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Fender, Gibson, or Carvin?

Hi,

One of my friends, who also plays bass, told me once, "If you're starvin', go Carvin!"

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Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 

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Does Gibson makes basses? :D

They kinds sorta pretend to.

Unfortunately, the pseudo basses they offer are grossly overpriced.

Not because they cost a lot but because of what you get for your money.

Buying a GIbson bass is like ordering the super deluxe crabby cake meal at the drive through, then after you drive away discovering you only got the teeny tiny shrimpy snack.
 
They kinds sorta pretend to.

Unfortunately, the pseudo basses they offer are grossly overpriced.

Not because they cost a lot but because of what you get for your money.

Buying a GIbson bass is like ordering the super deluxe crabby cake meal at the drive through, then after you drive away discovering you only got the teeny tiny shrimpy snack.

Aaaand this is why Fender owns so much of the bass marketshare. I feel like gibson basses are just half-assed and overpriced.
 
I feel bad for bands that sign endorsement agreements with Gibson. The guitar players have great instruments to choose from, but the poor bass player is stuck with just a couple of models, most of which have terrible neck-dive, as I understand it.

EDIT: Funny cartoon, though - says the guy that owns Fender and Carvin basses and Gibson guitars. :)
 
I feel bad for bands that sign endorsement agreements with Gibson. The guitar players have great instruments to choose from, but the poor bass player is stuck with just a couple of models, most of which have terrible neck-dive, as I understand it.

EDIT: Funny cartoon, though - says the guy that owns Fender and Carvin basses and Gibson guitars. :)

Gibson doesn't do anything for their artists, even big names. I remember reading an interview with Vivian Campbell years ago and he was commenting that he liked his Les Paul but he hated being a Gibson artist as they didn't do anything for their artists.

Personally I have played Gibson basses that really impressed me, the problem is you have to REALLY look for a good once since Gibson has the worst QC in the industry, bar none.
 
The cartoon is cool.

I have a Carvin bass. That one and my Mexican P are my 2 main giggers. That Carvin feels expensive when you hold it and plays like a dream. From a technical perspective, the Carvin is the finest made bass of those 3, and that includes USA made fenders as well, but I'm really still a Fender guy. If I could only have one bass, it would be the MIM Precision I already have. It's as solid as any american one, and yes, I've played many, many american ones.
 
You couldn't pay me to play a Fender bass....... I would deliberate swerve my car to run over one tho.

To each their own, I'll keep my Gibsons.
 
Gibson Rippers are excellent. At least real vintage USA ones. Don't know about any reissues as I have only played originals.

Fender invented the bass guitar and nailed it.

Carvin makes wildly superior feeling imho basses for only slightly higher prices.

I love all three. I own a Carvin.
 
Hi,

I own a Gibson Thunderbird and I have to agree.

I wish I had a Thunderbird. I think those are cool. I own an RD Artist, that has a similar body style and active Moog electronics which I bought in 1980. I just gave it to my luthier with a new set of strings and asked him to make it playable again. It served me well for a long time and I thought it would be fun to bring it out of retirement. It's not a great bass but it's nostalgic. It was the second bass I purchased. The first bass I purchased was a Gibson Ripper that I bought in '76, similar to the Grabber but with dual pickups instead of a single moveable pickup. It was blond and beautiful. I wish I still had that bass. I liked it a lot but needed some money and sold it for $165. I see them going for $1295 now! Yikes!

I really didn't mean to start a p*ssing contest with my little cartoon. Being a Carvin owner I just thought it would be funny to tweak that cartoon a bit.

You may remember the Apple advertising commercial series featuring "PC" and "Mac". This is just parody. When I first saw this particular cartoon it was "PC, Mac, and Linux". Then I found one that said "Gibson, Fender, and Ibanez". I also own an Ibanez acoustic guitar that's more than 25 years old and it's been a great instrument.

My main axe is a Carvin LB76 that I've had for 18 years. I agree it's the best "bang for your buck" instrument available. I also own a Guild Pilot 5-string, a Fender Jazz Special (Japan), and a Fender Kingman acoustic bass guitar.


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Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
If I had to choose between the two bigger brands, I'd probably pick a Gibson Thunderbird over a Fender P or J. That being said, I do have a Jazz. It's nice to have "the Fender tone" in my arsenal, and variety is the spice of life, but I currently find Gibsons more satisfying to play and think they sound great.

Oddly enough, my favorite guitar is the Fender Telecaster. I guess my tastes turn the "Fender bass + Gibson guitar" stereotype on its head, but I like what I like.

As far as Carvins go, I've been consistently impressed with the ones I've played. Maybe I'll own one someday.