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Carvin SB5000 / SB4000 Roll Call...Part 4!

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#661
After getting pretty excited about the new Bromberg B24 fretless w/ unlined maple neck that is pictured on the facebook b24 page, i called carvin to ask about that option for the SB4000. I have an ash sb4000 that i've been really tempted to pull the frets out of because I was under the impression that carvin wouldn't do a maple fingerboard fretless.. Boy was i wrong!! I can order an unlined Fretless maple/maple neck with the hard as nails fingerboard finish for $250. What a deal.

If i go through with it i'll post some pictures..
 
#663
Jarrett said:
It's Alder/Rosewood SB4000 with SS frets. Abalone dots, cream pickups, red tort pickguard, passive. Pretty plain jane. Sounds good, plays good. I took it to my bass lesson tonight and my instructor who is really picky gave it the once over. He said it was a nice jazz bass, good straight neck, setup was good. He tweaked it a little did a tempered tuning on it and seemed satisfied with the results. Said he thought it was worth the $800 I paid for it. Said it would take a while going through Fenders to find one as good he said. He plays old Jazz basses and Foderas though, so it didn't ruffle his feathers too much :)
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a good bass is a good bass!

i'd gladly take a well built Carvin over a vintage Fender to gig with anyday!
 
#664
Me and you both :) This SB4000 sounds really good, but it feels pretty limited with 4 strings and 20 frets. I really wish my SB5000 had 24 frets. I'm going to play it today and decide whether its going back or not. I'm still kicking around a 5-string fretless.
 
#665
I've been playing my SB5000 at band rehearsal since I got it, but last night I used my Reverend 5 just to change things up. The guys told me to sell it. They said it doesn't sound as good or as have as much bottom end as my P-bass, "and especially that Carvin." So, there ya go. Makes me think I might need a fretted SB5000, too.
 
#666
Yeah, I've never gotten as many compliments on my bass tone as I do with my SBs. From soundmen to bandmates, the sound of it is a hit always. Just last night at rehearsal with a new band, the guitar player turned to the singer and said, "THAT'S what a bass is supposed to sound like!" I'm not sure what the guy was playing that I replaced, but I'm guessing it wasn't an SB :D

One thing I am noticing is the tone on my SB4000 with Carvin nickel strings is much thicker sounding than my SB5000 with DR (SS) FatBeams. It's making me wonder if I should check out some SunBeams for a thicker sound. I played some on my instructor's Fodera this week and I thought they were HiBeams. Felt good.
 
#667
Jarrett said:
Me and you both :) This SB4000 sounds really good, but it feels pretty limited with 4 strings and 20 frets. I really wish my SB5000 had 24 frets. I'm going to play it today and decide whether its going back or not. I'm still kicking around a 5-string fretless.
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i have no use at this time for a 24 fret neck. i never have really. i've owned basses that have them but never really used the extra frettage.


Dave Siff said:
I've been playing my SB5000 at band rehearsal since I got it, but last night I used my Reverend 5 just to change things up. The guys told me to sell it. They said it doesn't sound as good or as have as much bottom end as my P-bass, "and especially that Carvin." So, there ya go. Makes me think I might need a fretted SB5000, too.
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Everyone needs a fretted SB5000 :)



Jarrett said:
Yeah, I've never gotten as many compliments on my bass tone as I do with my SBs. From soundmen to bandmates, the sound of it is a hit always. Just last night at rehearsal with a new band, the guitar player turned to the singer and said, "THAT'S what a bass is supposed to sound like!" I'm not sure what the guy was playing that I replaced, but I'm guessing it wasn't an SB :D

One thing I am noticing is the tone on my SB4000 with Carvin nickel strings is much thicker sounding than my SB5000 with DR (SS) FatBeams. It's making me wonder if I should check out some SunBeams for a thicker sound. I played some on my instructor's Fodera this week and I thought they were HiBeams. Felt good.
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Great to hear about all the compliments the SB gets.

Are there any differences between the SB4 and SB5 besides the strings?

I'm a big fan of nickels. I have never cared for the sound or feel of steels.
 
#668
Dave Siff said:
Makes me think I might need a fretted SB5000, too.
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I might know a guy that has one for sale... :D Seriously though, if I was in the market for an SB5000 right now, I would grab that Sunset Burst one off the in stock page. Sans the TUSQ nut, it looks perfect, imo. That Vintage Yellow one looks nice too. Glad to see they have reduced the overall weight of the newer ones.

madbassplaya said:
Are there any differences between the SB4 and SB5 besides the strings?
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It's passive and has a rosewood board. After playing it some more and cranking it up to gig volumes, the SS strings were fine. They just sound thinner at lower volumes, at gig volumes they were full sounding and the nickels were a little thick/sluggish sounding to me. I might try some Sunbeams down the road just to see.

I packed the SB4000 up and its heading back today. It's a nice bass, but I really like the 5-string/active/maple thing. And the 22 frets on my SB5.

I also swapped out the neck volume pot on my new SB5000 (instead of shipping it back to Carvin) and that seems to have fixed the problem completely. I was having a little static at first, but I adjusted the alignment of the pot on the control plate and it was fine after that. Burned the hell out of my finger (second degree) with the soldering iron though :mad: Glad it's working now, but wish they would have just gotten it right the first time and saved me all the trouble.
 
#669
Jarrett said:
I might know a guy that has one for sale... :D Seriously though, if I was in the market for an SB5000 right now, I would grab that Sunset Burst one off the in stock page. Sans the TUSQ nut, it looks perfect, imo.

It's passive and has a rosewood board. After playing it some more and cranking it up to gig volumes, the SS strings were fine. They just sound thinner at lower volumes, at gig volumes they were full sounding and the nickels were a little thick/sluggish sounding to me. I might try some Sunbeams down the road just to see.

I packed the SB4000 up and its heading back today. It's a nice bass, but I really like the 5-string/active/maple thing. And the 22 frets on my SB5.

I also swapped out the neck volume pot on my new SB5000 (instead of shipping it back to Carvin) That seems to fix the problem completely. I was having a little static at first, but I adjusted the alignment of the pot on the control plate and it was fine after that. Burned the hell out of myself with the soldering iron though :mad: Glad it working now, but wish they would have just gotten it right the first time and saved me all the trouble.
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Can't say I blame you on sending the 4 back. If you've got the 5, you're set.

I understand your frustration with them not getting right. A partial refund or something should be done here. You paid for it to be right the first time.
 
#670
Jarrett said:
I packed the SB4000 up and its heading back today. It's a nice bass, but I really like the 5-string/active/maple thing. And the 22 frets on my SB5.
.
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Send it to me! :D

I see why the bass isn't for you. I wondered about 20 frets instead of 24 when I ordered my SB4000, but the new band we are starting up is playing music that this bass is perfectly suited for. I still have my two LB70s with 24 frets for times that I need to noodle up in the nose bleed section. ;)

Jarrett, take care of that burn and don't let it get infected. We bass players have to take care of our digits!!! :)
 
#676
#678
Aw man, I was hoping the kits would be quicker than that. I was thinking of ordering one. Maybe I should just grab that fretless SB up there and be done with it. Wish it wasn't 10lbs, I have one of those already.
 
#680
107248b.jpg


That's HOT!

Also, returnable if you don't like it. ;)
 
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