Carvin IC4

2008 Made in San Diego (like all Carvins)
24 frets (Stainless Steel)
Walnut Sides, 5 piece walnut/maple neck
Piezzo pickup in the bridge (string through)
Tweed case
No allen wrench for the saddle adjustments (1mm)
Passive mode, so if your battery dies in the middle of a performance you don't have to....

I play mostly classic rock, and this guitar has more sounds than I know what to do with. The passive pickup (pull up the volume knob) has a lot of growl to it and is a bit more "bassy" if all other knobs are set to neutral. I'm playing through a Carvin PB500 with a Carvin 15" (original owner for 18 yrs) and a 2x10 Hartke transporter. I don't know if I had to do it over again that I would get the Piezzo pickup, I don't hear enough of a difference from the magnetic pickups to make a difference (that could definetly be my ear). No dicernable noise from any pickup configuration I've tried.

Since it was shipped from Cali and I live at 6600ft in CO, the neck needed a bit of adjustment, but a 1/4 turn of the truss and it was smooth as glass. I haven't touched the pickups, haven't needed to. The finish on this bass is gorgeous. I did a gloss finish with black burst edges and the Claro Walnut is outstanding.

The wiring and sheilding are first rate. I got the black hardware, I've heard anecdotal evidence that gold hardware may not hold up as well FWIW. The ability to play passively takes the reliability up a notch in my book. I got the Dunlop straplocks so as long as you make sure they're in right, no troubles with the guitar coming off. I adjusted the truss rod once on arrival, and tweaked the saddles a bit, but nothing out of the ordinary. This guitar is MUCH nicer than my previous(Charvel) so I'm worried about messing up the finish with my clumsiness... The case had a rivet pop off within a month, not dinging it too bad because this is about the guitar.

The tweed case had a rivet pop off the handle, when I called to take care of it, they wanted me to send the case in then they would send me a case back. I told them I didn't want to be without a case for any length of time, so I had to "buy" a new case and they sent me a label to send the old case back. They then sent me another case, and didn't refund my money. I sent the extra case back and they finally took care of it. No one was "not helpful" but they are a bit disorganized.

I've been playing for 20 years, and I also have a Charvel 3B (think Cherry Pie). I would definitely get another Carvin, you can't play it first, but you can return in 10 days. You just can't beat getting exactly the options you want.

2007 Carvin Icon, custom made by Carvin in their San Deigo facility.
4 string, 24 fret, ebony fretboard and med-jumbo stainless steel frets. Mine is the standard alder body with a beautiful AAAA flame maple top that is ultra flame-y. The clear gloss finish really makes the flame stand out. The headstock is also flamed and matches the body. I chose the optional 5 piece walnut and maple neck with three wide stripes of walnut and 2 narrow stripes of maple and the optional tung oil finish on the back of the neck because I don't like glossy finished necks. Active/passive pickups with the 18v onboard preamp. two soapbar pickups, bass, mid and treble boost/ cut and a variable mid sweep. strings can be strung through body or just to the bridge (I have mine through the body). I also had a hipshot detuner installed and dunlop straplocks. the bass is a 34" scale

The natural sound off the bass is very clear and punchy. I play the bass throug a SWR Workingmans 12 and extension 210. It has a very crisp and punchy modern sound. After a week or so I decided I really didn't like the installed Carvin/ Labella strings...they were very thin and uneven sounding and notes on the d and g strings would disappear when playing with a group. I switched strings to my usual D'addario XL 45-100 and there was a huge difference. The bass lost a little of it's brightness and gained a lot smoother more even sound. The Carvin strings really didn't suit my sound or style (they're very nice for slap style but I play more of a weaving, melodic finger style) . The active controls provide a huge amount of adjustment to the overall tone. You can make the bass sound like anything from a big muddy hip-hop sound, to a big, slightly less muddy reggae sound, to a variety of punchy midrange tones all the way to a thin, tinny guitar like sound. the adjustability is impressive. I tend to run most of my tone controlls pretty flat. Just the pickup pan from the front to the rear provides a lot of tonal variation. I would think that everyone could find a tone they liked as well as some really way out there tones if they wanted them.

The bass arrived in it's hardshell case in tune and set up very nicely. The action was set to 3/32" (which Carvin sets all their basses up to from the factory.)There is a pretty comprehensive instruction sheet that comes with the bass and will guide you through modifying the setup if you wish. I gave the bass a little time to adjust to it's new climate and was able to lower the action a bit to my liking. The Hipshot bridge saddles also allow adjustments to string spacing and I moved the G string a little more towards the center of the neck. Neck relief was fine from the factory and has remained stable (even though Carvin says some adjustment may be required due to shipping and humidity changes. I expect to modify setup on every instrument I ever buy. An isntrument is so personal, how could anyone expect it to be set up to them from the factory? It's like buying a new car and complaining that the seat isn't set the way you like it. The fit and finish is flawless...totally incredible. Every fret from the 1st to the 24th is playable and very even. There are no dead spots at all which is great. It's not only a bass, it's a piece of art. The clear gloss finish is about 3 feet deep and the wood is astounding. you can't buy a better instrument for the money. With the tung oiled neck, I can even smell the "wood shop" smell of the bass when I play it...very cool.

I use my instuments mainly for recording in a home studio but I played live for many years and believe this bass would stand up just fine to live playing and travel. The clear coat seems quite durable and has survived several light 'bumps' against things like cymbal stands with nary a scratch. I also haven't noticed the usual micro-scratches in the finish where your fingers brush against the bass when playing. I wouldn't drag it behind my car or strap it to the roof rack for transport but I'm sure it would hold up fine on the road.

The order process went pretty smoothly. I wasn't 100% impressed with the salesman I got but I guess that's salespeople for you. I did call back once or twice to ask a question or two and a different salesperson helped me and was great. Carvin's GuitarTraq system is cool because you can see the progress of the instrument as it's being made and which station it's at in the factory. Carvin quoted a build time of 8 weeks and the bass showed up on the EXACT day it was promised. Carvin emails you a UPS tracking number when the instrument ships. Their website is also great for interactive menus, options, and you can look in the "Carvin Museum" to see different color combos, etc. There is also a Forum to ask questions to other Carvin owners.

I've been playing bass for 20 years and own or have played many high end basses such as Warwick, Tobias, Alembic, etc. For the price they sell it at, the Icon blows them completely out of the water. There is no other place on this planet that you can order a custom made instrument built to your own specs in 8 weeks with this sound and quality for this price. I would order and buy this exact bass again in a heartbeat. If I had the money I'd order a 5 string and a fretless today and have a complete set. If you're feeling wary about buying a bass you can't play first, don't worry. If you're still not sure, Carvin has a 10 day money back guarantee, even on custom built instruments. You can't go wrong. The only thing to keep in mind is that Carvin basses don't seem to hold their value too well on the used market for some reason...If you're going to buy it to hang on to it then go for it. If you're the type who buys and sells instruments constantly, you probably won't get your money back out of it.

This is a Cort Artisan bass without the Cort logo and a higher pricetag some hardware upgrades too. neckthru body two mightymite soapbars with regular frets active electronics and clear finish (see belwo)

ok, alot of buzzes that did not go away after it was here a week (like the salesman told me to wait). sounds a little better than a rickenbacher because of the pickups but kinda like hitting pieces of metal with a hammer, not many sounds to use in funk or jazz.

The headstock was one type of paint the neck and body were another. I think this might be because they put their logo on the bass and not the maker. I saw a Cort A4 just like this. Buzzes look like a fret issue because a metal ruler shows to me two low frets.

it is solid but if you drop it, forget the whole thing becasue it is neckthrough

I waited a week for the buzz to go away and they were closed for service for three days, I now must wait to see if they take away my 10 day trial.

You can play corts in the store and avoid problems but it doesn't have the made in the USA sticker.

This is Carvins new line for this year the icon series bass, I love Carvin so I had to get one. It was made in California in the great USA 2006. The bass features a 5 piece Mapel/Walnut neck. The body wings are alder with a high grade quilted maple top. Gold Hardware nice hipshot bridge. It has 2 carvin soap bar with 18 volt electronic all the headroom you'd ever need. The finsih is what they call an Umber stain its like sunset on a summer night. The fretbord is Birdseye Maple 24 frets with abolone dot inlays, the whole bass is a beautiful site. 34" scale neck with a hipshot droptunner and stainless steel frets. Slim fast neck with lightning fast low action. Came with a tweed Carvin Hardshell case a truss rod wrench and dunlop strap locks. Oh yeah some allen wrences for the bridge and some picks.The active controls have a passive swithch to save your neck if the batteries die, treble boust and cut, bass boust and cut mid sweep control.

I Play in 2 Metal bands and a Modern Rock band, and it sounds great doing whatever you ask of it. I've used it in the studio through a millenium preamp and it kicked butt. I use it with my main rig an SWR MoBass Head, with a Goliath III 4x10 cab a Son of Bertha 1x15 cab on one side and a beringer 8x10 on the other, and the bass screams. Quiet as a mouse when not being played. All the sounds are there I can get Marcus to Lemmy and everything in between to come out of this bass. I have no dislikes about this beauty what so ever.

Like I said before out of the box it was intune and ready to go action and fit are incredibel the fretwork was inpeckable.

It's rock solid as all my Carvins are but unlike my other Carvins this one does it all, No more bass by commitie this is the one. Again I wouldn't use any bass without a back up.

Carvin's customer suport is top notch. They'll help you out with anything. They've fixed a bass for me that lived past the warranty and all I had to do was pay the shipping. Maybe this is because I've purchased 5 instraments from them but they treated me well on the first one too.

I've been playing for about 18 years now and I own a lot of basses, an Alembic, a Peavey Rudy Sarzo model, and an American Fender deluxe P Bass, were my 3 fav's but only the P Bass comes close to the versitlity of this bass. If this were stolen I'd Cry and then Kill cause I don't have the cash to replace it right now.