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How come we all don't play Carvin instruments & amps/cabs?

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#162
wideload said:
You have a great future in politics, since you know what's best for us, even though we cannot even be trusted to properly choose a musical instrument correctly.
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LOL!!!! Well played Sir...

I see what the OP is saying. They seem to offer an awful lot of custom features, color options and great build quality for roughly the same price as a MIA Fender Deluxe. The problem for me is that every Carvin bass I have ever played has done nothing for me. Looks, tone and playability are just Meh to me.
 
#164
I stated on page one that I bought a Carvin in 1992. I was a junior in High School at the time. I worked at the local Albertsons grocery store to save up the $1,000 it cost at the time. That's a big chunk of change for a 16 year old!!

I got the bass and was never happy with it. It was riddled with problems from the first day. It always had a crackle in the electronics that no repairman could ever fix. The bridge was garbage, the neck moved like a snake...

Yes it was 20 years ago. But that left a terrible taste in my mouth. So, maybe they're better now but I don't care to know because I already wasted $1,000 on a bass I never play. And I can't sell it because it has no value in the used market. So... firewood maybe? I suppose I could make it into a lamp or something.

On the other hand, when I was 24 I saved up for an Ibanez that cost me $500 and never failed me.

I'm not bashing Carvin on the whole. I'm just telling you my story.
 
#167
WoodyG3 said:
This is the "cheap stuff" the spalted maple is over.

IconBack.jpg


And the "cheap" one piece swamp ash body on my SB4000.

SB4000Back.jpg


It's cool if you don't like the looks. But calling it cheap is just plain funny.

I have to agree that the original post was goofy, though. But, hey, this is the Internet. ;)
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Well played. ;)
 
#168
It's always been the pointy headstock shapes and then the half-hearted attempt to add some less-pointy ones. Also, Carvin's logo is the ugliest in the business -- boxy, outdated, unelegant, all caps, looks like a bad WordPerfect font. The ugly logo taints everything they put it on even when the rest of the product looks good.

Again, headstock shapes, logo and general association with unknown artists. When they do finally get a "big-name" endorser like Joe Walsh or Hugh McDonald, it's pretty rare to see them play their Carvins in public.

Did I mention pointy headstocks and ugly logo?

Oh...and I own an SB4000 and used the Carvin PB500 full stack as my main rig for many years.
 
#171
MonkeyBass said:
I stated on page one that I bought a Carvin in 1992. I was a junior in High School at the time. I worked at the local Albertsons grocery store to save up the $1,000 it cost at the time. That's a big chunk of change for a 16 year old!!

I got the bass and was never happy with it. It was riddled with problems from the first day. It always had a crackle in the electronics that no repairman could ever fix. The bridge was garbage, the neck moved like a snake...

Yes it was 20 years ago. But that left a terrible taste in my mouth. So, maybe they're better now but I don't care to know because I already wasted $1,000 on a bass I never play. And I can't sell it because it has no value in the used market. So... firewood maybe? I suppose I could make it into a lamp or something.

On the other hand, when I was 24 I saved up for an Ibanez that cost me $500 and never failed me.

I'm not bashing Carvin on the whole. I'm just telling you my story.
Click to expand...

It's a fine story and I've read similar stories about their basses of that era. Different era though and the quality (pickups, woodwork, hardware, neck treatments) are vastly better now. I just got back from San Diego and every bass played perfectly. The pickups are tone monsters now.
 
#174
The reason I don't like Carvin is someone named Carter punched me in the nose back in third grade in 1981. I know that was 32 years ago, but Carter sounds like Carvin. That's why I don't like Carvin basses.
 
#177
Every Carvin I have owned felt great, played great, looked great except for the headstock although I really like the SB Headstocks. Electronics were nice and dead quiet. Beautifully finished and priced great.
For me at least in Rock Bands they sound nice in the bedroom but dont cut through the mix at all and I have owned 5 or 6 at one time or another. Not sure if its the pickups or electronics or both.
 
#179
I don't like Carvins because the wood they use comes from a cursed forest. It's actually Voodoo wood. Sometimes Voodoo wood disguises itself to look like cheap/generic/Chinese wood so it appears safe to touch. But its not. It's deceptive like that. Real dangerous stuff. And that's why I don't like Carvins.
 
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