The Carvin / Kiesel thread

[pushpull7]

It's a big upcharge imho.

 

[soliloquy]

It's a big upcharge imho.

though i do agree with you as in the end, both flamed and quilted maple are the same thing found on the same tree, thus should have the same price. but at the same time, i also understand that quilt is a form of deformity that doesn't happen as often as flame. same goes for burl.

even then, i still think the 400 is a pretty hefty upcharge on something that is essentially aesthetic....

though i am no lumber jack and have no knowledge of how any of that works....so my opinion means very little. and as of late, i'm enjoying solid colors over flamed/quilted stuff anyways....

 

[spudmunkey]

Quick question. When ordering, is there an up-charge for the quilted top, or only an up-charge if you get the top stained? Because when I was on their website I got confused. Thanks.

Their online builder is a little wonky, because they are still using codes that they've been using for a very very long time that most of their long time factory workers are familiar with… But with the addition of so many new finishes and woods and models and options over the years, the structure of the builder seems to get a little out of control.

Rest assured that the up charges you are seeing are for the actual wood. Quilted maple just costs more than flame maple, because it's more rare. The upcharge just happens to only be applied in the builder when you select the combination of the wood and the finish...it's not for the finish itself. This is why deep blue quilted maple costs more than the deep blue flamed maple. It's the exact same transparent paint and finishing process… It's just that it's bundled with two different types of wood. It's really odd, and definitely confuses people who aren't quite familiar with their processes. The funny thing is, quilted maple comes from flat/plain sawn lumber, which gives you a higher yield than flamed maple, which is present in quarter sawn wood. It just so happens that quilted maple is harder to come across in the first place.

Don't even get me started on selecting woods for your 5P neck… You can tell it that you want a Koa body and maple neck… And then on the next screen select a black Limba and white Limba neck. How does that make sense?

 

[Winger]

Looks like the floyd rose bridge is recessed on the scb6. If asked, would carvin do the necessary routing for a d-tuna?

 

[Cloudy]

Just got word from Chris on the status of the Jb24s,

Sounds like a lot of them are basically done, they're just waiting on pickups.

Mine was in the spray booth yesterday getting a nice solid pink finish

 

[Hollowway]

OMG, those numbers guitars are hot! I want one so bad, but I just never play sixxers anymore.

 

[technomancer]

Just got word from Chris on the status of the Jb24s,

Sounds like a lot of them are basically done, they're just waiting on pickups.

Mine was in the spray booth yesterday getting a nice solid pink finish

So they let you option 50 a different finish? Was it a restock fee or non-returnable?

 

[mbardu]

What would the quilt look like with no stain? I've tried looking it up, but all the results are stained tops...I want a natural quilt, so I was trying to calculate a basic price.

Not sure what you mean by 'basic', but in general, as was said above, a clear quilt will not be cheaper than a colored quilt.

If you're (very) lucky, it could look like:

 

[spudmunkey]

^ But isn't that a clear stain? I'm asking what it would look like if it wasn't stained at all. soliloquy said that even a clear stain was an upcharge, I was wondering what a non-stained at all guitar would look like. Am I understanding incorrectly?

Yes, it's an understandable misunderstanding due to how carvin's builder is laid out.

When you build a guitar, first you select the top wood. There are no prices shown...for some reason, instead of showing you how much each top wood costs, they let you pick the top wood, and then on the next screen they tell you how much that wood will cost with whatever finish you chose. Quilted maple is not a free upgrade. In fact, when you are selecting a top, there is this fine print just above it:

For flamed maple and quilted maple tops, you will select the finish color and be shown the pricing on the next page.

Then, on the next page, it says this:

Bookmatched 4A Quilted Maple Top Finishes
You must select one of the finishes below. Move your mouse over each button to see a color sample.

The builder is wonky here. You can't get clear gloss quilted maple for $0 even though it seems to show it that way. I also don't understand how the builder still allows you to pick "tung oil with clear flamed maple top" when you've selected quilted maple. It would be like a Ford's builder offering you all-wheel-drive for a Mustang.

When you select the "free" clear gloss or clear satin finish, you are just choosing the final clear finish that seals in the the color/paint/stain you select below (Deep Clear, Deep Teal, etc). Once you select clear gloss or clear satin, you MUST select a finish from the list below. That is why the clear and satin clear have no cost...because you then MUST add the $400 Deep Red, or Deep Blue, or etc etc. It's only when you select tung oil as the finish coat, that you cannot combine with a color below, that there is a listed cost.

And yes, "deep" finishes (even "deep clear") are standard on all flamed and quilted maple tops (except tung oil). It used to be standard on just the carved top models and optional extra on others, but now it's standard.

 

[soliloquy]

What would the quilt look like with no stain? I've tried looking it up, but all the results are stained tops...I want a natural quilt, so I was trying to calculate a basic price.

if price is such a huge factor to you, i'd recommend the CT/CS 4/424. reason being, they still use the same top wood, MAPLE. the only difference is you're paying 250-400ish dollars less. can you still put transparent finishes on them like moss green, orange burst or whatever finishes. some of those finishes will cost you an upcharge or $25ish dollars. but you can also get solids that would be free. this one i got a few years ago was in solid classic white. it has the same features as the ct624 (plus the option 50 ebony headstock and push pull phase switch for the volume knob). it still shows the natural binding.

and this is not my guitar, but heres another example of the cs4 in a see-through finish

 

[gfactor]

Today I decided I need a Holdsworth. Such a classier headless than the Vader IMO.

 

[HighGain510]

Today I decided I need a Holdsworth. Such a classier headless than the Vader IMO.

I don't know that I'd say "classier"... maybe the word you were looking for was "tinier" perhaps? I've owned several of the HH guitars and the Vader seems to fix my main gripe about the HH in that the body is so small it almost feels/looks like a toy. Not sure what is "less classy" about the Vader exactly, it has strat-shaped horns with a similar butt end to the Holdsworth... you can't really prove a Les Paul is "classier" than a Strat, that's all subjective.

 

[Enselmis]

Today I decided I need a Holdsworth. Such a classier headless than the Vader IMO.

Same page dude. The estimated completion date for my transparent pearl pink HH2 is today.

 

[soliloquy]

this beauty is not mine. but god damn it its beautiful!

I decided to Les Paul my CS. I had a set of EMG-X pickups installed as well. This guitar is a total beast but tame with a tone of soul. Hope you like the results...

WAIT FOR IT...

I hear that delayed gratification is a lost art in our "EVERYTHING NOW" society. Which is a big part of why I love Carvin. It's the waiting that makes it extra special.





R U READY....?




Carvin... THANK YOU FOR MAKING DREAMS COME TRUE! YOU GUYS HAVE THE BEST JOBS ON EARTH

source:http://carvinbbs.com/viewtopic.php?t=44787

 

[GBH14]

this beauty is not mine. but god damn it its beautiful!


source:Carvin.com BBS :: View topic - Like a Moth unto the flame Er, ah... CS6 in Moth green

That looks amazing! I love how tight and uniform the flame is, and the green looks spot on. I'd be delighted with that!!!

 

[ferret]

Carvin's "new" webpage is now live. Call me a little disappointed, but I'm not seeing anything new about it. The only change appears to be the removal of Pro Audio and Amp products.

Which are now at:
Professional Audio Amplifiers Mixing Consoles and Loudspeakers – Carvin Audio
Carvin Guitar and Bass Amplifiers – Carvin Amplifiers

Hey look, snazzy new modern webpages (If a tad bit template-y)!

 

[venrar]

Something about the new design is just off for me. It doesn't feel optimized, lots of empty white space on most of the pages, navigation is a bit iffy when you start getting into the product sub menus. I like the general direction though.

 

[stevexc]

Feels very "work in progress". Definitely some margin bugs, "Pro Audio" is getting pushed down onto a second row... unless that's intentional?

I dunno, overall it looks very amateur-ish.