Guitar Amps
There were several changes in Carvin's
guitar amp line for 1989, including new photography for the new
catalog layout. The XV112E Oak was retired, although the
standard XV112E remained part of the lineup. The X-60B and
X-100A tube heads were also gone, as was the X-Amp mini stack.
New for 1989 was the SX400 MOSFET head and SX Concert Stack, and the
SX15 Rack Preamp.
Click each picture for a larger
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Carvin's MagnaLab brand of speakers had
been renamed with the Carvin brand in 1988, and in 1989, Carvin
introduced the BR12 British Series speakers, which were now
standard in all Carvin speaker cabinets. Celestion speakers were
no longer offered with Carvin guitar amps, and the Electro-Voice
speaker was only offered in the XV112 combo. |
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The SX-60, SX-100
and SX-200 MOSFET amps were basically unchanged for 1989, but
also benefited from the new BR12 speaker. Prices
increased slightly, to $349 for the SX-60, $399 for the SX-100 and
$469 for the SX-200.
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The Compact Studio Tube Amps were
similar to the '88 models, with the exception of the addition of the
BR12 speaker. Base price on this 60W tube amp was $429.
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The Tube X-Amps were
also basically unchanged, but the oak enclosure had been dropped. The
XV112 (shown) with a BR12 speaker sold for $599, the XV112E with
an Electro-Voice EVM12L-PL speaker sold for $669, and the XV212 with a
pair of BR12 speakers sold for $669. |
The X-60B was retired,
leaving only the X-100B
(below) tube heads, which was unchanged for 1989. The 100W X-100B sold for
$569, the same as it was in 1988.
New for 1989 was the SX400
MOSFET Amp Head (below). This solid-state amp head was designed for
the guitarist who wanted an amp stack, but preferred the sound of a
solid-state version over a tube-driven model. The amp chassis (and
therefore, the controls and features) was the same as the SX series of combos,
but was more powerful, at 400W RMS. Direct price for the SX400 was $499.
Also new for 1989 was the SX15
Rack Preamp (below). This was designed for older instruments with
lower output pickups, giving them better sustain and tone. This could
also be used with Carvin's FET series of power amps. The control layout and
operation was identical to the SX400 amp head. Direct price for the SX15
was $249.
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The SX812 Concert Stack
(left) was powered by the new SX400 head, connected to a pair of V412
cabinets which were loaded with 4 12" Carvin BR12 speakers.
It was also available in a half-stack, the SX412. Direct price
for the SX812 was $1239, and the SX412 was $829.
The XB812 Concert Tube Stack
(right) was basically unchanged. Unlike previous years, it was
only available in two configurations, a half-stack and a full stack,
both of which were loaded with BR12 speakers and powered by the X100B
head. The XB812 full stack sold for $1299, and the XB412
half-stack sold for $939. |
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