Legacy owners/ users - comparisons

wyzenhymer · #1 01-01-2001, 10:16 PM

I'm considering switching from my Rocktron Chameleon/ Velocity 300 setup to a Carvin Legacy head. Has anyone else done this, and with what degree of satisfaction? I heard the Velocity at Jemfest 2000 for the first time and was blown away. I did not get a chance to experiment with it so I'm still curious if the amp can keep a rack-monger like me happy! Does anyone use a Chameleon or POD inline with thier Legacy? Any help is most welcome!
*G.M.

bill h · #2 01-02-2001, 10:11 AM

Well, I have never had a Rocktron preamp, but I did own an ADA MP-2 for 8 years. *I sold it last year and bought a Triaxis. *Then after hearing the Legacy head at J2K I had to have one too!!! *I still like to use the Triaxis for a lot of my rhythm playing, but for lead and clean tones I couldn't be happier with the Legacy.

bill

1 1 Dragon 2 2 2 · #3 01-04-2001, 05:39 PM

In my research in what amp to use this year (probably has to be 1 unfortunately all things considered) I'm leaning towards the Legacy head/cabinet(s).
On the midrange issue I've heard that it is high biased
but this 'cuts thru the mix' very well, and that nonetheless several are really unhappy with the distortion gain. Can't all of this be rectified with peripheral mutations?

ellsobrien · #4 01-05-2001, 05:40 PM

I hear that some units caught on fire! Seriously!
But Carvin did replace them no problem.
Also, on the Vai web site there is a similar discussion and it was stated that if you are getting one to sound like Vai, don't bother because he has his greatly modifed (as you might expect).

Personally, I think the Legacy sounds great but alas is still a mid-range amp for the beginner or hobbyist guitar player. I would really only use it as a practice amp since the loop is very noisy and the grill rattle would be picked up by any decent studio mic.

Just my thoughts. Hope this helps.

-Andrew

**jemsite** · #5 01-05-2001, 05:56 PM

Carvin has made some midstream tweaks to the production Legacy amps. They are not labeled, and this has not been advertised for obvious reasons. IMHO this is pretty muc normal for any new product. Early buyers are the testers. So any mods made to Vai's Legacies are probably reflected in the new production Carvins.

Someone emailed me a thread from vai.com's forum about the Legacy and to say it was littered with misinformation is an understatement. Anyone can post there anonymously, multiple times over. Good luck... glen

boblynch · #6 01-05-2001, 10:17 PM

I heard some Legacy's can erase all your VHS tapes in addition to bursting into flames. Cool story, I wonder how much is urban legend. Glen is correct, there have been changes made to the original design. I don't know how many of you were around when the Legacy was announced here on the Forum, but I actually had the first one that was sold to the public. It was a head and 2x12 cab w/Greenbacks. I now have a 2 week old new Legacy combo w/Vintage 30s, and there are tonal differences that make me want to keep this one, whereas my first Legacy was too raw for me. Circuit wise, I don't know exactly what tweaks have occurred in the Legacy's history, but I do know that Carvin has continually improved and refined their guitars. I would expect the same of their amps as well.

For anyone considering a Legacy remember that in both the clean and gain channels it can be extremely loud. In the gain channel, don't expect to sound like anything but a buzzsaw at bedroom volumes, and don't expect to be anywhere near the amp at around 6. However, that's where the amp really starts to breathe. The clean channel is tight and well, "clean" throughout it's range. For most of my playing I use a Sansamp into the clean channel and the tone is just what I'm looking for. The gain channel is almost unusable because my dogs start foaming at the mouth at anything above *.5, and even that's loud. For playing out though, this is the amp I'll stick with.

Until it explodes, I guess :biggrin:

jay ratkowski · #7 01-06-2001, 07:38 PM

I think people hear one bad story and make too big a deal out of it. *I think Legacies can do a lot of good. *I got my 2nd one and suddenly, my cat who has been spayed for years, gave birth to kittens. *All thanks to the Legacy. *:cheesy: *Seriously though... I am sure the early ones had their problems... I am sure there are still problems here and there... but unlike an '85 Covaire... I do not think the Legacy is a death trap.

wyzenhymer · #8 01-07-2001, 06:35 AM

Wow, my dad had a '65 corvair and the transmission fell right out on the street! I also had a Seymour Duncan Convertable head that caught on fire! What are the odds!!?! *Anyway, I'm not afraid of the Legacy, it takes more than a 100 watt amp to scare me, I'm just interested in the tone!!