Carvin BASS CARE User Manual

Congratulations on your Carvin bass purchase. With proper care Carvin basses will last a lifetime.

■ IMPORTANT

Within several days of receiving your bass, it may require a truss rod adjustment, especially if your local weather is either very dry or very humid. If it is very dry, chances are your neck will start to acquire too much forward bow. If it is raining or very humid, the neck may become backbowed, causing string buzzing. Please refer to the 2-way truss rod adjustment instructions.

■ STRINGS

Your Carvin bass is equipped with a high quality set of Carvin strings. For replacement strings, please order from our catalog. If you change to considerably lighter or heavier strings, you may need to adjust the truss rod in the neck to maintain good string action. For long string life, keep the strings clean with a soft dry cloth. Replace strings regularly to avoid dead strings which can cause intonation problems.

■ 2-WAY TRUSS ROD ADJUSTMENT

Carvin basses come with a 2-way adjustable truss rod, allowing you to add the proper amount of forward bow to necks with a reverse bow condition. You can check the neck yourself for the proper amount of forward bow. You will need a straightedge about 24” long and a feeler gauge set. Tune the bass to the proper pitch and place the straightedge edgewise on the center of the fingerboard so that it is resting on the first and last fret. Now take the feeler gauge set and check for clearance at the 7th fret. If there is less than .010” clearance, the truss rod nut must be turned counter clockwise. If more than .020” clearance, the truss rod nut must be turned clockwise. The optimum forward bow is .015”. Turning the nut to the left (clockwise) will reduce the amount of forward bow. To make adjustments use the

/4” socket screwdriver provided with your bass. Turn the nut 1/10 of a turn and recheck.

NOTE: If you have just received your Carvin

bass and the string action is very low with buzzing frets, then chances are the neck needs adjusting because of a backbowed condition sometimes caused during shipping. If this is the case then remove the truss rod cover with a small phillips screwdriver. Turn the 1/4” truss rod nut counter clockwise until you have .015” forward bow. This is about the thickness of 2 business cards or playing cards.

If you don’t have a straightedge or feeler gauge set you can achieve great results by pressing one of your outside strings down at the first fret and 24th fret and having a friend slide 2 stacked playing cards between the 7th fret and the bottom of the string. The 2 cards should slide under without lifting the string up. Adjust the truss rod accordingly.

MAINTENANCE AND ADJUSTMENTS FOR CARVIN BASSES

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■ BRIDGE ADJUSTMENTS

Each Carvin bass is set for best possible playing action for the average bassist. We set our basses up for 3/32” clearance at the 24th fret. If this dimension is much greater or less than this when you first receive your bass then your neck will probably require a truss rod adjustment. Bassists with a light playing style can possibly lower the action slightly. All bassist with a hard playing style will probably have to raise the action slightly. Use a .050” allen wrench to raise or lower saddles.

■ CLEANING AND POLISHING

For all Carvin basses with a gloss finish, use any good quality automobile wax or guitar polish. To avoid scratching the finish use a clean soft cloth. Do not get wax on the ebony fingerboard.

For Carvin basses with the natural tung oil finish, apply a good furniture oil such as “Old English” lemon oil and wipe off the excess. This should be done at least twice a year.

The ebony fingerboard should also be oiled with lemon oil twice a year.

WARNING

• Your bass is constructed of seasoned solid wood

and dried to specific moisture requirements.

• If you live in a desert, high mountain or a cold

winter region, you will experience dry and

extreme weather conditions from time to time,

which can cause your wood and finish to

crack. You can prevent cracking by storing

your bass in it’s case and by not subjecting it

to extreme heat or cold.

• If you live in humid regions such as the

Southeastern United States, or near the ocean,

you should take extra precautions and keep

your instrument in its case or gig bag as much

as possible.

• Do not leave your bass and case in direct

sunlight or in your car when it is hot. Heat build

up in the case can damage the instrument.

• Carvin does not warranty cracks or neck

warpage due to extreme weather conditions,

improper storage or misuse.

■ PREMIUM CARVIN TUNING KEYS

Carvin premium bass tuners are designed to keep your Carvin bass in perfect tune. They feature a very smooth feel with extra fine 20:1 gear ratio. You can adjust the tension of the Carvin tuning keys with the phillips screwdriver. Just tighten or loosen the screw on the end of the button until the desired tension is obtained.

Height adjustment screws .050” allen wrench

Intonation adjusting screw #1 phillips screwdriver

Tension Adjustment

■ ADJUSTING PICKUP HEIGHT

For best overall pickup performance we recommend that you adjust the top of the J type neck position pickup 5/32” underneath the 2 outside strings. HB style humbucking bridge pickups should also be set at 5/32”. J type bridge pickups perform best at 4/32” below the strings. If you prefer a mellower sound, just lower them accordingly. Use the #1 phillips head screwdriver-wrench provided with your bass.

■ STRINGING YOUR BASS

You have your choice of feeding your strings through the rear feed through holes on the back of the bass or through the T-slots on top of the bass bridge. Pull the string forward until the ball end of the string comes to a stop. Pull the end of the string past the tuning key string post and cut the string so that it extends about 2" past the center of the string post. Now stick the end of the string into the hole on top of the string post and wind it around the string post by turning the tuning key button. Proceed by stringing up the remaining strings to pitch.

■ INTONATION

Carvin presets the string saddles for accurate intonation. Use your guitar tuner to fine tune your intonation. With the aid of your electronic tuner, tune each string to the proper pitch. Now check your G string tuning at the 12th fret. If the tuner shows sharp at the 12th fret, then adjust the G string bridge saddle slightly further away from the neck. If the tuner shows flat, adjust the saddle towards the neck. Move the saddle 1/32" (about the thickness of a dime). Retune the open G string perfectly and recheck the tuning at the 12th fret. If the tuning is perfect, you are done intonating the G string. If it is still sharp, then keep moving the string saddle further away from the neck until your intonation is perfect. Repeat this procedure for each string.

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