Epiphone EB-3 EB

I needed a bass to use for drop tunings and had tried out the EB3 before and thought it sounded great and decided to buy from Thomann as was the cheapest price I had seen.

Receiving the bass, the set up was perfectly fine and would be suitable for a beginner, I however changed the strings to a heavier gauge to re-tune the bass down a whole step.

I did polish up the frets and oil the fretboard as this is my preference, but certainly wasn't needed, setting up was fine, the truss rod worked as it should, however one negative would be that intonation screws are in a bad place and awkward to adjust.

The bass is neck heavy, but it's nowhere near as bad as other reviews say, decent strap in a comfortable position and it's not an issue.

This is a fantastic bass for the money, would buy again.

My first bass. I wanted something a bit different to a classic p bass and a jazz bass. So the eb3 caught my eye. As soon as I plugged it in I was overwhelmed with the deep lows. But as time went on and I tried other instruments I began to find the faults in this instrument.

The dreadful bridge; the gibson three point bridge just doesn't work. after a few adjustments the bridge popped out of the body. I was relieved to find out that it was a common problem and could be fixed, but a new bridge would make this bridge a lot better.

The pickups; the neck pickup is great sounding with distortion or fuzz, but on it's own is very muddy. The bridge pickup is a bit too close to the bridge and so it doesn't have much low end. Together the sound is useable but it really reflects the price of this instrument.

The build quality; the neck isn't very strong and can easily bend, and the frets aren't all level out of box. But these are expected with such a cheap instrument.The finish is nice, no blotches, and the electronics are well soldered and feature a shielded cavity.

Overall: as a beginners bass this is fine. Especially for those who want a thick, thumping rock sound, but isn't that versatile. With a few mods and upgrades this bass could be even better than the actual gibson. (New bridge, new pickups, push pull pots for coil taps, fret level, etc) But it really is just a beginners bass and you get what you pay for.

Been playing guitar for many years , but decided its time to start to play the Bass guitar, having Gibson guitars the SG body Bass EB-3 EB appealed to me , the black finish just suited the Bass in many ways so i bought it. As technology has progressed no need to buy an amp for each guitar so bought a Peavey Vyer VIP 3 as well to replace a few of my amps i have ( reviews to follow on those products).
The Bass is just for personal playing pleasure, jamming with friends and filling in for various friends bands.
The Epiphone is well made and feels balanced and beautifull to play. The tone and sustain is lovely, the action low;the pick up switch is positive and has an action that i like, only minor issue is that the 4v tone and vooumne posts are a ittke close together, but nothing majr to get used to; i plugged it in and was pleasantly surprised by how it performed, i couldnt put it down ! The mahogany neck and body combined with the two pick ups , the Sidewnder and mini humbucker make it a Bass i do not want to replace and intend to keep in my personal collection as a permanant fixture. Thomanns pricing and effecient service and delivery made it a perfect Christmas present to myself !