tokai SG Bass?

[jim_dragons]

I am pretty sure someone has posted again about the Tokai SG Bass but i didnt find the forum thread so i reposted it. Anyway, I am searching about SG Basses in general and so far i found Greco EB-3 which doesnt seem to exist anymore , Fernades Bunry EB-3 which i also cant find to buy and lastly we got the TOkai USG-48 if i remember correctly. My question is: Is the Tokai comperable to the Standard Gibson SG Bass? And if not, Is it better than an Epiphone EB-3?

 

[MattZilla]

Kinda curious bout this too

*think it's "Burny"

 

[gfen]

My question is: Is the Tokai comperable to the Standard Gibson SG Bass? And if not, Is it better than an Epiphone EB-3?

Probably not.
You'll hear lots of talk how the '70s "lawsuit" basses were better than their American inspiraitons, but remember in many of these cases you're dealing with cheap manufacturers putting out cheap basses that have been treated like the cheap import crap they were for 25+ years before it became a thing to have import junk for indie street cred.

There are going to be exceptions, for sure, but I find it hard to want to spend the $300+ someone wants for an old, generally unwanted (til "vintage") bass when a newer used SG seems to run ~$600 (or less, if you wait and watch).

That would be exactly why I don't own one, even.

And if not, Is it better than an Epiphone EB-3?

Invalid comparision. The Epi EB-3 is long scale, unless you mean the Elitist, then like above probably not.

 

[Mr.Fingers]

The Tokai, isn't that the Sgb43, 48 or 50? Anyway, I played a 43 briefly, and it's not a Gibson, but it's better than an Epiphone Eb3 in terms of sound and quality. It did have quite a P-like neck (despite being shortscale). Very decent bass, especially for the money.

The lawsuit era Burny, Greco,... Instruments that closely copy the Gibson style (open book, set neck, exact details,...) are praised because of a reason: they quite often were better than their Norlin-era equivalent. The cheap versions, with bolt-on necks varied from "acceptable but a bit meh" to "absolutely horrendous". A friend of mine owns a Vintage Greco Thunderbird, which is the best T-bird I ever played, all brands and ages considered. And it has quite a thick neck, unlike the Gibson matchstick.

 

[jim_dragons]

Probably not.
You'll hear lots of talk how the '70s "lawsuit" basses were better than their American inspiraitons, but remember in many of these cases you're dealing with cheap manufacturers putting out cheap basses that have been treated like the cheap import crap they were for 25+ years before it became a thing to have import junk for indie street cred.

There are going to be exceptions, for sure, but I find it hard to want to spend the $300+ someone wants for an old, generally unwanted (til "vintage") bass when a newer used SG seems to run ~$600 (or less, if you wait and watch).

That would be exactly why I don't own one, even.



Invalid comparision. The Epi EB-3 is long scale, unless you mean the Elitist, then like above probably not.

This was what i thought too. Thanks for the information

 

[jim_dragons]

The Tokai, isn't that the Sgb43, 48 or 50? Anyway, I played a 43 briefly, and it's not a Gibson, but it's better than an Epiphone Eb3 in terms of sound and quality. It did have quite a P-like neck (despite being shortscale). Very decent bass, especially for the money.

The lawsuit era Burny, Greco,... Instruments that closely copy the Gibson style (open book, set neck, exact details,...) are praised because of a reason: they quite often were better than their Norlin-era equivalent. The cheap versions, with bolt-on necks varied from "acceptable but a bit meh" to "absolutely horrendous". A friend of mine owns a Vintage Greco Thunderbird, which is the best T-bird I ever played, all brands and ages considered. And it has quite a thick neck, unlike the Gibson matchstick.

Thanks for the information and i have concluded to the fact that it is more safe to spend money on something you know it will be exactly what you are looking for (gibson sg) than continiously spending money on cheap guitars just to find the one that suits you, as gfen said

 

[fingerbun]

Found this old thread while googling...

"Lawsuit basses" vary widely in quality. So, for that matter, do high end instruments. I have personal experience of this, owning a couple of good copies (one of which I have owned since 1978) as well as genuine Fender and Rickenbacker. I could afford to replace the copy basses with the real deal, but I don't because they are excellent instruments, both very fit for purpose. (With makes sense when you consider that the same factory making those copies in Japan was also making real Fenders).

My current research comes from considering an EB3 purchase. I have played a modern genuine Gibson and it's simply not an outstanding enough instrument. I need to play a few more in case mine was a bad one, but it looks entirely possible to me that a good copy (not just any copy) would be a better instrument, cheaper.

 

[godofthunder59]

Probably not.
You'll hear lots of talk how the '70s "lawsuit" basses were better than their American inspiraitons, but remember in many of these cases you're dealing with cheap manufacturers putting out cheap basses that have been treated like the cheap import crap they were for 25+ years before it became a thing to have import junk for indie street cred.

There are going to be exceptions, for sure, but I find it hard to want to spend the $300+ someone wants for an old, generally unwanted (til "vintage") bass when a newer used SG seems to run ~$600 (or less, if you wait and watch).

That would be exactly why I don't own one, even.



Invalid comparision. The Epi EB-3 is long scale, unless you mean the Elitist, then like above probably not.

Actually Epiphone did do a run of short scale EB3s that were not the Elitest.