The Gretsch G5123B is an absolutely lovely hollowbody that's a great buy, as it has features found on other Gretsch basses that cost anywhere from two to four times as much. It is made in Korea and the workmanship and construction are first-rate.
Just about everything you'd like to learn about the bass can be found in this long TB thread:
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/new-gretsch-electromatic-hollowbody-bass-713507/My first post in that thread is #44. Pictures at post #50.
Short version: the bass came out for Black Friday 2010, UN-announced other than a mailer to Guitar Center customers. It has never appeared in their online catalog listings, nor has it been featured in any ads, online or print. Each Guitar Center received one, and no other outlets in the US have received any. It evidently is an offering unique to GC...or so I thought. Iome's ad is the first I have ever seen outside Guitar Center that offers the bass new. A very few have been resold in the US, and TB members generally spotted the ads and posted them in the thread I linked above.
It was originally thought to be a single production run instrument, as the first round of basses sold out pretty quickly. However, within a month a second shipment of basses appeared in GC's computers (that's when I got mine after I was alerted by the TB thread). From that time on, whenever a GC sells their single Gretsch G5123B, another one appears within a week or so.
Best guess is that Gretsch has some kind of test marketing deal with GC to find out if there's an ongoing market for this Electromatic model. I think there will be, as it offers a very similar set of features to the Broadkaster G6199B, (30", Filtertrons, $1750) the Electrotone G6073 model (30", $2050) and the White Falcon (34" scale, $3200)....but retail is about $799 (it may have gone up up $25 or so this year).
Differences....
- No pickguard on the 5123 (the 6073 doesn't have one either)
- 32" scale instead of 30"
- No binding inside the F-holes
- ThunderTron pickups, same as 6073 and White Falcon
The body is deeper front-to-back than the typical EB-2 and Casady-type basses, and overall the bass in 32" scale is longer than my 34" scale Casady. You're not likely to find a gig bag that will fit it. It's a great player with lovely sound, and that Gretsch orange is something that stands out in any setting.
BTW - this is a big instrument and it's hard to find a case for it. Your best bet is acoustic bass casses. The best case anyone has found for it is a Road Runner hard case carried by GC which I discovered. The only thing that's not perfect is that the upper strap button hits the interior foam, but all you need to do is press a recess into the foam...no big deal. Here's the info that was on the tag with the case:
Roadrunner RRMBA 17 ABS Molded Acous Bass GTR case
UPC code on the tag is: 6 56238 01 527 1.
Photos:
More photos!!
