Picked up a 2016 Charvel Pro Mod

[mantis]

Grabbed a brand new right out of the box 2016 Charvel San Dimas HH HT in Snow White with White Pickups. They made some nice improvements over my 2013 San Dimas HS HT.
First off the HH design is totally killer. The neck Pickup is a 59 and it's warm fat and clear as hell. I love the way it sounds. In my 2013 , I installed a Lil59 in the Neck position and it's close to the sound of the full size Humbucker but doesn't have the same fullness and warmth.
The Bridge is totally better. It's a new design for a hard tail more like a Hip shot instead of a Fender like design. It's much better for Palm Muting and what nots.
I could care less about the Single coil push pull of the volume control but if you want some Strat tones, it's got it. It's just like a tipical American Strat tone. Not for me but it's there IF I ever wanted it.
The Tone knob is interesting as it feels like it magnetically locks itself into a no load position at 10. What it does is removes itself from the tone circuit and it sounds like you don't have a tone control. But if you want tone control again it's there.
The Wheel for the Truss rod is a huge improvement over taking your damn neck off to adjust. I know when I do a full setup, I'm gonna love this.
Overall I love this guitar.

[mantis]

It's really funny how I never liked direct mounted Humbuckers as they look naked to me without a pickup ring. I like the look of the rings and back in 20012 Japanese models with top mounted floyd Rose I felt like the pickups where going to fall off the guitar they sat so damn high. I hated that look.
But this model with the re designed hard tail, I think the pickups look sharpe. They are higher then I'm comfortable with as far as pure looks but I'm getting use to it and I"m actually not minding the look.
I didn't mention about the sound quality of this new model, it's amazing. It sings clearly and powerful. It has a brighter but slightly warm tone to it vs my 2013 HS HT San Dimas.
But you know it has a JB in the bridge as it has that Bite to it and It can sound classy or Brutal , your call. It does it all. I love the JB pickups.
I went to CMC Guitars in NJ( Awesome place by the way)and played through a Solano SLO100 head on a Mesa Cabinet . What surprised me about this head is how damn good the cleans are. I don't remember anyone talking about the clean channel. It's pretty fantastic and similar to my Kranks clean channel.
The Gain Channel or Overdrive as they call it is more of a hard rock tone to 80's metal stuff. I didn't sit and really dial it in but the tone I was getting was very nice. It had a wonderful Mid range push that really barked nicely. I can see this amp just sounding better and better at higher volumes.
It didn't get the level of low end I like which I prefer my Krank over the Solano in this area as I prefer a heavier bottom end. I like a Higher gain heavy sounding amp then what the SLO 100 puts out. BUT like I said I didn't really dial it into my liking but I know with some time I could get it to sound the way I want. This might be a good amp to have some kind of OD pedal in front of it like a Ibanez Tube Screamer.

[jclogston]

Awesome! How are the necks on these compared to your other San dimas?

[zenridaz]

Thats beautiful,I like the options with the tone and blade switch.What's the quality of the bridge like?

[mantis]

Awesome! How are the necks on these compared to your other San dimas?

It's very similar in feel. The Fret work on it is really good. I didn't find any dead spots or ruff edges on the sides as one of the ones I checked out needed some edge work.

[mantis]

Thats beautiful,I like the options with the tone and blade switch.What's the quality of the bridge like?

Much better then the 2013 Hard Tail.
It's so much more comfortable to play. The 2013 bridge is fine but I hate the height screws as they can dig into your hand if you do a lot of palm muting like I do. No cuts or anything like that just slightly annoying. I don't notice it that much anymore as I'm use to how it feel but dude let me tell you this new bridge is amazing. They really paid attention to the feel of this bridge. It's wonderful.

[jclogston]

It's very similar in feel. The Fret work on it is really good. I didn't find any dead spots or ruff edges on the sides as one of the ones I checked out needed some edge work.

Have you ever played a MIJ or MIA neck by chance to compare against?

[mantis]

Have you ever played a MIJ or MIA neck by chance to compare against?

Yes I have. The MIJ necks have a nice smooth feel to them when properly built. It's one of the best necks in the business. I find the MIA necks to be very similar to both the MIJ and MIM necks.
The MIM started in 2013 which 2012 was from what I understand the last year of the MIJ's all together. Charvel Moved to Mexico and are still there today with Fender and Jackson and I also believe EVH's are in there.
You would have to play one as they feel as all Charvel necks in history or at least the ones I have owned or played feel. It's why I purchased them over lets say a Jackson Dinky of similar price point. Not that I don't like the Jackson neck shape and Feel, I own one in a SL3 from 2006, but there is something very right with the way the Charvel necks feel and this new 2016 model is no different.
I will say this, I wouldn't buy one sight unseen as I did play the Satin Orange model and it needed some fret work. The Edges where kinda sharp and needed some minor filing. At CMC Guitars which is now my new spot to buy ALL my guitars from inspect the guitar before they sell it to you. It's really nice as they take care of these small issues so when you put it in your hand , your playing the best it can be. I have also heard from many shops that many guitars come in a little ruff here and there and just need some minor tweaking before they can be sold. It's a huge reason why I will not buy online. I have to touch and bond with my guitar before I feel it's right.
I played all 3 models and they all are special feeling guitars as I bonded with all of them. It was a huge problem as I want to buy at least 2 more. They have this Tobacco Burst Quilted Maple top San Dimas HH Floyd model and it reminds me of my 1964 Gibson Melody Maker and my 1985 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe both were a Tobacco bust minus the Quilted top. The Quilted top is crazy badass and I gotta have one of them. Not to mention is also has Chrome Hardware which I think really sets it apart from the usual Black.

Honestly dude I think Charvel really out did themselves and did ALL the upgrades I have been wanting in these models. I completely love these guitars and at the price point I can own a few of them and not feel guilty for purchasing them. I usually spend much more on a single guitar but these things do exactly what I want them to do and I love everything about them.
I like the 2016 better then my 2013.

[jclogston]

Yes I have. The MIJ necks have a nice smooth feel to them when properly built. It's one of the best necks in the business. I find the MIA necks to be very similar to both the MIJ and MIM necks.
The MIM started in 2013 which 2012 was from what I understand the last year of the MIJ's all together. Charvel Moved to Mexico and are still there today with Fender and Jackson and I also believe EVH's are in there.
You would have to play one as they feel as all Charvel necks in history or at least the ones I have owned or played feel. It's why I purchased them over lets say a Jackson Dinky of similar price point. Not that I don't like the Jackson neck shape and Feel, I own one in a SL3 from 2006, but there is something very right with the way the Charvel necks feel and this new 2016 model is no different.
I will say this, I wouldn't buy one sight unseen as I did play the Satin Orange model and it needed some fret work. The Edges where kinda sharp and needed some minor filing. At CMC Guitars which is now my new spot to buy ALL my guitars from inspect the guitar before they sell it to you. It's really nice as they take care of these small issues so when you put it in your hand , your playing the best it can be. I have also heard from many shops that many guitars come in a little ruff here and there and just need some minor tweaking before they can be sold. It's a huge reason why I will not buy online. I have to touch and bond with my guitar before I feel it's right.
I played all 3 models and they all are special feeling guitars as I bonded with all of them. It was a huge problem as I want to buy at least 2 more. They have this Tobacco Burst Quilted Maple top San Dimas HH Floyd model and it reminds me of my 1964 Gibson Melody Maker and my 1985 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe both were a Tobacco bust minus the Quilted top. The Quilted top is crazy badass and I gotta have one of them. Not to mention is also has Chrome Hardware which I think really sets it apart from the usual Black.

Honestly dude I think Charvel really out did themselves and did ALL the upgrades I have been wanting in these models. I completely love these guitars and at the price point I can own a few of them and not feel guilty for purchasing them. I usually spend much more on a single guitar but these things do exactly what I want them to do and I love everything about them.
I like the 2016 better then my 2013.

Thanks for the info. I have a MIJ San Dimas; I love this neck! I also have a MIM So Cal but the neck is different that the MIJ. I guess if the newest models neck is similar to the previous year MIM, I might pass. It's a new model or pick up another MIJ San Dimas...decisions. Unfortunately no one near me has the new Charvels in stock (yet hopefully).

[mantis]

Thanks for the info. I have a MIJ San Dimas; I love this neck! I also have a MIM So Cal but the neck is different that the MIJ. I guess if the newest models neck is similar to the previous year MIM, I might pass. It's a new model or pick up another MIJ San Dimas...decisions. Unfortunately no one near me has the new Charvels in stock (yet hopefully).

I had the same issue when Sam Ash decided to stop carrying them in the store and go order only. I found CMC Guitars and they are 1 hour 20 mins away. I'm glad to take that drive as I can't buy a guitar without playing it first even though I have never touched a Charvel Super Strat I didn't like a lot except the Top mounted Floyd models like the MIJ you like.
I find it uncomfortable as I like the Recessed so much better as the strings are lower and I feel like I have more control over my strumming hand.
I played the MIJ and MIM side by side and I didn't notice much difference at all. They where both San Dimas models

[mantis]

Thanks for the info. I have a MIJ San Dimas; I love this neck! I also have a MIM So Cal but the neck is different that the MIJ. I guess if the newest models neck is similar to the previous year MIM, I might pass. It's a new model or pick up another MIJ San Dimas...decisions. Unfortunately no one near me has the new Charvels in stock (yet hopefully).

I didn't notice these few things, I guess I was excited to own a new guitar but I did find a few things different about the neck.
1) The frets are wider then on my 2013 neck. They are slightly flatter as well. If you zoom in on my pic, you can see the difference.
2) The Neck shape is ever so slightly different, I didn't even notice this until I noticed the frets. The curve of the back of the neck is more round then flat. The 2013 neck I would say was round and then they slightly sanded it to make it slightly flatter. It's hardly noticeable unless you hold both of them and feel it. It's ever so slight as I thought they where ruffly the same until I noticed this.

[Cosmiceddie]

Amazing guitar, yet direct mounted humbucker pickups are a real dealbreaker for me.

[jclogston]

Amazing guitar, yet direct mounted humbucker pickups are a real dealbreaker for me.

I don't mind them but it really limits pickup choices due to the somewhat shallow pickup cavity in the san dimas (without modifying pickup or cavity).

Jeff

[mantis]

Amazing guitar, yet direct mounted humbucker pickups are a real dealbreaker for me.

That was how I felt until these came out as they Direct mount pickups don't stick off the guitar like when there is a Top mounted Floyd. I hate that as it looks like the pickups are going to fall off.
These look incredible as I warmed up to them after a few minutes of playing the different models.

[mantis]

After Living with this Guitar for over a week now I can say it's my go to Axe. A few new things I noticed about it vs my 2013 Hard tail
1) The Output is different even though it uses the same exact pickups, wood body etc the Sound is slightly brighter and more forward. I'm wondering if the Maple fret board as something also to do with this? The 2013 has a Rosewood board.
2) The feel of this neck I like better then the 2013. The frets feel better and the shape of this new neck is just wonderful in your hand. Not that the Neck on the 2013 isn't amazing , it is in it's own right but IF I had to choose necks, I would take the 2016 all day long. It's so smooth and fast. You glide from note to note like it was custom designed for your hand size. Funny to as both necks are amazingly similar yet ever so slightly different. It's hard to tell unless you play them back to back playing the exact same notes.
3) The Lil59 I put in my 2013 is crazy nice and slightly lighter in tone then the full Humber version in the 2016. Both are amazing pickups and I'm on the fence on which one I actually like better. In ways I actually like the Lil59 over the Full size but then certain things I play on the Full size just sounds crazy full and beautiful. I don't use any kind of distortion when I use the neck pickups as I don't really have use for those kinds of tones , but I have stuck my toe in and around some gain and man the full size is creamy and really nice.

I do think I'm gonna re wire this guitar and remove the 6 pack of sound. I completely hate single could sound and have absolutely no use for it anywhere for what I play. I'm a metal guy and play heavy so single coils basically suck ass for me. I completely hate both Middle positions with the volume up or down position so that drives me crazy. the 2013 has the very best middle position sound I ever heard after I put the Lil 59 in there. Man to the Zebra JB and the Lil 59 work together perfectly. These 2 pickups create a 3rd pickup in the middle without having to have the damn thing there for hit your pick on. My Jackson SL3 has a Middle pickup in a SD Hot rail and as it sounds crazy awesome, I hate hitting it with my pick. Give me some room man to strum please!!! This is why I now favor HH or HS setup guitars only.