Further observations on this Carter guitar..

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 31 Jan 2004 9:04 am

After getting the pulls on this steel in tune and putting some time in on it,I would like to state my honest opinion on what I think of it as an experienced player. This is probably the best steel guitar I have ever owned. It rings loud clear and long with the amp off ..always a good sign on ANY steel.Mechanically it is as good as anything I have ever played ,and better than most,with all the levers and pedals smooth and precise with solid positive stops everywhere. VERY solid. It has long sustain.. as long or longer than my beautiful PRO III had. The undercarriage is assembled like a fine Swiss watch with everything in perfect order and neat as a pin. I'll say this again, Its the color and the pickup I have issues with..NOT the guitar. If it was maroon and black or even a woodgrain red and black I would probably just put a JW TrueTone in it and keep it. I do get a very nice old Fender/ZB like sound out of the "phased" position on the 6 way switch,but it just doesn't have the power in that position to use full time. Every other position on the switch overdrives the amp preamp badly and cannot be used. Yes you can be in love with something and hate certain aspects of it at the same time. I only hope the all black replacement is as good as this one in its fit,finish,feel,playability and sustain[acoustically]. No, I am not a mental case, I just can't get used to the color or I would keep it as is and just change the pickup. I will say this here and now.. based on everything I know about pedal steel guitars, I can say I would CERTAINLY buy another Carter,and would reccommend one to ANY steel player. I would tell him which pickup NOT to put on it however.. thanks for putting up with me.... bob

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 31 Jan 2004 9:12 am

Bob, just out of curiosity, what kind of volume pedal are you using?

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 31 Jan 2004 9:25 am

BMI pot pedal.. not a bad unit IMHO.. Its not the pedal Donny.. The pickup seems way too hot for some reason.. it sends the amp into big time front end distortion and is out of control dark and muddy besides... Think of an amp dimed and having two pillows over the speaker!!!... Its the pickup... gotta be .......bob

HowardR · Post by **HowardR** » 31 Jan 2004 9:39 am

It rings loud clear and long with the amp off

Bob, I'm not an experienced player, but from what I understand, your Carter will sound much better with the amp turned on. I'm guessing at this but I hope that it helps...

you can be in love with something and hate certain aspects of it at the same time.

that's what's known as "marriage"....[This message was edited by HowardR on 31 January 2004 at 09:43 AM.]

Kevin Hatton · Post by **Kevin Hatton** » 31 Jan 2004 10:29 am

Doewwwwww!![This message was edited by Kevin Hatton on 31 January 2004 at 10:30 AM.]

Mike Perlowin RIP · Post by **Mike Perlowin RIP** » 31 Jan 2004 10:39 am

I do get a very nice old Fender/ZB like sound out of the "phased" position on the 6 way switch,but it just doesn't have the power in that position to use full time.

Bob, that is easily solvable. Pick up a little MXR micro amp, then whenever you need a boost, step on it. You will be amazed at how much power it adds.

Our fellow forumite Mike Brebes turned me on to this.

I still think that you must have gotten a defective pickup. I have the same pickup in one of my MSAs and it sounds just fine. [This message was edited by Mike Perlowin on 31 January 2004 at 10:39 AM.]

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 31 Jan 2004 10:43 am

Well, I just took an internal poll, and I think the ProIII still has it....

EJL

Peter · Post by **Peter** » 31 Jan 2004 11:06 am

Bob, what is your setup (pedals and knees) on this guitar?

------------------
Peter den Hartogh-Emmons 1978 S10 - Fender Artist S10-Remington U12-Hilton Volume Pedal-Gibson BR4 lapsteel-Guya "Stringmaster" Copy-MusicMan112RP-Peavy Rage158- - My Animation College in South Africa

Stephen Gambrell · Post by **Stephen Gambrell** » 31 Jan 2004 11:24 am

Eric, would you REALLY take a ProIII over a Carter S-10? I'm gonna see John Fabian in a couple of weeks, maybe he'll take my push-pull in trade on a Carter Starter...
And how come you didn't include ME in this "internal poll?" Southern people have opinions, too![This message was edited by Stephen Gambrell on 31 January 2004 at 11:25 AM.]

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 31 Jan 2004 11:56 am

Peter.. pedals 123.. standard E9
pedal 4= string 3 down a full tone[G#-F#]
pedal 5=string 6 down a full tone[G#-F#]
LNL=1st string up a full tone[F#-G#]
LNR=2nd string down down a full tone in two steps[E-D#-D] yes I use 3 E's!!
LNV=string 5 down 1/2 and string 7 up 1/2 [B-Bb F#-G]
RkR= strings 4 and 8 down 1/2 [E-Eb]
RkL=strings 4 and 8 up 1/2[E-F].. pretty wierd no??? bob [This message was edited by Bob Carlucci on 31 January 2004 at 11:57 AM.]

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 31 Jan 2004 12:03 pm

Mike.. I too had one for years and years on my decrepit old MSA and it sounded great.Thats why I ordered it! If I could lower it away from the strings It might be a bit better. Its nowhere near anything thats usable. Too muddy and way too distorted.... something MUST be changed in this pickup compared to the one I had for over 20 years.The last one was clean, bright and NICE!!! bob

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 31 Jan 2004 2:56 pm

I would take a mint Pro III over ANY guitar. IN fact if I wanted one other than my bushwhipped PIII, I'd write a check and buy one. I don't care if it was made out of Chipboard™, Tupperware™ Upsidasium™, or covered with the finest Formica™.

Longer Sustain? Maintenence free mechanics?, Conterfuncal Shimmy Modulation Systems?

All that so they can sit in a living room somewhere?

My Internal Polls are quite accurate if not scientific..I don't usually include residents of states that were covered in the EP* for my opinions.

They do not take into account, like the EP, states that are or were in open rebellion.

EJL

*Emancipation Proclamation [This message was edited by Eric West on 01 February 2004 at 11:34 AM.]

Jim Phelps · Post by **Jim Phelps** » 31 Jan 2004 5:34 pm

.[This message was edited by Jim Phelps on 17 November 2004 at 08:49 PM.]

Dean Schrock · Post by **Dean Schrock** » 31 Jan 2004 6:12 pm

On your pickup, this might not be the case but I bought a new guitar from a well know maker about 6 years ago and it sounded a lot like you describe yours does. Well I flipped the pickup around and the problem was sloved. The guitar was supposed to be played by the maker before shippment but I doubt it. because if he would have played it he would have noticed it.

Brian Henry · Post by **Brian Henry** » 31 Jan 2004 7:25 pm

Please give us more details, information observations, comments and feelings on this Carter guitar. Many of us are waiting with bated breath for the next exciting instalment and our eyes are glued to our computers as we wait in suspense. Please do not disappoint us!!!

HowardR · Post by **HowardR** » 31 Jan 2004 8:50 pm

Many of us are waiting with bated breath

And many with bad breath....

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 31 Jan 2004 10:19 pm

tbhenry.. don't like my posts?? ... don't read them.....

Ken Byng · Post by **Ken Byng** » 1 Feb 2004 4:29 am

I'm with Eric W on the Pro 111. Best sounding and best action of any guitar I have played. It stays with me and will be buried with me. Never let me down once in the nearly 30 years that I've owned it. My second guitar is a LDG which comes close but not quite.

KB

Reggie Duncan · Post by **Reggie Duncan** » 1 Feb 2004 6:11 am

Well, the guitar is getting better all the time! Great!

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 1 Feb 2004 6:53 am

Reggie.. the problem is not the guitar itself. It was the just not the color I wanted and there is something terribly wrong with the pickup. Everything else about it is top notch,but I still feel I have the right to be po'd... Maybe I'm just a whiny crybaby! bob

[This message was edited by Bob Carlucci on 01 February 2004 at 06:56 AM.]

Paul Osbty · Post by **Paul Osbty** » 2 Feb 2004 2:59 am

Bob,

I suspect that model pickup has been used before. I'd really make sure that Carter and other users get in on the fix for this. Any guitar wiring is relatively simple, but it is not done with pre-made circuit boards.

Wiring is a science (with some art!) and I am sure there is an answer. One poster suggested it may be installed 180 degrees out. I'd really be interested in the fix for this. You may still want that pickup.

Paul[This message was edited by Paul Osbty on 02 February 2004 at 03:01 AM.]

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 2 Feb 2004 3:54 am

Paul.. John Fabian talked twice with me at length about this. He gave me several things to try,one of them checking the resistance of the pickup. Sure enough,I was reading between 20-24 K ohms.. this is WAY overwound, which is exactly what it sounds like.. SUPER LOUD, muddy,and distorts way too easily. Carter has been totally stand up on this issue and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it. They are builing my all black replacement guitar as we "speak" with my choice of pickups... I'm going with a Wallace True Tone..... bob[This message was edited by Bob Carlucci on 02 February 2004 at 05:22 AM.]

Nicholas Dedring · Post by **Nicholas Dedring** » 2 Feb 2004 9:32 am

So, you don't like the color. You've said before, and are confirming here, that they acknowledged their mistake and are correcting it. So the color is actually a non-issue, right? You like the guitar, and you will be happy with the correct, black guitar that they are sending you... if I'm getting you correctly.

Actually, you should be even happier with the sound on the new one. We all know how much better a black guitar is

James Quackenbush · Post by **James Quackenbush** » 2 Feb 2004 10:03 am

We all know how much better a black guitar is

Not to mention the quality and tone you're gonna get from a TrueTone pickup !!.... Jim

Brian Henry · Post by **Brian Henry** » 2 Feb 2004 5:47 pm

Brother Bob, I think that you have just analysed your problem yourself. In your post you said:

.. Maybe I'm just a whiny crybaby! bob