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Orange Crush Acoustic 30 Review

Orange Crush Acoustic 30 Review

The British amp manufacturer’s first acoustic combo is smart and small, with plenty of juice.

Amp recorded direct into Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 interface into GarageBand; using a Taylor GS Mini-e Koa.
Clip 1: Frequency at 300 Hz, bass at 1 o’clock, mid at 11 o’clock, treble at 1 o’clock, reverb 8 o’clock, and notch at 10 o’clock.
 

Ratings

Pros:
Impressive volume for size. Broad tone shaping. Color switch. Aux in.

Cons:
Three hours battery life at full volume. Would prefer a latch-style system verses screws for the battery door.

Street:
$399

Orange Crush Acoustic 30
orangeamps.com


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For more than 50 years, Orange Amplification has served as the sweet-potato-hued backline for countless well-known players. And while the company has dipped their toes in the acoustic pool before with the Acoustic Pre, the new Crush Acoustic 30 combo represents Orange’s very first acoustic amp.

Dressed in classic orange tolex and tweed, the 13 1/2-pound Acoustic 30 houses a single 8" driver pushed by 30 watts of power. The 2-channel amp allows for running a mic or second acoustic through channel two (which has phantom power), and because the Crush Acoustic 30 can also be battery operated with 10 AAs, it’s quite the busker-friendly package. Add to that onboard effects available for both channels and a notch filter to combat feedback, and you have quite the portable powerhouse.

The petite Crush Acoustic 30 throws a surprising amount of full-range sound, and its angled tilt-back design noticeably assists in projection. The amp operates quietly and provides a crisp-yet-warm, punchy tone with plenty of room to sculpt through its EQ and mid frequency sweep. Whether I was taming the brightness on a small-body all-koa Taylor or scooping out midrange and adding presence to my darker dread, the Acoustic 30 made easy work of it. The amp’s reverb is open-sounding and spacious, and just a pinch of the chorus gave both guitars a nice dusting of body and lushness. Loud for its size, transportable, with flattering tones, and priced pretty fairly, the Crush Acoustic 30 is a nice option for performers on the go.

Test Gear: Taylor GS Mini, ’77 Washburn W600 with L.R. Baggs iBeam active system, Focusrite Scarlett 2i4, Audio-Technica ATM650