Epiphone Embassy

1966 U.S. made Epiphone Embassy. The first review does a good job of describing the layout. This bass is essentially a non-reverse Thunderbird IV with a different, smaller body. All Mahogany, long (!) set neck (not neck-thru), two nickel covered pickups, VVT, Tune-o-matic bridge, and a very cool stop tailpiece. Though they look different, it's entirely appropriate to discuss the Embassy as another version of the classic Gibson Thunderbird. They were made by the same people in the same factory, using the same high quality parts. This is a serious mojo and tone machine...

Just like the (at one point) under appreciated reverse T 'bird, the Embassy has something that sets it apart, soundwise, from its better known cousin, the Thunderbird. I've heard that uniqueness ascribed to the fact that its set neck gives it a better sound than the neck thru models. The '60s models do sound different than the '70s and later model Thunderbirds. Personally, I don't think one sounds better than the other. I just think they sound slightly different. The Embassy sounds more transparent and less dark than my Thunderbirds. Not quite as boomy, but in a good way. I'd describe them as sounding like they definitely were from the same family. A very talented one...

My Embassy has had the requisite headstock repair. There are some out there that haven't, but they're few and far between! There's beautiful checking all over the body and neck, but not too many dings or scratches. The neck is straight and the truss rod is in great working order. Keep in mind that this is a 38 year old guitar, and you'll see that it was made to last. If you ever need a case for one, the Epiphone Thunderbird cases work wuite well.

The felt has long been removed, but the mutes are still there. All the other hardware is old but in pretty good shape. All in all, it's a quality instrument, to be sure.

This bass definitely has a fragile quality to it. I'll be very careful about where I take it to play. With the body being so small and thin, and the neck being so long and narrow, I don't it could stand up to the rigors of touring or rough clubs. As a true vintage guitar, I'll also be careful about what atmosphere I'll expose it to. That being said, it won't be a closet queen or a wall decoration. This beast was made to be played...

I've only dealt with Customer Service. They were prompt and helpful in answering my questions.

The price I paid for this bass wasn't a steal by any means, but it was a fair deal for a solid, great sounding and playing bass. I've seen some in better condition go for $2000 or more. That being said, I love it. I'm a Thunderbird fanatic, and my Embassy holds its own with all of 'em. I can't afford $3000 and up for a Thunderbird of the same vintage (yet), but for $1500 I really got one anyway, and a different body to boot! This bass certainly isn't going anywhere if I can help it. For anyone who likes the Thunderbird sound, I'd say you'll never go wrong by picking up an Embassy if you ever get the chance. But of course, if you don't want it, I'd be happy to see what I can do about taking it off your hands!

1964 Solid Mahogany Body - Same as Wilshire Guitar Series
Classic Epiphone "Batwing" head stock.
"Stop" tailpiece, again like later Wilshires.
Same pickups as Gibson Thunderbird of same period
Same long scale. 2 Volume, 1 Tone knobs.
Plays well with Rotosounds.
Came with some silly "trestle"-type hardware
over the strings and a set of adjustable felt mutes.

Huge, rich sound, great for hard/classic rock
and blues, less so for pop'n'snap funk stuff.

I have no idea how it was set up at the factory.
I set it up myself so it plays cleanly over the
whole neck. That makes the action high enough
to be, ah, athletic, but what a sound!

It's been in and out of the closet and onto and
off of stages for almost 25 years now, and has
never shown the slightest problem. What's to go
wrong?

Bought used.

The one flaw to this bass is its balance. The Wilshire
body stock is just too light relative to the massive
mahogany neck. I suspect that the bogus metal hardware
covering the strings was there at least as much as a
counterbalance as it was to protect the pickups/bridge.
Since I took that crap off to be able to play the strings
wherever I want, I use a special contoured strap to keep
the head from sliding downward when I'm not holding the
neck. A little leather pouch of lead shot hanging off
the tail strap button would be even better, but I've
never bothered putting that together. Despite this
considerable flaw, I love this bass. True and unsolicited
testamonial from a drummer I played with, who looked pretty
skeptical when it came out of the case, but who then heard
it in all its glory through my SVT:
"Kevin couldn't afford an expensive bass, so he got a great one".