VC-50H Vintage
Club Amplifier
Owner’s Manual
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 PREVENTACCIDENTALDAMAGES 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 ONLYTO A PROPERLY GROUNDED 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 OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION (OSHA) REGULATIONS WHICH WERE IN EFFECT AT THE 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
Congratulations!
You are now the proud owner of one of the newest and most versatile tube amplifiers
available for the guitar, the VC-50H. This remarkable amplifier offers tremendous flexibility and portability with two separate channels and silent switching for a uniquely rich palette
of tonal variety and simplicity of control over your sound.
Your VC-50H amplifier is musician-made in the U.S.A. using the finest components
available. Each unit is rigorously tested by skilled technicians and musicians to ensure that
your amplifier is the 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
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
3
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
The Front Panel Controls and Their Use . . . . . . . . . . .4
The Rear Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Connecting to the Effects Loop Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Some Suggested Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
System Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .back cover
Features:
• All tube operation for classic vintage growl and howl, as you want it, when you want it
• Two completely independent channels with individual gain and tone controls
• Quick, silent channel switching from the front panel or with footswitch (provided)
• Individual reverb return controls for each channel
• Buffered Effects Loop jack – use a stereo-to-mono “Y” cord to patch in your favorite
effect(s)
• Specially designed paper bobbin output transformer for a true “vintage” sound
• Drives 8 and 16 ohm speaker cabinets with no problem and delivers lots of true vintage
tone, tone, tone
• Durable tolex
®
covering and special cosmetic treatments for a unique stage appearance
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
4
The Front Panel Controls and Their Use:
1. INPUT: This jack accepts a high impedance signal from a
guitar, bass, keyboard, etc.
2. CHANNEL A VOLUME: This control sets the level of
Channel A. The sound is brighter at lower settings, and can
be cranked up for a crunchy rhythm sound.
3. CHANNEL A TREBLE: This control adjusts the level of
high frequency response on Channel A.
4. CHANNEL A BASS: This control adjusts the level of low
frequency response on Channel A. (When playing at
extreme volume levels, you might want to back this control
down just a bit.)
5. CHANNEL SELECT: Silent channel switching is achieved
with this button. When the footswitch is plugged in, this button is deactivated.
6. EFFECTS LOOP JACK: This jack provides a line level
access point between the preamp and the power amp. The
output is buffered by a single transistor. It is out of the circuit completely when nothing is plugged into it. Use a Crate
Model #CYC6MS mono-to-stereo Y-cord, or a Y-adapter
with extenders. For more details refer to the section
“Connecting to the Effects Loop Jack” on the following
page.
7. CHANNEL B GAIN: Use this control to achieve sounds
ranging from bluesy crunch to full tilt-hard rock rhythm.
Experimenting with a combination of the gain and volume
controls on the amp along with your guitar’s volume controls can produce a wide variety of useable sounds.
8. CHANNEL B TREBLE:This control adjusts the level of the
high frequency response on Channel B.
9. CHANNEL B MID: This control adjusts the amount of
midrange frequency response on Channel B.
10. CHANNEL B BASS: This control adjusts the level of low
frequency response on Channel B.
11. CHANNEL B LEVEL: The overall volume level of
Channel B is controlled with this knob. When set at 2
o’clock, the power amp begins to be overdriven for true
power amp distortion.
12. CHANNEL A REVERB LEVEL: This control adjusts the
amount of reverb on Channel A.
13. CHANNEL B REVERB LEVEL: This control adjusts the
amount of reverb on Channel B.
14. FOOTSWITCH JACK: Use the supplied single-button
footswitch (Crate model #CFP-1) or an equivalent to
achieve silent remote channel switching. Plugging in the
footswitch deactivates the front panel channel switch (#5).
15. STANDBY SWITCH: This switch should remain turned off
when the unit is first turned on in order to allow the tubes
to warm up properly before high voltage is applied to
them. The Standby switch should also be turned off during extended breaks in playing when the amp is left on.
This will help ensure longer tube life.
16. MAINS SWITCH: This switch applies power to the unit
when switched to the on (up) position.
The Standby and Power switches light up when on.
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
VolumeInput
5
010
Treble
5
010
Channel A
Bass
5
010
Effects Loop Ft. Sw. On On
Ch. Sel.
Gain
010
5
Treble
5
010
010
Channel B A B Standby Mains
1 2 3 4 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 165 6
Mid
5
Bass
5
010
Level
5
010
Reverb
5
0105010
5
The Rear Panel:
17. AC LINE CORD: Connect the male end of this heavy duty
power cord to a properly grounded ACpower outlet of the
correct voltage. DO NOTattempt to defeat the ground pin of
the power cord! (If your amplifier was purchased outside the
United States, see the rear panel serial number label for voltage and current information.)
18. IMPEDANCE SWITCH: For the best performance and
least strain on the amp, you MUST match the amp’s
impedance to that of your speaker cabinet(s). Set the
selector switch to the 8 or 16 ohm position, depending on
the total impedance of your cabinets. The chart below can
help you determine that impedance based on the following combinations of speakers connected in parallel.
CAB
IMP.
# OF
CABS TOTAL IMP.
16 ohms 2 8 ohms
32 ohms 2 16 ohms
32 ohms 4 8 ohms
19. SPEAKER JACKS: Connect the amplifier to your speaker cabinet(s) via these jacks, using heavy-duty speaker
cables (not instrument patch cords). Use cabinets rated at
8 ohms or higher, in combinations which never create a
load lower than 8 ohms. Make sure the Impedance switch
(#18) is properly set. Always use the MAIN speaker jack
first, then connect to the EXTENSION jack if using more
than one cabinet.
Connecting to the Ef
fects Loop Jack:
The front panel Effects Loop jack (#6) lets you patch
external effects into the VC-50H just prior to its power amp
stage. When using Crate’s STP201, STP202 or STP203
stereo-to-mono Y-cord, connect its 1/4” stereo plug into the
amp’s Insert jack, its “send” plug into the IN jack of the effect
and its “return” plug into the OUT jack of the effect.
Another method is to buy or make a stereo-to-mono Yadapter (such as Crate’s YPP117) and use two 1/4” signal
cables to patch into the effect as shown below.
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
SPEAKER
IMPEDANCE
8 16 EXT. MAIN
47-269-01
17 18 19
SPEAKERS
50 WATTS RMS
(USE FIRST)
Made in the
U.S.A.
1400 Ferguson Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63133
Stereo-to-mono Y-cord:
to Insert
jack
TIP
RING
SLEEVE
Y-adapter and 2 cables:
RETURN
SEND
GROUND
TIP
RING
SLEEVE
to Insert
jack
(STP201, 3'
STP202, 6'
(YPP117)
STP203, 9')
RING
TIP
TIP
RING
to
effect
"OUT"
jack
effect
"IN"
jack
External Effect
to
(1/4"-TO-1/4"
MONO SHIELDED
CABLES)
to
effect
"OUT"
jack
to
effect
"IN"
jack
External Effect
6
Some Suggested Settings:
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
SPARKLING CLEAN CRUNCH RHYTHM
VolumeInput
Treble
5
5
010
010
Channel A
WARM & CLEAN BLUESY GRIND
VolumeInput
Treble
5
5
010
010
Channel A
Bass
5
010
Bass
5
010
Gain
Effects Loop Ft. Sw. On On
Treble
5
Mid
Bass
5
5
Level
5
5
Reverb
5
Ch. Sel.
010
010
010
010
010
0105010
Channel B A B Standby Mains
Gain
Effects Loop Ft. Sw. On On
Treble
5
Mid
Bass
5
5
Level
5
5
Reverb
5
Ch. Sel.
010
010
010
010
010
0105010
Channel B A B Standby Mains
BLUESY DIRT "DRIVE 'EM MAD" SHRED
Gain
VolumeInput
Treble
5
Bass
5
5
Effects Loop Ft. Sw. On On
Treble
5
Mid
5
Bass
5
5
Ch. Sel.
010
010
010
010
010
Channel A
010
Channel B A B Standby Mains
010
TRY THESE AT MIDNIGHT!
Gain
VolumeInput
5
010
Treble
5
010
Channel A
Bass
5
010
Effects Loop Ft. Sw. On On
Treble
5
Ch. Sel.
010
010
Mid
5
Bass
5
010
5
010
Channel B A B Standby Mains
Level
5
010
Level
5
010
Reverb
5
0105010
Reverb
5
0105010
7
System Block Diagram:
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
INPUT
FOOTSWITCH
FIRST
GAIN
CHANNEL A:
CHANNEL B:
SECOND
GAIN
GAIN
CHANNEL A
TONES & VOLUME
VOL.
TREB. BASS
TONE PREEMPHASIS
THIRD
GAIN
FOURTH
& FIFTH
GAIN STAGE
REVERB
SECOND
GAIN
CHANNEL B
TONES & LEVEL
TREB. MID BASS LEVEL
REVERB
LEVELS
INSERT
PHASE
SPLITTER
MAIN
SPEAKER
POWER
AMP
EXTENSION
SPEAKER
Output Power Rating 50W RMS @ 10% THD, 8 ohm load, 120 VAC
Input Impedance 1M ohm
Maximum Signal Accepted 2.8V peak to peak
Signal To Noise Ratio Channel B: 52dB
Channel A: 58dB
Gain Channel B: 75dB
Channel A: 68dB
Tone Control Range Channel B: Bass: 12dB range @60Hz
Mid: 10dB range @600Hz
Treble: 7dB range @4kHz
Channel A: Bass: 20dB range @70Hz
Treble: 16dB range @2kHz
Line Out Level 375mV RMS @ full power output
Tube Types Preamp: (4) 12AX7 Power Amp: (4) EL84/6BQ5
Power Requirements 120VAC, 60Hz, 145VA/30W, 170VA/50W
100/115VAC, 50/60Hz, 145VA/30W, 170VA/50W
230VAC, 50/60Hz, 145VA/30W, 170VA/50W
Size and Weight 21.25”W x 11”H x 11.25”D, 35 lbs
©2001 SLM ELECTRONICS • A division of St. Louis Music • 1400 Ferguson Avenue • St. Louis, Mo 63133
P/N 47-547-13 • 05/01
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:
To keep this amplifier looking its best, avoid abrasive cleaners. Wipe the cabinet clean using a
slightly dampened cloth. Never use abrasive cleaners on the hardware since they could damage
their protective coatings.
Crate continually develops new products, as well as improves existing ones.
For this reason, the specifications and information in this publication
are subject to change without notice.
VC-50H Vintage Club Amplifier
www.crateamps.com
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