Look At The Deal On This 18-Watt Tube Amp!!

ianvomsaal

Click: Look At The Deal On This 18-Watt Tube Amp . . . $149.99
I couldn't pass this up - I just bought one tonight from Sam Ash (for the same
price) - You have a hard time buying a solid state amp for this kind of money.
I suspect they're not making them anymore, so go grab one while you still can.
I wouldn't be surprised if a ton of MOD's surface for this amp in a year or two.
I'm gonna switch out the speaker and tubes, but for an 18-Watt tube amp
you really can't beat this $149.99 price!!!
Those people that say they afford a tube amp - ahemm. And it even comes
in 2X12 for $199 - There's also a 50-Watt 1X12 version for $199, a 33-watt
1X12 for $249, a 33-watt head for $179, and a 5-Watt 1X10 version for $99.
http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/navigation/crate-amplifiers-speakers-footswitches-guitar-amplifiers-effects?N=100001+338479+201228&Ntk=All&Ntt=+V+Series+&Nty=1
Cheers . . .

- Ian

Piper At The Gates

That is a GREAT buy. How can you go wrong on that, especially with you being a working musician, you could find many uses for that amp. Those Crates are good amps, even the Rev. Billy from that little old band from Texas uses them.
You could modify it, if you want. Play around with tubes, speakers etc. I like EL-84's. They have a nice breakup to them, usually. I would assume it has 12-AX7's in the preamp section. Class A circuit, 149 bucks, great.
Best of luck with it Ian.

ianvomsaal

I've watched the prices on thess amps over the last couple years because I knew the markup was huge (profit over $250).
In November of 2007 the amp was priced at $400, then later reduced to $379, then $349, down down down to now $149.
I saw it on Musicians-Friend and thought "at this price I actually need to play one", so I went over to my local music-mart
and hey, not bad - pleasantly surprised - the crate emblem even comes off the front, so all that's left is the 18 (18-watts).
And it's not a press-board cabinet - the cabinets plywood (just like most other amps), so I'm not all that worried about it.

So far it sounds fine . . . two-EL84's and three-12AX7's - it has a GAIN, MASTER VOLUME, TREB, MID, BASS, and REVERB.
The bass can get away from you if you don't dial it back, but that's not a big deal - and the reverb is a little splashy, but
once you get that dialed back it's fine). I really needed a lower wattage tube amp in my music room and for rehearsals that
didn’t completely blow everyone out of the water (all the amps I own are higher wattage, which really need to be turned
up to get them sounding the way they should). Hey, it's a Class-A amp, & fairly loud (I could actually play a smaller club
gig with it if I wanted to). I think I'll probably put a small fan in there to keep everything cool, but that's fairly easy to do.

I just read the reviews on Musicians-Friend, and I think some of them are completely wrong, while some are just about right.
Funny, the speaker, fan, and tubes that I'll eventually put into it will cost me more than the amp did , so it's not a bad deal.
Cheers . . .

- Ian

who's_pearljam?

Nice find, Ian! I was at Sam Ash last week and saw it and they didn't have any in stock, but I ordered one from MF the other day. They don't come in till October 8th, but I guess I can wait.
I thought it was a rocking little amp and you're right, I bet people will be modding them. I was going to buy a kit like Exhausted built, but it's cheaper to buy the whole amp than it is to buy the parts to build one!
The one I played had a bit of Vox chime to it after I backed off on the bass, too. That's what I would try to get out of it.
Free shipping, too!
I have a good Deluxe Reverb for Fendersound, so an 18 watt English sound would be a nice compliment.

xtremehardy388

I really wanna get this but I'm very wary. I'm sure most of you know my sound. Is this a good deal or should I pass? I can't get new speakers for this or anything. If I don't get this, I'm still looking at a Roc Pro 1000 head (I didn't forget McCreadyisGod) but I can't afford a cab for it.

ianvomsaal

xtremehardy388 wrote:

I really wanna get this but I'm very wary. I'm sure most of you know my sound. Is this a good deal or should I pass? I can't get new speakers for this or anything. If I don't get this, I'm still looking at a Roc Pro 1000 head (I didn't forget McCreadyisGod) but I can't afford a cab for it.

For $149 what do you have to loose??? I think it's a great deal (it is a tube amp, so just remember that - there is upkeep with tube amps). This version is a single channel amp so I'm gonna keep it quite clean (gain on maybe 2 or 2.5) and then just run my pedalboard through it (I haven't done that yet, but I hear it accepts pedals well - I can let you know). The amp has kind of a Marshall/Vox type of tone/vibe, and there are a ton of amps that use EL84's. The Peavey Classic-30 runs EL-84's, and that's probably what I would have gone with if I didn’t find this (and I can get 4 of these amps for the price of a Classic-30). I like the 18-Watt Marshall 1974X, but I don't have $2300 at my disposal (same tube configuration, but the Marshall also has an EZ81 rectifier tube and tremolo). If you run pedals for your higher gain and crunch sounds this amp should work just fine (it’s what I plan to do) - in the store I turned the gain up fairly high and somewhat crank'd the volume (to about 5 or 6) and got a fairly useable bluesy lead tone (at that point everyone in the store could hear me playing). My wife was like "it sounds like some of your other amps - it sounds like a guitar amp" - other than what I tell her about music equipment she’s rather clueless (so I took that as a decent review of the amps tone) - sold.

- Ian

xtremehardy388

Please do give a review. What kind of Marshall, specifically?

Anon

ianvomsaal wrote:

My wife was like "it sounds like some of your other amps - it sounds like a guitar amp" - other than what I tell her about music equipment she’s rather clueless (so I took that as a decent review of the amps tone) - sold.- Ian

What an awesome wife. At least she didn't say 'it sounds like like some of your other amps, what the hell do you you need this for!'

All Those Yesterdays

ianvomsaal wrote:

Click: Look At The Deal On This 18-Watt Tube Amp . . . $149.99
I couldn't pass this up - I just bought one tonight from Sam Ash (for the same
price) - You have a hard time buying a solid state amp for this kind of money.
I suspect they're not making them anymore, so go grab one while you still can.
I wouldn't be surprised if a ton of MOD's surface for this amp in a year or two.
I'm gonna switch out the speaker and tubes, but for an 18-Watt tube amp
you really can't beat this $149.99 price!!!
Those people that say they afford a tube amp - ahemm. And it even comes
in 2X12 for $199 - There's also a 50-Watt 1X12 version for $199, a 33-watt
1X12 for $249, a 33-watt head for $179, and a 5-Watt 1X10 version for $99.
http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/navigation/crate-amplifiers-speakers-footswitches-guitar-amplifiers-effects?N=100001+338479+201228&Ntk=All&Ntt=+V+Series+&Nty=1
Cheers . . .

- Ian

Not to mention 3 band eq, and spring reverb. That's what is suprising. Nice purchase, won't be long the mods will be out in no time.

All Those Yesterdays

Pj_Gurl wrote:

What an awesome wife. At least she didn't say 'it sounds like like some of your other amps, what the hell do you you need this for!'

I just get comments like 'Um is the grass cut?"

exhausted

All Those Yesterdays wrote:

I just get comments like 'Um is the grass cut?"

just reply "is yours?" and then run.

Pacomc79

You know I've tried two or three of those in that series and they sounded excellent, they even had Tone Tubby speakers in them strait from the factory. I don't think these are them, but I have seen them with Tone Tubbys before.

I don't think one can find a better deal than that.

All Those Yesterdays

exhausted wrote:

just reply "is yours?" and then run.

Can't run, electro-shock collar will go off!

mccreadyisgod

Pj_Gurl wrote:

What an awesome wife. At least she didn't say 'it sounds like like some of your other amps, what the hell do you you need this for!'

Or even worse:

"This sounds like your other amps, why did you spend all that money on those other ones?"

It's hard to argue with a lil' tube amp to have around the house. I just wish I could figure out EL-84's.

ianvomsaal

Pj_Gurl wrote:

What an awesome wife. At least she didn't say 'it sounds like like some of your other amps, what the hell do you you need this for!'

yeah, she's fairly supportive . I mean she kind of has to be - I was a Music Major when we
met, so she kind of knew what she was getting into when she married me. This is how I make
my living - If it's what you do, it's what you do - when I stop making music for a living it'll be
enough - until then I need what I need to do what I do - and she seems fairly okay with that.

ianvomsaal

chiefojibwa wrote:

how does it sound?

xtremehardy388 wrote:

Please do give a review. What kind of Marshall, specifically?

AMP REVIEW
Okay, I played the amp today at higher volumes to get a feel for it. It accepts pedals well - this amp can get loud if you need it to - I played it both clean (gain down, volume up), and dirty (gain up and volume not as high). Both OD and clean tones are very useable (it is a little muddy, but so, you can adjust the EQ a bit, or just get a little EQ pedal). As I said, since it’s a single input, single channel amp it’s not as versatile running the gain at high levels, but I’m simply going to use it crank’d up loud and clean (gain almost 2, volume on like 5) with my pedal-board and a few OD pedals, which sounds decent.

It sounds a bit like an 18-Watt Marshall JTM45 Bluesbreaker, and a little like channel one of a 1974X (it is a little muddier than both, but then again it doesn’t have a rectifier tube in it either). As I said, I’m going to install a little fan, and probably change the speaker later (which may clean up the muddiness a bit). If you’re ever worried about your amp overheating, just remember that you can always put a small fan behind your amp (if you don’t have a fan installed). Overall, I think it was a great deal - when do you ever find an 18Watt tube amp for $149.
Cheers . . .

- Ian

Anon

ianvomsaal wrote:

AMP REVIEW
Okay, I played the amp today at higher volumes to get a feel for it. It accepts pedals well - this amp can get loud if you need it to - I played it both clean (gain down, volume up), and dirty (gain up and volume not as high). Both OD and clean tones are very useable (it is a little muddy, but so, you can adjust the EQ a bit, or just get a little EQ pedal). As I said, since it’s a single input, single channel amp it’s not as versatile running the gain at high levels, but I’m simply going to use it crank’d up loud and clean (gain almost 2, volume on like 5) with my pedal-board and a few OD pedals, which sounds decent.

It sounds a bit like an 18-Watt Marshall JTM45 Bluesbreaker, and a little like channel one of a 1974X (it is a little muddier than both, but then again it doesn’t have a rectifier tube in it either). As I said, I’m going to install a little fan, and probably change the speaker later (which may clean up the muddiness a bit). If you’re ever worried your amp overheating, just remember that you can always put a small fan behind your amp (if you don’t have a fan installed). Overall, I think it was a great deal - when do you ever find an 18Watt tube amp for $149.
Cheers . . .

- Ian

$149 is ridiculously cheap. You'd be pushed to find a better deal than that.

RAT!

i couldn't help myself i just ordered one off of m.f. my first tube amp!!!

woo hoo

ianvomsaal

RAT! wrote:

i couldn't help myself i just ordered one off of m.f. my first tube amp!!!

woo hoo

Yeah, it's a great deal.
As of 10/01/2008 both Musicians Friend and Music123 have them in stock.
So far I don't have that many complaints (for what it is) - I mean it's not
going to be one of the GREAT tube amps - but what do you want for $149.
Fender gets a better clean, Marshall gets a better OD, but again; tube, $149.

I forgot to mention that it's not a small amp. It's about as wide as a Fender
4X10 Deville, but it's not as tall or nearly as heavy (it's considerably lighter).
I looked on Youtube and there's quite a few video demo's.
Here's a link: http://uk.youtube.com/results?search_query=crate+v18-112&search_type=&aq=0&oq=crate+v18

It's a versatile amp - it does Clean, Blues, and Rock (and you can add an OD
pedal to the amps OD to push it even further into Hard Rock & Metal territory).
That's my personal route (I use pedals to achieve my OD tones with this amp).
Just take a look at a few of the video's to get an idea of what the amps does.
Many of the videos are from the same guy, and he only runs the amp on a low
volume setting (on like 1.5 or 2), but it can get much-much louder if you want.
I should do one with the amp's volume opened up to like 5, gain on like 8
Cheers . . .

- Ian

All Those Yesterdays

Pj_Gurl wrote:

$149 is ridiculously cheap. You'd be pushed to find a better deal than that.

Agreed, then just a couple bucks in modifications....

All Those Yesterdays

RAT! wrote:

i couldn't help myself i just ordered one off of m.f. my first tube amp!!!

woo hoo

Good way to start out.

who's_pearljam?

Yup! If any of my neighbors were trying to sleep in today, they're up now!

My neighbor and I ordered one each and they came today. I thought I ordered mine from Musician Friend, but I got it from Sameday music. Surprise! They ship from Nevada and are in stock.

Pretty amazing amp for $150! It didn't work at first because the speaker wires weren't hooked up. Then a tube was loose, so I went over it a bit and tightened things up. If anyone gets one, make sure the speaker leads are on because you don't want to burn out the amp while you're trying to figure out what's wrong
It loves humbuckers and p-90's for sure. I ran my Les Paul with the P-rails through it, as well as a stock Es-335.
The amp has definite sweet spots and my neighbor's has different sweet spots than mine but they're there.
Gain on 3 and volume on 6.5 to 7 really sings with the treble up at about 7, mid 6 and bass at 4 or around there. It's pretty muddy sounding a lower volumes even with the bass backed off but it brightens up at volume around 7. Not a quiet amp either! It vibrated my "Complete Far Side Collection" right off the bookshelf in my living room.

The higher gain settings were pretty good but I liked it much more with louder volume and working the power tubes, which are El 84's
I think a brighter speaker might be in order, but I'll let this one break in first to see what happens. It's a crate branded speaker, I don't know who makes it. They're 8 ohm outputs with 1/4 inch jacks, so I may try it in a few different cabinets.
Mine has Sovtek power tubes in it and I think my neighbor's has different ones. They're hard to get to and I'll look later. I'll let them break in a bit to see what happens, too.

Like Ian says, put a fan on it! There's not a lot of air circulation in this amp and a fan should help. I may even cut more vent holes in it.
I mean, hell, for $150 bucks, you can do anything and not worry too much.

Like install one of those bar type bottle openers on the side!

I think mine sounds pretty reminiscent of a Marshall Bluesbreaker more-so than Vox, although the P-90's gave a pretty good Pete Townshend sound like My Generation. With the Gibson ES-335 it had quite the Clapton Bluesbreaker Beano tone, but you've got to play hard and dig in to get that tone no matter what amp you're using.

The reverb. Well, ok, hey, it's 150 bucks!
On 1 or 2 it's passable but turn it up and haha, sort of like playing in a tile shower stall down in a tiled subway station. I have a reverb tank around, and I might just try to plug it in to see what happens. You can buy 6 spring tanks for about 40 bucks, I think.

I'm quite impressed! The amp is going to be on loan to some friends who just started an all girl punk band. Their first gig is on Halloween and they don't know how to play their instruments yet and are just starting to write music now. Sort of like the Ramones started. High energy, but this will be a much better looking band!

xtremehardy388

Instead of getting this amp, I'll save up for the Roc Pro half stack or something a little better. I've heard some reviews where "Well, it's $150..." so I'll save my money and get something better.

ianvomsaal

xtremehardy388 wrote:

Instead of getting this amp, I'll save up for the Roc Pro half stack or something a little better. I've heard some reviews where "Well, it's $150..." so I'll save my money and get something better.

Man, what's your hang-up on this Fender Roc Pro 1000
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fVtRsgGqTec . . . you like this sound?
Okay, yeah there are a few more clips, but from what I've heard the Overdrive tones
(more-so distortion tones) are more geared toward metal than anything else. Did you
take a listen to the V18 ??? Here's an individual link where the guys using a Tele and
a BBE Green Screamer (basically a TS-9 knock-off). He not a really great player, but
at least you'll hear some decent clean tones, and at 3:00 he has the gain wide open.
It's the pedal buzzing, not the amp: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=4D_5FXS6bvM
Personally I think for $149 the V18 sounds way better, plus it's loud enough to play
with a full band, and it's a real tube amp (not a solid state amp with a pre-amp tube).

But, hey if you don't like how it sounds, then that's cool - I didn't post this thread to
try and get people to buy this amp, I posted it because there are people on here that
have said they can't afford a tube amp - and this tube amp sounds decent, and costs
about the same price as a low-end solid state amp - I'm actually planning to try and
break it in tomorrow night at a gig - and I'm not going to bring a backup, I'll just put a
small upright fan behind it - who knows, tons of amps don't have cooling fans in them.
(Fender didn't put a cooling fan in their old amps - it should work out just fine)

Pacomc79

They have one in B stock at MF for less than 120.

Imagine spending another hundred or so to put in some good transformers and tubes and holy crap.

xtremehardy388

ianvomsaal wrote:

Man, what's your hang-up on this Fender Roc Pro 1000
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=fVtRsgGqTec . . . you like this sound?
Okay, yeah there are a few more clips, but from what I've heard the Overdrive tones
(more-so distortion tones) are more geared toward metal than anything else. Did you
take a listen to the V18 ??? Here's an individual link where the guys using a Tele and
a BBE Green Screamer (basically a TS-9 knock-off). He not a really great player, but
at least you'll hear some decent clean tones, and at 3:00 he has the gain wide open.
It's the pedal buzzing, not the amp: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=4D_5FXS6bvM
Personally I think for $149 the V18 sounds way better, plus it's loud enough to play
with a full band, and it's a real tube amp (not a solid state amp with a pre-amp tube).

But, hey if you don't like how it sounds, then that's cool - I didn't post this thread to
try and get people to buy this amp, I posted it because there are people on here that
have said they can't afford a tube amp - and this tube amp sounds decent, and costs
about the same price as a low-end solid state amp - I'm actually planning to try and
break it in tomorrow night at a gig - and I'm not going to bring a backup, I'll just put a
small upright fan behind it - who knows, tons of amps don't have cooling fans in them.
(Fender didn't put a cooling fan in their old amps - it should work out just fine)

Hahaha, I just like the Roc Pro's clean sound. I also have a deluxe reverb tank in my amp, too, not stock. I suppose the V-18 would be a nice back up amp.

xtremehardy388

I just went to guitar center and the store in my area doesn't carry Crate's anymore. Pretty big letdown.

ianvomsaal

xtremehardy388 wrote:

I just went to guitar center and the store in my area doesn't carry Crate's anymore. Pretty big letdown.

Yeah, I had to go to Sam Ash.
In your neck of the woods the closest crate dealer is BROUGHTON MUSIC CTR (4-miles awa).
Then there's FIREHOUSE GUITARS INC (4-different stores all about 45 miles from Kalamazoo, so less than an hour).
Here's the link to these crate dealers: http://www.loudtechinc.com/slmbrands/dealerlocator.php?p=765&b=Crate&uselevels=no&zip=49001

xtremehardy388

ianvomsaal wrote:

Yeah, I had to go to Sam Ash.
In your neck of the woods the closest crate dealer is BROUGHTON MUSIC CTR (4-miles awa).
Then there's FIREHOUSE GUITARS INC (4-different stores all about 45 miles from Kalamazoo, so less than an hour).
Here's the link to these crate dealers: http://www.loudtechinc.com/slmbrands/dealerlocator.php?p=765&b=Crate&uselevels=no&zip=49001

All right, I'll check it out. Thanks, Ian!

Pappas

great bargains there, what i want to know though is do they deliver to australia? doubt it :(

xtremehardy388

Pappas wrote:

great bargains there, what i want to know though is do they deliver to australia? doubt it :(

If you send me a dingo, I'll send you and amp