• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

New Carvin P bass, about time?

Status
Not open for further replies.
#681
Someone asked for a pic of my bass showing the whole thing, with headstock, since the custom pickguard was installed. Here's my rig for last night's gig at the Stillwater Taproom in Augusta, GA. Carvin PB5 fretless, Eden WT300, Carvin 112AG stack. Great warm tone that punched.

10895259064_a8a756ab85_z.jpg

CarvinPB5_EdenWT300_112AGs_at_Stillwater by wwgtsc, on Flickr

Cheers,
Liam
 
#690
I like the black on black with the bwb pickguard. Very Nicely designed. Not sure of the headstock but I have a feeling it would grow on me. How do you like it? Playability? Tone? Balance? I'd love to know.
 
#691
Burke said:
I like the black on black with the bwb pickguard. Very Nicely designed. Not sure of the headstock but I have a feeling it would grow on me. How do you like it? Playability? Tone? Balance? I'd love to know.
Click to expand...


Playability is very good. Very easy to play. It came very nicely setup. The back of the neck feels great. Some fret clack on the B & E but nothing major.

Tone is really great. The biggest surprise for me are the Carvin strings. There was very minimal brightness you get with new flatwounds. Perhaps none at all. The strings feel almost broken in. I've had this bass for almost two months but the strings felt broken in right when I got it. I love the thud of the B string. The B is clear but has a nice dark thud to it. I took out my Warwick Corvette Pro Series 5-string yesterday. It has D'Addario Chromes but I put it away because it was too bright-sounding, especially the D & G strings.

Balance? It doesn't neck dive. I'm not sure how much it weighs but it's a little heavy. I'm guessing under 10 lbs. I have a Comfort Strap so that helps a lot.
 
#694
Still really digging this bass. I hate to say it, but I rarely pick up my SB5000 anymore. The PBJ just has a fuller tone to my ears and the neck profile is my favorite of all the 4 strings I've played. I've been searching for a 4 string I liked for a long time now and this one is it.

It still doesn't cut the live mix like the SB5000, but I find if I dial the PBJ a hair more towards the P pickup, it can find a nice spot in the mix as well.
 
#696
Jarrett,

While I really like my SB4000, I think I get what you mean about fuller tone from your PBJ. The older version of the J99 pickups on my LB 70s are the gold standard in single coil pickups for me in this regard. They have a nice high end, but a little more meat in the mids and lows. Of course, it's a matter of opinion, since some people say the older J99s lacked "character."

I also understand the cutting through the mix thing. To me, there's cutting though the mix, and sitting in the mix. Kind of like listening to Nathan East playing with Clapton, which I would call cutting through the mix, and Willie Weaks, who I would say sits in the mix. Both good sounds, just different.

As far as the neck goes, Jarrett, did you go with the 14" radius? My Carvins are all 12" radius, and I am wondering if I would really notice the difference.
 
#697
temmrich said:
How is the pb neck different than the sb?
Click to expand...
The SB4000 neck is pretty chunky to me. It never felt as natural in my hand as the SB5000 profile does. The PB neck feels thinner, more like a J neck, imo. And feels very natural to me. Just a preference thing.

WoodyG3 said:
As far as the neck goes, Jarrett, did you go with the 14" radius? My Carvins are all 12" radius, and I am wondering if I would really notice the difference.
Click to expand...

The PB is 14" standard and mine is 14". I've owned a couple 12" SB4000's and I can't remember/tell a difference between 12" and 14". I did order a 10" SB4000 once and could tell a diff on that one.

I did go with low wide frets on the PBJ instead of my typical SS big frets and I do notice a little feel diff between them and the ones on my SB5000 when moving around the neck. I'm not sure I prefer one over the other at this point.
 
#699
... and to think I was ---><--- this close to ordering an Icon 4 earlier this year. This is PERFECT cause I was wavering on which third bass to add to my stable: a P/J or an HH ... this kind of solves that quandary!

I'm thinking of this as a build, but calling Carvin to ask about a translucent black finish (seen it done on six-string Carvins and with blackburst on basses). My only wish would be that pickguard delete or a clear guard was an option:

ASH1 1Piece Swamp Ash Body/Maple Neck $60.00
CG Clear Gloss Finish (Standard) $0.00
Jet Black $0.00
5MW 5Piece Maple Neck w/ 2 Walnut Stripes $120.00
TN Tung Oil Finish Back Of Neck (Standard) $0.00
CTH Carved Top Headstock $20.00
BMNH Birdseye Maple Natural Clear Headstock (NonPainted)
$30.00
BMF Birdseye Maple Fingerboard (TungOiled) $30.00
NIN No Top Inlays Side Dots Only $0.00
FR Med Jumbo Frets .048" H .103" W (Standard) $0.00
R14 14in Fretboard Radius (Standard) $0.00
BLK Black Pickups $0.00
PHAC Add HB Bridge Humbucker and Active/Passive Electronics $170.00
CH Chrome Hardware (Standard) $0.00
BLL2 Large Black Logo (no charge) $0.00
SL Dunlop Straplocks $10.00
HS Hipshot Bass Detuner $60.00
BG Black MultiLayer Pickguard $5.00

Would run 1.2Gs. Yeah, I'm into the black/maple thing for this kind of bass.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back