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  • Orange Amplification CR120C Guitar Combo Amp

    By Ara Ajizian |

    Orange enters the high-powered fray with this 120W beast of a combo.

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    It's no secret that Orange is known for building great-sounding British amps. But high-powered, solid state amps have been missing from their repertoire. According to Orange, it's because they couldn't get the sound to meet their standards. Now that mission has been accomplished, and the result is the Crush Pro Series. Consisting of the 60W CR60C 1x12" combo, its larger sibling, the CR120C and the CR120 head, Orange now offers their sought-after tone to players who need maximum power.

     

    What You Need To Know

    • Orange spent years on research and development for the Crush Pro Series, insisting that it meet the tonal standards they've built their reputation on.
    • The CR120C pumps 120W of power through two 12" Orange Voice of the World speakers
    • Clean and Dirty channels, the former with bass/treble EQ, the latter with bass/midrange/treble controls for precise, responsive tone shaping
    •  Each channel has its own independent volume control as well as a Master Volume
    • The Clean channel uses two gain stages; the Dirty channel uses four
    • There are loads of tones this amp is capable of, from warm, full cleans to roaring, harmonic distortion and everything in between
    • The Crush Pro Series takes its tonal cues from the renowned Rockerverb Series
    • Offers onboard digital reverb with stunningly accurate spring, hall and plate settings
    • Though built with solid state technology, the CR120C offers up dynamic, warm, tube-like tone without digital emulation

    Limitations

    • Does not include a footswitch, which you'll want to take advantage of channel switching and engaging reverb
    • At 64 lb., it's not the easiest amp to carry around, but molded, inset handles help in this department

    Conclusion

    I'm a tube-amp guy. Whether I'm playing bass or guitar, I prefer the warmth, dynamics and response that you get from tubes. That said, I have played through many modeling and solid state amps that claim to deliver "tube-like realism" that fall flat. This is absolutely not the case with this amp. The Clean channel sounds and behaves like you'd expect a great tube amp to, going from full, rich cleans to classic Orange overdrive, while the Dirty channel offers even more headroom for a delighfully versatile range of tones, all the way to ear-splitting distortion. The CR120C does all of this without ever sounding shrill or grating on your eardrums, and without any modeling technology. Just a pure, solid state analog signal path done right. It's refreshing to play through an amp that clearly had a lot of time and effort put into making it sound great. Thanks to those high standards, Orange continues to be a name players can rely on.

    Resources

     

     

    The Orange Amplifiers CR120C Combo at Musician's Friend

     

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    Ara Ajizian, Harmony Central's Editorial Director, has been playing bass and guitar as well as singing since he was 18, and soon that love of music combined with a passion for writing; launching what's now a decade-long career immersed in the gear world. He's thrilled to be back on the Harmony Central team after two years as Managing Editor for Musician's Friend covering gear, bands and events and gigging in the Los Angeles area.




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