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EB 2013 bass


onemanband

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I've had an interesting development with my vintage red 2014 EB. I posted about it here:

 

http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/109154-new-eb-2014-good-and-not-so-good-news/page__gopid__1476684#entry1476684

 

Fit and finish are good in the main. The grainy nature of the wood actually looks good and the finish is satin not gloss as has been claimed for the 2014 over the 2013. The Babicz bridge is ace, I've fitted one to a Jazz and know how good they are.

 

The fret ends are okay too and the fretboard it a meaty lump of rosewood. It looks like the variable QC department got it right with this one. Saying that there is an annoying bump on the finish at the neck end alongside the volute and I did find one little run.

 

I actually like the 120th anniversary logo at the 12th fret.

 

The tone is full on and I like it. I particularly like the bridge pickup and that surprised me a little as I expected to prefer the neck pup. The series/parallel switching is much more subtle than I expected.

 

I fitted a thin and cheap nylon Levi's strap and the headstock made an abrupt dive for the floor. Given what I've read about these I was surprised. I fitted my Comfort Strapp and all is good if a little bit of a pull on my shoulder.

 

It looks like the knobs on the push/pull pots MAY be glued on to prevent them coming loose when the push/pull is operated.

 

BEWARE!

 

I'm awaiting a new harness made with a CTS tone and Alpha volume pots (I don't think the originals are Alpha's) and I've ordered new and slightly different knobs in black with no tone or volume writing. I may be only a bassist but I can remember that :)

 

Peter

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I'm awaiting a new harness made with a CTS tone and Alpha volume pots (I don't think the originals are Alpha's) and I've ordered new and slightly different knobs in black with no tone or volume writing. I may be only a bassist but I can remember that :)

 

Peter

 

Remembering which pot does what can be a challenge if you have several bass guitars and all of them have a slightly different control layout. I suppose I could rewire them to be the same, but it's easier to just look at a label now and then. The one that has no labels is the fretless 'Bird, and that one confuses me all the time. I wired it up, so you would think I would remember what everything does, but you would be wrong!

 

The Ric is set up one way, the EB-2 was monkeyed with before I got it and its controls do something else. The P makes sense, because it is so basic. The 'Bird makes no sense because I wired it up. The cheezy Japanese hollow body only has a volume control, but it works backwards. For that one, it would be easier to just wire the pickup straight to the jack anyway. It would be more in keeping with the goofy nature of that bass anyway. Then there are the guitars...

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An update. After investigating the original Gibson wiring and realising that what I thought was a series/parallel switching was in fact series/single coil with a capacitor (coil tap?) I wondered what a proper series parallel circuit would achieve given that I found the original arrangement a bit subtle.

 

So I fitted a full series/parallel arrangement with a pickup series parallel global on the tone control. I also salvaged the original knobs from the pot spindles. The 2nd one came away like the first. I think that if you need to remove the splined push fit knobs then wiggling them off May well work instead of the conventional wisdom with a straight put. The spindle will come with them if you do this.

 

The bass is absolutely transformed. I've fitted Chromes and with series/series/series I'm reminded of my old Chris Squire Ric. Parallel tames things and the whole circuit is better for tone and volume control.

 

It's been completely worthwhile. The installed circuit is a DiMarzio design.

 

Peter

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  • 3 months later...

I'm, doing a deal on my Fender Am. Std. Fretless Jazz for an EB. An EB 2014 4 string , Natural Vintage Gloss. Thursday June, 19th should be delivery day. [thumbup]

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I'm, doing a deal on my Fender Am. Std. Fretless Jazz for an EB. An EB 4 string , Natural Vintage Gloss. Thursday June, 19th should be delivery day. [thumbup]

 

Sweet! msp_thumbup.gif I wish the Gibson dealers around here would stock these things; I've been wanting to try one since they first came out... Does it come with a case?

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Sweet! msp_thumbup.gif I wish the Gibson dealers around here would stock these things; I've been wanting to try one since they first came out... Does it come with a case?

 

It comes with a flat, rectangular case. This guy weighs in at 8 pounds, with a Swamp Ash body.

I guess because of the cost of bringing in more stock, stuff isn't there to try out. But it gets to the point where if you're going to sell something you have something there. I still like being able to try out a bass at the local store, but I would be ordering one sight unseen, because in most cases the only model there has been trashed by players who don't know how to play a bass without scratching, or dinging it up. Sweetwater.com's Guitar Gallery has been good for me. I can at least see that particular bass before I order it, or choose from whatever they have in stock.

If the local shop would have a couple of something, floor model, and in the stock room, you'd have a bit of a choice, and get a fresh bass.

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I gather that part of your unpacking of a new bass includes removing the strings and installing the D'Addario ETB92 strings on them.

 

Changing out to the Nylons, removing the protective film from the PG, and the normal checking out the playability of it.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello from Belgium,

 

 

first of all, nice to meet you and my apologizes for my bad English ( don't hesitate, let me know about my mystakes)

 

So, I'm a newbie here ^^ , I'm not an owner of a Gibson.

 

I love the style and design of the TB, Sg bass etc etc ... But I'm a 5 strings bass player, and I always choose and played modern basses, you know : yamaha trb, spector bass, status graphite, Ibanez Btb, warwcick etc ....

modern design, exoctic woods, preamp 5 bands with digital screen with dubble usb connection... [biggrin]

 

And I Never found the " graal".

This year, I will be 35 years and maybe the wisedom is coming ^^

I thought about a lot of famous bassists, rock , jazz player, beloved bassists and I told me " but, you're never see these guys with a ******* modern bass, exotic wood, monster preamp, no just "basses" passive, simple and elegant, no exotic wood but classic color..."

 

So I bought a yamaha bb425 and wtf happends ?? I love that.....A simple PB/ JB passive, what a great feeling.

 

So know I would like to get something more " durable " than my yamaha :

 

this is my whishlist :

 

1 -Gibson eb 2014 5 strings

 

2 - fender jazz bass MIM

 

3 - yamaha bb1025x....

 

So now, what I want from you :rolleyes:

 

Give the good arguments to choose the gibson.

Why should I choose the gibson instead of the other bass...

it's my favorite, but you knwon, not sure, my first gibson ( not a cheap bass, so quite a lot of money)....please " make " me a good disciple [thumbup]

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Hello from Belgium,

So now, what I want from you :rolleyes:

 

Give the good arguments to choose the gibson.

Why should I choose the gibson instead of the other bass...

it's my favorite, but you knwon, not sure, my first gibson ( not a cheap bass, so quite a lot of money)....please " make " me a good disciple [thumbup]

 

Hello and welcome!

 

Finding the right bass that has "that sound" is a difficult task, especially if you can't compare them side be side. I've been playing for 45 years and have owned many basses: Fenders, Rics, Yamahas, Ibanez, Aria Pro IIs, and of course Gibsons. Right now, I have 7 basses and like all of them, but I really only play 2 - a 2001 Gibson Les Paul Standard, and a 2006 Gibson Les Paul Double Cut. I love my Gibsons - nothing else even comes close to the sound I'm after. I can go into a Guitar Center or Sam Ash store, try several basses, and leave wanting nothing! Over the years I've had a lot of basses that I thought I liked, but the Gibsons are the only ones that I won't part with.

 

The EB with an ash body and maple neck interests me, and it's on my wish list too. I think it would be a versatile bass with it's electronics. I have a couple of 80's MIJ Aria Pro II basses that are ash with maple necks that I like very much - great tone & sustain, so a Gibson EB with that wood combination could only be better!

 

Everyone's idea of "that sound" is different. Only you can decide what's right for you eusa_think.gif.

 

Here is a pic of my current crop (the Yamaha was sold). I like them all, but only the Gibsons get to go out and play!

th_Bassesgroupshot001_zps59740551.jpg

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  • 4 months later...

I just bought a used 2013 EB. It will be here tomorrow, according to the UPS tracking number. I was intrigued by them when they first came out, but didn't really need another bass, and I'm not a Jazz bass kind of guy anyway. The EB is more similar to a Jazz than much of anything else, so I didn't bite. Then one popped up for a really good price, so I bought it. The tort pickguard has to go, but otherwise, it will be an interesting addition to the arsenal. When I originally played one in a shop, I thought it was a great alternative to a USA Fender at a hair under $1000. This was the first used one I had ever seen, and it was a whole lot less than the original asking price for a new one. It was quite a bit cheaper than the blowout pricing they had on new ones when they were selling off the matt finish ones. So, it was irresistible.

 

Set necks resonate better, in my opinion, and the coil tapped pickups make for better versatility and less noise than a Jazz. So, what's not to like? Some people don't like the finish, but I think it's just fine, and the back of the neck doesn't feel sticky. I'm really looking forward to playing it and seeing what it can do. I figure the thin nitro will have holes in it soon enough, because that's what happened to the nitro on my P-Bass. The P started life as "Road Worn" but it's got a whole lot of real wear on it now. I expect the EB will develop the same kind of patina, because it's got a similar kind of finish. Thing is that a Gibson "relic" isn't as desirable for some reason. No matter. The point is playing it, and if it looks well played, that just means it's been loved.

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The EB is here, and I feel like a thief for getting such a great instrument. It's actually better than I remember the one I played in a shop being. The neck is a little rounder, and it's lighter than I was expecting. I don't think it's going to take over from the Precision, but it might give the Ric a bit of a challenge. It all depends on what it sounds like through a much bigger rig. The tone knob seems to work as a master volume knob a bit. It's an odd feature, but I'll get used to it. The strings that are on it are a little tinny. The are probably the original strings. It doesn't appear to have been played much, but I can tell that I'll wear through the finish fairly quickly if I play it all the time. That's hardly a problem in my book. It's just evidence of a well loved instrument. I'm happy it popped up when it did!

 

It resonates for a very long time.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Here's my beauty.

 

I love the E-Beast 13. I've gigged it through a TC BH500 and Aguilar 2x12 and it kills it. Preset 3 different basses into the memory and all of them make trouser flapping bass.

The drummer commented on how the D.I., through the P.A., kicked his ***. That's always a good sign!!![/size] [woot]

 

2it3ix3.jpg

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  • 1 month later...

I went out last night to hear a friend's blues band. He recently bought an EB bass off eBay, and I wanted to hear it in action. It sure sounded good - had a nice growl to it and cut through the mix nicely. I was impressed. msp_thumbup.gif

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And now there's a five-string!

BAEB5F5CH1-Finish-Shot-jpg.aspx?KeepThis=true&

 

 

Has anyone already tried one? What's the string spacing at bridge? How does the neck shape feel? How does the B-string sound?

 

A friend of mine bought one a few weeks ago, I played it for a couple hours at a practice session. Even though I'd never played a five string, it was easy to play. The neck did feel quite wide, but I adapted to it easier than I thought I would. The pickups were real ballsy, I was quite impressed. I really liked the bass, but would be more likely to buy the four string than the five if I ever was in the market for one.

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