Re: Has Anyone Used A Carvin Legacy Head Or Cab?
tone4days said:
doesnt b2d rock the carvin tip? .. oh brenno d'chrome, care to weigh in, young gun?
t4d
You called?
Hi Olin. I own one of these amps (the head and the matching 4x12 slant cab) and I could've gone with a few different companies but I chose the Carvin because it fit all my needs as far as features, utilities, and tone.
I haven't owned any Bogners, or Soldanos but I did own a 1982 Marshall JCM800 combo a few years back and the Legacy in fact replaced a Mesa/Boogie Rectoverb I owned.
I could say a LOT about this amp, but I'll try to wrap it up in a nutshell here: I like the amp for a variety of reasons: The tone isn't Marshall and it isn't Fender. It's got its own unique character that certainly takes some cues from those sound staples and a few other amps as well but it has its own thing going on. The sound overall is big, fat, bold, LOUD, and expressive. EQ works WONDERFULLYand has a wide-ranging effect on the overall sound, even at higher gain and volume levels, which is something I had trouble getting with older tube amps and even some newer ones! The reverb is very nice and doesnt mud up the sound. The effects loop works very well and the amp overall is pretty quiet in terms of extraneous noise. I like the fact that you can switch tube types a la' Boogie amps.... NOTE: The amp comes stock with Sovtek pres and EH EL34 power tubes. The power tubes are OK but I think the amp sounds MUCH better with GT12ax7Rs or JJ 12ax7s. The gain channel seems a little too dark otherwise. Get some premium tubes in the amp and it REALLY rips. Oh yeah... the amp REALLY brings out different personalities of different guitars. Subtle nuances and dynamics on guitars AND playing styles come through very very well.
As far as the amount of gain and the flavor, as I said the tone is big, fat, bold, authoritative, and LOUD. It can be agressive but smooth at the same time. The sound derives from what I would describe as kind of a "saturated" sound. There's not as much gain on tap as you would think... but then again you dont really need it because the amp makes up for it in terms of sustain and natural compression. To get into metal-territory you'll need a pedal (I use a Fulltone OCD and couldn't be happier) but even so I never need to turn the gain up past 6 or 7 to get some really ballsy tones. If you're looking for a classic Marshall vibe then you'd be better off with a JCM800 or something (and I still love those) but if you're looking for a more modern sound with a few new tricks then I'd look into this amp.
Lastly... this amp is one of the few amps I really love playing with no effects... usually I have a delay in there for practicing with the band and stuff and only usemy full pedalboard for "dress rehearsals" or live, but the raw sound of the amp is really great. It's not stiff or honky at ALL. It's very smooth and reacts quickly... very player friendly. You don't have to fight it much and it'll give up the goods. You have to let it heat up/play it for about 20-30 minutes to get it sounding its best but when this amp is on, its ON.
Hope that little spiel helps. Any other questions? I'd be happy to answer.
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