Ordered my first Charvel... Wildcard 6

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

I've been tempted by Charvel's in the past but when I saw the Wildcard 6 I just had to get one. I couldn't find any locally so I ordered it from Sweetwater. It should be here Wednesday/Thursday and I can't wait!

[dg]

Cool! Be sure & update with some pics & a review when you get it.

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

I definitely will . The wait is killing me though. I was told it would ship Saturday but the system hasn't updated so I'm thinking it probably didn't ship yet meaning it won't be here til Friday . I know it's a short amount of time but I hate waiting for gear

[Mr Sandman]

Be careful, pro-mods are addictive as I`ve found out!

[CHARVEL_strat_81]

you are going to love the neck bro! i got to play one on memorial day at sam ash where i bought my second so cal and the neck on the WC was amazing. it seemed a little thinner than the maple necks on my so cal's???
these new MIJ charvels have the best fret work of any guitar under $1000 i have ever came across!

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

According to FedEx it'll be here tomorrow!!!

you are going to love the neck bro! i got to play one on memorial day at sam ash where i bought my second so cal and the neck on the WC was amazing. it seemed a little thinner than the maple necks on my so cal's???
these new MIJ charvels have the best fret work of any guitar under $1000 i have ever came across!

I'm a little worried about this actually. My decision to pickup a Charvel started when I played a really nice USA San Dimas locally. It's a beautiful blue with 1-piece maple neck that although used was flawless and a local shop wanted $849 for it. I came VERY close to buying it but the fixed bridge (I have enough trem guitars) and ebony neck sealed the deal for me on the wild card. The USA San Dimas I played was a little on the thin side already but very round and comfortable. As long as it's not real flat like an Ibanez Wizard neck I'll be quite happy with it. If my Ibanez RG1421F sells anytime soon I might go back and grab that USA San Dimas as well

[CHARVEL_strat_81]

According to FedEx it'll be here tomorrow!!!

I'm a little worried about this actually. My decision to pickup a Charvel started when I played a really nice USA San Dimas locally. It's a beautiful blue with 1-piece maple neck that although used was flawless and a local shop wanted $849 for it. I came VERY close to buying it but the fixed bridge (I have enough trem guitars) and ebony neck sealed the deal for me on the wild card. The USA San Dimas I played was a little on the thin side already but very round and comfortable. As long as it's not real flat like an Ibanez Wizard neck I'll be quite happy with it. If my Ibanez RG1421F sells anytime soon I might go back and grab that USA San Dimas as well

Thats the thing, it is NOTHING like a ibenhad wizard neck, it is thin but has a perfect C shape with the rolled edges that give ya a boner when you play it!

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

I got it! I went home for lunch and it came about 2min after I got there . Didn't have a chance to do more than unbox, tune it up, and play for a few min. The neck and fretwork is fantastic. The fretwork is probably even a little better than my EBMM JP6 which was no where near <$1000 . CHARVEL_strat_81, you were dead-on about the neck *grin*.

I'll try to get some pics and an at least partial review later tonight. This is also my first guitar with Duncans (my others are all DiMarzio or EMG) so I'm interested to see how it sounds going into an amp.

I have a feeling the next two hours of work are going to go extremely slow...

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

After spending some time with it I came up with the following:

Disclaimer: Some of the cons are very nit-picky because I've tried to include even my smallest observations here. That being said, the pros definitely outweigh the cons in the end and by a significant amount.

Pros:
- Neck (absolutely amazing, my new favorite neck)
- Frets (best factory fretwork I've ever seen)
- Fretboard (I'm a sucker for ebony)
- Paint
- Case
- Dunlop Strap Locks (a pleasant surprise)
- Cost (it's incredible what you get for <$1000)

Cons:
- Muffled sound? (see below)
- Bridge/neck height (see below)
- Pickup Switch (see below)
- Tuners (see below)
- Pickups (maybe, still need to play with amp settings more)

I'll start with the Cons so I can end on a positive note.
1) Muffled sound? - This is very hard to put into words but there is a sort of muffled "feeling" or sound especially on the low strings. It still sustains well so I'm thinking this is either just how the bridge or body (I don't have another Alder guitar) resonates. I'm taking it to a really good local shop today for a setup and will get their take on this and report back.
2) Bridge/neck height - The neck seems to sit a little high for the fixed bridge and in turn the saddles are adjusted at quite an angle. They probably should have routed the neck pocket a little deeper.
3) Pickup Switch - The pickup switch is oriented in an up/down position and due to it's size/position in the control cavity there is no room to rotate it to a front/back position. This is purely personal preference and if it bugs me I'll just put a different switch in later.
4) Tuners - I'm not a fan of the tuners but this could be mostly that I've gotten uses to 18:1 ratio tuners lately. I've ordered a set of Planet Waves auto-trim locking tuners that should be here today. Again, this is more of a personal preference.
5) Pickups - The verdict is still out here but since I couldn't get the sound I wanted last night I'll keep it under cons for now. I have a Mesa Mark V which can be picky at times and takes a lot of tweaking (especially the EQ). I'll keep messing with settings and try it through another amp before deciding to keep or swap them.

Now for the good stuff
1) Neck - The neck is FANTASTIC! The contour, thickness, and nice rouded fretboard edges make it the most comfortable neck of all my guitars. Honestly, the neck alone could justify buying this guitar.
2) Frets - I'm picky about fret finish and am stunned at how these came from the factory. I can't recall ever seeing frets this nice on a new guitar. I normally pay good money for fretwork like this
3) Fretboard - It's ebony, it's awesome, what else can I say?
4) Paint - I waited until today to take pics because it looks stunning in sunlight but it's still hard to photograph. The color is stunning in person.
5) Case - I was very pleasantly surprised at the quality of the case that came with it. This is something I would expect more from a guitar in the $1500-2000 price range.
6) Dunlop Strap Locks - I have to laugh at this one. I was bummed when I realized that I had forgotten to order a set of Dunlop strap locks along with the guitar since that's what I use now. Imagine my surprise followed by a huge childish grin when I found that they already came on the guitar.
7) Cost - These pro-mods far exceed the quality for anything else I can think of in their price range. Amazing neck, top-notch fretwork, real SD pickups (even if they're not for me, I can still resell/trade them for different high-quality pickups), high-quality case, etc. I would expect this guitar to sit comfortably in the $1200-$1500 price range but the fact that Charvel has them sitting at $899-999 shows me that they've got the right idea in a time where most gear is priced way too high.

My overall impression:
I'm seriously impressed. I did not expect to see this kind of quality with these features in this price range. If you have any doubts about getting a pro-mod or are one the fence, I urge you to go play one and see for yourself. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

Still waiting on getting it back from the shop... It's like waiting for the order to arrive all over again!

[rdamaral]

That's friggin nice dude. Love the color.

[EvilEmuOfDoom]

So I got it back yesterday and although it plays really nice now there is an issue that I'm little worried about. The neck has a little back bow and although it's adjusted nicely now the truss rod is only 1/8 turn from being 100% loose. So, if the weather changes soon (I live in New England, lol) I have a 50/50 shot if it settling in a way that's not fixable. I might end up returning it, not sure yet .

[CHARVEL_strat_81]

congrats on your new WC, i knew you would love the neck and fret work! what is odd to me is why the difference in thickness between the wild card or any of the non maple pro mods vs the so cals or the san dimas? is it because the maple ones are 1 piece necks? i really prefer the profile/thickness on the WC's even though i am more than happy with my so cal's neck

[Hellbat]

I like the color. Is it agent orange or something different??

Looks like they use nice thick planks for the fingerboard on those. I kinda want one!

[Rich#6]

tangerine is the color.