Crate CPB150 PowerBlock Review
The smallest, loudest amp you'll
ever play through.
By Burt Shoals
About the size and weight of my wah
pedal, Crate's new
PowerBlock is the loudest amp I've ever played through. Running 75W
RMS per side stereo or 150W mono, it's among the most powerful
production guitar amps built, yet I can stash it in the glove box of my
Honda.
 Secret
weapon
I play in a hard rock/punk/grunge band (depending on our mood) and share
the stage with the world's hardest-hitting drummer (he buys drumsticks
by the gross). In the interest of balance, our bass player's 250W rig
sports not one but two 18" speakers. As the only guitarist in the band,
I've been hard-pressed, even with my 100W head and full stack, to be
heard above the din.
When I got the
Crate PowerBlock for review I actually laughed as I pulled it out of
the box. My buddy Brad at Musician's Friend had said it was a 150W head,
but at 10" x 3" and weighing 4-1/2 lbs., it looked more like your
average DI box. Intrigued, I hooked it up to the
Crate GT112SL cab Brad sent along, plugged in my Les Paul, set the
gain and level controls straight up, and let 'er rip.
The volume was intense! I could not
believe how loud this little sucker was. I was reminded of that scene in
Back to the Future where Marty plugs into the ceiling-high amp, hits a
chord, and blows himself through the wall.
I showed up at our warehouse-party gig
with the PowerBlock's heavily padded carrying case slung over my
shoulder. "Where's your head?" the bass player asked. "Got it right
here," I said nonchalantly. He watched with furrowed brow as I separated
the cabs in my stack and plugged in my pedalboard and the PowerBlock. I
cranked the gain and the level and launched into the intro to
"Outshined." Everyone in the band stared at me with their mouths open.
For the first time my solos soared effortlessly above the drums and
bass. I had to laugh when the break finally came and the drummer asked
me to turn down; he couldn't hear himself. "Now you know how it feels!"
I chortled gleefully.
The real goods
But the
PowerBlock is more than just small and loud. The thing actually
sounds great. It's designed for compatibility with signal processing
equipment like amp modelers and floor pedals. It amplified the signal
from my POD with perfect clarity for a truly bold sound. When I cranked
the gain knob it began to impart a musically pleasing distortion that
blended easily with the distortion from my POD. And I could get a huge
amount of volume without introducing noticeable distortion from the
PowerBlock.
I was particularly impressed with the
PowerBlock's response to my wah pedal. The amp provides a rich output,
with a broad enough frequency range to really make the most of a good
wah sound. Its stereo capabilities make it particularly friendly toward
stereo chorus effects and longer delays.
With a quality guitar (such as my
fabulous 335) plugged into it, the
PowerBlock doesn't need any signal processing at all to sound great.
It has loads of headroom and a nice, gentle power curve that makes
getting the right volume a breeze. The low, mid, and high EQ controls
provide adequate sound-shaping for everything from burning high-sustain
leads to earthy, muted, jazz tones.
 Killer
connections
A 1/4" headphone jack on the front makes the PowerBlock a handy little
headphone amp. Its 1/4" instrument in, stereo CD inputs, and effects
loop make it easy to jam out quietly into your headphones with all your
pedals working (and without a load on the power amp). This, combined
with speaker-simulator circuitry, makes the sound you hear in the
headphones the same sound you've spent so much time shaping for live
performance, rather than some cheesy headphone-amp effects.
Of course, the RCA CD inputs let you
amplify prerecorded music along with your guitar for lone jamming
through your speakers. (Speaking of speakers, I was really impressed
with the hefty 100W-handling 12" Celestion in the
GT112SL Musician's Friend sent me. It's righteously powerful and
full-sounding for a single 12. And the cab even has a handy little stash
place inside with Velcro straps to hold your PowerBlock.)
Stereo line-in jacks let you plug in
the stereo output from your effects for stereo amplification. 1/4"
speaker outs are left, right, and mono. Hit the bridge mono button to
drive a single eight-ohm cab or use the left and right speaker outs to
run stereo to two four-ohm cabs. Daisy-chain another cab to each of
these and you can easily drive four 12" speakers.
There's a balanced XLR line out with a
level control to let you run the
PowerBlock directly into the board or into your recording equipment.
The signal out is enhanced by the same speaker-simulating circuitry
heard on the headphones. I tried it as a DI into my digital recording
system and it performed admirably. A switch mode power supply means it
will work anywhere in the world.
 Cool
looks, cool temp
The anodized aluminum housing looks like a clever way to design in heat
fins, but I couldn't get this thing to heat up no matter how hard I
drove it. The new technology in the
Power Block is too complex to go into here, but the result is
nothing short of astonishing--super-high power in a tiny package that's
phenomenally lightweight and ultra-cool running. It's clean enough you
could use it as a backup keyboard, bass, or vocal amp.
Crate has an undeniable winner with the
CPB150 PowerBlock. If you want monster sound without breaking your
back or your bankroll, this is the ticket.
If you want to plug in a CD player or
drum machine, the PowerBlock features RCA inputs on the back. The
balanced line out has a level control to DI your sound to the "house" in
a live situation. The single triangular blue LED indicates that the
PowerBlock is on. The included padded gig bag, allows you to carry it or
hang it from the shoulder strap, depending on the other gear you are
taking with you.
The switch-mode supply and Class D power section provides lightweight,
excellent tone and great power. The anodized aluminum housing assures
cooling to the unit while it is in use.
Once again, we are bringing you a really cool new product designed by
players for players. There is nothing else like the Crate PowerBlock! |
