Thunderbird Club

[mistergoats]

Been a while since this thread popped up on my radar, but when it does I quickly click on the link, just for the first post in the thread:

Walmark's beautiful '66 Non Reverse II!

I never tire of looking at it.

A '66 non-Reverse is the only T-bird I GAS for, but I always like to quickly sift through the pages I've missed to see what other T-Bird beauts people have posted.

Keep the Faith!


Cheers Y'all.
FF

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG! She's gorgeous.

 

[marko57]

An alternative comment could be:

"Oh that one..? That's been in the rehearsal space for ages - I just took it home to do a setup and change strings..."

She'd have me on that one though, she knows I don't leave my basses anywhere. I'll leave my rig at practice but my basses come and go with me.

 

[marko57]

Wow, you fellas are making me feel pretty dang fortunate as the wife doesn't worry about what I spend.

You are a lucky man Larry!

 

[Larry V]

You are a lucky man Larry!

Thanks but it means I have to control myself which can be hard at times.

It always comes down to whether I need it and rarely whether I can afford it.

It's like my new Apple Watch... didn't even consider the price and I definitely needed it and it is awesome. I mountain biked with it last night and it is by far the best activity tracker on the market and that is primarily why I bought it. I offered to buy one for the wife and she passed on it. Her loss.

 

[TBird1958]

Hey guys here's my new to me epi t-bird!View attachment 627043 View attachment 627044
Got some questions! Its stock original as far as I can tell. As far as upgrades how do you fine members of the club feel about the hipshot and babicz bridges? Are they a direct drop in replacement/worthwhile for the dough? Also has anyone tried the emg t bird pickups? They seem to be the most affordable replacement. I've been trying to find the gibson tb plus pups cause my SG special has them and they sound killer but so far I've got nothin.
Might I join this fine institution? You fellas sure seem to know what's what with these here t birds.

Welcome Friendlybass #518 to our "Little"club, we're all just happy inmates here
As always, questions, pics vidoes are encouraged - we even like shots of you offspring or pets here



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[giocalypse]

Hey guys here's my new to me epi t-bird!View attachment 627043 View attachment 627044
Got some questions! Its stock original as far as I can tell. As far as upgrades how do you fine members of the club feel about the hipshot and babicz bridges? Are they a direct drop in replacement/worthwhile for the dough? Also has anyone tried the emg t bird pickups? They seem to be the most affordable replacement. I've been trying to find the gibson tb plus pups cause my SG special has them and they sound killer but so far I've got nothin.
Might I join this fine institution? You fellas sure seem to know what's what with these here t birds.

Welcome to the club bro. But for my 2 cents. Before you start spending money on hardware, try looking for some good pickups. I wanted to replace my bridge for an Hipshot or a Babicz but instead i decided to invest into so EMG 40DC. there is nothing wrong with the stock 3-point bridge. Look at players like Shavo from System or Nikki from Motley Crüe. They have been play with the stock bridge for years. Never had a problem. But its all up to you bro. CHEERS & HAPPY TUNNING.

 

[friendlybass]

Welcome to the club bro. But for my 2 cents. Before you start spending money on hardware, try looking for some good pickups. I wanted to replace my bridge for an Hipshot or a Babicz but instead i decided to invest into so EMG 40DC. there is nothing wrong with the stock 3-point bridge. Look at players like Shavo from System or Nikki from Motley Crüe. They have been play with the stock bridge for years. Never had a problem. But its all up to you bro. CHEERS & HAPPY TUNNING.

How you like those emg's? I've heard they're really bright and clear. I appreciate the input btw

 

[giocalypse]

How you like those emg's? I've heard they're really bright and clear. I appreciate the input btw

They sound great for tme music i play with the band. We play heavy metal/ hard Rock. So they sound great for my TBird. But they will sound better if you install a PreAmp with those pickups. I got lucky on a bid from eBay for $60. From there all i did is route them into my bass and wired everything up. But i personally prefer EMG. There affordable and reliable.

But as for you. Spend time on youtube and research on the web for info and sound demos for pickups. Good luck on your choice.

And BTW it took me about an year to complete my Project. So there is no rush.

 

[hillerup]

Thanks but it means I have to control myself which can be hard at times.

It always comes down to whether I need it and rarely whether I can afford it.

It's like my new Apple Watch... didn't even consider the price and I definitely needed it and it is awesome. I mountain biked with it last night and it is by far the best activity tracker on the market and that is primarily why I bought it. I offered to buy one for the wife and she passed on it. Her loss.

Considering the nice anniversary watch you got from GM, I would have passed on the iWatch as well - And I'm even a big Apple fan...

 

[friendlybass]

They sound great for tme music i play with the band. We play heavy metal/ hard Rock. So they sound great for my TBird. But they will sound better if you install a PreAmp with those pickups. I got lucky on a bid from eBay for $60. From there all i did is route them into my bass and wired everything up. But i personally prefer EMG. There affordable and reliable.

But as for you. Spend time on youtube and research on the web for info and sound demos for pickups. Good luck on your choice.

And BTW it took me about an year to complete my Project. So there is no rush.

Any chance you could throw some clips up? I'm looking for some deep sound that'll push my amp for some growl. I know pickups aren't the only factor there but I haven't had anyone really describe emg's that way. I tried some shecters with emg's and I liked it a lot, I just don't know which ones they were! I'm intrigued by the tw model cause I love me some coil splits but I'm not dead set on anything.
Thanks for the input man I sure appreciate it

 

[Mike A]

Man, those white 'birds sure get some positive feedback, don't they?! Took it to rehearsal last night and received rave reviews all around. They demanded I play "THAT one" for the next gig. Sounded marvelous, as expected. The only slight negative is that this one is a little lighter than the 'burst one and wants to neck dive just a tad, but it's not enough to be an issue. These things are dead sexy and I'm completely hooked at this point... I don't see me ever being without a Thunderbird bass again.

 

[godofthunder59]

Oh dear.... Wife took a count of all the guitar cases yesterday and was not thrilled about the number...

She's not gonna be happy next week, when the number increases with the Pelham Blue Epi...

Never, ever store all your basses in one location!

 

[hillerup]

Never, ever store all your basses in one location!

That is a really really sound advice, Scott!!!

Unfortunately at the moment, I only have one place to have them stored in our apartment - But we are on the lookout for a house, which will have much more space than our current apartment, and room for a studio as well...

 

[giocalypse]

Any chance you could throw some clips up? I'm looking for some deep sound that'll push my amp for some growl. I know pickups aren't the only factor there but I haven't had anyone really describe emg's that way. I tried some shecters with emg's and I liked it a lot, I just don't know which ones they were! I'm intrigued by the tw model cause I love me some coil splits but I'm not dead set on anything.
Thanks for the input man I sure appreciate it

I would like too post some sound clips but i just dont know how record it or post it. The only thing i can probably do is post something on YouTube. But not anytime soon. I would need to go to my buddy's house and use his computer. When i get home ill take pictures of the control cavity and wiring of me TBird/Emg40Dc.

 

[TwyreZ]

Hi all,
someone could give me the size of the Epiphone T-Bird Pro IV (active) pickups ?

I want to know if it is the Gibson shape...
Thx

 

[giocalypse]

Hi all,
someone could give me the size of the Epiphone T-Bird Pro IV (active) pickups ?

I want to know if it is the Gibson shape...
Thx

I dont know the size, but there the same size housing of Gibson TB pickups. Epiphone use the same Pro Active pickups on both 4 and 5 strings

 

[TwyreZ]

Thank you, that's what I wanted.

I intend to get one and put it in full EMG with TBDC pickups.

 

[ThaCoast]

I've just caught up on what i missed. As far as wristbands go, i've worn them sometimes, but never really got used to it. I prefer either nothing or having a bandana wrapped around my wrist. Looks cooler & i have a bunch of them.

 

[Dark Horse]

I don't know if this will qualify me to be in the thunderbird Club when it's completed, but I thought you guys might dig this. I just finished making the first set of templates for a bass I'll be building starting next week. It's Very Thunderbird influenced, as you can see. It's similar to a slab precision bass, except that I shortened the lower horn to Match up closer to the Thunderbird dimensions... played with a few lines...the pick guard is obviously non-reverse influenced...it will have two T-Bird pick ups, and the body will be African mahogany. I've always loved the Thunderbird sound, but never really liked the ergonomics of them....Even though I think they look really cool. So my goal was to design something that matched closer to the ergonomics of a Fender, but wasn't "just a Thunderbird pick up stuck on a Fender bass" .
Anyway, here is a pic of the templates to give you an idea. It's at least a basic mock up until I start construction next week. The headstock seems a little large, so I'll probably shave it down to match up a bit better.

I hope you dig the design as much as I do !!!

 

[GBassNorth]

I don't know if this will qualify me to be in the thunderbird Club when it's completed, but I thought you guys might dig this. I just finished making the first set of templates for a bass I'll be building starting next week. It's Very Thunderbird influenced, as you can see. It's similar to a slab precision bass, except that I shortened the lower horn to Match up closer to the Thunderbird dimensions... played with a few lines...the pick guard is obviously non-reverse influenced...it will have two T-Bird pick ups, and the body will be African mahogany. I've always loved the Thunderbird sound, but never really liked the ergonomics of them....Even though I think they look really cool. So my goal was to design something that matched closer to the ergonomics of a Fender, but wasn't "just a Thunderbird pick up stuck on a Fender bass" .
Anyway, here is a pic of the templates to give you an idea. It's at least a basic mock up until I start construction next week. The headstock seems a little large, so I'll probably shave it down to match up a bit better.

I hope you dig the design as much as I do !!!


View attachment 628328

That's actually very cool! A lot of people might disagree but I'd put a Gibson 3 point bridge on it to complete the look.