From a repair standpoint, at the shop I help out in, we see more Crate stuff come in for repair than just about any other brand, except maybe Line 6, and both brands are usually more to repair than the resell value of the amp. That, and the other thing is that the Line 6 Bass amps sound like ass and the Crate stuff that I've heard is not much better. I think the posters that are putting brands like Crate and Kustom as the best are being VERY sarcastic. That said Crate does make some inexpensive stuff that will get a beginner by or maybe work for a practice amp, but after as many I've seen in the shop, I would NEVER trust one for live performances, plus I think they sound awful. Surprisingly, for inexpensive gear, we rarely see Behringer stuff come in the shop -- maybe because people see Behringer as being disposable? But there are a few Behringer bass amps that sound really good for the money.
OK, that's the cheap stuff. For a "good" amp (sound, reliability, transportability, etc) you can ask 10 different bass players and get 10 different answers. You've got people that love/hate this brand or that brand. I have some Ampeg stuff that was USA made before they moved most (or all?) their production overseas and it sounds amazing (US made 8x10 and US made SVT 6-Pro), but just because I like it doesn't mean you will. And newer Ampeg stuff seems to have a lot of quality control issues (so we're back to reliability). And my Ampeg gear is HEAVY - that rig now only gets used where the "look" of an 8x10 is important, but talk about punching you right in the chest! I own some of the better Ashdown gear as well (ABM EVO II and ABM EVO III, various US made Ashdown cabs), also sounds amazing (to me) and has so far been reliable, but lacks some of the punch I like for rock gigs. I also have a Fender Bassman Pro 400 2x10 combo -- this is the worst sounding of my current lineup and least reliable - in fact it's on my bench at home right now for yet another repair (which I luckily can do myself). But I use that amp to leave at one of the rehearsal spots I have to go on a weekly basis so I don't have to cart an amp every time. Although it's not mine, one of the bands I regularly fill in with carts all the stage gear in a single trailer, so when I fill in, I get to use the other bass player's rig -- a Mesa M600 into a Carvin BX 4x10 - all I can say about that rig is WOW! My personal go to rig for pretty much everything else now is an Aguilar TH500 and a Glasstone Lil-G cab, as of now I can't imagine spending money on anything else, but I'm sure I will at some point.
Play EVERYTHING you can and make a decision on what's best for you, not what someone else tells you is good, however take my heed on Crate and Line-6 from above - I don't trust 'em to be reliable and that is a very important aspect of your gear, especially if you are out playing live a lot.
there's even a tuner in that thing.
