Found in the discard area in our practice building. September 3rd on the fringes of Allston Rat City. I already play a live rig put together of stuff I found in a trash heap (Fender Deluxe 112 Plus, ZT Lunchbox with repurposed 15" PA cab as extension), so this fits right in.
It's a Crate GLX212, probably from the earliest years of the 2000s. Three channels - Clean, Rhythm, and Solo. I only have use for it as a clean pedal platform. It's a bit thin, but I only spent an hour with it and had the EQ working in my favor, and I feel like with more tweaking, I can make it workable. But it clearly seems made for scoopy metal, not middy garage punk.
(The cabinet is just coincidentally Crate, it's clearly just a random PA cab from a few years earlier missing it's twin.)
Seems to be "of its era" in that it appears to be an analog solid state amp with a multi effect DSP module on the way out, which I'd prefer to contemporary modelling amps. The effects are weird combinations of things, but a few are "just reverb", so... cool.
I'd give it a B- so far as a gigging amp (clean pedal platform only), but a B+ as a free find -- loud enough to jam with my loud drummer and my Rat sounded like a Rat, but not exactly inspiring. It pales in comparison to the SS Deluxe 112 Plus, which is lower wattage and half the speakers. My old SF Bassman Ten is my ear's platonic ideal, so open back amps still sound off to me, and it's not like this one's a t0anz machine anyway. Still, it could serve a purpose at some point.
I just hate seeing amps with life left in them get dumpster'd. So, I'll use it to be super loud in our practice space alongside my usual setup, clean it up inside and out, make sure all the jacks and pots get checked, and either keep it or give it to one of my nephews or a friend in need in a few years.
Anybody have one of these or its GLX Series-mates back in your teen years? Tips? Tricks?
