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Epiphone bass identification help...


Desertguy

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Hi people,

 

I was recently given an Epiphone 5 string bass. I didn't really have a use for it but a friend of my young son wants to learn bass so I thought I'd pass it on to him. It worked when I was first given it but I pulled it out of the case today and plugged it in and got nothing. I changed the battery, still nothing - lead, amp etc are all good.

 

I assume something in the active circuitry has gone down but I don't know what to look for as I can't find any reference to what model this bass is. Can anyone put a name or model number to this bass please? Any idea where I could get a new circuit for it?

 

epiphone.jpg

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That is an EBM-5 - made during the 90's

 

Here is my Wiki for that particular bass.

 

 

You'd probably be best off taking it to a good repair shop for an evaluation. Dont be surprised when the guitar tech gets a puzzled look on his face and says "I've never seen one of these before".

 

Other than that, you might be better off ditching the actives and putting in passive pickups. It's somewhat difficult to find parts for these basses.

 

Also, it isnt uncommon for the electronics to go bad on these. Mine did a week after I bought it brand new in 1993. Luckily, Epi fixed it for me pronto. The pots are inherently noisy and crackle alot. Expect this if you get it fixed. Other than that, its a great bass. I love it and I still have mine - plus the 6 string model. I wouldnt trade them for the world.

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Thanks for that mate. The trouble is, I'm in Saudi Arabia - no guitar techs out here! Like I said though, this was a freebie to me and I'm passing it on to a young boy as a freebie so I don't want to start spending huge amounts of $$ on it, I'd just like to get it up and running.

 

Are you aware of anywhere that may stock parts for it?

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Unless its just a broken wire to the input jack, I really dont see a cheap fix for it. All of the potentiometers are soldered directly to the pre-amp circuit board along with everything else in the control cavity, making it a tough fix.

 

Epi doesnt support them anymore. I couldnt even get correct bridge saddle replacements for mine...another specialized part made to fit only this model. My tech's "professional" opinion was to replace the bridge.

 

I recently had a problem with my input jack . I plugged it in and got nothing. But if I wiggled the cord enough at the input jack, it got some signal in the form of cracking and popping. Turns out that the prongs inside of the jack werent springing up anymore due to years of use. I doubt this is the case for you, but its worth a shot.

Wiggle that cord and see if you get signal. If not, open up the cavity and check to make sure the wires are still soldered to it. Also, there are other wires in there that could have come loose. See if you have any strays.

 

My only other suggestion, due to your location, would be to take it to an electronics repair shop and have them pinpoint the problem for you and go from there.

 

Let me know what you find.

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A mate of mine had a quick look for me and the only thing that's unusual is that the jack socket is a stereo type, not mono. I thought that was unusual but jerrymac suggested that it could use the second lug to turn the battery circuit on and off, which certainly makes sense. Anyway, my mate told me today that the jack socket is shorting out so we'll replace it and see what happens. He said there's nothing else obviously wrong on the board, ie, nothing burnt or broken.

 

I'll post what we find over the next few days...

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If its the original input jack, it should be gold and completely enclosed with no nut on the outside...just a flange with some knurling. Quite possible its a replacement.

 

Also, if that doesnt work, check/test the wires to and from the battery hookup. They are pretty chinsey. I had to have mine relaced at some point. I totally forgot about that. The 9 volt plug is pretty crappy and alot of times fails to make contact with the battery...especially if it has been jostled a bit. I've had this happen mid-gig. No fun. Nowadays I keep a piece of foam in there so that the battery doesnt move around and come undone.

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Success! The jack socket's knackered. It's the original socket too but the trouble is, we've looked before for that type of socket out here and we can't find them, so it'll be an online order and a couple of weeks delay. Oh well, at least it'll be a reasonably inexpensive fix!

 

Are these things worth a great deal? The young fella I'm giving it to has said that he'd like it all black - body and hardware etc. I can get the body repainted out here and I can powder coat all the hardward gloss black but I'd try and talk him out of it if it was reasonably collectable or worth a chunk of cash...

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Congrats! Good thing its just the input jack. Easy fix!

 

The EBM basses are on the rare side. The 4 string models are the most common, but the 5 string model is less common...and the 6 string model (called the "expert-6") is the rarest of the them. The common price for them used is about $250 - $300 on ebay. Slightly less than retail when they were new ($350 - $400 US).

 

They may be collectors item someday, but right now they are just a discontinued model. I did notice that when Epi re-released the EM-2 (guitar version of the EBM bass) the selling prices on ebay for used 90's EM-2s jumped about $150. If Epi ever re-releases the EBM series bass, I would expect the same.

 

My personal opinion on the tobacco burst (like yours) is that they were the ugliest of the bunch, right next to the powder blue ones. I would probably paint it too. Actually, I have always entertained the thought of stripping it to bare wood and staining it.

 

I hope your son's friend likes it. I know I do. These basses produce a mean growly punch with loads of attack...and a nice feel with great playbility. The nut and bridge are not as wide as most standard 5 string basses, making them easier to get around the neck. You may want to play with it awhile and see how YOU like it :-

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Apparently stewmac will be shipping my new jack plug today!

 

I had a brief play with this bass when it was first given to me. I can't remember what the sound was like but I do know the action is horrible and needs a little attention. But, that's the only think I could really fault with this particular bass. I do like the narrow neck on it but my regular bass is a 5 string Parker Fly and the neck on it is even narrower!

 

If I had kept it, my intention was to repaint the body a metallic green and powder coat all the hardware candy green. I despise tobacco sunburst on any guitar - just hate the look. If this one does end up getting customized, I think it'll end up all black. The new owner is only 12 so I might try and talk him into being a little more imaginative than all black. Mind you, anything's better than that gack aweful sunburst!

 

Thanks for all the info Robin

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I despise tobacco sunburst on any guitar - just hate the look. .......... Mind you' date=' anything's better than that gack aweful sunburst!

 

[/quote']

 

 

Ok, your losin' me now DesertGuy :-k I gotta admit the paint job on this baby could be a little better but I just cant twist my mind enough to understand how a thunderbird for example can possibly look bad in traditional Tobacco burst. Each to their own I guess.

 

If it does end up full black then maybe you could pimp it with some Nikki Sixx style Crosses?

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The thing I like least about this burst is the tear drop. Its the same burst they use on the LP Jr. and just doesnt fit the body shape of this bass. Looks odd. Bursts look good on the right guitar/bass. I have a Squire Std with a QMT Antique Burst and it looks awesome. A nice deep gray with black hardware might look really nice on that EBM.

 

I would definately do something with that gold hardware though. It fades and looks bad after awhile. Also, check those saddle screws on the bridge. Mine corroded to the saddles and I had to replace two of them. Makes it difficult to adjust the action down. The action on these basses can go quite low.

 

One more thing, while I remember. Check the neck joint on the top where the fretboard scoops down to the body. Is it flush? If it is below the body, you have to shim the neck to bring it up. Otherwise you will never get the action low enough. It should be anywhere from flush to 1/16" higher than the body depending on neck relief, saddle height, taste, etc...but never lower than the body. If someone removed the neck at some point, it is possible that the shim fell out and thats why the action is so bad. The factory shim in mine looked like a piece of plastic banding for wrapping pallets & boxes...probably was. From the pic, the neck looks like it has too much relief. But thats just a pic. Could be playing tricks on my eyes or the angle of the bass.

 

Hey great thread guys. Very interesting info on a bass I have never seen.

 

Thanks, man. Sometimes I think that I'm the only person on the planet that knows a lick about these basses except for Epiphone, but they arent talking :-k

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Ok' date=' your losin' me now DesertGuy :- I gotta admit the paint job on this baby could be a little better but I just cant twist my mind enough to understand how a thunderbird for example can possibly look bad in traditional Tobacco burst. Each to their own I guess.

 

If it does end up full black then maybe you could pimp it with some Nikki Sixx style Crosses?[/quote']

I've just never like sunburst on any guitar. I never really liked transparent finishes either where you could see the wood grain through the colour but I changed my attitude when my Parker arrived!

 

...A nice deep gray with black hardware might look really nice on that EBM.

Not a bad idea

 

I would definately do something with that gold hardware though. It fades and looks bad after awhile.

Yeah, it looks aweful right now. Even if he wants to keep it standard, I might suggest that he let me redo all the hardware in gold powder coat.

 

The neck's sitting slightly proud and the neck joint screw heads don't show any marks...

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