I like simple. Or should I say ‘I take a minimalist approach’ ?
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Thunderbird Club
- Thread starter TBird1958
- Start date
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- club thunderbird
I like simple. Or should I say ‘I take a minimalist approach’ ?
I've mentioned my first guitar, a Hagstrom I, before. I pulled it out of its gig bag for the first time in ages. I'd forgotten the shape it came back to me in (I loaned it to a teenager who was learning guitar, and his younger brother got hold of it and messed it up). The bridge had issues, anyway; time to get a new one.
Here it is next to my IV for comparison, and to sneak it in on Thunderbird Thursday. It's about the size of a Strat, but a lot lighter. Very small neck, which my smallish hands and short fingers loved, but the narrowness thereof combined with six strings annoyed my pudgy fingers.
You can clearly see that a bridge saddle is missing in the pic below. Yes, that's a plexiglass or similar front. The original body had a textured lavender fabric wrapped around the back and tucked under the front, but those inevitably pulled out and started tearing. When I acquired Tobie here, that wrap was too far gone to salvage. I removed it and just stained the wood. I lost the original screws back in my less focused days and used some huge screws in their place (they may not even be wood screws). The original bridge was wood with little metal forks for each string; the only adjustment was up or down on each end. I replaced the original, rather anemic pickups (since lost or given away) with Dimarzio SDS-1s (1976). The original controls were four small SPST slide switches and a volume pot. The switches were:
L (neck pickup off/on)
H (bridge pickup off/on)
Tone (off/high cut)
Mute (off/on (sic))
I must have rewired this twenty times (including a couple of stereo experiments) before I settled on this configuration: two three-way DPDT, a two-way DPDT, and two pots:
Neck p/u switch: phase 1, off phase 2
Bridge p/u switch: phase 1, off, phase 2
Series/parallel switch
Volume pot
Tone pot
If the first two switches are both on in the same direction, the pickups are in phase. If they're both on in opposite directions, they're out of phase. Selecting serial while only one pickup is on effectively acts like a mute (unintended consequence, but handy for Tom Morello style).
Also, those StrapLok buttons look huge on this.
Note the upper strap button location!
This has a three screw bolt-on neck, but it's rock solid.
The whammy bar is a replacement; the original disappeared long ago, probably in a move back when I usually left it off the guitar.
Further notes on middle pic:
Yes, that is a BADj (Big-A$$-Djembe).
I won the acoustic at an auction to benefit Health Alliance for Austin Musicians. (Helps out musicians w/o insurance.) It's a cheap guitar but it's signed by Ray Benson.
Here it is next to my IV for comparison, and to sneak it in on Thunderbird Thursday. It's about the size of a Strat, but a lot lighter. Very small neck, which my smallish hands and short fingers loved, but the narrowness thereof combined with six strings annoyed my pudgy fingers.
You can clearly see that a bridge saddle is missing in the pic below. Yes, that's a plexiglass or similar front. The original body had a textured lavender fabric wrapped around the back and tucked under the front, but those inevitably pulled out and started tearing. When I acquired Tobie here, that wrap was too far gone to salvage. I removed it and just stained the wood. I lost the original screws back in my less focused days and used some huge screws in their place (they may not even be wood screws). The original bridge was wood with little metal forks for each string; the only adjustment was up or down on each end. I replaced the original, rather anemic pickups (since lost or given away) with Dimarzio SDS-1s (1976). The original controls were four small SPST slide switches and a volume pot. The switches were:
L (neck pickup off/on)
H (bridge pickup off/on)
Tone (off/high cut)
Mute (off/on (sic))
I must have rewired this twenty times (including a couple of stereo experiments) before I settled on this configuration: two three-way DPDT, a two-way DPDT, and two pots:
Neck p/u switch: phase 1, off phase 2
Bridge p/u switch: phase 1, off, phase 2
Series/parallel switch
Volume pot
Tone pot
If the first two switches are both on in the same direction, the pickups are in phase. If they're both on in opposite directions, they're out of phase. Selecting serial while only one pickup is on effectively acts like a mute (unintended consequence, but handy for Tom Morello style).
Also, those StrapLok buttons look huge on this.
Note the upper strap button location!
This has a three screw bolt-on neck, but it's rock solid.
The whammy bar is a replacement; the original disappeared long ago, probably in a move back when I usually left it off the guitar.
Further notes on middle pic:
Yes, that is a BADj (Big-A$$-Djembe).
I won the acoustic at an auction to benefit Health Alliance for Austin Musicians. (Helps out musicians w/o insurance.) It's a cheap guitar but it's signed by Ray Benson.
they knocked down the wall to the next local and have both places, it's big now, band plays at the far end wall and they are building a stage...should work out well..
Makes me think of a family Christmas card.
Very sweet bass! Is that a dark chocolate color? Never seen that finish on a Studio bird before.
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,894
- 142,208
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
That's a great looking Studio 'Bird!
Good on you for trying one out, I think you'll find it to be a wonderful bass, congratulations.
More than happy to add you to our club if you like.
Studios only came in two finishes; cherry and black.
It's "Cherry". But it IS a much darker Cherry than a Gibson Les Paul bass I had in the '90s. Can't remember for sure, but maybe the Les Paul was "Heritage Cherry". The Thunderbird does change colors a bit in different lighting, but really is a deep cherry color (almost "Black Cherry").
I have to experiment a bit with the strap to figure out the most comfortable playing position for me. I was playing along with some CDs (yes, I still have CDs!) and trying different tone settings on different songs. Lots of tonal choices, and that tone knob is very responsive!
Thanks! Sure, sign me up!
And thanks to all for the nice comments...
Gaolee
Official leathers tester and crash dummy
What color is that? It looks almost black, but not quite. Dark red or brown - do you know what the factory called that color?
[edit] I'm slow! Cherry, but not the usual cherry. It's beautiful, whatever you want to call it. The chrome bridge and tuners are a huge plus on a bass that color.
- Mar 8, 2011
- 12,232
- 51,187
- Disclosures
- Authorized greenboy designs builder/Owner of BNA Audio
I passed on a great price for a T Bird Studio and I’m sometimes bummed about that. Neat basses
My MIM with stock PUPs and chromes is a really nice bass that plays and sounds great.
built like NRs (set neck, flat faced) but with a reverse shape..
....love to try one..
built like NRs (set neck, flat faced) but with a reverse shape..
The LP Studio was like that[1]- same frontal body shape but flatter. Is Gibson actually consistent in their use of the label "Studio" for their guitars[2]? It almost felt like a completely different instrument.
Or am I thinking of the LP Jr?
1. I assume still is, but haven't checked lately
2. however many strings
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,894
- 142,208
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
built like NRs (set neck, flat faced) but with a reverse shape..
Its a Studio Fiver that I'm really after, would not pass up a four though, super cool basses.
They don't have the super nice fit and finish features but usually have added features, like coil tapping on the Les Paul guitars, that you normally wouldn't get in a "budget" ($900-$1000) instrument and would have to get into the more expensive LP ($2000+) versions to get.
