petetexas Posted November 23, 2023 Share Posted November 23, 2023 (edited) Just purchased a BLX80 from ebay , made in 1997 . Arrived with a blown speaker which the seller did not know about ( ! ! ! ! ! ! ) . Tried it out as a head with my Mesa 112 subway cab ..............VERY LOUD for an 80w , and great variety of sound GP7 SM preamp. Read somewhere that the replacement 10 inch driver is a celestion TF 1020 , bought one , and fitted it . Now got a great practice amp , but I need to do some weight training to move it around . Anyone else got one on here ? Pete Edited November 30, 2023 by petetexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted November 23, 2023 Share Posted November 23, 2023 I have several TEs - they are all surprisingly loud when you compare them to amps of supposedly similar output. I love the tonal palette too - every tone I want is in there somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
police squad Posted November 24, 2023 Share Posted November 24, 2023 yes I have one. It's too heavy to take to rehearsals (but I do) and it sounds great. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted November 24, 2023 Share Posted November 24, 2023 (edited) I had the BLX130, Same amp but an extra set of MOSFES in the output stage. Sill prbably the one amp I regret selling but the weight.... The model number came from the idea that these were the Dog's BLX. Edited November 24, 2023 by Chienmortbb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_m Posted November 24, 2023 Share Posted November 24, 2023 (edited) My first decent amp was a BLX-80, bought new in 1996. Wish I still had it, as it would have been just perfect for leaving in our drummer's reharsal studio, but when we moved to the other side of the country in 2016, I donated it to the guitarist of my old band rather than lug it all the way over here with us (and risk shifting the Earth's axis by a degree or two). 🙄 Edited November 24, 2023 by tony_m 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alec Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 I finally acquired one of these years ago, having lusted after them when they were first released. Never really loved the sound, hated the weight. What a relief when I finally shifted it for some better sounding lightweight kit (Genz Benz STL-10T driven by TC RH450) Never looked back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 30, 2023 Author Share Posted November 30, 2023 (edited) UPDATE......... With the TF 1020 it sounded very nasal.....and its too heavy to move around , so got a SM7 sleeve on ebay and installed the amp in it , now its a 80W head that I can link up to any 8ohm cab..............I already have a Mesa 112 subway and a Epifani 112 lightweight . Seems to suit the Epifani better (seems even louder now). Pete Edited November 30, 2023 by petetexas 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyTravis Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 I’ve got one of these coming Gratis on Saturday via my drummer… is there a company making the SM7 sleeve @petetexas or was it just a lucky find? Andy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 Hi Andy, Just a lucky find ............. BUT...........I read about someone replacing his Hartke 10 inch drivers with FaitalPRO 10FE200 ( 150W x 8 Ohm ) , and saying how amazing these are for £35 from Lean Business Audio, so I got one and put it in the Trace Combo......IMHO Its brilliant ( not nasal as with the Celestion ) so I have an empty SM7 ( with very fluffy covering ) case available at the same price I bought it at . I now have a heavey combo again , but sounding MUCH better IMHO . The way I held the Amp in the sleeve was with two wood screws through the sleeve into the base of the amp case MAKING SURE THER WAS NO BOARDS OR CABLES in the way . This stopped the case moving around . Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Edwards69 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 I had one of these when they first came out. It was my first "proper" amp. I remember the cab design being very efficient, and the volume belied it's power rating - it easily kept up with a drummer in rehearsals and small gigs. The preamp was pretty good and had "that" classic trace tone. I just wished it was lighter. Or at least had side handles rather than the rubber strap on the top. I do wonder how well a modern version of this design would work, with a lighter cab material, neo speaker and lighter amp. Maybe Trace (or rather Peavy) should investigate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 3 minutes ago, Greg Edwards69 said: I had one of these when they first came out. It was my first "proper" amp. I remember the cab design being very efficient, and the volume belied it's power rating - it easily kept up with a drummer in rehearsals and small gigs. The preamp was pretty good and had "that" classic trace tone. I just wished it was lighter. Or at least had side handles rather than the rubber strap on the top. I do wonder how well a modern version of this design would work, with a lighter cab material, neo speaker and lighter amp. Maybe Trace (or rather Peavy) should investigate. I had the BLX130. Same basic unit but, as I understand it, had an extra pair of output devices allowing it to drive an 8R extension cab. Otherwise, it was the same beast. I think a new version of it would be interesting, but I am not sure whether anyone could explain how the cabinet design worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_m Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Any BLX owners fancy a suitable sweatshirt? 😉 Not me / no affiliation etc. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266640743862?hash=item3e1506ddb6:g:W7kAAOSwh0hltpN5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 1 hour ago, tony_m said: Any BLX owners fancy a suitable sweatshirt? 😉 Not me / no affiliation etc. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266640743862?hash=item3e1506ddb6:g:W7kAAOSwh0hltpN5 @TheGreek you must have the pyjamas, duvet set, everything of this, surely?! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 If it's available I'll consider buying it. I'm not good with money. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 It proves what I was told was true that BLX came from “the dogs rowlocks”. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 On 09/01/2024 at 05:39, Greg Edwards69 said: I do wonder how well a modern version of this design would work, with a lighter cab material, neo speaker and lighter amp. Maybe Trace (or rather Peavy) should investigate. I seem to recall it was brought up in a thread over on TB when Fred from Peavey was soliciting input from Trace enthusiasts about upcoming products. I recall him being non-commital. Obviously they’ve got a 10” ELF combo right now, but it’s pretty conventional, with no bass reflex trickery. More Commando than BLX, but better sounding than either of them! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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