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Thunderbird Club

#68,261
RikiP said:
I accept you have different opinion, but Epiphone sells basically the exact same bass (Classic-IV PRO) for 550$.
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It's not really a matter of opinion, finish materials and hardware are different. Epiphone bridges are different from Gibson bridges, so is all the screws. Nitro finish is more expensive, even if the material cost on it were the same, I'm pretty sure there's filtering and other environmental costs with nitro.

That's why I asked if you felt the same about 7ender. A MIM is a fraction of the price of MIA. So it depends on your personal opinions about quality materials and labour.

I'm not saying that the full cost is justifiable, but neither are most of the basses made in the western hemisphere. But that's how the world works.
 
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#68,263
bholder said:
Oooh model trains! Need to get my tables set up some day in my garage...
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Chucky Stiletti said:
Lionels? Tycos? Marklins?
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Mine is all HO, mostly high end things I scratchbuild or custom paint/build to fit the mid '70s in Utah.
Something I finished recently, this car was assigned to Pabst Brewing...... So, 70 tons of PBR!

MKSpdNE.jpg
 
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#68,266
Dr_Feelgoood212 said:
That's why I asked if you felt the same about 7ender. A MIM is a fraction of the price of MIA. So it depends on your personal opinions about quality materials and labour.
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I own several Ps and one Gibson bird. One of my Ps is American made. In terms of value (as in "getting your money's worth"), I think that the MIM P, with mods, is a fine bass. It is made from same materials and the neck bolts on just like an MIA. The major differences are hardware and electronics. To me, one major difference between the cost of a Gibson and the Epi bird has to be the labor involved in neck-through vs. a bolt-on neck design.

Based on the reviews of some of the experienced owners and players here, it sounds like the new model Epi is a very solid instrument. I am not sure if it is bolt-on or not?

It sucks that the OP found the mess in the electronics on his. That should not happen with a bass at that price point (or most price points for that matter).

I think that to a certain extent, you are always paying for a brand with anything. It is why companies spend tons on "branding". I like my bird and I own a Gibson Les Paul too. I am far from a Gibson fan boy but there is some craftsmanship involved in a Gibson T bird that accounts for some of the cost differential.

BTW, I have been dieing to work in a "the birds and the Ps" quip. Has that been used before? I didn't get a chance to focus group it. It might be a dud.
 
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#68,267
dukeorock said:
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
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There's also the material to consider. The first picks I used all those years ago were Gibson H 346s in celluloid (1mm). After a couple of years they became impossible to find and Dunlop 1.14 cerise tortex were the best alternative. Fast forward a few years and a couple of countries and I'm back to Gibson celluloid picks, this time XH 351s (1.17mm). A lot of people don't appreciate how much variation you can get just from varying the angle of the pick or angle of the stroke.
 
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#68,268
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#68,269
RikiP said:
I accept you have different opinion, but Epiphone sells basically the exact same bass (Classic-IV PRO) for 550$.
Click to expand...

I used to think pretty much the same thing ... until I bought my オービル ギブソン Thunderbird and realised that there are real differences. The Epi is thicker and heavier with contours cut into the body. The Ōbiru is slimmer and lighter with tapered wings and it feels more compact despite being 2cm longer. So it would be interesting to take a stack of Gibson, Epi etc Birds and measure them to map the variation between versions.
 
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#68,271
TBird1958 said:
Mine is all HO, mostly high end things I scratchbuild or custom paint/build to fit the mid '70s in Utah.
Something I finished recently, this car was assigned to Pabst Brewing...... So, 70 tons of PBR!

View attachment 2925755
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Nice! I'm a Lionel kinda guy from before I could walk (everything's in storage though). Wish they'd chosen HO instead. Still somehow ashamed of that 3rd rail... :(
 
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#68,272
TBird1958 said:
Mine is all HO, mostly high end things I scratchbuild or custom paint/build to fit the mid '70s in Utah.
Something I finished recently, this car was assigned to Pabst Brewing...... So, 70 tons of PBR!

View attachment 2925755
Click to expand...
Mid-'70s in Utah? Is there a harem car?

kat888 said:
I used to think pretty much the same thing ... until I bought my オービル ギブソン Thunderbird and realised that there are real differences. The Epi is thicker and heavier with contours cut into the body. The Ōbiru is slimmer and lighter with tapered wings and it feels more compact despite being 2cm longer. So it would be interesting to take a stack of Gibson, Epi etc Birds and measure them to map the variation between versions.
Click to expand...
You can borrow mine!
 
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#68,274
In 1976 I was 16 years old and had a baseball bat-like 7ender 1975 p-bass. My guitarist heard this crazy radio add, buy a Gibson guitar, get one free while supplies lasted. It was one day only. He wanted a FLYING V and wasn't sure which other guitar he wanted. Well we skipped school naturally and got there about 4 am. There were 16 people in line already. We were a bit concerned but we did make the cut. When we saw the bicentennial firebird with gold hardware we went crazy. Sure he got the VEE but that firebird was amazing. That was the day I saw my first t-bird, a natural finished beauty. I wanted it sooooooooooooo bad. I demo'ed it via a Sunn stadium amp, it felt like a refined machine.
 
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#68,275
kat888 said:
I used to think pretty much the same thing ... until I bought my オービル ギブソン Thunderbird and realised that there are real differences. The Epi is thicker and heavier with contours cut into the body. The Ōbiru is slimmer and lighter with tapered wings and it feels more compact despite being 2cm longer. So it would be interesting to take a stack of Gibson, Epi etc Birds and measure them to map the variation between versions.
Click to expand...

Thunderbirds, no two exactly alike :)

I enjoy all the differences in my little group of 'Birds, they really are varied, the Orville is not at like the Greco for example.
 
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#68,276
Stevis said:
I own several Ps and one Gibson bird. One of my Ps is American made. In terms of value (as in "getting your money's worth"), I think that the MIM P, with mods, is a fine bass. It is made from same materials and the neck bolts on just like an MIA. The major differences are hardware and electronics. To me, one major difference between the cost of a Gibson and the Epi bird has to be the labor involved in neck-through vs. a bolt-on neck design.

Based on the reviews of some of the experienced owners and players here, it sounds like the new model Epi is a very solid instrument. I am not sure if it is bolt-on or not?

It sucks that the OP found the mess in the electronics on his. That should not happen with a bass at that price point (or most price points for that matter).

I think that to a certain extent, you are always paying for a brand with anything. It is why companies spend tons on "branding". I like my bird and I own a Gibson Les Paul too. I am far from a Gibson fan boy but there is some craftsmanship involved in a Gibson T bird that accounts for some of the cost differential.

BTW, I have been dieing to work in a "the birds and the Ps" quip. Has that been used before? I didn't get a chance to focus group it. It might be a dud.
Click to expand...

That's the whole thing, bang for buck, you're always better off getting non-MIA. But quality equals quantity.... as in quantity of money you spend. The extra mile for the small details is always the most expensive. If that extra quality doesn't concern you, great. But that doesn't mean it's the same instrument, worth the same amount.

I do believe that you are paying for the brand too, but that also carries through to resale. If a new mass produced, made in the USA brand came out tomorrow, with amazing quality and materials, you're not going to be paying the same amount as a known brand like Gibson, or 7ender. At least not until they build a reputation.
 
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#68,280
Dr_Feelgoood212 said:
Nice!
I'm curious as to why they didn't opt to have two switches, one for each filter.
View attachment 2925914
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I thought that at first, but really, it kinda depends on what you’re using it for. For me, it would likely be an ‘always on’ thing, so one switch is fine. if it were used more as an effect for certain songs I could see the need for two switches
 
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