Sneak pics of "The EB"????

[Blackbird]

FAIL.

Looks like a Musicman/Fender Bronco mix. 

[gweimer]

Looks vaguely familiar...

[uwe]

+1 on the Bronco ingredient!

[Dave W]

What did any of you expect from them that this doesn't meet? They already have their traditional styles, they already have the mahogany bass market, they aren't going to reintroduce the failed 80s RD and Victory styles with those headstocks, they aren't going to produce another Continental V. They've left the vast majority of the market alone -- the Fender and Fender-inspired designs -- and now they want in. I would expect a 2 + 2 headstock, a Fender/MM/G&L inspired body design (and woods), and we already had heard what the pickups were going to be like. That's what this is, so it doesn't surprise me.

Boring? Maybe. And maybe it will succeed. An exciting all-new design would probably wind up meeting the same fate as the Victory and RD.

[Pilgrim]

The shape hints of Fender to me, and to explain the EB-F nomenclature, I'll offer "EB-Fender".

[gearHed289]

That bass is a turd. They should save their money and axe plans to build it immediately. 

A friend of mine has one of those bridges. They're nice, but I hate the look of the printed logo. Reminds me of something out of the 80s. Like when Steinberger put their name on the body (since there was nowhere else to put it...).

[Blackbird]

They'd sell more 20/20's if I were to bet...

[TBird1958]

Boring...........

Not too much excitement from me either, I'm not likely to be buying.  ( Hell I'm still trying to justify an Oversized LP, I love 'Birds too much  ) That said, I applaud the effort, it breaks some ground with the bridge and pickups and no doubt tonally as well.

I find it far more more applealing than anything ther clowns at 7ender have come up with -
I swear they must have velcro sticky cutouts of their parts that just throw at drawing........i.e Reverse Jaguar.

[uwe]

I'm with Dave, they wanted a model with broad appeal making inroads with new markets, not something to wet the eyes of the already converted. It's probably a good bass too. But it will likely be too expensive and not receive enough promotion to be a winner.

The Mon(k)ey basses were good, modern, but not too modern instruments too with great ergonomics and a double octave neck, they went nowhere.

[gweimer]

It makes me wonder why the Bass IV didn't go further.

[nofi]

the money bass was boring, like looking at an ibanez.

[Basvarken]

Hmm I don't think (most) Ibanez basses are boring at all...

[uwe]

It makes me wonder why the Bass IV didn't go further.

Its designer wanted it to go out competively priced - 600 bucks or so - but Henry J put a four digit price tag to it. So what was supposed to be the ergonomic TBird for the masses, became a highly priced bass with very plain looks. And then the TBird reiissue arrived and people were hardly inclined to pay almost as much for a IV or V.

[gweimer]

Its designer wanted it to go out competively priced - 600 bucks or so - but Henry J put a four digit price tag to it. So what was supposed to be the ergonomic TBird for the masses, became a highly priced bass with very plain looks. And then the TBird reiissue arrived and people were hardly inclined to pay almost as much for a IV or V.

Interesting.  On the other side of the coin, I thought that the Fender Zone Deluxe was an attempt to compete with the Gibson sound. It was a nice bass when I tried one, but at $1800, I thought it was also too high.

[Dave W]

...

A friend of mine has one of those bridges. They're nice, but I hate the look of the printed logo. Reminds me of something out of the 80s. Like when Steinberger put their name on the body (since there was nowhere else to put it...).

Maybe the production model will have Gibson's name on it.