Guitar One Calls Peavey Penta™ 'A True Diamond in the Rough'

First Penta amplifier review appears in magazine's December 2005 issue When Guitar One magazine called the new Peavey Penta to duty for its December 2005 issue, reviewer Douglas Baldwin found the 140-watt behemoth far more than merely loud. "The Penta is one surprising five-headed beast," writes Baldwin. "A virtual history of amp tone is available with the spin of a knob." That's our exclusive Pentatone(TM) control of which Baldwin enthuses, a five-setting switch that completely reconfigures the preamp at each setting—in the process revealing five of the most prized tube tones in guitar history. "[The Penta] nicely complemented any guitar and nailed classic tones with a simple twirl of the Pentatone switch," Baldwin adds. "Although it may look like it's built for one-toned warriors, the foolproof Penta actually affords players a huge range of sounds. The Penta is a true diamond in the rough." The Penta amplifier combines four matched EL34 tubes with four 12AX7 tubes and features ceramic tube sockets, custom transformers, ultra-high quality components and 140 watts into 16, 8 or 4 ohms. A product of extensive tube amplifier engineering, the Penta is a completely straightforward rock amp for true plug-&-play guitar fanatics. The Pentatone switch's five positions are denoted with icons rather than words. The "Star" icon reveals a classic British "plexi" voicing, while the "Bull" icon produces a modified British voicing with tons of added gain and a tighter low end. The "Tree" setting is, simply put, fat and clean, while the "Mudflap Girl" setting is a super-high gain voicing with a more responsive EQ and power amp section (think Triple XXX(R)). The "Cactus" icon lays on a thicker British voicing with a loose attack and slightly more gain.