Peavey IPR 1600 Power Amp + AxeFX

J

jimosity

Member
So, I bought one of the Peavey IPR1600 power amps to use with my AxeFX rig, mostly because I wanted something light and powerful.
I have a VHT 2/90/2 that weighs a ton, but sounds like god.
I have a Marshall 8008 that is pretty heavy but sounds good. 1U is a plus.
I also have used my AxeFX with Crate PowerBlocks for power and that works quite well and sounds great...but still I wanted a rackmount power amp for my AxeFX rig that would not kill me when I have to lug gear around.
The IPR1600 comes in around 7 pounds, so the weight was definitely the selling point.
The fact that it is STUPID LOUD and sounds great is a huge bonus.
I pulled out the Marshall 8008 and the IPR 1600 sounded different so I did change the global EQ a bit to suit my tastes, but man - talk about silly light and silly loud at the same time.
When they come out with a 1U version, I'm all over that.
Couldn't be happier with the IPR 1600...the fact that it's really a PA power amp is a bonus so that I can move it over to my PA rig if need be or if I change my mind...
 
i was waiting for those to come out, and gave up and got a used ada b200s for cheap.. i'm on the hunt for something 1U now, possibly the velocity 300... i know behringer is coming out with some lightweight 1u stuff soon.
 
Thanks for the review. I was definitely interested in one of these. When i went to Guitar Center, the salesman was trying to steer me away from it saying I would never be satisfied with the sound after using a Crest. Then he tried to put me onto a Crown that was a few hundred bucks more and weighed a little over 20lbs.

It sounds like you have a lot of power amp experience; and if you think it's cool, I guess I should check it out.
 
shred-o-holic said:
I thought the Class D stuff was supposed to sound harsh on the highs?
Click to expand...

Class D stuff is not supposed to sound harsh at all and can sound every bit as good as any other amplifier.
Quite a few class D amplifiers are optimized for things other than sound quality however (price, efficiency, weight etc) and those choices mean that some lesser class D amplifiers do sound harsh. There are however also very good ones around.

S.R.
 
So, can anyone speak directly to the highs of this Peavy unit (harsh or not.)

Also, I'm having a hard time grasping what harsh means with regard to sound. Is it the same as brittle or piercing?
 
Hmm. All I did was tweak the global EQ to better suit my tone and it was just fine as it was.
I didn't notice anything 'brittle' about it.
There's enough tweaking in the AxeFX to make up or take away from anything that is undesirable in the power amp.
 
Got my 1600 early last week ($239 scratch and dent special from AMS - Hardly noticeable scratching to the bottom of the case - probably a once racked return item)

Used it last night in a band situation. My first impression was that it seemed to have the capability to achieve most the fullness I was getting with my Crest CA-6. However, the tone needs a lot of reshaping. The highs on my clean tones, while more present, seemed a tad harsh. I'll need to play with my PEQs. Conversely, my high gain patches were decidedly muddy using the Recto Orange amp. I was able to compensate by rolling off some bass and i enriched the "fullness" of the tone using some of the preamp settings (depth and damp.) The jury is still out for me (I've got 45 days to decide). I think I'll need a few more rehearsals to work out some issues; but on the whole, at 60lbs lighter than my Crest, I really think it's worth the time and effort to make it work.

PS, the lights on this thing are needlessly bright. My drummer actually had to ask me to reangle my case because the LEDs were hurting his eyes.
 
Yeah, a lot of EQ reshaping is required to get it to sound the same as a previous power amp you might have used. But the weight is incredible.
Gigged with it over the weekend and it was awesome.
I totally agree with the LEDs being too bright.
The absolutely annoying thing is that it lights up when it's plugged in, with the power OFF.
I saw the unit light up, got no audio, tested cables and all kinds of crap, then realized the unit was turned OFF! :|
Stupid LEDs coming on while the unit it powered off is dumb.
I may have to open it up and disconnect that crap.

Otherwise, it's a silly loud, silly light, awesome piece.
Just spend some time tweaking your Global EQ and all is right with the world.
 
set theorist said:
Got my 1600 early last week ($239 scratch and dent special from AMS - Hardly noticeable scratching to the bottom of the case - probably a once racked return item)

Used it last night in a band situation. My first impression was that it seemed to have the capability to achieve most the fullness I was getting with my Crest CA-6. However, the tone needs a lot of reshaping. The highs on my clean tones, while more present, seemed a tad harsh. I'll need to play with my PEQs. Conversely, my high gain patches were decidedly muddy using the Recto Orange amp. I was able to compensate by rolling off some bass and i enriched the "fullness" of the tone using some of the preamp settings (depth and damp.) The jury is still out for me (I've got 45 days to decide). I think I'll need a few more rehearsals to work out some issues; but on the whole, at 60lbs lighter than my Crest, I really think it's worth the time and effort to make it work.

PS, the lights on this thing are needlessly bright. My drummer actually had to ask me to reangle my case because the LEDs were hurting his eyes.
Click to expand...

Interesting to see where you end up with it......let us know....
 
shred-o-holic said:
Interesting to see where you end up with it......let us know....
Click to expand...

Well Shred,

Sad to say I am throwing in the towel. In my opinion, there is no way a $300 class D amp can compete with the $1700 Crest CA 6. I'll probably wind up with arthritis in my back; but I just can't make such a huge sonic sacrifice.

It's not that the Peavey is bad. At times, i really thought I had my tone. It's just that when you A/B it with arguably the best production power amp out there today, the power and the clarity just isn't there.

I was thinking of trying the QSC GX series next; but after reading through some threads on Bass Talk, apparently nothing, not even QSC, can touch Crest. So now my focus has turned toward finding a case lighter than my 30lb Odessey that will accomodate the Crest's 17 1/2 in. length.
 
set theorist said:
So now my focus has turned toward finding a case lighter than my 30lb Odessey that will accomodate the Crest's 17 1/2 in. length.
Click to expand...
And its 45-lb. heft, as well. Casters are good :cool:
 
Odessey Case 33lbs + Crest CA6 45lbs + Fractal Axe FX Ultra 10lbs = Steve in traction : )

Found an 18" deep rack bag that's spare me 27lbs:

http://www.rondomusic.com/product1296.html

I asked the retailer who I think may also be the manufacturer if he thought it would hold up to 60lbs. He e-mailed me back that the rack would definitely hold up; but he's not too sure about the straps : (
 
Hey guys-

I got a chance to demo an Ultra with the IPR1600 poweramp through 2 4x12s and I thought it sounded great. I didnt have much to A/B it against in the same room, but it sounded way better than the Soldano SLO FX return (it just doesnt play nice with external preamps), and better than I remember the Carvins (DCM series and TS100). I will be A/Bing it against a Mackie and a Crest soon enough, but as it is, I would be comfortable playing with the Peavey. It sounds great and I think it weighs even less than the AxeFX.

EDIT: We did adjust the Global EQ a little to make things sound more guitar-like. After all, these are full(er) range poweramps than ones oriented for guitar, so some EQing is to be expected. Some of the lows were cut out, and some of the mids and highs were messed with, but after all was said and done, the rig sounded and felt awesome, and incredibly loud (when we wanted it to be), and absolutely silent when not playing.
 
Good for you Derker,

I'm glad it works for you. Like I said, until I A/B'd with the Crest, I really thought the Peavy would work out. I think it's an excellent power-amp; but it ain't a CA6.

Note: one of my issues about noise seems to be my fault. I was pushing the drive too hard.
 
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