Carvin SB5000 / SB4000 Roll Call...Part 7!

[Jarrett]

By the way, this has been a recurring theme throughout my SB ownership. Guys walk up and say I like your sound. They ask what kind of bass and I say Carvin and they immediately walk over and take a look at my amp

They immediately think the sound they like can't be coming from a mail order bass, oh but it is

 

[JoeVictim]

I just ordered one last week with a birdseye maple board and MOP block inlays. I'll post pictures when it gets here

First Congratz!

Second, I really wish Carvin would have offered blocks on maple when I ordered mine. Hear that Carvin? You would have got the up charge from me if you would have offered it sooner!

However, I might just grab those inlay stickers. I had some on my MIM jazz. They did not impact playing or feel at all and gave that tired rosewood, a new look. Now I just like the look and want my Carvin to have blocks...

 

[pbasskalas]

There is one on the in-stock page right now with the abalone inlay on maple: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[gerrywarwick]

I love John East preamps. I put the M-Retro in my Miller sig and it matched perfectly. Better than the Sadowsky and stock pre i had in that bass. I had a spare U-Retro lying around and decided I had to know what it would sound like in the SB. For my tastes, the stock pre suits the bass better. The first and most surprising thing I noticed was less clarity. This is the pre that I put in my PNut bass and would still be in if it fit. The East pre at 9v had fantastic output but boosting the lower mids gave me muddy to honky tones. Boosting the upper mid frequencies and tone wide open is magic on my MM but sounded clanky on my SB. When I finally found a tone I liked, it was already close to what the SB was giving me anyway but less natural sounding. I'm sure it just didn't blend well with the Carvin pickups in my bass because it's really a great pre.. There's definitely magic in the pickups but the quality of the SB pre should not be overlooked. I was also pleasantly surprised to see the shielding already there and nicely done. I put the pre back in with a new input jack while i was at it and I'm back in business and curiosity is satisfied.

 

[Jarrett]

Good info, thanks.

 

[Vic]

I love John East preamps.
...
For my tastes, the stock pre suits the bass better. The first and most surprising thing I noticed was less clarity...

Wow, very interesting post, because I'm also a big fan of East's stuff, though I rarely use very much EQ, so I never noticed what you did in the basses I have and have had them in. That said, kinda' makes you wonder if Carvin would ever sell the pre separately?

Not to put a bug in yer ear, but Carey Nordstrand has some really great 2 and 3 band internal pre's and you can buy them pre-wired in many configs (almost any config if you go direct). I really like that pre too if you were of the mind to check one out in the SB and post up about it.

Just a thought, since we apparently have similar tastes at least in some ways.

 

[UntitledProject]

Wow, very interesting post, because I'm also a big fan of East's stuff, though I rarely use very much EQ, so I never noticed what you did in the basses I have and have had them in. That said, kinda' makes you wonder if Carvin would ever sell the pre separately?

Not to put a bug in yer ear, but Carey Nordstrand has some really great 2 and 3 band internal pre's and you can buy them pre-wired in many configs (almost any config if you go direct). I really like that pre too if you were of the mind to check one out in the SB and post up about it.

Just a thought, since we apparently have similar tastes at least in some ways.

Carvin does sell it seperately. I actually have had one in a Jazz bass and P bass. It works very well in both.

 

[gerrywarwick]

Nordstrand is one of the pre's I haven't tried. The clips I've heard sound great tho. Seems really aggressive but that's probably because of how it matches up with the Nordy pups. Funny how some things go well and some don't. I did read where someone put a J-Retro in their SB "and never looked back". He didn't mention if he changed the pickups too.Tone is so subjective. I'm done experimenting with this bass. I don't even need mid control for my applications. In fact, at the last gig, I chose to run my SABDDI in front of my pre with the blend on half and still cut through. I was the only one not going through the pa as well. I will also mention that at the last gig, bass players wanted to see, up close, what they thought was the new Deluxe Fender, which I also got to compare directly to mine.....but that's another story.

 

[Vic]

Carvin does sell it seperately. I actually have had one in a Jazz bass and P bass. It works very well in both.

Wow, for some reason I just assumed without looking they wouldn't do this because of the whole signature model thing, but happily I'm wrong. Thanks!

For anyone else curious...

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[Vic]

Nordstrand is one of the pre's I haven't tried. The clips I've heard sound great tho. Seems really aggressive but that's probably because of how it matches up with the Nordy pups.

I do suspect a lot of that was the pickups... I think Nordstrand pickups are generally more aggressive than others. Like for example, the NP (P bass) style pickup has more grunt than a more classic sounding P for sure (which is actually a thing I like very much about it).

 

[TonyP-]

Nordstrand is one of the pre's I haven't tried. The clips I've heard sound great tho. Seems really aggressive but that's probably because of how it matches up with the Nordy pups.

My ear might be a little used to Carey's pickups since I used them in everything but the Carvin (I never found them that aggressive) prehaps a little more geurr in the lower mids then a Aero or Franlin (but not a ton).

As far as his pres...They are not transparent so don't exspect a Glocklang type of thing, but I don't find them harsh either...I find them flexible, significantly more flexible then say a Aggie or Sadowsky (which neither I'm a fan of).

The Carvin electronic formula in the SB is winning combo when used in conjunction.

 

[qervo]

I'm glad to hear the good comments about SB pre's . I've got 4 more weeks till I receive mine.

 

[Inconnu]

Jarrett totally wins on the "most owned SB's" front, but here's mine. And I gotta' say, I've been so happy with it, I've literally looked at all the others posted here and on their web site and not had any GAS at all. It's just insanely good. I almost feel sorry for Jarrett as he's really struggled to find "the one" it seems like, whereas I got it on the first try. Maybe I'm just lucky.

What finish is that??? Amazing!

 

[Vic]

What finish is that??? Amazing!

Thanks! It's called "FDO - Deep Orangeburst Flame". It's kind of an expensive option tho, because it includes the "DTS" (Deep Triple Stain) process.

To this day, I've played several of these things at NAMM and while the quality and consistency is excellent across the board on all of them, the one I own is the one I still like best. I have no interest in doing anything with it except playing it and changing strings/batteries as needed. Great bass, and fantastic value.

 

[UntitledProject]

Wow, for some reason I just assumed without looking they wouldn't do this because of the whole signature model thing, but happily I'm wrong. Thanks!

For anyone else curious...

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

I actually bought the pre before I bought my sb. It was the fact that it sounded so good in my parts J Bass that made me commit to ordering an sb. Great preamp, Amazing Bass!

 

[Phillip Jordan]

Hey fellow SB owners,

I am currently working on a project to produce PLAYING RAMPS & PICKGUARDS for our wonderful basses.

They are made of plexiglass and are a matching radius to your fretboard.

They will be produced in varies transparent colors such as blue, red, smoked etc.

Thanks for looking. Stay in the pocket fellas.

PM ME FOR DETAILS.

 

[Phillip Jordan]

 

[Puma]

check it out. AWESOME bass!

 

[qervo]

Very Nice!

 

[qervo]

This may sound like a dumb question, but I've never used ramps on a bass . I like the way look but What exactly is the purpose?