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Thunderbird Club

#65,161
theFixer said:
Well...there are several more folks, more qualified than myself, to point you in the right direction, but I'm not positive you'll get John Entwistle out of an active system. I'll be interested to hear what others have to say about it. In the meanwhile... I'll encourage you to try a few of the tricks that are frequently mentioned here. The first of which has been mentioned once already. When I got my first 'bird, folks here kept telling me to raise my pickups as high as they'll go without interfering with the strings. When I finally tried it... I was blown away at the difference! Those pups sprang to life! Also... while your playing... try messin' around with the balance between pups. Most of the time, I crank 'em both up full, and then dial back the bridge pup about 15 -20%. The difference may surprise you! Finally... where you pick/pluck has a pretty substantial effect on the character of your tone. More so than on any other bass that I've experienced. It only takes a couple minutes to try all of these things, and you may just find something you like in there, without having to spend any money;):thumbsup:
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All has to do with with what era Entwistle. Everything after the FenderBirds was active. But he was almost stone deaf (according to Townshend) for quite a while, who know's what he sounded like to himself at the end.

theFixer said:
Hey Carlo! Nice new avatar:thumbsup:

Are those black covered Thunderbuckers???
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Thanks, SkinnyCat wasn't playing any music on my cash register.:)

Those are ThunderBucker EX5 extended range pups. The REV 52 I'm building now also has them and a three band 18V Aguilar preamp.
 
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#65,162
BuffaloMcD said:
It is my first TB. I have Rotosound Swing 66 strings on it.

In an ideal world, I'd sound just like John Entwhistle. But my E & A sound muddy and my D&G sound tinny.

I only paid $179 for it used, so I don't mind putting a bit of money into it.
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First of all, all the previous advices are great advices...

Secondly, you're using Rotosound Swing 66's - Are those the older ones with silk on the ball-ends, or the newer ones without silk?

If they are the ones with silk ball-ends - Check whether the silk on the E & A strings are riding on/passing the saddle, as this could be a reason for the strings sounding muddy.

If they are rididing on the saddles - Try removing some of the silk, so the strings are touching the saddles (metal on metal) - This is a common issue with strings with silks endings and the 3-point bridge.

Hope this helps... :)
 
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#65,166
Nocturnal said:
I am the same, aside from the jazz. Still can't seem to connect with jazz. Also throw in a bit of sleaze and dirt and I am a happy (old) boy.
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'Modern Jazz' has two meanings, in that it is the source of the term 'Modernist' aka 'Mod', as well as being a form of jazz. I love both. I don't know where the jazz came from, one day it was just there, a bit like being ambushed by a Bird.
 
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#65,179
dukeorock said:
I love it! ShackShakers records always started with a trip to the hardware store and low wattage amps are my favorites for recording guitars...they really sound bigger in the end
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Since you brought up small guitar amps . . . you posted a few pics the other day, where you expressed being miffed with the backline gear they made you use (not sure which of your bands it was?). I noticed that there was a Swart guitar amp on stage. I was curious if that belonged to your bandmate or if was that backline gear too? They are retro cool looking and an amazing sounding low watt tube tone for guitar.
 
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#65,180
Stevis said:
Since you brought up small amps, you posted a few pics the other day, where you were miffed with the backline gear they made you use (not sure which of your bands it was). I noticed that there was a Swart guitar amp on stage. I was curious if that belonged to your bandmate or if was that backline gear too? They are retro cool looking and an amazing sounding low watt tube tone for guitar.
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I gotta get my coffee before reading posts. When you said "small amps" my brain saw "small arms" and I started wondering about guns, artillery and weapons of bass destruction. Then I had my coffee and looked again.
 
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