Crate BX50DLX 112 Combo

I believe this amp was made in 2001. 4 band eq, headphone jack, speaker out, CD in (RCA), and a little tuner on top. It has a distortion channel with a footswitch. It doesn't sound amazing, but decent for an amp distortion. It has an octaver that adds a signal an octave below the original. Not good for low notes on the bass, but thats any octave effect. Its a good practice amp, but nothing more. 50 watts through a single 12 inch speaker. Don't expect an amp this size to compete with drums and a guitar rig. Very few 112s can do that.

This amp really responds to what you plug into it. My old squier didn't sound so good with this amp. My Jazz bass however sounds fantastic. This amp will not cover up for what gear you plug in. It is not a modeling amp, its just gonna make your bass sound louder.
I play rock, funk, jazz reggae and a little metal. If you know how to use the eq' knobs you can get some different sounds from this amp.

I've never had a hint of problems from this amp. I don't expect this thing to break anytime soon.

Overall, this is a good amp. If you have a decent sounding bass already, go for this amp. If you need a lot of tone sculpting, get a Line 6. This amp is a great value though. It was my first amp that was bigger than a lunchbox. I recommend it.

Basically a 50W solid-state prac amp with a distortion box attached. The added extras seem somewhat odd: an octaver that nearly kills the amp with any volume (especially using a bass with a low B string), a speaker output that cuts out the internal speaker (why?!) and a tuner that works better with standard guitars than bass guitars. Oh well...

Not bad at all - it's loud enough for home prac and quiet band prac, but loses out in a couple of ways... add a couple of 20 to 50W valve guitar amps and it can hardly be heard; add a 5 or 6 string bass and the low B nearly destroys it at higher volumes. It's a good effort from Crate, and a nice prac amp for home use, but know its limits if you plan on buying one.

Didn't break while I had it, but in fairness I didn't put it through much before I had to trade it for something bigger! Externally, at least, it looked ok.

Never had dealings with crate.

I've been playing about 7 years, been in a few bands and had a lot of different gear. This certainly aint the worst bass prac amp that I've had, but it aint significantly better than a Marshall B25 MkII for the extra cash it costs. It certainly beats a Peavey MicroBass tho! If you're wanting a good bass amp combo for home prac and band rehearsals, try the Hartke Kick-Back series - they're more expensive, but you get what you pay for in this game! This amp combo exists in a middle-ground between home and stage, and for that reason i'd advise you to make sure it's what you really want, and dont just assume it'll be loud enough for your needs.

Made in 2001. 50 watts of solidstate power. One 12 inch speaker.
2 channels but not really....the first channel operates more like a distortion box ahead of an amplifier would. Crate could have labeled the controls better as the amp is really not a two channel but a single channel with a built in distortion box.

Also has a Octave effect, that is the main reason I bought this amp. It creates a second tone that is an octave lower than the original and when combined gives the amp a thick modern tone.

Using the distortion effect also initiates a non adjustable noise gate that at first can make you think there is something wrong with the amp. For recording the distortion would probably drive the engineer crazy as the threshold is set so high.
c.d. jacks in front to play along with a cd player
headphone jack for silent practice

Crate seems to have reduced costs by making their combos with thinner and small corner protectors are cheaper tolex.

Inside, I found the workmanship to resemble that on my junior high woodshop class.

Does have a super cool tuner on the top of the amp that is very quick and I use it while playing to see if strings are in tune. very very cool.

It has the "transient attack" tone.

With the distortion and the octave effects on, the sound is like Deep Purple's Machine Head intro to My Woman From Tokyo. Really cool, just a massive wall of fat booming distorted bass.
When muting the bass the limiter makes sure nothing is heard. The limiter did work very well when I played with the band.

Without the distortion the tone is fat and warm. Again, the Octave effect makes for very exciting bass tones.

The 50 watts is plenty loud and while maybe not damaging to hearing it does keep up well with less than ultimately aggressive drummers.

I did open the electronics up to see if the limiter effect might be adjustable only to find no adjustable pots on the inside. I also noted that the electronics are done as cost effectively as possible. Oh well, doubt this will ever be considered a high end amplifier.

Some of the pots are already scratchy and in need of a good cleaning which appear to be impossible due to the sealed pots.

Again, Crate has reduced the way they used to install protective corners and thick tolex on their amps. My Crate BX20 from the late 80,s is a $60 amp and looks to be twice as durable as this model is.

For the price I paid it's a steal. I just hope it can last for awhile. Looking at things if it broke I'd probably just throw it away and buy another one. it simply does not rate in quality as perhaps a vintage amplifier would.

I've been playing guiatr seriosly since 1979. I play in a Christian band 3 times a week. I play bass sometimes just for fun. I was shopping for a bass guitar for our bassist when I heard this amp in a store and just had to get one for myself. It's that cool!

The tone, volume, price and features are fantastic. The quality and life expectancy are at question here.

Crate could have made the limiter adjustable!!!!!

Oh well, a bass amp with a built in Octave effect, Distortion effect, Limiter effect and a Tuner at this price is a great deal even if it only lasts a few years.