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Carvin Guitars--what's the REAL story?


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I'd have to agree with most of the negative aspersions cast on Carvin guitars. They are built to very strict tolerances/consistencies, but many tend to lack "personality", for lack of a better word. I have played some nice ones, and those were usually the ones with replaced pickups.

I'm going to check out this one when my friend gets back from Mexico:

Stainless steel jumbos

Maple neck-through/rosewood board

OFR

Locking Sperzels

I've been looking for a "dedicated E-flat guitar." Hey, made in the USA for $600 w/HSC? I at least owe it to myself to check it out...

attachicon.gifcarvin.jpg

That is frickin awesome!! I have one in Ferrari red as well, except with a kahler pro, Jackson style headstock and H-S-S pickups. It would only have 1 hunbucker, but I didn't order it.

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I've owned several Carvins and liked them - the basses especially. That said, at the moment I only have a couple of Hamer basses. I have a Carvin "Bolt" stratocopy and use it heavily. I have a several Hamer guitars that I hardly ever play, but the "Centablo" Franken-Hamer that I slapped together is one of the best guitars I've ever owned.

Go figure.

In the end, if you want to try a Carvin guitar, do it. There's little to gain by asking ardent fans of another guitar company what they think of them. Your tastes are your tastes - to hell with everybody else. If a guitar works well to make you sound the way you want to sound, then it's a good guitar. If you like how it looks, then it's beautiful. So on, and so on....

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I've owned several Carvins and liked them - the basses especially. That said, at the moment I only have a couple of Hamer basses. I have a Carvin "Bolt" stratocopy and use it heavily. I have a several Hamer guitars that I hardly ever play, but the "Centablo" Franken-Hamer that I slapped together is one of the best guitars I've ever owned.

Go figure.

In the end, if you want to try a Carvin guitar, do it. There's little to gain by asking ardent fans of another guitar company what they think of them. Your tastes are your tastes - to hell with everybody else. If a guitar works well to make you sound the way you want to sound, then it's a good guitar. If you like how it looks, then it's beautiful. So on, and so on....

Wise words. I support!

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Speaking o' Carvins: My local savvy-eBay-flippin'-guitar-coveting-then-toss-'em-away-bro just got THIS in trade from his wife's friend's father. Said dad was a touring jazzbo back in THE day and the guitar was too big for his daughter. He traded a Carvin SC90 and a Digitech pedalboard for this '59, Hoboken Guild.

Woof.

Sometimes karma comes around to give one a gentle peck on the cheek, no? A 53-year old, USA vintage electric-acoustic smooch, at that.

Carvin/Digitech owner is happy. New vintage Guild owner be VERRRRRY happy, ya think? ;)

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Said dad was a touring jazzbo back in THE day ...

But did he play guitar? More to the point, did he ever play that guitar? It appears completely untouched!

That's gorgeous! :wub:

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My jaw just hit the floor.

Wow!

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I been looking at the Carvin Guitar website, and the guitars they have displayed are very nice. But after doing some research, it seems there are either Carvin lovers or Carvin haters.

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with them?

I have 2 or 3 dozen of every carvin you can imagine + about 200 other guitars ranging from Hamers Dah? to Greg Fessler made Strats, Suhr, Colling and Zemaitis etc. Carvins are great guitar 90+% of the time. pots and pickups can be upgraded after you get it to make it a superb instrument. This is my 2 Cents

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I been looking at the Carvin Guitar website, and the guitars they have displayed are very nice. But after doing some research, it seems there are either Carvin lovers or Carvin haters.

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with them?

I have 2 or 3 dozen of every carvin you can imagine + about 200 other guitars ranging from Hamers Dah? to Greg Fessler made Strats, Suhr, Colling and Zemaitis etc. Carvins are great guitar 90+% of the time. pots and pickups can be upgraded after you get it to make it a superb instrument. This is my 2 Cents

If you have that many guitars, you should add 1-2 Jon Kammerers to your collection. Great guitars.

Tell 'em Nathan sent you.

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Carvin makes great guitars. you cant beet the price if you buy used... BUT you really need to be careful when your buying one as to make sure you know the type of wood(s) the guitar is made from. Some combinations just do not work, even though people try them...

I have a walnut dc400a that is a great playing and even better sounding guitar. This is a walnut top and back with a walnut/maple neck thru, and ebony fretboard. At some point I swapped out the c22 pickups and switch to wcr godwood and crossroads pickups. Superb instrument. Beautiful. And versatile. The dc400s come stock with the active pickups... This is something I would be fine without... This why I am now partial to the ct6 series,... No active electronics.

I had a dc400 burled walnut top, alder back and ebony fretboard. Nothing but harsh highs and shrill. Absolutely horrible combination of woods. Guitar was very easy to play though. This one was sold...

I've also own two ct6 guitars. These things sound and play great and the stock woods are a fancy maple top and mahogany back. They sound solid with the carvin pickups but really shine when paired with a set of boutique pickups (wcr and mules are my favorite). Really nice and versatile instruments. Add the stainless steel frets and I do t believe you can go wrong. They are Heavy though.

A guy in my band has a carvin c66 that has the bolt on neck with a maple top and mahogany back. He practices with this guitar and uses it has his backup every week. His favorite is a suhr standard but he says the carvin he has plays almost as we'll and sounds close enough. He has at least 8 boutique guitars over $2500 each that he had made new and he still plays his carvin every day. I find that interesting...

i have found them to be built well, beautiful for the most part, and easy to swap parts out in. I have gotten some really good deals on the ones I have. The only one I regretted was the walnut/alder one. Bad wood combo...but stunningly beautiful guitar. Can't really go wrong with a maple/mahogany body.

The carvin pickups are not aweful. The c22 pickps are not quite as bright and lively as suhr pickups, but seem to fall I that tone range (dsh, dsv).

For reference, i have a couple boutique electrics, but I play my ct6 every week.

I hope that feedback helps.

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