it's his current favorite amp.



can pretty much confirm this, it looked like 5153s were what he was using live a couple weeks ago


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## grogarage (Jun 9, 2009)

7slinger said:


> can pretty much confirm this, it looked like 5153s were what he was using live a couple weeks ago


 
when i saw them in Montreal last year (early in the current tour) he was using a marshall stack... but i heard about him using the 5150-III, on a side note, his Dean sig. V is fueling my GAS right now...i like V's


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## 7slinger (Jun 9, 2009)

grogarage said:


> when i saw them in Montreal last year (early in the current tour) he was using a marshall stack... but i heard about him using the 5150-III, on a side note, his Dean sig. V is fueling my GAS right now...i like V's



was the marshall stack white?

they had a screen up over the amps but he was on the other side of the stage from me so I could see the amps from the side, white half stack

no idea what skolnick was using though, as he was 5 feet in front of me and I couldn't see through the screen in front of his setup


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## Xiphos68 (Jun 9, 2009)

I like the 6505 + sounded great for metal and solos. EVH 5150 3 I played it sounded good one day, then the next day sounded terrible. They were both designed by Eddie Van Halen. Also Eric Peterson used the EVH 5150 3 on the new testament album


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## Dylan S (Jun 9, 2009)

Don't forget, the distorted channels on the 5150 don't scream out for a boost as much as say a Rectifier. there is no doubt you can use a boost if you wish but I don't think it needs one as much as a Recto.

Keeping this in mind, rolling your volume knob back on your guitar can give some surprisingly good clean sounds from your crunch channels. I have done this with a blackout equipped 7 string and it sounds surprisingly OK. Not amazing, but definitely usable.

I can't get away with that on my Recto because I always have my overdrive on, so I may as well just go to the clean channel and switch it off if I'm going to have to do some switching anyway.


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## budda (Jun 9, 2009)

dylan, i leave my OD on as well - i just use my neck pickup with the volume rolled way back


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