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Instrument Review
Carvin DC400T Custom Shop Solid Body Electric Guitar Review
Carvin DC400T Features:
* List Price - $2499.00 (Does NOT Include Hard Shell Case, and Hardshell Case is Required for Purchase) * Carvin Direct Price - Starts at $1049.00 (Sometimes with Another $70.00-$100.00 Off Special) |
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I learned of Carvin guitars back in the early 90's and have always been very impressed with the quality they provide for the price. But I never really made the leap and purchased a Carvin, until I was recording an album, and just could not get the electric guitar sound I wanted on several songs with my Fender Stratocaster (with Single Coils.) The thick tone I was looking for on the distorted guitar parts just could not be had with my single coiled Strat. I came to this conclusion, after hours of tweaking, recording, re-taking, and trying various amplifiers and effects units. Nope...this was a job for a humbucker equipped guitar.
Carvin has a custom factory in San Diego, California where they custom build guitars, amplifiers, PA equipment and much more. If you are unfamiliar with their work, you are a missing out on some of the highest quality USA made products available anywhere in any price range. Check out their excellent website at www.carvin.com. If you are in California, Carvin has several stores where you can go and play the various models, but otherwise they are only available via catalog, internet, and phone order. I researched electric guitars extensively before purchasing a pre-owned DC400T that was like brand new. Before the purchase, I played everything from Les Pauls, to PRS's, to humbucker equipped Strats. I really wanted to try a Carvin, so I ended up actually getting two of them. A hard tail DC200 Koa, and a Wilkinson tremolo equipped DC400T. I bought the Koa, and then came across a great deal on the tremolo equipped model , so I bought it also, and then sold the Koa model.
Carvin has many models to choose from, and their custom built electric and bass guitars have so many options, that a buyer can pretty much have their dream guitar built exactly the way they want. These are truly custom built, American made guitars, and you can get 'em with many options. Surprisingly, all this flexibility comes at a cost that is much less than many other custom shops, and with as good or better quality than the best known brands.
Construction
I've written it before, and I'll write it again...A guitar that has a list price of $2499.00 had better be built exceptionally well, and be built clean. Both guitars I purchased were very clean and free of dings, scratches, and the like. The Wilkinson equipped DC400T was absolutely perfect. Everything about the guitar shouted "Fine instrument!"
I have to admit, I examined the DC400T very closely, because I wanted to see if Carvin's claim of quality and playability matched up with my experience. When I received it, I opened that box up, and found a perfect tweed hard shell case with a Carvin logo on the front. When I opened the case, I was blasted by the "new guitar smell", and was honestly shocked at the quality of this piece. The flamed maple top was stunning. The fretwork was some of the nicest I've ever felt on any guitar at any price, (much like the Martin DC16RGTEP reviewed here). The abalone inlays were so detailed, and made the neck a place of focus and beauty, which isn't the case for dot inlaid guitars most times. The woods and materials used for building this instrument made a hugely positive first impression. My wife walked up and looked at the guitar resting in the case and said "Wow!"
T
his
guitar was equipped with an all gloss body and neck. Some players like that, and
some don't (see below.) The finish was sprayed on evenly and quite thick. As you
can see in the pictures, the guitar was very shiny. A good cleaning and
polishing just added to the effect. The translucent effect looking into the
flamed maple top of the guitar was jaw dropping. These guitars just look and
feel custom, w
ith
the marks of quality craftsmanship everywhere.
The translucent back - also gorgeous, and as you can see, adds to the beauty, but also is where you access the electronics, tremolo springs, and battery compartment (for the active electronics.) With the front of the guitar being so stunning, the back is a nice change with understated beauty not so in your face like the front. This guitar had the blackburst finish which was also very well done on the front, back, and neck. The construction was so nice, that I just couldn't bring myself to gig with the guitar, so I only used it for recording in the H.O.W.I. home studio. I just didn't want to risk dinging it up, but if it was the only guitar I had, then I would just have to bite the bullet and let it get dinged up. I had always wondered why you see so many beat up guitars on stages, but rarely see beautiful flamed top guitars being played live, and now I know why. Many owners probably just can't bring themselves to take the guitar out of the house or studio! My own experience is the same. I gig with my American Strat Deluxe, Carvin Bolt, & Custom Telecaster which are what I call "dingable" guitars. If they get hurt on the job, that's fine. They are only gonna be worth so much anyway, and were never that perfect or custom to begin with.
The fretboard on this guitar was ebony. Ebony is my preference for fretboard material now. I used to prefer maple, but I am susceptible to G.A.S. (Gear Acquisition Syndrome), and sometimes I think my preferences change to whatever I have at the time! Both ebony and rosewood seem to sound a little fuller and warmer than maple to me when recording, so that is why I like them more; but I do admit that in my hands, maple plays a bit easier than the others. Ebony is very close in playability and sounds much better to me. Of course, the DC400 can be ordered from Carvin with a fretboard made of ebony, rosewood or maple. Ebony is a more expensive and harder to acquire wood, so usually it's only found on higher end guitars. Lately though, I have seen mid priced ($500.00-$600.00) guitars from Parker and Peavey with ebony fretboards. I wouldn't expect that to last long.
Playability
This Carvin played like butter. Carvin claims to have some of the lowest action, and best playability available. The DC400T I purchased backed up that claim. The action was very low, but still buzz free. What more could a player want? Well, harder string pounding players will want the action higher not lower. With the Wilkinson tremolo system, and adjustable neck, I would think that any player could get the action to exactly where they want, and with a little web research, get the guitar intonated perfectly also. The DC400T is fully adjustable.
Many players don't realize that guitar necks sometimes move when being shipped, and an adjustment/setup is usually necessary when you first get a guitar, to make it play to your preferences. A lot of players don't wanna mess with setup, so they either sell the guitar when it gets to playing away from their preferences, or they take it for a professional setup. A good professional setup costs around $35.00. They adjust the neck, set intonation/string height, and usually clean the guitar up. Some even file any burrs off the frets for you. I personally have always set my guitars up myself, even back when I used to play Floyd Rose tremolo equipped Jacksons which were a bit tricky to get setup right. It really isn't hard to learn how to do it, and there are so may websites with instructions on how to do it, that just about anyone should be able to set their guitars up without having to pay someone. Some people just don't wanna mess with it, and have the cash to pay out. More power to ya! I've got multiple guitars, and limited funds to spend in this area, so I save hundreds of dollars per year doing it myself.
As far as playability goes. I've never played anything that feels or plays better than these guitars on the fretboard. Upper end PRS guitars are similar, and so are the higher end Gibson Les Pauls and Fenders with ebony fretboards and gloss necks. When you get right down to it, it all goes back to setup, strings used, fretboard material, fret size, neck size, and several other factors. But for my hands and preferences, Carvin ranks at the top. The only thing I didn't quite love, was the gloss coating on the back of the neck. In studio sessions, when getting a bit nervous laying down tracks, the sweat generated would cause my hand to get "stuck" every once in a while because of the gloss coating. It even squeaked a few times (a no-no in the studio). A nice tung oiled neck or stain finished neck has a better feel for faster playing to me. I now also have a Carvin Bolt-T with a tung oiled bolt-on neck with ebony fretboard, and it plays a bit faster and easier than the DC400T with the gloss.
Sound Plugged In
The Carvin DC400T comes with Carvin Dual Humbucker pickups and electronics that can operate in both active and passive modes with the pull of a switch. This is a very versatile setup, and you can get just about any sound out of this guitar that you could possibly need. Using the coil taps, you can get a single coil sound that is just shy of the bell-like sound that the Fender Stratocaster makes. Not quite it, but close. I would think if a person wants an exact single coil Strat sound though, their best bet would be to get an alnico magnet single coil Strat type guitar. Carvin's got that covered also, with their Bolt series of guitars.
I bought this guitar mainly for recording, and for getting that fat humbucker distorted sound you hear on so many albums. The fact that it can do the single coil thing well enough is just an added bonus! What I really wanted was to have a great neck, middle, and bridge humbucker distorted tone. With the DC400T, I got it...and then some. Carvin has some great audio samples of their guitars on their website at www.carvin.com. Go to their Jamroom, and check out the DC400 samples. you can also check out their other guitars and amps. You never know, you may find something you like!
Carvin's stock pickups are different than many other manufacturers in that they have more pole pieces. The humbuckers on the DC400T I purchased were both stock, with 11 pole pieces in each row, and they have Alnico magnets. They have more pole pieces, Carvin claims, to eliminate drop out when doing string bends. I compared doing string bends on my Fender American Deluxe Strat Plus with Lace Sensor pickups, and I could tell a noticeable difference between the drop out when doing bends. There wasn't any dropout on the Carvin, and there was on the Fender. I also tried this with my Humbucker equipped Fender Telecaster Custom with the same results. Obviously Carvin have found a system that works, and better than other manufacturers in this area.
Another big bonus here is that the DC400T comes equipped with an active/passive electronics system. This thing is a monster in active mode. How anyone could ever want for more crunch or distortion I would not know! This is one area where you may find yourself using the volume knob judiciously! It's powerful, and just pushes distortion to a fuller, thicker, harder core extreme. Very nice for some types of music. But the system also makes pretty much everything sound a bit more present and detailed. Whether using it clean or distorted. Die hard passive fans can use the push/pull button to turn it off, and just operate the DC400T happily in passive mode. You still have all your other options. Coil tap, phase switch, etc. The system is powered by a 9-volt battery that conveniently stores in a place in the back of the guitar. Nice.
My only complaint here, is that this guitar is a bit heavy for long term use for me personally. Carvin lists the guitar at 7.75 lbs but it feels more like 8.5-9.5 lbs to me. After playing the Carvin for 30-45 minutes, I became uncomfortable and found myself reaching for the Stratocaster or Telecaster which feel several pounds lighter. I may just be a wimp in this area though, as I am used to playing acoustic more than electric guitars for any length of time. If you have any physical issues that limit you, you may want to play one of these for a while before custom ordering one though. Or play a heavy Les Paul for a long while, which would be similar in weight. Another option would be to have a DC400 made out of a lighter wood. Hey...it's custom, you can do what YOU want!
I don't have any real gripes about the sound or tone of this guitar. It is everything advertised and more. I was able to record a fantastic, thick, full bodied distortion, with every note played being sounded and detailed well. It has a better pickup sound than anything else I've recorded...Big name brand or not. There are trade-offs between using single coil versus humbucker equipped guitars, but this guitar does do the single coil sound quite well. Still, it's best to keep a true single coil equipped axe around just in case you really want that exact Strat type sound for some reason. The Carvin's various sounds are all nice in their own right, and all very useable. The humbucking sound rocks just like it should.
The DC400T sounded top notch, and stayed in tune very well after the new strings got broken in a bit. The Wilkinson tremolo played well, had a high end feel, and just plain worked with the excellent Sperzel locking tuners. This is an extremely versatile instrument.
Conclusion
Carvin's DC400T impresses with it's custom crafted quality, exceptional beauty, and versatile sounds and tone. Even the case was very well made! At around $1200 with a case and some options, these guitars are a true value, and I would go so far as to say a steal. Where else can you custom order a guitar with all the included features and options for so far under $2000.00? The answer is...pretty much nowhere. Very Recommended!
by William Charles
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