The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Gibson Basses => Topic started by: vates on January 05, 2016, 04:04:55 PM
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And here we go:
http://www.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/2016/Memphis/ES-Les-Paul-Bass.aspx
I wonder if it's possible to order these pickups separately...
(http://images.gibson.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/2016/Memphis/ES-Les-Paul-Bass/BALP16FDNH1_MAIN_HERO_01.jpg)
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Why would one? They are rank and file TB Plus guitar size humbuckers, no matter what they say. I have one.
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No.
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Yes.
"Pickups: Special design MHS Bass Humbuckers"
"Our Bass Humbuckers are fat, firm and juicy with outstanding clarity."
Alas!, that is how TB Plus guitarsize humbuckers have sounded ever since the long scale LP basses were introduced in 1993/94. There is nothing wrong with these pups, they have always sounded great, probably the best Gibson pup ever (better than their soapbar siblings even), but there is nothing discernibly new about them. The same bla-bla was given with the reissued Flying V and the ES 335 bass. Those pups all look and sound the same to me.
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Wow. It's up $300 over last year. Pricewise, Gibson Memphis is going in the opposite direction of Gibson USA. Then again, Gibson Memphis didn't experience the sales disaster and customer backlash.
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Their specs look considerably different:
Pickups Rhythm Lead
Style: MHS Bass Humbucker MHS Bass Humbucker
Winds/Coil: Screw side/Slug side: 4900/5100 5200/5400
Material of Wire (gauge): Enamel (42) Enamel (42)
Coil Dimensions (per coil): 6.6294 cm x 1.7272 mm / 2.61" x 0.68 " 6.6294 cm x 1.7272 mm / 2.61" x 0.68 "
Coil Material: ABS ABS
Coil Winding Process: Scatter Wound Scatter Wound
Pole Piece Material: Nickel plated steel Nickel plated steel
Pole Piece Position from Nut: 57.277 cm / 22.55" 71.501 cm / 28.15"
Slug Material: Nickel plated steel Nickel plated steel
Slug Dimensions (diameter x length): 4.7498 mm x 1.24206 cm / 0.187" x .489" 4.7498 mm x 1.24206 cm / 0.187" x .489"
Magnet Material: Alnico III Alnico II
Magnet Position from Nut: 58.166 cm / 22.9" 72.39 cm / 28.50"
Magnet Dimensions: 6.35 cm x 1.27 mm / 2.5" x 0.5" 6.35 cm x 1.27 mm / 2.5" x 0.5"
Polarities: Screw side is the south pole of magnet Screw side is the south pole of magnet
Cover: Nickel plated Nickel plated
Qfactor: 3.15 2.76
ResistanceDC: 7510 ohms 8070 ohms
Resonant Frequency: 3233.81 Hz 3050.44 Hz
Tonal & Resonant Advancements:
New design, custom wound bass humbuckers
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This not new? Just the same one as last year?
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Their specs look considerably different:
Pickups Rhythm Lead
Style: MHS Bass Humbucker MHS Bass Humbucker
Winds/Coil: Screw side/Slug side: 4900/5100 5200/5400
Material of Wire (gauge): Enamel (42) Enamel (42)
Coil Dimensions (per coil): 6.6294 cm x 1.7272 mm / 2.61" x 0.68 " 6.6294 cm x 1.7272 mm / 2.61" x 0.68 "
Coil Material: ABS ABS
Coil Winding Process: Scatter Wound Scatter Wound
Pole Piece Material: Nickel plated steel Nickel plated steel
Pole Piece Position from Nut: 57.277 cm / 22.55" 71.501 cm / 28.15"
Slug Material: Nickel plated steel Nickel plated steel
Slug Dimensions (diameter x length): 4.7498 mm x 1.24206 cm / 0.187" x .489" 4.7498 mm x 1.24206 cm / 0.187" x .489"
Magnet Material: Alnico III Alnico II
Magnet Position from Nut: 58.166 cm / 22.9" 72.39 cm / 28.50"
Magnet Dimensions: 6.35 cm x 1.27 mm / 2.5" x 0.5" 6.35 cm x 1.27 mm / 2.5" x 0.5"
Polarities: Screw side is the south pole of magnet Screw side is the south pole of magnet
Cover: Nickel plated Nickel plated
Qfactor: 3.15 2.76
ResistanceDC: 7510 ohms 8070 ohms
Resonant Frequency: 3233.81 Hz 3050.44 Hz
Tonal & Resonant Advancements:
New design, custom wound bass humbuckers
"Considerable" is a term of sophistic relativity here!
(http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/RV-AQ215_BKRVei_GV_20150508095424.jpg)
They really don't sound noticably different, but then the TB Plus soapies were changed several times over the years too, yet always retained their core nature.
Anybody that wants a beautiful, well-made shortie with a great sound that not every Joe Blow plays - and has the money to spare - should take a close look at this goodie btw. Esthetically one of the most marvellous Gibson basses ever.
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Esthetically one of the most marvellous Gibson basses ever.
I dunno about that. The f holes look so shoehorned in on that tiny LP body. I have also found it completely silly that "ES" is in the name, but this nomenclature stretch isn't half as odd as some of their others in recent history, and only bothers me , really, because it makes me think, for a second, that they put out a nice full size proper hollow bass every time I see it (this isn't the first time we've had this problem, brain; learn your lesson dammit).
I haven't had the pleasure to try one, but I wonder what useful purpose (other than weight reduction) partially hollowing out an LP bass could have (I get it a bit more with the 6 banger). I actually would be worried that it would detract from the LPB sound. Usually an f hole gives me instant wood, as it were, but I'm immune to this one's charms.
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It doesn't sound that solidbody LPBish at all, looks can be deceiving. More like an exquisite Höfner. If you want a roaring LPB sound, buy the BFG or an LPB Standard, this is an LP in look only.
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It is definitely not my cup of tea. The F holes don't go well with the small body. I think it looks too crowded for F holes.
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It is definitely not my cup of tea. The F holes don't go well with the small body. I think it looks too crowded for F holes.
I agree. I think they'd more more tolerable if the cutaway wasn't there, but even so there's something a little "off" about that f-hole setup.
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This not new? Just the same one as last year?
Same as last year. 2015 page (http://www.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/2015/Memphis/ES-Les-Paul-Bass.aspx)
Looks like Musicians Friend still has 2015s in stock at $3199.
I agree that either the f-holes are too big or the body is too small. And IIRC from last year's thread, the top barely has an arch.
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So what Dave is saying is that it is a low budget (as in cheaper to make - routed center slab with back and front caps, barely carved so cheaper to on the labour and materials) semi hollow body instrument, priced at what a boutique proper hollowbody jazz archtop would cost. Gibson pulled another Gibson.
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Sweet! A new Gibson bass for 2016!
What a bargain for 3 grand especially considering how good it sounds in this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hvi2DJtRfjY) demo.
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I wouldn't pay $3k for it, but I think it's gorgeous.
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So what Dave is saying is that it is a low budget (as in cheaper to make - routed center slab with back and front caps, barely carved so cheaper to on the labour and materials) semi hollow body instrument, priced at what a boutique proper hollowbody jazz archtop would cost. Gibson pulled another Gibson.
I don't know where that "routed body" allegation comes from, it's not! It's a classic hollow-body with three ply top, back AND SIDES. The smallish sustain block is a different wood than the rest of the body. And the top is visibly arched, very artsy in fact.
The whole bass looks and feels petite, but also has an expensive, even lavish workmanship aura to it. The fin has a depth no other of my Gibsons - old or new - has.
For once I have to come up in Gibson's defense: That bass is a jewel. Granted, the f-holes look large, but they are in fact just a bit smaller than on an EB-2 or an LP Sig (which both have larger bodies of course), but making them any smaller would have sacrificed acoustic sound.
It's really a too small a bass for me to feel comfortable with on stage - I prefer an Explorer or T-Bird in my hands -, but Sheryl Crow would look great with it!
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but Sheryl Crow would look great with it!
And then prices would double. :rolleyes:
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but making them any smaller would have sacrificed acoustic sound.
The small body volume is the bottleneck there (not even the larger EB2 has a usable-for-anything-other-than-bedroom-practise acoustic tone); the F holes are only slightly more functional than the ones painted on a vintage Gretsch.
Anyway, the routed slab thing was an assumption (because most non-gibson guitars of this style, including the Phish guy's sig thing and copies, which abound, are built that way, and what Dave said made that seem more likely here too), so sorry for that. BUT, if is is ply then it is still a bit too expensive, even if the fit and finish is better than we have come to expect from Gibson. You can get a solid wood proper hand built acoustic archtop for that much. For a couple hundred more, it could be from a boutique luthier whose name you'd recognise (if you were a jazz guitarist).
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Here's one for a mere $2700. http://www.ebay.com/itm/2015-Gibson-ES-Les-Paul-Semi-Hollow-Body-Short-Scale-Bass-/201498912155? (http://www.ebay.com/itm/2015-Gibson-ES-Les-Paul-Semi-Hollow-Body-Short-Scale-Bass-/201498912155?)
(http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/4j8AAOSwKtlWjrnF/s-l1600.jpg)
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Mine isn't as tiger-striped. That look has been so overdone, it actually devalues it a little.
Re acoustic tone: The ES-LP sounds (plugged) a lot airier than an EB-2. I always found EB-2s comparatively dead-sounding. Of course, when they came out, no one was concerned with giving a bass a semi-acoustic tone, it was just a body shape Gibson deemed suitable after the EB-1 body had been refused by bassists for being too small (by 1958, when the EB-2 was introduced, the already then 5 year old EB-1 was a failed model). They didn't have many alternatives, the classic Les Paul shape would have been too small as well - compared to the larger dimensions of Fender bass product - and shapes such as the SG or LP Junior (both not ideal either) or the TBird were yet to come, even the more exotic larger body shapes from the Modernist Line (Flying V, Explorer) were not yet out. The EB-2 was a case of "make-do" really, Gibson has a penchant for those types of a "solution" after all! ;D
Unplugged, there is also no comparing the two: The EB-2's top is deadened by (almost) full contact to the sustain block, while the LP-ES sustain block is more akin to the LP Sig one, i.e. no full contact to the top.
I've now done so much propaganda for that model, I really should have gotten mine for free. :mrgreen:
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I've now done so much propaganda for that model, I really should have gotten mine for free. :mrgreen:
Your propaganda would have to help sales in order to do that. $3200-$3500 for a non-vintage bass that won't cover the tonal needs of most bassists is never going to sell much. Not that Gibson ever expected it to.
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"Whaddaya mean, no free bass?!!!"
(http://ww2today.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Joseph-Goebbels.jpg)
"Not that Gibson ever expected it to."
True, it's a vanity model.
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is that little joey goebbels.
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Of course, a propaganda purveyor if there ever was one. Also probably (for me at least) the most interesting of the Nazi greats, a cynic and intellectual, comparatively unmilitary (he never served) and at the same time with a fervent adulation for Hitler bordering on the religious even though he was well aware that Hitler was not an intellectual at all and did not really take Goebbels seriously (he never consulted with him in military matters, Goebbels regularly only found out about new military offensives after they had already commenced). He had brains enough to realize long before Hitler that the war was lost for Germany and that there would be no Wunderwaffen to help the Reich change the tide, yet he stayed faithful (and longer than the Himmlers, Görings, Speers, Bormanns and what have you of this world) until the very end, even after Hitler's end: He was addicted to the Führer's personality. Yet he considered Mein Kampf to be "unbearably badly written".
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What about that new Ibanez Artcore? Same "problem" with too large F-holes. But I have to admit it looks damn sexy with the worn wood look.
And check out that bridge. Remind me a lot of a TH bridge by a certain Czech company 8)
(http://www.dawsons.co.uk/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/a/g/agbv205a-tcl_-_front_1.jpg)
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I like it. The body is a bit larger and the F-holes don't bother me.
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I'm not sure the Artcore body is bigger, although it looks that way at first glance. The waist appears to be lower than on the Gibson and the f-holes are definitely placed lower; that makes the upper bouts seem wider and the body larger.
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You're probably right; to me the visual is better.
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I played one today. Didn't mean to, the guy at the store kind of shoved it on me. Played it through a 2X8 TC Electronics combo (BG250-208? (http://www.tcelectronic.com/bg250-208/)).
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1709/24858840479_05ae4a385b_o.jpg)
A few observations:
1. It sounded nice! Came strung with flatwounds which is kind of surprising in this day and age - looks like they are stock - nice fat sound.
2. The tuners are small open back Hipshots in matte finish - that was weird! Looked very out of place to me - in my opinion they didn't match the aesthetic of the bass.
3. The different pickups didn't sound that different. Neck pup soloed wasn't that different from both pups together, and even the bridge pup soloed wasn't as thin sounding as I would expect, though it's obviously related to the fact that it's strung with flats.
4. My hair is definitely thinning on top.
5. I was much more impressed with the $250 Tobias Toby Deluxe IV (http://www.epiphone.com/Products/Bass/Toby-Deluxe-IV.aspx) - the Les Paul I put down pretty quick, but the Toby I played for 5-10 minutes.
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I like it. The body is a bit larger and the F-holes don't bother me.
Exactly... though I would ad "as much" to the end personally. I could live with it.
Thanks for the propaganda Uwe - never new that about the sustain blocks.
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Hiero, the flats are stock, they even specifically mentioned that when it first was shown at the Messe Frankfurt.
And you're right about the puny modern tuners - I guess they did anything to make it not neck heavy. Which it isn't, but they stand out visually like sore thumbs. From behind at least (Mark, absolutely no adolescent comments now, inviting as the combo of "thumb" and "behind" might be!).
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Can you blame him; he's already down under.
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Only from a Canadian viewpoint! I meant the former Fräulein Rommel, not Aussie-Mark though both wear wigs from time to time and, lamentably so, inappropriate clothing. But from a Toronto perspective, even Seattle/Tacoma is "down south" I guess! :mrgreen:
One nation under ... Canada! ;D
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As soon as I posted that I figured I might be thinking of the wrong Mark.
Pffft Seatle ain't down under anything.... except sea water in the next decade or 3.
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As soon as I posted that I figured I might be thinking of the wrong Mark.
I think we can all agree that the other Mark is the "wrong" Mark
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Hiero, the flats are stock, they even specifically mentioned that when it first was shown at the Messe Frankfurt.
Definitely an interesting move to ship it stock with flats. I assumed Chromes because of the color of the silks but I could easily be wrong.
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Somebody broke one already...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gibson-Memphis-ES-Les-Paul-Bass-Faded-Darkburst-/401086188265?
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Somebody broke one already...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gibson-Memphis-ES-Les-Paul-Bass-Faded-Darkburst-/401086188265?
It's a Gibby - what else do you expect? It's just the natural order of things exerting itself.
But if I wanted one, I'd be tracking that one. Looks easily repairable.
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I've seen way worse breaks. That one could be taken care of in short order, but I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't get bid up to some astronomically high amount.
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It's a Gibby - what else do you expect? It's just the natural order of things exerting itself.
But if I wanted one, I'd be tracking that one. Looks easily repairable.
Agreed!
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I've seen way worse breaks. That one could be taken care of in short order, but I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't get bid up to some astronomically high amount.
It was bid up to $1200 and sold, but it is relisted a day later.
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Yup.. I had it in my watch list and wasn't shocked when I saw the 1200. It was relisted so quickly that it makes me wonder if it was shill bidding by the the seller, then again it could also be someone got overly exited and bid as if it weren't broken only to back out after the fact. Anything over 750 for it is kind of nuts in my opinion.