dvuksanovich Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I just sold two of my three guitars (the two I never play) and was all geared up to order another Carvin, and a guy I know recommended I check out Suhr... which are also custom shop axes, but about twice the price of a well-appointed Carvin. Anyone out there have (or have played) a Suhr? Are they THAT much better than a $1,200 - $1,500 Carvin? It would be difficult... my current Carvin just about plays itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lokair Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 They are amazing, I played one of his strats from before he left the Fender custom shop. He is a master builder, and the attention to detail is all there. I personally do not play a strat style guitar, if I did I would seriously consider one. Reb Beach is endorsed by them, he told me a couple of years ago that he would play them even if he had to strait up buy em. I have held a couple in my hands, and they feel good. Lok 1997 PRS CE24, 1981 Greco MSV 850, 1991 Greco V 900, 2 2006 Dean Inferno Flying Vs, 1987 Gibson Flying V, 2000s Jackson Dinky/Soloist, 1992 Gibson Les Paul Studio, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesape Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Guthrie Govan endorses them, as do other notable players. Rob Rose has one, and swears by it, having unloaded 2 Custom Shop Strats once he got his Suhr.... They are special. The decision is if a guitar is worth twice the price of an already excellent Carvin. It's certainly not twice the guitar. I would doubt it's any more than a percent or two better, if that. Great axes, but for that money I'd take 2 Carvins, 2 G&L's, etc. Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrell Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 As a do it your-self-er, I don't think that price is out of line as long as the quality and workmanship are there... Custom neck $400 Good Body $200 Custom Pickups $200 Aftermarket Tuners $100 Super switch and custom Electronics $75 Great Bridge $125 Paint $40 Labor $200 And - Poof you're there... Of course, I'm assuming the best of everything. Oh... Wait... Just saw it was twice as much... Nah! I'd do it myself and get EXACTLY what I want for the same price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 27, 2011 Author Share Posted June 27, 2011 I've got some vacation time coming up so I think I'm going to head downtown to Make'n Music with my Carvin and A/B 'em. The pro series (not really custom, but on the same planet as my price range) might work for a few hundred more than a new Carvin. If a guitar exists that I love more than my Carvin, I may have an accident in my pants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesape Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I've got some vacation time coming up so I think I'm going to head downtown to Make'n Music with my Carvin and A/B 'em. The pro series (not really custom, but on the same planet as my price range) might work for a few hundred more than a new Carvin. If a guitar exists that I love more than my Carvin, I may have an accident in my pants. Which 2 axes did you unload? Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lokair Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Shameless plug here, I am also selling an American strat in the classifieds. for half as much as your carvin J/K. Defiantly check em out, always good to shop around. Lok 1997 PRS CE24, 1981 Greco MSV 850, 1991 Greco V 900, 2 2006 Dean Inferno Flying Vs, 1987 Gibson Flying V, 2000s Jackson Dinky/Soloist, 1992 Gibson Les Paul Studio, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 27, 2011 Author Share Posted June 27, 2011 An '89 Jem 777vbk and a very beat up 1953 Epiphone Zephyr Regent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreySeraph Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 NOOOOOOOOO I want a 777vbk Shame on you haha! for reals though, Suhr guitars play like a dream. My Gear: 82 Gibson Explorer Ibanez 03 JEM7VWH PRS McCarty Soapbar Diezel Herbert 2007 Peters '11 Brahms Guitar Byers '01 Classical Hippner 8-Str Classical Taylor 614ce Framus Texan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 27, 2011 Author Share Posted June 27, 2011 I couldn't play it anymore after I started playing the Carvin. It doesn't have stainless steel frets so the strings feel all sticky when I do vibrato and/or bend and I just can't deal with the floating trem these days. I hardly ever use it and I like to oblique bend more now than I used to. It just didn't make sense to keep it. I can set up my own guitar now in about 30 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 What specific Suhr guitar model would you be considering? What specific Carvin model and options? Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 28, 2011 Author Share Posted June 28, 2011 Really not 100% sure. On the Carvin side I'm considering getting an Ultra V (or an ST300), alder, maple neck and bird's eye maple fretboard, jumbo stainless steel frets, tune-o-matic bridge, and high output M series pickups. Those options come to about $1100 (with no sales tax and a free hardshell case) assuming I don't decide I want mahogany or a flame top. On the Suhr side I don't want to get up into their custom price range so I'm going to check out one of their pro series models... here's a link to one that's in stock at a store near me: http://www.makenmusic.com/product.cfm?prodID=2030&catID=1 I guess I'm just curious about what seems to be something of a holy grail guitar brand (according to some folks on other discussion boards that I won't mention here)... and according to the guy who bought my old guitars. He said he has four of them and they are his favorite axes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 28, 2011 Author Share Posted June 28, 2011 ^^^^ That Suhr is not the one I would get... I'd wait for one with a fixed bridge if I were actually going to buy one. That's just the closest to what I'm interested in that they have in stock for me to try out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 Hmmn; hard to beat the overall quality and design of those Carvins, particularly their through-neck construction, especially for the price. The Suhr has a bolt-on neck, with some exceptionally sweet contouring around the cutaway and heel. These two Carvins have a 25" scale-length with a 12" r (10" r and 14" r optional); the Suhr has a sweet compound 10"-14" r. With the bolt-on neck and maple neck/alder body combination, I'd expect the Suhr to be a little bit warmer and more "classic", while these Carvins would be a tad tighter and more crisply focused, as well as having longer sustain. That 1/2" difference in scale might somewhat mitigate some of these things, though. Those are some of the major points I would consider and compare. Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobRose Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Love my Suhr. As BluesApe mentioned, I got out of the Fender Strat business ans soon as I got it. It was and still is the best strat I ever played. It's a pro series S3, much like this: Link. Although I can't comment on their guitars for modern rock, except to say that their attention to detail, and quality is top notch. Nash-customized Gibson Les Paul, Godin Progression Plus Quilter MicroPro Mach 2.0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 29, 2011 Author Share Posted June 29, 2011 Thanks, all, for your input. Seems I will have a tough (but fun) decision ahead of me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Thanks, all, for your input. Seems I will have a tough (but fun) decision ahead of me. Hmn; do they have any kind of return policy? For that matter, would you be able to try before you buy? I would hope so on both counts, for those prices! If you can return the guitar for a refund within a reasonable period, why not try out the Suhr, and if you're not satisfied, return it and get one of the Carvin models you cited above? Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 29, 2011 Author Share Posted June 29, 2011 Carvin has a 10 day trial period, I know. Suhr sells through dealers so I can go to the store and try it out. What I'm more interested in is how Suhr handles warranty issues. Carvin has a great warranty... if you don't mind sending your guitar to California every time it needs warranty work... not cool. I've already run into a couple of issues where just paying to get the work done locally is cheaper than shipping (and insuring) the guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesape Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Love my Suhr. As BluesApe mentioned, I got out of the Fender Strat business ans soon as I got it. It was and still is the best strat I ever played. It's a pro series S3, much like this: Link. Although I can't comment on their guitars for modern rock, except to say that their attention to detail, and quality is top notch. Hey Rob! Welcome back, bud! Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 So, dvuksanovich, be sure to let us know what you try, how you like it, and what you ultimately buy; keep us posted! Hey Rob! Welcome back, bud! Yeah! How'ya doin'? Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriel E. Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 That Suhr with the ice blue finish looks wicked sick! If you are considering a Carvin, look at the Contour 66. You can have it configured with the same woods and hardware as the Suhr. Unlike the Ultra-V or DC models, it has a bolt-on neck and a 25.5" scale length which will get you in the same tonal ball park as the Suhr. Most Carvins have their "Rapid Play" neck profile which is rediculously fast and fairly thin and wide - kind of like an Ibanez Wizard neck. Great for shredding but not the thing to get if you like a nice rounded neck profile (let alone a baseball bat). I don't know what the neck on the Suhr is like. The build quality of the Carvins I've checked out is on par with PRS, Tom Anderson, etc. Really high end. "You never can vouch for your own consciousness." - Norman Mailer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvuksanovich Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 That Suhr with the ice blue finish looks wicked sick! If you are considering a Carvin, look at the Contour 66. You can have it configured with the same woods and hardware as the Suhr. Unlike the Ultra-V or DC models, it has a bolt-on neck and a 25.5" scale length which will get you in the same tonal ball park as the Suhr. Most Carvins have their "Rapid Play" neck profile which is rediculously fast and fairly thin and wide - kind of like an Ibanez Wizard neck. Great for shredding but not the thing to get if you like a nice rounded neck profile (let alone a baseball bat). I don't know what the neck on the Suhr is like. The build quality of the Carvins I've checked out is on par with PRS, Tom Anderson, etc. Really high end. Agreed on Carvin's quality. My main axe is a Carvin DC400. I was all set to order another one and a guy I know got me started thinking about Suhr, which is why I started the thread... because I know next to nothing about Suhr guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobRose Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 So, dvuksanovich, be sure to let us know what you try, how you like it, and what you ultimately buy; keep us posted! Hey Rob! Welcome back, bud! Yeah! How'ya doin'? Hi, back... Thanks for the welcome! Ive been lurking... hope to be more active. I have too many gear changes to enumerate! Nash-customized Gibson Les Paul, Godin Progression Plus Quilter MicroPro Mach 2.0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhillman80 Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 I love my suhr and I think you should definitely give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lumenguitars-ben Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Suhr guitars are very nice guitars. I've played a few at the NAMM show. Speaking of unloading guitars...I just sold a JS1000. I had it for years and loved that guitar. I feel your pain! Ben Williams www.lumenguitars.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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