This request isn't really like stopping the line in the middle to change something, it's taking the thing off the line at the end and onto a rack for stringing. The pups and electronics are the last thing to be put in/on other than the strings, no?
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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.
Very cool video about how Carvins are made
- Thread starter DanielleMuscato
- Start date
This request isn't really like stopping the line in the middle to change something, it's taking the thing off the line at the end and onto a rack for stringing. The pups and electronics are the last thing to be put in/on other than the strings, no?
You used to be able to order a FREE Carvin DVD from they're site with interviews, tours, the manufacturing methods of guitars/finishes, amps, and cabs from start to finish.
I got one in "07" free of charge
Excellent Video / Totally Impressed! - might be the same one.
I got one in "07" free of charge
Excellent Video / Totally Impressed! - might be the same one.
About 17-18 years ago, I became interested in getting my first 5er. I checked around at several shops here in CT and I strongly considered a Tobias for somewhere around $16-1800. (dont ask the model-I have no idea)
Anyway, I ended up getting a Carvin catalog in the mail somehow and I ended up ordering an LB-75 in Koa with black hardware. I spent just a smidge over $800 and I have no regrets at all.
I've owned that bass longer than any other thats ever passed through my hands and I have no intention of letting it go. It was very comfortable for me right off the truck.
I remember having it delivered to my workplace-I can still see the looks on everyone's faces when they saw it!
In the next few months, my band will be going into the studio so I will have my first chance to record it-I cant wait to hear it!
Anyway, I ended up getting a Carvin catalog in the mail somehow and I ended up ordering an LB-75 in Koa with black hardware. I spent just a smidge over $800 and I have no regrets at all.
I've owned that bass longer than any other thats ever passed through my hands and I have no intention of letting it go. It was very comfortable for me right off the truck.
I remember having it delivered to my workplace-I can still see the looks on everyone's faces when they saw it!
In the next few months, my band will be going into the studio so I will have my first chance to record it-I cant wait to hear it!
About 17-18 years ago, I became interested in getting my first 5er. I checked around at several shops here in CT and I strongly considered a Tobias for somewhere around $16-1800. (dont ask the model-I have no idea)
Anyway, I ended up getting a Carvin catalog in the mail somehow and I ended up ordering an LB-75 in Koa with black hardware. I spent just a smidge over $800 and I have no regrets at all.
I've owned that bass longer than any other thats ever passed through my hands and I have no intention of letting it go. It was very comfortable for me right off the truck.
I remember having it delivered to my workplace-I can still see the looks on everyone's faces when they saw it!
In the next few months, my band will be going into the studio so I will have my first chance to record it-I cant wait to hear it!
Hold on to that bass, the price of koa has gone up.
in case you didn't know, the acoustics aren't made at the plant; They have them made somewhere in the orient (Japan? Korea? Indonesia? I don't know), so their very cool video about how they made instruments here in San Diego doesn't really apply to their acoustics.
Now, if you want a San Diego acoustic guitar, check out Taylor...
You got that right! If I was to duplicate my bass today, it would cost just about $1100 and I really didnt add options beyond the solid koa bodysides and black hardware. Plus they dont offer the Sperzel locking tuners anymore which I think is a shame.
What I love about mine is that the koa has a really nice honey-gold color to it and mine has a clear gloss finish. Most koa I see nowadays seems much darker to me.
While I will agree that most Carvin's I've seen have a look to them I'm not fond of....that is one beauty of a bass. Probably one of the nicest Carvin's I've seen.
Hmm.
I like the looks of mine.
How versatile is the tone with the 2 HB's?
Also-what body wood is that?
very nice vid...a little unsure of wat was happening, though, one minute their cutting the instrument and another their laying the inlays in
it was kinda funny, because i was watching that guy spray the guitar green, and he goes to the front, and im like: what are you doing? that's beautiful natural spalted maple! why are you painting it!
And the fact that they tune it up before they give it to you is just a small testament to how Carvin really cares about making instruments.
That 5-string that that guy was tuning has given me total gas! and all it took was the headstock...
it was kinda funny, because i was watching that guy spray the guitar green, and he goes to the front, and im like: what are you doing? that's beautiful natural spalted maple! why are you painting it!
And the fact that they tune it up before they give it to you is just a small testament to how Carvin really cares about making instruments.
That 5-string that that guy was tuning has given me total gas! and all it took was the headstock...
I'm still really impressed with my Carvin 6 string, and I can think of several of their guitars I'd like to spec out and order. I'd be especially interested in testing their new singlecut LP knockoff against my (much more expensive) Gibson. I have a sneaky feeling that the Carvin might actually win.
Thanks.
Tough to say. I've got a Stambaugh with Fat Stacks and the Audere pre (with Z mode switch) which is the most versatile bass I've ever owned. And I had a Carvin LB70 PF with the piezos a humbucker and a single coil which had a lot more tones to it. But it is more versatile than my old Stingray 5 and my Fender Jazzes. It has an inherent edginess to it which makes it good for some applications but not for others.
I don't have any clips of it soloed but here are some rough cuts with my old band. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
The body wood is walnut.
Thanks for the video. I love seeing how things are made. It doesn't necessarily sell me on a Carvin just yet, but it was fantastic to watch the process. Thanks!
ian
ian
I've got a 2007 Carvin LB75AP Anniversary model that I purchased in Feb '08', it's got the 18v preamp with the H50S stacked humbucker in the neck and the HB-5 Alnico humbucker in the bridge. The bass is drop dead gorgeous and playablity is so sweet.
I bought it from the Sacramento showroom and it sounded so good when I was trying it out, but live I had so much trouble trying to get it to penetrate the mix of my band that at one point I finally had brought back the bass to the store and asked for a refund. Carvin wouldn't take the bass back because the 10 trial period had expired, so I was stuck with the bass.
I paid $1,709 for it brand new, I'd get a fraction of that if I tried to sell it. I'm not going to sell it, because I do believe that it is truly a nice, gigworthy instrument that maybe I haven't given enough time to.
Carvin makes outstanding quality gear, it is too bad that they get an unfair rap here on TB. I hope some day that will change.
BTW, I've had that video for about a year now and it's a great representation of the company and some of their endorsee's.
I bought it from the Sacramento showroom and it sounded so good when I was trying it out, but live I had so much trouble trying to get it to penetrate the mix of my band that at one point I finally had brought back the bass to the store and asked for a refund. Carvin wouldn't take the bass back because the 10 trial period had expired, so I was stuck with the bass.
I paid $1,709 for it brand new, I'd get a fraction of that if I tried to sell it. I'm not going to sell it, because I do believe that it is truly a nice, gigworthy instrument that maybe I haven't given enough time to.
Carvin makes outstanding quality gear, it is too bad that they get an unfair rap here on TB. I hope some day that will change.
BTW, I've had that video for about a year now and it's a great representation of the company and some of their endorsee's.
I should add that I loved the Carvin Bolt I made up from their kit and regret selling it. Best neck and fretwork I've ever seen from an American mass produced instrument. I had the J99 single coil J type pickups and passive electronics and it had a great J bass sound, better than many Fenders I've owned or played. I wanted to build another as a P bass but Carvin will not sell one with a P route as they don't build any and they wouldn't sell one without the pickup routes either. I can see why-it would disrupt the whole process the body goes through. Running a separate line for basses without pickup routes would make the bass too costly to sell.
What I was trying to avoid was taking a body routed for two J pickups, routing it for one P and then having to make up a pickguard to cover the old routes. With such nice body woods available (even their plain alder is nice) I wanted a bass without anything to hide the beauty of the body top.
I think they will route the body for a MM bridge pickup and a single coil neck, if you want to go that way, but I didn't. I believe they will also route for two of their soapbar pickups.
But if you want a J style bass and like to swap out pickups, they can be fantastic platforms.
When I ordered mine by phone from Canada, I specified that they pick the lightest alder body they could find for the kit. About a week later the kit arrived, everything, including duty and taxes paid. I certainly got a very light alder body and it even had a nice grain. The end result after a very careful finishing job with a dye stain and a hand rubbed varnish finish was a gorgeous bass that weighed about 7 1/2 lbs. Great player, excellent sound and it even recorded well. The quality of workmanship on the parts and the hardware was excellent. Everything fit together perfectly and the only prep work needed on the body was some easy hand sanding.
I lost money when i sold it of course, but I would have with any brand bass I bought new. With the difference in the value of the Canadian dollar (about $.76 US) when I bought it, it was a bit on the expensive side. But I couldn't have bought a comparable quality and lightweight J bass anywhere else for that price, and besides, I had the extra pleasure of finishing the wood and putting it together.
Carvins certainly aren't for everyone but no bass is.
And to get back to the original topic, I've seen videos of their CNC machines and other building processes and it really is wonderful to see. I'd love to be able to afford a shop full of machinery like that. Carvin does put a lot of care into their instruments. The factory finished models I've tried over the years have been every bit as good.
What I was trying to avoid was taking a body routed for two J pickups, routing it for one P and then having to make up a pickguard to cover the old routes. With such nice body woods available (even their plain alder is nice) I wanted a bass without anything to hide the beauty of the body top.
I think they will route the body for a MM bridge pickup and a single coil neck, if you want to go that way, but I didn't. I believe they will also route for two of their soapbar pickups.
But if you want a J style bass and like to swap out pickups, they can be fantastic platforms.
When I ordered mine by phone from Canada, I specified that they pick the lightest alder body they could find for the kit. About a week later the kit arrived, everything, including duty and taxes paid. I certainly got a very light alder body and it even had a nice grain. The end result after a very careful finishing job with a dye stain and a hand rubbed varnish finish was a gorgeous bass that weighed about 7 1/2 lbs. Great player, excellent sound and it even recorded well. The quality of workmanship on the parts and the hardware was excellent. Everything fit together perfectly and the only prep work needed on the body was some easy hand sanding.
I lost money when i sold it of course, but I would have with any brand bass I bought new. With the difference in the value of the Canadian dollar (about $.76 US) when I bought it, it was a bit on the expensive side. But I couldn't have bought a comparable quality and lightweight J bass anywhere else for that price, and besides, I had the extra pleasure of finishing the wood and putting it together.
Carvins certainly aren't for everyone but no bass is.
And to get back to the original topic, I've seen videos of their CNC machines and other building processes and it really is wonderful to see. I'd love to be able to afford a shop full of machinery like that. Carvin does put a lot of care into their instruments. The factory finished models I've tried over the years have been every bit as good.
While the inclinations of the salesperson are key to getting off-list options (and they're very flexible about those), asking for non-Carvin electronics is generally held to be the one request that will always be denied, no matter what. I once heard that this policy stems from Carvin's origins as a pickup manufacturer.
