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Thunderbird Club

#238,964
godofthunder59 said:
Our new drummer for Who's That doesn't have a gong, so I decided to take matters in my own hands. Paiste 32", I'm still sorting out the stand. Every bass player needs a gong right? View attachment 4985160
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Hang that from the upper bout and headstock for some serious neckdive!
 
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#238,966
Got to use the little Ashdown RM 300 tonight at rehearsal through my main cab (Heritage 410). I was really impressed. Plenty loud for adult use (barely cracked open), and great tone. I didn't even need to spend all night turning knobs. I'm impressed. I'm not going to get rid of my tube heads, but the Ashdown will certainly work great if one is down or just want a little something different. If I were having to take a rig in and out very often I'd be taking the Ashdown.

1.jpeg
 
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#238,967
bobyoung53 said:
I just looked it up and supposedly all USA Gibsons are plekked and have been since 2014 according to this place. I know my 2018 and 2021 T-Birds cme pretty much perfectly set up.

Gibson
All Gibson USA guitars built after 2014 are factory PLEK’d. Before this, from 2010 only Traditional Les Pauls and guitars of quality above to this model were machine setup.


Is Getting Your Guitar PLEK’d Worth It?
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Thanks and thanks for all who chimed in. I recently picked up a 1988 Rickenbacker 4003s. It has some cosmetic challenges (Relic-ed? ;)) but the older neck profile, along with no body or neck binding make it super comfortable to play. It was strung with flats (I think) for most of its days, as it has almost no fret wear. It does have uneven frets and looks like it might have come this way from the factory.

My 2014 Thunderbird was PLEK-ED and it plays great. It is my primary bass and in looking to add a second, I want something different. I have a blue 74' Ric but the neck is so flexible, it can only take lighter gauge strings. I don't really like the light gauge strings that much. If this one gets set up and works it will probably replace the 74.
 
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#238,969
bylar13 said:
Thanks and thanks for all who chimed in. I recently picked up a 1988 Rickenbacker 4003s. It has some cosmetic challenges (Relic-ed? ;)) but the older neck profile, along with no body or neck binding make it super comfortable to play. It was strung with flats (I think) for most of its days, as it has almost no fret wear. It does have uneven frets and looks like it might have come this way from the factory.

My 2014 Thunderbird was PLEK-ED and it plays great. It is my primary bass and in looking to add a second, I want something different. I have a blue 74' Ric but the neck is so flexible, it can only take lighter gauge strings. I don't really like the light gauge strings that much. If this one gets set up and works it will probably replace the 74.
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I gots no permission to view that.
 
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#238,973
KaraQ said:
White Thunderbird adjacent-ish.......
(also, Spector content for those of you into that sort of thing......)



:)
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One of those kinda rare times when a cover is actually better than an already great original!
Ale makes me want to get out my Spectors more often. Hmmmm, a Spector with Tbird pups and a HazLab preamp, might be interesting. I might have to start a search for a nice used Legend 4X as the mod platform.
 
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#238,977
Bassmike62 said:
Man I love what the sisters do ! That version blew me away, first time I'm hearing it. They're all talented musicians, but that drummer makes everything look so easy, hitting the skins and singing and all...
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Miles_ONeal said:
I gots no permission to view that.
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I don’t have permission to see it either. Could it be a sign? Jeff recently mentioning he might want one again and now you getting another one is giving me GAS again. And I thought that was in the past having tried several and not finding one that felt right. I really need to resist.

Congratulations!
 
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#238,979
@GBassNorth,

This builder in Fillmore is doing incredible things.

Freekmagnet said:
Alright, so this little beastie is done. This is Uno #005.

img_1894-scaled.jpg


I got home from the shop the other night, and just put everything together. The 18th fret was a little unruly, so I went into the shop and leveled it with a sharpening stone.

img_1886-scaled.jpg


Notice that I used small allens for pick guard screws.

Overall, I'm really really happy with the way this bass sounds. The body is really light and resonant - I was able to make the walls of the top thinner than usual because the cherry allowed me to do so. I don't know how much that will affect the sound while it's plugged in. The Faux T40 wired in parallel with a preamp is a beast! Deep lows, present midrange, crazy articulate highs, and that big ceramic magnet gives this pickup a nice strong attack. I love it.

This is a placeholder preamp, but it sounds pretty good. The strings are fresh, so I have the treble backed way down. The key is to not go too crazy with the bass knob. If 1 is cut and 5 is flat, I have it at about 6.75. It's not that I get overwhelmed with bass - it's just that the mids become less perceptible as the bass and treble are increased.

img_1889-scaled.jpg


When I made this neck, I made it in a batch with two other Pistolera necks for customers. I'd say that these are the best necks I've made thus far. (Mr. Bruce agreed.) I did a similar compound radius profile that I've done previously, but what I did differently is I cut further into the fretboard, giving the neck more of a "Modern C" profile. They feel faster without being too thin, and I really like it. The Uno neck is different than the Pistolera in that the Uno has a 1.5" nut and the Pistolera is a 1.6" nut. The skinnier nut feels more right on this bass for some reason.

img_1893-scaled.jpg


I had to take a little extra time fitting this battery compartment cover. The finish filled in a lot of that cavity. Looks good, though.

img_1884-scaled.jpg


I'll have some glamour shots this week. I'm going to wait for the strings to mellow out before I do any sound clips. House Arrest has some gigs coming up next weekend, so I'll have a gig report sometime afterwards.
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