Gibson basses

[rtslinger]

After what ever that Epi Ripper was supposed to be? So disappointed by that feeble attempt.
No original Gibson L9-S The Ripper owner like myself is going to take a second look unless they bring it back with the Bill Lawrence electronics, as anyone who is a Ripper owner knows that is what made it so unique.

 

[ajkula66]

The Ripper “reissue” wasn’t anything but a halfhearted attempt to cash in on nostalgia.

No disagreement here, and the same applies to Grabber and RD re-issues. But therein lies the rub...a *proper* re-issue would likely have to come in the VOS guise. Anyone around here ready to pony up north of $5K for a Gibson bass ? I don't think so, since most of the vintage pieces can be found for less which is one of the problems that Gibson is constantly facing: low prices of their used and vintage basses.

 

[StudioGC]

And let's not forget, if we're going to revamp the Jack Casady bass... let's do this:

Let's Take Care of that Jack Casady Neck Dive

 

[40Hz]

Anyone around here ready to pony up north of $5K for a Gibson bass ?

Not me. Speaking as a Ripper owner I’d put the acceptable price tag on a faithful to the original reissue at roughly $2k. The Ripper is a nice enough instrument. But it’s also a very utilitarian design that was intended to be a working musician’s bass. That, to me, doesn’t justify a boutique price. Just a fair one.

And yeah, the SD custom shop Ripper pups ($300 per) are exact duplicates in terms of their construction and sound. The Lawrence midrange choke circuitry is available from Becky over at Wilde for about $30. And the rest of the circuit’s tonestack and switching electronics are all COS parts that can be obtained almost anywhere - along with the requisite schematic and wiring diagrams. So duplicating the Ripper’s electronics (which is what gives you its sound) is something pretty much anybody could do. It’s not like a Wal where you can’t get their pickups or their preamp without buying one of their basses.

 

[rockscott]

Two, slim and none, unfortunately!

 

[bobyoung53]

IF I were in the new regime at Gibson:

Re-Issue the Ripper. To my mind, the closest they ever came to a mainstream bass that would compete honestly with the rest of the market. Traditional EB's are married to that tone, and T-Birds often struggle with neck dive. Contact Seymour, use his Ripper pickups, use the HipShot replacement Gibson bridge and update the rotary switch functions. The re-issue they attempted some years back was still-born alongside the originals.

A subtle fine-tuning of the Thunderbird (puh-leeze go to UltraLight keys !) by smart engineers would cure the neck dive. Offer them with Nordstrand passives or let Lindy Fralin take a whack at updated pickups. It's iconic, but just needs a little careful fine-tuning to really make it a useful alternative. Do NOT give up the neckthru construction, and add the Hipshot bridge.

A new version of the Victory Bass: Easier as they weren't as iconic as their other offerings. Take about a 1/2" out of an often heavy body, streamline the slightly-too-big headstock, and work with EMG or Bart for replacement pickups and tone network, and keep that slanted neck pickup, a visual landmark for these. Make this a sophisticated choice, in various woods.

And finally, what with the selling-like-hotcakes Jack Cassady's, a real, ES-based long scale bass, fretted and fretless, within the genuine Gibson line.

Despite my frequent snipes ('Gibson Bass is an oxymoron like jumbo shrimp or government intelligence') with a little careful development and input from accomplished players, the roots are there. They just need to go to finishing school. Gibson basses always seemed to me the way bass guitars in the early days were also-ran, extra income products made by a guitar company. Ease them into a product identity where they finally feel and look like basses built by a bass company, they might laugh all the way to the bank.

Stranger things . . . . . have happened.

I bought a new 2018 LE Gibson T-Bird, absolutely no neck dive, it does have small tuning keys on it though, Grovers.

 

[StudioGC]

I bought a new 2018 LE Gibson T-Bird, absolutely no neck dive, it does have small tuning keys on it though, Grovers.

pictures....or.....

 

[40Hz]

And let's not forget, if we're going to revamp the Jack Casady bass... let's do this:

Let's Take Care of that Jack Casady Neck Dive

Maybe try this first? I learned about this fix over 30 years ago. Always worked for me.

This guy demonstrates it:

 

[StudioGC]

Maybe try this first? I learned about this fix over 30 years ago. Always worked for me.

This guy demonstrates it:

That's friggin' brilliant! Thanks for sharing that. Never have seen that.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

Gibson needs unlined fretless versions of everything

 

[ezra1]

I have a few vintage Gibson and Epiphone basses.
1956 Gibson Electric Bass
1969 EB1
1965 EB3
Gold 50th Anniversary T-Bird
Non Reverse T-Bird
1964 Epiphone Newport
Back in the day I had a Ripper,then a few years later another.
They sounded good but the body style looked like a pregnant guppy....as did the Grabber.
The Victory .....maybe

 

[Bob_Ross]

Dual SD humbuckers and a 6-position varitone won’t give you the sound or note response of a Ripper.

As a former Ripper L-9S owner -- that's me circa 1978 in the pic below -- I have to ask: Does anyone actually play a Ripper because of the "note response"?!?! I think that was by far the least attractive quality of that instrument!

 

[40Hz]

As a former Ripper L-9S owner -- that's me circa 1978 in the pic below -- I have to ask: Does anyone actually play a Ripper because of the "note response"?!?! I think that was by far the least attractive quality of that instrument!

View attachment 4197038

As a current owner and player of two - I do.

Some of us (70s era proggers at least) liked the tight clean way it could fire off notes.

Like everything bass related, YMMV.

 

[Gizmot]

Giz, the idea was that if you look around, very few basses use pickups from the manufacturer, lots and lots use EMG, Nordys, Barts, etc., and this would be a cue, 'hey, we're listening and we're serious about this'. Seymour makes exact replacement Ripper pickups, which I thought would save them time and gain a little marketing clout by using them, and I'll assume they would work with the original Ripper rotary selector/circuitry.

I was close with several people in product management at Gibson a few years ago and I was invited to come to their office a few times for talks about products and to see what they were doing. The subject of basses came up and they told me that they had no idea what kind of sound bass players wanted or what find of features and feel they wanted. At the time, Henry J. was simply flexing his muscles and all any of those good people could do was what he let them. I'm sure that things are different now - - plus the market is more conducive to new models and possibly new sounds and features. It could be cool

 

[bobyoung53]

pictures....or.....

I'll put one in later, they're on my other computer.

 

[Blenin]

Everything old is new again, so you never know. I have had my share of Gibson's. A Thunderbird, LPB, G3, Explorer, EB-3, Ripper etc. For various reasons I ended up selling all but my Ripper. I love that thing. Has Velvet Hammer P bass pickups on the neck and the original on the bridge.

 

[40Hz]

Back in the day I had a Ripper,then a few years later another.
They sounded good but the body style looked like a pregnant guppy

I’m told liking the Ripper look was an acquired taste.

If so, I guess I never really acquired it. I’ve been playing a Ripper since ‘74. Really like their sound. But I was never particularly wild about the look. It was ok. Something my grandmother would have called “decently plain.” But it’s not the kind of look that makes you go: Wow!

 

[Pauly 4001]

I’m told liking the Ripper look was an acquired taste.

If so, I guess I never really acquired it. I’ve been playing a Ripper since ‘74. Really like their sound. But I was never particularly wild about the look. It was ok. Something my grandmother would have called “decently plain.” But it’s not the kind of look that makes you go: Wow!

I was drawing pictures of Rippers in my jr high notebooks back when "Welcome Back My Friends" was released. To be fair I was also drawing elaborate drum sets with fake Chinese superstructures and giant gongs and poor representations of huge Moog modular synths.
I acquired the Ripper proclivity early on and never lost it.

 

[TinIndian]

Well I for one would be in line for a faithful Ripper reissue. I don't have many kind words for Gibson basses. There was a stretch of about 10years when they were making some really unique and interesting basses. Rippers and their ilk, RD's and Victory's, but they bailed out on all of them. Thunderbirds are super cool looking and have a great sound but the lack of easy access to the top of the fretboard bothers me and I've never really been a fan of SG's so the EB shape doesn't work for me either. Not banging on them they just aren't anything I have an interest in. The Rippers, RD's and Victory basses are much more interesting to me. I would have bought one of those RD reissues a couple years ago but the electronics package was just going to get it done for me.

 

[ac100X]

I think Gibson should take what is successful - the Thunderbird - and take the neck through portion before they glue the "wings" on and make some hollow body wings and glue those on instead. It would look better if the veneer covered the neck through portion. The result would be a lighter bass for old guys with bad backs (there may be a few out there). Now if the sound isn't acoustic enough they could cut material away or drill holes, slots without weakening the center neck through too much. I will be first to say - I don't know anything about building guitars but could this work?
If Mr. Hall is reading this - Maybe it would be a cheaper way to bring back the Rickenbacker 4005 with 4003 parts. If it is a sales looser, throw the wings away and go back to the old standard. Not so much of a risk investing in that expensive tooling.