Thunderbird Club

[D.M.N.]

The originals ( I should say the pickups in it when I bought it) in mine are TB Plus with chrome covers, they were not very good sounding - as Scott says "Like pounding dead meat", thus I tried some EY's and finally Seymour Duncan custom shop. The thing that really helped was changing the pots out, I wasn't ever inclined to do so until only within the last year, the wiring compartment was a picture of tidy workmanship and I just didn't suspect that it was the root of the bass never really sounding good. A re-wire with 500K pots made all the difference, the bass is very lively sounding and has become a fave.

Ah, in that case I'm not terribly interested in them then, already have TB+ in one bass, and that's more than enough of those. They are just not my cup of tea. I saw some of the Orville's up for sale on an auction site, thought they might be in the Greco vein, but it would appear not! And I agree on the pots, I think most of my basses are wired 500k throughout. Even the Grecobacker, just to get as much zing out of it as I can.

 

[JIO]

Just AI dreams. They have them on YT for a whole bunch of cars that they dream could come back in 25, in the weird dream configurations they display.

I ignore and move on.

Got it - now that you point that out, I have seen fantastical motorcycles on Pinterest also. Everything is suspect now.

 

[MCF]

First off, I agree 100% - how a bass sounds is in the players hands. In that regard...

As someone who owns a (Gibson) '64 II - I am impressed by how good the Epi VP T-bird IV sounds. Not going to compare the two, just acknowledging the way it sounds. I bought a NOS one for a very affordable cost to gild/refinish and sell. When I got it and played it - I was blown away by how it sounded, nearly enough to just keep it 'as is' and add it to my stable. Instead, I gilded it, had Pat Wilkins do his final-finish magic on it and offer it for sale as a great sounding bass with a unique Gildaxe finish. A win-win for whoever steps up to the plate.

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I normally nay go for darker fretboards. But it all really comes together with that finish.

Other than the vocals - what two instruments DOMINATE this "groundbreaking?" Pop History song?

I LOVED Martha Quinn!

I was not a fan of the Buggles. IMO, Yes never fully recovered from when Squire added those guys when Wakeman, Howe, and Anderson left after Tormato. The album with them was mediocre at best. And that iteration of Yes was, to be kind, was awful with them live. It was so bad, I and about 50% of the audience at the Long Beach Arena, walked out after 45 minutes on that first tour with them. Others’ mileage may vary.

 

[JIO]

I normally nay go for darker fretboards. But it all really comes together with that finish.
I LOVED Martha Quinn!

I was not a fan of the Buggles. IMO, Yes never fully recovered from when Squire added those guys when Wakeman, Howe, and Anderson left after Tormato. The album with them was mediocre at best. And that iteration of Yes was, to be kind, was awful with them live. It was so bad, I and about 50% of the audience at the Long Beach Arena, walked out after 45 minutes on that first tour with them. Others’ mileage may vary.

Had no idea on that background. Wasn't really listening to much of that music then - more into Jazz & classical. Caught up with MTV later.

 

[JIO]

It is beautiful, no question. But I had a VP that was apparently a good one, and I just flat didn't like it much. I don't know why not. It's another reason I'm some kind of heretic around here. The other reason is that I just flat don't want a NR. Go figure.

I was never drawn to the late '60s version of a T-bird back then. I've grown to like it ok, but back in the '70s when I bought my '64 - the Gen2 T-bird just seemed like a club-footed version. But like I said - time changes opinions sometimes and that is the case for me now.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

N2MePUD!

 

[MCF]

Had no idea on that background. Wasn't really listening to much of that music then - more into Jazz & classical. Caught up with MTV later.

I just finished college. Didn’t have cable in my apartment. Spent plenty of time visiting friends who did. A

Anyone looking for a medium scale, cousin to a T-Bird?

https://www.talkbass.com/classifieds/cataldo-g8-32-scale.1661102/

that is a very nice price.

 

[MCF]

Carlo made some crazy shapes! That's tempting at 32" scale, Thunderbucker, 7lbs, and relatively local to me.

It has your name on it Irv.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

N2MePUD!
…

.Neck (66s): 9.30k
Bridge (66b): 8.78k

Alas, I cannot A/B the Thunderbuckers with the 760s (sent in trade), but I can hear more low end from these. There were songs I never quite liked the stock VP for (e.g., early Allman Brothers) and now they just work. There are still plenty of mids and highs; I’ve no doubt it would still crush the Angry Piano with Roto 66s.

These are incredibly dynamic. With the neck volume up, bridge off, & tone rolled off, a light touch results in a wooly bass. Fingering harder adds harmonics. Aggressive playing yields aggressive tones. I don’t think they’re quite as aggressive as the Grecos, but close. That I can A/B but not tonight.

I’m kicking myself; I meant to play it with just the neck pickup connected to see how that sounded. I’ll have to try that another day.

Also, ahem.

 

[JIO]

.Neck (66s): 9.30k
Bridge (66s): 8.78k
View attachment 7083082

Alas, I cannot A/B the Thunderbuckers with the 760s (sent in trade), but I can hear more low end from these. There were songs I never quite liked the stock VP for (e.g., early Allman Brothers) and now they just work. There are still plenty of mids and highs; I’ve no doubt it would still crush the Angry Piano with Roto 66s.

These are incredibly dynamic. With the neck volume up, bridge off, & tone rolled off, a light touch results in a wooly bass. Fingering harder adds harmonics. Aggressive playing yields aggressive tones. I don’t think they’re quite as aggressive as the Grecos, but close. That I can A/B but not tonight.

I’m kicking myself; I meant to play it with just the neck pickup connected to see how that sounded. I’ll have to try that another day.

Also, ahem.

Isn't the B pu usually hotter than the N pu? Is this something Gibson did that most others didn't do?

I like this guy. He knows what he's talking about and says it very clearly. As he mentioned near the end, reversing the usually hotter bridge pu w/the neck - at least for me as someone me who plays in the mid-range (with enough bass and enough treble) could be something to try w/both pu's full on.

 

[dagrev]

I normally nay go for darker fretboards. But it all really comes together with that finish.
I LOVED Martha Quinn!

I was not a fan of the Buggles. IMO, Yes never fully recovered from when Squire added those guys when Wakeman, Howe, and Anderson left after Tormato. The album with them was mediocre at best. And that iteration of Yes was, to be kind, was awful with them live. It was so bad, I and about 50% of the audience at the Long Beach Arena, walked out after 45 minutes on that first tour with them. Others’ mileage may vary.

With respect to MQ.... Yeah, me too.

 

[dagrev]

I was never drawn to the late '60s version of a T-bird back then. I've grown to like it ok, but back in the '70s when I bought my '64 - the Gen2 T-bird just seemed like a club-footed version. But like I said - time changes opinions sometimes and that is the case for me now.

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I liked Thunderbirds since the mid 70s, both Reverse and NR. Reverse is just cool. Always thought the NRs were funky cool. I may prefer the looks of a NR. Certainly close to the Reverse.

 

[JJR58]

.Neck (66s): 9.30k
Bridge (66s): 8.78k
View attachment 7083082

Alas, I cannot A/B the Thunderbuckers with the 760s (sent in trade), but I can hear more low end from these. There were songs I never quite liked the stock VP for (e.g., early Allman Brothers) and now they just work. There are still plenty of mids and highs; I’ve no doubt it would still crush the Angry Piano with Roto 66s.

These are incredibly dynamic. With the neck volume up, bridge off, & tone rolled off, a light touch results in a wooly bass. Fingering harder adds harmonics. Aggressive playing yields aggressive tones. I don’t think they’re quite as aggressive as the Grecos, but close. That I can A/B but not tonight.

I’m kicking myself; I meant to play it with just the neck pickup connected to see how that sounded. I’ll have to try that another day.

Also, ahem.

Congrats Miles!
Personally, I love mine.
And agree how dynamic they are.

 

[Engle]

.Neck (66s): 9.30k
Bridge (66s): 8.78k
View attachment 7083082

Alas, I cannot A/B the Thunderbuckers with the 760s (sent in trade), but I can hear more low end from these. There were songs I never quite liked the stock VP for (e.g., early Allman Brothers) and now they just work. There are still plenty of mids and highs; I’ve no doubt it would still crush the Angry Piano with Roto 66s.

These are incredibly dynamic. With the neck volume up, bridge off, & tone rolled off, a light touch results in a wooly bass. Fingering harder adds harmonics. Aggressive playing yields aggressive tones. I don’t think they’re quite as aggressive as the Grecos, but close. That I can A/B but not tonight.

I’m kicking myself; I meant to play it with just the neck pickup connected to see how that sounded. I’ll have to try that another day.

Also, ahem.

Great score! Is that a typo on the DCRs for neck and bridge PUs?

 

[GBassNorth]

Isn't the B pu usually hotter than the N pu? Is this something Gibson did that most others didn't do?

I like this guy. He knows what he's talking about and says it very clearly. As he mentioned near the end, reversing the usually hotter bridge pu w/the neck - at least for me as someone me who plays in the mid-range (with enough bass and enough treble) could be something to try w/both pu's full on.

Hotter at the bridge is the norm, but deviating from the norm can also yield interesting results. Case in point, my BlingBird is wired Bridge, Neck, Bridge on the pickup locations. The key when doing this is to drop the hot pickup located at the neck a bit deeper in the body so it doesn’t over power the other pickups.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Isn't the B pu usually hotter than the N pu? Is this something Gibson did that most others didn't do?

I like this guy. He knows what he's talking about and says it very clearly. As he mentioned near the end, reversing the usually hotter bridge pu w/the neck - at least for me as someone me who plays in the mid-range (with enough bass and enough treble) could be something to try w/both pu's full on.

Yes, the bridge is usually hotter to make up for the strings having less room to vibrate there, thus more or less balancing p/u output. IIRC, the standard neck TB66 p/u was not as hot as the bridge; the TB66S was a hotter wound pickup.

I'll watch the video later, but I've thought about swapping neck & bridge on an axe for a while to see how it sounded. Since I mainly use the neck p/u anyway, it just makes sense. And indeed, I like the way it sounds here - and I have a nice, hot signal from the neck p/u.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Great score! Is that a typo on the DCRs for neck and bridge PUs?

No typo on the DCRs. There was a typo on a pickup designation - the bridge is a 66b, not another 66s. See my response to @JIO on the DCRs.

 

[GBassNorth]

I love having aspects of late 60s early 70s, but some of the modern touches don't seem to fit. But is it cool.

Speaking of Vetts, I spotted a nice one in Carmel a couple of days ago…

…the new body style is starting to grow on me.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

Retirement!! Where art thou?!!!!

 

[Stealth57]

Retirement!! Where art thou?!!!!
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And that’s confidential?