The Carvin / Kiesel thread

[LetsMosey]

Sounds Appleish scumbag strategy if only their own pu`s fit The company doesnt have that big market share tho. I`d like to have wooden rings but didn't find any for a reasonable price with a fast search.

Well, they were viewed that way, and I think that's why they changed. I've spoken with their head guitar tech Al a few times, and have confirmed that their passive 6-string routes should fit normal aftermarket pickups now. The Dimarzio's I put in mine fit fine, and mine is a 2009 or 2010 DC127.

 

[Snarpaasi]

Well, they were viewed that way, and I think that's why they changed. I've spoken with their head guitar tech Al a few times, and have confirmed that their passive 6-string routes should fit normal aftermarket pickups now. The Dimarzio's I put in mine fit fine, and mine is a 2009 or 2010 DC127.

Great. I could not be more satisfied with my dc127. Stock pu's are rather good but as i have few extra euros I'd like to try if i can enhance the guitar even better. What pickups have you installed in your DC' s? Mine has a maple neck /w mahogany wings and cant deny I'm after somewhat Periphery/Petrucci lead tones

 

[LetsMosey]

Great. I could not be more satisfied with my dc127. Stock pu's are rather good but as i have few extra euros I'd like to try if i can enhance the guitar even better. What pickups have you installed in your DC' s? Mine has a maple neck /w mahogany wings and cant deny I'm after somewhat Periphery/Petrucci lead tones

Mine is a maple neck thru with alder wings. I have a Dimarzio super distortion in the bridge and a Liquifire in the neck. The same combo should sound good for a guitar with mahogany wings too.

 

[potatohead]

Whenever the covered S22 pickups were introduced was when the six-string pickup route changed. I agree it was like five to six years ago now.

 

[SirMyghin]

Well, they were viewed that way, and I think that's why they changed. I've spoken with their head guitar tech Al a few times, and have confirmed that their passive 6-string routes should fit normal aftermarket pickups now. The Dimarzio's I put in mine fit fine, and mine is a 2009 or 2010 DC127.

Meanwhile a 2009 C66 did not accept dimarzio sized pickups (they were BKPs, but same baseplate). I had to do some modding to both the cavities and base plates to pull it off.

Yours being the NT line had rings, mine was direct mount.

Decent guitar, worth what was paid for it. I am not nearly so optimistic as Erozender though, I have played better.

Carvins biggest fallout -> Their fretwork can't compete with PLEK. It is seriously night and day. The fretwork is good enough to cause zero issues, but a fine plekked guitar is another world.

 

[budda]

I'm on the fence about ordering a CT series as opposed to buying something else. I've only played a couple and will have to see if I can try one again. Kind of leaning towards Carvin/PRS.

 

[Snarpaasi]

Okay, so today i installed an Air Norton (standard spacing) into my DC127's neck position. Luckily i got old screws as i bought the pickup since the stock screws didn't fit into the marzio. Also in lack of better tools, i carved a new screw hole with a leatherman (by rolling the tip) between the two adjustment screws on pickup rings. It looks a bit rude but works ok.. The other side of the pu, meaning the coil where the screws are, tend to raise by itself a bit over the pole pieces :/

There's still one or two millimeters between the pickup and the ring but the pole pieces are perfectly aligned with the strings. Should I have gone with an f-spaced model?

 

[LetsMosey]

Okay, so today i installed an Air Norton (standard spacing) into my DC127's neck position. Luckily i got old screws as i bought the pickup since the stock screws didn't fit into the marzio. Also in lack of better tools, i carved a new screw hole with a leatherman (by rolling the tip) between the two adjustment screws on pickup rings. It looks a bit rude but works ok.. The other side of the pu, meaning the coil where the screws are, tend to raise by itself a bit over the pole pieces :/

There's still one or two millimeters between the pickup and the ring but the pole pieces are perfectly aligned with the strings. Should I have gone with an f-spaced model?

Usually you should go with f-spaced for the carvin bridges and bridge pickup, and standard spaced for the neck pickup. But as long as the pole pieces are lined-up, I think you should be ok. Glad to hear it was a relatively easy drop-in install for you.

 

[Snarpaasi]

Usually you should go with f-spaced for the carvin bridges and bridge pickup, and standard spaced for the neck pickup. But as long as the pole pieces are lined-up, I think you should be ok. Glad to hear it was a relatively easy drop-in install for you.

The only thing is that I'm not sure, whether it was a good swap I suppose this is the beginning of journey trying to find perfect pickups. Still better adventure than Twilight!

Air Norton has more mids and stands out better than the stock C22J. Also it's more aggressive and sounds almost like a single coil/stacked coil. Have to adjust the height a bit and see if it changes anything. I somehow feel like losing sustain/tone/something soon after the pick attack.

If you are after a compressed nintendo shred tone, this pickup isn't for you.

 

[soliloquy]

I'm on the fence about ordering a CT series as opposed to buying something else. I've only played a couple and will have to see if I can try one again. Kind of leaning towards Carvin/PRS.

i got a Carvin CS6m. they have the same neck as the CT. we aren't too far from each other. you're more than welcome to try my CS6 out

 

[soliloquy]

heres a cool video of a comparison between PRS pickups vs Carvin.
mind you, the bridge pickup can only be compared as they are in the exact same location. the PRS has 24 frets, and carvin has 22. thus the neck pickups would be slightly different by default.

 

[cataclysm_child]

^I have to say I prefer the Carvin in this video!
Almost sounds like the Carvin has new strings and the PRS don't.

 

[LetsMosey]

Great video Soliloquy... as cataclysm_child mentioned, I too prefer the Carvin over the PRS in this video. Carvin just packs more clarity. The PRS seems warmer, but yet the Carvin has a nice warm, but clear tone. Maybe the PRS seems warmer because it seems muddy or muffled. The Carvin is clear, but has a nice warm bite to it and maintains nice clarity and has a shimmering quality to it.

Another item to note that I noticed, is the fact that the Carvin's acoustic presence is night and day better than the PRS. You can just hear the acoustic resonance even over the amp, moreso than the PRS.

 

[soliloquy]

i'm a bit indifferent with that video i posted above. there are too many variables. for one thing, the 22 vs 24 frets does make a significant difference. though, even if the carvin pickup is slightly higher on the body, it still sounds clearer.

then, the prs pickups are covered, which adds to their muffled sound, while carvin is not covered.

at the same time, carvin are notorious for having brittle/sterile pickups (though i argue that saying the player should EQ the pickups a bit better), so that could be playing a factor in it too.

at the same time, the camera speakers used.

i personally would like a sound somewhere between the two if they are apples to apples.



but in my eyes, carvin wins over prs in their single coil/coil tap category. i have yet to find any guitar with a coil tap that sounds as convincing as my carvin does. i'm using a holdsworth neck pickup and love it to bits. the bridge pickup i hardly ever use as its an ice-pick sound. but then again, i think of EVERY bridge pickup ever made...

 

[Watty]

That video and the subsequent discussion just proves that sound clips are almost a worthless indication of overall tone. To contribute to said discussion, however, I've yet to try a PRS pickup that I actually dig; their Dragon II's are horrid and the HFS/Vintage Bass combo is a bit nasally for my tastes.

 

[Masc0t]

I'm really on the fence with ordering a Carvin. I would definitely order a lower priced one without a lot of options. Are they still worth ordering if bought this way? I would probably be going bolt neck, sperzels, and possibly a tremolo with humbuckers configuration.

 

[soliloquy]

/\ just my opinion as a former agile owner, and a current carvin owner:
If you think agile are worth it for their budget, then so are carvins, regardless of the price tag

 

[Masc0t]

Okay, cool. I appreciate the advice because I'm a big fan of Agiles so I've still been looking at them, but not being able to actually try a Carvin in person kind of sucks, where-as with Agile it was less of an investment so it was easier to make a plunge for it. I've been keeping an eye out on ebay too.

 

[LetsMosey]

Okay, cool. I appreciate the advice because I'm a big fan of Agiles so I've still been looking at them, but not being able to actually try a Carvin in person kind of sucks, where-as with Agile it was less of an investment so it was easier to make a plunge for it. I've been keeping an eye out on ebay too.

The great thing about Carvin is you can order one, deck it out, and if you get it and don't like it, you have a 10-day "trial" timeframe where you can return it for a full cash refund. I say go for it and try it. Best case, you love it and play it for life. Worst case, you hate it and get your cash back and can buy something else.

 

[soliloquy]

The great thing about Carvin is you can order one, deck it out, and if you get it and don't like it, you have a 10-day "trial" timeframe where you can return it for a full cash refund. I say go for it and try it. Best case, you love it and play it for life. Worst case, you hate it and get your cash back and can buy something else.

Exactly what he said

Its very similar to agiles 2 week return policy.
If you buy a used, you wont be able to return it, nor would it be your specs (unless youre looking for generic specs)