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Gibson 2019
- Thread starter rockscott
- Start date
great post and, actually, Im seeing your post coinciding with mine more than being a rebuttal......
One thing I will disagree with concerning established guitar companies is the criteria of less innovation marking a decline in success --- Innovation needs are market driven, arent they? This applies to the tech industry where the -est suffix applies (newest, latest, greatest, fastest, etc)......but with established guitar companies, a lot of their customers are based on tradition (See: Fender Precision Bass of which its blueprint standard model has been relatively unchanged since 1958)....With guitar companies trying newer innovations, they have to balance tradition with what is new....Can you imagine a cellphone manufacturer trying to do the same thing?...... Look at the "new" original version of the EB-0 double cutaway above (based on the Special body).......It has newer innovations on it but is based on one of their less popular but still a classic design......This is a great start for Gibson to balance innovation with tradition
Not rebutting. Just discussing. It’s an interesting topic that allows for many different angles and viewpoints. And your points are equally well taken.
I think a lot of it is that despite some bass players looking to expand or redefine their role in the larger musical context, the fact remains that the function and role of the bass is pretty straight forward and clear in most songs. So much so that the rest of the musical universe keeps picking up the adventurous little bass, praising it for its initiative, patting it on the head, and then firmly escorting it back in its designated seat. Because its fundamental role is too essential to most musical genres to allow the bass to wander too far from its main job description.
Kinda aggravating if you’re getting bored or you just want to take it elsewhere. But it is what it is.
Or so I think anyway.
yup.....thats the whole "format" subject........some folks prefer the bass guitar format to compose music on - finding it preferable to the guitar, keyboard, or other formats - and this is usually the domain where the extended range bass guitars come in......These shouldnt be called "extended range basses" as that name implies it has a primary function of being a bass support instrument in which many composition techniques, such as two-handed tapping, allow the instrument to be a full range tool just like a grand piano has bass notes but is a complete standalone composition instrument...same applies to the Chapman Stick.......
I like this, but wish it had two pickups, neck and middle/bridge.
Agree. Especially about the Chapman Stick which I keep wanting to like but end up not liking despite loving its fretboard logic and generally finding it easy to play. Maybe if I were Tony Levin I’d feel differently. But I’m definitely not on par with Tony Levin.
Compositional workflow is definitely a thing. I tend to write most of what I do by starting with a vocal (or solo instrument) melody plus a bass line and going from there. Usually my next step is structuring some texture and the overall vibe on keys and adding the percussion tracks. I hardly ever start by thinking about chord progressions first. Truth is, I invariably write (and struggle with
) the guitar parts last. A lot of it probably stems from me loving Baroque and Renaissance music and being a progger at heart. I tend to think in terms of polyphony rather than vertical chordal harmony.We are what we is.
Yup....me too, except Id rather have two in a mid and bridge (like J bass positioning)......If it did, Id be really really interested
Either way, not an option.
I would also much prefer this bass with a chrome pickup cover for a more classic look.
i actually like that it's a single pickup shortscale ... classic design, no frills rock bass!!!! no gloss, relatively cheap usa bass, - just rock n roll .... can't wait!!!
I saw a review where they pulled the pickguard on the guitar version and you could see that the maple block at the end of the neck extended a significant way into the body. Looks like Gibson made a sufficiently deep neck pocket to correct an old vulnerability with the LP Jr. neck join.
The good thing is the neck join is now much stronger. The downside is it pretty much precludes routing for a second pickup on the guitar version.
I haven’t seen any pictures of the bass version with its hood open yet. But it would be interesting to see how close to the neck you could route without compromising the neck socket. The 30” scale on the bass should provide a little more wiggle room for modding.
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I didn't mean bass player haven't rocked hard previously just that the ones rocking hard presently are the modern ones. The J and P sell well for the same reason The Ric 4003, Thunderbird and SG bass are still popular designs but there's a large contingent of bassists that drool over Dingwalls, Spectors, Schecters and Warwicks as well. The EB is a nice design although I like the first version better. Gibson has an established outsider or rebellious image and I think it would lend itself to develop a bass that works well in heavier more metal type genres. The EB is a decent step in the right direction which is probably why it's still offered but I think there's still more opportunity to expand in that direction.They already did. Most recently with the 2017 EB. (A very nice bass btw.)
They were mocked for their effort. Like always.
But here’s a poser for you. If not catering to the “modern hard rocking” player (because everybody ‘knows’ nobody ever really rocked hard up until this latest generation started playing) is bad for business- please explain why the PB and JB continue to sell in record numbers? And why Fender’s Dimension failed to gain market share and was discontinued so quickly?
Innovation? From what I’ve seen, people’s bass buying habits are largely saying that’s not a big priority for them.
I have 2 of these in 5 strings and I love them, they are my main basses. I wish they'll make them again...
Basvarken
Commercial User
- Dec 3, 2010
- 1,744
- 10,611
- Disclosures
- Hobby Luthier / Gibson Bass Book
My good friend Chris P Dekker of Dutch Bass magazine De Bassist is at the NAMM at the moment.
Today he spoke to the new Gibson CEO James Curleigh.
He told Chris that Gibson will introduce a new American made Epiphone series. There's already one prototype guitar at the NAMM. There will be two bass guitars from this American series: a Rivoli and a solid body (not determined yet). They'll most likely be announced at summer NAMM 2019.
Today he spoke to the new Gibson CEO James Curleigh.
He told Chris that Gibson will introduce a new American made Epiphone series. There's already one prototype guitar at the NAMM. There will be two bass guitars from this American series: a Rivoli and a solid body (not determined yet). They'll most likely be announced at summer NAMM 2019.
Wow! Thanks for relaying that. Any idea if they plan for left-handed versions?
These are great news!!! I would definitely consider an epiphone Rivoli made in the USA. Epiphone usa, just like how it used to be in the past.
I dig the look of the double-cut bass quite a bit, especially the cherry. I'm coming around on the pickguard... Weird that I can't find anything in the Gibson site about these. Anyone got a link I missed?
They had the 2019s up for a short time, but then removed them all. Curious they're not back up now that NAMM is done.
