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Which is Larger: Guild Starfire or Epi Jack Casady?

creaturegods

creaturegods

Sep 23, 2017
725
2,260
#1
Hoping a Full/Semi-Hollow Bass enthusiast will chime in, here...

I have an old Japanese copy of a Gibson Ripper, based on the earlier design with the more rounded horns. I love the bass but the body is comically large on me.

I'm hoping to relegate it to the bench and pick up an Epiphone Jack Casady bass to be my "stage bass" since I love the body shape, but I'm afraid that these will be equally enormous.

I've played a Guild Starfire bass and know that they're pretty large on me as well - Would anybody be able to post a photo with both a Starfire and a Jack Casady bass in it so I can see how similar or different the body sizes are?

Thanks for the help!
 
#2
I haven't played a Starfire myself, but my impression is that they're very close in size. The Jack Casady, at least, is a big bass, easily as big as a Ripper, so if a Ripper feels unwieldy to you you may find the Jack Casady is also too big. Looks wise though, the Starfire body may look bigger since the neck is short scale, compared to the long scale Jack Casady.
 
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#3
Going from memory, the old Gretsch 6070/6072 has a 17" wide lower bout; EB-2s, Rivolis, Vox Cougars, and the Starfire are at 16"; and the very old Kay Speed Demons are at 15." I expect the Casady is a 16-incher. There are enough pics on the web of Jack playing that bass to give some idea of how unwieldy it might be on you.
 
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#4
I was able to find a couple of pics! Attaching them here for anyone else who is curious.

20200106_195453.jpg 46869013352_5e93a010bf_b.jpg

Hopefully clicking them will make them bigger, lol. Looks to me like @GretschWretch might be right on the money - the lower bout of the Casady looks a bit smaller to me. Overall, a fairly negligible difference though, other than scale length.
 
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#5
I owned both. The Cassidy is longer and larger. The 34” scale makes that first fret reach a beast unless you’re 6’4” or have a large wingspan (I’m no small fry at 6’2”). The Guild is more manageable and I found easier and more comfortable to play.

If you look at the pics above you see the length on the Epi in the first pic. The Epi body is fatter in the booty (bottom) and it felt like a solid body when I owned one. The guild is a touch more slender but it’s no lightweight either.

I sold both and play a Hofner Club bass. Fully hollow, light, and gives me the thump I need.
 
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#6
markjazzbassist said:
I owned both. The Cassidy is longer and larger. The 34” scale makes that first fret reach a beast unless you’re 6’4” or have a large wingspan (I’m no small fry at 6’2”). The Guild is more manageable and I found easier and more comfortable to play.

If you look at the pics above you see the length on the Epi in the first pic. The Epi body is fatter in the booty (bottom) and it felt like a solid body when I owned one. The guild is a touch more slender but it’s no lightweight either.

I sold both and play a Hofner Club bass. Fully hollow, light, and gives me the thump I need.
Click to expand...

Thank you for this! I'm the same height as you and practically live in the lower-fret range, so that long reach might be a deal-breaker for me.

Those Hofners, though ... I have not considered them before! Very interesting.
The hunt continues.
 
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#7
I think the first fret reach thing depends a lot on how high you hang your bass. Trying a bass on for size in a brick and mortar store would probably be worthwhile.

I have a Washburn AB95 which has a 34" scale, 17" body, and neck that joins the body at the 17th fret. That places the first fret way out there, in theory. I'm of totally average height and wingspan, and being mostly a DB guy I play in the lower positions a lot.

Looks comically large, certainly, but I have the right sense of humor for that. I find it totally comfortable playing standing up for a 3 1/2 hour rehearsal. The first frets does get hard to reach if I try sitting down with the lower bout between my legs, but putting the waist over one knee puts the first fret nicely in reach, and I've done hours of recording that way. But if you like a really long strap and the bass down at knee level, then you will need longer and longer arms the lower the bass hangs.

Also a couple of other less common semihollows' stats... ESP S-AH is 34" scale and 15.5" lower bout, Defil Rytm 32" scale and 16.9" lower bout (43 cm).
 
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#8
The Epiphone JC fits perfectly in the stock Starfire II hard case (I had both and did this), so it's mostly just neck length.

I sold the Guild as I prefer the Jack bass and didn't need two similar basses. Two months ago, I bought a Hofner HCT 500/7 Verythin which I now prefer to both the Epiphone and Guild.

The Hofner fits fine in the Epiphone case, too.
 
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#10
creaturegods said:
Hoping a Full/Semi-Hollow Bass enthusiast will chime in, here...

I have an old Japanese copy of a Gibson Ripper, based on the earlier design with the more rounded horns. I love the bass but the body is comically large on me.

I'm hoping to relegate it to the bench and pick up an Epiphone Jack Casady bass to be my "stage bass" since I love the body shape, but I'm afraid that these will be equally enormous.

I've played a Guild Starfire bass and know that they're pretty large on me as well - Would anybody be able to post a photo with both a Starfire and a Jack Casady bass in it so I can see how similar or different the body sizes are?

Thanks for the help!
Click to expand...
I have a 76 Ripper, and it fits nicely in my Casady case. You wouldn't be downsizing!
 
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#12
Since it looks like your fears have been confirmed and you may be interested in alternatives, I too would recommend the Hofner Club bass, which is much smaller and very light (probably 5-6lbs at most). Even the cheapest entry-level version that I have delivers a lovely rich warm tone from the neck pickup and also offers some versatility. Combinations of the two pickups can get you surprisingly punchy, more mid-range sounds.
 
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#19
creaturegods said:
Thank you for this! I'm the same height as you and practically live in the lower-fret range, so that long reach might be a deal-breaker for me.

Those Hofners, though ... I have not considered them before! Very interesting.
The hunt continues.
Click to expand...
I had the Jack. I'm 6' and had no trouble reaching the 1st position. I would play one of you could. Wish I had kept it.
 
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