Peavey Electronics Reissues 6505 II Tube Amp

Contrary to much folklore since the 6505 Series inception, Peavey’s formula has remained virtually unchanged. The 6505 II reissue is true to form cosmetically and sonically, going as far as returning to plexiglass in the front. However, over the course of time, component suppliers changed ownership, altering their manufacturing processes, tone, and unit-to-unit consistency. The 6505 II is the product of countless hours of A/B comparisons, conversations with scores of users and artists, and deep dives into the amplifiers at a component level. Studying the original design, Peavey’s engineers identified some items that had drifted, in particular one of the most important components — the output transformer. The changes over the years resulted in a midrange quality that varied from amp to amp. After isolating the problem, the team retreated to an undisclosed location and got to work developing a top-secret output transformer, successfully improving the midrange performance and mimicking the magical crushing tone of the best examples of the original series.

The 6505 II offers an output power of 120W(rms) into 16, 8, or 4 ohms, with a speaker Impedance Selector switch located on the rear panel. On the front panel, the Channel Select Switch allows selection of the Rhythm or Lead Channel, each with LED active indicators. Each channel has separate EQ as well as separate power amp controls (Resonance and Presence) and separate preamp controls (Pre and Post Gain), giving players more control and flexibility. A Crunch Select Switch and Bright Switch are available for the Rhythm channel.

Something that players have grown accustomed to with Peavey instrument amplifiers, the Resonance control works like a low EQ to offset low-end frequency dropout. The Presence control works in the same manner, boosting the high frequencies. Peavey encourages players to experiment with their particular speaker cabinet, connectable via two-quarter-inch jacks, and adjust according to personal taste. Also on the rear panel, non-gain effects devices, i.e, chorus, reverb, delay, can be connected with quarter-inch mono phone plugs. The adjacent Preamp Out can send a preamp signal from the 6505 II to a mixing console or recording device.