Guitars

Quite a few things happened in 1992.  The most obvious one was the new catalog.  Up to this point, Carvin had produced catalogs once, sometimes twice a year.  This new marketing would generate catalogs every 3 months, which would blur the line between different year models, as new features were added, and less popular features were removed during the year.  For example, this catalog was the first of the new design, and was the last one to feature the Ultra V - later catalogs from 1993 would not have it.  Later catalogs from 1993 would also offer new products not in this one.  So, among collectors and aficionados, this could create some confusion, but the benefit was that customers didn't have to wait a full year for new products to hit the street.

This particular catalog listed a retail price, a direct price, and a sale price, to promote Carvin's current sale.  These sales would take on all sorts of forms of the years, from free cases to 50% off options to a simple price cut.  Prices referenced on this page refer to the sale price at the time.

In addition to new marketing, Carvin guitars had a list of new features.  The most significant one was the new scale length.  Most Carvin guitars (except the LS175 and BC130) had used a 24 3/4" scale length since the late 70's.  In 1993, the scale length was expanded to 25".  Also, the neck heel was was redesigned, allowing easier access to higher frets.  The Kahler and Floyd Rose tremolos were gone, in favor of a Carvin-licensed Wilkinson tremolo, and strings-thru-the-body was added for fixed bridge guitars.  Lastly, the large Carvin logo on the headstock was replaced with the small one that was used on Carvin basses - a good way of differentiating a '92 from a later model.

Carvin's line of colors continued to expand, with an assortment of 27 finishes available in various combinations of solid colors, translucent colors and natural woods.

The DC125 (far left) and DC127 (near left) were basically unchanged, except for the new 25" scale length and Wilkinson tremolo.  The DC125 still used the M22SD, while the DC127 continued to use the M22V and M22T.  Price on the DC125 was $579, while the DC127 was $629.  The catalog photo showed the DC125 in Pearl Red with black hardware, matching headstock and Wilkinson tremolo, and the DC127 in Sapphire Blue with matching headstock and chrome hardware.

This was the last Ultra V (right) that would appear in a Carvin catalog, bringing the pointy-guitar era to a close.  The X220 had already been retired, and the V was riding off into the sunset right behind it.  Apart from the scale length change, this Ultra V was essentially the same as it's predecessors, and sold for $569, or $649 with tremolo.  The catalog showed the Ultra V in Jet Black with black hardware and tremolo.

The DC135 (far left) and DC145 (near left) were the same as 1992, with the exception of the other changes mentioned on this page.  One exception to this was the stacked humbuckers on both models - the H60N stacked humbuckers were replaced with S60 single coil pickups.  The base price on the DC135 was $589, or $669 with tremolo, and the DC145 was $619, or $699 with tremolo.  The DC135 was shown in tung oiled koa with gold hardware and tremolo, and the DC145 was shown in Pearl Blue with chrome hardware and tremolo.

The DC120 (near right) and DC200 (far right) remained the same as 1992, with the exception of the new features noted elsewhere on this page.  The DC120 sold for $749, while the DC200 sold for $669, or $749 with Wilkinson tremolo.  The catalog photo showed the DC120 in Classic White with gold hardware, and the DC200 in clear gloss koa with matching headstock and gold hardware.