Carvin H2 opinions

[wodka]

Well, I have been reading so many glowing reviews for Carvin's here lately, that I decided to check out their site. The H2 is really intriquing. Has anyone here tried one? The H2T they have listed on their in-stock list looks great.

[toejam]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

I've heard great things about them, but never played one myself. The neck profile is supposed to be thicker, almost like a Les Paul, and the fingerboard radius is really flat at 20" instead of the normal Carvin 15".

[slayer]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

I think the newer Carvin`s are awsome, I bought a DC 150 in 2002 and it is a keeper, really high quality, sounds great with the stock C22 pickups. I say go for it, they have a 10 Day no questions asked return policy!! I knew arfter the first few minutes mine was staying with me [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img] Jack.

[wodka]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

I was in San Diego this week for work, so I stopped by the Carvin headquarters store. The H2 was the best model I tried. The neck isn't nearly as large as some have written. It is quite comfortable. The tone is excellent and the quality seemed just fine..

[toejam]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Cool! [img]graemlins/band.gif[/img]

[necrotechno]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

I've been wanting to try one, but two things keep me away from it: 1)The very earliest reviews of it said it was slightly neck-heavy; and 2)The neck is made of Alder [img]graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img]

My guess is the lighter neck wood was selected to counteract the balance problems. Notice how the larger-bodied HF2 has a Maple neck. But you can't get the HF2 with the tremolo, and a Tune-O-Matic combined with a non-tilt neck joint is kinda lame.

But as was said before, Carvin has the 10-day return policy, so...

[toejam]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Necro, the H2 model (as well as the H1 and HF1 one-pickup versions they'll still make) can be made with any neck or body wood you specify, not just alder. Carvin offers their necks in maple, mahogany, walnut, koa as well as alder for any other their models... not totally sure about the HF models, though.

[ May 23, 2003, 10:27 AM: Message edited by: toejam ]

[Black Mariah]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

AFAIK, all Carvin guitars have tilt-back headstocks. If not, then they at the very least have varying height tuners because I don't see a string tree anywhere. If I had to guess what the H2 isn't available with an OFR, I'd say it's the sound chambers in the body that won't allow for a recess under the trem.

[necrotechno]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Joe... Yeah, I know that. But Alder comes standard, and it's the lightest wood they make necks from. If you get the neck made from anything else, it's gonna be heavier. Will it then be VERY neck-heavy? I don't know. Alder is a strange choice for a neck wood in the first place — and the larger-bodied HF2 has a Maple neck — so it makes me wary.

BM... I'm talking about the Neck Joint, not the headstock. Y'know how the bridge pickups on Gibsons sit up really high up and the neck pickups are really low? That's because they have angled neck joints. Carvin's are all non-tilt, which not only makes all the pickups sit at the same height, it doesn't create a sufficient angle (for my taste) across the saddles.

[slayer]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

According to Carvin: Alder falls tonally between Mahogany and Maple, so that would be cool, I think you will be fine with an Alder neck [img]graemlins/band.gif[/img] Jack.

[Black Mariah]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Are you sure it's the same way on the Holdsworth? Because that seriously doesn't sound right. Not having the neck tilt back at the neck/body join would raise the action up to dizzying heights or require that the ToM be recessed into the body to work. I haven't ever seen a guitar with a ToM that didn't have a tilted neck.

[necrotechno]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Yeah, it's like that on the Holdsworth. I've read other complaints about how the ToM is bottomed out and the action is still too high not only on the Holdsworth, but on their other ToM guitars as well. I asked about it on the Carvin board, and the moderators (all sales guys) said those were all freak occurrences. So, I dunno...

They also use that cheap Gotoh ToM that has the adjustment screws stuck directly in the wood, no metal sinkers.

[wodka]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

I tried a H2T and a H2. Both had low action. They had a cross-section model of the body so that you can see how it is hollow. The clean tone is great. Very similar to a 335. Also, the guitar is extremely light but it felt very solid. I'm not sure what wood the neck was on the models I tried.

[toejam]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Yeah, BM, no tilt-back necks on Carvins. They use a lower profile TOM Gotoh bridge. My SC90 has one, and the action is pretty low without the bridge being bottomed out, but it is close.

[toejam]

Re: Carvin H2 opinions

Necro, I know what you're saying about the alder necks. I've know that maple is very stable for necks, mahogany a little less so, but still very good. I would think alder would be even less stable as a neck wood, but I've never tried one. It seems to work well for Allan Holdsworth, though. Not sure how less neck heavy alder would be and if it would affect the balance or not, though. [img]graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img]