Crate Amplifiers BV-120HR User Manual

BV-120HR

RED VOODOO All Tube Guitar Amplifier

Congratulations!

Your love of performing and driving ambition to be the best have brought you to a turning point in your musical
career: the incredible BV-120HR Red Voodoo guitar amplifier. An all-tube powerhouse of an amplifier designed to
take you to the top and keep you there.

In 1998, Sammy Hagar asked us to develop a special amp for his next tour. It had to be dependable, have great
tone, and really push the limits – much like Sammy . So we’re proud to introduce the BV-120HR Red Voodoo ampli­fier, with Sammy’s “Red Rocker” Tolex

®

covering and mystical tone controls.

Like all Crate products, your BV-120HR is made with pride in America, using only the best components.
Extensive testing at the hands and ears of skilled technicians and musicians insures you that this amplifier is the
absolute best it can be.

In order to get the most out of your new amplifier, we strongly urge you to go over the information contained in
this manual before you begin playing.

And thank you for choosing

Contents:

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

The Front Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

The Rear Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Some Suggested Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

A Word About Tubes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

System Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .back cover

2

CAUTION

RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK

DO NOT OPEN

CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK,

DO NOT REMOVE COVER.

NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE.

REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL.

ATTENTION

RISQUE D'ELECTROCUTION

NE PAS OUVRIR

ATTENTION: POUR REDUIRE D'ELECTROCUTION NE PAS

ENLEVER LE COUVERCLE. AUCUNE PIECE INTERNE N'EST REPRABLE

PAR L'UTILISATEUR. POUR TOUTE REPARATION, S'ADRESSER A UN

TECHNICIEN QUALIFIE.

VORSICHT

ELEKTRISCHE SCHLAGGEFAHR

NICHT OFFENEN

VORSICHT: ZUR MINIMIERUNG ELEKTRISCHER SCHLAGGEFAHR NICHT

DEN DECKEL ABENHMEN. INTERNE TEILE KONNEN NICHT VOM

BENUTZER GEWARTET WERDEN. DIE WARTUNG IS QUALIFIZIERTEM

WARTUNGSPERSONAL ZU UBERLASSEN.

THIS EQUIPMENT HAS BEEN DESIGNED AND ENGINEERED TO PROVIDE SAFE AND RELIABLE OPERATION. IN ORDER TO PROLONG THE LIFE
OF THE UNIT AND PREVENT ACCIDENTALDAMAGES OR INJURY, PLEASE FOLLOW THESE PRECAUTIONARY GUIDELINES:

CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT OPEN CHASSIS; DO NOT DEFEAT OR REMOVE THE GROUND PIN OF THE
POWER CORD; CONNECT ONLY TO APROPERLYGROUNDED AC POWER OUTLET.

WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE OR ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS EQUIPMENT TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.
CAUTION: NO USER-SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL.
CAUTION: THIS UNIT IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HIGH SOUND PRESSURE LEVELS. CONTINUED EXPOSURE TO HIGH SOUND PRESSURE

LEVELS CAN CAUSE PERMANENT HEARING IMPAIRMENT OR LOSS. USER CAUTION IS ADVISED, AND EAR PROTECTION RECOMMENDED IF
UNIT IS OPERATED AT HIGH VOLUME. THE CHART BELOW SHOWS THE U.S. GOVERNMENT’S OCCUPATIONALSAFETYAND HEALTH ADMINIS­TRATION (OSHA) REGULATIONS WHICH WERE IN EFFECT ATTHE TIME OF THIS PUBLICATION FOR PERMISSIBLE NOISE EXPOSURE, PER
29CFR1910.95, TABLE G-16:

ACCORDING TO OSHA, ANYEXPOSURE IN EXCESS TO THESE AMOUNTS LISTED ABOVE COULD RESULT IN SOME HEARING LOSS.

"IT IS NECESSARY FOR THE USER TO REFER TO THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL"
"REFERREZ-VOUS AU MANUAL D'UTILISATION"
"UNBEDINGT IN DER BEDIENUNGSANLEITUNG NACHSCHLAGEN"

EXPLANATION OF
GRAPHICAL SYMBOLS:

"DANGEROUS VOLTAGE"
"DANGER HAUTE TENSION"
"GEFAHLICHE SPANNUNG"

=

=

SOUND LEVEL DBA, DURATION PER DAY SOUND LEVEL DBA, DURATION PER DAY

SLOW RESPONSE IN HOURS SLOW RESPONSE IN HOURS

90 8 102 1 - 1 1/2
92 6 105 1
95 4 110 1/2
97 3 115 1/4 or less

100 2

IMPORTANT WARNING: Whenever stacking speaker cabinets of any kind, place

them ONLY on a level surface! NEVER stack cabinets on a surface with more than
a five degree incline since tipping could occur, possibly causing serious injuries!

BV-120HR

RED VOODOO All Tube Guitar Amplifier

Intr

oduction:

The BV-120HR is an all-tube, feature-packed professional stage performers' amplifier. Rugged construc­tion, reliable American craftsmanship and two powerful channels of pure tube power are some of the trade­marks of this impressive amplifier. This amplifier features two distinctly different 12AX7 tube-driven channels:
one with classic tube rhythm sounds and one offering you some of the finest lead and overdrive sounds of
any production amplifier.

Each channel features an all-tube preamp section with separate reverb level controls and three bands of
equalization for total tone control. The master Presence control lets you custom tailor the sound to suit your
particular needs. The effects loop can be quickly bypassed via the front panel switch or with the supplied
footswitch, and features a switchable “pad” for optimum compatibility with either floor pedals or rack-mount­ed effects.

The Line Out signal is tapped directly from the speaker outputs, then attenuated and frequency-compen­sated to replicate the sound of a miked speaker cabinet. Dual speaker jacks and an impedance selector
switch allow the use of multiple cabinets totalling 8 or 16 ohms. The BV-120HR delivers a solid 100 watts of
output power.

Featur

es:

Here's a quick overview of the BV-120HR's features and controls. Additional information can be
found on the pages indicated.

• All-Tube Preamp and Power Amp: Classic tube sounds with Crate’s legendary performance and
reliability

• Two Completely Separate Channels: Independent level, tone and reverb controls (page 4)

• Enhanced T one Controls (Ch. 2): Designed to Sammy Hagar’s specs, to get those “Red Rocker”

sounds

• Presence Control: Provides greater tone control and flexibility by allowing you to vary the upper
harmonics of your guitar (page 4)

• Footswitch Control: Remote channel selection and Effects Loop On/Off are available by using
the supplied footswitch (page 5)

• Switchable Effects Loop with Pad: Footswitch or front panel button controlled, the external
effects loop can be switched in or out with ease. A switchable pad provides optimum performance
from line-level rack mounted effects as well as floor-dwelling foot pedals (pages 4,5)

• Impedance Selector Switch: Proper impedance matching is essential for optimum performance
and life expectancy of a tube amplifier. These amps allow the use of 8 or 16 ohm speaker config­urations (page 5)

• Line Out Jack: Taken directly from the speaker jacks, the Line Out signal is frequency compen­sated to sound like a “miked” speaker cabinet. Use this jack to connect to the house mixing board,
a recording console or another performer’s powered monitor (page 5)

• DC Filament Supply: The first preamp tube has a DC filament supply for reduced hum

• Special “Red Rocker” Cosmetics: The unique cosmetics of the BV120HR serve as a tribute to
your good taste in musical equipment

• Musician Made in the U.S.A.

3