Crate Amps?

[Sergeantsnowball]

Why is it these guys always get so much hate?

I picked up an old used Crate GXT-100 2x10 the other day (I'd date it in the mid 1990s?) and it absolutely kills.

It's a sort of hybrid amp that has a solid-state poweramp section, but it has two 12ax7s in the preamp that gives it a pretty sweet overdrive. It's more of a boutique-type amp: you can set up both channels however you like, kinda like an AD or a Thunderverb. Second channel has a bit more gain and a few options of stuff that I haven't really had the time to mess around with, but still cleans up nice even at high volumes. Not really a high-gain amp, sounds a bit like an AC30 cranked, but more low end and you can get the gain at a sensible volume.

All of this is cool, sure, but I still don't know a whole lot about the time period it was built, or how many were made. They don't seem to be very common at all. Any information you guys can dig up or pass along would be great, because whenever I inquired anywhere else I was immediately met with comments along the lines of "lol crates are cheap and they suck," which I don't think is all that fair.

Cheers.

[myboss57]

Crate amps will hold a special place in my heart, as they were the main cheap amps that I and my friends could conceivably afford to buy when we were young and starting bands. At the time, we wanted punk distortion, and they delivered that and were loud and all that good stuff.

I have a Crate Powerblock as a backup and for a little awhile I was using it exclusively at band practice and it was fine. Super loud and decent crunch.

[Borderline Productions]

Crate had a couple of good amps in the 90s. I have a Vintage 30 all tube amp that still kills (40EL84s). Not to crazy about their subsequent releases. What make for a good amp: one that gives you the sound you want without you swearing at it.

[shupe13]

Blue Voodoo

[StratusX]

I have a Vintage 30 all tube amp that still kills (40EL84s).

I bet it can kill a whole lot of things with 40EL84s

[Sergeantsnowball]

I have a Vintage 30 all tube amp that still kills (40EL84s).

I bet it can kill a whole lot of things with 40EL84s

Yeah, like your back!

[thelatrobe33]

I remember playing a talent show in high school where a fellow guitar playing classmate did a solo performance that was getting little attention from the crowd. Toward the end of his set his amp cuts out and everyone in the audience started ranting and cheering... his Crate half stack had quite literally CAUGHT FIRE Rock is a powerful thing!

I love high end gear as much as anyone, but amps and guitars are tools used to achieve the sounds in your head. If a Crate amp gets you there then I can't knock it.

[Spaceboy1]

The practice spot my band rents has some back line for anybody to use. There's a cream and gold Crate Palomino and it sounds damn good. I was surprised because I have only heard bad things about Crate. It could be true for their solid states but that tube amp is definitely good.

[jace1]

I had a crate amp when i 1st started out. I dont remember what model it was but i didnt really care at the time i just wanted an amp to play on and it actually was fairly decent. Got it from a pawn shop and im guessing it was a 90's model cause it looked brand new an it was probably around 1993 when i got it. It was a bass amp which is what i played mostly around that time but it sounded pretty good with a guitar and distortion running through it to. I played it til i blew the speaker in it an still a lil bit after and 1 day it just stopped working on me, had it about 5yrs by this time. But it was a decent amp for the price and sound i got out of it

[a.hun]

Crate Powerblock owner here too. Works, sounds pretty decent clean or dirty. Handy backup amp.


Andy.

[fiveightandten]

Ahhh Crate.

My first amp was the CR212 (old solid state 2x12 combo). I bought it from a friend of mine for $40 worth of weed money. I gave him $40, he drove over, dropped the amp off with 4 cables and the footswitch, and drove right over to the bad part of the neighboring town and bought some weed with the proceeds.

It sounded terrible, it looked terrible, it was terrible. But when you're 15, you're just happy to have an amp so you can play in a band. It looked just like this one...


I went to bass, then drums for a long time. Then I started playing guitar again and bought a Peavey Classic 100 head. Talk about EL84s...that head had *8* of them. Then I got a Hiwatt 4x12 to go with it. Then I got a 90's OR-80 and it was all downhill from there.

-Nick

[myboss57]

Crate Powerblock owner here too. Works, sounds pretty decent clean or dirty. Handy backup amp.


Andy.

You use it for bass backup, Andy? I have played bass through mine (through a proper 4x10 bass cab, don't worry! ) and it sounded pretty decent. And as I already mentioned, great for guitar backup too!

[Jondog]

I believe Crate also made/makes the Blackheart amps which are pretty cool.

[onetracker]

i saw a zz top video and if i remember correctly both bill and dusty were using crates. i thought billy used marshalls with all of his effects being patched in from his engineer backstage.

[a.hun]

Crate Powerblock owner here too. Works, sounds pretty decent clean or dirty. Handy backup amp.


Andy.

You use it for bass backup, Andy? I have played bass through mine (through a proper 4x10 bass cab, don't worry! ) and it sounded pretty decent. And as I already mentioned, great for guitar backup too!

Yeah, works well enough for bass as well as guitar. Did recently buy my second dedicated bass micro amp - I now have two 900 watters (totalling 4.5kg! ) so it is a tiny bit redundant there now. But yeah, especially with the 2 x 75W stereo mini PA option it remains a pretty versatile general backup amp. I've always found the sounds perfectly acceptable for both bass and guitar.


Andy.