dieselman
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Hell. I'm Retired and I can barely keep up!
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Thunderbird Club
- Thread starter TBird1958
- Start date
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- club thunderbird
Generally I run the pots fully open on all my basses except where there is a bridge pickup volume which I back off a small amount. I run through either a GK MB Fusion 500 or a GK Fusion 550. I start with the bass and treble at around 11 o'clock and the two mids at around 1.00 o'clock. I tweak from there.
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,897
- 142,234
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
On my GK 700RB II
Bass @10:30
Lo mid @ 1:30
Hi mid @ 12:00
Treble @ 1:00
Rolling off a little bass will clean it up and give you some definition for starters, I wouldn't be afraid to roll off the bridge pup either.
Man, I dunno. I’m heading over to Japan next month, and may try and seek out the guy who, allegedly, has one. And to that end, if anyone has any music gear-related recommendations in, and around, Tokyo, lemme know!
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,897
- 142,234
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
Best of luck in your quest, good Sir!
Figured I should post pics of my '18 T-Bird (Yay! Finally... another lefty Gibson!). I've been letting it sit while it acclimated to Vegas, then took it in to have the fret ends dressed. Which is SOP here. It was nothing major; they were just kinda scratchy. All good now.. So, pros and cons...Pros -
1. The finish is just about perfect; as is the finish on my '13 'Bird.
2. All the hardware is what you'd expect. Nothing loose, everything works like it should. The Babicz Full Contact bridges is an unknown quantity for me, but I hear good things about them. It looks easy enough to deal with. No, it isn't really necessary to have individual saddle height adjustment - even my Alembic's bridge can't do that - but, it's nice.. We'll see how nice when I set it up and re-string it. Extra sustain? I don't want or need it, but again; we'll see...
3. The electronics work as they should; pickups sound like T-Bird pickups. I was hoping it would have the coil-tapping arrangement that the last T-Birds had; no such luck, sad to say. I'll get over it...
Cons - (and sad to say, there are some)
1. This thing was frickin' expensive. The list price for a lefty T-Bird was $3600; I paid about $2300 and change. Which is just about a Grand more than I paid for my '13 'Bird. My paycheck hasn't gone up that much in 5 years; but, you pay what you have to pay, I guess...
2. The OHSC looks very nice, but... it stretches the definition of "Hard Shell" to the breaking point, IMO. Not sure what it's made of, but I wouldn't bet on wood. It's flexy, bendy, and very flimsy. Still doesn't support the headstock, either. But it does look nice; comfy handle, too...
3. This is pretty nit-picky, but for this price, I think I'm entitled to pick a nit or two. My '13 'Bird really is pretty much perfect; this one has a screwed up hole for one of the control cavity cover screws. Yeah, it's very minor; and yeah, I can (and will) fix it. But, really? For this much money? And, for a topper; when I took that cover off...
This is what I found. the first pic is the '18; the next one is the '13. What the HELL happened?? Did the guy who did the soldering in the '13 quit? Retire? Die?? Really; how many bananas did it take to "train" the monkey who created this...mess? I can solder better than this - and have - and I'm so bad, it's a Class-A Misdemeanor to let me even get near a soldering iron. Honestly, this is really disappointing. I have <$200 basses with better workmanship than this. I suppose I should just give thanks that everything actually works. Oh, well; I'll just play it, I guess; and try not to think about what's under that cover...
Last edited:
You run your treble a bit higher than me- I drop mine off because I can't use a pick to save my life and I use a bit of finger nail for attack and it can be too much with the treble up.
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,897
- 142,234
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
I like some treble there for a bit of clank and bite, when you're playing a song like "White Wedding" and bass is just out there by itself in the first minute or so of the song there's nothing like Tortex .73 to help you drive the bus!
- Mar 8, 2011
- 12,232
- 51,187
- Disclosures
- Authorized greenboy designs builder/Owner of BNA Audio
View attachment 2925109 View attachment 2925113 Figured I should post pics of my '18 T-Bird (Yay! Finally... another lefty Gibson!). I've been letting it sit while it acclimated to Vegas, then took it in to have the fret ends dressed. Which is SOP here. It was nothing major; they were just kinda scratchy. All good now.. So, pros and cons...
Pros -
1. The finish is just about perfect; as is the finish on my '13 'Bird.
2. All the hardware is what you'd expect. Nothing loose, everything works like it should. The Babicz Full Contact bridges is an unknown quantity for me, but I hear good things about them. It looks easy enough to deal with. No, it isn't really necessary to have individual saddle height adjustment - even my Alembic's bridge can't do that - but, it's nice.. We'll see how nice when I set it up and re-string it. Extra sustain? I don't want or need it, but again; we'll see...
3. The electronics work as they should; pickups sound like T-Bird pickups. I was hoping it would have the coil-tapping arrangement that the last T-Birds had; no such luck, sad to say. I'll get over it...
Cons - (and sad to say, there are some)
1. This thing was frickin' expensive. the list price for a lefty T-Bird was $3600; I paid about $2300 and change. Which is just about a Grand more than I paid for my '13 'Bird. My paycheck hasn't gone up that much in 5 years; but, you pay what you have to pay, I guess...
2. The OHSC looks very nice, but... it stretches the definition of "Hard Shell" to the breaking point, IMO. Not sure what it's made of, but I wouldn't bet on wood. It's flexy, bendy, and very flimsy. Still doesn't support the headstock, either. But it does look nice; comfy handle, too...
3. This is pretty nit-picky, but for this price, I think I'm entitled to pick a nit or two. My '13 'Bird really is pretty much perfect; this one has a screwed up hole for one of the control cavity cover screws. Yeah, it's very minor; and yeah, I can (and will) fix it. But, really? For this much money? And, for a topper; when took that cover off...
View attachment 2925117 View attachment 2925119
This is what I found. the first pics is the '18; the next one is the '13. What the HELL happened?? Did the guy who did the soldering in the '13 quit? Retire? Die?? Really; how many bananas did it take to "train" the monkey who created this...mess? I can solder better than this - and have - and I'm so bad, it's a Class-A Misdemeanor to let me even get near a soldering iron. Honestly, this is really disappointing. I have <$200 basses with better workmanship than this. I suppose I should just give thanks that everything actually works. Oh, well; I'll just play it, I guess; and try not to think about what's under that cover...
Sorry about the ‘cons’ list, but it is a pretty bass and good to see you taking the good and the bad in stride
- Mar 8, 2011
- 12,232
- 51,187
- Disclosures
- Authorized greenboy designs builder/Owner of BNA Audio
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,897
- 142,234
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
That was nice and clanky. I looked at/listened to some of the other vids. You have covered some fun stuff. I watched: “Kids in America,” “Ring of Fire” and “I Wanna Be Sedated”. Your gigs look like they would be a rock’n good time.
- Mar 8, 2011
- 12,232
- 51,187
- Disclosures
- Authorized greenboy designs builder/Owner of BNA Audio
Curious which bass that is and it’s loaded with? I remember you talking about that bass, but am blanking on the details :/
- Mar 8, 2011
- 12,232
- 51,187
- Disclosures
- Authorized greenboy designs builder/Owner of BNA Audio
Something I think is often overlooked...for pick players, we decided on our ‘favorites’ early on, BUT, the thickness and style of pick can make a huge difference in tone. I notice Roni leans toward .73’s and it explains some of that extra snap. Some folks prefer super heavy picks so when you dig in, you can get more break up. I lean toward blue Tortex 1mm as a happy medium, but whenever I’m recording I keep several different types and thickness picks around. It can be a dramatic difference
Left-handed Fender Jaguar Bass. Only place they make them. But I'm sure that wouldn't interest you.
Wow, that control cavity on the '18 looks like a crime scene, but congratulations all the same. I'm sure it's awesome. Play it like you stole it!View attachment 2925109 View attachment 2925113 Figured I should post pics of my '18 T-Bird (Yay! Finally... another lefty Gibson!). I've been letting it sit while it acclimated to Vegas, then took it in to have the fret ends dressed. Which is SOP here. It was nothing major; they were just kinda scratchy. All good now.. So, pros and cons...
Pros -
1. The finish is just about perfect; as is the finish on my '13 'Bird.
2. All the hardware is what you'd expect. Nothing loose, everything works like it should. The Babicz Full Contact bridges is an unknown quantity for me, but I hear good things about them. It looks easy enough to deal with. No, it isn't really necessary to have individual saddle height adjustment - even my Alembic's bridge can't do that - but, it's nice.. We'll see how nice when I set it up and re-string it. Extra sustain? I don't want or need it, but again; we'll see...
3. The electronics work as they should; pickups sound like T-Bird pickups. I was hoping it would have the coil-tapping arrangement that the last T-Birds had; no such luck, sad to say. I'll get over it...
Cons - (and sad to say, there are some)
1. This thing was frickin' expensive. The list price for a lefty T-Bird was $3600; I paid about $2300 and change. Which is just about a Grand more than I paid for my '13 'Bird. My paycheck hasn't gone up that much in 5 years; but, you pay what you have to pay, I guess...
2. The OHSC looks very nice, but... it stretches the definition of "Hard Shell" to the breaking point, IMO. Not sure what it's made of, but I wouldn't bet on wood. It's flexy, bendy, and very flimsy. Still doesn't support the headstock, either. But it does look nice; comfy handle, too...
3. This is pretty nit-picky, but for this price, I think I'm entitled to pick a nit or two. My '13 'Bird really is pretty much perfect; this one has a screwed up hole for one of the control cavity cover screws. Yeah, it's very minor; and yeah, I can (and will) fix it. But, really? For this much money? And, for a topper; when took that cover off...
View attachment 2925117 View attachment 2925119
This is what I found. the first pics is the '18; the next one is the '13. What the HELL happened?? Did the guy who did the soldering in the '13 quit? Retire? Die?? Really; how many bananas did it take to "train" the monkey who created this...mess? I can solder better than this - and have - and I'm so bad, it's a Class-A Misdemeanor to let me even get near a soldering iron. Honestly, this is really disappointing. I have <$200 basses with better workmanship than this. I suppose I should just give thanks that everything actually works. Oh, well; I'll just play it, I guess; and try not to think about what's under that cover...
You're certainly the funkiest bus driver I've ever seen, lady. Great stuff!
I'm gonna guess Hi-Beams. I don't think you're gonna get close to that with flats. If you'd like to give the Lo-Riders a try, I'm taking them off my bass tonight and was otherwise tossing them. I assume you'd just have to re-wind the tails in the opposite direction.
Very kind of you Ken. But i'm a wimp on the gauge, I'm guessing the E is a 105?, to heavy for me. I know it's silly of me to not accept the offer....................
