Hopefully the good Dr. Eagle will give us a side by side comparison of these 2 seemingly similar 'Birds, I've been wanting a fiver 'Bird for quite awhile now.
Funny thing is that even though they look quite similar, they are different. I like both of them for different reasons.
The Gibson Studio 5 is my most used bass in the recent past. It has pluses and minuses.
UPSIDE: the frets feel a little more comfortable, the neck is a little slimmer and its a passive bass so no battery dying in the middle of a show. The neck is stable, I have only adjusted the truss once in 5 years, when I got it. Action is outfriggin standing. sound is thunderous and clean, plenty of bottom with lots of treble.
DOWNSIDE: the bass has a nasty habit of picking up a bad dimmer switch/panel or transformer in a room and very loud. So if the room has any electrical noise it comes out of the amp and its really difficult to make it quiet, generally have to face a specific direction (away from the noise source). The neck is narrower and the G string has a habit of falling off the fretboard. I have finally got my technique playing the bass to the point where it doesn't happen but I have to be conscious of it. The finish is Nitrocellulose lacquer which is a pain in the neck to keep clean and clear. It has a slab body so it really doesn't give the old school T Bird Vibe and a set neck so the sustain MAY be affected a little vs the neck thru.
The Epiphone
UPSIDE: Looks like a "real" T Bird with the raised reveal, it is neck through with multiple laminations, it has active electronics that sound really good. The neck feels very good, the finish on mine is Sunburst Urethane and it looks out standing and easier to care for than the Gibson. We'll see how it does in those places where we have seen noisy electrics but my other active basses do a good job in noise reduction. The bridge is MUCH easier to adjust than the Gibson's, and feels more solid. The Nut appears to be graphite I adjusted the neck and bridge and the action on this bass is excellent if you like the action low like me
DOWNSIDE: Active Electronics do not have a passive bypass. The Frets are a little higher than I like but I'll wear em down pretty quick! The Epiphone Name is probably the biggest downer for this bass for me. I had heard about a weak B string but at least on this one I have not experienced that. I don't like that this was the only Epi Pro in the shop with the strap button on the shoulder. The rest (all 4 strings) had the button on the back of the neck where it is on my Studio.
Analysis of comparison
Basically both outstanding basses. The Epi is definitely a comparable bass for a lot less money. I'll be proud to play them both along with my Buzzard in the broadway production of Tommy we are working on with UC Davis for May.
