Up for sale is a rare vintage Epiphone Genesis Bass in black gloss finish. These unusual Genesis basses were only produced for 1979–1981 in Japan, and are much harder to find than the Genesis guitars. The design has a very cool late-’70s Gibson/Epiphone vibe, somewhere between a Gibson Ripper, Grabber, Les Paul Bass, and Thunderbird. The bass is also a regular 34" scale but can feel like a short-scale due to how far back the bridge is positioned.

This bass features set-neck construction, a heavy solid body, rosewood fingerboard, two covered Epiphone humbucker pickups, master volume, master tone, 3-way pickup selector, and a mini-switch for coil-split. The pickups have a huge, aggressive sound — thick, dark, and powerful, with a Thunderbird/Ripper-style punch.

This particular example weighs 10.6 lbs, has a 1.6" nut width, and 17.5mm string spacing at the bridge. The neck is substantial front-to-back, closer to a chunky vintage Precision Bass feel than a slim modern neck. It balances well on a strap because most of the weight is in the body rather than the headstock.

Important: this bass is being sold as a project. The electronics work perfectly, but the truss rod is maxed out and the neck has forward bow. The fingerboard has also been defretted and the slots filled, so it currently functions as a fretless-style restoration project. This would be a great candidate for someone who loves rare vintage Epiphone/Gibson-style basses.

Includes a new Ibanez Artcore fitted bass case. The case is not a perfect snug fit, but the bass does fit with some added padding under the body.