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charvel question

P

Polaris138

Jul 13, 2009
15
0
#1
hey everyone..

can anyone explain to me the difference/relationship between charvel and jackson basses? I really know nothing about this. all i know is i own a jackson and i love it, and recently while i was shopping around at my local guitar center, i saw a used charvel bass for $200. it has jackson pickups, and on the head stock it says jackson/charvel, which is why i am asking. this is the best pic i could find of it on google:

http://www.bass-guitar-museum.com/uploads/bass/17/150281941340-6.jpg

thanks in advance!
 
#2
The Charvel Guitar Co. Was originally owned by Wayne Charvel. Grover Jackson bought the company from him and the guitars that were produced (bolt on style super strat types) were Charvels. Randy Rhoads asked Grover to make him a neckthru V guitar and they branded the neck throughs Jackson and the two coexisted. Then Grover sold the Company and Charvels were relegated to Japanese production. Then Jacksons as well as Charvels were made in Japan except for Custom shop models that were made in the USA. Both brands shared many parts in this phase of their exsistense. Fender now owns the company and the brand names. The early Charvels and Jackson guitars known as San Dimas models for the place they were made fetch big bucks on the vintage guitar market but the basses go relatively cheap. The bolt ons have arguably the best Fender style necks ever made. The early Music Man necks were outsourced Charvel parts. Anything that says Ft. Worth Texas on the neckplate and any Jackson that does not say Made in USA are Japanese and now might even be Korean or Chinese. Anything that says Jackson/Charvel is also an import.
 
#3
thanks for the info man, i really appreciate it. i have one more question though. would you say $200 is a reasonable price for the used charvel/jackson bass that i found? i played around on it, and it felt nice, and for a used bass it's in pretty damn good condition. i don't know how much it would have went for new though, thats why i am asking. thanks again for the response.
 
#6
ok so the bass you pictured looks to be a 2b but would be 100%positive without seeing the headstock but 200 is a very decent price for a charvel you can also talk to the guys down there and see if you can get a better price. for me i originally bought a schector and liked it but it was heavy and i didnt really like the tone i was getting i now have 2 charvels and eliminator and a fusion IV and i couldnt be happier.
 
#7
The Japanese Charvels are really decent. They weigh a lot but you have a great bang for the buck. They have little market appeal mainly because of the pointy headstock on the good ones. Most folks just can't live with that fact. If you can you will get a good bass at a nice price.
 
#8
I'm surprised the OP didn't see the massive Charvel thread....

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=477448&page=23&highlight=show+charvels

I have a group pic of mine in post 448
a lot of pages to scroll thru to get one good answer, and it was already said here which is good.

your pic is a 1990 or so Charvel575, not a 2b, but 200 for that would still be fine.
I have a dozen or so of the various MIJ Charvels that even after 20-25 years they still have straight necks, no scratchy pots, and hardware that has not been age corroded and actually still work perfectly.
 
#9
yogadork said:
The Japanese Charvels are really decent. They weigh a lot but you have a great bang for the buck. They have little market appeal mainly because of the pointy headstock on the good ones. Most folks just can't live with that fact. If you can you will get a good bass at a nice price.
Click to expand...

yes too all of that, but the model1+2 are heavier and if you line them all up in a row, it is easier see the distinctive body difference between the model1-2, and model3-4's:

all 1980's MIJ "B" models are poplar including the model3 NT even with the maple center they are poplar wings..

left to right are the series 1,2,3,4. ( similar to the MIJ Kramer Forum models 1,2,3,4. )
P1010194.jpg
 
#10
I spent many years collecting Charvel USA guitars but always found the Japanese models from the mid eighties to be of very high quality. Don't know much about the toothpaste logo ones but look for the ones with the Charvel logo in the shape of a guitar. BTW the logo with the tuners in line is Japanese and the logo with 3 om a side is USA. You can sometines find the USA ones cheap and if you do grab it and contact me lol. Also there have been some Jackson USA neckthrus on the bay for dirt cheap that didn't even sell.The quality of those basses are of a standard that is hard to beat. Funny what a mere headstock shape will add or detract from the value of an instrument.
If anybody reading this has USA Charvel P or J body they want to sell please LMK as I have a beautiful Strathead Precision neck from back in the day waiting for the right body.
Funny but even in the Charvel thread there is little acknowledgement of USA Charvel basses probably because only a hundred or so production models were made. However they did made hundreds of aftermarket bodies as they started out as a parts company.
USA Charvels do mark a Golden Era of American guitar manufactoring and are some of the best instruments ever made. A San Dimas strat will eat a 54 strat out of the water anyday and the necks are of a quality that cannot be beat or copied.
If you have a USA bass please post it as I for one would love to see them.
 
#11
yogadork said:
I spent many years collecting Charvel USA guitars but always found the Japanese models from the mid eighties to be of very high quality. Don't know much about the toothpaste logo ones but look for the ones with the Charvel logo in the shape of a guitar. BTW the logo with the tuners in line is Japanese and the logo with 3 om a side is USA. You can sometines find the USA ones cheap and if you do grab it and contact me lol. Also there have been some Jackson USA neckthrus on the bay for dirt cheap that didn't even sell.The quality of those basses are of a standard that is hard to beat. Funny what a mere headstock shape will add or detract from the value of an instrument.
If anybody reading this has USA Charvel P or J body they want to sell please LMK as I have a beautiful Strathead Precision neck from back in the day waiting for the right body.
Funny but even in the Charvel thread there is little acknowledgement of USA Charvel basses probably because only a hundred or so production models were made. However they did made hundreds of aftermarket bodies as they started out as a parts company.
USA Charvels do mark a Golden Era of American guitar manufactoring and are some of the best instruments ever made. A San Dimas strat will eat a 54 strat out of the water anyday and the necks are of a quality that cannot be beat or copied.
If you have a USA bass please post it as I for one would love to see them.
Click to expand...

thanks for all the information bro. i always know where to come when i have a question lol. im gonna go back and try to get more info on the bass itself from them before i shell out the 200 bucks.
 
#12
amimbari said:
I'm surprised the OP didn't see the massive Charvel thread....

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=477448&page=23&highlight=show+charvels

I have a group pic of mine in post 448
a lot of pages to scroll thru to get one good answer, and it was already said here which is good.

your pic is a 1990 or so Charvel575, not a 2b, but 200 for that would still be fine.
I have a dozen or so of the various MIJ Charvels that even after 20-25 years they still have straight necks, no scratchy pots, and hardware that has not been age corroded and actually still work perfectly.
Click to expand...

yeah sorry i didnt see that thread.. i havent been on in a while, and i was in a rush to get the question out. that is quite a collection you got there though. im impressed.
 

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