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New Carvin Micro bass combo amps!

#103
Thanks Craig P for #96 & #98 please keep us posted. Your thoughts and experiences are exactly what my questions and concerns are and how I envision using that amp. My beloved Polytone MiniBrute III amps are giving up and I am looking for a replacement so the MB15 might just be a working solution.
 
#104
Learning a few dozen covers for this C&W band and got Dwight Yoakam & Dale Watson & Merle coming out my ears at this point, so I'm taking a break. Decided to connect the MB15 to an Avatar B212 neo. I put the MB on top of the B212 cab.

Whoa. I thought that '70s 1x15 Peavey cab with the cheap stock driver added bottom end, but this thing's ridiculous. This time I can really hear the fundamentals, but at the same time I've got this great blatty, honkin' midrange from the Carvin's 15 going on. Yeah, yeah, I know that a fifteen sitting on top of two twelves isn't exactly textbook-proper, but trust me, the sound of this particular combination is totally sick. I'd say it could get just loud enough to do dance music for 100-150 people with guitarists and drummer who are not insane. Need more bottom? Turn up the bass, and the twelves in the B212 will fire up and deliver it. Need more midrange? Cut back the contour, and the fifteen in the MB15 will spring to life and deliver it.

It's not bi-amping, but it's definitely frequency-splitting -- not electrically, of course, but subjectively, i.e. on my side of the cones.

Having something under the MB15 that can do serious bottom will allow you to run the amp with much less bass boost than you'd need without an extension speaker, which should mean less low-frequency load on the MB15's driver, which in turn should mean the whole rig can go a lot louder. (My impression of the MB15 alone is that its fifteen, and not the amp itself, would be the first to yell uncle.)

Having more fun here than a human being should be allowed to have.

Ok, I'd better get back to learning this stuff or the other guys are gonna kill me...
 
#105
Very interesting! I happen to own an Avatar B212Neo. Hmm. If I get the MB15 I wasn't planning on using them together; I have way more watts on tap than the B212 can comfortably handle already. But your vivid, colorful description makes me WANT to hear the blatty midrange from the MB15 and fundamentals from the B212. Man, you should write for a Bass Mag! :bassist:
 
#106
Just pulled it apart to see what's in there.

The speaker is a Invalid Link Removed, 8 ohms of course. Relatively heavy sucker -- 10 pound magnet. Who knows, maybe this thing can take a lot more than I've been willing to throw at it so far.

The amp itself weighs nothing. It pops out of the top of the box after you remove six screws but you really should yank the driver first so you can push the amp out from beneath, because the amp flange has a bit of a sticky fit to the cab's Tolex overwrap. (Just watch out what you push on, as the amp is not caged.) No surprises with the amp, really. Seems put together well. There are huge gobs of silicone where there's a risk of vibration loosening things. The crossover is part of the amp board itself, not a separate board. Acoustical damping is a 30"x12" strip of black felt stapled to the inside of the cab in a "U" shape across much of the sides and back. There's no felt on the bottom of the cab. There's no felt at the top since that's where the amp's mounted.

I'd give assembly a 10 out of 10, but that's no surprise based on my prior experience with Carvin amps and basses. This was great work by whoever did it. Built tight and obviously with a lot of care. I would call the build quality "boringly excellent."

Gonna put it back together now. Sorry there are no pics but my camera's busted and I haven't had time to replace it.
 
#108
Wow, that's great! Thanks, Craig. So many of us here on TB are "tinkerers." I'd have taken it apart already too. l really appreciate the details on "what's in there and how's it put together?" You've answered a lot of questions I know a lot of folks in this thread have been asking themselves. "Boringly excellent" is exactly what it should look like inside.

Let me ask you this, please: Is there a reason other than cost that you went w/the MB15 as opposed to the MB12? Is it b/c the MB12 seems to be more "Hi-Fi" with it's separate midrange driver and you wanted "traditional thump?" That last reason is why I'm looking at the MB15, but I'd really love to hear someone's thoughts on the MB12...or heck, a clip shootout betwixt the two.
 
#109
Hey, Mike. Yep, you nailed it. I don't really go for a hi-fi sound. But beyond that, I wanted the most cone area in the bass region (for loudness) that I could plop onto the front seat of a small Toyota pickup, because I knew this amp would have to do occasional duty at rehearsals and auditions all on its own, without an external cab.
 
#110
From what I have read, correct me if I am wrong, the head is not in a full chassis as well as not being protected from vibration in it's own compartment. How good is that going to be for the electronics ? Are these sealed or ported. Is the tone there at low bedroom practice volumes ? Very interested in these.
 
#111
Going by the user manual and the pics on the website, all 3 appear to be sealed cabs. This was obviously done to keep the cabs small vs. having them much bigger but with better freq response. As you know, "small is in" for the past few years, and there you go.

I wouldn't worry about vibration damage to amp; many (most?) manuf's put the amp part of a combo amp into the same physical cab with the driver(s) with no ill effects. As long as the major "possible problem parts" are well secured/shielded everything is good to go. As Craig.P said:

There are huge gobs of silicone where there's a risk of vibration loosening things
Click to expand...

He's the only TB'er who's actually bought/played/reported on one of these things so far. IMO, these Carvin MB amps seem to be a really good value for what they are. Though they might give up some tone (unknown at this point due to no direct, real world comparos yet) to other similarly spec'd/priced combos (GK112 for example), their feature set is way superior. I.E. very flexible EQ, can add external speaker, full-featured line out.

I thought I knew what I wanted (MB10) but then I started thinking and reading and absorbing. ATM, I'm honestly undecided b/t ANY of the Carvin MB series and a GK112 which isn't even out yet (most major etailers say "end-August"). Could the Carvin MB10 spew output like the GK112? Not likely. But it's smaller and better-featured by a longshot. But the GK112 is very likely to be a kickass sounding amp, based on GK's history and reputation. Then we flip-flop to the MB15, which Craig.P has. Bigger but maybe not better. Nobody's heard the GK112 yet. Again, the Carvin MB series feature set kicks butt, depending on what YOU need or not out of it.

In any case, this is a great time to be an electric bassist needing a small combo amp!! :D
 
#112
Just to add fuel to the fire:

I want to buy a small combo amp that I can practice with...but:

- Must have headphone out
- Must have XLR DI out (adjustable DI "pre/post/ground lift" a plus)
- Must have enough watts (or be efficient enough) that I can gig it in a "realistic small group" setting and not get buried (i.e. 20w combos w/8" speakers need not apply)
- Must also have enough speaker/cabinet to deliver said tone
- Must not be more than $350-ish
- Must be "multi-tonal capable" at least to a point. No "thump-only" or "whizzeee-only" one-tone boxes

Am I asking for a lot? You betcha! But it's my money and at the moment, it's staying in my pocket until some more reivews pop up
 
#113
Correct, the head is (ahem...) bare, and subject to everything the back of the speaker throws at it. But the parts that can come loose are silicone-gobbed. How good is it? I have no idea, but I'm sure Carvin must've done some sort of shake, rattle, & roll testing before they made the decision to do it this way.

The cab is sealed, not ported. The seal is almost perfect. Pushing on the 15's cone, you can hear the "sigh" of air barely escaping from somewhere. It's pretty damn tight.

At low practice volumes, you can get reasonable bass out of the box if you go a bit crazy with bass boost and contour and mid cut. But you won't really get an idea of just how much boost you're applying until you connect an external CAPABLE cab, and then you realize just how much boost is required to get usable bass out of this tiny box alone. Look, this thing is what it is. It wasn't designed for good+loud bass all on its own; it was designed for portability first and foremost. The external speaker jack is the key to getting usable bass at volume out of this little guy. Believe me, it turns into a frickin' little monster with the right cab under it. :p

FWIW, I generally leave the 1x15 Peavey cab plugged in when I'm practicing material. Not for volume, just to get that bass "solidity" without having to go gaga with the tone controls.

Hope this helps.
 
#116
MB12 arrives today. Have a Schroeder 15L (no tweet, custom dimensions) to use as extension cab and now I'm curious as heck to see how it all plays... main idea was to use it with my Kala U-Bass as a killer jam/travel rig. I'll follow up after the trial run.
 
#119
Just got my Carvin MB12. First impressions.... fit and finish are excellent (really nice looking rig, actually!). Have run three basses (Sadowsky M5-24, Zon fretless Sonus Special 5, Kala U-Bass) through it, mostly finger-style, a little slap, no pick. Overall I'd have to say wow. My main rig is an EA iAmp 800/Schroeder 1212R/Schroeder 15L. This seems brighter and the upper range is more defined and clear (at home and alone, anyway...). With volume on 4, eq set flat, compression off, drive off, and tweeter on (not dimmed) it's a very clear and crisp amp. Definitely midrange and treble forward. Like listening to your bass in good headphones... very articulate and bright. You definitely hear string/fret noise and any mistakes, but it isn't at all harsh. The low end is there, very piano-ish, not at all pillowy. At low volumes it remains very tonally accurate... not deep, but my basses still sounded like my basses. The open B string on both 5's was clear, no mush, and articulate with a noticeable but not severe drop in thump. The low end in general was solid and punchier than I'd expected. As you crank the volume, it makes a noticeable jump in "punchy" around 6 and keeps steadily and cleanly ramping up until it leveled off about 9. When I started twisting knobs, I liked the amp a lot more. First off, the MB12 has a really nice set of features, especially at this price point. The two sweepable midranges, the compression, drive and contour knobs give a heck of a lot of tone options and all seem like really usable tones so far. I liked it best with the bass up quite a bit, treble down a bit, low mids punched up at 200hz, and hi mids rolled off a little around 1k, contour half way (moderate mid scoop), drive on about 10 o'clock (the Sadowsky liked more drive, especially pushing the neck PU!) and a little compression (a very smooth compression, by the way). Volume wise, it's loud enough that I think it'd hold up fine with a moderate drummer and a guitar or two...helped a lot by its punchy and bright sound - definitely seems like it will make its place in a mix. I'm not much of a solo act, but this seems to really have an especially nice tone for the middle and upper ends of the fretboard. Both the Zon and the M5 really sang. If you want a very crisp, articulate and focused sound, very customizable tone, with a more modern lean, I'd say it's definitely worth checking out. (Just a note on the Kala/Carvin combo... I need to try it with a pre-amp... played a little on the brittle side. Lost some of the woody warmth and gained some fairly significant finger and string racket. The racket definitely improved as I adjusted my plucking style and twisted knobs. I haven't spent near enough time on either the U-Bass or the Carvin to dial in a solid sound - or opinion - yet, but thought it was worth mentioning.)
 
#120
kirk62 said:
Just got my Carvin MB12. First impressions.... fit and finish are excellent (really nice looking rig, actually!). Have run three basses (Sadowsky M5-24, Zon fretless Sonus Special 5, Kala U-Bass) through it, mostly finger-style, a little slap, no pick. Overall I'd have to say wow. My main rig is an EA iAmp 800/Schroeder 1212R/Schroeder 15L. This seems brighter and the upper range is more defined and clear (at home and alone, anyway...). With volume on 4, eq set flat, compression off, drive off, and tweeter on (not dimmed) it's a very clear and crisp amp. Definitely midrange and treble forward. Like listening to your bass in good headphones... very articulate and bright. You definitely hear string/fret noise and any mistakes, but it isn't at all harsh. The low end is there, very piano-ish, not at all pillowy. At low volumes it remains very tonally accurate... not deep, but my basses still sounded like my basses. The open B string on both 5's was clear, no mush, and articulate with a noticeable but not severe drop in thump. The low end in general was solid and punchier than I'd expected. As you crank the volume, it makes a noticeable jump in "punchy" around 6 and keeps steadily and cleanly ramping up until it leveled off about 9. When I started twisting knobs, I liked the amp a lot more. First off, the MB12 has a really nice set of features, especially at this price point. The two sweepable midranges, the compression, drive and contour knobs give a heck of a lot of tone options and all seem like really usable tones so far. I liked it best with the bass up quite a bit, treble down a bit, low mids punched up at 200hz, and hi mids rolled off a little around 1k, contour half way (moderate mid scoop), drive on about 10 o'clock (the Sadowsky liked more drive, especially pushing the neck PU!) and a little compression (a very smooth compression, by the way). Volume wise, it's loud enough that I think it'd hold up fine with a moderate drummer and a guitar or two...helped a lot by its punchy and bright sound - definitely seems like it will make its place in a mix. I'm not much of a solo act, but this seems to really have an especially nice tone for the middle and upper ends of the fretboard. Both the Zon and the M5 really sang. If you want a very crisp, articulate and focused sound, very customizable tone, with a more modern lean, I'd say it's definitely worth checking out. (Just a note on the Kala/Carvin combo... I need to try it with a pre-amp... played a little on the brittle side. Lost some of the woody warmth and gained some fairly significant finger and string racket. The racket definitely improved as I adjusted my plucking style and twisted knobs. I haven't spent near enough time on either the U-Bass or the Carvin to dial in a solid sound - or opinion - yet, but thought it was worth mentioning.)
Click to expand...

Awesome review mate, thank you for taking the time to write it up :)
Glad it's worked out for you...

Eude
 

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