Hi guys,
Proud new owner of a 1974 Gibson Ripper in natural with a maple neck!
Nice score! I bought mine new in ‘74 and it’s still going strong. Welcome to the club. We the few, the proud, the often mocked for our taste, welcome you our fellowship.
The bass currently has Daddario NYXLs on them (45-105) regular long scale, top loaded. This is how the bass came when I picked it up.
I want to put new strings on because this gauge is a bit too heavy for me and prefer light/medium light gauges.
Can anyone recommend some good strings that pair with a ripper?
I play Rock (everything from classic rock through to Alternative/Hard Rock/Grunge/indie Rock), so looking for a nice set of roundwounds that will fit the part. I play both Fingerstyle and with a Pick.
I’m one of those people that believes there’s an ideal string set for every bass. And finding the ideal set can become an expensive hobby.
FWIW I really don’t like the blah (to me) sound or feel of NYXLs despite all the good things said about them. I tried a set. They lasted one day before I pulled them. My guitarist SO also loaded a set on one of her Strats. And they were back off in less than an hour.
I personally think Rotosound 66 Swing Bass strings really bring out the character in a Ripper. And that’s what I usually use. But more recently I’ve tried a set of Kalium Hybrids (43/59/79/106) which really sing with those Bill Lawrence pickups. Bell like clarity without being clangy or too bright. And with some nice growl on tap if you want it. They also mellow out nicely over time.
One good thing about Kalium. They have a large assortment gauges in medium, standard, and long scale lengths. I highly recommend giving them a try.
Will Steel strings damage the frets on the Ripper? I'm a fairly light player but can dig in and get a little heavy handed at times.
They shouldn’t. I’ve got a light touch too. I’ve played mostly with steels on mine. And in 45 years of steady playing I’ve only needed to do the usual minor maintenance on the frets.
I just read above that it's safer to string thru the body rather than top loading like it is at present. In that case, do extra long scale strings only fit the bass when strung thru the body?
I can’t say I’ve ever found that to be the case. I’ve got two Rippers, which I’ll occasionally top string. And I know about a dozen other Ripper owners, half of whom routinely top string. And I never been told the were issues with the bridge posts pulling out. Not saying it can’t happen. But that’s a new one for me.
Biggest risk I’ve personally run into with top stringing on the 73-74 models which have individual ferrules is that you might have a ferrule fall out and get lost if no string is going through it. And that's because the string’s ball end wraps tend to snag a little when they’re removed. So the ferrules can eventually loosen. Which is probably why Gibson switched over to the anchor plate arrangement on the later models.
If you string through you’ll definitely need extra longs. Gibson uses a 34.5” scale length on the Ripper. So it’s already midway between a standard long and 35” scale. Something to keep in mind when buying strings. It’s a small difference. But it can sometimes catch you by surprise with some brands of string.
