Thunderbird Club

[PaleAngel_90]

I try to set them about equal tension, the E side usually seems to need to be a little tighter though, at least on my 4001, people say this is not true but I believe within reason you can compensate for neck twist a little. I like them. They each do half the work.

Why did you went for a 4003s instead of a 4003? Personally I love the look of the binding in the 4003, and it also has the stereo option which the 4003s doesn't have. Did you had a YouTube channel? I'd like to see it if you do have it, maybe some videos of your Ricks and T-Birds.

 

[PaleAngel_90]

Likely temperature and humidity stabilization. Any wood product usually wants to sit in its new environment for at least 24 hours before messing with it. Thermal and humidity expansion and contraction.

That can also be done outside of the box too no?

 

[Thumper]

You might as well get rid of those other pedals and just make it 10 spark boosts.

Kidding, I know, but I use the Wah-Wah in the N.I.B intro and a lead in Rocky Mtn Way, the X2 for wireless, a tuner, a compressor, a HPF/LPF, the POG for several ZZ Top, Cult, and AC/DC songs,
and the tuner for, you know, tuning. So I guess I could get rid of the volume pedal, and get down to 9 pedals

 

[Stealth57]

That can also be done outside of the box too no?

Box provides insulation so the temperature and humidity changes are slower.

 

[PaleAngel_90]

Box provides insulation so the temperature and humidity changes are slower.

Oh, makes sense...

 

[GonePlaid]

How long now?
I'm sure it's fine to bust her out.

This AM 9:30-ish. It'll wait 'til tomorrow. Too late to play it now anyway.

 

[bobyoung53]

Why did you went for a 4003s instead of a 4003? Personally I love the look of the binding in the 4003, and it also has the stereo option which the 4003s doesn't have. Did you had a YouTube channel? I'd like to see it if you do have it, maybe some videos of your Ricks and T-Birds.

I've had so many regular 4001's and 4003's that when I saw they were making them again I just wanted one, plus I like the way they look. I passed on a 4001S years ago, because I looked at it as an inferior model. I do have a YouTube channel but haven't uploaded any videos. I only have three Ricks and two T Birds now anyway. I used to play stereo years ago and have a Ric-O-Sound box but it's a pain dragging two amps around, they do sound really good in stereo but they sound good in mono too.

 

[GonePlaid]

I missed something. What happened with the first one?

Short version: strings wouldn't hold tune, kept going flat. I'd tune it and a few hours later it was flat again. Turned out the claw/tailpiece was pulling outta the body. Not good.

 

[GonePlaid]

That is a great price!!



I do not yet, but may be adding one into the chain.

Nice. Whereinnahell is Rio Rancho?

 

[TBird1958]

A little unexpected, thus I like it all that much more - Pop country with The Mavericks and a Les Paul bass.

 

[GonePlaid]

I think the bridge pulled out from the body a bit. I’m sure Mike @GonePlaid will be along shortly with the gory details

Bridge stayed put; claw pulled out.

 

[GonePlaid]

A little unexpected, thus I like it all that much more - Pop country with The Mavericks and a Les Paul bass.

My LPB2/5 has Barts on it. TBH, if it had ProBuckers-or similar-on it, I'd prolly play it more. Not crazy about active pups. This LP^ sounds great.
This is me and it at an open mic/jam from 8/25/2019 at the Stuart, FL, H-D dealer. Note my "Vespa" T-shirt. Recorded on BiL's phone.

 

[JIO]

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He also used Sunn amps.
The second edition of Mahavishnu made good stuff too. Narada Michael Walden is a monster drummer, sometimes I prefer him to Cobham. But the first one was a special band.

Personally MO gen1 was unparalleled and I got off the bus when the gen2 MO 'youth orchestra' evolved out of it. More than likely it's an age thing - the original MO was "it" for me and my friends in 1971. Billy Cobham was the most physically powerful/dynamic and precisely articulate drummer of that time - no one came close. He was way ahead of his time playing like that but his playing was specifically inspired/channeled to that high-level of playing by John McLaughlin's vision. I say that because post MO he lead a rather orthodox R&B/'Big Band' Jazz band. (yawn) No slag - I'm sure there wasn't much money playing intense rock-jazz. Yah gotta eat!

Rick Laird post MO gave up playing bass and became a professional photographer in NYC. Once he left MO - nothing around him inspired him to continue playing. I totally got that. The gen1 MO were cult-level devotion to the result. It has never been equaled.

 

[MCF]

I have poor technique, with my thumb hanging over the neck, so I gravitate towards the ones with the skinny necks, but yeah.

What ever works.

The original J control panel has 4 knobs, the output jack has been moved to the side. There's also two rocker switches near the mudbucker, the other could be for the in-built phaser:

Here's a track of Doug Rauch playing with David Bowie in 1974. At one point he switches the phaser on for a moment by accident I think. He played those funk riffs by his thumb using an up-down technique nowadays known as double thumbing.
I'm glad Tony Visconti mixed the bass high on that album. Doug played through an Acoustic 360/361 stack on it.

That was a great show! Universal Amphitheater before the roof. A great venue that is sadly gone now.

 

[MCF]

Don't believe everything you read here , there is nothing wrong with those bridges, I've been using them since 1977, the people who say that are probably the same people that say Thunderbirds all have neck dive.
4001's are more expensive now though. The newer Rics have thicker necks and the pickups are wound more, but they're nice basses and sound good, some people like the newer ones and some like the older ones, I like the older ones a little better but like both. If you want a new one, try a 4003S, they're a few hundred cheaper than the regular 4003's, they're mono and don't have binding or triangular inlays on the neck, otherwise they're the same. Prices seem high on ebay. No sure if you can buy from Sweetwater but they usually have decent prices.

When I was gassing for one about four or so years ago, Wildwood seemed to have the best prices.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

A little background first: 1, at 70, I'm no spring chicken. 2, due to genetics my L5 disc is thinner than normal. 3, after 35 years playing soccer, my L5 is half as thick as my other discs and is also bulging. The bottom line is I'm no stranger to back issues and only have so many Bend-overs left in my back.

The best tone I've ever had was when I was running an Eden WT 300, which ran a Tube pre-amp (never cared for my 16 tube Mesa 400+). While I've always liked my Markbass (since 2005), it never sounded the same since I removed the Markbass Compressore (also tube driven) due to its large footprint and 15v power requirements.

Enter SushiBox, tube pedals that add that tube grit, sheen, sparkle, but need a boost to really shine. Enter TC Sparks, they drive the SushiBox pedals wonderfully. The Sparks have a mini toggle with 3 settings, fat, mids, and clean and I use all 3 (fat for EB-O/P with flats tone, mid for Pbass with rounds/Jazz bass, Clean for Tbird). I use all 3 running both PUPs at 10, tone wide open. Using the SushiBox pedals I can also get pick tones, wenge neck Warwick vibe, or Stingrayish tones. By running 3, I can toggle the tones I want without having to bend over or mess with my bass settings.

An elegant solution.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Yes, Greco made beautiful bright white birds, here’s my 1990 Greco white bird along side my 1977 Greco burst…
View attachment 4930729

 

[MCF]

To explain:


Clancy of the Overflow is a famous, old, Australian bush ballad/poem. Here done in a mashup with Under The Milky Way Tonight.

That is very cool!

 

[PhR75]

Personally MO gen1 was unparalleled and I got off the bus when the gen2 MO 'youth orchestra' evolved out of it. More than likely it's an age thing - the original MO was "it" for me and my friends in 1971. Billy Cobham was the most physically powerful/dynamic and precisely articulate drummer of that time - no one came close. He was way ahead of his time playing like that but his playing was specifically inspired/channeled to that high-level of playing by John McLaughlin's vision. I say that because post MO he lead a rather orthodox R&B/'Big Band' Jazz band. (yawn) No slag - I'm sure there wasn't much money playing intense rock-jazz. Yah gotta eat!

Rick Laird post MO gave up playing bass and became a professional photographer in NYC. Once he left MO - nothing around him inspired him to continue playing. I totally got that. The gen1 MO were cult-level devotion to the result. It has never been equaled.

"Visions Of The Emerald Beyond" is still my fav MO album amongst the first three. Narada and Ralphe Armstrong were terrifying players despite their age.
I prefer Goodman to Ponty 'though (who was almost as old as McLaughlin btw) and they never really replaced Jan Hammer. Which is quite impossible too.

Cobham was indeed a pioneer. He influenced Simon Phillips amongst the many others and Simon's playing on Judas Priest's "Sin After Sin" album invented the modern metal double bass drumming ("Dissident Aggressor"). So anyone who hates that style can blame those two.

Of course it's not that simple.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Nice. Whereinnahell is Rio Rancho?

Where you shoulda made a left turn at.