Crate Palomino V32 112 Combo

It's a basic quasi-2 channel amp with clean/overdrive levels and common tone controls. Comes with a footswitch for clean/overdrive and boost function.

I'm using a fairly bright Strat with vintage S/Cs and a HB. This is a LOUD amp with good clean headroom. The reverb is decent, and the mostly-preamp distortion you get with the overdrive channel is OK. The model I'm using is a loaner from GC until a new one comes in. It has constant static and crackling, which is probably a bad V1 preamp tube, so no points off there. My main objection to this amp is its overall sound character. I'm getting thumpy lows and spiky highs, with very little midrange warmth. The treble and bass are at 10 o'clock. The mid control seems to affect higher frequencies, leaving the 200-800Hz range untouched. Using the same guitar and pedals through other amps, including a Fender Blues Jr, gives me much greater warmth. On the plus side, acoustic/electric guitars sound very clean and sparkly through this amp. This is not my amp but belongs to the church I play at. I'm considering bringing an amp to use. If this were my amp I would install JJ tubes and probably go with a Weber Alnico Blue or Celestion Blue, but then I'd be close to the $1000 price range where there are other choices.

Couldn't say. All tube amps have issues, class A moreso.

With my tone control backed off, I get a good Fendery clean sound, and my OD and fuzz pedals sound OK after I change their EQ. A warm jazz sound is almost impossible without losing 1/2 the signal by rolling off all the highs. It's a decent amp, but just voiced a little odd for my taste. If it were my bucks, I would get a Blues Jr., since I mostly use pedals for distortion anyway.

I will agree with the prior reviewer....I have tried both the g12h-30, and more recently the vintage 30 in this amp. Both speakers make this good amp sound great! I play classic rock covers. My band performs anything from the 70's/80's/early 90's...I play both a Les Paul Custom w/Seymour Duncans; and a PRS custom 22 through the amp. I find that with the V30 speaker, the Les Paul sounds more balanced. Also takes pedals really well. I use a 25yr old BOSS OD-1 infront of it to dirty up the clean channel for rhythm and provide a bit more grind in the gain channel for lead. Boost feature puts me over the top for leads on heavier/louder tunes. I plan on buying another one and dropping the G12H into it...great amp for the $$$$.

Couple reviews down is my first, thought I give it another

I just placed a vintage 30 and a matched set of JJ tubes {eurotubes.com] are awesome, This amp shined before but with this upgrade its so amazing. When I took out the old tubes[they were just 2 weeks old] there were 2 different manufactures on the preamp side, grovve tube and sovtech very pleased

hasnt broke down, defintly get a lil fan to blow into the top grill if you play for long, it does get hot

who knows

Sold my 1100.00 Mesa boogie F-50...this amp leaves it in the dust

V32 Palomino 2006 Model.
30(32)watt all tube Class A 1x12 combo amp from (what?) Crate! mono effects loop. 3 sovtek 12ax7's and 4 GT EL84's come stock. This is more like a single channel with 2(4 if you count the boost) stages of gain as it has clean/overdrive and a midrange boost that works under both channel types. One 3 band eq for both stages. Presences switch (not a knob), spring verb, 2 button footswitch included, 8ohm celestion speaker; no external speaker out, but can unplug the inhouse 12" and run the amp through your favorite cab of choice.
For what it is, it falls along the line of the class a botique amp, and it delivers tenfold. But in today's world of amps that has all sorts of bells and whistles included, this amp pretty much delivers standard features, but for the sound it delivers, everything else is fluff anyway.

Who would have thought Crate could be known for creating a beautiful sounding class a tube amp? I use a Fender double fat tele with duncan pups and a nashville deluxe tele. I sometimes front the amp with a ross clone comp, crybaby and a jekyll/hyde. Upon trying it out right away, the clean was wonderful. No thin here or muddy mid/bass. Very musical and clear. The eq's are responsive and after a/b'ing the presence switch, the presence really sweetens it up. I don't like the fact that you can't adjust the presence depending on the venue, but I believe the switch was calibrated just to that sweet spot you need. The verb is definitely spring. Not exactly the best springverb I heard going with a clean, but it does it's job. The overdrive channel, however, is what got my wallet out. I HAD to get this amp at this point. It was so thick and clear at the same time and when put wide open with volume... you just got to try it out. It blew away the Deluxe gain drive (sorry about that F.) This thing sears in sound, and in heat. This thing does get HOT. I put a clip-on fan and it definitely keeps the control knobs from frying an egg. Yes, there is a delay from OD back to clean which is nowhere near as bad if it happened from clean to OD. It doesn't happen everytime for me actually and is only noticeable with fast switching tunes. I'm content with it. It sucks because this thing SHINES in both clean and OD. Probably a power down issue, maybe? This does have that class A amp hiss; not as bad as some more expensive class a amps. Face it, it has to hiss a bit; that's part of the class A sound. Did I mention this thing is LOUD! For 30watts, it projects louder than the Peavey classic 50 I own. It really makes your guitar sing. I don't take it past 4 on most mid-size venues. The boost is a good feature because it's after the preamp stage. It is tailored to midrange only (not a flat boost of signal), but seems to work fine for the base frequency of my guitars. One thing's for sure, people will definitely notice when you hit this switch. Seriously, this amp has it's own unique voice. I would have to agree that there are some frequencies accentuated more (certain chords ring out better than others) but I'm beginning to think that that is part of the signature characteristic of this amp. I've read of rattling problems, but I haven't had any issues with this (yet). Go make a voice for yourself with this thing. It's possible. All in all, a great sounding class A tube combo amp... from Crate??

Had this for a little over a month, but have gigged heavily at least 4-5 times a week doing 3+ hour sets. Nothing bad so far. It suggests to wait at least 20 seconds before turning on. I still would wait longer than this to warm up those tubes. They are taking a beating as it is. Decent weight to lug around and very sturdy construction (no cheap handle either). Some small corners were cut (the plastic switches on the panels, the small ventilation grill etc). I usually bring a backup anyway. You could probably get away without one, but if a tube blows or become excessively microphonic, you better make sure you have more than a 10 minute break to replace one at a gig. Going to have to take the whole thing out just to get access to the tubes (has someone found a shortcut to this?)

Haven't contacted them yet, but you get a limited warranty for 5 years (I don't believe it covers accidents outside of the home though)

Been playing 27 years. As a typical gearhead, one of the perks is to be able to automatically gauge new equipment based on experiences of past gear. I don't proclaim to know everything about tone, but I do know the quality aspects as well as the downfalls of the amps I've owned in the past. I enjoy playing, but this amp really inspires those long hour bouts. It may not be the best amp I've ever owned, but it really has pleased me as a guitar player. I'd definitely buy another one (or if Crate decides to enhance this line of amps without compromising the tone-i'll probably get that).

2006 Blonde/ gold. Class A power tube power. The amp has supossably 4 channels. Clean, Clean/boost, overdrive, overdrive w/ boost. Wish it had separate eq for the channels. I just got it 2 hours ago and cant turn it off, it is more amazing than my $1100.00 boogie

I have a Les Paul Studio/Burstbuckers [ most amazing Humbuckers on the planet] Lone star and Big apple strat,Peavey wolfgang and Nashville Tele.Amp is as noisy as regular tube amps. Was going with a Fender amp but couldnt afford a twin or super-sonic. 1/12 combos are tight. This amp gives me all the Strat tone on neck pickup needed, Some Fenders Ive tried wont do that. Distortion is awesome. I play in a Praise band in church and this will cook a goose

Just bought it , i would gig w/o a backup. but if you are the kind to throw it in a bed of a truck, i wouldnt know..I baby my stuff

Dont know

Im 51 and been playing since i was 8 and have never played this well until Jesus came into my life, I would definte buy another, I ve have owned Fender,marshall peavey boogie etc etc and this will hold its own. I use a Keeley Tubescreamer and Blues driver on the clean channel and thats all there is to do, to top the cake there is a awesome controllable distortion channel that talks, Just called my man @guitar center and told him Id kiss him. I coulda bought anything and this was half the money and all needed

2006, Two channel, 32 watts, tube amp made for Guitar Center by Crate. Nice overdrive, boost. I use it in my basement, regularly.

Wonderful crisp, clear sound. Warm and loud as you want. This amp sounds great and full at any volume. Nice job Crate. Highly recommended, with no buzz or delayed switching witnessed by others. Try it and buy it; you won't regret it.

So far no problems.

No need so far...

25 Years exp. For the money, you can't go wrong.

You know the featues, I really like the boost switch. When I hit it the whole band knows it, cuts thru well for leads. As to the looks, everyone comments on it, they've never seen anything like it, that works for me.
I bought it at guitar center. I was going to purchase a Fender Blues Delux. The sales rep said try out this Crate over in the corner. I plugged in an SG and started to wail. The rep stood by the amp and twisted the knobs, (I always hate cranking an amp in the store). He turned it up and the store shook. Much fatter sound than the Fender.

I'm giving it an 8 because the overdrive hasn't blown me away but what amp is perfect? I have been cranking up the clean channel and it breaks up nicely for bluesy/rock sounds. Humbuckers distort sooner, My single coil strat stays clean with a lot more headroom. As others posts mention this amp accents your guitar very well. I'd love to hear a Rick 12 string thru it!
I play an Epi Elitist LP, stock pickups sounds phenominal using the clean channel. I play rock originals. I find the clean channel perfect, it is very responsive to pick action and chimes like old Who songs. My strat sounds great with the middle p/u selector and the s-1 switch pushed in. This creates a separate bass sound for the 3 top strings and a trebley chime on the other strings.
I'm not yet impressed with the overdrive channel. It is good but I still need a stomp in front. I plugged my line6 pod xt live in the front of the amp and loved it. I know that's not true tube sound but I still have great response from the amp and the boost switch is awesome for solos.
As mentioned before it is LOUD.

It does get hot on the top, the placement of the vent may attribute to this. I did get a rattle at mid volumes when I pulled it out of the box. After it heated up the rattle stopped. We'll just have to see what happens. I hope it doesn't overheat on a hot summer night. As to a backup I don't have one. Guess I'd plug into the PA.

I trust Guitar Center, I've bought so much crap there. They cut me such a good deal on this amp. If I have a problem they'll swap it out.

I've been playing off and on for 20 years, writing my own music mostly. I'm not an expert but I do like this amp. It fits into the trunk of my sports car nicely!

It has enough features for me. Only wish the footswitch had a presence switch, but so far I haven't really needed it.

I use Les Pauls ( my main guitar) and Strats. Fits my music styles to a T. This amp is a tone monster.Very soulful sound. Most responsive amp I've ever played.The notes coming out of this amp can either be sweet and mellow or they can slap you upside the head if you need it.
I was amazed at how LOUD this amp seems to be.
I use no effects pedals with this amp. I doesn't need'em.

So far , so good.
Would never use it( or any tube amp) without a backup amp at a paying gig. You never know what might happen. And I want to get paid ;)

Never had to contact the manufacturer, although the boost on the footswitch doesn't work, so I may give'em a holler ( haven't really needed the boost yet. I just turn the amp up loud and back off on my guitar volume knobs, and turn'em up when I need the boost )
Only wish there was info on the Palominos at Crates website. They don't even list'em.

Been playing for 30+years. Would buy this amp again. I may purchase another one anyway. Maybe the 15 watt version for smaller venues.
I like the way the amp looks. Looks classy.
When I tried out this amp, I was actually looking toward buying a Fender amp. Wanted a Twin reverb but couldn't see spending that much money, so I was checking out the Hot rods and Fender's other variations. Decided to check out the Palomino. I'd play the Fenders for about 5 minutes and then go to the Crate and stay there for 30 or more minutes. Nothing wrong with the Fenders, but the Pal was more unique sounding. Didn't buy the amp the first day.Thought about the sound for a week. Went back to the store to see if it was all in my head, tried out all the amps again (Twin and Super Reverb included), and brought the Crate home. Been terrifying the wife and kids ever since.

As others have stated, 2 channel all tube Class A made in 2006, uses EL84 power tubes and 12ax7's for the preamp and has the effects loop and floor switch for clean/OD and boost.

Using a '60 Les Paul Special with P90's and it ROCKS !! Sounds great on both the clean channel and OD, almost as good as a Fender Twin and very close to a Marshall.

This amp can get LOUD quickly when adjusting the volume at it's hard to believe it's only 30 watts, seems like a bit more to me. The clean channel has nice break up starting at 12 noon and the OD sounds fantastic, great overtones and sustain, especially for a sub $1000 amp. The OD is not enough for shred or metal but this amp can easily cover every other genre with no problem. With a Tube Screamer on the OD channel your in metal heaven.

Seems reliable so far after a month of consistent use.

I did notice the same problem with the floor switch as others that goind from OD to Clean there is a slight delay but there is no delay going the other direction. Not a big issue for me as I don't routinely switch between them that much during one song.

I also have noticed that the knobs do get very hot after 15 mins, especially if titled back, not sure if it would affect reliability but it will probably reduce the power tube lifespan. The vent hole could be larger, I think it's too small. I had a 12v dc fan laying around so I threw in the back and set the fan speed very slow (4v) and that was enough to keep her cool. It doesn't seem to take very much additional air flow to cool it down so possibly removing the vent cover might help enough, I'll try that later.

With a 5 yr warranty, that I've heard they stand behind, it should help easy worries if anything did go bad.

Have not dealt with them personally bit made a few calls to get specs and general info and they were very helpful.

This is a great amp for the price with the features I need. Separate controls for treble,mid and bass would have been great on both channels and a little better air flow would have made this a 10 but as it stands I'll give it a 9. I would not hestitate getting another one !!!

The Crate Palomino suits my style of music, from sparkling cleans for country, to a wide variety of smooth, warm, solid overdriven distortions. Couple the sound with the wet or cavern deep reverb and you should find your sound too. There are two channels, and plenty of versatility in both the volume and tone knob configurations. Headphone jack, Line out, effects loop, footswitch are all part of the package. The look of the amp is a "vintage modern" an eye-catching presentation done up in cream tolex and gold hardware.

The amp provides "clas A" power to stand out any where and anytime I've played out. I mainly use strats and teles. The amp shines. Phrasing and notes are crisp to chunky. I've yet to experiment with my semi-hollow or other humbuckers but I feel this amp will stand up to anyone's preferences. If there's one area of concern it's extranneous noise, but that could be tube break-in, grounding, or just the nature of the amp. I've not tried to tame the noise yet but I plan to investigate ways to eliminate it if possible.

Just too early to tell.

I'd expect support to be solid. Especially on any new issue amp.

So far so good. My friends raved about this amp. I have a good variety of other amps I use them for power or music style. I bought The Crat Palomino especially due to the fact that The Palomino has a unique and excellent sound quality for it's price range. I reccomend you find one and put it on your auditions list.

Made in 2005, has an overdrive and a clean channel, with some standard features like reverb. Two cool features are the presence button(no need for it to be a knob like others have said, it sounds fine and i would put the knob at 10 to get the tone), and a boost button, but i don't use the boost at all, i think it sounds really bad(But i tend to not like mids at all, and it's a mid booster). I use it in my basement and it has plenty of power, if not too much. At 1 on the volume it's already really loud, can definitely play with drums and probably drown them out with volume too. I give it a 9 because it would be nice to have separate eq's for each channel.

Right now i'm just using a squier strat and even with THAT it sounds amazing. I play mostly blues/bluesy rock and occasionaly(sp?) metal. It works great for all of those, and if you put a tubescreamer in front of overdrive channel you can get great metal tones with still being able to hear every note you produce. It can be a bit noisy, when turned up loud you have to make sure you don't have too much bass, or you sometimes can't hear the notes. The clean channel sounds great, really clean, and at high volumes, especially with the presence button on, you can get really great bluesy tones with the classic tube warmth. I think sometimes the distortion can sound thin at lower volumes, but a tubescreamer is all you need with it. I know that paragraph didn't have much structure but i'm just rambling everything that pops into my head first. It's really got an amazing sound, great lead tones, great cleans, I can't recommend it more, it's just great.

Seems pretty sturdy, yeah i'd use it without a back-up, because i have no backup. But if i did have a backup, i'd bring it, because you should always do that no matter how sturdy an amp is, you might just blow a tube who knows. It hasn't broken down, one time it didn't make noise, but i think it was either plugged in to a bad electrical socket, or my cable wasn't working right. It tends to get very hot on the metal parts, that kind of worries me, but if it becomes a huge problem, i'm just gonna take out the ventilation port alltogether.

Haven't dealt with them. I have a 1 year warranty.

I love this amp, i don't think i'll ever need another, all i need is a better guitar, and i will have the greatest tone to pass my ears, it's amazing for it's price range, no, for an amp overall. It sounds so good, i can't believe i was actually thinking between this and the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, that amp had NO good overdrive tones, they were horrible. If it was lost or stolen, i'd DEFINITELY get another one. If you have the money, and want a good tone, BUY THIS AMP NOW!

This amp is a 30 watt class A tube combo with a 1x12 configuration. It features 2 channel operation, clean and overdrive. There is reverb and presence control in the form of a button. I would like to see the presence controlled by a knob instead. It features a tolex finish that is blonde, I don't personally care that much for the look, this amp has an air of class with the gold logo and I think that a tweed type covering would have put this amp at "10" for me. Line in and line out make up the effects loop and there is a speaker out that is rated at 8 ohms, the internal speaker has a lead off of it that feeds this output. Hey Crate, next time can we make it a little easier to change the tubes? You have to remove the chassis to do this! The boost fuction is nice and can be accessed with the supplied footswitch.

This category is so subjective but I will give it a go: This amp rocks! I tested it in the store using a Peavey Wolfgang that I brought with me. I used this guitar because I use humbuckers almost exclusively live and the wolfgang kind of represents all of the humbucker equipped guitars that I own. I also have a strat and this amp really came alive when I plugged it in. I think I might be going back to strats for the majority of my playing!! The tone was that good! The amp was very dynamic and responsive to my strat and I think this amp really shines with single coil pick-ups. Both clean and overdrive. In my opinion, you can't get much better for the money.

No issues yet.

No dealings with them yet.

I have played one instrument or another all my life and I have been through a lot of gear to achieve a tone that I have heard in my head since I started playing guitar. This amp honestly comes the closest and the more I plat through it, the more I think I found it. Would I buy it again? no doubt! I actually would like to get another and set up a stereo rig.

Features have been covered already. I'm not going to waste anyone's time here.

Here is where this amp shines and also fails miserably. Speaking in terms of tone, I think this amp is amazing in the under $1000 category and even holds its own against some really expensive amps. I prefer the clean channel at about 5-6, amount of breakup controlled by the guitar volume. The OD channel is good too but I just prefer the tone of powertube breakup. GREAT blues tone and with the boost it sounds fantastic for solo's.

Here's the problem: This amp is NOISY! Am I the only one who has this problem? At first I thought it was a defective model so I returned it for another one but it behaved exactly the same. For starters there is a lot more hum, (even on the clean channel), than any other tube amp I have owned or used. I bought this amp for recording as well as small to medium gigs. Don't think I am an idiot for not noticing it when I bought it. Have you ever been in a Guitar Center on a Saturday afternoon? It's LOUD in there. Anyway, when I got it home and heard the hum I figured I would just deal with it and get a different amp for recording but THIS AMP PICKS UP AM RADIO!!! No kidding! Both of them! And it wasn't just like a mild signal in the background, it was very obvious and annoying. I am not going to bring an amp on stage that is going to broadcast Art Bell to the audience, lol. Also, when the volume on my guitar is at zero, there is more noise than if it was at 10 and not playing any notes. Again, I am not basing this off a single experince. I play a newer fender deluxe strat which originally had the noiseless pickups and S-1 switching. I tried to like these pickups but they really don't make a strat sound the way it is supposed to, plus I found the S-1 switching useless. When I heard all the noise and radio that this amp produced, I figured that there had to be ground loops in the S-1 wiring. I changed the pickups to Van Zandt's and also rewired the guitar to the modern stock configuration (minus the ridiculous ground loops on the tone pots). Plug the guitar in and, "Good evening lady's and gentlemen and welcome to Coast to Coast AM"... Same problem when guitar volume is on zero... Buzzzzzzz! Long story short, I took this amp back and am saving my money towards something that can produce similiar great tone without the noise. If this amp produced even an average amount of noise, I would give it a 9 in this price bracket, about an 8 for any price bracket. With the noise it is not even usable for me.

I checked out everything inside the chasis and it looks pretty decent, especially in this price range. The transformers aren't the best, but I would worry about the cabinet getting chewed up before any mechanical issues presented themselve. EL-84's die fast in class A combo's. Ask any AC-30 owner. This would probably be the biggest reliability sore spot. Carry some spares to a gig.

I didn't keep it long enough to find out.

I've been playing for around 12 years and have owned lots of gear in the past. I am over that phase now and try to keep my music gear to a minimum as I find that too many toys takes away from just playing the friggin' guitar. This was not my first Crate amp, however I am sad to say that it was my last. I owned a Vintage Club 6210 (60 watt 2x10 tube combo) which produced some annoying crossover distortion on the clean channel. I called up Crate and was informed that this was the nature of the beast. I also owned a VFX5212 (V Series 50 watt 2x12 tube combo) which worked flawlessly. This was a great amp but was way too powerful to use anywhere but a decent sized gig. I was hoping this 30 watter would be the one but unfortunately my search continues.

All the typical Features of a Combo amp but it does have a cool "Boost" feature that really brings out the mid-range for my SG Standard which is nice when trying to play some back-up to the lead guitar. Other than that this is the first really nice amp I have owned so im not 100% sure what constitutes a 10....hence the 9 as all the basics are there and they look really sharp on the amp. Hey....showmanship is part of the experience :)

I surrently use a Gibson SG Standard with all the regular features and the only thing in my path right now its a Boss TU-2 tuner. The Sound is incredible. Very meaty on the distortion when playing power chords to really rock. Kinda shakes me and my friends when im playing with them because of the nice low-end bass tone that is brought out with the SG. The clean is also very nice and really "CLEAN" but even when you turn it up, as with all tubes, it gets a little gritty for rocking hard while still being able to hear each note you play. The style of music I play suits this amp quite well playing mostly classic rock, metal, current rock, alt rock and even a little blues with those nice bass and mid-range tones accompanied by an almost seperate high-range that sounds great on the clean channel.

Havent had any problems so far but I have only been playing it for a week now. Havent noticed, however, the "hot knobs" issue that a few others have commented on. Seems pretty rock solid to me.

havent dealt with them, thankfully, and I hope I wont (knock on wood)

Ive been playing since about the 6th grade (so...roughly 11yrs) and finally decided to step it up after owning a fernandes POS but playing my 1986 Alvarez Acoustic for most of those 11yrs. I went out to GC and bought a complete setup with a Gibson SG, TU-2, and this amp (with cables, etc...) and compared this amp literally side by side with the Fender Hot Rod Delux, Marshall JCM2000 DSL-401, VOX AC-30, Mesa-Boogie Double Rec. with 4x12 cab (we can dream cant we?) and a Crate Voodoo half stack.

For the money, you cannot buy a better amp stright out of the box that will sound as nice. The problem with the other amps, with the exception of the Mesa, is that even clean they sounded gritty and are really meant as rock amps. This is all fine and good and no knock on the other amps becuase as rock amps they do a great job but for versatility and playability the Crate V32 is the best amp for the money you will find.

If it were lost or stolen...I would most likely go on some sort of vigilante hunt for the purp and hang them upside down by their toes and take it back, if that didnt work then YES, I would get another one if it were lost or stolen.

Everyone has probably gone over these. So I wont.

One feature the last guy missed, however, was the overdrive level. A little tinkering and getting it set up right will make the clean/overdrive transition with no loss of volume.

A line out would be nice, but other then that it has the features I want in an amp. So I give it a 9.

I am using a John Mayer sig strat with mine, and I have been able to get an excellent tone out of it. Its a little noisy when just using one pickup, but its a strat and is to be expected.

I pretty much play rock, blues, and the such. This amp is one of the best in its pricerange for there genres. Fender's cleans are great, but the overdrive is really lacking. The cleans on this Crate are very good, but the overdrive is where this amp really shines.

In the short time I have had this amp i've been able to dial in many artist's sounds, as well as making my own. As long as its not metal, you should be able to find a tone you like. Try it out.

There are better amps than this, but not in this pricerange. I would give it a 10 if the rating was for amps under $1000.

I have only used it extensively for a few days, so I have no clue.

One thing that really struck me when I first played it was that it was a crate. Every one I had played before the V series was nothing special...at all.

Never dealt with them.

I have been playing for 2 years now, but most of that was exclusively acoustic. About six months ago I decided to take my playing to a new level so I purchased a Taylor 712ce.

I did my homework on this, and found this was the amp for me. As with nearly everything, try it out first to make sure you like it.

I cant wait until the summer when I have this amp and my guitar paid off and I can invest in some Keeley pedals :)

To conclude: In its pricerange it is hard to beat, very hard. Again, if I was rating amps under $1000 it would be a 10, cause I have yet to find an amp that I like better.

See CRATE site for features. This beauty was made in the USA in 2005. No rattles or hums and don't mind any 'Drop off's' from the 'Boost' switch(although I haven't noticed that on mine)and I do not use it anyway, I use an Ibanez Tube Screamer...turn it up and just slam. I play mostly blues and classic rock, some hand picking slow stuff to impress the ladies late at night but that's it. I gig in small to mid size clubs and my Palomino cuts through the mix and then some. No issues. I was contemplating replcing the speaker with a tone tubby hemp but haven't decided yet. Have faith in this amp on stage, believe me! it's great for Rock, Blues, Alternative, Country...probably not Heavy or Death Metal although the Overdrive kicks but...otherwise you can dial in your sound with not much effort if you know what you are doing. This blows fenders away and the reverb is awesome, it also has a very clean glassy sound I love. A great class A amp with boutique amp looks.

I play an American Fender Stratocaster with dual humbuckers, a Seymour Duncan 59 and a Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates Plus in the bridge position. Suits my playing great. Again Classic Rock, Blues, Blues rock...Ok Ok Country. The single coil position sounds distinctive and clear vintage sweet through the Palomino so I can only imagine how much nicer say a Fender 57 reissue would sound thhough it. The distortion can get close to some Marshall's but...it's not a Marshall of course. I'm sure with the right stomp box you can get your sound. This amp gets a lot of compliments on stage. Crate Should make a Blond V50 212.

This amp is built well. The cardboard backing worried me a bit but it has held up nicely. The rattan front grill is sweet although a bit loose but again no issues with it. Never has broken doen on me, I have a 5 year warranty anyway. For the bucks pick up a backup just like it.

Never had to deal with Crate. Knock on wood.

I've been playing long enough to know that I should be better by now and the sound of a great amp. If it were stolen I would kill that person. Take his money and buy another.
I love that the Palomino V32 is a compact amp, straight forward in design and delivers the goods. I have compared it with many amps of this type and not of this type-you'll be hard pressed to get these tones from another amp at this price ($550.00 I think, bought it in Los Angeles). Gigs like a mo fo' no problems playing at clubs.

This is a 2005 amp. the amp offers two channels (clean and OD), Effects Loop, Pedal for switching BOOST on or off, and between OD and clean. The review before this one complains of the foot switch. He is correct. There is a slight delay when switching from OD to clean, but no delay from clean to OD. I can see where this could be a problem playing live. I tried a BOSS foot switch and it did the same thing. I agree, crate needs to fix the problem. The amp is a CLASS A amp, with EL84 power tubes. Comparing the components of the V30 series vs. the Palomino, there is a big difference in the control knobs. the control knobs on the V30 are very cheap ! they even wiggle. the Palomino has very solid high quality control knobs. You can tell the Palomino is better built. It also has a better speaker. The tech guy at crate says there's no difference between the two, I think he's full of CRAP ! It also has a Different Speaker(Celestion), Better quality controls and I believe it has tube reverb. I don't care for GOLD, i like the looks of the V30, but it doesn't sound as good. Believe me I know, I had a V30.

Well Well Well, I must say what a great sounding amp. I never knew what a tube amp sounded like until buying this baby. Oh, don't get me wrong, I have had many many tube amps. Everyone told me, BUY A TUBE Amp, You'll LOVE IT. So, I'd buy one and go hmmmmm whats so great. They'd say, turn that BABY UP !!, I'd say... oh yeah BABY !! my ears are BLEEDING. But, with this amp the amp always sounds good even at low volume. Its got a great OD channel unlike the FENDER HOT RODS. You would think Fender could make an amp that has great OD. they got the clean and reverb down, but really lack in OD. Marshall is the opposite, great OD not so great CLEAN. You wood think these guys with all the money they have could come up with one amp that has a MARSHALL OD and a Fender CLean and Fender Reverb, how hard can it BE !!! ANYWAY, this crate amp doesn't have a fender clean, but its still a nice warm clean, but not the head room of a lot of fenders. The OD reminds me of a Marshall, but a little smoother. The reverb is OK, but best kept low when using the OD. I like the amp a lot, well worth the MONEY. I actually played the MESA BOOGIE lone star special before buying this. Yes, i was willing to fork out $1700 for the lone star. But, I thought the CRATE sounded just as good or better.
the lone star does offer a little more in the cotrol department. This amp has a great warm tone with great blues OD, not metal. Thus, it deserves a 9, well done crate. TOOK YOU A WHILE, but you finally got it right with this amp. Your VOOODOOO line was really POOR.

About one year with no problems. No rating, I'll update in 5 years.

I emailed to ask for some info, since the manual is usless !!! The tech guy answered my questions, but didn't make too much effort in the replies.

As we all know, it difficult to find what you want. Its fun trying and buying amps if you have the BUCK$. We all know that when it comes to playing guitar, we want an amp with FEEL. Must capture all the nuiancess (spelled wrong, i think) from our fingers. I think its a JOKE that an amp needs to be played FULL BLAST to get great tone. I think this CRATE does a great job of obtaining great tone at low/high volume. I think the amp has great smooth OD that we all love. I think the amp sounds just as good as a $2000 amp. I know, I've had them. Man, I want another, just in case they stop building them.

The amp sounded great at Guitar center, actually discovered it test driving an Eric Johnson strat, bought the V32 palomino instead. loved the easy overdrive, while keeping the tone of the guitar. I play blues, pop and jazz.

Sound at home very different from sound at the Guitar Center. My amp right out the box, muddy, not articulate, single coil or humbuckers. very disapointing. Hum sounds like UFO landing in the room. No clean sounds at all

I don't think so, was playing it the first day I got it and after 15mins of play the control knobs were so hot I couldn't touch them. Called Guitar Center right then and was told to come in and exchange it. Tomorrow I will do that and hopefully bring home the machine I originally fell in love with. Own lots of custom strats, 335, LP, epiphone's, washburns....and multiple amps. I want this V32 to work out. Hopefully they all won't get so hot.

N/A, guitar center taking care of it

Been playing guitar 5 years plus, own Gibson's335,LP, Epi, Casino, Martin John Mayer, Fender John Matyer, Fender Eric Johnson, Fender 52 tele, Fender 54 masterbuilt, customshop 51 esquire, and a washburn J-6 jazz box. Amps= Fender blues junior / jensen speaker, a baseman, mesa boogie lone ranger... love the diversity of sound. I thought after test driving the V32 palomino I was in love for 599.. stood up agin`

This amp had the features that I was looking for, a small class A tube amp with enough power to play clubs, clean and overdrive channels with vintage tone, anything else is just extra frills to me. The real problem is that when switching from the overdrive to the clean it drops out for what seems like an eternity. This caused the amp to be useless to me and I returned it after one evening of getting acquainted. What a shame because this amp sounds great, a real disappointment. HEY CRATE, fix this issue and will go buy it again. I have to rate a 3 until this is resolved

This amp sounds great. I play country, rock and blues and this amp will do it all. The clean channel is very bright and pronounced and the overdrive channel can range from a little bluesey crunch to rock distortion. The tone is pheonominal. I love vintage tone like that of the old tube amps and this amp has it with the features of the modern era. Then you discover the drop out when switching from the clean to the overdrive channel and all this becomes meaningless if your desire is to use both channels in a gigging situation. My rating for this catagory is based solely on the sound of each channel individually discounting the switching flaw.

Didn't have it long enough to determine reliability. It appeared to be well built.

Never dealt with them but I hope they fix the channel switching issue.

I've been playing for 30+ years and I have owned and currently own numerous tube amps including Marshalls, Fenders, Univoxes, Pignoses and others. I have many different guitars including those I build to suit my preferences. This amp was just what I was looking for until I discovered the channel switching flaw outlined above. My overall rating for this amp would be a 9 if no for this issue.

You've read the list.

The Boost feature is terrific and works - put that solo right out there. Great that it's on the footswitch too!!

The OD channel actually sounds phenominal! Was so impressed - an actual, TONEFUL, multi-channel amp with seperate volumes and a boost active on each channel. No need for a bunch of stomps with this amp - perfect for the grab-n-go player. Very portable!

Plenty of headroom for all kinds of venues and cuts thru the mix live...really held its own on stage.

Only downside so far is access to the tubes - a bit hard to get at - probably have to pull the chassis.

Wonderful tones! Not 3-D, but really great all-around tone - very useful for the club settings (need a solid tone bed).

Strat/Tele sounded killer. Used for rock/country/americana. Could see use in blues and jazz settings too. Nice reverb. Pretty quiet even on the OD channel.

New amp, no idea. Will see.

New amp, no idea. Will see.

If you're considering the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, pick up the Palomino...much better amp IMO. OD channel is actually useful and sounds GREAT!! Plus the footswitchable boost on both channels - very useful!

Crate started stepping up to the plate with the Voodoo series and this one is an out-of-the-park hit. Should really give the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe a run for it's market-share life! I have the HRDx, bought before the Palomino hit the streets. Wish I'd have waited a bit longer before tweaking the HRDx (tubes, speakers, other mods) to get it 'right'.

Palomino is a great amp for the money! Interested to see how it holds up over time.

Made in 2005
Versatile enough for chicken-pickin' country to AC/DC.
Don't use, or haven't learned to use the OD channel live because it sounds good cranked and I use OD pedals or micro-amp to kick it into crunchville.
Reverb is the BEST. Out surfs even Fender - very rich and creamy.
Power is good for small to medium size clubs. Cuts through the mix due to accentuated mids / highs in tone control voicing. Be careful because the highs are much sharper than say a Fender blackface or DeVille. You should test it with your ears at speaker level or tilt it up where you can hear the actual tone because it sounds much darker at ear level five-six feet above the speaker than it does to the audience or mic. It won't hang with a 50 watt 2-12 Marshall, but even with less wattage it will surely hang with most Fenders other than a twin.

Use stock EJ strat, American standard tele and old Les Paul Juniors with P-90-s.

Clean sound is absolutely fabulous with the Strat and Tele. It will actually change your playing - makes you want to hang on to the notes because you can actually hear them ring. Very, very glassy. Tone blew me away.

Crunhes nicely when driven hard, but it has a surprising amount of headroom in the clean channel (loud and clean), which is a good thing. If you want crunch at a lower colume, use the OD channel or your stomp boxes.

Haven't had it that long, but have used cranked on several gigs and leave it on for a couple of hours at a time. It runs hot, but no problems so far.

I've been playing over 35 years and currently have a brownface '61 Bandmaster with 3-10s, a '79 50-watt Marshall 2204 w/2-12 Avatar Celestion cabinet and a Kendrick Gig-rig. They are all great amps and all do something different. Volume-wise the Crate and the Kendrick are about equal. The Kendrick has more of a "tweed on steroids sound" and the Crate takes the place of a blackface in my collection - it sounds better clean, and has better reverb(can't believe I said that, but it's true). Definitely the best $600 amp out there and sounds better than most amps costing over 4x as much.

From the Crate Website:

The V3112 is an enhanced single channel amp that operates in Class A configuration, and generates 30 watts RMS through a single 12" Celestion speaker. The Class A circuit essentially runs the Groove Tubes(TM) EL84's at full output at all times. For the tone and feel fanatic, this provides instant response, dramatic wolf tones and harmonics which are the hallmark of these classic circuit designs. The V3112 has internal spring reverb unit to produce a huge, wet sound, and quite possibly may be the best sounding 30 watt class A tube amp in the market.

The clean on this amp is very chimey and clear. Especially with a single coil guitar. A Strat or Tele sound fantastic on this amp. Best clean I have heard in a sub $1,000 amp. The overdrive is similar to a Marshall but has its own characteristics. It has plenty of gain for hard rock or even metal. Very versatile amp that can cover a lot of ground.

The boost feature is great for breaking into a lead. It cuts through very well and is just the right amount for getting on top of the mix. It boosts the volume +10db @ 900 Hz only. Not sure what the previous reviewer was talking about.

The precen

No problems yet. Too early to tell but the 5 year warranty is pretty good insurance.

Took 24 hours to return an email question. I guess that is pretty decent but no other experience.

This is a great amp for the money. I compared it to a Hot Rod Deville, Hot Rod Deluxe, Peavey Classic 30, and a few others as well. The sounds this thing puts out simply blows them a away. Even the clean stomps all over the fenders, which is simply unheard of.

However, after all the praise their are a few drawbacks. When switching from overdrive to clean there is a slight delay. For most applications this is not a huge deal but for recording it is unacceptable.

And they do have some rattles at high volumes. I realize that any combo is going to have few rattles and buzzes its just the nature of the beast but to my finely tuned ears it is annoying.

But all amps have their quirks and these two are pretty minor. All in all this one hit the mark and gives you great tube tone for not a lot of bills.

Bought it brand new from GC here in Indianapolis.
Very easy to use, it also has a 'boost' feature which bypasses the tone stack to give you a volume boost. Simple but effective.
Cons are that the eq (tone stack) could be more versatile -- I don't care for the frequency of the highs, and the bass is a bit woofy. Just being nit-picky here.

I build and modify effects and preamps, so I've had the opportunity to play through a ton of different equipment. This sounds very good - especially for the money. Rather than me tell you what it sounds like, here is a mp3 soundclip you can download:
http://www.indyguitarist.com/soundclips2/crate-palomino-32.mp3

So far so good. The crate tube amps are known for rattles. Let me tell you how to fix it...it's an easy fix and suprises me that Crate doesn't do this.

Note that if you know nothing about electricity, or tube amps, don't do this. If you are unsure how to drain the caps, don't do this. If you even have a hint in your mind that you aren't sure, take it to a nearby tech and tell him to do the following suggestion. **NOTE** tube amps CAN AND DO STORE voltage, even when unplugged, as much as several hundred volts which could very very easily kill you. I'm not responsible if you hurt yourself trying to do this!!

Disclaimer aside, open up the unit by unscrewing it from the cab. Drain all the caps and any areas that are known to store electricity. Where the screws went through the cabinet and attached to the case itself there are brackets holding a nut. This is what is rattling. Simply take some hot glue or similar substance and glue the nut so it doesn't rattle.

**note!** Did I mention that working on tube amps is very very dangerous and not to do this if you are not a qualified tech? Well then don't do this unless you are a qualified tech! Take it to your local tech w/ a case of beer and a glue stick and tell him to get busy.

St. Louis music is a very good company to work with.

I actually prefer the tone of the v16...but the v32 has an effects loop which I need. Also, I didn't feel like tearing the v16 apart just to install one. I go through amps like I change underwear, more out of fun than anything else..I can usually get my tone on just about anything, but the Crate is very responsive and is a great value. Good tones are definately possible with this amp.

come on guys-does anyone play out
yes this amp sounds amazing

but when you go form the overdrive channel back to the clean there is a terrible drop-out-which renders this channel changing cabability with this amp in a gig setting-utterly useless!

i sugeest we all call crate and ask them to improve the relay mechanism--so that this the channel changing is actually useable
i really am amazed that no one caught this yet--
u guys should get a little better and picking this stuff up
I mean this is your hard earned money

i am really bummed because i love the sounds in thi samp
i was going to sell my marshall dsl for similar reasons and more ,to buy the polomino- but the the crate has a worse drop out than with my marshall-which occurs when going from clean to dirty ( on the marshall)

OK let me be the next moron to say "I thought I would never own a Crate". Just the name says it all. "Hey I just bought a new CRATE!" Your friend's response...Oh. Well it does rhyme with GREAT. Brand new 2005 Crate Palomino. Other amps I own are Marshall 1987X, '71 Fender Twin, Vox AC30CC, Vox AD50VT, '65 Fender Bassman, etc. Always looking for great tone and this amp delivers. It is built in the USA. (what something not made in China?) but I don't think the build quality is that great. The amp section is all built on a circuit board and all components are mounted to the board. This includes pots, jacks, tubes, everything. This always scares me because if a simple thing like a jack breaks you are in for a major repair and a hard to find part. The pots and internal parts are not the best quality. It all works, it just doesn't look like it's going to last. Some might prefer a Greenback or Vintage Celestion speaker but the speaker is fine. The amp now comes with Groove Tubes for the 4- EL 84 and Sovtechs for the 3-12AX7s. I'm not a big Groove Tube fan but at least they opted for a better set of tubes. BTW the EL84 Groove Tubes are the "R" type which are Russian made and not the best. Previous to this Palomino I went through 3 before I got one that worked without problems. One had a horendous loud noise intermittent noise, the other 2 had snap, crackle, pops, most likely tube related issues. (note: these were of the first shipment and now they have come with Groove Tubes) I almost gave up on this amp but the tone keeps bringing you back. The cabinent back in made out of masonite. (cardboard). Not good. The gold hardware, although kind of cool looking, I'm sure in a year or so look pretty shabby. I would prefer chrome metal. The tolex is fine but I see discoloration in the Blonde, almost like it was dirty right out of the box. Maybe this is the custom "aged look". I doubt it. It comes with a pedal switch for Clean/Drive and the Boost. I would love to have the "Presence" on the foot switch too. The internal speaker is pluged into a jack on the back of the cabinent so you can disconnect it and use this jack for extenal 8 ohm speakers if you want to. It also has a line out, line in. Pretty basic controls, standard stuff, straight forward design. The buttons for "boost", "presence" are suspect. Time will tell. One smart thing CRATE did was leave their logo off the front of this amp. The logo on the front of the amp is a gold "V32" which no one knows what the hell that is so they have to assume it some cool esoteric amp. That fine by me. I can live with being a Crate person if no one knows. No endorsement for me thanks.

I play a stock '04 American Strat most of the time. I also use a '76 Strat with SD Hot Rails a Epi Les Paul sometimes. I have a ton of guitars but these are the ones I gig with. I play 5 hours a day, sometimes more. A lot of local shows and recording and practicing. The tone is what this amp is all about. I don't think it's made particularly well but it does have a great sound. It has the "boutique" amp chime in the clean mode and a great singing harmonic crank sound. I have not taken this amp on stage yet so I'm not sure if it's enough for live gigging but it does make a great recording amp. What I feel is the best part of the sound is the way it breaks up or the harmonic distortion. It seems to distort at musical frequencies. This adds a feel and response to the strings that enhances my playing. In other words it just feels good. The sound of this amp is seductive. (Did I really say that?) I really do enjoy playing through this amp and I have a hard time pulling myself away to get other work done. It keeps calling me back. That's a pretty good endorsement.

I don't have a whole lot of confidence after going through 3 amps to find a good one. I have not be gigging with this amp yet. I don't trust it. It's going to be doing some studio until it earns a little confidence. I am hoping that this thing won't come apart in time.