Charvel keeps the classy hotrodded shred vibe alive with its new 2021 models

By Jonathan Horsley
published

Meet the all-new MJ Series, the super-playable additions to the Pro Mod Series plus two very cool new basses

Charvel 2021 models
(Image credit: Charvel)

GEAR 2021: Charvel had a very respectable 2020. Its Pro-Mod DK22 was a MusicRadar favourite, taking third place in the popular vote for Best New Electric Guitar of the Year, and showcasing Charvel's ability to make a sophisticated shred guitar that stayed close to the brand's roots.

And it looks like Charvel is going to continue down that road in 2021. Sure, looking at these new models, there are some retina-challenging finishes (Slime Green is the sort of gnarly colourway that has you turning the brightness down on your laptop), but in the main Charvel is dressing its Pro Mod range up in some very classy, understated livery. 

Very cool, and suitable for shredders of all temperaments. We've also got the introduction of the MJ Series, which like Charvel's sibling brand, Jackson, offers a premium Japanese built option that sits somewhere on the price scale between the Pro Mod and the flagship USA Select Series.

The 11 best metal guitars 2021

Best metal guitars: Charvel Joe Duplantier Signature Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 2 HH

(Image credit: Charvel)

The ultimate machines for heavy riffing at any budget

Here we'll take a closer look at them and some of the spec. There are some commonalities throughout. The electric guitars share a 25.5" scale length and feature 12-16" compound radius fingerboards with Luminlay glow-in-the-dark side-markers. The builds are all bolt-on, with "slime C" speed necks reinforced with graphite, and the frets are jumbo. Graph Tech TUSQ XL nuts are used as standard.

Charvel's 2021 basses comprise the Pro-Mod San Dimas Bass JJ five-string and and the Pro-Mod San Dimas Bass PJ.

  • NAMM 2021 is cancelled, but we'll be covering all the big January gear announcements right here on MusicRadar.

MJ Series DK24 HSH 2PT E Mahogany with Figured Walnut 

MJ Series DK24 HSH 2PT E Mahogany with Figured Walnut

MJ Series DK24 HSH 2PT E Mahogany with Figured Walnut  (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £2,039 / $2,399 / €2,439
  • BODY: Mahogany, figured walnut top
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge, Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coil (middle), Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro APH-1N humbucker (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switch, no-load tone control, volume control with Bourns low friction pot
  • HARDWARE: Gotoh Custom 510 recessed tremolo bridge, Gotoh die-cast locking tuners, gold
  • FINISH: Natural
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod DK24 HH 2PT CM LH 

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Charvel 2021 models
Pro-Mod DK24 HH 2PT CM LH in Shell Pink(Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £1,159 / $1,299 / €1,289
  • BODY: Alder
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge), Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro APH-1N humbucker (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switching, Strat-style skirt knobs, no-load tone control, volume control with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot 
  • HARDWARE: Gotoh Custom 510 recessed tremolo bridge, Gotoh die-cast locking tuners, gold
  • FINISH: Shell Pink, Gloss Black
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod DK24 HSH 2PT CM Mahogany 

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod DK24 HSH 2PT CM Mahogany  (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £1,179 / $1,149 / €1,059 
  • BODY: Mahogany
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge), Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coil (middle), Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro APH-1N humbucker (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switching, Strat-style skirt knobs, no-load tone control, volume control with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot 
  • HARDWARE: Gotoh Custom 510 recessed tremolo bridge, Gotoh die-cast locking tuners, gold
  • FINISH: Natural
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod DK24 HSH 2PT CM 

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod DK24 HSH 2PT CM in Mystic Blue (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £1,059 / $1,199 / €1,179 
  • BODY: Alder
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge), Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coil (middle), Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro APH-1N humbucker (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switching, Strat-style skirt knobs, no-load tone control, volume control with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot 
  • HARDWARE: Gotoh Custom 510 recessed tremolo bridge, Gotoh die-cast locking tuners, gold
  • FINISH: Mystic Blue
  • Available April 2021

 Pro-Mod DK24 HSS 2PT CM

Pro-Mod DK24 HSS 2PT CM

 Pro-Mod DK24 HSS 2PT CM in Snow White (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £1,059 / $1,099 / €1,179  
  • BODY: Alder
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge), two Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coils (middle and neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switching, Strat-style skirt knobs, no-load tone control, volume control with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot 
  • HARDWARE: Gotoh Custom 510 recessed tremolo bridge, Gotoh die-cast locking tuners, gold
  • FINISH: Snow White
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod DK24 HH HT E

Pro-Mod DK24 HH HT E

Pro-Mod DK24 HH HT E in Satin Black (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $999 / €1,069  
  • BODY: Alder Dinky body with lower back bout and sculpted shredder’s cut heel
  • FINGERBOARD: Ebony
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10B humbucker (bridge), Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro APH-1N humbucker (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switching, dome-style knobs, no-load tone control, volume control with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot 
  • HARDWARE: Charvel HT6 string-through-body hardtail, black
  • FINISH: Satin Black
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR E Sassafras LH

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR E Sassafras LH in Satin Black (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $1,099 / €1,069  
  • BODY: Sassafras 
  • FINGERBOARD: Ebony
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan JB TB-4 humbucker (bridge), Seymour Duncan ‘59 SH-1N (neck)
  • CONTROLS: 3-way blade switch, volume control with push/pull coil split, tone control with push/pull activation   
  • HARDWARE: Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, black
  • FINISH: Satin Black
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS FR E Sassafras 

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS FR E Sassafras in Satin Black (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $1,099 / €1,069  
  • BODY: Sassafras 
  • FINGERBOARD: Ebony
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan JB TB-4 humbucker (bridge), two Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coils (middle and neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switch, volume and no-load tone controls   
  • HARDWARE: Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, black
  • FINISH: Satin Black
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS HT E Sassafras

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS HT E Sassafras in Satin Black (Image credit: Charvel)
  • Spec as per HSS FR E Sassafras except with Charvel HT-6 hardtail bridge.
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS FR M 

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS FR M in Blizzard Pearl (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $999 / €1,069
  • BODY: Alder Dinky body with lower back bout and sculpted shredder’s cut heel
  • FINGERBOARD: Maple
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan JB TB-4 humbucker (bridge), two Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 single-coils (middle and neck)
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switch, volume and no-load tone controls   
  • HARDWARE: Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, chrome
  • FINISH: Blizzard Pearl
  • Available March 2021

 Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HH FR M LH

Charvel 2021 models

 Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HH FR M LH in Gloss Black (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $999 / €1,069
  • BODY: Alder Dinky body with lower back bout and sculpted shredder’s cut heel
  • FINGERBOARD: Maple
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Distortion™ TB-6 (bridge), Seymour Duncan Distortion SH-6N humbucker (neck) 
  • CONTROLS: 3-way blade switch, volume control with push/pull coil split, tone
  • HARDWARE: Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, black
  • FINISH: Gloss Black, Snow White
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HSH FR M

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HSH FR M in Slime Green (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $999 / €1,069
  • BODY: Alder 
  • FINGERBOARD: Maple
  • PICKUPS: Seymour Duncan Distortion TB-6 (bridge), Seymour Duncan Custom Flat Strat SSL-6 Single-Coil (middle), Seymour Duncan Distortion SH-6N humbucker (neck) 
  • CONTROLS: 5-way blade switch, volume and no-load tone controls 
  • HARDWARE: Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, chrome
  • FINISH: Slime Green
  • Available March 2021

Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HSH FR E  

Charvel 2021 models

(Image credit: Charvel)
  • Spec as above except with Robin's Egg Blue finish and ebony fingerboard with white dot inlay 

Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 2 24 HH HT CM

Charvel 2021 models

Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 2 24 HH HT CM in Robin's Egg Blue (Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £959 / $999 / €1,069  
  • BODY: Alder So-Cal Style 2 body with scalloped lower back bout and shredder’s cut heel 
  • NECK: Caramelised maple with reverse Licensed Fender Telecaster headstock
  • FINGERBOARD: Caramelised maple
  • PICKUPS: Fishman Fluence Open Core PRF-COC humbuckers (bridge and neck)
  • CONTROLS: 3-way blade pickup switch, two-way mini toggle switch (selects voice one or voice two), volume control and tone control with push/pull activation to engage voice three)  
  • HARDWARE: Charvel HT6 string-through-body hardtail bridge with brass saddles, Charvel-branded die-cast tuners, chrome
  • FINISH: Robin's Egg Blue, Satin Black, Snow White
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Bass PJ IV

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Charvel 2021 models
(Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £989 / €899 / €1,099
  • BODY: Alder
  • NECK: Caramelised maple slim C
  • FINGERBOARD: Caramelised maple
  • PICKUPS: DiMarzio Model J DP123 single-coil (bridge), DiMarzio Model P split-coil DP122 (middle)
  • CONTROLS: Master volume control, pickup blend, three-band active EQ (bass, mid and treble)
  • HARDWARE: HiMass™ bridge, open-gear tuners, vintage-style disc string tree, chrome
  • FINISH: Lime Green Metallic, Mystic Blue
  • Available April 2021

Pro-Mod San Dimas Bass JJ V 

Image 1 of 2
Charvel 2021 models
(Image credit: Charvel)
  • PRICE: £989 / €899 / €1,099
  • BODY: Alder
  • NECK: Caramelised maple slim C
  • FINGERBOARD: Caramelised maple
  • PICKUPS: DiMarzio Area J DP551 single-coil (bridge), DiMarzio Area J DP550 single-coil (middle) 
  • CONTROLS: Master volume control, pickup blend, three-band active EQ (bass, mid and treble)
  • HARDWARE: HiMass™ bridge, open-gear tuners, vintage-style disc string tree, gold
  • FINISH: Lambo Green Metallic, Candy Apple Red
  • Available April 2021

Charvel also announced the new Angel Vivaldi Pro-Mod DK24-6 Nova signature model, which is Vivaldi and Charvel's first six-string collaboration.

See Charvel for more details.

Jonathan Horsley
Jonathan Horsley

Jonathan Horsley has been writing about guitars and guitar culture since 2005, playing them since 1990, and regularly contributes to MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitar World. He uses Jazz III nylon picks, 10s during the week, 9s at the weekend, and shamefully still struggles with rhythm figure one of Van Halen’s Panama.