Things in the FL panhandle are quiet and comfortable this month...had a few gigs (Xmas parties, restaurant jobs, and an "out of the ordinary" beach wedding this past Sunday)....

Everything went fine til the beach wedding rolled in... It was set for 3:15 PM....but due to "inclement weather and scary radar" the bride calls me at 12:30 and says "we want to go at 2:00"...so I rush to the beach location, get my Crate Limo amp set up on its stand, power up and check out my backing tracks and wireless mic and reverb...."good to go at 2:00"... the wedding planner comes out and sees some mist over the Gulf...he says "we will go inside and wait".

I bagged my Crate amp with a garbage bag and secured it at the bottom....so at that point my track player/tablet and amp were safely covered. For the next 2 hours we passed up patches of nice sunny sky only to be told to stay inside. We were finally told "let's go" at 3:45. I uncovered my amp, played a couple songs for the guests and the bridesmaid and groomsman started down -- you guessed it - it started raining.

I got through the processionals and immediately bagged the amp again. Rain continued lightly during the ceremony. Then sadly, about 2 minutes before it was set to end, my amp started spewing "snap, crackles, and pops". I powered it off and played the recessional a capella.

I immediately departed (was set to play an hour at the reception and thank GOODNESS I had the Bose Compact in the van)... so I got to the reception and played without incident...

Any predictions on the future health of my Crate Amp? I fired it up at the house when I got home and it still had static but not as bad as it was on the beach. I have read that they can dry out and recover. Fingers are crossed. This Crate was made in the USA - a buddy told me they now make them in China and the quality is not the same...so hoping my dear old Crate will not be a "Mort".

Happy holidays y'all!