Gibson lets bassists channel Jimmy Page with Les Paul Standard Bass
(Dave Molter | Posted 2011-05-27)
Finally -- "Stairway to Heaven," played on bass. Well -- maybe not. But bassists can get in touch with their inner Page with the new Les Paul Standard Bass.
The LP Standard Bass takes the legendary singlecut styling and classic features of the Les Paul's design and construction and applies them to the low end, with an "oversized" Les Paul body that is more proportional to the dimensions of the bass guitar to give you a bass with traditionally elegant styling, but a tone all its own.
The look is so familiar you'll do a double-take to confirm that this is indeed a four-string bass, and the Les Paul Standard Bass does for the low end what its six-string predecessor does for lead guitar. From gut-thumping rumble to punchy funky snap, it's also extremely flexible and suitable to any genre, thanks to the simple yet versatile pickup and electronics complement that has made the Les Paul six-string so adaptable for nearly 60 years. All this, and it has looks to kill in your choice of nitrocellulose finish in Heritage Cherry Sunburst (MSRP $2599), Goldtop (MSRP $2839, or Ebony Black (MSRP $2399.
Like the most revered Les Paul Standards of all time, the Les Paul Standard Bass starts with the classic tonewood combination of a mahogany body with solid carved maple top. Together, these woods offer outstanding tonal depth and richness from the mahogany, with superb clarity and "snap" from the maple. In this model, the strategic placement of several tone chambers enhances resonance while also reducing the guitar's overall weight considerably.
The glued-in solid-mahogany neck is cut to the superior "quarter-sawn" grain orientation for superior strength and optimum resonance transfer between neck and body. The neck is carved to a comfortably rounded profile that increases gradually from .860" at the 1st fret to .960" at the 12th fret, and topped with a 20-fret rosewood fingerboard with traditional trapezoid inlays. The bass has a PLEK-cut Corian nut, and, to further maximize vibrational energy, Gibson includes its legendary Tune-o-matic bridge and stud-mounted wraparound tailpiece, arguably the most storied hardware combination in the history of the electric guitar, adapted here for the four-string instrument.
All this tonal goodness is cranked through a pair of Gibson USA's TB+ humbucking pickups, with ceramic magnets for enhanced punch and clarity to maximize the potential of this timeless maple and mahogany design. Individual volume and tone controls and a three-way switch offer a wide range of tones. Finally, a set of highly efficient GroverŪ bass tuners with 20:1 a gear ratio give you optimum smoothness and precision. Add it up, and it's a powerful yet classy road to the bottom, whether you're forte is rock, jazz, country, or metal. Check one out today at your authorized Gibson dealer, and discover the beauty and versatility of the Les Paul Standard Bass.
