Suhr vs Anderson vs Carvin.. thoughts?

[veji]

thanks for all the responses. It has been educational.
I'm a huge Suhr Lover for the last 10 years.. having 3 suhr guitars which were all spec'd by me.
Previously had Tom Andersons.. the thing with anderson guitars are the pickups and necks. I never got into them, so I sold them and have been playing Suhrs ever since. Anderson has the looks/playability but the sound wasn't for me. Suhr has awesome sounding guitars/pickups/amps. So when I recieved my suhr .. I didn't have to change a thing.. My suhrs, from the pickups/looks/playability sound was exactly 100% what I wanted. Totally satisfied customer.

Reason I've posted this is,
up until now I've only gone with SAFE tried and true wood combinations. Basswood/maple tops/maple necks, Alder/maple necks, Mahogany/maple tops/mahogany necks etc

But I want to try some unique wood combos of which may turn out to be a dud..which is where Carvin comes in. They will mix and match any wood/neck/board and if you don't like it they will make it again from scratch.
Considering that some of the wood combos I'm going for is alittle risky.

1) Mahogany back/Mahogany neck/walnut claro top/maple board
2) walnut body/walnut neck/maple board

IF(big IF) suhr or anderson do decide to built this guitar... I'm 100% confident that it will look great/play great but the sound might not be what i'm after .. at that point I might be stuck trying to mod the guitar w/different pickups because I might have a hard time selling it.

 

[scgtr]

You also want to check on whether or not changing pickups still requires routing the cavity.

My understanding is this changed a year or two ago and you can now put most standard aftermarket pickups in without routing.

I do suggest giving the Carvin pickups a good listen. The "Carvin's electronics sucks" motif is commonly repeated on some message boards, but I know plenty of folks who use stock Carvin pickups.

 

[dfrattaroli]

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

 

[Doughboy]

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

NO. You own NO Warmoths, hence you claiming they're inferior to a Suhr, or any other brand is WRONG.

Suhr doesn't have a monopoly when it comes to premium woods, craftsmen & a CNC machine.

I have a dozen Warmoth guitars & the quality is as good as anything Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc can put out.

 

[zuel69]

Now you have gone too far. You still get what you pay for.

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

NO. You own NO Warmoths, hence you claiming they're inferior to a Suhr, or any other brand is WRONG.

Suhr doesn't have a monopoly when it comes to premium woods, craftsmen & a CNC machine.

I have a dozen Warmoth guitars & the quality is as good as anything Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc can put out.

 

[Doughboy]

Now you have gone too far. You still get what you pay for.


How have I gone too far? How does buying a Suhr made with premium parts & a Warmoth made with premium parts & set up by a top luthier be different, apart from the fact that one has a Suhr decal & the other doesn't?

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

NO. You own NO Warmoths, hence you claiming they're inferior to a Suhr, or any other brand is WRONG.

Suhr doesn't have a monopoly when it comes to premium woods, craftsmen & a CNC machine.

I have a dozen Warmoth guitars & the quality is as good as anything Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc can put out.

 

[Metlupass2]

Now you have gone too far. You still get what you pay for.


How have I gone too far? How does buying a Suhr made with premium parts & a Warmoth made with premium parts & set up by a top luthier be different, apart from the fact that one has a Suhr decal & the other doesn't?

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

NO. You own NO Warmoths, hence you claiming they're inferior to a Suhr, or any other brand is WRONG.

Suhr doesn't have a monopoly when it comes to premium woods, craftsmen & a CNC machine.

I have a dozen Warmoth guitars & the quality is as good as anything Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc can put out.

Now you have gone too far. You still get what you pay for.


How have I gone too far? How does buying a Suhr made with premium parts & a Warmoth made with premium parts & set up by a top luthier be different, apart from the fact that one has a Suhr decal & the other doesn't?

My guess is you think with the logo & it's snob appeal 1st & the actual guitar 2nd. In that regards, you're missing the point of the actual "instrument".

Your "guess" would be wrong where I'm concerned. Still, comparing a parts guitar to a Suhr is just retarded.

Well, since I OWN Suhrs, Carvins & Warmoths, I can safely say you have no clue, since you do not OWN, PLAY & have the ability to compare them side by side.

What you're partaking in, is armchair internet hypothesizing based on your biases & not 1st hand info....& that sir, IS retarded.

Wrong. I own 2 Suhrs. Had a third. Had 5 Carvins. Not a bias. It's my personal experience.

NO. You own NO Warmoths, hence you claiming they're inferior to a Suhr, or any other brand is WRONG.

Suhr doesn't have a monopoly when it comes to premium woods, craftsmen & a CNC machine.

I have a dozen Warmoth guitars & the quality is as good as anything Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc can put out.

 

[dfrattaroli]

I disagree with you Doughboy, because I don't believe you're as good as a Luthier at Suhr, Anderson or Carvin.

 

[shredi knight]

The Carvin DC600C I just received is ok I guess. Too bad it's not much to look at:



















Yep, damn shame.

 

[Doughboy]

I disagree with you Doughboy, because I don't believe you're as good as a Luthier at Suhr, Anderson or Carvin.

Who said I was doing the work? I can barely put on a set of strings without blowing up my house?

The work is strictly done by one of the best luthiers in the country whos been working on my gear for 20 years.

I'm talking about the QUALITY of tone woods & Warmoth is just as good as any Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc....

 

[dfrattaroli]

Who said I was doing the work? I can barely put on a set of strings without blowing up my house?

Now that's funny.

I'm talking about the QUALITY of tone woods & Warmoth is just as good as any Suhr, Carvin, Anderson etc....

OK, I'd agree with that. I never claimed otherwise. Everyone's experience is their own and I was sharing mine with the OP. Nothing more.

Rock on.

Dave

 

[yngzaklynch]

I am a Suhr fan. That said at some point builders deliver a higher quality guitar than average. Yes there will be a few diamonds in the rough and price isn't really a guarantee. I think its up to the individual to go out, play as many guitars as they can and find what works for them. For me that guitar is a Suhr Modern Carve Top. For the next player it might be a Tele. Find what works and rock out!

 

[scgtr]

I can change strings and do a basic setup (intonation, truss rod adjustment, etc.), but fretwork is beyond me. That is what has always steered me away from Warmoth, USCAG, etc. Their stuff looks good, but I don't trust myself to assemble it.

 

[Doughboy]

I can change strings and do a basic setup (intonation, truss rod adjustment, etc.), but fretwork is beyond me. That is what has always steered me away from Warmoth, USCAG, etc. Their stuff looks good, but I don't trust myself to assemble it.

Ditto. I wouldn't dare try & do a fretjob.

Warmoth comes with fretwork already done. All my luthier does is do a check, crowns the odd one here & there & that's it. He mostly makes sure the assembly is done right & everything is as good as it can be.

 

[Kidkramer71]

Every guitar I have ever owned has went to Mike Lull for set ups ect
Most guitars still need fret work even when new if you want them to be the best.
I would say that suhrs and Anderson's along with other custom guitars would be gone over with a fine tooth and not need a thing !
A good luthier can make most guitars play like butter !

I have a warmoth neck on one of my Kramers it is very high quality yet for my standards it was plecked by Mike Lull and that is not cheap !

I believe some woods , pickups , ect are better then others and some combos work better .
I also believe the set up is the biggest factor .
There are a lot of high end guitars that off the shelf play like logs with strings !

Some things just work !!!
Just ask Eddie !!!'

 

[metalmaniac93]

You can't go wrong with a Carvin IMO except upgrading the pickups and if you get a Wilkinson tremelo, you might want to update that. I have owned a lot of Carvins and still have one left (and own a CS Charvel and Luxxtone) It is still one of my top guitars, but I did upgrade the trem from the cheap Wilkinson to the Wilkinson VS100, changed the pots, and of course installed MCPs!!!

I have played both Suhr and Andersons!! Amazing guitars!!!

 

[gibson5413]

well I do own 3 suhr guitars.. the reason for my post is this. Suhr doesn't do mahogany necks with maple fingerboards or walnut necks/maple fingerboards.. well carvin does. I love maple boards.

Who told you they don't do mahogany neck maple board? John may not recommended it buts available on their custom order form. It doesn't forbid you from choosing maple as a fingerboard if you choose a mahogany neck.

http://www.rocketmusiconline.com/configurator/Suhr.php

The problem with ordering a custom order like that with Suhr is that it will take 6+ months to build. I wanted a custom build Koa Suhr & the wait time they gave me was just too long, so I built the exact same thing using Warmoth parts.

Carvin custom shop guitars are built in about 1/3 of the time. I just HATE waiting for gear. I want is now or yesterday if possible.

I understand but he's saying that Suhr won't build something and that isn't the case. He should contact Suhr to be clear about the walnut too. You have to wait that long because they are backed up with a ton of orders. Tom Anderson is the same way. Maybe carvin doesn't have the same amount of orders and I'm sure they have a much bigger operation.

I have custom sec'ed and ordered 5 Anderson guitars and none of them took longer than 90 days.

 

[AndyK]

The Carvin DC600C I just received is ok I guess. Too bad it's not much to look at:






Yep, damn shame.

WOW, that's sweet! Looks like a tropical lagoon on maple!
Why no locking nut with a Floyd?

 

[Metlupass2]

My guess is it has locking tuners. Carvin charges extra for a locking nut. I'm not knocking them but simply saying.

 

[shredi knight]

Yeah, it's got locking tuners. Plus I am not a real heavy bar user and have it blocked so it only pushes down and doesn't pull up. Staying in tune is not an issue.

I hate messing with locking nuts, plus I've had bad experiences with guitars that come with them being set too high (action at the nut). Unless it has shims that can be removed (which hasn't ever been the case), that's not an easy fix like it would be with a standard nut.