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Thunderbird Club

#28,625
Count Bassie said:
I've got a Crate BT350 that is a just plain good, solid amp, an SWR SM400 and a Yamaha PB1 preamp that sounds like it should be full of tubes... a lot of good amps out in that great "culch-pile" known as the world. But I like my mean green the best!
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SWR made some good stuff at fair prices. Never had anything from crate, but I had some crap amps in the past. Now worry I got too much crap for when we start booking. Still, stages look good with tons of amps and cabs
 
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#28,626
rodv66 said:
SWR made some good stuff at fair prices. Never had anything from crate, but I had some crap amps in the past. Now worry I got too much crap for when we start booking. Still, stages look good with tons of amps and cabs
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Crate may not always be a winner, but the BT350 is St Louos Music's assembly line, and said to be the best thing they ever did for bass amps. Through an 810 It's a fine machine.
 
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#28,627
rodv66 said:
SWR made some good stuff at fair prices. Never had anything from crate, but I had some crap amps in the past. Now worry I got too much crap for when we start booking. Still, stages look good with tons of amps and cabs
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SWR is bullet-proof. I have a 400s head and Goliath I 4x10 cab bought new in (96? - CA made - pre Fender) and both are still going strong. You can buy them on eBay for cheap these days - even if only for a dependable back-up they are well worth every penny.
 
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#28,628
It's funny how certain amps appeal to some and not others. I've never played through an SWR that I liked. Never sounded good to me. GK always sounds great to me. I'm interested to try out an Orange from the video demo I saw, though I don't like built-in overdrive since I don't always know what amp I'll be playing through so a pedal works better for me.
 
#28,629
IMG_4760.PNG
JIO said:
...or one that says - "don't look here" - truth be told, it has a cool Bladerunner look. I'd leave it as-is.
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I mentioned Malcolm before... looking for a photo I went to the Gretsch page for his tribute guitar, reliced to look like that pic, holes and all.
They only want $10,000 !
 
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#28,630
RedVee said:
View attachment 1107732
I mentioned Malcolm before... looking for a photo I went to the Gretsch page for his tribute guitar, relived to look like that pic, holes and all.
They only want $10,000 !
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HA! Well, at least it's got the holes... but I really do love that body shape of that guitar. Thanks for posting, I may have to print it out and trace it!
 
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#28,632
Count Bassie said:
Hmm.

You know, you may have a point there. I'm always trying to fix things, when maybe it's just their best state and should be left that way.
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Especially since you say it's not a "general purpose" bass and one that now has a rude attitude. As far as that goes - it looks the part. (walks the walk) :bassist:

I did this distressed etched copper over black finish (Epi) years ago - a guy in Germany bought it - Always wanted to see it built-up but he never sent pics. I hope it sounded gnarly. Hard to photograph these types of finishes - it looked way better in person - very REDRUM.

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IMG_3386.JPG
 
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#28,633
JIO said:
Especially since you say it's not a "general purpose" bass and one that now has a rude attitude. As far as that goes - it looks the part. (walks the walk) :bassist:

I did this distressed etched copper over black finish (Epi) years ago - a guy in Germany bought it - Always wanted to see it built-up but he never sent pics. I hope it sounded gnarly. Hard to photograph these types of finishes - it looked way better in person - very REDRUM.

View attachment 1107758

View attachment 1107759
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A compelling point in fact. It is a little cybor-punk/Mad Max-y, I suppose.

That Copper etched body looks like it came out of a firey bomb blast! Real scortchy- I like it... yeah, too bad you never saw the finish, but that's an epic beginning.

I've got a 6" roll of thin copper membrane and some brass here, it does cross my mind to get a little adventurous sometimes.
 
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#28,634
JIO said:
Especially since you say it's not a "general purpose" bass and one that now has a rude attitude. As far as that goes - it looks the part. (walks the walk) :bassist:
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Now that you.mention it, I've been interested to get a handle on whatever unique character this bass has to offer. I think the single pickup version of it gets there- the low range sounds almost Rickenbacker-deep, and the midrange is sort of boxy, a bit like Geezer in old Sabbath. The highs are raspy and a little "crass", if you will... overall it's dirtier, woofier, bigger and darker sounding. It kinda sounds how it looks, especially now. So your observation makes sense to me.
 
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#28,635
Count Bassie said:
Now that you.mention it, I've been interested to get a handle on whatever unique character this bass has to offer. I think the single pickup version of it gets there- the low range sounds almost Rickenbacker-deep, and the midrange is sort of boxy, a bit like Geezer in old Sabbath. The highs are raspy and a little "crass", if you will... overall it's dirtier, woofier, bigger and darker sounding. It kinda sounds how it looks, especially now. So your observation makes sense to me.
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especially with the wire poking out - like a vein... :bassist:
 
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#28,640
kat888 said:
IIRC a few hundered pages ago @godofthunder59 was filling and refinishing bridge routs.
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I wonder if it's possible to match this matte black finish? At this point though, shelling out for it may just leave the door open for that Blade Runner theme! In my life, just now, it's a small point. But it's become a more interesting bass, sonically-speaking.
 
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