A 1982 Gibson Victory Artist bass guitar, in Fireburst.

The Gibson Victory was launched in 1981, as a basic one-pickup passive model; the Victory Standard, and a two-pickup active Victory Artist. These were joined a year later by a two-pickup passive Victory Custom. It was designed by the then Research and Development team, based in the Gibson Kalamazoo plant.

Stylistically, it was unlike any previous Gibson bass, asymmetrical with a deep lower cutaway, allowing access to the 24 frets, only the Thunderbird-esque headstock suggesting its heritage. It was Gibsons attempt to woo Fender Precision players.

The Artist creates tonal differences electronically and when played in passive mode sounds similar to the Custom. When in active mode the bass and treble controls can frequency boost by 16db or frequency cut by 18db - allowing a vast range of possible sounds, extreme treble to complete bass. Furthermore the notch filter offers a midrange frequency cut of 12db, providing another voice still.

Along with the pickups, the all maple construction, bolt-on neck, and brass nut of the Victory basses were more than capable of giving bass players of the eighties all the twangy treble that they could handle, as well as plenty of bass. The series was moderately sucessful, with high profile players such as Dave Kiswiney and Ralphe Armstrong endorsing the Victory Artist.