The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Gibson Basses => Topic started by: uwe on March 11, 2010, 08:20:35 AM
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Ze Ripper II (I really do need to clean up my office more, Mark would you be my rubber chamber maid? :mrgreen: ):
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00022-20100311-1528.jpg)
Pups look just like in the days of yore:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00023-20100311-1529.jpg)
Another reassuringly familiar sight, ze völüte:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00024-20100311-1530.jpg)
Huh, unfamiliar? Natural maple body, yet no maple board?! But Comrade Ernesto's benevolent gaze says all is well ...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00027-20100311-1532.jpg)
It will join ze herd, row of honor of the fat-bottomed girls:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00028-20100311-1536.jpg)
In twos, meine Herren, Grabber Blue and Grabber II (it rhymes!):
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00029-20100311-1537.jpg)
Grabber Fretless (most likely aftermarket mod, the fin certainly isn't a Gibson one, sounds like a million bucks though) and old style, big body Ripper (rescued from verdisgris after a prolonged cellar stay with the pre-owner):
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00030-20100311-1537.jpg)
Eighties Ripper and mid-seventies fretless Ripper with alder body (the more observant of you will notice that the fretboard was extended to double octave length and the cutaway henceforth deepened, all done so tastefully I never even noticed until I had bought the thing!):
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00031-20100311-1538.jpg)
Two G-3s, seventies and eighties ultimate run version with ebony board:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00032-20100311-1538.jpg)
Ze Gödfäther of all Rippers, a prototype, plus two Epi Ltd Ed GRipp3rs in the back, left is prototype with sleeker bevelling, right is series model, the end result looks rather like the very first Rippers, perhaps intentionally so, perhaps because less bevelling is less cost:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00033-20100311-1539.jpg)
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It must be true what they say, "They make the rockin' world go round."
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(http://i42.tinypic.com/j5bfye.jpg)
This expression says it all.....
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Glad ya like it Uwe ! I checked one out locally, Very well made and pretty true to the original unlike the Grabber II.
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Never let law books and legal papers get in the way of your basses.
You have enough for a separate fat bottomed room. Better talk to the building management people.
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That's it...........
I'm packing my best Maid's out, black lined stockings and heels. Frankfurt, here I come ;)
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I didn't even yet say I liked it!!! :mrgreen: Not sure. It's lovingly made (perfect fret job unlike the Grabber II) and has lots of tasteful sound options (more of that later), but at the rehearsal yesterday it was just that, "very tasteful" and "well-behaved", and I missed the ballsy "take no prisoners"-raunch of the Grabber II. Have to play it some more, but it might be one of those "gosh, this sounds nice (in the living room)" instruments as opposed to a rehearsal weapon of choice.
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Never let law books and legal papers get in the way of your basses.
You have enough for a separate fat bottomed room. Better talk to the building management people.
Do not jest, Dave, they already have me cross-haired for an "undue amount of fire loads in the office". I'm fighting a losing battle!!! Every few months some stern-faced fire, life, safety-inspector drops by and makes me aware of the illegal state I work in. :-\
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Looks nice, congratulations on an even dozen!
I like how they used the old mounting style pups on the Ripper IIs rather than the later 3-screw mounting types. That's how I found out Seymour Duncan makes drop in replacements.
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Wow....just......wow!
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Gibson's blurb about the six Seymour Duncan engineered varitone settings of the Ripper II:
"Tonal Control
The new six-position selector knob lets you dial in six very different tone selections. In position one you get the bridge pickup only. Position two gives you the second coil of the neck pickup and the first coil of the bridge pickup. Position three delivers the first coil of the bridge pickup. Position four dials in the second coil of the neck pickup. Position five gives you the first coil of the neck pickup and the second coil of the bridge pickup. And the sixth position gives you only the neck pickup. That’s six distinct choices – each one a clear and well-defined tone all its own."
In reality, all six options have unsurprisingly one tonal base character, there are no radical changes here, but it's all audible, though Pos 2 and 5 are VERY similar:
Pos 1 - bridge in humbucking mode, not too thin though I'm generally not a friend of just bridge pup mode, Jaco left no lasting imprint on me
Pos 2 - a single coil from each pup, as you would imagine given the spread of the two coils (that is one gigantic humbucking pup this pos creates) quite a bit of midrange cancelling out and "hollowing" of sound, similar to Pos 5 which has bit more depth
Pos 3 - bridge in single coil mode and true single coil it is as the humming of my Ampeg can testify! :mrgreen: not such a huge difference to Pos 1 really, but audible, sounds a bit more vintage
Pos 4 - neck in single coil mode, as above not such a huge sound difference to the humbucking mode in Pos 6, but a very typical Ripper sound
Pos 5 - a single coil from each pup, but this time even farther apart than in Pos 2, just slightly bassier than what Pos 2 offers
Pos 6 - neck pup in humbucking mode, see comments to Pos 4, deep guttural Ripper sound
In essence, whatever Seymour Duncan has done pretty closely resembles the character of the old Ripper varitone set up without aping it. My Ripper II is about as loud as my 73 big body maple board Ripper, but not quite as loud and deep as my 81 ebony Ripper.
Gibson took a different course on this reissue than to what it has done before, the Ripper II is closer to a Ripper I in sound than a modern day TBird would be to a Bicentennial or sixties model. And, in comparison, the Grabber II is to an original Grabber what The Incredible Hulk is to Bruce Banner. I think I prefer the latter approach, perhaps I'm just hooked on that TB Plus sound!
Uwe
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And I thought the RD was complicated!
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Congratulations to yet another completion Uwe. I've stopped counting the times my jaw hit the desk.
They really went all the way with the switching. Well almost. I wonder why they did'nt offer both pickups in full humbucking mode?
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Has "Ze (Gibson) Kolection" passed the "century" mark yet...? (yes, I'll count again... ;))
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Great Uwe! And I had the same idea as Dave: Less papers, more basses!
The sunburst on the fretless one's strange.
Nice review again!
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But that actually is stock except for the part where they deepened the cutaway and sprayed some black over it afterwards. Sunburst fretless Rippers looked that way. The nirto fin on those is micro thin btw.
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Every few months some stern-faced fire, life, safety-inspector drops by and makes me aware of the illegal state I work in. :-\
must be a fender guy ;D
btw, the collection is breath taking!
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Now all you need is a G4 to make your family of Big Bottomed Girls complete...
(http://www.superfloor.net/G4BODY.jpg)
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I didn't even yet say I liked it!!! :mrgreen: Not sure. It's lovingly made (perfect fret job unlike the Grabber II) and has lots of tasteful sound options (more of that later), but at the rehearsal yesterday it was just that, "very tasteful" and "well-behaved", and I missed the ballsy "take no prisoners"-raunch of the Grabber II. Have to play it some more, but it might be one of those "gosh, this sounds nice (in the living room)" instruments as opposed to a rehearsal weapon of choice.
I have really come to love my Grabber and even my G3. I use the Grabber for the KISS tunes in the show and it really sounds fantastic, a go for the throat bass for sure! I have had numerous Rippers over the years but I could not come to terms with their docile sounding pickups. I bet a Seymour Duncan pickup booster pedal would be just the thing to beef that Ripper II up with out modding it. I use one to beef up my F****rs works like a charm.
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That is amazing to say the least. Congrats Uwe.
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truely amazing Uwe. how long has it taken you to amass your collection in total, if i may ask? i know its totally priceless so i am not going to even ask. irreplaceable is an understatement, heaven forbid the thought. but i want to aknowledge the obvious and say it is a true labor of love.
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I bought my first Gibson bass at the end of 1998/beginning of 1999, it was a 1997 modern day TBird which I still have (I've never sold a Gibson bass in my life). An SG-Z followed comparatively quickly, but the collectors bug only really bit me when in a whimsical mood around Christmas 2002 I ordered an RD Standard, a Victory Standard and a G-3. When they arrived, I liked them all :mrgreen: and from then on the disease spread further and further ...
By the time I joined the Dudepit (in the summer of 2003 I believe) I was already around a dozen Gibson basses or so and the current collection is (the BFG LP not yet named):
GIBSONS:
Gibson EB-1 1953
Gibson EB-2 Banjo Headstock 1959
Gibson EB-0 Double Cutaway Les Paul Junior Body 1959/60
Gibson EB-6 (ES-330/335 Hollowbody) 1961
Gibson EB-0F 1963
Gibson EB-6 (SG Body) 1964
Gibson Reverse Thunderbird II 1964
Gibson Reverse Thunderbird IV 1965
Gibson Non-Reverse Thunderbird II 1966
Gibson Non-Reverse Thunderbird IV 1967
Gibson EB-2D 1967
Gibson Melody Maker EB-0 1967
Gibson EB-2 1968
Gibson Les Paul Recording Bass 1969
Gibson EB-1 Reissue 1969
Gibson Slothead EB-0 1969/70
Gibson Slothead EB-3 1969/70
Gibson Slothead EB-0L (+ 2 TB Plus Pickups) 1969/70
Gibson SB-300 1970-72
Gibson SB-400 1970-72
Gibson EB-0 1970-72
Gibson EB-3L 1972
Gibson EB-4 1970-72
Gibson Singlecut Ripper Prototype 1972-73
Gibson Les Paul Signature 1973-75
Gibson SB-350 1973-75
Gibson SB-450 1973-75
Gibson Les Paul Triumph 1973-75
Gibson Ripper 1974
Gibson Grabber G-1 1974
Gibson L-9S Ripper Fretless 1976
Gibson Thunderbird IV Bicentennial 1976
Gibson Grabber Fretless 1976
Gibson EB-3 1976
Gibson RD Standard 1977
Gibson G-3 Maple Fretboard 1978
Gibson RD Artist 1979
Gibson Ripper 1981
Gibson Flying V 1981
Gibson Victory Standard 1981
Gibson Victory Standard Fretless 1981
Gibson RD Artist ACB w/CMT 1981
Gibson G-3 Ebony Fretboard 1982
Gibson Victory Custom 1982
Gibson Victory Artist 1982
Gibson Explorer Korina Custom-Built 1982/83
Gibson Explorer Shadow (Piezo) 1986
Gibson Explorer 1986
Gibson Thunderbird II Japan Limited Edition 1986
Gibson IV Bass 1987
Gibson V Bass 1987
Gibson V Bass w/Kahler Tremolo 1987
Gibson 20/20 1987
Gibson Wayne Charvel Prototype Bass IV String 1987
Gibson Wayne Charvel Prototype Bass V String 1987
Gibson Q-80 1987
Gibson Q-90 Shadow (Piezo) 1988
Gibson Q-90 Combo 1989
Gibson Thunderbird VI One-Off Korina Model built by Phil Jones 1990 (based on discarded 1981 prototype)
Gibson Explorer West Coast Custom Shop?, "early nineties"
Gibson EB-650 1991
Gibson Les Paul Doublecutaway Phil Jones Prototype Fretless 1991
Gibson EB-750 1992
Gibson LPB-1 (passive) 1992
Gibson LPB-1/5 Les Paul Special (5-String) 1993
Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Meshell Ndegeocello Prototype 1994
Gibson LPB-3/Standard 8-string Custom Shop T.M. Stevens signature model 1994
Gibson LPB-2/5 Les Paul Deluxe (5-String) 1995
Gibson LPB-2 Les Paul Deluxe Fretless 1996
Gibson SG Long Scale Bass (one-off item) 1997
Gibson Thunderbird IV 1997
Gibson Les Paul Smartwood Series (peroba top/curupay board) 1997
Gibson Leland Sklar Signature 1998
Gibson AB Super 400 Archtop 1999
Gibson Blackbird Nikki Sixx Signature 2000
Gibson SG-Z Cherry 2000
Gibson SG-Z Ebony with Mudbucker 2001
Gibson Les Paul EMG Splitcoil Custom Shop Bass 2001
Gibson Primavera Custom Shop Bass 2001
Gibson Les Paul Standard "Custom" Bass 2003
Gibson SG Reissue 2005
Gibson Thunderbird Studio 4-String 2005
Gibson Les Paul Doublecut 2005
Gibson Thunderbird Studio 5-String 2006
Gibson Thunderbird IV Gothic - Limited Edition 2006
Gibson "Guitar of the Week" SG Supreme Natural Satin Flametop 2007
Gibson "Guitar of the Week" Les Paul Money Bass 2007
Gibson "Guitar of the Week" Thunderbird IV Zebra Wood 2007
Gibson Les Paul Faded Limited Edition Flat Top Bass Guitar 2007
Gibson "Guitar of the Week" SG Supreme Fireburst Flametop 2007
Gibson "Guitar of the Week" Les Paul Money Natural Satin Flametop 2007
Gibson Thunderbird IV Nikki Sixx Signature Model 2008
Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Bass built by Dr Bassman from Gibson body/neck 2008
Gibson 2009 Limited Run Series Grabber II 2009
Gibson 2009 Limited Run Series Ripper II 2009
Epis:
Epiphone Newport 1966
Epiphone Embassy 1966
Epiphone Scroll Bass 1976
Epiphone Genesis 1979
Epiphone Thunderbird Non-Reverse 5-String
Epiphone Jack Casady Signature
Epiphone Les Paul Special Prototype (neck-thru, quilted maple top) 1999
Epiphone Elitist EB-3 2003
Epiphone Explorer
Epiphone Allen Woody Rumblekat Signature 2005
Epiphone Gothic Extreme Bass 2005
Epiphone Thunderbird IV Arctic White Limited Edition 2006
Epiphone Ripper Limited Edition Prototype 2006
Epiphone Ripper Limited Edition 2006
Epiphone Nikki Sixx Signature Blackbird 2007
Epiphone Ltd Ed Silverburst Thunderbird IV (with Gibson TB-Plus pups) 2009
Epiphone T-Bird Pro V 2009
Other:
Kalamazoo KB 1 "Made by Gibson" 1967
Orville by Gibson Thunderbird IV 1991
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Truly an awe-inspiring collection!
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Thanks, but not to everyone, office building management says: "Fire loads!" :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
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Wow that makes 95 (soon to be 96 in a week or so) Gibsons!
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Yes, I sometimes muse that I'm very likely the only person on earth that collects Gibson basses through all eras. There are people with more vintage TBirds or EB-2s than me, but who is out there that collects anything from Gibson in the eighties and onwards?
And while Gibson never made it to an established bass brand and never will, the wealth of styles throughout the eras is astounding. Short of Jap ho and mass manufacturers I cannot think of any brand that even comes close as regards variety and different styles of basses. Yet at the same time that singular achievement of Gibson is totally unrecognized among either most bassists or even most Gibson diehards (which are almost all guitarists). I'm pretty sure that if you asked Gibson today how many different styles of basses they have developed over the years they wouldn't estimate anything higher than perhaps 20. They are not very good about their history at all.
Uwe
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Honestly, you should collect for finishes too..................
;)
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That would settle my eviction for continuous ignorance of fire, life, safety-rules here!
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how many non gibson basses do you own, specifically fenders.
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Three Fenders (MIM J 60ies RI, Sting, 80ies P 60ies RI Fretless) and two EBMMs (HH Bongo and Piezo Stingray) as well as 40-50 other brand specimen, with my six Ibanez Iceman basses and my five Rics (4001, 4003, 4003S/5, 4003S/8 and 4005) probably the closest to "collecting" anything other than Gibson.
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Envy is a terrible fin, or something like that... ;)
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Honestly, you should collect for finishes too..................
;)
i'll bet your the type of guy that would do "interesting" things with a cattle prod... ;)
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They are not very good about their history at all.
Thankfully we have approachable characters like Walter Carter.
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Three Fenders (MIM J 60ies RI, Sting, 80ies P 60ies RI Fretless) and two EBMMs (HH Bongo and Piezo Stingray) as well as 40-50 other brand specimen, with my six Ibanez Iceman basses and my five Rics (4001, 4003, 4003S/5, 4003S/8 and 4005) probably the closest to "collecting" anything other than Gibson.
And your Gene Simmons Punisher. Not only collectable but a bargain compared to what he asks now for signed ones.
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That's not really collecting to me, I was just interested in that bass just as I was interested in a Wal or a Höfner 500/1. The Punisher, to all intents and purposes, could be a Gibson bass though, Gene's inspiration for it is palpable.
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Damn. i shoulda gone to law school. >:(
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The new April issue of Guitar and Bass Magazine (UK) has a Ripper II review. Haven't read it yet, but I'll come back to it!
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Wow! I am getting in love with these fat bottom gir.. basses! I have only a modest collection of Gibson basses (3 out of 19) plus one Bachbird, but I am trying to put together a Grabber. Up to now I have a neck, a sliding plate and a pickguard (travelling from US) and looking for other parts!
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I'm working on getting a "Gibson" collection together but most of mine will be Faux-Gibsons as they made very few lefties. I've only seen a few Gibson EB series basses that were lefty. I'll just have to make them myself or have some custom built or pick up the occasional "third party" imitations like the BaCH or Japanese copies. I don't have any problem with that. :D
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(http://i42.tinypic.com/fwu9l3.jpg)(http://i43.tinypic.com/1rx7wy.jpg)
Looking at Uwe's "extra" fat bottomed girl, I noticed that there were differences in even the earliest Ripper bodies. The one I saw at Austin Vintage Guitars years ago looked extra "fat" and this is because the lack of front contour on the body at the lower section. You can see in the photo's comparing the 2 basses.
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Yes, they were obviously experimenting with the shape.
And history repeated itself:
Left to right: original Gibson "big body" Ripper, Epi Prototype and Epi Series Ripper:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00006-20100317-1822.jpg)
In detail:
Gibson original
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00007-20100317-1822.jpg)
Epi bevelled away for the prototype:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00008-20100317-1823.jpg)
But then thought better of it and released the series model more in the initial Gibson shape, in fact the Epi body is even a little larger!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v615/uwehornung/IMG00009-20100317-1823.jpg)
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I had my 73 Ripper, the 81 model, the 2009 Ripper II and the Epi Ltd Ed GRipp3r with me at last night's rehearsal.
Some observations:
- The 81 model sounds deepest, probably due to the heavy and massive maple used on the body, it has less midrange than the others, but a real threatening ooomph, a really dense tone, you could play heavy metal with it.
- The 73 maple board alder big body one has the most wooden tone, midrange is prominent, but the tone doesn't have the 81 model's "weight".
- The Epi has no doubt the most cut and bite of all four, and not in a nasty, cheap way either. That Fenderish split coil - why am I even writing this? :-[ - does sound excellent and authoritative. But what the bolt-on giveth in attack, snap and presence in the nether regions, it, alas!, doth taketh away once you are beyond the 12th fret, no comparioson to the sustain of the set neck Gibbies then. Not really relevant for someone who tends to stay low, but always a bit disheartening for me, I'm a high register sustain addict, hence my love for neck-thru TBirds.
- Surprisingly, the 2009 Ripper II is the blurriest of them all (I could finally play it loud at yesterday's rehearsal cause the drummer was there and we had beefed up the pa for the vocs by adding another two active cabs) and even lacks a little attack in comparison to the older Rippers. It does have the most sustain though - sustain to an extent that some of you might find it perhaps a bit much. Those high register notes really elbow their way through. I haven't mentioned so far that both pups are quite a bit closer to the neck on the Ripper II than on the Ripper Is of various eras. I also have to correct my statement that the two varitone positions that offer one coil from the bridge pup combined with one coil from the neck pup don't really sound that different. Over a large rig, the difference is stark and that slightly scooped sound makes sense as it broadens the tone without cluttering things.
Uwe
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I have seen a couple bands lately with new Grabbers, the guy on American Idol band'd ex winner bassist had one. The singer had a killer upside down Firebird that had the knobs switched over but that was it. I could not watch much of it.
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Didn't they want to bring the Grabber out as a series model?
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I just saw MUSE, and Chris Wolstenholme played a Grabber on a couple of tunes.
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Did someone say Grabber? :mrgreen:
(http://i42.tinypic.com/15xkcio.jpg)
(http://i43.tinypic.com/1zgzrj4.jpg)
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So I guess the new Grabber is the star here?
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I think they missed the boat with the New Grabber. Set neck, chrome pup, wrong tuners and the matte black finish doesn't in my mind capture the essence of the Grabber. The Ripper II is lovingly made with attention to detail and far truer to its roots. I'd buy the Ripper II but I think I would just go with a vintage Grabber if I was looking for one. As a collector piece the Grabber II is interesting, The Ripper II is a far better built and a better value imho.
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"I think they missed the boat with the New Grabber. Set neck, chrome pup, wrong tuners and the matte black finish doesn't in my mind capture the essence of the Grabber."
How anal you are, Scott! :mrgreen: The sustain of the Grabber II (thanks to the set neck), the non-grafted headstock and the new TB Plus sliding pup wipes the floor with any seventies Grabber. Unless you see the budget aspect as the essence of the old Grabbers. The Grabber II compares to an old Grabber like a Gibson TBird does to an Epi TBird. It's simply in a different league.
Especially you with your preference of a strong rock bass sound played over a, errrrm, minimalist rig :mrgreen: would be in ecstasy if a Grabber II moved the air behind you. It's in my book the most non-compromising rock bass Gibson have ever built, beating even the LP Standard for sheer aggression.
Come to the dark side, Scott! :vader: :vader: :vader: :vader: :vader:
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Uwe, That is a compleling argument ! I think my vintage Grabber as one of the best minimalist rock basses, The only thing that keeps it from the top of the heap is the silly sliding pickup. I have only played the Grabber II in store, I would be curious to play one through my rig. The cost does put me off a bit, My Grabber cost me $450.00. I think I can live with it's short comings at that price. If I find a deal on a Grabber II I'll grab one. ;D
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Uwe, do the Grabber II's come in a T-bird like case or the more shaped Les Paul style case? Nevermind, now that I think of it, I believe they come in a rectangle, whitelined case...
Hmmmm, maybe if MF will blow the Grabber II's out, I might try to snag one. You can never have too many unrelenting rock basses ;D
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The slider pup is gimmicky, yes, but it also defines the Grabber. My favorite pos is right in the middle, but in unfavorable acoustics you might want to move it back a little or for a cushiony big ballad sound forward. It enables a swift sound change without any fiddling at the amp or drop-off in volume. And doing it on stage looks cool, the girls will love how the work of your hands can elicit subtle changes, Scott!
The cases for the Grabber II and the Ripper II are identical form cases, similar to the old Grabber/Ripper cases in size, but much more stable and durable. Think of an LP case in large.
"Unrelenting" is a good description for what the Grabber II does.
Uwe
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"Unrelenting" is a good description for what the Grabber II does.
That's what chrome does to a bass ;)
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What a blinding comment! :mrgreen:
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Damn you Uwe for making want something I didn't want !
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Damn you Uwe for making want something I didn't want !
He's a master at it, isn't he?. :mrgreen: A good salesman can make you want what you don't really need. It takes a master to make you want what you don't really want.
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I just find it gratifying in a very innocent way when my venom flows in other people's veins!
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Especially you with your preference of a strong rock bass sound played over a, errrrm, minimalist rig would be in ecstasy if a Grabber II moved the air behind you. It's in my book the most non-compromising rock bass Gibson have ever built, beating even the LP Standard for sheer aggression.
Sign me up as well as intersted.