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Pearce BC1 - Very Rare Pre-amp - Now Sold
£550

molan

By molan,
in Amps and Cabs For Sale

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molan

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Here's a great Pearce BC1 twin channel pre-amp as used by Billy Sheehan & John Myung. As far as I know Sheehan still uses his in his rack, though he says he only has three left before "that's the end of it." He uses it for both distortion and clean tones and it sounds just fabulous!

In fact here it is in Billy's rack:



And here is Billy talking about it (comes in around 4:30). As he puts it "The Pearce pre-amp is just a supremely great distortion and clean. The clean is always on, the distortion comes off and on as necessary"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_KY6SiI1gY

One of the key factors in this pre is the ability to use either channel singly or to combine them. This allows you to set up a nice clean tone and then add killer distortion which is switchable in and out via the, supplied, VooDooMan footswitch (this switch is a real 'must have' to make the most of this pre!).

Overall it's in very good condition - there's the usual rack-rash on the top and around the ears but nothing nasty on the face and all controls work smoothly and just how they should.

I've not seen one for sale recently but there's one on USA eBay at £480 plus VAT, duties & shipping so I thought £550 seemed about right. I can ship more or less anywhere and will only charge actual shipping costs - I'd estimate UK to be about £20.

I'm sure most people reading this far will have a good idea of what this pre is all about but, just in case, here's an online review I found of the Pearce (it's not a pro review & I've cleaned up some waffle here & there but hopefully it gives a user perspective) :

Overall Rating: 5 Stars
I just love the Pearce BC1 pre amp. With the right power amp, it tangos with the best of them. I would definitely purchase another one of these if I ever got this one stolen...that's if I could find another, since they're hard to come by. The one aspect I wish this pre amp had is an 9-15-? band equaliser BUT........you do have the option of using both channels combined and can really fine tune your sound which makes up for it. To anyone who reads this...If you can find one of these pre amps out there I strongly suggest to try it out and see for yourself. (But remember...everyone has their own likes and dislikes.)

Features: 4 Stars
This pre amp is solid state. It has 2 channels, which can be used separately or coupled, w/ built in distortion. It has a -10dB/0dB/+10dB switch (pretty cool if you need less or more punch without having to change your settings all the time). Each channel has a gain - bass - mid range - mid - treble - fx return - volume controls and overall fx send and built in compressor/limiter with adjustable threshold. The one thing I like the most about this pre amp is that you can use each channel separately, or combine them to create a wide range of tones.

Sound Quality: 4 Stars
The bass I use the most with this rig is a custom Lado with active pickups. I can't complain about the sound I get, it gets me though anything. It keeps up very well to 2 cranked Marshalls and amazingly enough, the Pearce BC1 is still very quiet at high volumes.

Ease of Use: 5 Stars
I find this pre amp to be extremely user friendly. You have none of that farting around with manuals and programming and blah, blah, blah. It's simple and to the point. The tone knobs are fairly sensitive. So you don't have to turn the controls much to adjust your sound. I've tried Fender, Ampeg and Hartke, and I find that this pre amp can tango with the best of them.

Durability: 4 Stars
I've had this pre amp in my road case for about a year and it hasn't let me down yet. Since there's no tubes, I don't have to baby my road case as much and worry whether or not I've blown a tube. The only thing I've noticed though is that the control pots could have been made a little tougher, mind you I haven't had to touch them in 3 months or so.

Here's a few pics of the actual unit:

















If anyone wants to test the Pearce out then it'll be at BassGear in Twyford for a while :)

Edited by molan
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molan Veteran

molan

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[quote name='Prime_BASS' timestamp='1396812614' post='2417627']
Great condition this is in. I have one I'm yet to intergrate onto my setup.
The distortion is super gnarly and the clean sounds are really Tubey, nice and thick
[/quote]

The nicest thing is that you can use both tones independently and then combine them at the tap of a foot switch :)

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  • 2 weeks later...
Dood Grand Master

Dood

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[quote name='Toasted' timestamp='1397755860' post='2427166']
What other famous people can you easily reach, Dood?

I once sat next to Paul "the weatherman" Hudson in a cafe.
[/quote]

I have an extensive collection of business cards that I have gathered in my day to day line of work but ya know, until the restraining order is filed, I'll just squash my nose up against Billy's window, meeowing like his cat.
In all seriousness though I do get to work closely with M.I peeps. It's my job.

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