2011 Gibson SG Standard Bass Faded Demo

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In January of 2019, my gear acquisition adventure lead me to this 2011 Gibson SG Standard Bass Faded. Now that is actually the official model name from Gibson’s website…and as well as it rolls of the tongue, really feel they could have done better. My bass is worn cherry with a nitrocellulose finish. It has a mudbucker in the neck and a Thunderbird style minihumbucker in the bridge. These bases came with a black original Gibson hardshell case, lined with white fur. It’s a short, tort with a fat bottom. Sexy lady!

Gibson SG Standard Bass Faded

Winner Winner Chicken Burrito…that’s what we say in Arizona

I purchased this bass on eBay, winning an auction of $575 plus $70 shipping from a fairly green pawn shop. It came to me from Crescent City, California. The pawn shop only had 11 feedback, a terrible description, and mediocre photos, which many times is how you get your best deals…or your worst rip offs…my favorite! Fortunately everything with the deal went fairly smoothly.

Differences between an SG Standard and a Gibson SG Standard Bass Faded

  • Headstock logo is decal instead of mother of pearl inlaid
  • Fret markers are tiny dots instead of large trapezoids
  • Nitrocellulose finish instead of high gloss lacquer
  • And that’s probably it…with over $1000 higher MSRP in 2011

My Thoughts on the Gibson SG Standard Bass Faded

  • Short scale : This makes the SG ideal for smaller, younger bass players…or a guitarist. Seriously, it’s a great bass for a guitarist to pick up and not feel overwhelmed by the size and presence of a full scale bass. 😂 For me, nothing is quite where it’s supposed to be.
  • Pickups : For me the mudbucker sounds great. I would go full mudbucker, full time. It growls, it punches. It’s kind of like a P-Bass pickup without the clarity and a bit more 70’s bush. The other pickup kind of cleans things up. I guess it’s nice that it’s there.
  • Finish : The nitrocellulose finish is nice and satiny. I like how it allows you to feel through to the wood grain.

To me this is a great bass…but I love almost all basses. It looks tough, it’s something different than a Fender. Light weight and feels tiny. Can be had at a decent price…sometimes. As for cons, to me it doesn’t sound as good as a Fender. It’s hard to switch back and forth between short scale and long scale.

Some 2011 Copy from Gibson via the Wayback Machine

https://web.archive.org/web/20111026075928/http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Bass/Gibson-USA/SG-Standard-Bass-Faded/Specs.aspx

During the height of Gibson’s original “Golden Era,” the company’s only bass guitar at the time — the EB0 — underwent the same radical transformation as the Les Pauls, which were being redesigned as the now classic SG. It was a bold move and it paid off, bringing Gibson basses to the forefront. Today’s SG Standard Bass recreates the classic, dual-pickup version, staying true to the design and specs of the original, including the popular 30.5-inch scale length.

Three-Way Adjustable Bridge

Gibson’s innovative three-way adjustable bridge is the standard for simplicity and functionality. It provides players with the ability to adjust and fine-tune the height of the SG Standard Bass’ strings in all directions — front, back, and side-to-side — which gives the bridge a “floating” feature, thus allowing the bass to be equipped with a variety of string gauges and multiple set-up options. The SG Reissue’s legendary resonance, tone, and sustain is the result of anchoring the bridge directly into the body at its three adjustable points, which provides a firm seating for the strings and yields a strong union between the strings and body. Readily accessible screws make setting the intonation simple. To this day, Gibson’s three-way adjustable bridge remains an industry standard. It is the epitome of form and function in bass guitar bridge design.

Set-Neck Construction

Like all classic Gibson guitars, the necks on the SG Standard Basses are distinguished by one of the more traditional features that have always set them apart — a glued neck joint. Gluing the neck to the body of the guitar insures a “wood-to-wood” contact, no air space in the neck cavity, and maximum contact between the neck and body, allowing the neck and body to function as a single unit. The result? Better tone, better sustain, and no loose or misaligned necks.

Vintage-Style TB and TB Mini Humbuckers

The pickups on the early Gibson basses of the 1960s remained unchanged for many years, undergoing only minor cosmetic modifications from time to time, but staying true to the originals’ sonic characteristics. The pickups in today’s SG Standard Bass — the vintage-style TB Plus humbucker and TB mini humbucker — are wax-potted and capture and recreate the classic attributes of those early Gibson basses. The TB plus humbucker in the neck is a traditional hum-cancelling bass pickup with a full frequency, heavy-bottom sound, similar to pickups with a passive EQ. The EB mini humbucker in the bridge is traditionally smaller but packs a sweet punch with exceptional mid-range presence. This combination makes the SG Standard Bass a versatile instrument with a wide range of tonal possibilities.

20-Fret Rosewood Fingerboard

Rosewood has always graced the fingerboards of the world’s finest stringed instruments, including many of today’s Gibsons. The fingerboard on the Gibson SG Standard Bass is constructed from the highest grade rosewood on the planet. The rosewood is personally inspected and qualified by Gibson’s team of skilled wood experts before it enters the factories to be fitted onto the neck of the SG Standard Bass. The resilience of this dense and durable wood makes these fingerboards extremely balanced and stable, and gives each note unparalleled clarity and bite.

Features

  • The Gibson Logo
  • Angled Headstock
  • Adjustable Truss Rod
  • 20-Fret Rosewood Fingerboard
  • Nickel and Silver Alloy Fret Wire
  • Dot Inlays
  • Set-Neck Construction
  • Solid Mahogany Body
  • Vintage-Style TB and TB Mini Humbuckers
  • Three-Way Adjustable Bridge
  • Nitrocellulose Finish

Body

Body Style SG
Body Species Mahogany

Hardware

Plating Finish Chrome
Tailpiece Three Point Adjustable Bass Bridge
Tuners Shamrock Bass

Electronics

Neck Pickup SG Bass
Bridge Pickup SG Bass
Pickup Covers Yes
Controls 2 Volume – 2 Tone – 3-Way Toggle
Control Knobs Black Tophats with Silver Inserts
Control Pocket Cover Black Molded
Pickguard SG bass pickguard

Neck

Species Mahogany
Nut Corian
Nut Width 1.600″ +/- .050″
Headstock Silkscreen Gibson Logo
Truss Rod Gibson Adjustable Truss Rod
Truss Rod Cover Bell-shaped cover, stamped “SG”

Fingerboard

Fingerboard Species Rosewood
Inlays Acrylic Dot
Number of Frets 20
Scale Length 30.5″

Case

Type Gibson Hardshell
Interior White
Case Exterior Black
Silkscreen Gibson USA Logo

Finshes

Worn Cherry $1,399
Worn Ebony $1,399