Product: Carvin BB76F
Price Paid: 170000
Submitted
08/17/2009
at
12:20am
by
Tim
Features
:
10
Features
-Made in the USA in 2006
-Fretless six-string
-Walnut body and maple neck w/ 2 walnut stripes
-Bookmatched Figured Claro Walnut top
-Two humbuckers
-Black hardware
Sound
:
10
I mainly play country, bluegrass, folk, rock and metal. This thing has the thump to handle all that and everything in between. Whether running straight into my GK800RB and 4x10s, or through an analogman bicomp/Keeley comp, the thing is silent as night. The walnut/maple combo give the bass tight, growling low end and nice singing highs but the active electronics pretty much make this the most versatile bass I own. Speaking of the electronics, the active/passive electronics module is a godsend. I've forgotten to replace the battery before a gig and when I plugged in, all that came out was a farting sound. I just pulled out the volume knob and went to passive mode and the show went on.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
10
First off, the figured walnut is BEAUTIFUL.
I have not adjusted anything on the bass since I received it. Haven't needed to. The action was perfect and just like I had heard, the thing was in tune out of the box...and this was even after travelling all the way to Tokyo.
Reliability/Durability
:
10
This thing has and will continue to withstand live playing. I firmly believe that since I have not had any issues with it so far. It's built like a tank. I usually do gig without a backup since the heft of this thing prohibits me from bringing along another axe.
Customer Support
:
10
This is where Carvin really came through. Ordering here in Japan required going through their distributor. There were two listed on the Web site so I emailed an inquiry to the first one. No reply. Sent another. Again, no reply. When I contacted the other distributor, they kept telling me that some of the options I wanted were not available. I sent an email to Carvin explaining the situation and they sent an email to the distributor telling them to get with the program. In the end, I ended up not getting two of the options I wanted (straplocks and five-piece neck covered by top wood) but overall, I am very pleased.
Overall Rating
:
10
I've been playing on and off for 20 years now. My other basses are Fender Precision Lyte, Ibanez SR505FL, Stingray Fretless and Stingray 5. I usually play dry through a GK800RB but I sometimes go through a compressor and/or chorus. This bass looks amazing, sounds amazing and plays amazing. I would definitely buy another if this were stolen or lost, though the Icons are intriguing.
