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My new Epiphone EB0

S

Stillwater

Feb 18, 2014
13
0
New Jersey
#1
Just thought id give a quick review on the Epiphone EB0 i recently purchased.

A little background on me: been playing guitar and bass for about 12 years. Played bass in a few local rock bands during that time using a Fender Jazz and Precision. Wanted to do a singer-songwriter project about 5 years ago so i sold my bass gear to finance a Taylor guitar and an acoustic rig to go along with it. That project is still my main musical focus, but i really missed playing bass. Plus i wanted one again for recording purposes.

Had some extra cash so I went to local guitar center. Decided to look at short scale basses because i figured the transition back and forth from guitar/bass would be easier, plus i have small hands. Didn't initially consider the EB0 because I was told they were muddy sounding. But I plugged it in anyway just for kicks, and an hour later i was taking it home.

Mine was made in Indonesia. I think older versions were made elsewhere? This bass normally goes for around $199 but I got it on sale for $185. That is an insane value IMO. I am pretty impressed at the build quality you get for that price. Now I'm obviously NOT saying that this thing comes anywhere close in quality to my old MIA Fenders or anything, but for $200 you are getting alot for your money. I wont bore you with the specs but it has the one big "sidewinder" neck pickup, mahogany body/neck and a 30.5 inch scale.

The tone is not muddy at all IMO. The sidewinder pickup has huge low end, but the sound is clear and the highs come through pretty well. If you want an old school vintage bass tone (think 60's recordings) this nails it.

The short scale is really fun too. i dont know why i made myself play full scale basses with my small hands for years.

In conclusion, this is a great choice for someone who wants an inexpensive short scale with vintage tone. Im going to be using mine for a Roots Rock startup project, and if it that gets some momentum ill maybe move up to the Gibson

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#4
Stillwater, congrats for your find and, I gotta admit, like many guitar players out there, you seem so focused and precise on the analysis you gave us of both the instrument and the task

Congrats again... it's exactly like you said

I briefly owned a couple of Epi EB3 (34" with additional bridge minibucker) and I found'em to be less muddy than everybody tell. Given that it couldn't be just humble minibucker gracein', sure Epi sidewinder wasn't that undoubtedly lowend oriented.

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#5
Congrats. I have the exact same bass and really like mine a lot as well.

These are fun to play, and sound great.

Like you, I wasn't expecting much when I plugged it in at the store, but was surprised at how nice it played and sounded. So this one went home with me, too.

I love the action on this one with its thin neck, and the Sidewinder 'bucker has that old 60's low thump - fat and warm.


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#7
I think these Epi EBO's are beautiful little basses. I played one in the store and almost bought it. I've got an Elitest EB3 and a Gibson SG Special, I dig the style. If I could get a good deal on an Epi EBO I would snag it just for contrast. For some reason most of the decent used ones I see go for close to the price of a new one :confused:
 
#9
I wish Gibson would get off their butts and make an EB0 reissue. :mad:

I've seen some of these Epiphones that looked really nice, but I'd rather hold out for the real deal. One caveat on these is apparently the ones in the student w/amp packs are quite a bit different and of lower quality than the ones sold separately.
 
#10
When I owned one I ordered a Dimarzio Humbucker to replace the stock one. And that thing could range from the deep bass that one would associate with the EB0, along with if I turned the tone up it was just as punchy as a P Bass.

The relationship didn't last that long. I'm a sucker for bridges that screw into the bass rather than the bridge system that Epiphone has on the EB0.
 
#13
Stop it.

I do not need an Epi bass. I do NOT need an Epi bass.


But wow, congrats on a beaut and thanks for the review and the info on the Sidewinder. I admit based on the old Gibson's I never gave the Epi's much consideration, good to know the Epi actually has some clarity, that is interesting.


And hey, about "moving up" to a Gibson....okay, so I admit I also play guitar, and based on my own experience and the experience of the guitarists in my band (who have plenty of Gibsons and Epi's to compare), I have come to the conclusion that Epiphone is the new Gibson.
 
#15
Some observations after putting the bass through its paces...this is not a bass i would call "well balanced". I noticed some neck heaviness along with a general awkward feeling from the strap button being located on the rear of the body on the neck plate. I tried changing the location of the strap button(s) but it didn't seem to make much of a difference.

What DID make a big difference was wearing the bass pretty high up on he strap adjustment. Not ridiculously high, just kinda on the higher side. It seemed the lower the bass hung on the strap, the more neck dive/awkward feeling occurred. Once i found the sweet spot, it feels pretty natural with only a little hint of neck dive remaining. And oh yeah, get a wide and grippy suede strap as this makes a big difference as well.
 
#16
I was in GC today to pick up a music stand, and moseyed over to the bass dept. as usual, and saw this used black Epi EB-O for $79.99! Couldn't believe the price..

I played it a little, and nothing wrong with it at all.. It sounded and played just like my cherry EB-O that I bought new for $200.

If I didn't already have one of these, I would have snatched this one up in a heartbeat. In fact, I probably should have done that anyway at that price..


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#20
Bumping this old thread, because I got a new one of these Epiphone EB0's today at a Labor Day Special price.

First impressions are - the best and worst of times. I was impressed by its (to me) good looks.
The finish is outstanding, and I like the body style. Tuners are good. No visible gaps and so on.
Seems pretty well put together.

It was pretty much in tune, and the intonation was just a little off.
Checked the neck relief. It was at .012", so I didn't touch the truss rod.
It was set up way too high for my liking though, by #18 at the factory.
The setup guy at the store said he hadn't changed it.

That's where a little snag comes in. After a little tinkering, AFAIK, I've got the bridge set up as low as it can go.
It plays much more to my liking now, closer to the board with no fret buzz or anything, but there's no downward bridge adjustment left if needed in the future.

Very basic bass with one pickup and volume/tone knobs. Most people say it sounds woofy, but I think it sounds beefy.
I'm not currently in a band, so I can't say if it would get lost in the mix. Doesn't seem like there's anything the usual
amp adjustments or eq couldn't take care of.

It's got a pretty balanced, but not especially strong output all throughout its range.
It's not just all lows pumped out on the bottom end, and it stays sweet higher up too.
I can get the usual range of tones out of it by playing in different areas of the string.
But with the pickup being so close to the neck, it's a little difficult for me to play lower on the string.
Might have to put a thumb rest on it somewhere down there.
It puts out strongest when I rest my thumb on, and play over the pickup though.

Overall, so far, first day impressions are that it's not a bad deal, but there's definitely room for improvement.
Particularly in the bridge area. I also played the Gibson SG, and while it was set up better and had a second pickup for
an improved range of tones, I didn't want to cough up the extra cash needed. I'm not that good of a player at this point.
 
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