Bruno Conqueror bass

[daan]

I just spotted this on Craigslist, it's pretty close to me and tomorrow is payday... uh-oh. I've ALWAYS wanted a Gibby EB-2 or whatever this is a copy of and I actually have what this is listed as. Oh yeah, pix and ad:



http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/m ... 90310.html
"Bruno Conqueror hollowbody bass guitar, made in Japan in the mid-60's. This bass is in very good condition and plays great. The neck is straight and has an adjustable truss rod, the rosewood fretboard has been freshly oiled and looks great, the pots are clean, and the enclosed gear tuners work fine. Bound top and neck. About the only indication of its age is the crazed finish, mainly on the back that runs with the grain and is pretty common on hollowbodies of that era. You don't see many old hollowbody basses, especially as nice as this one."
Somebody talk me out of this, since the last thing I really need is another bass. If this thing is a real dog, I should know before calling them up. ("Must resist....must resist...")

[VintAxe]

Hey daan.

I don't know if the bass is a dog or not but I do see one characteristic that I think you should consider before a purchase. It looks to me like there is no intonation adjustment on the bridge. If you play the bass and the intonation is off, this could be a deal breaker. If you decide to look at it, take your tuner and let us know what you find out.

[Spud1950]

If you think that the pickup will sound like a Gibson EB-2 pickup just because it looks like one,you may be disappointed. The EB-2 pickup is a very unique sidewinder humbucker pickup and has it's own unique,very aggressive tone.Inside looks like this





The Bruno pickup is most likely just a single coil dressed up to look like the EB-2. It might sound ok for what it is, but don't automatically assume it's going sound like an EB-2 pickup if that's the tone you're after.

Edit- VintAxe is correct.The non intonating bridge could be an issue. Be sure to carefully check out the intonation. For good measure, here's a real Gibson EB-2.

[daan]

Yeah, I'm going into this knowing it won't SOUND like a real EB, as long as it's a decent player I'll be happy. I can put a "mud-bucker" in here (or maybe a Dimarzio Model 1) cheaper than buying a decent EB or restoring one in my price range. I have an appointment later to go look at it. The seller didn't know what "bolt-on neck" meant, and when I asked about the action, that took a while to explain too. It should be interesting to see what it's like.