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Thunderbird Club

I'm still considering options for an office bass. I have the thought that the Yamaha could live in the office. Then I would "need" a new bass for home. Maybe the new RD artist... Or maybe the new red thunderbird... Maybe both....

maybe a yellow bongo?
Yes, yes, yes, and yes.

Did I miss anything?
 
Ok. IMO that bridge looks cheesy. Sorry! See? I knew there'd be one of you out there! But thanks to dr. Feelgood my conundrum has been solved. I'll go Epi over Gibson. Ok , never mind, moments over. I'm back on the fence. Epi? Gibson? Epi? Gibson?
I chromed out the '91. Hipshot Ultralite tuners, Babicz, pickup and bridge covers, Chinabuckers with chrome covers (eventually to be replaced with Thunderbuckers).

I alternate it with the stock '01 and '15. All three are standard issue 'Bird brown burst, but I think they are very different. They look different, too. So I think. A guitarist I play with never noticed that I wasn't playing the same bass all the time. Sheesh! They don't look or sound the same. Chrome, black, different strings, d-tuner on the '15, different pickups, covers... I could go on - how can you not notice? Oh, right, it's a bass.

Never mind. Nobody notices the bass until it's not there.
 
Looking at stringing up an Epiphone T-Bird Pro IV that I recently was able to take home. Trying to figure out if this bass model is for me.

What do you guys string your Thunderbirds with, & why?
I've tried a few drastically different strings on my birds just to see what works best. The good news is, I haven't found a string that sounds bad on a Bird, just different.

Any discussion in strings should have at least four qualifiers with it otherwise you could end up going down the wrong path.
Four things to ask about every string recommendation...
1) What tone preference do you have - I like dark and deep, clear not muddy, subdued top end, little to no sizzle but still crisp notes with definition.
2) What touch preference do you have - I like ultra smooth, low to no finger noise, fast playing, low to mid tension, easy to bend strings.
3) What playing style do you have - I play strictly finger style, no slap or pop, no pick, usually over the neck pickup or closer to the neck, rarely play over the bridge pickup.
4) What type of music do you play - I play a lot of classic '60s and '70s rock along with some grunge, progressive rock and blues. I just recently started going down a modern swing path with lots of fast moving walking bass lines.

The strings I've tried and liked on my TBirds are Nickel Round Chromes, DR Black Beauties, La Bella Black Tapewounds, and Rotosound Jazz Bass 77 flats. The tapes and flats are more a function of the swing music I'm playing a lot of these days, the Chromes and Black Beauties met all my rock needs in spades. I know the tapes will last for 10+ years but I only have a couple of months on the Rotosounds so I don't know how they'll age but so far I'm loving the 77 Jazz flats and I've never been a flats fan, go figure.

Hope this helps.
 
I know the purists will be up in arms, but how hard to install a Babicz bridge on those Vintage Pros? I could care less for the authenticity thing and if the Gibsons came chromed I wouldn't even be looking at the Epiphones.

Hmm, I wonder what the spacing is between posts.... Maybe a Hipshot D or the Hipshot Supertone 2 point, would drop straight in, in place of the tune-o-matic and keep the claw tail-piece.
5G410C_800x.jpg

4_string_d_style_2_piece_800x.jpg
 
Honestly, it was my feeble attempt at being an enabler. Less salt, more nudging. I was hoping Fix could find a way to make it happen because it really would’ve checked a lot of boxes off in what he’s looking for.

Nut width.
Chunky neck.
TBird tone.
Price point.
Gibson on the TRC. <—- not sure if he cares but a Gibby is a Gibby.

It all lined up except for it wasn’t a TBird.
Yeah... it's pretty perfect in a lotta ways. They're kinda like the Thunderbird's less cool kid brother, "Norm". Norm Bird. Norm comes from good stock. He's got Thunderbird blood coursing through his veins. He's just not as "HEY! Look at me!", as his older brother. As a result... he grew up in his shadow. Most people don't even know he exists. There's an unkind rumor, that Norm was a "mistake". After all... he's 20 years younger than his sibling...
 
Yeah... it's pretty perfect in a lotta ways. They're kinda like the Thunderbird's less cool kid brother, "Norm". Norm Bird. Norm comes from good stock. He's got Thunderbird blood coursing through his veins. He's just not as "HEY! Look at me!", as his older brother. As a result... he grew up in his shadow. Most people don't even know he exists. There's an unkind rumor, that Norm was a "mistake". After all... he's 20 years younger than his sibling...

Perfect bio. :thumbsup:
 
or get an ebony VP and keep the Classic Pro ;)

Yeah, that'd make far more sense. The word "replace" suggests that getting the VP in white would result in the putting of the "old" Classic Pro in white, out on the street. Mate, that's cruel. 'Birds are like puppies! They're for life, not just for Christmas!

Already have two black TBirds... don't want three. The VP looks waaaayyy cooler than the CP to me so the decision is an easy one.