Picked up a Carvin amp

[bluescube]

Stopped by the local MusicGoRound store to pickup a T-Rex Yellow Drive and a guitar rack and came across this near mint Carvin SX200 for $150!

I grabbed it. I needed a poor man's JC120 for pristine cleans that my tube amp can't do. I like the clean channel, the digital FX are ok. Someday I may put a better reverb in the loop. Has the GT12-100 speakers. Didn't really need 100W and 2x12,b ut for the price, heck why not. The drive channel is..sorta ok...without the "blues" switch on, it's all mid-scooped metalbees in a can. With the blues engaged, it's a mid-boost and re-eq and sounds like an ok overdrive pedal. Don't really plan on using the drive much at all. Just wanted a good clean channel with no breakup.

 

[bluescube]

Kind of sucks the Carvin amp business is closing. I was looking for an old Peavey or Fender solid state for cleans but saw this and felt sentimental about the company I used to get catalogs for.

This appears to be a 2004 model

 

[Jakedog]

Those are great clean amps. I gigged one for quite a while. Light as a feather, too.

I'm a big fan. Good score!

 

[bluescube]

It'll be good for Jazz and country type stuff. The Monoprice Laney amp rocks

 

[Jakedog]

It'll be good for Jazz and country type stuff. The Monoprice Laney amp rocks

I can testify that it does Country very well. If you like just a touch of slapback, the onboard delay is great for that.

 

[bluescube]

You know what, supposedly, these use some kind of analog tube emulation like Roland's Blues Cube. I found a usable drive tone and I could hear some sag on low strings. There was some transistor graininess on top end but still a tube like sound. The midscoop is horrible though. I hate metal distortion.

 

[studio1087]

I had a JC-120 in the 80's when I went through my Adrian Belew phase. I've also had a used SX-200 in the 2000's.

If it's super-clean that you crave I think the SX-200 blows the JC-120 out of the water. The speakers in the SX are much better than the Roland speakers. Do you have the Carvin British speakers with the flags on them or the newer ones? Either way they're great speakers.

$150! You got a great deal. You also got the foot pedal! I should have never sold my SX-200.

 

[brookdalebill]

Cool!

 

[bluescube]

I had a JC-120 in the 80's when I went through my Adrian Belew phase. I've also had a used SX-200 in the 2000's.

If it's super-clean that you crave I think the SX-200 blows the JC-120 out of the water. The speakers in the SX are much better than the Roland speakers. Do you have the Carvin British speakers with the flags on them or the newer ones? Either way they're great speakers.

$150! You got a great deal. You also got the foot pedal! I should have never sold my SX-200.

It's a 2004 I think. Has the Carvin labeled GT12-100 speakers

 

[Axean naexA]

'
I've considered getting one of these many times but never had a real need for it (other than just wanting it).

Maybe if I come across one of those "too good to pass up" deals like you got...

Congrats!

'

 

[kookaburra]

'
I've considered getting one of these many times but never had a real need for it (other than just wanting it).

Maybe if I come across one of those "too good to pass up" deals like you got...

Congrats!

'

+1

 

[studio1087]

It's a 2004 I think. Has the Carvin labeled GT12-100 speakers

I wonder when the cut-off was. They had these up to a point.....

image removed

Great either way. It's probably sacrilege here but I like the SX Carvins more than I like old Bandits.

 

[KrisSchecter]

I had a chance to buy this SX300 recently pretty happy I did

Stopped by the local MusicGoRound store to pickup a T-Rex Yellow Drive and a guitar rack and came across this near mint Carvin SX200 for $150!

I grabbed it. I needed a poor man's JC120 for pristine cleans that my tube amp can't do. I like the clean channel, the digital FX are ok. Someday I may put a better reverb in the loop. Has the GT12-100 speakers. Didn't really need 100W and 2x12,b ut for the price, heck why not. The drive channel is..sorta ok...without the "blues" switch on, it's all mid-scooped metalbees in a can. With the blues engaged, it's a mid-boost and re-eq and sounds like an ok overdrive pedal. Don't really plan on using the drive much at all. Just wanted a good clean channel with no breakup.

 

[Jim Dep]

"..without the "blues" switch on, it's all mid-scooped metalbees in a can."

Wow, what a great name for a band...." The Metal Bees". Whoa !
Guess you'd wanna leave the "blues" switch OFF if you play in that band.
Great Score ! Nice to have a serious clean foundation to work off of.

 

[985plowboy]

Sweet!

 

[bluescube]

It has this reverb switch that gives a fixed amount of reverb so you can have chorus plus reverb, etc.

I

 

[Silverface]

I made the mistake of buying an earlier model of that one years ago, thinking I would give SS a try. Sounded great in the showroom.

But it was truly awful on gigs. The sound just got buried by every tube amp used by anyone I played with, like many digital amps do today. It could not keep up with its clean tone and the distortion tone was just horrible. I should have returned it but waited too long and sold it for peanuts - Carvins have always had terrible resale value.

Hope you have better luck.

 

[bluescube]

This is just a home amp. My tube amp is certainly more organic

 

[bluescube]

For home use, it's loud, but I am really liking the sound of this amp. Surprised. I wasn't going to buy SS amps anymore.

 

[bluescube]

Works good for pedals. Using a T-Rex Yellow Drive