Guitar amp-maker Crate is shipping two new product lines, one of which comes equipped with a USB port, making it easy for computer users to record their guitar playing.
The Crate Profiler 5 is a mini five-watt combo guitar amp that is less than eight inches tall and weighs six pounds. The amp can be powered from an AC power supply or from six AA batteries, making it portable for guitar players to travel with.
A mini-jack input also allows users to plug in an iPod and play along with songs.
The amp emulates 11 vintage and modern amplifiers, which are selectable on the top panel. Several stereo DSP effects including chorus, flange, auto-wah, tremolo, phaser, octave and rotary speaker simulator are also selectable from the top panel -- delay, reverb and tone controls have their own dedicated controls. Gain and master volume knobs, a 440Hz (A string) tone generator, on/off switch with power LED and 1/4-inch input jack round out the controls on the amp.
Crate's Profile 5 has a street price of US$159.99. We will have a review of the Profiler 5 in the coming weeks.
V-Series tube amps
Crate's foray into USB-equipped mini amps hasn't taken up all of its resources -- the company also began shipping the V-Series tube amps. The tube amps include single- and dual-channel models ranging in power from five- to 50-watts
One feature common to all of the new models is a power-switching power supply. A voltage switch on the back panel allows the guitarist to play virtually anywhere in the world without having to invest in expensive and bulky voltage transformers, according to Crate.
The V-Series starts with a five-watt V5 combo priced at $299.99 and tops out with the 33-watt, dual-channel V33-212 that costs $789.99. There are nine models in the V-Series line-up.
More information on all of the amps can be found on Crate's Web site.
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