My R9 vs. CC was interesting. The CC felt perfect in respect to weight and the small build details were just cleaner. The fretwork was also perfect. I preferred the carmalita R9 neck shape a little more, just had more nuance to the contours, and we just a hair thinner, depth and width. I preferred the custombuckers of the R9 over the 225s. I would really like to hear the 225s fully unpotted as I think it's a tough comparison otherwise. They were really on the same level to me, but my ML R9 was about double the price of my CC. I don't intend to buy another R9 but I have another CC on the way. The value is just so much better.
The CC case is 10x nicer than the Gibson reissue cases.
I saw that one on Sweetwater. Best looking one they had in at the moment! Enjoy it!