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Crate Vintage club 50 lovers???question about mods...


Yo_Squig

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Hey All,

I am hoping someone on here can help...I have a Crate VC 50 head and I love the tone and versatility but it is a piece of crap.I bought it and it needed an input jack,which is typical for these from what I have read and I talked to a guy that was supposedly on the design team for the amp.I replaced the jack and it worked fine for about a month...now it is having the same problem...So....I was looking on the net and came across one that has been totally redone,I mean,upgraded trannies,board,all components,etc.....but it is quite a bit more than a standard VC of course...I talked to the guy on the phone today and he told me has modded and sold about 10 of them this way.I want to buy it becasue if mine sounds tha good i cannot imagine what one built more like boutique quality would sound.....Anyone out there have one of the 10 or so he modded?The guys name is Johnny DiChiara..pretty cool guy on the phone and says he gaurantees his work lifetime or as he put it,,if he wakes up in the morning and it needs to be fixed he will fix it.Claims he worked for Crate for 10 years,Peavey and Fender as well...Says he knows the VC inside and out,doesnt even need he schematics anymore.Just wanting a little feedback on the quality and tone vs. the unmodded...or anyone that has had the same issue as me that has fixed it and knows how?Any help wpuld be greatly appreciated.I want to buy the head but would love to talk with someone that has one ..a sound clip would be even more awesome....Prefer a PM but you can comment on here,I will be checking it for teh next few days.....Thanks All....

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Yeah...Im just curious...I know that if he sold 10 of them that it will be hard to find someone...but he says he has done repairs and worked for Crate,Peavey,Fender.......His location is North Carolina......

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Never heard of him, but he probably has never heard of me either.

 

I have two VC 50 heads. They have lasted me just fine, but I do baby them. I played with the tubes and found that you must use a 12AX7 in V1, but that the amp's drive channel is too over the top to use a 12AX7 in V2. I the dropped all the way down to a 12AU7 and leave it at about 7. I'm really happy with the tones I get out of this amp with this configuration.

 

I've run all sorts of power tubes in the VC 50H: JJs, Sovteks, Teslas, Sylvanias, Eis and other. The amp sounded good with all of them, but it seems to have a nice chemistry with the JJs in particular.

 

Just my .02.

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How would putting a 12au7 in the amp keep the input jack from going out again?Yeah...I like the tone alot on the dirty channel.....I put the gain up abot 3/4's the way and it get s a really good and heavy tone and the clean channel is really good on it.Plenty of power,I run it ant 3-4 and it is plenty loud....almost hangs with my Soldano,matter of fact i do not use my Soldano since I got it,very comparable tone,the Crate is a little more vintage,but that is my only gripe...I just wish I could get it to be a little more reliable,I am hoping an amp guru can give me some guidance on this........

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  • 4 years later...
  • 3 years later...
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Hey Yo Squig , The guy you are looking for is John DiChiara from jdichiaamps AKA Johnny D !! Yes he is the guy that use to rebuild the VC50 amps, and btw yes they were bad to the bone and so is everything that man does. I purchased a vc50 head all redone by Johnny D and it made all my amps sound like junk even my Dr.Z didn't stand a chance next to that amp. Yes he sold about 10 of them. I sold all my gear because of the Johnny D modded vc50.But I don't have it anymore. I sold it only to get the JDiChiara ProDiamond 50 head. There is no one I have ever met like him and still keep in touch with him in fact he is one of my best friends.All my guitars are built by him, pickups speakers and his notorious guitar bomb distortion can. A dude on gear page also ranted about the blues pedal he got Johnny D to make for him and another guy posted something about his countryblues amp which he described as SICK. There you have it dude. Johnny D from jdichiaraamps is another Les Paul Leo Fender and Dr.Z all in one and that's not even giving him a quarter of the musical scientist he really is. He is beyond what you would ever think. I don't know of anyone that offers a lifetime warranty on the products they make. The prototypes he makes run for 3 months non stop before it is introduced. I never purchased anything that can withstand that kind of testing. When I first played the ProDiamond amp, I had to leave his garage and take a walk. Johnny came out to check and see what was up with me. The sound and tone of that amp made chills run from my toes all the way through my whole body and he found me crying. I hugged him and that's when I new that he was the best. I am not the only guy that has cried while playing his amps so I know there isn't anything wrong with me. Everyone that plays his amps get spooked. So if your done with buying and selling you need to call him. Sorry I am just seeing this and you waited so long to find someone that knows that mad under ground scientist. Call him 704-604-3218

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Hi Deepend , eight years is a long time but the information I provided was to not only help Yo Squig but any serious guitar or bass player out there looking to be done with there search for world class musical products. 8 years more experience under his belt and world of products added to his lineup of gear. I hope I was helpful to some or many professional musicians out there. Plus there are still plenty of vc50s floating around.

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