flyguitars logo
I'm happy with this
This website uses cookies to personalise content and adverts, to provide social media features, and to analyse traffic. When you buy through links on our site we may earn an affiliate commission. See terms and conditions

The Gibson RD Artist bass guitar

Gibson bass guitars | RD bass main page | RD Artist

The RD Artist was launched in late 1977, after two years of development (see the RD Artist timeline), as Gibson's first active bass guitar (see also the passive RD Standard). According to the Gibson product development director at the time, Bruce Bolen, it had been designed from a "musical purpose" point of view, "to determine what the musical instrument is supposed to accomplish".

Gibson had worked closely with Moog (at this time both companies were subsidiaries of Norlin) and Who bassist John Entwistle, to create a bass that would benefit from the newly emerging electronics being fitted to basses by manufacturers like Alembic. Bruce Bolen explains, in this 1978 quote, some of the vision behind the RD Artist.

1978 Gibson RD Artist bass, Fireburst finish with an ebony fingerboard 1981 Gibson RD Artist bass guitar - Antique Sunburst, Curly Maple Top

Two versions of the RD Artist bass. Above: 1978 Gibson RD Artist bass (RD77) in Fireburst finish. Below: 1981 RD Artist bass (RD79) with Curly Maple Top - in Antique Sunburst

Bruce Bolen
Model: RD Artist bass
Available: 1977-81
Hardware: 3-point chrome bridge, and Schaller BM or occasionally M-4 machine heads
Scale: 34 3/8 inch
Body: Maple
Neck: Three-piece maple set neck, with ebony or maple fretboard
Finishes: Natural, Ebony, Antique Sunburst and Fireburst

One of the particular musical qualities that I personally was looking for in one of the models, was a similar effect to that of a steel player - this being the reduction of the initial attack and the swell of the note after the initial attack had been made. A steel player of course uses a volume pedal to accomplish this but it was still something missing. Bob designed a special circuit that would achieve this as well as an expansion circuit unlike any other that had been designed to date.

The actual design of the RD bass itself (i.e. excluding electronics) was the work of Bruce Bolen, head of the Kalamazoo research and development group, with a design patent filed in May 1978, and granted in August 1980. Previously, most Gibson basses could be considered as extensions of a successful guitar line; the fact that the design patent is for the Artist bass strongly suggests, for the RD series it may have been the other way around.

It was a very high quality instrument with a terrific array of sounds, but John Entwistle soon stepped away from the project. It didn't sell in huge numbers, but did replace the Ripper as Gibsons best-selling bass of 1978 and 1979.

The RD artist first appeared in the 1978 RD catalog and then the 1978 Quality/Prestige/Innovation catalog, along with the RD standard, and a range of RD guitars.


Justin Meldal Johnsen with RD Artist bass
Justin Meldal-Johnsen: "the basic tone is cool, particularly with flats". Read more in the FlyGuitars JMJ interview
Ralphe Armstrong with fretless RD Artist bass
Ralphe Armstrong: "I liked because it was big and it had a long fingerboard; you can play a G harmonic on it and it had a big sound". Read more in the FlyGuitars Ralphe Armstrong interview
Krist Novoselic with ebony RD Artist bass
Krist Novoselic plays and records with several Gibson basses. In the Nirvana days he was regularly seen with a Gibson Ripper, and as pictured here, a black RD Artist bass. Image courtesy Brad Barrish, whatevernevermind.com

RD Artist controls

The four dials on the active RD guitars were a volume for each pickup, as would be expected, a treble control, and a bass control. The unusual thing about the bass and treble controls was that they operated in the range 5 to -5, with 0 being the neutral position. Listen to this clip - it demonstrates the RD bass at its most mellow (neck pickup, bass 5, treble -5) and then again at its most brash (bridge pickup, bass -5, treble 5 expansion and bright mode). This was recorded with a second version Artist bass; the earliest versions were not able to employ expansion and bright mode simultaneously. These sounds are extremes, but the RD can do anything in between.

Gibson describes the first-version RD controls in the RD-77 owners manual, and the 1978 RD control description flyer. For differences between the first and second versions, see the 1978 RD Artist and 1981 RD Artist pages.

Expansion, compression and bright mode circuitry

The RD Artist requires a 9 volt battery to operate; it has no passive mode. When the input jack is removed from the instrument it draws no power, so to prolong battery life, it should be left unplugged when not in use.

RD Artist bass compression graph

Compression - neck pickup only. As can be seen in the graph, compression reduces the fundamental attack, and 'compresses' each note into a long sustaining signal.

Listen to this clip of the RD Artist neck pickup (bass 0, treble 0); the first few notes are without compression, the second few notes are with. Notice the way the second clip sustains for significantly longer.





RD Artist bass expansion graph

Expansion - bridge pickup only. Offers a very fast, explosive response, with a rapid decay.

Listen to this clip of the RD Artist bridge pickup (bass 0, treble 0); the first few notes are without expansion, the second few notes are with. Notice the difference.

When both pickups are selected, the neck will undergo compression whilst the bridge is subject to expansion



Bright Mode - affects the output of either (or both) pickup, and as the description suggests, accentuates the treble frequencies. This final clip demonstrates both pickups (bass 0, treble 0), without, and then with the bright mode activated.





Gibson RD bass guitars for sale

Flyguitars.com is funded by its visitors. When you buy through links on our site we may earn an affiliate commission. For more info see terms and conditions.
1977 Gibson RD Standard BASS Black

1977 Gibson RD Standard BASS Black

Carbondale, Illinois, 629**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

$3590


Add Me to Your Favorite Sellers
Olivia's Vintage would like to present this 1977 Gibson RD Artist Standard Bass in its original Black finish. It has a great playing neck with great frets. It's all original and 100% complete along with the original hardshell case (missing handle and some damaged on the sides of the case). This RD Bass looks great with some nicks + dings (some are touched-up) and other cosmetic wear. The bass itself remains structurally sound with no cracks, breaks or ... more
eBay logo