Carvin AE175

My AC175 was "made to order" in 1999. It's a semi-hallow acoustic/Electric. The top on it is AAA grade, solid Engleman Spruce. Treble, bass, and volume knobs each work smoothly and the tone controls have a detent so that you can easily find the middle of the contour. I ordered my guitar with the standard "Pearl Blue" finish which does not cost any extra. The nice thing about all the Carvin Guitars is that you can get as exotic (pay more for extra features, flamed or quilted maple, translucent finish, gold plated hardware etc) or "plain Jane" (save some cash, but still sound great) as you like. I also ordered mine with mother of pearl fret inlays and the Dunlop strap locks (which I highly recommend). The guitar comes standard with Sperzel locking tuners. I love these tuners! Once you get the guitar strung, you tighten up the string lock screw on the back, and your ready to go. My tuners have never slipped since I bought the guitar in '99. One active "F-60 bridge pickup gives you the acoustic/electric tones. There is a 9 volt battery which supplies the active pick up. Only thing about this is you need to remember to unplug the guitar when not in use as your guitar cord turns the battery circut on. My batteries have been lasting a couple of months with pretty much playing the guitar every day. Guitar case available is either a SKB form fit case (kind of looks like it could fit a Gibson SG type of body style) or a "vintage" plywood rectangular case for about $30 more.

I play my AC175 through a Mesa Boogie V-Twin pre-amp pedal using the "clean" channel. The 175 has a great solid tone for an acoustic/electric. You probably won't have to "doctor" the tone that much. It's also great because the usual "honk" sound of the typical piezo pick up is not present at all. I usually go direct into the P.A. from my preamp pedal, and get a great sound both in the "house" mix, and also in my stage monitor. I play mostly acoustic style "alternative/folk/rock" and a lot of "praise/worship" music. The 175 handles these styles well. I even like the sound I get from my preamp pedal when I play the 175 through the "lead/distortion" and also the "blues" channels. I get a warm, fat unique tone that complements the band that I play with. Who would have thought an acoustic/electric could do this? For on stage monitoring I use my Fender "Pro Junionr" 15 watt little monster. It has a cool "pushed tube" sound that I enjoy.

I had kept away from Carvin guitars for several years because I thought they were some kind of amp"geeks" attempt at making guitars. Previously I had only bought Fender Tele's/Strats, and a Gibson L.P. Custom. When I visited one of the Carvin Store's here in California and actually played the 175, I was blown away by the excellent craftmanship and the sound. Also the 175 has the best "action" I have ever played on an acoustic/electric guitar. After about 5 minutes of playing in the strore, I was ready to buy it. The frets are smooth, the bridge and neck are flawless, the sound is full body, yet you can adjust quite a bit through the treble and bass controls. Nothing can touch the 175 in terms of quality sound and workmanship. My 175 ran me about $700, and I haven't seen anything close to this price that can out perfom it.

The guitar has stood up well to the usual musician abuse. My 3 year old son played the "lets push Daddy's guitar over and watch what happens" game once. After I immediately rescued my guitar and regained my composure, I retuned the guitar and checked for any damage and not one problem. The hardware appears to be very durable and I doubt that I will have any problems. I often use the guitar w/out back up and it has delivered every time in the past couple of years with ease of play and quality sound.

Every time I go into the Carvin store or ask questions via their cool web site (www.carvin.com), I have been impressed at the professionalism and their willingness to continue to make me a satisfied customer. Originally, I had ordered the guitar with an "in-line" head stock. The guitar arrived with a traditional 3 + 3 headstock. I was kind of bummed and couldn't believe that they messed up on my guitar. However, the guy I bought the 175 from offered to order me up another one and said I could play this one until the new one arrived. Is that cool or what. After I played the original ordered guitar for a couple of minutes in the store, I fell in love with it and it was a done deal. The other cool thing about the Carvins are that you have 10 days to really "try on" the guitar and then you can get a refund. Carvin obviously stands behind their products. And after two years of great experience with my 175, I can't recommend it enough.

I've been playing for about 26 years. If the 175 were lost/stolen, I would buy another with flamed maple and some other goodies to have a more interesting looking instrument. I can't improve on the sound for the kind of music I like to play. It fits me "like a glove." I love that it has an electric "feel" to the neck and the action is great. It won't slow you down if you are playing some lead stuff or doing more challenging chording. I also like the warm jazzy sounds you can get with finger picking and a warm sounding acoustic amp. I chose the 175 because I wanted a different sounding acoustic/electric and because of the tremedous value this guitar represents. Once I received my 175, I was very happy and I continue to enjoy playing it whenever I pick it up (just about everyday!) If the type of music you play warrants a solid, warm sound from an acoustic electric, ya gotta check it out! A real great sounding/playing guitar that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

This is a semi-hollowbody acoustic electric made around 1995, flamed maple top, 24 frets, Fishman piezo bridge PU, Vol, Bass & Treble control, round hole, Fender type headstock, Spurzel locking tuners, single cutaway.

This guitar sounds really good. I got it to play onstage in acoustic situations where it has earned it's badge of courage. The bridge PU's sound is smoothe without that cheezy harsh piezo type wank that a lot of acoustic electrics have. The bass & treble controls work good. Volume control is smoothe. This guitar sounds good thru an amp or direct into a board. The cool thing too is that this guitar won't feedback easily at loud volume levels.

Carvins are, in my opinion, some of the most underrated guitars out there. All their guitars play great, and the necks are the big secret. They use a flat 15 or 16 inch radius on the fingerboard and big frets. Action is pretty nice, not too hgh or low. No buzzing on the fingerboard. It's like playing an old Danelectro or Gibson. Carvin necks feel reeeeeeeel good! You can bend like crazy on them, even on this acoustic electric.

I've used this guitar professionally since 1994.Very solid and well made. I've never even had to adjust the neck on it. Just change the 9 volt battery every couple of years and you're all set. It has never let me down.

I know some of the people who work at Carvin, and if I ever needed a repair it would not be a problem. The thing is, I have never had a problem with their guitars. And I own several Carvins. Real workhorses. The people there are really nice, not like some of the Ya-hoos at other companies who give you the run around.

I play professionally in a band called The Hellecasters and I won't keep a guitar around if it doesn't cut it. Carvins always play great and deliver the goods. This guitar is no exception. One of the most fun acoustic/electric guitars you'll ever play.