Gibson Les Paul Bass Question (1992 with flower pot inlay)

[Hörnisse]

I just bought a late 1992 three knobber and was wondering if they came stock with a blank truss rod cover?  I have seen some with the "Les Paul" cover (ala SG/Les Paul) but mine appears stock.  It is nice having a Gibson back in the stable!

[Dave W]

I've seen 'em both ways. There are enough out there with a blank TRC that it must have been stock on some of them.

[Denis]

Pics, Robert!

[uwe]

All of mine from the nineties era - eight of them, original passive to Standard and everything in between - have the Les Paul TRC. Just the kind of thing guitarists nick to put on their toys!

[Dave W]

I was specifically talking about the early ones, 92-93 era.

[Hörnisse]

Here are some quick shots.  Has a few dings here and there but plays very nicely.

[uwe]

That might be, they probably didn't have them printed in time. Not that it would bother me one way or another. If you don't recognize an LP shape from afar, the TRC ain't gonna explain it to you, Dumbo!

I liked those early passive ones and the carved top Standards (once they had beome passive again) best. The Specials were remorseless brutes and the Deluxes too hifi. And with the active Standards the hi-charged chrome TB Plus chrome pups (always bitier than the more docile "teflons")  could have used another 9 volt bat with the Bartolini TCT electronics, they tend to be a bit shrill in their treble attack. My TM Stevens one off 8-string active Standard (actually they built two for him at the time)  is a bit sharp and nasty like that.

The early passive ones are nice players and do everything a Les Paul bass should do.

[Denis]

Looks great, Robert! Nice color and beautiful grain.

[Nocturnal]

And with the active Standards the hi-charged chrome TB Plus chrome pups (always bitier than the more docile "teflons")  could have used another 9 volt bat with the Bartolini TCT electronics, they tend to be a bit shrill in their treble attack. My TM Stevens one off 8-string active Standard (actually they built two for him at the time)  is a bit sharp and nasty like that.

My Standard with the Bart pre was super aggressive. Even after I (actually Chromium) changed it to a push\pull active\passive setup it was still super powerful. I like those pickups tho and have them in two basses. They do have more bite than the black soapbars for sure.

[uwe]

No mistake about it, the compressed construction of the guitar humbucker size TB Plus has - accidentally? - added a sharpness to them (while retaining bass ooomph and mid raunch) that most of you who clamor for the sound of sixties TB pups especially should dearly appreciate. I think they are the prime TB Plus version - and not because of the chrome or as the case may be gold look. With the combo of the Bart TCT electronics it gets a bit much though - those work better with the soapies.

[4stringer77]

[/quote]

That's hot! I'd give my left nut for one of these in tv yellow.

[gearHed289]

Nice bass! Dig the 3 knobbers. Great pickups. I pulled the Bart pre out of my LP pretty early on.

[4stringer77]

Gibson must have thought the bart pre wasn't great in this bass either since they made the 07' Les Paul faded with 2 vol and 2 tone. There's one on the bay now. Hey Hornisse I see you're in Austin, did you score this bass from guitar center down there? I see one listed on the web site that looks just like yours. Great deal if you snagged that one.

[uwe]

Phil Jones, the original LP designer, thought the Bart TCT harness was - back then - God's gift to bass electronics, he put it pretty much in any (even slightly) upscale model (later LP Specials, all LP Deluxes, early pre-toggle-switch LP Standards, EB-750, LP Doublecut Prototype, Primavera Prototype, Smartwood LP). Hardly any bass escaped!!! He once wrote to me "that it was a good harness at its time, when such things weren't so widely available", so I detected some remorse in that!  

I guess his quest was to make a true Gibson bass, set neck, maho and classic shape and all, yet one that would sound "modern" in the early nineties to appeal to perceived tastes. Let's forgive him, we all err once in a while, he's a nice man and has always been helpful to me. Nobody else on earth owns a korina TBird, so there!  


"Gosh, I feel really, really deeply sorry about all those TCT harnesses, guys ..."


But look at all the good things I did too!

[gearHed289]

"Gosh, I feel really, really deeply sorry about all those TCT harnesses, guys ..."

No apologies needed - I sold mine on ebay!