Several things, and this is coming from someone who owns a "Kiesel generation" Carvin:
- Flimsiness: I am not sure what this means, because my bass certainly is not flimsy nor does it feel flimsy, and I'll go on to say that out of all the basses I played, only one felt flimsy and that was a Hofner Icon that needed some work. As for my Carvin, from what I could tell the hardware is very good quality; Hipshot bridge, Gotoh tuners, a solid feeling joint and a solid neck. I'll also say that I tested a mid 90s LB70 and likewise it did not feel flimsy at all.
- "The necks feel like Schecters": Well, they do in the sense that both are good feeling necks. The Schecter C4 I own has one of the better necks out there for a bass at its price point (got it used from here for $275 and most (used) seem to be hovering around the $300-350 range). Yes, both my Carvin and my Schecter have slimmer necks, but both have some meat and structure to them; they're not pencil thin. Ultimately I do prefer the one on my Carvin but that's because it has a tung oil neck; the Schecter neck is polished.
- Electronics: This one I can give for the older Carvins; I think they made some great strides here. That LB70 that I played did sound a bit dull, and while comparing that bass to mine is a bit of a stretch (humbuckers vs jazz pickups) I do prefer the ones in mine. This isn't to say the older pickups are bad. They aren't; far from it, but the newer ones do have that kick that they needed.
- Looks: While I do see that pointy headstocks are rooted in the 80s I should point out that the LB has multiple headstock choices, and that the standard one looks relatively normal. As for the finishes; I find myself lamenting that manufacturers don't offer more, so the large variety that Carvin offers is quite good.
Now for discontinuing one model and merging it with the other, while yes that sucks, I am not surprised that it did happen and while I do think the price should be lower on the passive ones if they don't have enough buyers for them I don't see why they should offer it as a 2nd model.
- Flimsiness: I am not sure what this means, because my bass certainly is not flimsy nor does it feel flimsy, and I'll go on to say that out of all the basses I played, only one felt flimsy and that was a Hofner Icon that needed some work. As for my Carvin, from what I could tell the hardware is very good quality; Hipshot bridge, Gotoh tuners, a solid feeling joint and a solid neck. I'll also say that I tested a mid 90s LB70 and likewise it did not feel flimsy at all.
- "The necks feel like Schecters": Well, they do in the sense that both are good feeling necks. The Schecter C4 I own has one of the better necks out there for a bass at its price point (got it used from here for $275 and most (used) seem to be hovering around the $300-350 range). Yes, both my Carvin and my Schecter have slimmer necks, but both have some meat and structure to them; they're not pencil thin. Ultimately I do prefer the one on my Carvin but that's because it has a tung oil neck; the Schecter neck is polished.
- Electronics: This one I can give for the older Carvins; I think they made some great strides here. That LB70 that I played did sound a bit dull, and while comparing that bass to mine is a bit of a stretch (humbuckers vs jazz pickups) I do prefer the ones in mine. This isn't to say the older pickups are bad. They aren't; far from it, but the newer ones do have that kick that they needed.
- Looks: While I do see that pointy headstocks are rooted in the 80s I should point out that the LB has multiple headstock choices, and that the standard one looks relatively normal. As for the finishes; I find myself lamenting that manufacturers don't offer more, so the large variety that Carvin offers is quite good.
Now for discontinuing one model and merging it with the other, while yes that sucks, I am not surprised that it did happen and while I do think the price should be lower on the passive ones if they don't have enough buyers for them I don't see why they should offer it as a 2nd model.
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