Here for sale we have an Orville EB-3 short scale electric bass in Cherry finish. Orville, of course named for Gibson's founder, was an official Japanese subsidiary of Gibson USA in the late '80s & '90s. Following the 'lawsuit' era of Japanese guitars, Gibson needed a way to effectively combat the copies that were flooding the market & harming their copyrights. Orville was founded in '88 as Gibson's solution to this problem, and allowed them to produce fully licenced copies of Gibson's iconic instruments. Two lines were produced - Orville by Gibson was the premium tier, with 'just' Orville being the standard series. Orville instruments are known for their incredible value for money, high quality parts & materials & of course fantastic Japanese craftsmanship.
This particular instrument is one of the first 'just' Orville guitars to be produced, with it's serial number, specification & pot codes all indicating that it was manufactured in 1989 - the first year of 'just' Orville production. It was made in the highly regarded Terada Gakki factory, and follows the 'Golden Era' specifications of '50s & '60s Gibsons. A set-neck construction is employed and comprises a Mahogany body, Mahogany neck and 20 fret Rosewood fingerboard. Chrome hardware is fitted including an aftermarket Hipshot Supertone bridge & open-geared 'Clover' tuning machines. The bridge pickup is original, and is an Orville Japanese-wound mini-humbucker. The neck pickup has been replaced by a previous owner, and is an Artec EBC4-CR ‘Mudbucker’. These pickups are wired to 4-Position Varitone switch & independent volume & tone controls.
The Mahogany neck plays very well, with the 1960s SlimTaper ‘D’ profile sitting very comfortably in the hand and offering ergonomic thumb positioning and easy reach in all registers. The 1.496” nut width is perfect for those with smaller hands or guitarists moonlighting as bass players. Certainly, the register feels highly manoeuvrable, with the gloss finish to the rear further assisting with smooth navigation of the fretboard. The 12” radius Rosewood is supremely pleasant under the fingers and allows for a variety of bass techniques to be played with ease.
The pickups installed in this bass deliver powerful, full-bodied bass tones that will add serious depth to any band's sound. The Humbucker in the neck position drives the sound, offering a warm yet accurate bass response and punchy mids. The Mini Humbucker in the bridge position captures the bright overtones, allowing you to cut through the mix very effectively, helping you to create a percussive and rhythmic sound for the rest of the band to lock in with. The 4-Position Varitone switch allows you to choose either independent pickup, both together & even a choked/filtered sound. This combined with independent volume & tone controls means you're able to stay in full control of your sound in any musical situation.
Please be aware that for international buyers import fees are not included in our postage and packaging cost, this only covers the cost of the guitar being sent to you. Import fees will be charged by Customs upon the guitar's arrival in the recipient country. Due to Brexit, this also applies to EU buyers. We advise checking the total import cost with Customs as this is not information we are able to accurately provide.