Charvel SD vs. Jackson SL or Dinky...

[Jack71]

Ok, I'm sure this has been talked about ad nausium, but how do these guitars compare, side by side? Do the Charvels have a compound radius neck like the Soloists? Build quality? Sound?

If you could only have one or the other, which would it be?

[freakmatt]

D'ya, I've been wondering the same thing. Glad you asked, I'll wait for some interesting answers... :-)

[mm2002]

You can ask this question to 10 different people and get 10 different answers. Here are my feelings: The original SD Charvels are very collectable, but I've never played one that I particularly cared for as far as sound or playability. The build quality seemed to vary quite a bit too (from my experience). I've never played a soloist that wasn't a great player, but I don't care for neck thrus. The build quality seems more consistent too, even comparing the USA's to the imports. Now the Dinky (my favorite!), depends if you're talking about a CS, production USA, or import. I've owned/played them all and I love them all. I know there were probably some lemons out there, but I haven't got hold of one yet. As far as the fretboard radius, I don't know if any of the original SD Charvels had a compound radius or not, but the few I've owned did not.

[shreddermon]

I could be wrong, but I think he means comparing the new Charvels to a new Soloist or Dinky. i.e., Which one should he buy?

Build quality, sound, features will all be very comparable. They're made by the same folks in the same custom shop using the same basic woods & components, after all. But they are significantly different.

I think the bigger issue is what preferences do you have? Bolt-ons or neck-throughs? Oiled or painted necks? Binding & shark inlays, or no binding and dots? Thin necks or medium necks?

[toejam]

Do the Charvels have a compound radius neck like the Soloists?

Never heard of a compound radius neck. The fingerboards are compound radius, though. And, yes, the new Charvels do have the compound radius to their fingerboards.

[Jack71]

I could be wrong, but I think he means comparing the new Charvels to a new Soloist or Dinky. i.e., Which one should he buy?

Build quality, sound, features will all be very comparable. They're made by the same folks in the same custom shop using the same basic woods & components, after all. But they are significantly different.

I think the bigger issue is what preferences do you have? Bolt-ons or neck-throughs? Oiled or painted necks? Binding & shark inlays, or no binding and dots? Thin necks or medium necks?

I prefer bolt-ons, oiled necks and medium necks. Guess I'd have to go custom shop to get exactly what I want...

[shreddermon]

Sounds that way. The DK1 and Charvels are bolt-on oiled necks, but they're thin. The Soloist neck is medium-ish, but painted.

[toejam]

The DK1 and Charvels are bolt-on oiled necks, but they're thin.

The Charvel necks are actually a little thicker than the Dinky necks.

[shreddermon]

The Charvel necks are actually a little thicker than the Dinky necks.

Ummm, no they're not.

[busdriver]

Well, it depends... both necks of my new pointy SDs are similar to a Dinky's neck, but both necks of my Stratheads are thicker than a Dinky's neck.

[toejam]

Ummm, no they're not.

Well, my new Charvel Star is definitely thicker than my Dinky HX or any other Dinky I've ever owned or played.

[shreddermon]

Well, since this is in the Charvel USA section, I was assuming we're only talking about USA models. And given Jack71's "guess I have to custom shop" comment, I'm assuming Charvel pointyheads only - not stratheads.

Toe is correct that import Dinkies are a bit slimmer: .735" at the 3rd fret vs. .750" for the DK1 and Charvel SD. They're all an identical .810" at the 12th fret.

That's not to say the USA necks - even with the same measurements - are the same, though. Even with the same thickness measurements as a Charvel SD, my old DK1 felt like a rounder backshape profile than the Charvies. Similar to a "C"-like profile IMHO, more like a Soloist. My Charvel pointyheads all feel like a flatter "D"-like profile which, IMHO, makes the neck feel even slimmer than the DK1s.

[toejam]

Ah, good point about the import Dinkies. Though, I did play a newer DK1 for a brief period at GC and thought it was about as thin as the few import Dinkies I've had.
And the Star neck reminds me of my Carvin SC90 neck which also felt the same as my old Charvel Model 6 and Model 5A... a little thicker but with kind of a flat spot in the middle of the neck.