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"Official" Carvin Club

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#501
My original plan was to have an AC50 built as I wanted a 5 string bass. However, as time went on it was clear that I just couldn't afford it.

So with a reduced budget, I started window shopping through Gumtree and eBay, but nothing really stood out and that’s the way it stayed for the last couple of months.

So last week, I’m doing my usual look on eBay and cam across this.

Carvin51small.gif



Blimey, I thought. It’s a Carvin, 5 strings pointy, white and has a whammy! That’s things got my name written all over it. Straight away I sent a message to the seller and asked how much shipping would be to the UK. The price was as expected, but then I looked at the other questions that had been asked. Shipping price requests from Russia, Spain, Canada, Thailand and China. Looks like they’ll be a bidding war. Damn.

With the shipping price in, I asked Mrs 7 what she thought. She knew I’d been after a 5 for a while and gave me a budget to stick to. All I had to do was wait and put a bid in at the last minute but only if the price hadn’t risen over-budget. The auction ended at 2am but the Winter Olympics is on so staying up wouldn’t be a problem.

So day-by-day the price rose, but only by a couple of bucks at a time. With 2 hours to go, it was near the budget and with 5 minutes to go I was still in with a shout. Now at this point Mrs 7 is the person to have for those last-minute bids. She put in a bid which was registered with just 8 seconds to go. Needless to say, Mrs 7 won the auction.

So here’s some more photos. A white thru-neck 5 string pointy Carvin bass with a whammy, exactly what I was after.


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Before it gets here, the plan is to make a ramp just like I have on my Tyler.

Can’t wait :D
 
#512
Here’s a few photos of the Carvin which arrived today. The Royal Mail here in the UK are a pain to deal with. If you have to send anything across the pond please use Fedex, UPS or DHL. Using USPS means that we have to deal with the Royal Mail which are slow, more expensive (they levy an extra fee which the others don't) and have appalling customer service.

Anyway, back to the important thing! The bass needs some work, mainly cleaning, but an evening’s work should do it.

I also have to investigate the controls more fully, but it’s a 2 volume/2 tone arrangement which I’m not used to. The switches look like coil-taps and the bass has 2 outputs. One of them is bridge pickup only and the other sends signals from both pickups.

If any of you have any thoughts on the switches and outputs be greatly appreciated.


Here’s the tale of the tape:

Total length: 117cm (46”)
Total width: 33cm (13”)

Scale length: 864mm (34”)

Nut width 46mm (1.8”)
String spacing at nut 8mm (0.3”)
Bridge width 71mm (2.8”)
String spacing at bridge 15mm (0.6”)

Weight: 4.7kg (10.3lbs)

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#513
WoodyG3 said:
Retroblaster - 137
jackANSI - 138

Welcome new members!
Click to expand...

I'm back... is 138 still available ;)

I let the only man I trust to setup my other basses live with my LB75P for a little over a month, and wow what a difference. Its completely playable with an awesome low action. Said he just worked with it every couple of days and put forth the theory that the neck IS strong, thats why I was having such a hard time getting it to respond to adjustments.

Only cost me $20 too.
 
#517
rcubed said:
The B40 is definitely lighter than the SB4000.
Click to expand...

Great to hear this. I had to return my SB5000 due to the weight, and am waiting on a B50 to be delivered in a few weeks. Somehow that extra pound or so (compared to my other two 5-strings) on the SB5000 managed to break the camel's back, in spite of using a wide (3.5 inch) strap.

The SB series is obviously getting all of the press right now, but it shouldn't be too long before the reviews on the new "B" series trickle in.
 
#518
KayCee said:
Great to hear this. I had to return my SB5000 due to the weight, and am waiting on a B50 to be delivered in a few weeks. Somehow that extra pound or so (compared to my other two 5-strings) on the SB5000 managed to break the camel's back, in spite of using a wide (3.5 inch) strap.

The SB series is obviously getting all of the press right now, but it shouldn't be too long before the reviews on the new "B" series trickle in.
Click to expand...

I had no idea that the SB series was heavy. In fact, I figured that tulip/jazz body was smaller and likely lighter than the B40/50.

So what is the difference between these two bases? Well I know the necks on the SB4000 and the B40 are different (20 fretts vs 22 fretts). However I presumed that the B50 and SB5000 are basically the same, just different body styles. Both have 22 fretts with the little cutout at the neck pocket. Same pickups and hardware. And if you like that vintage Ibanez-like headstock on the SBs, you can order your B50 with that option. So barring the body shape, what's the difference? Couldn't one order a B50 with the active electronics option and basically have a SB5000 for around $100 less? Oh, and lighter weight to boot?
 
#520
I was setting up my Carvin this afternoon and found this:

Carvintrussrodsmall.gif


It looks like someone's been in here before and that, as well as using a regular nut, they routed out part of the truss rod channel as well.

What would you guys expect to see. I'm guessing a Gibson-style acorn nut.

Any opinions greatly appreciated.
 
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