# Your thoughts on the Bugera 6260/6262



## AeonSolus (Apr 27, 2009)

I've seen lots of posts expressing hate and shunning towards it..can i ask why? i'm interested in buying it since im on a low budget and i've been longing to buy a 5150 for a long time, and the best thing about it is that it allows EL34s and 6l6s ... also, coudn't i use two EL34s and two 6l6s in that amp?


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (Apr 27, 2009)

First off..no you can't use both tube types in the same amp.

Secondly people dislike Bugera due to their reliability issues. Others hate it just because they're stupid.

I don't hate Bugera, but I don't see the point. Considering the fact that for the price of the Bugera, maybe a LITTLE more, you can get the real thing and you know it'll last as Peavey amps are known for holding up.


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 27, 2009)

But apart from those issues, do they sound bad?


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (Apr 27, 2009)

AeonSolus said:


> But apart from those issues, do they sound bad?



No. Actually I hear they sound great. And all the clips I've heard of them sound pretty damn good. Just unreliable as all hell.


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 27, 2009)

I take it that you say unreliable as in they can die in any instant..right?


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (Apr 27, 2009)

AeonSolus said:


> I take it that you say unreliable as in they can die in any instant..right?



Right. Sure if it's under warranty you can get it fixed or get a new one or whatever it is they do..but it doesn't make sense considering the real thing isn't that much more expensive.

To me Bugeras are for the instant gratification set. Those who don't want to wait and they want instant satisfaction, enough to over look the longterm


----------



## Daemoniac (Apr 27, 2009)

DrakkarTyrannis said:


> To me Bugeras are for the instant gratification set. Those who don't want to wait and they want instant satisfaction, enough to over look the longterm


 
Im just gona pipe up here about that bit, just to say that in Aus, the Bugera is 1/3 the cost of a Peavey... a little bit less than 1/3 i believe; a 5150 will set you back around $3,200 or so, whereas the 6262 will set me back $799  So for us here, its more worth it to go with Bugera 

I hear they sound graet though, but like Drakkar says, ive also heard they have some epic reliability issues  Seeing as how you're not in aus though, and the price difference really isnt that big, id say just try and get a used 5150 or something


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (Apr 27, 2009)

Well I'm talking about for those in America. I don't know what it's like overseas but I can only imagine. So in some parts of the world it would make sense..here considering the fact that you can get a 6505 for 700 or cheaper? Makes no sense other than having an "I want it now" tantrum


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 27, 2009)

It's hard and almost impossible for me to find a used 5150 because i'm in the caribbean, so ebay is out of the question, as i don't trust my country's customs


----------



## Daemoniac (Apr 27, 2009)

That blows dude... well if you can find a 5150 somehow, go with that. Otherwise, looks like you know what you'll do


----------



## noob_pwn (Apr 27, 2009)

because of your location if you cant afford a new 6505 i would say yes, go down the Bugera road unless you're planning on touring/gigging extensively with it.

People don't like them for another reason, that being they are schematically almost identical copies of the 5150/6505 and Behringer wasn't even creative enough to come up with original names for them. They don't sound as good as the real thing but are close. They seem to be a "kids amp" round here with all the 15 year old guys playing them and thinking they are the beez kneez. I guess 5150/6505 owners are just a tad spiteful because kids can get clones of our amps for a fraction of the cost and its demeening to our "club".

seriously though,
I have seen 6 of these on stage, 2 of them blew up.
I'd say take the gamble if you dont have the money for the real thing, theyre seriously not that bad.


----------



## Ben.Last (Apr 27, 2009)

I've owned the 333xl for a while now, love it, and haven't had any problems with it. If people researched the amps before purchasing they'd find that the reliability problems actually stem from a couple of really simple things that can be fixed by giving the amp a simple inspection when you first get it. Add to that the fact that it appears they've fixed the factors that were causing the majority of the problems in the ones that have date codes from this year and I think that a lot of the negative feedback has just been people reading "my friend's friend" type of anecdotes online.

Also, despite the fact that they may have been intended as peavey clones, they actually sound very different. 

As for them being about instant gratification, I needed an amp and I didn't have enough to spend on the Mesa I eventually want, so, I guess there is an element of instant gratification. But it wasn't a matter of "this or a Peavey for a few hundred more." I didn't want a 5150(I like having a usable clean channel  ) And, as I said, I'm very happy with it. Tone-wise and reliability-wise.


----------



## I_infect (Apr 27, 2009)

I owned the Bugera 333xl for less than 24 hours before I packaged it for a return, so YMMV with these. I thought it was noisy as hell and had a very 'tinny' sound quality to it. Some people love em though, so it's a very iffy choice. Don't buy one unless you can return it unconditionally, and have an extended warranty.


----------



## silentrage (Apr 27, 2009)

The speakers on their combos are really not very nice, the amps sound good but in order to get the most out of them you need better tubes, better speakers and some re-biasing, so take that into consid.


----------



## KH Guitar Freak (Apr 28, 2009)

Demoniac said:


> Im just gona pipe up here about that bit, just to say that in Aus, the Bugera is 1/3 the cost of a Peavey... a little bit less than 1/3 i believe; a 5150 will set you back around $3,200 or so, whereas the 6262 will set me back $799  So for us here, its more worth it to go with Bugera
> 
> I hear they sound graet though, but like Drakkar says, ive also heard they have some epic reliability issues  Seeing as how you're not in aus though, and the price difference really isnt that big, id say just try and get a used 5150 or something


 
I would still get a used 5150 IMHO. Them Bugeras seem to fail fairly often...


----------



## drenzium (Apr 28, 2009)

KH Guitar Freak said:


> I would still get a used 5150 IMHO. Them Bugeras seem to fail fairly often...



I have heard one maybe two cases of these amps failing, and all of a sudden there was a shitstorm across the internet of how unreliable they are. The first line which went out was a bit unreliable but nobody is stupid enough to not do minor corrections to resolve these problems in future lines. I haven't heard of a single Bugera problem in the last 6 months, it was probably just a rush to get it onto the market.

KH Guitar Freak, please dont just jump on the band wagon to be cool, you would have included that you bought or tried one to back up what you said if you really had, but you didn't, which leads me to believe your opinion is just speculation.

Im from Australia too, I wouldn't go as far as to say that 5150's are 3x more expensive, maybe 2x at most. I plan to get a 6262 for 800 whereas the 5150's used could range anywhere between 1400-2000. But the 1400 dollar ones that pop up are usually in terrible condition and need tube replacements before they are up to scratch.

From what i've heard of Bugeras, both on the internet and through my friends 333XL, they hold their own. Just make sure you have a warranty in case things do go wrong, which is possible for any item really, which is why a warranty exists. The fact that things have known to go wrong, have just been blown of proportion because something that looks too good to be true most of the time, is.


----------



## Rick (Apr 28, 2009)

I used a 6260 and I liked it, actually.


----------



## Daemoniac (Apr 28, 2009)

drenzium said:


> Im from Australia too, I wouldn't go as far as to say that 5150's are 3x more expensive, maybe 2x at most. I plan to get a 6262 for 800 whereas the 5150's used could range anywhere between 1400-2000. But the 1400 dollar ones that pop up are usually in terrible condition and need tube replacements before they are up to scratch.



PEAVEY GUITAR AMPS - AMPLIFIERS

Thats a shop near me, with comparatively good prices new as well.

South Coast Music - the largest and most comprehensive range of Musical Instruments on the NSW South Coast - PEAVEY 6505+ HEAD

A place in sydney with REAL good prices on them atm... They were going for upwards of $2,800 a few months back when i was looking at getting one 

Second hand though, its anyones game as to what you can get. It could be an awesome price, it could be crap. But its a good way to go.


----------



## Ben.Last (Apr 28, 2009)

For what it's worth, I'm using my 333xl through an Avatar 4x12. I have heard on a fairly regular basis that the cabs are kind of weak. Drenzium, that's my impression too. As I said, I think there's a lot of "friend's friend said..." type info going around. Not to mention people taking the word of GC salesmen who don't know their amps from a hole in the ground.


----------



## Daemoniac (Apr 28, 2009)

Lern2swim said:


> As I said, I think there's a lot of "friend's friend said..." type info going around. Not to mention people taking the word of GC salesmen who don't know their amps from a hole in the ground.



Agreed, this happens with every kind of amp too, not just them. I mean, hell, i had the staff at ProAudio in Canberra try and talk me out of buying a Diezel when i was looking because "this one guys they knew broke"...


----------



## Ben.Last (Apr 28, 2009)

Exactly. It's the same with everything. Amps, guitars, cables, pedals, non-guitar related stuff, news... EVERYTHING. People are too quick to believe the first google result that comes up because they don't want to do research themselves.


----------



## MTech (Apr 28, 2009)

it's made by behringer that should answer all your questions and as for sound it's thinner than the 5150, more fizzy and even more gain is what I get from every single 5150 fanatic friend of mine that's played one.... however they apparently will endorse just about anybody and you can get a half stack for some insanely cheap price (like for as much as a used 5150) The guitarist from these guys is signed with them www.myspace.com/deviatemetal


----------



## poopyalligator (Apr 28, 2009)

I have had 2 bad experiences with bugera amps. I was was trying out one of their amps in my local store. It sounded fairly similar to my 6505, but it was a little noisy and not as clear. Then about 5 minutes into it, the amp shuts off and just stops working. So immediately I was kind of turned off to them. Then one day I was playing a show and the band that played before us was using a different style bugera amp and right in the middle of one of their songs his amp died on him. So I am convinced that they make poor quality items, and from what i have heard from SEVERAL other people they say the same thing. They did sound decent though.


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 28, 2009)

Maybe the low quality bugera branded tubes and valves are not providing a steady source of power? so maybe that's why all the problems with the bugeras..?

EDIT: This sounds VERY good to my ears


----------



## barrett (Apr 28, 2009)

I have a Bugera 6260 combo which I have owned for almost a year now. I previously owned a Peavey 6505+ combo which was about 3 times the price of the Bugera. I like both amps but feel the bugera is more suited to me

the bugera stopped working one time but it was fixed under warranty so that's not so bad I guess. Other than that I love my bugera, it's perfect for playing at home. I don't know how it would go for gigging though

I boost mine with a Maxon 808 and it sounds awesome. Kinda similar to the above video


----------



## maat (Apr 28, 2009)

You know what? People...come on, alright?! If you're onstage and you break a string on your Epi... Is that Epiphone's fault? 
Are you turned off from buying another Epi guitar because a string broke that one time??

Accept SOME responsibility for your equipment. I'm tired of people only buying gear to "look cool" and not learn how it works...I think Drakk or somebody hinted at this earlier in this thread...Well, I'm gonna come right out and say it - Basic maintenance should not be a problem for advanced players. Don't buy a track suit if you can't run. Kinda defeats the practical purpose.


----------



## poopyalligator (Apr 28, 2009)

maat said:


> You know what? People...come on, alright?! If you're onstage and you break a string on your Epi... Is that Epiphone's fault?
> Are you turned off from buying another Epi guitar because a string broke that one time??
> 
> Accept SOME responsibility for your equipment. I'm tired of people only buying gear to "look cool" and not learn how it works...I think Drakk or somebody hinted at this earlier in this thread...Well, I'm gonna come right out and say it - Basic maintenance should not be a problem for advanced players. Don't buy a track suit if you can't run. Kinda defeats the practical purpose.



That is a whole different scenario. That would be caused by something you did. When i played the bugera in the store that broke on me, the amp was literally brand new. The owner said he played it for an hour. The guy who had his at the show had his for 5 days. I have even read stories about people on this forum who have had theirs break within weeks of having it. I know sometimes there are a few bad eggs in a bunch, but in this case it seems like there are A LOT of bad eggs in this one. For the most part i think people buy gear for how it sounds, and not because it looks cool.


----------



## noob_pwn (Apr 29, 2009)

maat said:


> You know what? People...come on, alright?! If you're onstage and you break a string on your Epi... Is that Epiphone's fault?
> Are you turned off from buying another Epi guitar because a string broke that one time??
> 
> Accept SOME responsibility for your equipment. I'm tired of people only buying gear to "look cool" and not learn how it works...I think Drakk or somebody hinted at this earlier in this thread...Well, I'm gonna come right out and say it - Basic maintenance should not be a problem for advanced players. Don't buy a track suit if you can't run. Kinda defeats the practical purpose.



i have to agree with this to an extent,
most of the people i see using these heads are all the younger bands 15-17's or so and its their first tube amp, i would image not all of them are completely informed on how to take proper care of it. If these were available when i was 14 and got my first "big" amp for my first real band yes i probably would have bought one because there just isnt anything else for that kind of money in australia. you can get these 6260's for like $600 if you look hard enough and used 5150's are usually 3-4 times that price

on the other side of the coin though, these amps are made very cheaply, and they aren't very tough or rugged either. I would never feel comfortable taking to stage with one let alone taking it on the road. On the other hand my 5150 has proven to be bulletproof and the bigger price tag is well justified. A music shop i frequent had to resolder all the power tube sockets because when they changed the tubes on a 3 month old 6260 the sockets came straight out. The quality level is bottom of the barrell and they're no superior to any other piece of behringer gear. Every piece of behringer gear i've owned has been crap, unreliable or broken. Bottom line is *you get what you pay for*


----------



## silentrage (Apr 29, 2009)

Some people also just won't buy bugera/behringer stuff on principle. Almost their entire lineup of products is a rip off of somebody else's. And they cut costs on things like cheap tubes and lack of proper bias, which is the cause of most of these bugera amps failures.

Having said that, their amps do sound good though, and they have pretty good customer sevice.


----------



## villhelm (Apr 29, 2009)

I went to a show where one of the guitarists used an RR3 strait into the amp and it sounded great. it could use a bbe sonic stomp to make is sound a tad better, but it really does sound pretty ballsy.


----------



## maat (Apr 29, 2009)

poopyalligator said:


> That is a whole different scenario. That would be caused by something you did. When i played the bugera in the store that broke on me, the amp was literally brand new. The owner said he played it for an hour. The guy who had his at the show had his for 5 days. I have even read stories about people on this forum who have had theirs break within weeks of having it. I know sometimes there are a few bad eggs in a bunch, but in this case it seems like there are A LOT of bad eggs in this one. For the most part i think people buy gear for how it sounds, and not because it looks cool.



I knew this was going to come up, and for the latter part of your response I totally sympathize. Most of us have been in that type of position before, and I think this is what drives some guitarists to empower themselves to never be caught in that position ever again.

Still, is string breakage always caused by the player?

What happens if you have a guitar and you can't help but notice that EVERYTIME you break a string (and it happens frequently) it breaks near the saddle? This is a common technical occurence which can be fixed by the player- it becomes the player's fault when he can't fix it.
See what I mean? It isn't necessarily a whole different scenario. It's about knowing your instrument and being responsible enough to make yourself aware of what maintenance responsiblities you'll have to uphold before you're buying.

I bought a Behringer bass amp to go in my rig to supplement my bass and mid-bass frequencies, the first thing I did was swap out their stock aluminium drivers and got something with a better X-max value. 
Looking up the model on musiciansfriend.com and read the reviews...you'll notice a whole lot of them saying, 'the price is awesome, the tone is awesome, the speakers are shit....therefore it's a bad amp.'

Again gator, I sympathize. Still, I've gotta stress this: You buy a pair of tennis shoes with laces...learn to lace your shoes, learn to tie your laces and don't blame the manufacturer if you're presently unable to. 

It seems that all too often guitarists are prissy primadonnas that want an amp that magically works for life, sounds awesome because it has the perfect tone already dialed in and something they can show off - all right out of the box. C'mon - get into your gear.


----------



## MTech (Apr 29, 2009)

silentrage said:


> Almost their entire lineup of products is a rip off of somebody else's. And they cut costs on things like cheap tubes and lack of proper bias



It's more than that, when people say it's a copy they don't mean part for part..they copy them almost exact but use cheap parts..so basically all chinese/indonesian parts etc it's like a time bomb. I know a few people who love their pedals because they supposedly sound good and even though it always breaks they can buy a new one for $20 or take it apart and try and fix it themselves. so $20 vs $175 for a delay pedal....


----------



## PnKnG (Apr 29, 2009)

Most problems with the bugera amps can be fixed by given the amp a checkup before buying it.
Check the link to read more:
BeerChurch's Blogs | Ultimate-Guitar.Com






MTech said:


> It's more than that, when people say it's a copy they don't mean part for part..*they copy them almost exact but use cheap parts..so basically all chinese/indonesian parts etc it's like a time bomb.* I know a few people who love their pedals because they supposedly sound good and even though it always breaks they can buy a new one for $20 or take it apart and try and fix it themselves. so $20 vs $175 for a delay pedal....



You do realize that most of the electricity parts today are produced there. Even most upper price range amps use parts from there. The reason why these amps are so cheap is fist of labor. They have to pay the worker less there.

The second thing is the whole stupid its US, UK, German made therefor its automatically better. Often it comes down to QC. It doesn't matter where you are from, if you do a shitty job you do a shitty job. Its really more in the QC where the problem is. The second factor in this is the willingness of the buyer to pay extra for the product since its made in a specific country which has higher labor costs.


----------



## BurialWithin (Apr 29, 2009)

Wow that's expensive you can a triple rec for that amount in american dollars .... that sucks...sorry aussie guys...There's a 6505 on there for 2499. aus dollars that's like $1800!!! WTF!!!


----------



## PnKnG (Apr 29, 2009)

BurialWithin said:


> Wow that's expensive you can a triple rec for that amount in american dollars .... that sucks...sorry aussie guys...There's a 6505 on there for 2499. aus dollars that's like $1800!!! WTF!!!



Welcome to the rest of the World 

it with most stuff like that. the us always pays either the same money we do or less. Only stuff that really stands out is high quality stuff like a Diezel. And with Diezel its really specific. Had a chat with Peter Stapfer about that. Told me that UPS charges 400 $ for just a head to shipped to the US.


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 29, 2009)

PnKnG said:


> Most problems with the bugera amps can be fixed by given the amp a checkup before buying it.
> Check the link to read more:
> BeerChurch's Blogs | Ultimate-Guitar.Com



Wow! that blog is really informative. thanks man!


----------



## Metal Ken (Apr 29, 2009)

I_infect said:


> I owned the Bugera 333xl for less than 24 hours before I packaged it for a return, so YMMV with these. I thought it was noisy as hell and had a very 'tinny' sound quality to it. Some people love em though, so it's a very iffy choice. Don't buy one unless you can return it unconditionally, and have an extended warranty.



I hear they ship with the shittiest tubes they can find, so that might be part of it?


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (Apr 29, 2009)

If you have a bugera...retube it, pair it with a good cab..mod it..enjoy


----------



## I_infect (Apr 29, 2009)

Metal Ken said:


> I hear they ship with the shittiest tubes they can find, so that might be part of it?



Highly possible. Without the xl switches engaged I thought it sounded like a transistor AM radio. I had went amp shopping a few days before I had received it, and really liked the Peavey Valveking, which is $50 less than the 333xl, and I just kept thinking to myself that I should be 100% with it if I was going to keep it, and I wasn't. I didn't want to have to slap new tubes in it, and the knobs/pots/construction killed it for me. I have some Behringer stuff(pedals and mics) and they are fine for the price, but I was hoping for more out of the amp.


----------



## Harry (Apr 30, 2009)

I think another point not made in this thread yet, is that they don't sound exactly the same as the Peaveys, which means, you may even prefer the way the Bugera amps sounds compared to the Peaveys. Sure, most people will buy them because they are cheaper, but some people will want that slightly different sound too.


----------



## AeonSolus (Apr 30, 2009)

If i end up buying it, i'll just check the interior of the amp and tighten/resolder stuff like the blog says, then in a few weeks i'd retube it with Electro-Harmonix EL34s/12AX7s 


EDIT:


Look what i found 



For what i heard i liked the Bugera a bit more, the bass isn't as loose and it sounds more clear to me, but dunno to ya'll


----------



## maat (Apr 30, 2009)

Yup, as far as sound is concerned, The Buggy takes the cake in this one.


----------



## MTech (Apr 30, 2009)

PnKnG said:


> You do realize that most of the electricity parts today are produced there. Even most upper price range amps use parts from there. The reason why these amps are so cheap is fist of labor. They have to pay the worker less there.
> 
> The second thing is the whole stupid its US, UK, German made therefor its automatically better. Often it comes down to QC. It doesn't matter where you are from, if you do a shitty job you do a shitty job. Its really more in the QC where the problem is. The second factor in this is the willingness of the buyer to pay extra for the product since its made in a specific country which has higher labor costs.



Of course, but there's still poor quality components and good quality ones. However you're right a lot of people seem to focus on that too much and have no real clue that a lot of the amps they think are handmade or made in the USA are in fact not.


----------



## DCShred (May 24, 2009)

The bugera sounds better than the peavey amps they replicate that is why many are pissed off. I owned a Peavey xxx and 5150 and the bugera 6262 kills them when it comes to using 7 string guitar and EMG pickups. Plus i can buy two buegeras for the price of one peavey so that solves my reliability issues. To me an amp must have balls as soon as you kick in the lead channel and that is what i like about the bugera 6262 its got massive balls


----------



## MTech (May 24, 2009)

IDK.. to me that video makes it painfully obvious the Brugera has even more fuzz and hiss and nasalness in the high end. There's more muffled sound in the low on the 5150, but it sounds like he just has the resonance too high.


----------



## Rick (May 24, 2009)

I liked it a lot but I decided to redo my rig.


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (May 24, 2009)

DCShred said:


> The bugera sounds better than the peavey amps they replicate that is why many are pissed off. I owned a Peavey xxx and 5150 and the bugera 6262 kills them when it comes to using 7 string guitar and EMG pickups. Plus i can buy two buegeras for the price of one peavey so that solves my reliability issues. To me an amp must have balls as soon as you kick in the lead channel and that is what i like about the bugera 6262 its got massive balls



I'm sorry..but I hate this arguement because it's just stupid. I bought the amp the first time..shouldn't need another. I think the Bugeras sound pretty nice for the price (I wouldn't say better)..but reliability is an issue..and I'd much rather have a Peavey because I know it'll stand up. If the Bugera was just as well made, it might be a different story..might.

Buying two seems like a good idea..but when both die on you?

A lot of people are pissed off because of internet hype and stupidity. In my opinion it makes no sense to buy such an amp, and have it blow up on you, all because you couldn't spend a couple hundred more to get the exact same thing without the problems. 

The bugeras are, with little exceptions (a little more gain, no resonance, etc), exact replicas with cheaper parts, as techs have proven. The basic tone circuits are the same. Just as good in sound? Sure..but way better..I don't know about all that..same amp with lesser components and lower quality tubes.


----------



## noob_pwn (May 24, 2009)

update:
only last night at the rehersal studio i saw a month old 333xl fail before my very eyes.
twas one of the other band's beloved amps.


----------



## DrakkarTyrannis (May 24, 2009)

I'd like to see how a 333XL stacks up against my DTX......


----------



## noob_pwn (May 24, 2009)

DrakkarTyrannis said:


> I'd like to see how a 333XL fails up against my DTX......



fixed


----------

