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GIBSON LES PAUL OVERSIZED BASS

The new LP changed my perception of Gibson basses. Is Gibson revolutionary or doing anything bleeding edge? NOPE! But this is a killer bass!

I can't recommend LP basses enough, the old LP Standard with the chambered body is around 10 pounds.
familty.jpg

The flat tops weigh even less.
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Everything that make the guitars sound great transfers to the bass. They have that grinding hot rock tone that cuts through the mix (unlike a tbird) and are very versitile. You can also get a great Billy Gibbons "pinched harmonic" on these. The balance is not that bad with a wide strap.
They are excellent made basses, worth the money. At least my LP Standard is. I would love to get a gold top one. They also hold their value much better than an Ibanez, Carvin, Yamaha or Warwick basses. Standards typically sell for $1200 used.
 
Diggin' up a semiold thread, but anyhoo.... I'm liking what you did here, Gibson.

Can't really picture this bass played high with a perfect posture and technique, and on a jazz gig, though.

I can picture this only this way: slung really low, with a fuzz/distortion cranked, hunched posture and playing blues influenced sludge/doom while being drunk as hell. :D

..But like I said, I'm liking this bass. A lot. Help. :hiding:
 
Here's mine again between my Les Paul Studio and Standard.

It is a big bugger and heavy as hell. Chambered and still 12 lbs.

Sounds amazing but is really loud (as loud or maybe louder than my Bongo HH5) and it is the only bass I own that kills my back.

I play it for a set at most gigs as it sounds killer.

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By the way, are these a limited edition/series like I read from the comments under the bass at Gibson.com? 400 pcs per finish or something like that..

I hope not so that I can get one later when I have the extra cash. :hmm:

There doesn't seem to be a lot of them around. I heard 400 total as well as 400 per finish. Not sure.

I wanted a goldtop to match my Standard guitar and was told they were done making them at the factory. Black was in stock so I grabbed it.

Not that Gibson would sell thousands of these if they were regular production anyways as they are pretty niche.

There is a nice Goldtop on eBay now for $1200 Buy It Now.
 
Diggin' up a semiold thread, but anyhoo.... I'm liking what you did here, Gibson.

Can't really picture this bass played high with a perfect posture and technique, and on a jazz gig, though.

I can picture this only this way: slung really low, with a fuzz/distortion cranked, hunched posture and playing blues influenced sludge/doom while being drunk as hell. :D

..But like I said, I'm liking this bass. A lot. Help. :hiding:

Yes, Yes, Yes...+1000

While It wouldn't be the first bass I go out and buy, but that gold top is gorgeous
 
As a recovering guitar player with a serious Les Paul addiction, I'm shocked at how much I dislike this behemoh based on the looks alone.

Haven't tried one so I can"t comment on their playability, but if they're as heavy as what y'all are saying, I probably won't either.
 
I've been playing my Gibson LPO for abot 5 months now, and it's got a great tone. Like most everyone else posted here, its heavy. Mine weighs just over 12lbs. It's the ebony model.

The neck feels a lot like my Fender MIA P bass, except maybe a bit stickier because of the gloss finish. But overall, the neck is a comfortable 'medium' girth, and the action is also about medium. I don't like it too low.

The only problem (besides the weight) is the pickups are SO loud. If I leave the settings on my amp (Traynor DynaBass 400 with two 10", plus a 210 extension) the same as I use for my P bass, the signal is totally distorted. I have to roll back the gain about 25%, and decrease the master volume. Once I get the settings down, it's fine, but the pickups really spit out a lot of gain. It would be hard to switch between two basses as the volume differences are so great. You'd probably need an active bass to keep up with the pickups on this one.

However, I've used this bass to record in a semi-pro studio doing some French Acadian traditional and country songs, and it really filled out the tunes nicely. The engineer was so impressed, he asked me to redo a track I did the previous week, only with the Gibson instead of the Fender I previously used.

I'm not as much of a gearhead as many people on here, but I've played maybe a half dozen Gibson basses, and this one was a bit more of a standout. Really, I think maybe Gibson should cut out one of their Tbird models (they don't need three), and put this into regular production. Its definitly a quality instrument.
 
Yeah the pickups are HOT! They are really, really loud. The only other pickups I have played that are this hot are Lakland Chisonic Humbuckers in a Decade. My old Decade sound very much like my Les Paul Standard, so I sold the Decade & kept the LP.
 
It would be hard to switch between two basses as the volume differences are so great.

Excuse me if I'm being stupid, but I don't understand this. Can you not just turn the volume on the Les Paul down?
So if you had a P bass and an LP, set the P on 10 and the LP on 6 or whatever, set the levels to match at sound check and leave them there - what am I missing here?
Steve
 
Excuse me if I'm being stupid, but I don't understand this. Can you not just turn the volume on the Les Paul down?
So if you had a P bass and an LP, set the P on 10 and the LP on 6 or whatever, set the levels to match at sound check and leave them there - what am I missing here?
Steve

True, but I can see you needing to re-find the sweet spot in your settings quickly, which can be a pain when you playing on the fly & have to switch quickly, doing it yourself .The fix is here-
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/gigging-very-loud-not-so-loud-basses-together-876678/
 
True, but I can see you needing to re-find the sweet spot in your settings quickly, which can be a pain when you playing on the fly & have to switch quickly, doing it yourself .The fix is here-
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/gigging-very-loud-not-so-loud-basses-together-876678/

But do you not sort out your settings before you start playing? Set both basses and amp up with optimal tone settings and level out the volume with the basses' volume controls and leave them like that.
Steve