Peavey Invective 120 Guitar Amp Head

This head is awesome. My favorite thing about it is that the clean channel is just as good as the dirty channels. Crystal clean. Some people might not want this amp for that, but it has a really great clean sound. I wish I could have gotten the cabinet to go with it, but it sounds great coming through my Mesa cab. I’m in love with this thing. I couldn’t be happier. I had just gotten an Ibanez Axion with Bare Knuckle Aftermaths just before buying this amp. Together they sound phenomenal.

As I am sure you have heard... this is a nice little amp lol. This is a 5150 and a 6505+ on steroids. The features in this amp are top shelf. The pedal is amazing. The clean tone is fantastic and the crunch and lead are both exceptionally well rounded. Channel boost and a master boost.. a half power switch.. a master tone... presence control... its a thing of beauty...In regard to AMS - I got my head as a scratch and dent and one of the tubes was blown on arrival. I switched it out and all was great - customer service was fantastic and did a great job making me feel like they appreciated my business and they went to extra lengths to make it right for me. Great head... great CS ... Great company.

In my opinion they thought of every thing when building this amp. Built in noise gate is outstanding, clean channel is very clear and bold, even the crunch and lead channels are clear and CHUGGG. It’s the best I’ve ever heard. This is the 1st amp I have played that I can not find something I don’t like. Even the built in power supply for pedals on the back is a great idea to the XLR out. All around great sound probably the best out there at this time you can not go wrong in purchasing one of these. Needed for any metal guitarist.

Obviously we all know and love the 5150. However it can be a heavy metal one trick pony. Well, the Invective is like if the 5150 was snatched up by Xhibit and got the Season Finale treatment of Pimp My Ride. Except this ride got to keep all the bells and whistles once the episode was over, and they worked. Amazing clean channel, 3 total channels 120 watts but can run at half power, 2 effects loops, 2 separate boosts (Master and Drive Boost/per channel), a built in Noise Gate (per channel as well) with adjustable Threshold, A midi foot switch that has more buttons than the space shuttle, AND, get this, 2 9 volt (@ 500mAh) power supply plugs in back for pedals. All this with a nice lookin' face lift that'll be sure to make it's ex jealous and know they are missing ... MoreObviously we all know and love the 5150. However it can be a heavy metal one trick pony. Well, the Invective is like if the 5150 was snatched up by Xhibit and got the Season Finale treatment of Pimp My Ride. Except this ride got to keep all the bells and whistles once the episode was over, and they worked. Amazing clean channel, 3 total channels 120 watts but can run at half power, 2 effects loops, 2 separate boosts (Master and Drive Boost/per channel), a built in Noise Gate (per channel as well) with adjustable Threshold, A midi foot switch that has more buttons than the space shuttle, AND, get this, 2 9 volt (@ 500mAh) power supply plugs in back for pedals. All this with a nice lookin' face lift that'll be sure to make it's ex jealous and know they are missing out! Misha Mansoor might have spec'd this amp out like a Ritalin boosted 10 year old but we are all better for it.

Amazing Amp, Incredible Versatility

I wanted a super versatile amp that was 3 channels and had MIDI capability (building a stereo rig with Mesa TC-50). The Invective is everything I was looking for...and more.Clean Channel:The clean is slightly compressed and nice and warm. It stays clean even at maximum gain. The onboard boost is awesome. You kinda get 4 channels. The clean channel with the boost on gives a great mid gain tone. It can go from just the edge of breakup, to kind of AC/DCish to heavier crunch.Crunch Channel:Awesome crunch sounds but also has a lot of gain if you want it. It sounds great with everything at noon, but I like it with very slightly scooped mids and slightly bumped lows and highs. It doesn't do the mid gain stuff so well in my opinion, because there's so much gain on ... MoreI wanted a super versatile amp that was 3 channels and had MIDI capability (building a stereo rig with Mesa TC-50). The Invective is everything I was looking for...and more.Clean Channel:The clean is slightly compressed and nice and warm. It stays clean even at maximum gain. The onboard boost is awesome. You kinda get 4 channels. The clean channel with the boost on gives a great mid gain tone. It can go from just the edge of breakup, to kind of AC/DCish to heavier crunch.Crunch Channel:Awesome crunch sounds but also has a lot of gain if you want it. It sounds great with everything at noon, but I like it with very slightly scooped mids and slightly bumped lows and highs. It doesn't do the mid gain stuff so well in my opinion, because there's so much gain on tap. With that said, it is definitely capable of very good mid gain stuff with the guitar's volume rolled off and/or the gain dialed back to around 9:00.Lead Channel:TONS of gain. I like it at 9:00-10:00. Definitely does the chugs quite nicely and although I haven't played through a 5150, I can see that's where it's lineage comes from.Other:The volume tapers very well with the post gains and master volume. You can play this at bedroom volume and still get very nice tones...but that's not really what you want to do with this is it? ;) I love the dual effects loops and the power jacks on the back of the amp. Master boost works as advertised. Also the gate is fantastic; I found I only needed it on the lead channel.Overall:This amp is awesome. I wanted something so versatile I could play anything from jazz to metal and I think this delivers. I also didn't think I'd like the look of it, but It actually looks great. I have to say, Peavey definitely created a winner with the Invective.

Buy it now!!!

Overall:The Peavey Invective 120 is the best sounding high gain amp I have EVER played...and after 22 years I've tried many. A big thanks to Misha Mansoor and Peavey as well as zZounds. The lineage is apparent in this amp. What else is apparent is the time and energy Misha and Peavey put into refining this product. The lead channel...oh the lead channel. Downright sinister. Modern aggression that is completely unrivaled. The Invective puts all other high gain amps in their place. It's simply meaner, more modern and has more harmonic content and responsiveness through the entire frequency range than other amps. Lead and Rhythm channels sit excellently in even the most dense mix. Bear in mind im hitting my favorite parts of this amp...it can so much more than metal. ... MoreOverall:The Peavey Invective 120 is the best sounding high gain amp I have EVER played...and after 22 years I've tried many. A big thanks to Misha Mansoor and Peavey as well as zZounds. The lineage is apparent in this amp. What else is apparent is the time and energy Misha and Peavey put into refining this product. The lead channel...oh the lead channel. Downright sinister. Modern aggression that is completely unrivaled. The Invective puts all other high gain amps in their place. It's simply meaner, more modern and has more harmonic content and responsiveness through the entire frequency range than other amps. Lead and Rhythm channels sit excellently in even the most dense mix. Bear in mind im hitting my favorite parts of this amp...it can so much more than metal. And the clean channel is absolutely beautiful. Lots of clarity and fatness. Two things that can often be hard to achieve on a clean channel. The gate...perfection. The boosts (technically there are 3 different kinds)...perfection. And with the dual effects loops and 9v power on the back panel as well as the a foot switch that really does do it all. The Invective is the all in one solution...its so beautifully engineered. Plug your effects in the loop(s). Done deal. And it's midi controlled. So streamlined. And the best part...the Invective sound is MASSIVE. This is the new benchmark in high gain. Period.

Great modern metal head

This is the tightest metal head I've ever played. I've even ditched my usual boosts or overdrives out in front. There is tons of gain on tap and 20W can crank through a 2x12. The gate is very fast, faster than my pedal gate. Tone to me is amazing, just be careful with the presence knob, this thing will already cut through no problem.

I would buy this again! Peavey is known for dependability

I'm loving The Peavey invective MH 20! Real fast delivery with Sam Ash! It was packed great! The sound is what I was looking for, I love an amp that has tight bass sound that doesn't fall apart when you dig in or palm mute and this thing doesn't disappoint. I haven't tried it in a band situation but I'm sure it will keep up with a loud drummer especially with the right speaker, I have a 1/12 Mesa cab with an Eminence wheelhouse which has a high efficiency around 101.9 decibels and this set up will hang no problem with a band. I've heard some reviews say that it's really only good for heavy music but i found that with the gain between 9:00 o'clock and 12:00 o'clock I can get a good classic rock tone

Modern aggression and so much more

The Peavey invective 120 and invective cab has been the best purchase I've made in the last 20+ years. It has been my main gigging and recording amp for several years. Functions perfectly still. So first off...the quality of Peavey products manufactured in China is still absolutely top notch.People have complained about it not being as loud as the beloved 5150. That is not the case. For the invective to function as the the 5150/6505 does...the master boost must be engaged and set to 10...and channel volumes on 10. Now the master volume works just like the post knob on the 5150/6505. And just as much volume can be achieved. The invective is just loud just more capable of being quiet for bedroom use.Now that the common user errors are out of the way. Let's talk ... MoreThe Peavey invective 120 and invective cab has been the best purchase I've made in the last 20+ years. It has been my main gigging and recording amp for several years. Functions perfectly still. So first off...the quality of Peavey products manufactured in China is still absolutely top notch.People have complained about it not being as loud as the beloved 5150. That is not the case. For the invective to function as the the 5150/6505 does...the master boost must be engaged and set to 10...and channel volumes on 10. Now the master volume works just like the post knob on the 5150/6505. And just as much volume can be achieved. The invective is just loud just more capable of being quiet for bedroom use.Now that the common user errors are out of the way. Let's talk about how amazing the invective sounds. The clean channel sounds so good! It can be dialed to be super fat or chimney. Kind of reminds me of a fender brownface circuit. Just my opinion. Very beautiful. The boosted cleans are amazing. Can be useful for classic rock with the drive in the higher regions. I prefer to set about noon. Works great with ambient effects. Absolutely lovely!The crunch channel has a tendency to be a tad bit fatter than the crunch of its predecessors. Which I just adds to its modern girth. The crunch channel is so thick it blew my mind the first time I plugged it in. Great for nasty nasty breakdowns. Especially with some gate. The gate is perfect btw. Boosting the crunch channel brings the aggression. But still stays huge. Crank the tone and drive to 10 on the boost with the gate engaged and this thing gets hyper modern. Pick attack is razor sharp and articulate. And the low end tightens up.The lead channel...same can be said about how the boost and gate work here. But the lead channel has less thickness. Laser like clarity. Highly aggressive if used for rhythm. Great for soloing. John Fields at Peavey engineered a real gem here!!

The best head Peavey have ever made

This amplifier is amazing for metal players. The inclusion of a very-effective noise gate makes this head completely perfect for live and recording situations. I have always used the Boss NS2 in front of all my amps, but the noise gate in this head works easily as well. If you have quick stop/start songs, this thing will track.The distortion channel on this head is the 5150/6505, so you will get the legendary 5150/6505 sound. The clean channel is a TON better than the 5150/6505, however. The cleans are creamy and not brittle at all. You will really enjoy all channels on this amp, as the cleans blow the 5150/6505 away.There are two effects loops that work independently, or in concert. If you use a lot of effects, this head is destined to be your favorite. I am ... MoreThis amplifier is amazing for metal players. The inclusion of a very-effective noise gate makes this head completely perfect for live and recording situations. I have always used the Boss NS2 in front of all my amps, but the noise gate in this head works easily as well. If you have quick stop/start songs, this thing will track.The distortion channel on this head is the 5150/6505, so you will get the legendary 5150/6505 sound. The clean channel is a TON better than the 5150/6505, however. The cleans are creamy and not brittle at all. You will really enjoy all channels on this amp, as the cleans blow the 5150/6505 away.There are two effects loops that work independently, or in concert. If you use a lot of effects, this head is destined to be your favorite. I am not a big effects user, so it doesn't mean a lot to me, but the loops are clean, independent, and controllable via the foot switch.I can say, without hesitation, that this head is the best Peavey has ever made. Full stop.