The New Epiphone Thunderbird Pro V

[Johnny Crab]

Nice bass, it arrived double boxed and tuned 1/2 step down.
I get deliveries at work so I ran it thru Line 6 BassPODXTLive into the AltecLansing PC system with sub. I don't think it has the B string problem but was afraid to lean on it as dust was blown off of the sub. This natural one is darker than the stock pictures on the store site. More later and HOPE I have a case to fit at home.

<later>: No cases fit....maybe a paper-thin Greco gigbag a Rondo P/J is in?
Pics right out of the box. One with flash, one without, cheapo gigbag camera, not the best lighting:

Notes:
The front pickup has a slight hump in the middle of the upper edge(where my thumb rides). The back one doesn't have that.

The middle piece of wood is not 100% level in the area of fret 1 to the nut. It is slightly protruding(elevated/not level with the rest of the wood on the back of the neck) on the B-string side.

The wings are NOT glued to the center pieces like the 60's T-Birds. The wings are flat edged on the mating surface, the 60's T-Birds were V-cut at the mating surfaces(wing and center). Not sure of the newer T-Birds' construction there.

 

[AtomicPunk]

I need me one of these 5 strings. Love the Bird.

 

[OutToPlayJazz]

I played one of these recently at a friend's music store & it sounded really good. For the money, it's a great bass. Apart from the natural finish, that is. I hope the black /burst ones have the usual painted necks, as the natural's neck was as rough as a badger's arse & felt as if they'd only half finished it. A pity, as it could have been a stunning bass for the money.

 

[Johnny Crab]

Case update:

The Epi case made for the "Goth bass" aka batbass

fits the Epi Pro V bass PERFECTLY!!!

Pics shortly, Batbass goes into the EpiBird box for a while.

Overall view:

Clearance at machine head:

 

[bassplayer8953]

I played one of these recently at a friend's music store & it sounded really good. For the money, it's a great bass. Apart from the natural finish, that is. I hope the black /burst ones have the usual painted necks, as the natural's neck was as rough as a badger's arse & felt as if they'd only half finished it. A pity, as it could have been a stunning bass for the money.

The neck on my (natural oil finish) Epi Pro IV is as smooth as a baby's bottom. I actually prefer the feel to the glossy finish on my Gibson bird. You must have checked out a badly finished one...(not that a badly finished one should have passed QC...)

 

[Johnny Crab]

WARNING
Factory strings are coated with Mr. Yuck that comes off on hands(like my normal strings after we play a Texas cookoff with mesquite smoke all over everything and IN string groves). 1 hour and 45 minutes of exercise produced this:

Could fubar things if you get that on white clothes or white anything.
Might also make some new Goth makeup if you wipe your face when sweating...

 

[your idol]

eh i dont think i would have even touched it with epi factory strings. that bad boy would have some DRs on it in a heartbeat. always dug the 5 string birds but they stay expensive and are real hard to find. glad epi dropped this one, why is it every idea we would love to see Gibson come out with unfurls through epiphone. seeing this makes me want one

 

[Basstovsky]

I have to say I'm yet to play a 5-string I really connect with, but this baby seems worth a look, great features and stunning looks, plus unbeatable price? I see checking one of these out in my future. xD

 

[Johnny Crab]

Roadtest results/comments:

Pros:
Sound: excellent & flexible
Comfort: excellent

Cons:
Treble tone control center frequency too high. Seems to have been selected using the bass via "regular" bass amps instead of a full range system(i.e. ACME, BOSE, SWR).
Input jack is location is bad for using a straight jack or doing much more than standing still. When the jack pushes against your leg, the bass cuts out. This WILL be fixed even if I have to make an input jack on the back(control cavity cover maybe).

Other than those two cons, this bass is amazing.

 

[Johnny Crab]

I found part of the jack problem.
It's a plastic square pressed into a wood hole and the contacts fit into sleeves on three sides of it. The center(tip) sleeve on mine had pushed back to where to tip was only touching but not secured! I also found a crap solder connection on one of the leads to the jack(resoldered it). It still may get relocated to the face since there is a router circle for either it OR adding a midrange tone .
I'll report on the results.

For those not wanting to swap this jack or relocate it(I don't trust it), you could put a drop of JB Weld at 3 locations to secure the contact inserts. That may happen if the jack isn't relocated.

Pix.....

Inside of the tightly-fitted cover plate:

Extra route and tip sleeve that was pushed back:

Areas to repair:

 

[bassplayer8953]

I like the jack on the edge of the bass (rather than on the face) My Gibson Tbird has it that way, & I've never had a problem. However, that jack on the Epi looks like a real POS. No wonder it's giving you grief. I've always used a 90 degree 1/4" jack on mine, but will switch to wireless when playing out, & of course the wireless has a a straight jack...

I'm wondering if anyone sells a "real" (metal) jack in the same dimensions to fit the Epi opening, & with the extra connection for the battery. Obviously it would have to be long enough, but not too long. With all that wiring & junk in that small cavity, there's no room for anything to take up extra space. In fact, I had a helluva time trying to get mine back together, & get everything to work, when I opened it up looking for the source of the buzzing (never did find much, seemed like a bad ground, but all wires looked properly connected). Weakest part of the Epi pro is definitely in that control cavity...

 

[Johnny Crab]

Since the jack plate on the exterior is METAL, you could get someone else's 1/4" jack with power connecting provisions(3 contacts) in black and it should fit since the POS jack route is really just a penny-sized boring. The metal exterior plate and longer screws that come with it should hold up.

Like this but maybe add some black paint if you want:
http://www.allparts.com/Long-Stereo-Jack-p/ep-155l-000.htm

Not sure on the fit.

 

[bassplayer8953]

All right, you made me go look at mine. Only real (visible) difference would be the nut, the end of the jack is silver (also in your pic of the factory jack, above) And a silver one wouldn't bother me much anyway, as there is likely to be a silver plug-end attached to a cable plugged into it anytime it's out, so....

I'm going to have to order a 250k pot from them anyway, for the kid's Foundation. Maybe I'll grab one of those Switchcraft input jacks while I'm ordering.

 

[DickThunder]

Finally I will tell my "pro 5" story.....
I ordered mine from a major music chain store here in nashville (rhymes with clam stash. When i placed this order, I presented printouts of all the issues concerning the pickups. I even included the email from Roger Ball addressing this very problem. Many phone calls transpired, and I was told that clam stash did not have any in stock, although their website listed it as in stock. My trusty clam stash salesman informed me that since we are here in nashville, we could probably get one special order from epiphone, who is located right here in nashville.
Imagine my glee!!
After speaking to my salesman,and his manager, and being told that I would receive a "tour ready" instrument, I agreed to purchase this bass. I paid for it and went back to my tour happy and content knowing I would get my cool new bird pro 5 next time I get home.
Next time I got back to nashville, I was pressed for time, and had to do a grab and go, but was assured that this bass was "tour ready". NOT!
At our next tour stop, I pulled the bird outta the case at soundcheck, as a few production guys are hanging out, also curious about my new 5ver. Imagine my total disgust as I, and several others discovered what a piece of chit I just paid for.
NO LOW B OUTPUT!!! NONE ZERO!!! What the hell?

I was assured that before it left epiphone in nashville, it was inspected and tested, then was assured that 2 clam stash
employees had tested it also! "Its tour ready mr thunder"
Holy mother of god! Not only was the low B not present, there was also NO sign of a "tour ready" pro setup! Action was a mile high, intonation was a half step out on all strings at the 12th fret. Factory strings were garbage. Very uncool at best. Worst of all, its a very cool,sexy bass. Very rock and roll.

So my tech and I tweaked the action a bit, and I played it a few times on songs which didnt require the low B. It was okay, and I knew that when I got home, somebody was gonna fix this.

When my tour was over, I returned to clam stash with my bird and handed it to the tech who instantly found the problem by rubbing some steel wool over the pickup poles. guess what?
these are 4 string pickups! duh!

My esteemed music store assured me they would take care of this and they did. 5 days later.......

They installed new pickups from epiphone and did a pro setup with a set of DR lowriders, and it is awesome now!

Lesson to be learned here is..... Never trust anybody's words when buying something as personal as an instrument used to make a living.
Never EVER leave the music store without playing the instrument!! (something i have known for years, but i let my g.a.s. and a hurried schedule cloud my judgment)

Now for anyone who wonders why I wanted this particular bass so much, here is the reason:
I love tbirds, and have been wanting a bird w active pickups.
I play on many different productions and stages thru the tour year, and love having the ability to make treb/bass adjustments on the fly.
And...... my name is dick THUNDER

 

[DaZombieWoof]

+1 for getting a new quality jack to use on what sounds like a decent plate. Now the extreme fix would be to install one of those Neutrik locking jacks....

Extra route is for a top mount jack.

 

[Johnny Crab]

Now for anyone who wonders why I wanted this particular bass so much, here is the reason:
I love tbirds, and have been wanting a bird w active pickups.....and love having the ability to make treb/bass adjustments on the fly.

+100
The above and wanting a T-Bird in 5 string that is actually neck-through construction.

 

[DickThunder]

+100
The above and wanting a T-Bird in 5 string that is actually neck-through construction.

yeah!!....sorry, forgot the whole neck-thru thing!!
btw this beast really growls with DR lowriders. would love to get another one, but i dont know if my heart can stand the stress.

 

[DaZombieWoof]

Go for a pair, one fretted and one fretless.

 

[nismaniac]

I've been eyeing these...I would like to find one in store to check out, hopefully I'll find one soon. If anyone has a sunburst 5 or a black trans 5, I would love to see some real world pics.

 

[bassplayer8953]

I've been eyeing these...I would like to find one in store to check out, hopefully I'll find one soon. If anyone has a sunburst 5 or a black trans 5, I would love to see some real world pics.

One on the 'bay right now, BIN price is decent, could be just what you're looking for:


http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIB...QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item35a5afe4db

(I have no connection with the seller, just trying to help out another Epi pro fan)...and the ad has your pix...I had to buy my (natural oil IV pro) sight unseen...but they're pretty good basses...terrific for the price.