Thunderbird Club

[dagrev]

The TBird that Epiphone wouldn’t build is now done! She looks, sounds and plays fantastic….
View attachment 5493549 View attachment 5493546 View attachment 5493547 View attachment 5493548 View attachment 5493550

Specs:
Body - solid mahogany, arm and belly contours, finished in Golden Mist Polly (same as vintage Shoreline Gold)
Neck - solid wenge/wenge, sanded and sealed, abalone face dots, white side dots
Pickups - Epiphone 760 ProBuckers neck and bridge
Bridge - Epiphone two piece (bridge and claw) vintage style
Controls - master volume, neck vol/tone stack, bridge vol/tone stack, wenge control cavity cover
Build Price - $850 all in, includes Rosser Body, Eppi Embassy, paint job, pickguard, hardware, strings and electronics
Weight - a bit over 9.5 pounds
Balance - standing has zero neck dive, lap balances nicely as well
Reach - G string tuner is 1” less than a Gibson NR, 1-1/2” less than an Eppi VP, 2” less than a BaCH NR
Fun Factor - she’s a solid 8 out of 10, she could be lighter - Rosser body + Solid Wenge neck + regular tuners add up.
Cool Factor - a solid 10+ out of 10, what’s not to like about the color, wood selection, vintage looks and sound!

And that's why Epi (or better Gibson) has not done that. Who would want such a good looking, good sounding bass? There's just no demand for such things.

Beautiful!

 

[Stealth57]

I hate to put this up after George knocked it out of the park. The beat up black poly is gone and VBT at Chuck’s suggestion.

 

[dagrev]

I use this -

View attachment 5493553

The RAT I posted about earlier has a central FILTER knob and adjusting it left to right is a graphic example of what a filter does. (only other two knobs are DISTORTION & VOLUME) One way and it's more treble, the other way - more bass... sorta like a tone pot. BBE calls it 'LO CONTOUR' and 'PROCESS' I know it's more involved than that (tone pot) - but that's what it basically does.

My BBE Sonic Stomp hasn't been able to help with the NR situation. I've even done the logical thing and cut the bass on the head and upped various mids. Something about the baked in tone of the Ampeg that was working against the NR for what I was wanting.

 

[dagrev]

Great job! Damn I need to have you build me a bass.

George should build and sell them (Reverb and the like). I'm positive the quality is as good as anything being produced and sold, with maybe the obvious exception of seriously high dollar boutique basses. Even then, I suspect anyone would be hard pressed to find any quality issues whatsoever. All his builds look top notch and I'm sure feel that way.

 

[dagrev]

I bet former Chief Arredondo from Uvalde would love a job there. Assuming he's not locked up.

Yes, and the last sentence is key!

 

[godofthunder59]

I hate to put this up after George knocked it out of the park. The beat up black poly is gone and VBT at Chuck’s suggestion.

View attachment 5493645

Can't beat a vintage USA Peavey! Got a few myself.

 

[JIO]

George should build and sell them (Reverb and the like). I'm positive the quality is as good as anything being produced and sold, with maybe the obvious exception of seriously high dollar boutique basses. Even then, I suspect anyone would be hard pressed to find any quality issues whatsoever. All his builds look top notch and I'm sure feel that way.

It's a tough nut to crack - I've been doing it for over 13yrs and ATC I'm still barely recognized. Those who have bought my basses absolutely love them - but there's many non-industry/boutique/cuatom basses out there to choose from and frankly bass players are... frugal... as you know. Guitarists?.. a whole different animal. It's baked into our DNA.

 

[JIO]

I hate to put this up after George knocked it out of the park. The beat up black poly is gone and VBT at Chuck’s suggestion.

View attachment 5493645

nice

 

[GonePlaid]

88 people are in fact watching it, and they may want it... but that's as far as it goes.

87 are watching to see what nitw...er, sucker buys it-and for how much.

 

[GonePlaid]

Chicken tastes like tofu.

I had a bite of tofu once.
Once.

 

[GonePlaid]

The TBird that Epiphone wouldn’t build is now done! She looks, sounds and plays fantastic….
View attachment 5493549 View attachment 5493546 View attachment 5493547 View attachment 5493548 View attachment 5493550

Specs:
Body - solid mahogany, arm and belly contours, finished in Golden Mist Polly (same as vintage Shoreline Gold)
Neck - solid wenge/wenge, sanded and sealed, abalone face dots, white side dots
Pickups - Epiphone 760 ProBuckers neck and bridge
Bridge - Epiphone two piece (bridge and claw) vintage style
Controls - master volume, neck vol/tone stack, bridge vol/tone stack, wenge control cavity cover
Build Price - $850 all in, includes Rosser Body, Eppi Embassy, paint job, pickguard, hardware, strings and electronics
Weight - a bit over 9.5 pounds
Balance - standing has zero neck dive, lap balances nicely as well
Reach - G string tuner is 1” less than a Gibson NR, 1-1/2” less than an Eppi VP, 2” less than a BaCH NR
Fun Factor - she’s a solid 8 out of 10, she could be lighter - Rosser body + Solid Wenge neck + regular tuners add up.
Cool Factor - a solid 10+ out of 10, what’s not to like about the color, wood selection, vintage looks and sound!

If you send it here, I promise I'll play it in live situations and report back. It might take a few dozen gigs to really get a good read though.

 

[MCF]

There is one on the Genzler (for the overdriven signal). It helped some, but not enough, and nothing like the Ashdown.

As particular you are with tone, you should get the Broughton combo HPF/LPF filter. $200. There was one posted in the classifieds yesterday for $125. I’m sure it’s gone by now. But if booming bass in a big room is your beef, that’ll likely cure it.

 

[GonePlaid]

My BBE Sonic Stomp hasn't been able to help with the NR situation. I've even done the logical thing and cut the bass on the head and upped various mids. Something about the baked in tone of the Ampeg that was working against the NR for what I was wanting.

I never could get a tone I liked outta the 67NR through either 'peg I owned. Yet I get what I want outta 7enders, whether my 63 piggyback Bassman's or my Rumbles.

 

[MCF]

Reminds me of how I used to set the act when I was running around with it. Mids were cranked way up cuz it was always pretty scoopy sounding to me.

What kind of tone do you find that you like?

That’s a loaded question if there ever was one. Donnie has superhuman hearing.

 

[MCF]

Chicken tastes like tofu.

Well, at least Veronica’s boiled chicken does.

 

[MCF]

Thanks, Jeff. Good to know. I understand the general principle behind those, but have no experience with them (other than the on the Genzler).

There is a reason Andy includes them in his Mesa designs. He ran a sound company for years. He could even tame the awful venue that is Long Beach Arena.

 

[TBird1958]

For those of you who have both, how does the Greco bird compare to an NR. Going by memory of the little I got to play one, I *think* they are similar?

You're going to find out in about 3 1/2 weeks

 

[JIO]

I never could get a tone I liked outta the 67NR through either 'peg I owned. Yet I get what I want outta 7enders, whether my 63 piggyback Bassman's or my Rumbles.

I think amp 'sound' is proportional to volume. Small amps can sound great at lower volumes and big rigs can sound great at louder volumes. I use a couple of small combo amps (TC Electronics/Acoustic, both 1x12) for small venues and they sound perfect for the room. I don't own a big rig, and we never play anywhere where one (aka Ampeg fridge) could be used to its full advantage. Modern amps/cabs are so efficient and big venues have such good FoH that amps are not really needed other than giving the player on-stage response.

 

[MCF]

I bet former Chief Arredondo from Uvalde would love a job there. Assuming he's not locked up.

Careful…but yep.

 

[MCF]

I've heard from friends about such parties, but I guess I chose my employers better. Although there were a couple that might have gone that way if we'd had parties.

At one company, two VPs took (federal!) customers out to eat at a strip club, where they got plastered and paid dancers to be at their table all night. Two angry wives (someone at the office called them the next morning when they heard) came to visit at work; that and a lot of office rebukes hit them pretty hard; I seriously doubt either of them did that again.

What happened at the holiday parties at the law firm I started with in 1986 is never to be spoken of.