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Crest Audio CA9 Now I understand.

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#41
pickles said:
For $50 you can have an authorized tech mod the gain on a QSC PLX to get ...............


If you want to make an informed choice you need to have a level playing field. If you don't care about a level playing field and want to buy what makes you feel the best that is fine, but recommending it to others based on that might not be fair to them.
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Bullcrap. Thats for an Amp manufacturer to do not me. If Crest makes an Amp that comes factory stock better suited for us Bass Players then so be it. I have no need to Level the Playing Field for somone else. They need to pull their on Brithces up.

Good Grief, I am in no way doing anyone a disservice by talking about how wonderful the CA9 is and how it really is setup well for Bass Playing. I'm doing them a Favor.

Uh the other Amp makers dont have the nice Gain the CA9 has guys so instead of getting a CA9 you need to get another brand, spend money on it to have it modded, and feel you done your part to Level the Playing Field.

ROTFLMBFFAO ;)
 
#42
NOLA Bass said:
Guys, all I'll say is be careful. It was my rack setup with QSC, Ashdown pre, tuner, lighted power cond. that put me in the hospital with 2 discs being replaced. For all those Crest lovers, I'll just say, use 2 racks and don't be afraid to ask a band member for help (especially going up stairs). However, I bet these rigs are killer!
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Sorry for your troubles.

Shoot that is what got me started down this road in the first place.

I've been Playing massive Tube Rigs for decades and recently had 4 Vertabrae in my Spine Rebuilt along with 3 Discs replaced. I have a neck full of Steel, Rubber, and Bolts.


I though I'd go to a lighter SS setup and give myself a break. I started out by going from a Mesa Bass 400 Plus, Mesa 4x10, and Mesa 2x15 to an Ampeg SVT3Pro and SVT HLF.

Then to get the kind of rump I had to start with I added another 4x10 and QSC Amp but then I had this montrosity of a Rig. It was back huge again.

So I decided to chunk all of that and go to the SWR Pre and Cab and a 2600 watt Lightwieght Poweramp. The Amp just didnt cut it.

So now I have a CA9 in there. It is still lighter than the Ampeg and Poweramp in rack setup.

There is just no Substitute for a V8.
 
#43
Red Planet said:
Bullcrap. Thats for an Amp manufacturer to do not me. If Crest makes an Amp that comes factory stock better suited for us Bass Players then so be it. I have no need to Level the Playing Field for somone else. They need to pull their on Brithces up.

Good Grief, I am in no way doing anyone a disservice by talking about how wonderful the CA9 is and how it really is setup well for Bass Playing. I'm doing them a Favor.

Uh the other Amp makers dont have the nice Gain the CA9 has guys so instead of getting a CA9 you need to get another brand, spend money on it to have it modded, and feel you done your part to Level the Playing Field.
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Weren't you the one who was going to mod his CA9 to accept speakons? The mod I'm talking about is factory-authorized and does not void the warranty.

You are helping to perpetuate a myth that causes people to unnecessarily add 30lbs to their rigs.
 
#44
pickles said:
Weren't you the one who was going to mod his CA9 to accept speakons? The mod I'm talking about is factory-authorized and does not void the warranty.

You are helping to perpetuate a myth that causes people to unnecessarily add 30lbs to their rigs.
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And exactly how is that? I have readily admitted that the CA9 offers an increased gain at the input. The QSC RMX Amps I'm sure are used by a good many Bass Players and they are heavy as well. I stated I had not tried any of the QSC lightweight Amps and that I had only tried the Yamaha P5000S. Though after that experience I'm done spending money on Lightweight.

How is claiming that the Crest CA9 Rocks exactly mis informing in any way. Do you deny the Amp rocks? Does the Amp have a Higher Input Gain?

I think you have been drinking too much "Gain Matching Coolaide" :D

The subject need not enter every Crest CA9 thread as if these threads some how need Policing.
 
#45
The extra gain of the CA9 is only an advantage if you have a preamp that can't swing enough output voltage to drive a standard power amp. And yes, there are lots of preamps out there that can't properly drive pro power amps so the CA9 does have an advantage if you're using one of them.

There's no advantage if your preamp has adequate gain, though. In fact it could be argued that having extra voltage gain at the back end of your signal chain is a bad thing, because it worsens noise performance. Ideally, you want most of your voltage gain as early in the signal chain as possible and then drop the power amplifier gain back with the gain knobs on the power amp to adjust overall volume.

I'd be very careful bridging that bad boy into a Goliath. It has enough power to damage that cabinet without even seeing a clip light. Like I always say, there's a difference between powering an 800W cabinet with a 2000W amp and actually putting 2000W into it.:p
 
#48
As far as I can tell, preamp manufacturers are welcome to incorporate as much gain into their preamps as they wish.

As far as I can tell, pro audio power amplifier manufacturers are welcome to incorporate as much gain into their amp circuit as they wish also.

Seems many bass preamps are on the shy side of the gain fence, and many pro audio power amps, with average gain, aren't adequately fed (in a bass amp rig) to maximize system potential.

No matter how you analyze it, the CA series makes up the difference and moves air (drivers) like mad. And they sound good doing it.
 
#49
I have not done as extensive testing as some here have done.. but i have done a few A/B/C tests with the light QSC amps and a Crest CA6 and a crown Macro.. The QSC sounds pretty good... But At equal dB volumes the Crest and the Crown each had way more low end thump , punch clarity and depth in the deep sub lows than the QSC did and held it there with much smoother mids than the the QSC lightweight... Im not saying that the QSC is less of an amp at all..
But the Crest and crown boat anchors just have way more umppphhhh.. and you feel it in your lungs when you breathe.....

When running program material through all he amps it was not as noticeable as when you play a bass instrument... The Crest and Crown just took that game in huge leaps.. Now the light weight Crown and Crest amps that are out may be the same as the QSC lightweight amps , I have never tried those.. but lightweight to boat anchors.. to me there is a difference...
 
#50
Red Planet said:
And exactly how is that? I have readily admitted that the CA9 offers an increased gain at the input. The QSC RMX Amps I'm sure are used by a good many Bass Players and they are heavy as well. I stated I had not tried any of the QSC lightweight Amps and that I had only tried the Yamaha P5000S. Though after that experience I'm done spending money on Lightweight.

How is claiming that the Crest CA9 Rocks exactly mis informing in any way. Do you deny the Amp rocks? Does the Amp have a Higher Input Gain?

I think you have been drinking too much "Gain Matching Coolaide" :D

The subject need not enter every Crest CA9 thread as if these threads some how need Policing.
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Sure it's a nice amp, and 50lbs+. Its not your praise of the CA9 I object to, it is this:

"Though after that experience I'm done spending money on Lightweight."

It is postings like this that caused me to spend a lot of money unnecessarily replacing amps, so I'm trying to help others avoid the same mistakes. I'm NOT suggesting you should not use the CA9, I'm just asking that you don't make incorrect/unsupported statements about "those lightweight amps" since you'll steer other people away from amps that will work well for them without hurting their backs.

I pointed out in your prior thread that the Yamaha has inferior specs, so you'd expect it not to perform as well.

I have both a PLX 2402 and a CA6. They sound exactly the same when gain matched, and quite different when I "eyeball" the gains, or don't test blind.
 
#54
RS said:
I have a PLX and haven't had any qualms with it (until I started reading this thread). Back to satisfaction.
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I too have a non-lead sled amp in my rack. I was satisfied with it before reading this thread, while reading it, and after reading it. It never ceases to amaze me how we all get so worked up over this sort of stuff. A month from now it is very likely that none of the participants in this thread will have changed their mind about anything (or remember what they were arguing about). ;)

M. M.
 
#56
joelb79 said:
You could be fighting the Front of House speakers if your rig was out of phase from the DI signal.
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That is one nice thing about the DI on the SWR, it has a Phase reversal switch.

On the subject of Phase it really depends on the Manufacturer of the Amp. Not all amps are in Phase with each other. Fenders are out of Phase with Marshalls and so on.

Before I got rid of my Ampeg SVT3PRO I was using the line out on it to send an additional signal to a QSC RMX 850 into a Mesa Powerhouse 4x10 and Powering an SVT 4X10 HLF with the 3PRO. Not sure what was out of phase but the Mesa side was out with the Ampeg side. I just stuck my Lehle P-Split in it and reversed the phase going to the RMX 850. After that all was well.
 
#57
I think some folks are trying to read more into this thread than is being said.

I have not said anything about a PLX at all one way or the other.

I have nothing to argue.

My point is the Crest Audio CA9 will knock your socks off. Thats it.

BTW my Preamp has plenty of output, no issues there.

Concerning wattage. I do agree I could easily over power my Cab with the CA9, that is why I'm going to get an additional Goliath IV Cab. That being said with just one cab it is pretty darn ferocious.:D
 
#59
I think that the point of the thread is to express an opinion, which is presented by Red Planet as a praise of a CA-9. Why dont we just leave it at that. I think every time the CA-9 is brought up in a thread someone will come in and say "It's no better an amp than... (fill in the blank.) People express their opinions on this site everyday about all types of products, non of which are disputed as must as the CA-9. I own one and it KILLS! I had a Stewart World 2.1 before it and there is an audible difference especially in the lows that is undeniable. I'll say that the CA-9 is the best power amp that I have tried in my bass rig, and if someone wants to buy it b/c I said that then let them. My guess is that they won't be disappointed.
 
#60
Red Planet said:
My point is the Crest Audio CA9 will knock your socks off. Thats it.
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Many of us knew what you were trying to say all along. :) If I was willing to deal with the weight and rack depth of the CA9, I would own one. I confess to giving serious thought to the Carvin DCM2000. Thankfully, no one has ever approached me at a gig and derided me for not playing through a lead sled. But hey, tomorrow is a new day. It could happen. :D

M. M.
 
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