westone thunder 1, worth upgrading electronics?

[loaf]

it's in the title, is it worth putting in a new pickup to a westone thunder 1 bass? If so, which do you recommend?

[A9X]

Never played a bad Matsumoku bass yet and I own a few, so yes, it's worth the simple and cheap mod of changing out the pickup.

As tone is personal and preferences hard to describe in text, I'd suggest reading the Dimento's P thread (sticky at top of this forum) and reading all you can about ash/maple P's (the T1 isn't much different from a Fender P in practice) and preferably find some clips.

Otherwise P pickups are cheap and common and they either work or dont so are a relatively safe bet secondhand. They're also easy to try and swap on a passive, so buy some, experiment, and sell the one's you don't like.

Starting point should be a Dimarzio P.

[loaf]

thanks a lot, appreciated. It has a really good feel and is small and light, so if it could get in the ball park of a Pbass it'd be great for recording.

[alexofc69]

Just found your post.
Yes, do Upgrade. I sadly recently sold my upgraded Thunder I.
A previous owner had routed out and installed a J pickup from a Jackson. I bought it off eBay and when I got it it looked like it sat in mud for 10 years. The hardware and strings were rusty as well. I gutted the electronics and finish was good still, so I buffed it out and polished it.
I installed all new gold hardware and new bridge. It got new EMG P/J pickups and had a setup and fret dress. AWESOME!!! It was a successful project and played and sounded like a dream!

[bassmanrocke]

I gave my Thunder 1A to my nephew after I got the Fender bug. He still has it and loves it, however, it weighs a ton so he tends to play his modified(major mods) squire with an aguilar preamp.

I don't know if yours is different than his is, but what really set it apart was that it had an out of phase switch as well as an active/passive switch. I thought the preamp was very good quality and very versatile. If I would have modified anything it would have been to replace the pickup with a Bartolini. I would make a pickup swap first and see if that gets you the sound you want. You can always switch the preamp later.

[alexofc69]

Originally Posted by bassmanrocke

I gave my Thunder 1A to my nephew after I got the Fender bug. He still has it and loves it, however, it weighs a ton so he tends to play his modified(major mods) squire with an aguilar preamp.

I don't know if yours is different than his is, but what really set it apart was that it had an out of phase switch as well as an active/passive switch. I thought the preamp was very good quality and very versatile. If I would have modified anything it would have been to replace the pickup with a Bartolini. I would make a pickup swap first and see if that gets you the sound you want. You can always switch the preamp later.

The one with a switch and active electronics is a Thunder IA.
Yes, this thing weighed a TON!!! I just recently sold it on eBay. I am looking for a Westone Concord I or II to modify (much lighter).

[kevin_lindsay]

My first decent bass was a Westone Thunder 1A, and I then got a black Thunder 1A fretless - both were gerat instruments (or maybe that's just nostalgia?)

Nope - they really were great basses