Thunderbird vs Grabber tone? (P bass mod quandary)

[Saetia]

Just to throw it out there, the sliding pickup on a Grabber or other bass equipped does indeed change the tone and response. If that wasn't the case there'd be no difference in a Jazz neck pickup or if you put a P at the bridge… etc. It most definitely does and with a tone control you have a lot of options you really can't get without changing where the pickup aperture is sensing the movement and what harmonic content present. But to each ears hear their own.

I'm having a Serek Lincoln made me with the Novak BL-Grabber system. Can't wait.

 

[Lammchop93]

Definitely a difference in tone, but not as dramatic as I thought it was going to be.

 

[mikef09]

The bass player of Thrice plays Grabbers and his driven tone is awesome.

I've been after this tone my entire adult life. With a P Bass you don't even have to mod it. Get a Lollar Precision 90 and call it a day. It's 99.9% there!

 

[bylar13]

I built this from a 2012 American Standard body, 2019 American Performer Jazz bass neck, Lollar Thunderbird pickup in the Thunderbird position.

 

[retslock]

But what do they sound like!? I have never played a thunderbird at all.

I've never been a Thunderbird fan but only because of their body shape. Their pickups sound great. I've seen others use them in custom builds and in the Precision spot they sound very nice indeed.

 

[Ric Vice]

I owned a Non Reverse Gibson Thunderbird. The sound of those pickups is unique. I think John Entwhistle had the right idea with the Fender birds.
Which is kind like what you're considering. I only think of the Grabber and Rippers in context of Emerson Lake and Palmer. .

 

[Iristone]

Both pickups can sound great! And you may not need 100% sliding if you go with the Grabber, the pickup itself is very good by itself. The Thunderbird vintage-style pickups (Reissue, Probucker, Chinabucker etc.) are close to a P bass with more midrange heft, while the TB-Plus doesn't sound that good to me.

 

[scuzzy]

t-birds sound amazing. i miss mine. to me, they bridge the gap between the P and the J, taking the best parts of each for itself.

 

[Iristone]

t-birds sound amazing. i miss mine. to me, they bridge the gap between the P and the J, taking the best parts of each for itself.

PJ on steroids with perfect balance between the neck and bridge pickups!

 

[Engle]

Highly subjective, but I can try… My experience is with an original t-bird and a friend's bass that has Fralins. The P mid honk is gone, the low mid and lows have a solidity to them that I really like. There's clarity in the upper mids and highs that help define your playing - attacks sound very clear. And there's still some high end sizzle there if you're slapping. I also like the ergo of the T-bird better as I'm almost always anchored to the edge of the bridge pickup and it's more comfortable for me…

Listen to Nikki Monninger's work with Silversun Pickups, and anything from Entwistle, Nikki Sixx, Rex Brown, Shavo Odadjian, and Tom Petersson….

Hope this helps, YMMV

Anything from Entwistle could include a Pbass, Alembic, or a bunch of other basses.

 

[depalm]

Mike Lulls TBird pickups sounds just amazing. Shame they don't sell them anymore (unless you buy a whole bass with them…)

Lollar seems to be really also good. I'd probably install a set on a J.

 

[Iristone]

Anything from Entwistle could include a Pbass, Alembic, or a bunch of other basses.

I believe his recorded Thunderbird and Fenderbird sounds are most prevalent on Quadrophenia, with the smooth undistorted sound he referred to as "perfect for bottom but there's no treble" (cf. his P bass "perfect for treble but there's no bottom). Interestingly his P bass sound from earlier records didn't really sound brighter, maybe it was a technical limitation? Or maybe Glyn deliberately toned down some of his basslines to better fit the orchestration?

 

[Iristone]

Highly subjective, but I can try… My experience is with an original t-bird and a friend's bass that has Fralins. The P mid honk is gone, the low mid and lows have a solidity to them that I really like. There's clarity in the upper mids and highs that help define your playing - attacks sound very clear. And there's still some high end sizzle there if you're slapping. I also like the ergo of the T-bird better as I'm almost always anchored to the edge of the bridge pickup and it's more comfortable for me…

Listen to Nikki Monninger's work with Silversun Pickups, and anything from Entwistle, Nikki Sixx, Rex Brown, Shavo Odadjian, and Tom Petersson….

Hope this helps, YMMV

Ergonomics +1, I like the seated balance, neck, and the continuous big ramps as a thumbrest. Standing balance may be helped by a wide strap?

 

[NKBassman]

Mike Lulls TBird pickups sounds just amazing. Shame they don't sell them anymore (unless you buy a whole bass with them…)

Lollar seems to be really also good. I'd probably install a set on a J.

Has anyone ever done any kind of comparison between Lull vs Lollar vs Gibson/Epiphone vs those cheap "Eric Custom" ones from China that a lot of folks seem to like?

 

[Iristone]

Has anyone ever done any kind of comparison between Lull vs Lollar vs Gibson/Epiphone vs those cheap "Eric Custom" ones from China that a lot of folks seem to like?

I've heard about 90% similarity? I'm grateful for Eric Custom and Epiphone for bringing more accessible Thunderbird tones to us, but in this material world you still get more if you pay more (unless it involves stupid overcharge such as some "signature" models).

 

[depalm]

Has anyone ever done any kind of comparison between Lull vs Lollar vs Gibson/Epiphone vs those cheap "Eric Custom" ones from China that a lot of folks seem to like?

Eric PUs may sound good, but just look at that solder job… Comparing to the Lull PU, they seem to be poorly constructed…

 

[NKBassman]

Good notes, thanks.
I guess the way I see it, if I were to ever pull the trigger on modding my P I'd start with the Eric's because they are dirt cheap and apparently sound the way TB pickups should... it's a very low risk investment. You can always upgrade from there if you thought it was worthwhile.

 

[Gaolee]

Ergonomics +1, I like the seated balance, neck, and the continuous big ramps as a thumbrest. Standing balance may be helped by a wide strap?

I prefer Thunderbird ergos to the usual Fender ergos. A wide strap is a start. Then rotate it up more vertical. With a wide strap, I find that I can put a Thunderbird just about anywhere and it stays put. But, it's really in its element with the neck more vertical, not exactly upright bass ergos, but closer than a Fender. I find that a Fender has a spot it rotates to that's more horizontal, and it won't stay anywhere else. If you like that spot, then it's great. If you want it somewhere else, forget it.

This applies to modern (1989 and later) Gibson Thunderbirds with a relatively small headstock. There are other variants that have somewhat different ergos.

 

[Gaolee]

Has anyone ever done any kind of comparison between Lull vs Lollar vs Gibson/Epiphone vs those cheap "Eric Custom" ones from China that a lot of folks seem to like?

I had EY pickups for a while. I think they are the same as Eric pickups. They were OK, but they sure paled in comparison to the Lulls in the orange Thunderbird in the video. I put Thunderbuckers in that bass. Those are not available anymore, unfortunately. But, I don't think you can go wrong with some of the others, including Gibson reissues. The reissues are a bargain compared to Lollars or some of the others.

 

[TBird1958]

It's Thursday!