Gibson SG Bass

[MEKer]

Questions:

Does it neck dive at all?

Is there mud in the humbuckers?

How truly clear are the highs?

Does it handle effects well?

[wvbass]

That was funny. Mud in the 'buckers indeed.

[jeffreylee]

I considered a Gibson EBO a few years ago. Mid sixties, looked great, and well priced. It sounded and played great unplugged too. Awesome neck. Then I went for the amp test. Pure mud. I struggled to come up with a situation where I could use that sound - I mostly play in rock bands and need clarity and punch. Then I tried the strap test. The headstock went straight to the floor. Holding up a heavy mahogany neck whilst trying to play for an hour or two didn't excite me either, so I passed on the bass. It would be great for playing unplugged whilst sitting around the house though.

[mr.mow]

I've had 3..
Don't neck dive, mud is subjective.. Through a fat valve amp with loads of grind they're awesome, just learn to bump the mids.. I've gigged them heavily, always worked well, you want clear highs buy an active jazz bass. You want fat middy grind, SG is awesome.

They're not for everyone.

[hdracer]

Originally Posted by jeffreylee

I considered a Gibson EBO a few years ago. Mid sixties, looked great, and well priced. It sounded and played great unplugged too. Awesome neck. Then I went for the amp test. Pure mud. I struggled to come up with a situation where I could use that sound - I mostly play in rock bands and need clarity and punch. Then I tried the strap test. The headstock went straight to the floor. Holding up a heavy mahogany neck whilst trying to play for an hour or two didn't excite me either, so I passed on the bass. It would be great for playing unplugged whilst sitting around the house though.

Complete BS by someone that has never really played one. Please keep your internet BS to yourself.



The SG bass is not a EB-0 or EB-3. It looks like them but is completely different.

The SG neck pick up looks like the old one but is completely different. It isn't as muddy but it still has some of the vintage mud. Some (myself included) say it is thin sounding. I replaced mine. There are a lot of very good ones like Curtis Novak makes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vYiNpBAr3Q
That is done with a EB-0 the pick up fits right into a SG. If you dial in some of the SG bridge pup it gets even brighter with more bite.

The bridge pick up is bright and puts out a lot of very nice clear highs.

Neck dive,
The SG really doesn't have neck dive. What it does have is what I call body roll out.
The body wants to roll out and away from you. It is cured by resting your wrist or forearm on the bass. I have used it on stage plenty of times playing songs where the band stops and starts clapping with the crowd during a drum solo. With both my hands clapping above my head the bass rolls out but the headstock does not dive to the floor.

One of the great things about the SG is it's light weight 6.5-7.5 pounds is normal.

They have their own sound. You are not going to EQ it to sound like a Jazz bass or Sting Ray. I use it for Classic Rock (Tube head on OD= Jack Bruce sound) and blues. I love the nice tones I get playing blues, with a creamy tubey amp and 15's it fits in so nice.

I would not recommend it in a loud guitar heavy hard rock setting, it will get lost in the mix (that's when I grab my Ray)

It is extremely easy and fun to play. I use mine to work out new songs on even if I am not going to use it in a band setting.

[Stewie26]

The pups on a modern SG are actually the same pups that Gibson uses on their T-birds.
The PU covers look like the old humbuckers and are for cosmetics only. I love my SG and have been using it for the classic rock cover band I am in. As said above, you will have to bump your mids on the amp EQ. I have gotten a lot of good compliments on my tone from bandmates and other musicans since I switched to the SG. The neck is also very fast and comfortable.

[wvbass]

Originally Posted by hdracer

Complete BS by someone that has never really played one. Please keep your internet BS to yourself.

Hard to be much ruder than that.

Gibson TB pickups are pretty bassy and a bit treble shy. Don't get me wrong; they can sound good, but setting your amp "flat" may not be optimal as it is with, say, a jazz bass. A good place to start is by dialing the lows back on the amp just a bit. This allows the midrange character of the pickup to not be overpowered by the low end. The SG also has that TB pickup very far forward - all the way against the neck. This will also help to accentuate the lows and mute the top end. All of this makes the bridge pickup very important.

So, what am I trying to say? This bass is probably like other Gibsons where the neck pickup is a bit too far forward. It can sound great if you blend the pickups just so and get it eq'd at the amp, but you can also easily make it sound like poo.

Fwiw, my current #1 is a Gibson. It is not an SG, but it does have similar pickups.

Edit: Is it just me, or is the bridge on that SG in the video installed backwards?

[DrSpunkwater]

Originally Posted by wvbass

Hard to be much ruder than that.

Except that he's right. It is complete BS. The headstock dives very little, if at all, when you're wearing a halfway decent strap. "Heavy mahogany neck" is absolute malarkey. Basses don't get much lighter than the SG bass unless you pick up a Hofner.