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Thunderbird Club

#36,123
JIO said:
Below is copy for their BT guitar strings but I assume it would be the same for bass. Regardless of the marketing propaganda, I just like the way they feel and sound. I've used different gauges but have the 50-120 on a couple of basses (my '66 P and a current dual T-40 build of mine) and like them and frankly do not notice any radical difference due to the jump. I mean, it's only a .010 difference. It's a tone thing and a feel thing - when they work together it's a makes-you-smile-the-most thing. ;)

D'Addario Nickel Round Wound Balanced Tension electric guitar sets are formulated to create an equal feel between all strings. This allows for each string to be played equally with the same downward force and flexibility across the set.
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In your experience... do they achieve their "balanced tension" goal? I can certainly see an advantage to having my G feel more like my A or D. That's partially why I wanted to try these .50 - .105 Cobalts.

Regarding the .120... my guess was that it was a simple preference thing. I just didn't know if I might be missing out on something more than that.
 
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#36,124
kat888 said:
First amp I played through was a Jansen 75W Bassman and 212. The cabinet was obscenely heavy and I dropped it down the stairs of the Empire Tavern one day. It smashed a tread but the cab was fine. They never did repair the stairs.
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They probably figured it wasn't worth the bother, if you came by again... :roflmao::roflmao::roflmao:
 
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#36,126
GBassNorth said:
Different comparison protocols can be very interesting and insightful.

For instance, a few years back a TB member asked if a Spector could come close to the sound of a Warwick Thumb bass. Having both I did a quick test. Since the Thumb bass was his reference bass I decided to set it with all controls centered (vol, tone, pan, everything). Then I set about tweaking the crud out of the Spector Rex5 pro to get as close as possible in sound. What I found was I could get reasonably close (to the point that I don't think a blind test could have positively identified they were different basses. But to get there I had to completely max some of the Spector settings, which in practical terms meant that you could get close but you're running on the ragged edge. If that comparison had been done like any other YouTube clip you'd have walked away with the impression that the two basses were nearly identical in sound and that you still had the full EQ range to work with on each bass, which isn't true.

What I'd love to see is a "standard" for bass comparisons. The 4 string Fender MIA P Bass (non active) is a pretty common denominator and the volume and tone cranked full open is an easy test to replicate.

Wouldn't it be great if every comparison test played this as a quick sound sample for reference at the beginning of each YouTube clip (using whatever recording device and signal chain they are using for the other basses). Then when you see a YouTube clip comparing a Rick and a TBird you know where each of them stands vs the reference bass using the recording and playback equipment that the originator and viewer use.

I hate when goofballs use their iPhone to record a bass for YouTube and its either completely over saturated or worse yet sounds like strings hitting frets on an unplugged instrument. Useless, teats on a tomcat video!

PS - and for heavens sake - enough with the slapping already! Just give me fingers and a pick and maybe rounds and flats but that's it!
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Yes get most of that. I wonder too whether if the presenter owns all those basses where they are just at his/her preset preferences? Or if he has just had the basses delivered/borrowed for the video - has he/she had a real chance to dial them in.

Anyway, my preferences do always seem to be similar on most of the tests I've watched.

I'd like a conclusion though.


TBird1958 said:
I haven't tried to move anything out of PB yet, just have been adding stuff on my phone to Imgur, seems ok.


Note to self: Don't slap new Epi 'Bird in video review :roflmao:
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Yes, don't bother slapping. :)

Wondering how many different pickups you have across those Thunderbirds? I guess Lull, Gibson, Greco, Epiphone?
Make a cool informative video...
... when you get a free week/end ? :)
 
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#36,127
Gaolee said:
I have been happy with a lot of different things on the 'Birds. The original bolt-on that convinced me I had been adopted by 'Birds had Black Beauties on it. Great strings. I'm thinking about using those on the magic '01 when it needs strings.
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I have Black Beauties on my 2001 and love how they sound. Been using DR quite a bit over the years.
 
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#36,128
theFixer said:
I used to work at Dean Markley. In fact... I wound some of the first Blue Steels that were ever manufactured. I wound the guitar strings, and my bass player at the time (who would eventually become my ex-brother-in-law) wound the first bass strings. He was actually involved in the R&D of the Blue Steels. He loved them and used them exclusively. His main bass was an Ibanez Soundgear 6 string (don't ask me which specific model), and he played through 2 full Hartke stacks... each one consisting of a 2x15, a 4x10, & a 4x5 cab, set up in stereo. He was really into a bright, modern sound, and that whole "ethereal textures" thang, mixed with a fair amount of slapping. The Blue Steels were perfect for him, because they stayed bright and "new" longer than any other string we'd found at the time. They brought great shimmer definition that cut through the layers upon layers of effects he always used. The only downside, was that they sawed through frets faster than anything else we'd seen.
When I got that Goth... I wanted a nice bright string to help counter the dark sound inherent to that model. I'd been curious about the DRs for years. After they were suggested a few times here in this forum, I finally tried them out. If you want a nice bright string that's easy on the fingers... the DR Hi Beams are the strings for you. I don't know what their "secret recipe" is, but my educated guess is that they use a larger core wire and smaller cover wires. The result is a less abrasive string (which is better for your bass and your fingers) and less finger noise. I almost regret trying them so early in my bass journey, because I loved 'em and will probly go back to them. I was actually kinda looking forward to "playing the field" a bit & seein' what all was out there before settling in on a favorite. Unless the set of EB Cobalts I just got, really have some kinda magic in 'em... I'll go right back to the DR Hi Beams ASAP. To my hands... they felt "broken in" right out of the package, but sounded bright and new.
Hope this helps out!:thumbsup:
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Thanks! That’s super interesting. Do you think the Blue Steels are as harsh on your frets as Rotosound’s notorious reputation? I know experiences vary for that.
 
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#36,130
theFixer said:
Don't need no Photo*ucket to upload a video to YouTube, Professor GBass;)
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True, you don't but if you re a commercial user of YT you get WAY BETTER sound quality as part of the deal, casual uploaders do not. The upshot being, you shouldn't put too much faith in what you hear on Youtube unless you know the whole story. I'm planning on a video review of the Epi Bird and a commercial user will post it.
 
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#36,131
It never ceases to amaze me how BAD some of the bass and amp demos are on Youtube. Some of the clips make great gear sound like complete crap. And then the experts here (on TB not in this group) chime in about how they would never buy that product because it is clearly junk. Most of the time its people with no clue how to use a damn camera.
 
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#36,132
Hey bird lovers,

So I'm going to hopefully be joining the club again, got a trade lined up for an Epi Classic iv pro. Just wanted to ask for your opinions on the basses. I've only played the bolt on bird and a few Gibsons, what should I expect from the Classic? I haven't had the chance to play it yet and wanted to get the general consensus from the experts
 
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#36,134
TBird1958 said:
True, you don't but if you re a commercial user of YT you get WAY BETTER sound quality as part of the deal, casual uploaders do not. The upshot being, you shouldn't put too much faith in what you hear on Youtube unless you know the whole story. I'm planning on a video review of the Epi Bird and a commercial user will post it.
Click to expand...
suh-WHEEEET!!! Looking' forward to that!:thumbsup:
 
#36,139
Minirehak 212 said:
Hey bird lovers,

So I'm going to hopefully be joining the club again, got a trade lined up for an Epi Classic iv pro. Just wanted to ask for your opinions on the basses. I've only played the bolt on bird and a few Gibsons, what should I expect from the Classic? I haven't had the chance to play it yet and wanted to get the general consensus from the experts
Click to expand...

Basically a Gibson with poly finish and a rubber nut. My A-tuner is stick slipping, but as long as it stays in tune it's okay.

Hope you'll get a white one.
 
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#36,140
Off-Beat said:
Basically a Gibson with poly finish and a rubber nut. My A-tuner is stick slipping, but as long as it stays in tune it's okay.

Hope you'll get a white one.
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Sorry to disappoint but it's a burst, I don't like the look of any solid colors on basses. It's gotta be trans or natural.
You really think it's the quality of a Gibson?
 
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