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Epiphone basses

I'd love to see Epiphone do a loving tribute early non-batwing Newport like my 61.
Cherry red, with the open book Gibson style headstock.
With all the love for short scales these days, I think they'd go over great guns!
Balanced, lightweight and IMHO, better looking version of the EB0.
One of the few Epi designs that weren't just " our version of a Gibson" basses.
 
I always regretted not buying one way back in the day they were released, but I never had the cash then.

You really missed out when the Les Paul Recording/Triumph basses were worth nothing in the vintage market. Around 1990 a friend loaned me one he was selling to try for a month, but I just couldn't bond with it. He only wanted $125 with the case!!! I knew a guy in Australia searching for one, I hooked the two of them up and one day I got a check in the mail from my friend for $20 as a finder's fee :thumbsup:

Too bad the Embassy didn't last long, it's better suited for a lot of players than a T-Bird but sounds pretty much the same. I played one at a jam session and really liked it.
 
I would love to see a modern update of the EB-3. I've had both the EB-0 and Eb-3 (long scale) and had issue with them both (balance and left arm extension. I felt like I was really reaching and I'm a tall dude.)

They need to increase the size of the body a little and reduce the size of the headstock and tuners so it balances a little better. Maybe two mini humbuckers instead of the Mudbucker and sidewinder. (The Embassy hardware in an SG body)

I think it would be cool to bring back the Ripper body with P/J pickups. Or they could do their version of a Gibson RD.
 
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I’d like to see the ripper/grabber reissued, but with the arrow headstock and as a medium scale. IMO most cool Gibson/Epiphone designs are ruined by being made a 34” scale. If I wanted long scale, I’d buy literally any other brand, especially with gibby body shapes. Just doesn’t balance, or look, right.
The other thing that would be awesome would be if they made a bass using the same body as the newly reissued Wilshire/coronet. It’d be a poor man’s serek!
 
I think as long as Gibson has influence over Epiphone, Epiphone will never reach its full potential as a bass manufacturer.

Gibson also never came anywhere close to where it could have been as a bass manufacturer.

Many times over the years, they would introduce a new, and different style bass (the RD series, the Victory) then, not give these new models sufficient time to catch on, label them as failures, and quickly discontinue them.

I know any business is in business to make money, and I never studied business or economics, but from my point of view, Gibson seemed to treat their bass models as red-headed step children, almost expecting them to fail.
What would I have done differently?
Polled bass players as much as possible, and if there seemed as if there was enough interest, offer certain bass models on a pre-paid arrangement.

I know, this would not have been so easy years ago but today, with the internet, instantaneous E-mails, and electronic funds tranfers?

But, what do I know?

I want both Epiphone and Gibson to succeed.

Mike
 
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How do you like that Rumblecat? I've been considering one.
I’ve only had it for a week, and haven’t had a chance to gig with it. It might be a while before that happens. But my impression from playing it in the basement is that I really really like it. It’s short scale, so if you don’t like ss you won’t like it. And if you don’t like the Gibson/Epiphone sound, that HH sound, you won’t like it. But for me, it checks all the boxes. And it’s light. It’s a keeper.
 
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I’ve only had it for a week, and haven’t had a chance to gig with it. It might be a while before that happens. But my impression from playing it in the basement is that I really really like it. It’s short scale, so if you don’t like ss you won’t like it. And if you don’t like the Gibson/Epiphone sound, that HH sound, you won’t like it. But for me, it checks all the boxes. And it’s light. It’s a keeper.

I have a Wildkat guitar I bought for the Bigsby; it's a really nice guitar and so I've been looking for the bass version.