Yes....LOVE IT! I barely use the Bass and Treble, but that Mid-sweep is my best friend.
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Carvin SB5000 / SB4000 Roll Call...Part 8!
- Thread starter Bryan R. Tyler
- Start date
Yes....LOVE IT! I barely use the Bass and Treble, but that Mid-sweep is my best friend.
It finally arrived! I plugged it into my Streamliner 900/ Bergantino AE410 and was not impressed. I switched cabs to my AE212 and the tone got better, bit still not there with any amount of tweaking.
I hooked up the Shuttlemax 9.2 through the AE410 and BAM!!! There it was, sweet tonal bliss. Swapped to the AE212 and it was still there but a bit deeper.
I compared it to my Lakland 55-01 with US Bart's and NTMB 918F pre and I the SB5000 is not nearly as aggressive. This isn't necessarily bad. I was looking for a nice passive 5 string Jazz when I found this SB5000 and this definitely fits the bill.
My passive jazz is a Lakland 44-60 with Chi-Sonics and the tone of the SB5000 is very similar, but different enough to make me happy.
I am amazed how sensitive the active controls are on the pre. Another thing that I really like is that the second you roll off the next k pup, even just a little, you get that Jaco quack/growl. The neck pup also does the PBass sound nicely. The a/p tone control is a nice feature the I can see using more than the bass and treble controls.
I get to use it with the band tomorrow so we'll see how it compares to my Laklands live. I love the look of the bass and hope that it sits in the mix how I want to. The fact that it didn't "wow" me right out of the box has me on the fence, but I'm going to try everything that I can to justify keeping it.
I hooked up the Shuttlemax 9.2 through the AE410 and BAM!!! There it was, sweet tonal bliss. Swapped to the AE212 and it was still there but a bit deeper.
I compared it to my Lakland 55-01 with US Bart's and NTMB 918F pre and I the SB5000 is not nearly as aggressive. This isn't necessarily bad. I was looking for a nice passive 5 string Jazz when I found this SB5000 and this definitely fits the bill.
My passive jazz is a Lakland 44-60 with Chi-Sonics and the tone of the SB5000 is very similar, but different enough to make me happy.
I am amazed how sensitive the active controls are on the pre. Another thing that I really like is that the second you roll off the next k pup, even just a little, you get that Jaco quack/growl. The neck pup also does the PBass sound nicely. The a/p tone control is a nice feature the I can see using more than the bass and treble controls.
I get to use it with the band tomorrow so we'll see how it compares to my Laklands live. I love the look of the bass and hope that it sits in the mix how I want to. The fact that it didn't "wow" me right out of the box has me on the fence, but I'm going to try everything that I can to justify keeping it.
You combine a "scooped" bass with a scooped amp & I can see why you wouldn't be excited. The 9.2max is the best and can definitely add some aggression the bass or the streamliner doesnt have. I've never really considered jazz basses to be too aggressive, sometimes even a bit hollow... but it just has that tone that works for so much stuff.
Glad you like the tone. Hows the volume jump active to passive?
Personally I'd go with 1 jazz in the stable. I like to have basses with more mid content... its easier to dial out than add those sometimes.
Glad you like the tone. Hows the volume jump active to passive?
Personally I'd go with 1 jazz in the stable. I like to have basses with more mid content... its easier to dial out than add those sometimes.
The A/P jump isn't bad at all. I can't see using the bass/treble stack much as the global tone knob does exactly what I want.
As far as the scooping and amps, I get the sounds that I want from my streamliner and sm9.2 without tweaking the amps. I do all of the tweaking, which is minimal, from my basses which are usually left flat for the actives and about 75% on with the tone knob on the passives. I can use either amp with either cab along with any of my other basses with no issue and I want the same with the SB. The SB5000 is a well thought out combination of the boost/cut of an active and the simplicity of a passive. Very clear tone, the wife even noticed. I'm anxious to see how it sounds with the band, I'll know in about 7 hours. Tonight is an early show. I really want this bass to work for me but I have a feeling that it will be for sale or trade soon. I hope the feeling is wrong.
Don't forget Carvin's ten day return policy. If it's not for you, give them a call and set up a return.
Doug Parent
Supporting Member
If you are really happy with that bass from a playability perspective, aesthetics, etc one thing you might consider is swapping the pickups which are standard size J-Bass pickups. There are a multitude of brands that will give you a wide variety of tone. I had an SB5000 for a short while but sold it for other reasons, but had I kept it the stock electronics would have been swapped out right away to either Bart, Nordies or EMG's. Just a thought.
I've thought about that, but trying to avoid it.
The wife a kids went shopping this morning so I had the chance to play it at close to stage volume with the streamliner and volume makes a difference. I realized another thing that is bugging me is the strings are brand new and too zingy for me. A few days of playing should fix that. There is a curve learning how the bass/treble stack and tone control interact with each other. I feel better about the bass, I still need to lower the action a tad. I will say this, you can play Michael Jackson bass lines all day on this bass. It nails the Billie Jean tone.
Doug Parent
Supporting Member
I have experience with those pickups and compared to Barts for example they are really edgy and bright. Night and day. Just FYI. Good luck.
These pickups are not standard jazz size. Well, they are, they are just the same size. A jazz set will have two different lengths like a fender jazz has. One pickup won't fit in the carvin. You need to get a set with both pickups the same length.
Anyone find these SB basses perfectly tuned for Carvin amps and cabs? My SB4000 sounds killer on my MB15/15.
Well, I think its a keeper. I used the Streamliner 900 and Berg AE212 and it sounded great. I played it against my Lakland 55-01 with US Bartolini pups and pre and the SB5000 was easier to play and just sounded more even in the mix. I'm happy. 
The 55-01 may be for sale soon.
The 55-01 may be for sale soon.
That's awesome it worked out! I had mine for sale on here not even a month after getting it. I bought a Lakland Decade Skyline, which was on my bucket list, so I put the Carvin up. After a bit of playing them more, I realized as much as I love the Decade, the pups just don't do it for me. It feels great, and looks even better. But, i decided I'd pull down the SB and put up the Decade. The SB, as I said, in active mode is music to my ears. And to me it feels and plays like the 55-02 I regret selling. I don't want that same feeling. So, probably tonight I'm going to plug it back in and fiddle around with the passive side to see if I can dial it up to my liking.
I'll never sell my 5502 its just sounds too good. The SB5000 does what I bought the 5501 to do and more.
My SB5001 is a keeper, for sure. I'm a little surprised that someone felt their Bart setup was more aggressive, though. Mine sounds like an agressive jazz in spades. The only thing I still need to do is adjust the preamp trim to match the passive volume and it'll be perfect.
My Bart setup is much more aggressive than the Carvin setup. The Carvin is still more aggressive than a standard jazz any day, but the passive sound is exactly what I want and the active sound is more usable to me than my 5501 with Barts. This is a great complement to my Chi-Sonic equipped jazz bass.
I really curious about a fretless SB...I'll bet it kills.
Well, I think its a keeper. I used the Streamliner 900 and Berg AE212 and it sounded great. I played it against my Lakland 55-01 with US Bartolini pups and pre and the SB5000 was easier to play and just sounded more even in the mix. I'm happy.
Nice Clay! This video has an SB5000 played through the exact same rig (Streamliner 900 + bergantino AE212), without pa support for the bass:
http://youtu.be/AICflW-EkOM
