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Gibson EB-1

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Gibson EB-1
ManufacturerGibson Guitar Corporation
Period1953–1958; 1968–1970; 1999
Construction
Body typeSolid
Neck jointSet
Scale30.5"
Woods
Bodymahogany
Neckmahogany
Fretboardrosewood
Hardware
Pickup(s)
Colors available
Mahogany Brown

The Gibson EB-1 is a bass guitar that Gibson introduced in 1953. It was their first bass guitar.[3]

History

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Magazine advertement (1955)

Gibson first marketed the EB-1 (initially calling it simply the Electric Bass) in 1953[1] in response to the success of the Fender Precision Bass. Rather than styling the body after an electric guitar, they shaped the EB-1 to resemble a double bass, even painting false f-holes on the top of the body. EB-1 production ended in 1958, when Gibson replaced it with the EB-2 and the later EB-0. They renamed the Electric Bass to the EB-1 at that time.

Gibson reissued the EB-1 in 1970 with several changes—including no false f-holes, standard right-angled tuning machines,[4] and a chrome bridge cover. They discontinued this reissue in 1972. Epiphone (a subsidiary of Gibson) began marketing a Korean-manufactured EB-1 in 1999. This version of the EB-1 uses a bolt-on neck construction with a longer 32" scale,[2] as well as replacing the original bridge with a more conventional three-point adjustable bass bridge.

Epiphone produces a violin-shaped bass known as the Viola Bass.[5][6] However, it is not modeled after the EB-1, but the Höfner 500/1. Eastwood Guitars produces and sells their own version of the EB-1, virtually identical to the original in design.[7]

Design and construction

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The EB-1 had a solid mahogany body finished with a brown stain, and a raised pickguard, which was originally colored brown to more closely match the color of the body. It had a 30.5" scale[1] set neck—rather than the 34" scale of the Fender Precision Bass or the 41.5" scale of the 3/4-sized upright bass favored by many upright bassists of the time. To appeal to upright bass players, the EB-1 had a telescopic end pin so bassists could choose to play the EB-1 in an upright position,[1] as well as horizontally. False f-holes and purfling on the body imitated the appearance of an upright bass.

Gibson mounted the pickup directly against the base of the neck, rather than the mid-body position of the Precision Bass, which gave the EB-1 a deeper, but less defined tone. The EB-1 had planetary banjo tuners,[1] rather than the right-angled tuners of most other guitar and bass designs. More recent reissues have featured more conventional construction techniques, with standard issue tuning pegs and a standard bass bridge.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Roberts, Jim (2003). American basses : an illustrated history & player's guide. San Francisco, CA, USA: Backbeat Books. p. 73. ISBN 0879307218.
  2. ^ a b Fjestad, Zachary R. (2005). "Epiphone". In Fjestad, S. P. (ed.). Blue Book of Electric Guitars (9th ed.). Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States: Blue Book Publications. p. 284. ISBN 9781886768574 – via Internet Archive.
  3. ^ Giuseppe Guarino (25 May 2017). "EB-1: il primo basso prodotto da Gibson" (in Italian).
  4. ^ Fjestad, Zachary R. (2005). "Gibson". In Fjestad, S. P. (ed.). Blue Book of Electric Guitars (9th ed.). Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States: Blue Book Publications. p. 439. ISBN 9781886768574 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ "Epiphone Viola Bass | Musician's Friend". Archived from the original on January 17, 2013.
  6. ^ "Viola Bass, Vintage Sunburst". Epiphone. Gibson Inc. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  7. ^ "EB-1 Bass - Electric Bass – Eastwood Guitars".
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