My Carvin rig!!

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Nice. How do you like that BBE unit? I was just reading a thread a couple days ago on some other forum that thrashed those things up one wall and down the other. First time I'd ever heard a bad word about them, so I was surprised. I thought they were supposed to be pretty handy, and had plans to get one myself.

This one is kind of an oddball.  I found it first on the BBE site then had to find someone that carried it (edit* it's now discontinued and been replaced by the 382i SW - looks like the same features).  GC and Musician's Friend didn't have it.  In looking for crossovers, simplicity escapes most manufacturers.  Technically it's a 2 way stereo crossover.  It's controls are ganged, so one knob controls both sides.  It's so simple.  Only 4 knobs, and 2 of those relate to the crossover.  Frequency and gain for the sub.  The other 2 are for the sonic maximizer, and it can be turned off.  It's perfect.  As for durability, it survived a beer drowning that ruined a Mackie board.  In that instance is also when I quit loaning out equipment.

I've never had a problem with any BBE stuff.  I have a rackmount Sonic Max (not using it at the moment) for my bass rig, and had a BBE rackmount compressor.  The compressor was just too complicated and not application specific enough.  My bass rig now has a built in compressor, so I just use it.  

FWIW, my PA rig is a good example of how you can get the right stuff if you just do your homework.  I don't live near the Carvin stores, and this BBE unit was so obscure nobody carried it.  I had to order all of it.  My old bandmate had a similar rig with Crown and QSC components.  It's heavy as hell so it has to be on wheels, it cost more, has more knobs than he even knows what does, and can't get as loud or as quiet.  This whole thing weighs less than 50 lbs.!

 

[Cagey]

It's amazing what can happen to equipment on the road; I stopped loaning things out many years ago. No matter how careful someone is, things happen that just defy credulity.

I agree many crossovers are unnecessarily complex. They only have to do a couple things, after all.

+1 on doing the research/homework to get the Right Thing. You can't take anything away from Crown; they make good amps. But, they're still doing the old school brute-force power supplies, which is what makes them (and many others) so ridiculously heavy. The guys using switchers are saving 50lbs per unit, not to mention some expensive transformers and filter caps.

 

[Jusatele]

Carvin is very well thought of out here on the west coast. But then they are a west coast manufactured item, They also make great stuff, I know of more bands with carvin PAs than with other brands, bang for the buck ya know.

I hear what you say about things happening on the road, but it seems like if only you handle it things are ok, as soon as someone else puts a hand on it even if jut to carry it then blamo it gets knocked on a door frame and a tube cracks.

 

[hachikid]

it's weird, when I first started looking around for gear, I was told Carvin was utter scheisse. after using my X100B and choosing to go with a Carvin 18" driver for my cab, I'm really whistling a different tune. although, I have heard from multiple places that the Carvin cabs can be hit or miss. but everything else they put out seems to be damn good. I can't really see myself getting another head to replace my X100B...maybe an Egnater Tourmaster 4100 or a custom rackmount Rhodes amp...but that's a ridiculous amount of money away...

 

[Cagey]

Carvin does deliver a lot of bang for the buck. They always have since day one. I sometimes wonder if they're running a minimum wage sweatshop. Either that, or everybody else is just raping their customer base. Of course, as anyone who's ever worked for a music store and had access to cost info will tell you, the markup on musical equipment is practically criminal.

As for the lack of attention to the health and welfare of equipment on the road, I suspect the amount of beer, jello shots and melon balls at your average gig might have something to do with it <grin>

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Outside of the West Coast, the Carvinites are few and far between.  Because they are mail order outside of the 2 exixting stores, most of us don't run across much Carvin gear.  The few guys that turned me on to their stuff, they had very discriminating tastes and were voices in the wilderness extolling Carvin's virtues.  The mailorder only is a big turn off to most, also part of the reason they've been able to offer American made stuff at a lower price.

It seems most of the damage my gear has had has come from the actions of others.  With the crossover, I was out of town and my band had a gig with a fill in bass player.  I loaned out my mains, and subs, and the crossover was in the band's rack.  What urked me the most is when I brought it up, I was the a-hole.  Apparently expecting to get something back in the same condition you loan it out in is asking too much.  I put an end to that.  Some of it too is who asks me to borrow stuff.  If they can't impedance match cabs or don't know the difference between bridged mono and stereo, maybe this isn't the guy I want to loan out PA equipment to.

 

[Jusatele]

Super, I think you are correct about Carvin, out here we all know of the stuff, and the direct marketing approach. Our benefit is not having to pay for middleman profits to get great gear, and as I have said, I know of more guys with Carvin PAs than those who have others. When I moved out here Was like, WTF is Carvin, But I soon learned that they were the go to. Now about their guitars, all I can say is bang for the buck. The quality control is there, the knowledge of how to make a guitar and make one that you want to play is there. They offer neck thrus, set, and bolt ons, all in a format that you can custom order easier than you can with the Big Two.a ll that in a price that starts out lower than a Fender Am Std. I think that, and the fact that they are not on the wall of the mega stores holds them back from being a major brand. Once you own a Carvin though, you know.

What you say about damage is what I was hinting at, no one takes care of your gear like you, that is one reason my rig has gotten so small, I can walk in and just be miked, if we are playing outdoors, and that happens a few times a year, I have my half stack, 120 watts stereo. But even then I roll it in and out, I do not let some flunky try to help, and clip a corner ripping my cabinet a new ass. Been there had that done. And like you said, most guys are plug and play, they do not know about impedance matching or even would consider it if they did. and then you are marching down to the shop with your gear, not them. My personal PA, (Carvin) does not get lent out, It is for when my family gets together of I hold a party at the house. I have been told many a time I was being a ass for not lending it out, but my first PA I owned I used 3 times, lent it out and got it back not working, of course the guys who used it insisted that it worked when they used it and knew nothing about why it was broken.

 

[swarfrat]

Mail order really sucks when you start getting into the 100lb + range.

I wish Carvin would do a class D amp. The weight is nice, now what about the heat?

I have a Yamaha PB1 and a dead Carver I got ripped for  on Ebay. Been planning to sell it, maybe I'll keep it and slap one of them amps in there.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

As is the case, warranties are sometimes voided or restocking fees are added if you don't return stuff in the original packing.  Here's my Carvin stuff.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Are there any vacuum tubes for musical amps made in America that are still being produced?  All the ones I've seen are Chinese or Eastern European.  I'd rather give money to former communists than current ones.

No. RCA was the last manufacturer of tubes here, and they've been gone for many years. There are basically only two places tubes are still made - Russia and China. Everybody's tubes come from those plants, and are private-lableled. Everything else is NOS (New Old Stock) left over from bygone days. RCA, Sylvania, Phillips, Mullard, GE, et al have been out of the receiving tube business for probably 20 years or better. The new stuff (JJs, Rubys, Sovteks, Groove Tubes, etc.) are all just either Chinese or Russian tubes that have been binned for balance/performance, since they're so variant.

There are 4 places that vacuum tubes are still made. Russia, China,  Checkoslavikia, and Yugoslavia.

 

[Jusatele]

Turbo, you are covering your IBEW sticker

 

[SustainerPlayer]

There are 4 places that vacuum tubes are still made. Russia, China,  Checkoslavikia, and Yugoslavia.

Two of those countries does not exist anymore.  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Turbo, you are covering your IBEW sticker

Hardly, you saw it.  There's a garage door covering it anyway.  Here, no one knows what they are, but I've heard in some cities it's an identifier for a traffic stop.