What does everyone think of the Crate Blue Voodoo?? - I happ

[wolfgang]

????

[bduersch]

It certainly wasn't a bad sounding amp, and it was built like a tank. I had a 1x12 combo, 60 or so watts. Clean sounds were awesome. The distortion was okay... just not my cup of tea perhaps.

Still not anywhere as cool as the Legacy, but pretty respectable nonetheless (especially for being a Crate).

--B

[jay ratkowski]

Don't buy it... they break down more often than my Chevy.

[Jimi D]

I, like Brent, really liked mine - I had the BV60 1x12" and it was a great little amp for the money, with a decent clean and plenty of gain. Mine was gigged for two years without giving me a whit of trouble, *but Jay's right if you can believe the numerous reports of Blue Voodoo failure I've read on the web. Nonetheless, yesterday I was looking at a used BV50 head with the matching 1x12" Vintage 30 cab for a paltry $500(CDN) at a local shop, and I nearly bought it just 'cause I so love the look of them *- my wife would have killed me though; we've already got six amps in the living/music rooms... :loco: *

[jeff l]

I can't speak for the BV but I've had a little Vintage Club combo for about five years. I've played it hard and not had a single reliability issue. It sounds really good, too.

[Exotic Shredding]

Ok, the dude that said it breaks down more than his chevy... WHOA! *That blows my mind. *1. American vehicles are just not worth it i.m.o. (go italian) / 2. A voodoo broke down??? * I have had my voodoo for 4 years now. *I have the 120 watt head, and the celestions 4x12 cab. *I have not even changed the tubes yet! *I havent needed to. *Within the past year i have begun gigging with it regularly. *It is my main amp. *The voodoo is as the name implies, pure magic. *I have played through soo many amps and continue trying amps for fun. *Nothing comes close in terms of feel. *Ok, wait, let me say one thing. *The voodoo is slightly "weak" on its own. *I run an alesis M-EQ and a 3630 compressor through it. *And my effects if any come from a midiverb 4 (chorus, flanger, delay). *All i do is boost what the voodoo already has. *I get an amp that is sooo versatile. *I play in a fusion band out of D.C., and i have hit clean tones from hot twang to thick smooth jazz. *I can simulate any lead tone, and the gain channel is amazing. *We go from Contempory smooth ballad styles to straight up power metal ala Iced Earth/Symphony X. *This amp hits it all. *I have never played through an amp that is soo expressive. *I just puts out exactly what i feel when i play. *I am very picky about tone as well, especially in my guitars. *I use a 1x15 Vintage Club as a warm up amp when i dont have the voodoo around. *That is the closest i have come to the clean channel's feel from a voodoo. *Anywhere i have ever played i get people coming up and asking about my tone and how i get it. *I hear alot of people cutting down on the Voodoo. *I just don't get it? *Everytime i demo mine to those same people, they don't know what to say. *I will never use another amp. *Ok, i will say that anything other than the 120 watt stack is not worth it. *The combos are not nearly as good. *And yes, i have heard of those not being as reliable. *The head though, the flagship Voodoo (and the flagship Crate) is truly awesome. *I have even had people use keyboards and midi through it in desperate situations and it was great. *If anyone has any questions, or wants tone settings, or whatever about the voodoo, i am totally open to offer help. *Alot of people on the net also say the voodoo is ugly, or cheesy looking. *No way. *I like the blue over the black. *( i have an original logo blue head, with a black cab, you cant even tell at first) *The orange lights with the mirror back look bad-ass in the dark. *I always get "wow, your amp glows!" *Ok, sometimes when ya play live and you need the stage black for effect... it can get slightly annoying...but hey, a towel fixes that in about 2 seconds. *I also use a Marshall powerbrake into the Voodoo. *I find that VERY necessary. *The Voodoo is loud. *With the brake i keep the Voodoo at about 4 or 5 normally. *Live at about 8 or 9. *The louder you crank it, the warmer it becomes. *It just roars, literally. *Anyways, this post is running on too long. *Just like anything, if you can find your way through the instrument, you can make it do as you please. *And its also personal opinion, cause we all have a different sound in our head. *Damn let me tell you, Crate aint the best, but hell the Voodoo is a better value than any other amp. (and it easily competes with all that marshall crap, and mesa's big ones)

[RSVampire]

I think anything by Crate is a waste of my time.....the Blue Voodoo I think sounds ok......but I know Crate gear breaks a ton.....I've had one.....and seen other people have em.....If it's your box of dougnuts then hey that's nice....I just don't like em at all.....

[Anonymous]

No offense, but that last post sounded alot like the ani-Ibanez posts from my Harmony-Central days.
"Anything Ibanez blows, I played an RG at the store, the tem went way out of tune when I used it. What a piece of crap. Japanese guitars suck."

I loved the BV tone. I decided on the 5150, I don't even remember why, but the Blue Voodoo was originally what I was looking for. I might get one some day if my G.A.S. pains become unbearable. 3 120 watt tube heads...
I hated the clean channel though, maybe it was the tubes, but it made the guitar(ESP thing, wasn't very good, maybe that was the problem) I was trying it out with sound like a Telecaster, no matter what I did. I just prefer 'hi-fi' cleans.

[Exotic Shredding]

Hey, its really funny when people say stuff like that. *"everything by them sucks." *And im sure ive said it before. *Ya know what, i used to think Crate sucked too...funny i love my voodoo, and ive gone through 3 practice amps(including bigger ones like the legacy) searching for a close match and ended up with a Vintage Club. *Their low end models SUCK. *Yeah yeah ok. *I did see a guy playing on the street in D.C. though, through a Taxi to some rhythmic stuff. Carribean/jazz/funk type stuff. *****, if i wasnt late, i would stopped to talk to that guy. *His tone, DIRECT into that little thing was amazing!!!!! *It freaked me out! *ANd he was double-hand playing ala chapman stick the whole time. *He toar it up on another level. *****, i know people with big amps that dont sound like that! *Ya know, i dont like marshall at all. *I say marshall sucks, but damn. *A Jcm900 dont sound too bad...oh and wait they have that JMP-1 which my friend had and tore it up. *I also dont like EMG pickups. *They can make any guitar sound the same. *They are sterile and dry. *But hey, i've played through a jackson that had them, and to this day still cant believe they were EMGs. *Most guitars i play with them suck. *Sometime you run into just a bad hit. *Kinda funny, if Crate is a waste of time...who isn't ?? *Mesa? *I get get the same sound frm my Voodoo. *Marshall? *DOnt get me started. *Their high-end shattered glass tone is ridiculous. *I can match it on my voodoo if its what you want. *VHT? *That stands for Very Horrible Tone. *Ok, some fender amps are ok. *I actually played one that had a bad-ass 80s glam sounding gain channel. *Too bad i didnt notice which model i had plugged into. *Oh well. *The voodoo can do so much, and for the money, its hard not to accept them in the ranks. *FUll stack,GET CELESTIONS, and 120 watt head for under $1800 ??? *Wait, thats like ....um...just a head from everyone else. *And a celestions 4x12 cab...sounds just like a lot of Mesa Cabs. *Voodoo...the only way to go.

[Igorrr]

I´m trying to sell my Blue Voodoo BV120 Head and 4x12 box.

I like the clean channel, but the distorted channel is way too noisy.
I think the same about the 5150.
I bought the Line6 AX2 recently and this baby rocks.
It´s unbelievable but this little amp with 2x50 watts
transistor gets as loud as the 8 tube amp with 120 watts. It´s easy to carry and sounds better than any Blue Voodoo by far.
The only problem is the looks. The BV is one of the most beautiful Amps I know. If I had the money and space I would keep mine :-)
But I´m never going to gig with that thing again !!!

[chilln2music]

Here's my opinion on the Blue Voodoo:

The clean channel was too in your face almost like a sold state, not warm enough I guess. A compressor would probably help a lot.

The distortion...surprisingly not that bad. It was a lot better than most Marhalls I've tried but the tone still wasnt warm enough. This could have been because I wasn't pushing the amp though. In any event the distortion was also a little "buzzy" at times if that makes sense...but not near as bad as the marshalls.

Oh and the amp is the coolest looking one out there! That was my first comment to my friend when I was playing through it.

[Exotic Shredding]

Try running a good EQ into the Voodoo. *The Voodoo is a better buy with an added expense of an EQ. *It turns it into a whole new amp. *My EQ brings out a whole new side to the Voodoo. Voodoo is weak on its own. *But damn, let me tell you, my Voodoo will tear down all walls! *And the distortion cleans up and is just agressive with a warm dark sound. *The ultimate sound in my opinion. *When i run the voodoo alone (had to once for a last minute gig cause i left my rack where i was staying) it is kinda buzzy and the clean isnt as rounded. *It still sounds good though. *Try an EQ though, you will be surprised at what lies beneath those orange lights. *Voodoo needs an EQ to bring it out. *

[RedFish5]

For the same price you could pick up a line 6 210 ($499)..

A lot more effect/sound options than the BV Crate..:loco:

Just depends on what sound you want.
I don't like to limit myself
Rick

[RedFish5]

For the same price you could pick up a line 6 210 ($499)..

A lot more effect/sound options than the BV Crate..:loco:

Just depends on what sound you want.
I don't like to limit myself
Rick

[vwall]

i have had the BV120 for a couple of years and it collects dust. i used it as a back up a couple of time but i think it is very, uh, well, crappy.
it does have a nice bottom end but the tone and warmth are lacking. my recommendation is to stay away, but thats me, some people like it. its all about your own fancy,


scott