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Gene Simmons LoBue Tribute Build

#201
Another thought: I have not come across any quotes by Micki Free about the LoBue. One story (of the 3 i've read so far) is that Gene lent it to Micki and never saw it again.

Has anyone asked him outright if it is true? Maybe he doesn't want to publicly contradict Gene... :)

Anyone know Micki and can ask him? I'd love to hear what he has to say...
 
#202
Ironfingers said:
What bass is this then? If this is a pic of the KISS album session then it can't be the Lobue, that wasn't painted black until 1975.

It's either a black EB-0 or another Lobue, but I've never read of him having another one. One more mystery, which I'm finding a lot of the more research I do on this thing...
Click to expand...

Maybe you should adjust the setting of your monitor because I seem him playing the LoBue in it's original brown guise.
 
#203
Ironfingers said:
What bass is this then? If this is a pic of the KISS album session then it can't be the Lobue, that wasn't painted black until 1975.

It's either a black EB-0 or another Lobue, but I've never read of him having another one. One more mystery, which I'm finding a lot of the more research I do on this thing...
Click to expand...

Maybe the pic isn't from 75?
 
#204
Ironfingers said:
What bass is this then? If this is a pic of the KISS album session then it can't be the Lobue, that wasn't painted black until 1975.

It's either a black EB-0 or another Lobue, but I've never read of him having another one. One more mystery, which I'm finding a lot of the more research I do on this thing...
Click to expand...

I cleared it up a little. Whatever it is, it does not have a chrome mudbucker on it.
 

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#208
THand said:
I wasn't gong to mention that..but how do we KNOW this is THE Kiss album session?

Gene and Paul did do studio work too, ya know?
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Let's see, LoBue in that studio picture has its stock configuration, Gene (Or his tech) didn't start modifying it until early 1975.
LoBue1975a.jpg

Note the single Coil being swapped for what I suspect is a Gibson Ripper pickup.

So the picture DEFINITELY isn't from 1975.
 
#209
Ironfingers said:
I will admit that I am looking at it on the crappy laptop I have at work. I'll look again when I get home.
Click to expand...

It looks like the Lobue bass... but the Lobue wasn't black in the beginning. There's lots of photos of him playing it with the natural finish. Did he have it painted before the sessions?

I hadn't read the whole thread through when I posted the EB-0, but Gene says he sold the Fender with the mudbucker and had the Lobue built.

The early albums do sound like a mudbucker though. It has that grunt.
 

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#210
SGD Lutherie said:
It looks like the Lobue bass... but the Lobue wasn't black in the beginning. There's lots of photos of him playing it with the natural finish. Did he have it painted before the sessions?

I hadn't read the whole thread through when I posted the EB-0, but Gene says he sold the Fender with the mudbucker and had the Lobue built.

The early albums do sound like a mudbucker though. It has that grunt.
Click to expand...

Wait a minute, Gibson offered the EB-3 (And the EB-0 too) with the option of a built in Fuzz. Gene's sound from the Lobue was very thick and buzzy and he doesn't use pedals. (I mean, with those heels?)

So that Mysterious third knob, could it be that that LoBue has a Built-in fuzz unit?
LoBue1977a.jpg

Look at the back of the bass in the far right picture: that backplate looks way bigger than needed if it just houses a Volume and tone controls.

I think I figured it out, the reason why it has three knobs and why the lower two are so close together. It has a built in fuzz unit with the two knobs being for gain and range.

That HAS to be it!
 
#212
Blazer said:
Wait a minute, Gibson offered the EB-3 (And the EB-0 too) with the option of a built in Fuzz. Gene's sound from the Lobue was very thick and buzzy and he doesn't use pedals. (I mean, with those heels?)
Click to expand...

If you ever played a bass with a mudbucker, you would immediately recognize that tone. Listen to Jack Bruce for another example, or London Calling or Police and Thieves by the Clash.

He also used an SVT. Put the two together and there you go.

So that Mysterious third knob, could it be that that LoBue has a Built-in fuzz unit?
Click to expand...

Not sure. Maybe the bass had two pickups once?

You know when bands are that big they have guitar techs in the back that turn pedals on and off. He also has echo going on. The bass has no switch for a fuzz.
 
#213
SGD Lutherie said:
If you ever played a bass with a mudbucker, you would immediately recognize that tone. Listen to Jack Bruce for another example, or London Calling or Police and Thieves by the Clash.

He also used an SVT. Put the two together and there you go.



Not sure. Maybe the bass had two pickups once?

You know when bands are that big they have guitar techs in the back that turn pedals on and off. He also has echo going on. The bass has no switch for a fuzz.
Click to expand...

You said yourself that you hadn't read the previous posts, if you had you might have read that I'm familiar with EB-3's because of having owned one. Gene's tone from the stock single coil pickup on the first album is actually quite similar to the tone I got from the bridge pickup from my EB-3, that Jack Bruce grunt.

Also because during the first three years they were broke as **** I really doubt that Gene used Ampegs. The pictures of his days in Wicked Lester and indeed the studio picture show him using Sunn SOLID STATE amps, because that was probably the only thing he could afford.
120.gif
 
#216
You know, re-reading this thread actually shows how resourceful Gene had to be with his Gear, certainly in the old days when they simply had no pot to piss in.

The earliest pictures show him using The LoBue and his Fender as back up and one or Two Sunn Heads through god knows what kind of Cabs.
kiss_72_001_lg.jpg

So it makes sense for him to be using that on the first album since he didn't own that much gear-wise back then.
 
#218
Jaymi said:
Notice all of the egg crates on the wall and ceiling too
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They talk about that in the "When Kiss ruled the world" special, because they had no dime to spend, they all moved into the rehearsal space which was cold and damp, the Egg crates were an effort to get some insulation going and to improve the sound.


Go to around 3:30 to hear them talk about that.

They were POOR.
 
#220
Blazer said:
Let's see, LoBue in that studio picture has its stock configuration, Gene (Or his tech) didn't start modifying it until early 1975.
LoBue1975a.jpg

Note the single Coil being swapped for what I suspect is a Gibson Ripper pickup.

So the picture DEFINITELY isn't from 1975.
Click to expand...

What I am saying is, Gene and Paul did studio work for other bands,....How do we know that pic is from the Kiss album session, and not something else?
 

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