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Carvin head/cab ugh!

#41
I had a BX 500 I was really enthused with just long enough to go out of warranty. It hissed loud and croaked when I turned it on a couple of weeks ago. Repair guy looked at it, and convinced me that either him or Carvin with their flat rate service and two way shipping, might as well get a new one. Oh well, at least he got a 12ax7 tube for his trouble.
I'm not going to dis Carvin, because everybody is selling Asian throw away amps these days. It's just the way of things anymore unless you spend a buttload of money.

I've got a 160 watt combo that is plenty for me these days. One less piece of junk to have laying around.
 
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#44
I may almost be to the point where I'm considered a Carvin fanboy on this forum (take a look at my avatar and media pics) :angel: so yeah, I dig their products.

I love my carvin basses but honestly I'm on the fence with my BX500. I love that I can take it to the gig in a laptop bag (it's about 6lbs I think) and it's loud as all holy hell but for some reason it doesn't have "that sound" that I'm looking for.

I A/B it against my 50lb Ashdown ABM 500 and the ash always wins. It just sounds deeper, clearer, and more musical to my ears. I've also had a Carvin RL1000 and some of the PB bass stuff and my humble opinion on carvin bass amps is that you need to put some pedals in front of them to give them some personality and mojo. With the RL head a sans amp bddi made the rig come alive.
 
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#48
I bought a Pro 300 and a Carvin 210 sometime around '96. Used them extensively when I was playing full time. Got nothing but compliments on my sound wherever I went. Sold them when I stopped playing out for a while in 2004. I know for a fact that particular rig is still working. Bought a Redline 600 along with a Redline 210 and 115. Liked the cabs, but never really made friends with the head, too many bells and whistles and wound up running a Sansamp VT pedal through the effects loop to get a sound I liked. Sold all of that off to fund another rig (GK) which I played for a few years until I got my current rig, a Carvin BX500 and two BR 210s. It's been great so far, am really enjoying it. IMG_20141208_163046 (1).jpg
 
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#49
bx500 user here, mine has never had any issues. works all the time. 3+ years used several times a week for band practice and several times a month at gigs. and i bought it used.

things that could have been wrong- dirty in/out jacks or effects loop jacks (clean with contact cleaner, after cleaning bridge effects loop i/o with patch cable), ribbon cable (clean with contact cleaner), tube issues (use the switch in the back to take it out of circuit, clean tube socket, or replace), check power cable/port, check output to cab and wire (get speakons if you werent using them).

i keep mine rack mounted, and i take care to let it completely shut off before unplugging it or turning of the power supply to it. also dont turn it off and then back on real quick (needs to go through its shutdown process, literally takes 3-4 seconds. you hear the amp click twice {circuit and then fan i think} if its quiet).

i love mine, i will admit that by itself its a little bland and super clean, but it has an amazing eq and works with pedals very well. tone chameleon
 
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#51
All this reliability issues regarding the carvin 510 (has a built-in BX500) has got me second guessing ordering. If I wanted to play everything from metal to soft rock what would be the better buy, the GK MB-210 or the Carvin BR510.

Terms of reliability GK practically ol' reliable and I get an extra year of warranty when I probably will need it for the carvin. And Im NY so shipping back and forth to Carvin HQ isn't cheap. My plan for both of these combos is to add a 15" speakers later down the line. Carvin has the price point but if GK truly has the better sound I'm all in because it already has the reliability.

This is all in regards to the strictly the BR510 and the GK MB-210 because I know carvins BRX's are better i would just rather go GK by then. Please help me out i'm struggling to make a smart purchase.
 
#53
If it's a new Carvin, it shouldn't have any of the reliability issues reported (the ribbon/cabling). If you're going GK I urge you to save up some $$$ and go for the Neo cabinets instead of the MB series, they're noticeably higher-quality.

I love Carvin amps, but I have not liked the Carvin 410 and 115 I've played.
 
#54
Jesi Di said:
I kind of hate my Carvin head/cab. I bought it used from a friend. If I could go back and buy a different kind, I would build a time machine just for that one act. Anyone else have problems with theirs?
Click to expand...
I bought a used Carvin bass head about a year ago. Ugh! Worst amp I've ever owned. Extremely loud 60 Hz hum. Mid control only effects the amount of white noise coming out of the critter. Carvin won't/can't send me a schematic.

Oh...did I mention it's a Bassmaster 120 built in the early 70s and that I paid a whopping $20 for it?
 

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