EVH III Stealth

[keennay]

I'm seeing a lot of these for sale recently. Were several built in the last years, which would explain why there's a higher rate of them being re-sold? Overhyped?

I've always wanted an original 5150 back in the day. Is the Stealth an improvement to the original circuitry, or is it voiced differently?

Thanks

 

[PBGas]

Two versions over a couple of year but I think they are similar. Great amp! I tried to get one in the second round but my rep up here is an idiot and didn't order more than 3 of them for the larger retail chain.

There are a few anticipating an EL-34 version of the 5150-III at Namm this year as well.

Either way, many folks love the Stealth.

 

[technomancer]

There weren't really two versions, just two batches built. AFAIK the batches are identical except for the tubes (and that actually changed in the middle of the first batch because they ran out of =C= power tubers).

 

[d1469d]

I have been playing the Stealth in a live band setting for almost a year now. It is a great sounding amp. It basically sounds like a Regular EVH except if you sent it off for mods and got it hot rodded. All the controls are very sensitive. The amp is very loud and has a lot of gain. I like a lot of gain in my amps and this does the trick. Every note is very detailed even with the mids dished out. The thing about the stealth is this. There are a few tricks you can do to really make the amp sound even better then it does stock. I will share a few that I have been working on.
1. I swapped out the 12ax7 in V1 and replaced it with a TAD 5751 which is a 12ax7 tube with about 30 percent less gain. This seemed to quiet the amp down a bit and did not change the over all tone.
2. Although the stealth sounds good with a lot of different speaker cabs to my ears the amp is best suited for greenbacks. Fortunately I had enough speakers laying around and try five different types.
3. I took all the preamp tubes and replaced them with JJ 12ax7 HG+ tubes. I had a few micro phonic tubes and replaced all of them. This seemed to help enhance the tone a little. It seemed to smooth out the tone and clean it up.
When the EVH Stealth was just being released and there was a waiting list on them there was a lot of hype on the amp. I fell for it and so did 250 other individuals. If you have an arsenal of amps and have a lot of high end amps I could see where you would purchase one try it out and then maybe get rid of it for something else.
As far as the tone compares to the original 5150 ? I would not compare the two. The Stealth sounds good at all volumes as the original 5150 may sound a little buzzy at lower volumes. The original 5150 is hard to beat. The Stealth has three channels and all three are very usable. It probably would not hurt to own one of each if you can swing it. If there is a lot of hype for an amp and it is going to be the most amazing amp ever released on planet earth then it would be a fair bet to only let yourself believe half of what people say. The hype on the 5150 EL-34 reminds me of all the hype that was on the Stealth at the time. I wouldn't mind picking one of those up as well. The good thing is you can pick up a used Stealth now from 200 -500 cheaper then you could have a year ago and it looks like the resale value of the original 5150 has leveled off some. The original 5150 seemed to go up in value a little the last couple of years. The EVH series amps and the original 5150 amps are great amps and you really can't go wrong. All the above is just what I have observed and is just my opinion.

 

[journeyman73]

does the stealth have a healthy does of SLO to it or is it more 'raw' and in your face?

 

[nevusofota]

There weren't really two versions, just two batches built. AFAIK the batches are identical except for the tubes (and that actually changed in the middle of the first batch because they ran out of =C= power tubers).

I think the OP was talking about the Peavy vs the Fender version. "Back in the day" I would think refers to the Peavey years.

 

[nevusofota]

I'm seeing a lot of these for sale recently. Were several built in the last years, which would explain why there's a higher rate of them being re-sold? Overhyped?

I've always wanted an original 5150 back in the day. Is the Stealth an improvement to the original circuitry, or is it voiced differently?

Thanks

The Peavey version and the Fender version are two totally different Amps, in circuit and sound.

IMO the Stealth was a marketing scheme that everyone fell for. They increased the gain of channel 2 and charged a grand more. The core tone is the same. The original Fender EVH 100w continues to be the best version of any EVH, Fender or Peavey, and is by far the best bang for your buck. The original Fender EVH blue channel is what made that amp so versatile.

 

[nevusofota]

does the stealth have a healthy does of SLO to it or is it more 'raw' and in your face?

It's not anywhere near an SLO

 

[journeyman73]

does the stealth have a healthy does of SLO to it or is it more 'raw' and in your face?

It's not anywhere near an SLO

so its not anywhere near the old peavy version?

 

[nevusofota]

does the stealth have a healthy does of SLO to it or is it more 'raw' and in your face?

It's not anywhere near an SLO

so its not anywhere near the old peavy version?

 

[Rick Lee]

I bought a regular 5150 III and a Stealth on the same day on eBay to test them out side by side. The Stealth was $1000 more than the non-Stealth. I had some bandmates over to listen and, every time, they said the Stealth sounded better. But $1000 better? I don't think so. I sold it on eBay for more than I paid for it, but FedEx trashed it, then overpaid me for it. So I got it repaired and basically got the amp for free plus $63. Now I'm selling the non-Stealth. While in for repairs I also had the green channel tamed, such that it sounds like a Twin Reverb now. I've gigged with it twice in the last few weeks. Last week I probably had 10 people come up and say how great it sounded.

I also have an SLO, which is way more raw than the EVH. I'm using the SLO for this weekend's gig.

 

[crwnedblasphemy]

I bought a regular 5150 III and a Stealth on the same day on eBay to test them out side by side. The Stealth was $1000 more than the non-Stealth. I had some bandmates over to listen and, every time, they said the Stealth sounded better. But $1000 better? I don't think so. I sold it on eBay for more than I paid for it, but FedEx trashed it, then overpaid me for it. So I got it repaired and basically got the amp for free plus $63. Now I'm selling the non-Stealth. While in for repairs I also had the green channel tamed, such that it sounds like a Twin Reverb now. I've gigged with it twice in the last few weeks. Last week I probably had 10 people come up and say how great it sounded.

I also have an SLO, which is way more raw than the EVH. I'm using the SLO for this weekend's gig.

Sick man!!!!

I'm seeing a lot of these for sale recently. Were several built in the last years, which would explain why there's a higher rate of them being re-sold? Overhyped?

I've always wanted an original 5150 back in the day. Is the Stealth an improvement to the original circuitry, or is it voiced differently?

Thanks

The Peavey version and the Fender version are two totally different Amps, in circuit and sound.

IMO the Stealth was a marketing scheme that everyone fell for. They increased the gain of channel 2 and charged a grand more. The core tone is the same. The original Fender EVH 100w continues to be the best version of any EVH, Fender or Peavey, and is by far the best bang for your buck. The original Fender EVH blue channel is what made that amp so versatile.

I like most clips of the original fender EVH 100, cuz it can get nasty, but also cleans and blue can get kinda Ecstasy like if ya want. Hell, use a boost if ya wanna blast off into Stealth land.

 

[Lord Toneking]

I have one coming Thursday. I owned the regular 100w and sold it. I loved that amp but I maxed the gain knob and still need a touch more gain. I don't recall the regular 100w to have resonance controls either. I also had two 50w heads, I really wanted to like them but the shared EQ and the tone just wasn't like the 100w version although there was more gain on the blue channel. It just didn't feel right to me. Great for portability but just lacked 'something'

 

[nevusofota]

I have one coming Thursday. I owned the regular 100w and sold it. I loved that amp but I maxed the gain knob and still need a touch more gain. I don't recall the regular 100w to have resonance controls either. I also had two 50w heads, I really wanted to like them but the shared EQ and the tone just wasn't like the 100w version although there was more gain on the blue channel. It just didn't feel right to me. Great for portability but just lacked 'something'

I just don't see how someone would need more gain out of the red channel. Were you in a live band setting or lower volume basement levels?

And as for the resonance control, they are useless to me. I set it at noon and havent needed to change it as all as the low frequencies can easily be adjusted by the front panel alone.

 

[hatrick00]

I have one coming Thursday. I owned the regular 100w and sold it. I loved that amp but I maxed the gain knob and still need a touch more gain. I don't recall the regular 100w to have resonance controls either. I also had two 50w heads, I really wanted to like them but the shared EQ and the tone just wasn't like the 100w version although there was more gain on the blue channel. It just didn't feel right to me. Great for portability but just lacked 'something'

I just don't see how someone would need more gain out of the red channel. Were you in a live band setting or lower volume basement levels?

And as for the resonance control, they are useless to me. I set it at noon and havent needed to change it as all as the low frequencies can easily be adjusted by the front panel alone.

i think he is talking about the blue channel... agreed on the red channel, it has too much on the stealth IMO... but the blue channel MAKES the stealth. to me it is very open and just an amazing high gain tone. very tight crunchy and has balls, more than the blue on the 50 watt. i have heard some people compare the blue on the 50 watt to the blue on the stealth and that is not true. the blue channel on the stealth has its own thing going on. i do wish the green channel was more clean but still possible to get a good clean by running the gain very low and volume high.

 

[Kevin11]

i think he is talking about the blue channel... agreed on the red channel, it has too much on the stealth IMO... but the blue channel MAKES the stealth. to me it is very open and just an amazing high gain tone. very tight crunchy and has balls, more than the blue on the 50 watt. i have heard some people compare the blue on the 50 watt to the blue on the stealth and that is not true. the blue channel on the stealth has its own thing going on. i do wish the green channel was more clean but still possible to get a good clean by running the gain very low and volume high.

The Stealth blue to me was worth every penny of that $1,000 up-charge from the regular. People pay WAY more for one or two-channel amp heads from certain builders we all love than I did for a brand-new head and matching cab. It addressed all of the issues I had with the Standard 100w and 50w versions and then some. The (over) abundance of gain was easily addressed with a 12AU7 in V1. Way more useable gain on all 3 channels. I can easily dial in as much or little grit on clean as I want now instead of .5 - clean, 1 - too much. Blue goes from vintage to hot-rodded Marshall-ish grind. It's open, high-mid bright, punchy and raw and stays that way all the way up the gain dial. Red takes over from there. It's voiced a lot closer to blue than the Standard, with the mids shifted down a bit. Works great as a "more" channel, like a boosted blue for solos or whatever. Of course it can go way beyond that. I'm in my 40's and like stuff from Thin Lizzy, VH and Maiden to Devin T., Dark New Day and Soilwork for example. Always wished I had an amp that could cover all of that and sound equally killer doing it and now I do.

I love the resonance controls because I don't necessarily "set them all at noon" and forget. That's one thing I didn't like on the Standard. With the matching EVH cab, sometimes the deep lows were too overbearing for certain rooms or types of music I was playing. Bass eq on the front didn't quite cover what I needed. So I love the fact that I can get just the right amount of heft dialed in (or out) now.

I've been gigging for decades and have never come across an amp quite like it. It's the only amp I've ever had with 3 channels that I actually use and like equally.

 

[Mailman1971]

I never owned or heard a Regular EVH 100 or the 50 watter.
Bought the stealth on a whim and it really is a monster of an amp that sounds great!
I have had tons of amps roll thru my grubby mitts and this was one of the few that gave me the WOW factor.
Once I see they are selling them on a regular basis I traded mine out for another amp. Not cause I didnt like the Stealth. But they seem easier to get these days and GAS got the best of me once again.
Still curious and would love to play thru a Regular 5153 100 watt one day.

 

[Rick Lee]

You can get more gain on blue with the non-Stealth 100w by clipping the R26 resistor. It's not a lot, but it's free and reversible.

The Stealth isn't just a more badass-looking amp with more gain; each channel is voiced differently than the non-Stealth 100w. And since it has external bias points, I'll be doing my own rebiasing when the time comes for new power tubes. Also, although the newer run has Groove Tubes, they are just rebadged Winged Cs. I thought I heard the future ones will get Shuguang or Chinese when the Winged Cs are totall unobtanium.

 

[nevusofota]

i think he is talking about the blue channel... agreed on the red channel, it has too much on the stealth IMO... but the blue channel MAKES the stealth. to me it is very open and just an amazing high gain tone. very tight crunchy and has balls, more than the blue on the 50 watt. i have heard some people compare the blue on the 50 watt to the blue on the stealth and that is not true. the blue channel on the stealth has its own thing going on. i do wish the green channel was more clean but still possible to get a good clean by running the gain very low and volume high.

The Stealth blue to me was worth every penny of that $1,000 up-charge from the regular.

I preferred the blue of the original over the Stealth, especially at volume and in a band mix.

 

[Lord Toneking]

i think he is talking about the blue channel... agreed on the red channel, it has too much on the stealth IMO... but the blue channel MAKES the stealth. to me it is very open and just an amazing high gain tone. very tight crunchy and has balls, more than the blue on the 50 watt. i have heard some people compare the blue on the 50 watt to the blue on the stealth and that is not true. the blue channel on the stealth has its own thing going on. i do wish the green channel was more clean but still possible to get a good clean by running the gain very low and volume high.

The Stealth blue to me was worth every penny of that $1,000 up-charge from the regular.

I preferred the blue of the original over the Stealth, especially at volume and in a band mix.

I was talking about the blue channel. Loved the original but wanted more gain, that's all. I've heard of the 'clipping mod' but I also heard not songbook things about it as well. The 50w had more gain but I couldn't jive with the feel of that amp. And yes I play in a band at 'volume'...rather LOUD I must say

You're the #1 defender of the original amp...and that's fine. It just didn't work for me...nor did the two 50w heads I had either