I did it, guys. Some of you might remember me from the Aerodyne P thread a few weeks ago.
I got the last guitar on my bucket list. The Gibson Memphis ES Les Paul Bass (try saying that three times quickly) in Faded Darkburst. I am now free of GAS. I don't even have the urge to go on Reverb everyday anymore.
What is an ES Les Paul Bass? Built in the Memphis factory from 2015 to 2018, this axeis the only semi-hollowbody Les Paul bass ever offered by Gibson. It features:
- Semi-hollow body, Maple/Poplar/Maple construction on all sides, with a thin centerblock, flamed maple top and f-holes. Single ply binding front and back.
- 2x Gibson MHS humbuckers, 2 vol., 2 tone with pickup selector
- Tune-o-matic bridge with stop bar tailpiece
- Short scale (30.2") Mahogany neck with bound rosewood fretboard and trapezoid pearloid inlays
- Hipshot ultralite tuners
...and a stupid price tag.
This to me, is the most beautiful bass in existence. I'm a complete sucker for hollowbodies, and the Les Paul shape. Mix them both, and..well you can imagine. I chose the Darkburst color because the only other option was a Goldtop, but you don't get to see the flamed maple with that color.
It doesn't look too good on these quick pictures, but irl it doesn't look like a 3-tone sunburst. It's closer to a tobacco burst.
Gorgeous open book headstock. With the short scale and light tuners, this is the only LP bass that I know of, that balances perfectly. The body is also very light (obviously). Usually, LP's have terrible neckdive because of the small body shape.
Note the F-hole etched on to the truss rod cover.
This bass is barely longer than a regular guitar LP. Which makes it look much better and in proportion to its body. Serial indicates this is a 2015 model.
Crazy grain on the back. One thing I appreciate is that there's a heel cap that goes all the way to the back of the body, instead of having the usual "step" and the neck joint.
Gold witch hat knobs are a match made in heaven with the burst color.
In terms of sound, its strung with D'addario Chromes I believe? Flatwounds, from the factory. It has so much bass I thought it was gonna blow the drivers right out of my cab. You can have a woody "upright bass" sound with it when playing with your fingers, but the most surprising thing was how close it sounded to a P-bass with just the neck pickup and a pick. Very metallic twang.
It's a very comfortable neck, nut width 42mm which is the same as the guitar, rolled edges and a really flat radius. It makes it so easy to play fast with it. I understand why the LP is so popular with guitarists.
The pickups are said to be "MHS" humbuckers, "Memphis Historical Specification". I didn't know what they were, but I was glad they didn't put TB+ on it.
Turns out, they're actually PAF reissues.
Wow, this post got long already.
In short, while it doesn't quite nail the hollowbody sound as well as an EB2-D, it still does a great job at it. It has a lot of tonal possibilities, and it's super fun to play with a pick on it. It's very light and short, so it perfectly fits my 5'6 frame.
It's a shame Gibson priced it higher than Custom Shop models, because that's what killed it (along with the iffy QC). They had something going here, and they shot themselves again in the foot.
But whatever. I'm done hunting. My mission is complete
I got the last guitar on my bucket list. The Gibson Memphis ES Les Paul Bass (try saying that three times quickly) in Faded Darkburst. I am now free of GAS. I don't even have the urge to go on Reverb everyday anymore.
What is an ES Les Paul Bass? Built in the Memphis factory from 2015 to 2018, this axeis the only semi-hollowbody Les Paul bass ever offered by Gibson. It features:
- Semi-hollow body, Maple/Poplar/Maple construction on all sides, with a thin centerblock, flamed maple top and f-holes. Single ply binding front and back.
- 2x Gibson MHS humbuckers, 2 vol., 2 tone with pickup selector
- Tune-o-matic bridge with stop bar tailpiece
- Short scale (30.2") Mahogany neck with bound rosewood fretboard and trapezoid pearloid inlays
- Hipshot ultralite tuners
...and a stupid price tag.
This to me, is the most beautiful bass in existence. I'm a complete sucker for hollowbodies, and the Les Paul shape. Mix them both, and..well you can imagine. I chose the Darkburst color because the only other option was a Goldtop, but you don't get to see the flamed maple with that color.
It doesn't look too good on these quick pictures, but irl it doesn't look like a 3-tone sunburst. It's closer to a tobacco burst.
Gorgeous open book headstock. With the short scale and light tuners, this is the only LP bass that I know of, that balances perfectly. The body is also very light (obviously). Usually, LP's have terrible neckdive because of the small body shape.
Note the F-hole etched on to the truss rod cover.
This bass is barely longer than a regular guitar LP. Which makes it look much better and in proportion to its body. Serial indicates this is a 2015 model.
Crazy grain on the back. One thing I appreciate is that there's a heel cap that goes all the way to the back of the body, instead of having the usual "step" and the neck joint.
Gold witch hat knobs are a match made in heaven with the burst color.
In terms of sound, its strung with D'addario Chromes I believe? Flatwounds, from the factory. It has so much bass I thought it was gonna blow the drivers right out of my cab. You can have a woody "upright bass" sound with it when playing with your fingers, but the most surprising thing was how close it sounded to a P-bass with just the neck pickup and a pick. Very metallic twang.
It's a very comfortable neck, nut width 42mm which is the same as the guitar, rolled edges and a really flat radius. It makes it so easy to play fast with it. I understand why the LP is so popular with guitarists.
The pickups are said to be "MHS" humbuckers, "Memphis Historical Specification". I didn't know what they were, but I was glad they didn't put TB+ on it.
Turns out, they're actually PAF reissues.
Wow, this post got long already.
In short, while it doesn't quite nail the hollowbody sound as well as an EB2-D, it still does a great job at it. It has a lot of tonal possibilities, and it's super fun to play with a pick on it. It's very light and short, so it perfectly fits my 5'6 frame.
It's a shame Gibson priced it higher than Custom Shop models, because that's what killed it (along with the iffy QC). They had something going here, and they shot themselves again in the foot.
But whatever. I'm done hunting. My mission is complete
.
