ajkula66

According to Flyguitars site, only 627 of these were ever made so yeah, it can be considered a fairly uncommon offering... I've seen maybe three of them in the flesh over the past 45 years and I've seen/played/own(ed) a metric ton of Gibson gear...

Given that you already own the Victor Bailey model - which is the most interesting JB of this nature IMO - it's somewhat of a difficult task to choose the best one... Personally, I have a soft spot for - mostly unloved - early '90s Jazz Bass Plus with Kubicki preamps, as well as for the late '90s units with John Suhr guts. To me, both of these series were an attempt to get away from the "traditional" form and not end up quite in the Sadowsky land. Not that there's anything wrong with Sadowsky, but that's beside the point. I've recently done a recording session with a 5-string version of 2012 Jazz Bass Deluxe and was actually pleasantly surprised how well it sat in the mix - sort of etno-jazz/fusion environment, just as a reference point - and how little additional flavouring/colouring was required. It also felt like a well-built instrument. If I were gifted one today I'd probably swap the electronics out, but that's a matter of personal preference, the stock electronics are perfectly serviceable IMO. Elite and Ultra series are not something I've spent a meaningful amount of time with so I'll refrain from commenting on them. Hope this helps.

Having played Gibson guitars since 1980 and basses since '83 I'm well aware of the design intentions. Some people - not myself - do refer to these as "baritone basses", though. I haven't used the term "guitar" associated with the instrument(s) discussed. My point was that the Gibson/Epiphone concept being discussed here was not an answer to Fender VI, but actually preceded it. No more, no less.

Actually, Gibson was in the 6 string (baritone ?) bass game before Fender, with its EB6 - based on EB-2 - out in 1959, full two years before the Fender Bass VI. The re-design of '61 moved the concept to SG-bodied series of instruments while retaining the same name. Having said that, I never knew that there was a matching Epiphone version, so yeah, these things must be very rare.

That's actually a handrest. For folks playing with a pick, or so Gibson/Epiphone thought at the time. It finally disappeared from Kalamazoo-built basses somewhere around 1968 but was an integral part of their bass design for quite some time.

Guild had Jaco Pastorius on their Pilot brochure/advertisement... Terribly under-rated instruments IMO. Hope you and your "new" Pilot end up making some great music together.

I bought an SB1000 when they first came out. Yes, a Jack Bruce fan here... Replaced it with an Ibanez MC924 which I found to be more versatile at the time. A couple of years ago I re-visited the SB series by purchasing a near mint SB-900. One lovely bass, but I don't really play long scale basses anymore so off it went.

Short scale strings - various brands - on all of my five shorties. I've used long scale strings out of necessity in *very* distant past but would prefer not to resort to that route again.

That looks *very* clean. There's nothing like finish checking on an old Gibson.

I'm up there in age and not in the best of health, so I rarely play out but it's usually the modded EB-0 which is my #1 and will be going to grave with me, or Les Paul Triumph if I don't know what kind of amp is waiting for me.

Greetings to my fellow short-scale bass players! New to this forum - OK, I have been lurking occasionally - but not new to bass (45 years and counting) or the concept of short scales... My current crop From left to right: '69 Gibson EB-0 (modded), '76 Guild JS-2, '69 Gibson EB-3, '70 Gibson Les Paul Bass, '72 Gibson Les Paul Triumph Bass. Yes, they all sport Hipshot Supertone bridges and no, I'm NOT a paid endorser...