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Made the Leap


Wally Malone

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Ever since getting my Carvin SB5000 tuned E-C I've been thinking about a 5 string fretless tuned E-C. Initially I wanted another SB5000 but that model has been discontinued. Recently I've been looking at 4 different Carvin models and settled on the Vanquish V59K. I ordered it in trans moss green with the pickups and hardware being black. Now for the two month wait.

 

Wally

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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I actually got the lines and dots. I'll be using this while doing jazz vocals and playing melodies and soloing. Going from singing to soloing or playing a melody with a large leap it will make it easier to nail the notes I'm looking to hit.

 

Wally

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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I had a call from Carvin today and made a change in the order. They said they couldn't guarantee the weight of the swamp ash and suggested Empress wood. Since the weight is an important issue I decided to go with it. This makes it what they call an option 50 meaning it can't be returned. I'm OK with this and went for it.

 

Wally

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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Congrats !!

That is some green!!

 

I didn't see empress wood on their site.

I saw this on a luthier supply site:

 

[font:Georgia]Empress Wood Electric Guitar Body Blank - 1st Grade

- 1st grade suitable for transparent or coloured finishes

- Centre-joined from two pieces

- Light weight

- Sustainable

- Plantation-grown in Australia

 

Empress wood (Paulownia Tomentosa) is becoming a popular choice for electric guitar bodies. This timber is very light weight and easy to machine though sharp tools are recommended. It is one of the most sustainable, fast-growing timbers available so it is environmentally friendly. Several electric guitars manufacturers are now using Empress wood to make guitar bodies including Fender.

 

Quality - Because this timber is plantation grown the quality is consistently good from piece to piece. The blanks are free from defects and are thicknessed ready for cutting to profile.

 

Look - This timber is light in colour with a subtle grain pattern. It resembles American Ash and is adequately attractive to use clear or translucent finishes.

 

Sound - The sound of these tops is second to none - fundamental and clear but also with a beautiful and brilliant tone. This top material makes a good combination with almost any back and sides material

 

Price - The blanks we are offering are the least expensive guitar body blanks we have seen. Empress wood is one of the most reasonably priced tonewoods available.

 

Availability/Renewability - Empress wood is plantation grown and grows very quickly making it a very sustainable timber. The blanks we stock come from timber which is grown in Australia, this further reduces the environmental impact of the product as it does not have to be shipped from another country.[/font]

 

I missed that they discontinued the SB series - I liked those.

Best of luck!

Tom

www.stoneflyrocks.com

Acoustic Color

 

Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground. - Theodore Roosevelt

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just looked at the Keisel site - looks like the JB series is very similar to the SB5000

 

When the relationship ended with Sekou Bunch they pulled the SB models. That was not long after I got mine. The JB has the same neck and I was looking at that as well but ended up going for the Vanquish due to them having their new preamp.

 

Wally

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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Jeremy, Carvin makes some great blue finishes as well!

 

Wally

 

Wisdom

You can stop now -jeremyc

STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring

lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum

I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie

 

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You may be correct about green boy Willie, I had forgotten about that. The wait is hard and am really anxious to see how I like the Empress wood. I was assured by the salesperson they have done a few of these already with good results.

 

Wally

 

 

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
After some delays I'm expecting it sometime today and have my eye out for the FedEx truck. Will get photos as well if it doesn't come too late since I have an evening happening to attend.
I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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After close to a month delay it arrived at 8 pm last night. It was so late I was worried, especially since the FedEx tracking changed from delivery on 5/30 to N/A even though it stated it was on the truck for delivery. The young man that delivered it said this happens on Saturdays if the driver doesn't show it delivered by 5:30.

 

I'm totally impressed all the way around. The RADHVs and the preamp kill, the Empress wood grain looks great and it seems the bass is around 8 pounds. The moss green finish looks better than the bass in the Carvin gallery of that same finish. After an hour of playing I came to the conclusion that I could be satisfied with two more Vanquish models, another 5 tuned E-C but fretted and a 4 with a maple board for funk. I will stick with the Empress wood. This way all will have the double octave and same preamp controls making it easier for this old min to handle.

 

Looking at taking a couple of photos later and emailing to David who had offered to host them for me.

 

Wally

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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I wen to a friend's house today that had a good scale and it weighs 8 pounds, 1 ounce. Looks like my guess was good. I also took the Carvin SB5000 and it was 10 pounds, 6.5 ounces. I like the new fretless Vanquish V59K so much that I went ahead and ordered a V49K with a maple board set up for funk. Again I got the Empress wood. Then somewhere in the near future I'll get a twin fretted 5 like the fretless. I'll have three basses that all do something different yet the same having two octaves and the same preamp and pickups. That way I'll have all light basses and this old mind won't have to rethink scale length and preamp controls.

 

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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Well, you will really need two of each of those basses so you can put flats on one and rounds on the other.

 

Pffffff....Everybody knows that.

Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse.

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My five is set up using rounds due to spending a lot of time in the higher register playing melodies and soloing. I do have my MIM jazz strung with flats if I need that sound, especially on a session. Currently MJC Ironworks only makes rounds and I'm actually enjoying a lighter gauge now, 40-60-80-100 and a 30 on the fiver.

 

 

I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make!
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