Crate Powerblock

[bronson1]

I have one of these and i like it... but i have recently had a problem. When i turn up the volume even a little way, the whole amp cuts out? The power actually shuts down?? Any ideas???

[hueseph]

@bronson1 There is a cold solder point somewhere in the power section. When you turn it up the heat causes the joint to separate or something to that effect. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can really do about this unless you are an experienced electronic technician. Even then, these are surface mounted components, If you mess up, it's pretty well done for. I would take it to a music shop to see if they have someone that can service it.

[steffenbrix]

I sold my Fender Twin Reverbs and are using two of these in a stereo setup... just with a 12" Celestion speaker on each amp - sound great! Check my latest videos here on YT - or search "Crate Powerblock Steffen Brix" - then you can hear it in a live situation! Peace :)

[ElMontu]

How is it possible that the speaker does not suffer any damage?

If the amplifier power is 150W and the GT112SL cabinet is 100W?

I use a 2x12 120W Cab with Tube amp Head.. And I'm planning to buy a used Powerblock on eBay to practice. I'll Appreciate any comments, Thank you

[skysurf51]

@ElMontu I guess you could damage the speaker if you cranked the amp all the way up, but it's unlikely that you would do that with a solid state amp. The amp itself will start to sound real bad before you reach that level.

[ElMontu]

@skysurf51 Thank you very very much..

[heliobluesrock]

AMAAAZING!!!! Where can I find one of those?

[RobbieThrash]

@heliobluesrock They don't sell them brand new anymore. Ashamed seeing as it was one of the best things Crate has ever put out. If you're interested in one, my friend is selling his for $100 bucks.

[heliobluesrock]

@RobbieThrash

Thank you. Appreciate that! However, If I buy it, I'll need an international shipping, 'cause I'm out of US.

[GillyShack]

@heliobluesrock I'm selling mine if you're still interested? In Scotland. Could ship to you.

[jg76aries]

I've had one for a couple years now, and the preamp in this things kicks some serious ass. One thing to look out for though (and I think this is what killed it in sales) is that 1) it was specifically designed for use with those cabinets because 2) it has a built-in cab simulator which colors the tone if you try to use any regular cabinet. However you can bypass this by using the FX loop, and returning it to the CD inputs (not the FX return).

I use it with an overdrive in front, sounds awesome!

[GuitarSK8boarding]

Guys- if you come across one of these, BUY IT!!! Just put some pedals or an effects processor (like a Line 6 POD) in front of this and you have a great amp at an affordable price. This is a very compact little 150 w amp (fits in a bag about the size of a medium purse) and packs a punch! I love mine and will probably never part with it!

[skysurf51]

@guitarbutt

Depends on how loud the band plays. With the gain at noon, you get a clean sound. Past that point, it starts to get dirty. However, it will only get real loud with the gain maxed up. It's better to increase the gain and roll down the volume on the guitar to get clean tones.

What I do is use an external preamp and plug it into the return of the FX loop. Plenty of loud cleans there...

[DeathPenguin1000]

This thing looks heavy as crap.

[dustinleblancrock]

@DeathPenguin1000 it is exactly the opposite, tiniest thing on earth

[QuamCelerrime]

@dustinleblancrock someone didn't get the joke

[novanine9]

is this a tube circuit or solid state.  Sounds good

[TheGuitarplayer69]

CRATE KICKSS ASS!!

[mcconnachiea]

Sounds a lot like my blue voodoo.

For a solid state thats pretty stunning.

[EPITHEORISIS]

crate ****************

[AutoMatiK420]

ures sounds better on the vdeo then mine does in real life thats fucked up

[jeepercreepermd]

I'm considering getting one of these. I used to have a line 6 HD147 but I had to get rid of it due to financial reasons lol anyway I have a PODX3 and I was wondering the power block would push a Mesa 4x12

[skysurf51]

The powerblock is pretty loud. It shouldn't be as loud as the HD147, but loud enough to use in a band, unless there is another guitar player in your band and you play really really loud, you should be fine.

[Outsider99]

does that thing get pretty loud?

[skysurf51]

It does, actually. It may not be the loudest amp on earth, but it's decent. Definitely enough to play with a drummer.

[bigassmatic]

at a concert i promoted a few weeks ago one of the bands' lead guitarists had one of these, and i'm here to tell you it was plenty loud to play medium-large gigs!

[Scott515087]

I use the PB with a Line6 M13 and an Ear Candy Buzzbomb 2x12 cab, sounds great. What type of speaker is in the Crate Cab?

[srspud]

This is a good example of why I'll never sell mine.

[GonzoAddams]

This shit kicks ass. I have one, and it sounds much better than my AVT Marshall, if you play heavy or thrash of course!

[FingerLickinGravy67]

idano y ppl say roland makes best ss amps, this has gota be the best sounding solid state amp ive heard

[Tuzioya]

Mine is amazing. I have the worlds shittiest distortion pedal, but this amp turned it into a very thick and stingy distortion. What I'm saying is, it is amazing. If you tweak the settings you can get an amazing clean sound out of it.

[bebenavole]

sounds better than some tube amps

[RNRDOLL]

in person, not quite...but definitely on this video. I kinda incredible how it nails that tube amp response

[skysurf51]

Yeah, that small head is the amp.

[Tomgrandelf]

That's crate its the head of an amp?

[ElectricCandleLight]

Hey there, I have been playing a power block for about three years now, and can say its done me well. The crunch you get out of it is pretty good, I like to bring a little crunch out of the amp itselfe, then turn my ds-1 distortion pedal on. It gives a great tone i think.

Well cheers and great to see someone else using the same amp

[narutard50]

ok what is a power block?

[STATUSthesleepers]

guitar amp

[Lavabug]

Nice sound I love the powerblocks. How long have you had it, are they reliable? I want to get one but I hear a lot of them break down in less than a year.

[skysurf51]

I've had it for 2 years now, took it to practice and gigs. I works well. Actually, I have noticed that the knobs generate scratchy noises when I use them. I don't really care because I bypass the preamp most of the time, which makes the knobs irrelevant. Actually maybe that's because I never use them that they're scratchy.

[brianwurst1234]

I'm confused. Why not just get a combo amp instead of a powerblock and a seperate cabinet?

[skysurf51]

Because I can add a second cabinet if I want/need to. I like the idea of a small stackable unit for some reason.

[acdgui]

Je n'imaginais pas qu'il sonnait si bien!

[fivedaysinjune]

Thank you for this demo. Powerblocks are practically non-existent in New Zealand.

[Jeremiah2186]

what are you playing in this video, toward the end?

[skysurf51]

That's all improv.

[TheMadCoder]

That sounds DAMN GOOD!

I used to really dislike Crate products, but now I'm starting to reconsider them after using horrible sounding Marshall MG amps.

[kegfan]

I play this through a cheap ass 15 inch sub for my bass amp. its great if you keep the gain at about 1/2 and the level full

[LearnToSwim423]

nice video bud! i just made one with my powerblock too, go check it out

nick

[Jestersage]

Somehow, my crate power block is quiet when all the setting is at twelve o'clock (I use it as a mic amp). Though I can hear it clearly over a 100w bass amp, and the 2x 15w Guitar amp, I still think it was quiet. why is that? Also, I can't crank it up higher than one o'clock without getting feedbacks.

[vfrbike]

It sounds really really good!!! I want one to use as backup!!!

[Tzuqris]

mf had refurb powerblocks and they are hard as hell to find

[DonG0412]

Nice job on playing, i plan on getting a power block myself.

[pastorkev777]

mf still sells both the pwerblock and the blue voodoo musicians friend

[canadianeh24]

i have this amp. its really nice to have when you just wanna go somewhere to jam. but i see that they dont sell them anymore, just like the crate voodoo's. what happened?

[WrathOscuro]

Yeah funny how Crate is always discontinuing their good stuff which people are actually buying right? They stopped making V series Palominos as well. You can still find them but it'll be harder a couple years later probably. Sucks too. Those Palominos are amazing.

[sevensoles]

they stopped doing the blue voodoo's too...

[WrathOscuro]

Yeah I know, it's a shame. At least the Black Hearts are really good, but I still prefer the V series.

[krelbar]

Nice vintage Marshally sound

[IDKSOMTHIN]

WHAT IS A ANTENUATOR?

IDK

[KHearse87]

It's a device which simulates load (like a speaker). You put it in-line between your head and cab and it lets you crank the amp's volume the whole way up, but still have a reasonable volume.

[ds1615]

LOL WUT?

[DaDiXxX91]

E' davvero una ottima testata collegata ad un ottimo diffusore io spero di prenderlo xke offre davvero tnt

[dealejandro]

does it have good distortion

[skysurf51]

Do you mean on the powerblock? I'm confused. At 0:34, I play with the gain cranked all the way up. That should give you an idea of what  the distortion sounds like.

[schecter20]

so there is no way this thing is gonna cut it for metal

[soulfulnotes]

I've got one of these, and I like it a lot. I run a tube preamp into it with a reverb unit. I don't know why they stopped making them. It's a great idea. I heard there was some kind of a problem where they cut out when they heat up. but I've never had a problem with mine. I run it into a little Crate cabinet similar to the one above.

[T3hVid30Cr1tic]

Can the Powerblock be used as a power amp? I have a little valve head that sounds great, but doesn't have a whole lot of power, so I was wondering if I could run my rig like this;

amp > powerblock > speaker cabinet

Thanks. :)

[skysurf51]

Yes, the poweblock can be used as a power amp. The controls in the front panels then become inactive. I posted another video where I use my boss gt-3 as a preamp and the powerblock as a power amp.

[T3hVid30Cr1tic]

Sweet! Thanks!

I'm just going to run my master amp into the Powerblock's effects loop, then into my Avatar cabinet.

[CheetoWhistler]

on that second setting is that AC/DC?

[skysurf51]

Not really, I was just improvising, but it does sound AC/DCish.

[CheetoWhistler]

how much was this anyway?

the pedal i have can run two amps out of it, so im just wondering.

[skysurf51]

It was 99 dollars new when I bought it, but it looks like they're discontinued.

[jacknarcotta]

Yup, they've been disco'd by Crate, and they typically turn up on eBay for ~$150.

[guerra37]

my crate gt30 does a background noise when i turn the distortion on =S any ideas?

[djteac]

Maybee it comes from your guitar (bad pickups or isolation) or cables. Some amplifiers cut those noises, and some don't. Try a different guitar and better cable, maybee that fixes the problem.

[lazer70]

same things that i have:)

[richguy789]

nice sound, everyone else that disagrees is on crack

[jacknarcotta]

Amen... killer EQ section on that little monster of an amp.

[VengefulTikiGod]

Hmm... definitely not in love with the sound, but in love with the price :P It could make a decent bass amp, couldn't it? I thought I heard you could use it for bass.

[Sakizuma]

yes you can, and it is just like heaven in a head when you plug a bass into it.

[skysurf51]

Also, The preamp section can also be by-passed, if you want to use an external preamp, or a modeller. It works very well that way too. That makes a perfect amplifier for pods, for example. And it's loud enough with a drummer.

[skysurf51]

On this video, I just plugged my guitar straight into the amp. No pedals. The cab is the Crate 1*12 they recommend to go with it. I was thinking about getting a 2*12 cab, but I found this Crate cab is loud, and it has enough bass for me, and is more portable. The guitar is a Washburn X40-pro (humbuckers).

[RustyR]

Wow. I love that over driven tone. What gear you using with that head? Cab, pedals, guitar for example?

[KissFanSite]

My Crate Powerblock is the perfect backup to my main head - an old Marshall 50w. You never have to worry about your main amp going down because you can plug into the PowerBlock and get 90% of your tone back. It is a great deal and a must buy for anyone who needs to amplify a guitar, a keyboard, or a microphone.

[MrMunkey77]

This is actually a nice head. I bought mine new for about $80.00. I dont like the idea of using the crate 1X12" cabinet ( which is way too expensive for what it is, 200 bucks.) I use mine with a B-52 Steal Series 4X12 cabinet, and hooked up my Line6 Podxt Live to the back of the head, ( I dont even use the front input or its knobs). It sounds AWESOME. And its a great deal.... 80-100 bucks for 150w !!!!!!

[farrows]

i was thinking one of these would make a great backup amp for gigs cause its so small

[ledwardz07]

Like the solo man, but distortion isn't to good

[b1324]

i thought the clean sound wasnt that great, but te distortion sounds great, u can hear it cut through.

[justinvelletta]

wow that sounds supprisungly good for how small it is

[gibsonguy787]

didnt your parents always tell you size dosent matter? =P

[skysurf51]

It looks like it's hard to find the head new on the internet now. It cost 99 dollars when I got it.

The cab is 199 I think.

[fenderistic]

how much did that cabinet and head put together cost? i think i might get my self one.

-thee elliot mitchell

[WithFullDistortion]

I have a GX15 that i just repaired,and i had a gx80 too

i love crate amps

there is one or two clips with meplaying through them,the otehrs are the peavey 5150

[skysurf51]

Yep. The amp alone will NOT give you hi-gain metal distortion. You will have to use external pedals for that.

[joerez8]

This amp head is not all that great for metal is it? Doest sound too high gain with the gain turned all the way up.

[0BLOODMOUNTAIN0]

VERY good demo, it shows it at low and highest gain settings, just straight up. sounds great, but thanks for letting me know that it can't do metal on its own, but at least i can find a tube preamp distortion pedal to go with it if i get one =)

[gwugluud]

no need to apologise for the sound quality; At least you didn't distort the mic like 99% of all other demo-ers do. And the video actually has LIGHT, which again makes the vid head-and-shoulders above most of the typical demos. Good job!

[deathmetaliscool]

i just bought the gt65.. and it's the best amp ever

[bookoflies777]

sounds good! Crate sure has come a long way. I'm gonna have to give them a try!