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Les Paul Double Cut/"Money" Bass


vates

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Here are some pics of mine:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/mlody.gniewny/GibsonLPLTD

 

And here is my review on it, posted at TB not so long ago:

 

So... after two first gigs and several rehearsals I can only repeat that Gibby LP "Money" bass is a real gig-horsey

 

Very powerful yet lightweight with perfect balance, it is versatile enough to cover many sounds (from thumpy "motown" to edgy zing; btw, it slaps (sic!) so groovy that my stomach dances along the basslines - I wish I slapped more and better! ) but it's home environment is rock of all kinds. We play some sort of art-rock and this bass fits my band's needs perfectly. Plus I can play my fav' lines from Cream, Allman Brothers, Gov't Mule, Jethro Tull and so on (Gibby bassists) on my own and it sounds very similar to the "real thing" so it brings me a lot of joy

 

And here are the drawbacks:

- The sound is not that fancy as on many expensive modern basses. It makes a wall of sound, a huge punch and so on but it is not as sofisticated. But after all it makes it's job in band's mix perfectly. Esp.onstage.

- No belly-cut. But It's not a problem for me personally - I'm used to small acoustics.

- The stock strap pins were awful. I had to replace them with Schallers so it hangs safe now (and looks much better!)

- This "dollar" sign on the trussrod cover looked ridiculous. It's way better with a blank cover (or a custom-made "crown" sign as I've replaced with )

 

I can't figure any more cons at the moment. I'm up to use this bass extensively in the next few months so I'll maybe write some more later.

 

 

The bottom line.

Suprisingly (not for me ) Gibson has made a great bass. You should give it a try

 

Oh, yeah! And the satin-finished body is so smooth and feels so natural in my laps

 

 

I want to hear about your experience with this awesome instrument! :-s

Cheers!

 

Serge

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You made a comment in your review that struck a chord with me, you said," suprisingly(not for me) Gibson has made a great bass" thats the thing Gibson has made great basses all along but most people ignore them and go with the Fenders,don't get me wrong they are great basses also(I have several) I just think Gibson doesn't put as much of their resourses into their basses as they do their guitars. I think, that if they promoted their basses a little more and offered more variety they would take more market share of bass sales than they do now, I know that I would love to see some reissues like the EB-2, the RD Artist and a true reissie of the EB-3L .

since I can't resist I am posting a pick of my bass again.

DCP_0016.jpg

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I like your review but I would also say it's a great bass for Rock and Blues but so great for Jazz or Country. Gibson has always aimed their basses towards the rock market. I do agree that the "$" truss rod cover is a little silly. I also liked it better when they refered to it as the Les Paul Double Cut bass before they starting calling it the LP "Money" bass. My bass is one of the "Guitars Of The Week" series so it has the Midnight Manhattan finish and not the satin finish. The only thing I would change is the electronics. I feel that if it had active electronics it would be a bit more versital twords Jazz, Funk, and Country and make it a more rounded bass. That being said, I still love mine and she is a keeper!

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Here's mine. I'm not a bass player, I'm a guitar player but I needed something to write with. As far as Gibson not putting resources in basses. Well, I can only say as a consumer that since I can't find Gibson branded bass strings anywhere but they have like 82 varieties of guitar strings, banjo strings and mandolin strings, that their interest in basses is kinda spotty.

 

It's a nice bass, very loud, up front and punchy. I haven't played a lot of high end basses (remember, not a bass palyer, hehe) but I'm mentally comparign it to a early 90's American P-bass with lace sensors in it that I was taking care of for a year or so that was pretty unimpressive sonically (although the fit and finish were top notch).

 

DSC00053.jpg

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As you can see from my avatar, I also play guitar,but I consider myself a bassist first and a guitar player second.

That is a beautiful finish on that bass,wow, the thing that would make it optimal, would be. active electronics with a pickup blending knob.

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Thanks. The flame is kind of subtle on it and becomes indistinct towards the edges, but I like the color. As a guitarist, I usually leave my toggle in the middle and use indivvidual volumes to blend the sound I want so It's not tought for me to use, but I do still kinda wish the toggle was there for flexibility's sake. I gotta say objectively, the balance sucks. Body's too small/light, but it's not a big issue, just an observation.

 

The sound is great though.

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You're right rd_artist. THat sounds, weird, haha. THing is, you don't know me so you won't know how large or small I am in comparison to the bass, but here's a pic of me wearing it (lighting is terrible this time of day) and perhaps a better reference, side by side with a LP.

 

DSC00016a.jpg

 

DSC00017.jpg

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Thanks :) I was a little disappointed to see the rd standard released last year but no rd artist. To me, the electronics were always the defining feature of that series, weird body shape notwithstanding.

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I just purchased the RD Standard GTW to replace my Les Paul, it is a nice player, I am considering purchasing another one to mod with some active pickups and such.

It's not weird if you have been playing one as long as I have, I am the original owner of my RD Artist and I am so glad that I didn't want to mess it up by ripping out the electronics.

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Didn't mean weird in a bad way, man. I play explorers and other pointy shapes :) To me, I just felt that bringing an rd model back that was electronicaly the same as an explorer or flying v and not offering some modern interpretation fo the artist was kind of lame.

 

It'd be kind of like reissuing the Les Paul recording with two burstbuckers and a toggle, but calling a a LPR because it has a weird pickguard. I wasn't old enough to be palying guitars when the rd's were being made but I equate them with more than just a body style. Granted, their stock guitars are overall very good, which is really why I've continued to buy them. The looks are great too but not what makes them great instruments.

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