@Jazzbass19 Officially resurrecting this thread in preparation for your update.
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I’m voting for @eric.kiser to be a forums manager! He might be the only one here who understands and remembers how all these threads are linked and relate, and where we can go to find stuff that’s already been posted!
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Yeah he’s totally on it
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Second that 
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OK @eric.kiser, @Vik, @joergkutter, and @howard . . . thanks for your interest and here’s an update on what I’ve determined so far . . . 
Turns out that the “neck dive” issue is very, very minor. I’ve read a lot about it on other forums so my perception of it may have been biased. The guitar can and does roll forward a little bit, but a wide suede-backed strap definitely helps.
The rattle in the pickup is a non issue. It just needs a small piece of felt. If I ever get around to it, it can be easily fixed. I have noticed, however, that although it sounds in tune to my ear, my Korg plug-in tuner seems to jump around a lot when I’m checking it. I’m not quite sure why this is. The Fender is always spot on.
I originally thought there was something wrong with the Gibson because the E string seemed less robust than the others and that it might need a pickup adjustment. But after playing around with the bass & treble knobs, I found that I needed to adjust them a bit differently from the Fender (on which I set both at max). I’m still working on the amp settings though, and have made some progress. The most important difference seems to be that I need another 20% or so higher volume to get the Gibson to pump out on that E string.
Conclusion: The pickups on the Fender are more powerful than the Gibson. I’ve read somewhere that the Squier Jazz bass pickups are slightly weaker than a “real” (American made) Fender Jazz bass, but I’m not sure about that.
The Gibson neck feels a lot “chunkier” than the Fender, and I don’t like it as much, but it does seems easier to play and the thinner strings are a little easier on the fingers, so I can definitely see why some folks would like a short scale bass. It’s fun to play, but after I pick up my Squier again, I am always glad to do it! It feels like I’ve come home or something . . . it’s hard to explain.
The Fender feels “sturdier” than the Gibson, and I like the full scale neck and the thicker gauge strings better, so perhaps that’s it. 
Of course, the biggest difference between the Fender and the SG is the tone and is the reason I bought the Gibson. There’s an unmistakable difference! If I were in a 70’s cover band, I would bring both basses with me to a gig. When you want a good, thumping, fat bass background you pick up the Gibby to get the job done!
On the other hand, the SG doesn’t shine too well at versatility. When you want a clear, distinct, brighter and less muddy sound, the Fender is the way to go. 
All this time, I’ve been racking my brains to come up with some good analogies for you guys to describe the difference between these two basses:
I suppose you could say it’s like having two cars: one with an automatic, and one with a manual transmission. The each have a different feel to them, and you have to remember to push the clutch pedal in to stop one of them . . .
Put another way, if they were vehicles, the Gibson would be a strong farm tractor, able to plow fields and pull heavy loads . . . the Fender would be a full size sedan capable of carrying several people and going on long trips.
Best I can do . . .
Cheers, Joe
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Thanks for the follow-up, @Jazzbass19! Perhaps you could consider putting different pickups in your Gibson? And, what about alignment of the strings (especially your E string, it seems) with the pickups? I am not 100% sure how significant alignment is, but there are people saying that the strings should be right in between the two magnet cores (on a Jazz, for example). I realize this is hard to impossible to see on the SG, but maybe, because of the “slack” you seem to have in your pickups that also affects how well they pick up the different strings!? Just an idea…
Good to have a “go to” bass you always feel comfortable with
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This alone, was worth it. So, is she a forever keeper?
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I think that this video is the reason to love the Gibson SG.
I want that bass so bad every time I listen to this sick sick sick bass tone… and playing.
This has been my fun bass transcription homework. And I’m way into the sound of that Gibson.
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@Gio, I agree it sounds great, but this is a flashy, slickly-made music video, and not an actual live performance, so don’t be misled by what she appears to be playing (a late 60’s/early 70’s variant of the Gibson EB-3).
Kinga Glyk has a lot of talent, but we don’t know what settings she’s using or what amp she’s playing through, etc. I would like to know myself, because my SG certainly doesn’t have that tone 
It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if they dubbed in a track from a Fender J-Bass:
All best, Joe
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Nice find, @Jazzbass19! So, the second part was real time, and then they sped it up for the first part, right? RIGHT!?
Hm, this could be a transcription endeavor that could keep me busy during the winter 
At least, we get the notes off the frets and the fingering along with it… Basically half-way done already 
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Then it wouldn’t be a Gibson anymore, @joergkutter ! . . . 
Thanks for the thought, though 
Cheers, Joe
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Hm, so the pickups make the bass!?!? I can only guess that your statement might stir some (good-natured) controversy from some people that know way more about these things than I do, but, as I see it, “modding” seems very common and there’s gotta be some SG-mods that change some of the (perceived) weaknesses of that model as it is off the assembly line!?
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Most common one I’ve heard of is a bridge (e.g. the Babicz or the Hipshot) which is a big improvement over both the original bar-type and the three-point bridges.
My understanding is that the Gibson humbucking pickup is larger and placed directly below the neck, which gives the Gibby its distinctive fat and muddy sound. So their pickups are affectionately known as “mudbuckers”.
That’s why if I changed it out, it wouldn’t be a Gibson anymore.
Cheers, Joe
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also this Gibson neck pickup is a sidewinder humbucker type, which means the coils are turned 90° compared to a “normal” pickup, and there is only one row of magnet despite the fact that there are two coils. pretty strange architecture. the sound is pretty distinctive, very muddy … and so it’s called a mudbucker
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I know, I know - but the tone sounds like that dark SG sound.
I saw Budos Band recently, and I’ve seen Kadavar before that, and they both rock the SGs… Or someting resembling an SG.
I still love that sound.
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That’s the video that you posted earlier . . . my kind of music!
That’s the booming, mudbucker background you’ll get out of an SG 
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That is pretty bad ass!
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Right??? And run it as loud as you can through a giant Orange bass stack?? I was asked to leave the venue for drooling too hard, and all the people in the mosh pit were slipping, and it was a mess.
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@Gio The tone of that bass is excellent. Can you explain how much is from the Gibson versus the Orange versus whatever else he has going on?
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