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MGR/Super Dave 3006 « Crate BX100 »
Published on 01/29/04 at 15:00Bought new at Guitar Center for $299.99 (price matched musiciansfriend.com). Replaced my BX50DLX. I needed input for an active bass that the BX50 lacked.
Input pad circuit for active or passive basses. Gain control to allow you to max your input without clipping. EQ to allow you to really tweak your sound, hookups for mixer, extension speaker, effects loop, etc...
The BX100 has all the features you could want aside from built in effects (better left on an effects box anyway). Great tone for a solid state amp, almost (but not quite) sounds tube like...
Loud. This is a 100w amp after all...
Tolex covering instead of carpet. (carpet covered amps look CHEAP to me).
Keeps up with an obnoxious drummer at a reasonable power output level.
Built in feet, which were not present on the BX50DLX (did Crate leave those off? My MBX10 has feet even!). I had a lot of trouble with sound getting trasferred through the floor to the walls and furniture with the old amp, and all I could hear was the house rumbling... I still see the ceiling fan rattle even at low volumes, but the CDs aren't jumping around the entertainment center anymore...
The top mounted handle. Some folks fuss about this, but I like the fact it is top mounted. I could also enjoy recessed side mounts, but know that would ram the price up...
This thing has enough grunt to be heard over an accoustic drumset, and fill a church or basketball court type situation, and it has all the outputs you need to hook up to a mixer / PA system for larger situations. This makes for a very flexible amp feature wise, and so far I have had nothing but good luck quality wise with Crate products. Let's hope this thing holds the line on that tradition.
Lack of CD input. I used that feature a LOT on my old amp to practice to. I believe there are effects boxes that have this feature, but it would be nice to have that in the amp itself.
It's a heavy bit of gear. Not as heavy as say a Peavey, but at, 55lbs I think, it's enough to make you really careful moving it around for fear of hurting your back. I would suggest using a hand truck if you have one...
No owners manual. The bottom of the barrel MBX10 came with one in the box. But the BX50DLX I had, and now the BX100 both had that missing from the box.
The warranty terms. Crate has a 5 year transferrable warranty. But you MUST keep your receipt. No doubt you have seen what happens to most retail receipts after a couple of months. I guess I could hand them a blank strip of paper if I ever need warranty service... Crate needs a better method of authenticating purchase date. I would suggest that part of the new sales process should include initial warranty registration.
Typical Crate. Smoothe, and bomb proof. Again, you pay a weight penalty for this. Not a bad thing, just be prepared for it...
Well rounded corners with good quality plastic corner guards (not that cheapo brittle stuff). Tolex covering, which has noticeable seams in the back. (not viewable by the audience though, so no problem there...).
I looked at this model, SWR LA15, Peavey TNT 115, Fender Rumble 100, Fender Bassman 100, Behringer BX1200 Ultrabass, and a Gallien Krueger model that I don't recall. The Crate gave me the tone I wanted, had the oompf I was looking for, the flexibility to we useful as my needs expand, and build quality I demand. And to top it off, the price was downright decent. If it were stolen, and had to stay in the same price class, I would definately get another BX100. I rate this a 5 because I believe it to be the best product of its type in its price class. It doesn't hold a candle to say an Ampeg BA210SP, but it also only costs half as much...
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com
Input pad circuit for active or passive basses. Gain control to allow you to max your input without clipping. EQ to allow you to really tweak your sound, hookups for mixer, extension speaker, effects loop, etc...
The BX100 has all the features you could want aside from built in effects (better left on an effects box anyway). Great tone for a solid state amp, almost (but not quite) sounds tube like...
Loud. This is a 100w amp after all...
Tolex covering instead of carpet. (carpet covered amps look CHEAP to me).
Keeps up with an obnoxious drummer at a reasonable power output level.
Built in feet, which were not present on the BX50DLX (did Crate leave those off? My MBX10 has feet even!). I had a lot of trouble with sound getting trasferred through the floor to the walls and furniture with the old amp, and all I could hear was the house rumbling... I still see the ceiling fan rattle even at low volumes, but the CDs aren't jumping around the entertainment center anymore...
The top mounted handle. Some folks fuss about this, but I like the fact it is top mounted. I could also enjoy recessed side mounts, but know that would ram the price up...
This thing has enough grunt to be heard over an accoustic drumset, and fill a church or basketball court type situation, and it has all the outputs you need to hook up to a mixer / PA system for larger situations. This makes for a very flexible amp feature wise, and so far I have had nothing but good luck quality wise with Crate products. Let's hope this thing holds the line on that tradition.
Lack of CD input. I used that feature a LOT on my old amp to practice to. I believe there are effects boxes that have this feature, but it would be nice to have that in the amp itself.
It's a heavy bit of gear. Not as heavy as say a Peavey, but at, 55lbs I think, it's enough to make you really careful moving it around for fear of hurting your back. I would suggest using a hand truck if you have one...
No owners manual. The bottom of the barrel MBX10 came with one in the box. But the BX50DLX I had, and now the BX100 both had that missing from the box.
The warranty terms. Crate has a 5 year transferrable warranty. But you MUST keep your receipt. No doubt you have seen what happens to most retail receipts after a couple of months. I guess I could hand them a blank strip of paper if I ever need warranty service... Crate needs a better method of authenticating purchase date. I would suggest that part of the new sales process should include initial warranty registration.
Typical Crate. Smoothe, and bomb proof. Again, you pay a weight penalty for this. Not a bad thing, just be prepared for it...
Well rounded corners with good quality plastic corner guards (not that cheapo brittle stuff). Tolex covering, which has noticeable seams in the back. (not viewable by the audience though, so no problem there...).
I looked at this model, SWR LA15, Peavey TNT 115, Fender Rumble 100, Fender Bassman 100, Behringer BX1200 Ultrabass, and a Gallien Krueger model that I don't recall. The Crate gave me the tone I wanted, had the oompf I was looking for, the flexibility to we useful as my needs expand, and build quality I demand. And to top it off, the price was downright decent. If it were stolen, and had to stay in the same price class, I would definately get another BX100. I rate this a 5 because I believe it to be the best product of its type in its price class. It doesn't hold a candle to say an Ampeg BA210SP, but it also only costs half as much...
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com