The Carvin Museum - 1993 Basses

Basses

1993 was a busy year for Carvin. The most obvious change wasn't in the instruments, but in the marketing. The large annual catalog was replaced with a smaller, quarterly edition, which was about 30 pages lighter. Also, there was a new kid in town, and an old friend would ride off into the sunset. Carvin also changed case styles this year, adding a vintage tweed hardshell case and an ABS hardshell case to the line.

You can click on each picture for a much larger version.

1993 Guitars

1993 Guitar Amps

1993 Bass Amps

The LB20 and LB70 remained the same as the '92 models, although the list of options were expanding. In addition to more color, finish and wood options, a neat new gadget was added for bassist - the hipshot de-tuner. This allowed the bassist to "drop" the tuning a whole step with the flip of a lever on the headstock (generally from E to D). Like the Kahler bass tremolo (which was dropped after '92, as Kahler began to fold), this was an innovative tool, and Carvin was willing to gamble on whether or not bassist would like it. Since it's still being offered today, I'd say the votes are in!

'93 base prices were $589 and $639.

Bassists were teased in '92 at the prospect of a new bass, the BB75, and in 1993, it would be officially introduced and featured in the catalog. This early model had a thinner body than other Carvin basses, and therefore, the output jack was located on the front of the bass, versus on the side. Additionally, the "Bunny Brunel" logo was absent, and only the engraved trussrod cover gave any indication of the signature status of this bass. It also had several unique features that remain to this day, including an asymmetrical neck that was thinner on the treble side, and dot inlays that were off-center, so that the dots were not directly under the A string. Base price on the BB75 was $809, and it was available with the majority of available options, but was not available in a lefty.

The LB75 was unchanged from '92. It's base price was $709.

Like the LB75, the LB76 saw no significant changes for '93. Base price on the LB76 was $839.

1993 marked the end of an era for Carvin that began in 1954. This was the last year they would manufacture doublenecks of any sort. This was because these models had evidently lost their popularity, which may have been due in part to rather dramatic price increases. The '93 DN612, DN640 and DN440 had a base price of $1649, so a nicely appointed model with case could easily hit two grand, putting it out of reach of many players. The DN612 shown in the catalog would've sold for a total of $2123 (gold hardware, quilted top & matching headstocks & case).