Epiphone Thunderbird Bass

Gavin · Post by **Gavin** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:09 pm

I should probably buy my own bass now that I'm the bass player for Black International.

I've always liked Thunderbird basses aesthetically. Never played one though.

Anyone have any experience of playing the Epiphone ones?

There's one on eBay in Edinburgh for a good price.

James · Post by **James** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:16 pm

I played an Epiphone one years ago and hated it, then I played Al's Gibson one at the ALBQ I went to and it was very good. Normally I don't rate Gibson versions of Gibson style guitars but I liked that one a lot. The Gibson one doesn't suffer from neck dive as much as the Epi, in fact I'd say as far as neck dive goes the Epi is probably the worst guitar I've played. They play quite differently to most things, largely due to the odd balance, so although it's a frustrating thing to hear when looking for fairly black and white opinions I'd say you should play one as it will likely either suit you or not.

kim · Post by **kim** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:18 pm

doing an kim gordon

when i saw SY she used a gibson thunderbird, and i had my doubts the bass would be in your face like i wanted it from sonic youth...usually i associated those thunderbirds with just a lot of low end boom, low mids but nothing above that to cut through a mix but just stay 'there' with the bassdrum...i hate that when i see a band and you can't really tell wtf the bass is doing.

but i was pleasantly surprised of the gnarrl and upper mids cutting through the whole wall of noise, maybe also because she uses a plectrum. it's still not as 'in your face' like a p bass played with plectrum but it sounded nice, even over a pa and outside you could hear lots of details of the bass.

no idea about the epi's though, pickups etc, not sure how similar they are in sound.

Empires · Post by **Empires** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:18 pm

I've got one, although it's been years since I picked it up

The biggest thing I remember about it is that it's heavy at the headstock end, you have to hold it up or it falls. I didn't mind, though.

As for sound, I liked it but I'm not really a connoisseur of bass tones. I was just happy to have a big guitar that made lots of noise.

If you want to try it out, let me know and I'll loan it to you. It's just sitting in it's case at our practice room.

Gavin · Post by **Gavin** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:19 pm

Shit. I hate neck dive.

ekwatts · Post by **ekwatts** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:37 pm

Neckdive city, I'm afraid.

I love firebirds, but the basses just don't cut it for me, in any way. I was forced to play a Gibson version for a few months when I played in a college band and didn't have my own bass. The other guitarist had lent it to me. A friend of mine had a Squier Precision Bass I would much rather have used, but I didn't want to be a dick about it, so I laboured with it for ages. Awful.

So my answer is: Precision Bass.

In my personal opinion, if it isn't a Precision then it isn't a bass. I really can't get along with any other type of bass. I'm partial to some Jazz bass, some Jaguar bass, but if it breaks too far from the trusty Precision format then I'm not really interested.

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:50 pm

I love them: just by a wide strap, otherwise you could come a cropper in that section of each of Stewart's songs when you all stop playing and instead clap above your heads. Aesthetics > playability always.

ekwatts · Post by **ekwatts** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 5:13 pm

Isn't Gavin a tiny lad, though? Aesthetics do trump playability, but not when the bass is going to make you look like the pygmy dwarf you really are.

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 6:20 pm

ekwatts wrote:Isn't Gavin a tiny lad, though? Aesthetics do trump playability, but not when the bass is going to make you look like the pygmy dwarf you really are.

A large, pointy hat and long corncobb pipe would sort that out.

I love Gibson basses and the Epi versions of them, they play and sound nice. I ultimately always crave a bit of Jazz Bass at the end of the day though. Considering what kind of bass sound/strings I'm using now I could rock an Epi EB0 (?) bass (the better one with the set neck and bridge pickup) no prob.

hotrodperlmutter · Post by **hotrodperlmutter** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 7:35 pm

i must echo the neck dive issue. they are really great basses for the money, and there's not much i wouldn't do for an alpine white one, but they do take a lot of getting use to. one benefit is since i wank with my right hand, after fretting with my left hand for a couple years on my tbird, i found that both my wrists are now similar in girth.

the pickups are the highpoint of the guitar. very versatile, and they never sounded bad. you can get so many different sounds from them.

i would love to try one of the EB0's as well, but as often as i play bass, my sx shortscale jazz is all i really need.

sloan can probably speak more accurately as the current owner:

i think the key is to sling them really low like these assholes:

finally:

i'd definitely recommend spending some quality time with one before you commit.

DanHeron · Post by **DanHeron** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 8:15 pm

GET THIS! Â£230...

Empires · Post by **Empires** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 8:51 pm

DanHeron wrote:GET THIS! Â£230...

I like that... quite a lot

James · Post by **James** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 8:53 pm

Easier to upgrade pickups too.

damienblair17 · Post by **damienblair17** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 11:42 pm

I currently use an Epi goth t-bird (just like the one up a few) and I love it, but I know it's not for everyone. It doesn't have a whole lot of mid range punch, but any amp with good eq settings can compensate for that. The bass is fairly well defined regardless, it's just not a p-bass y'know?

As for neck dive, on an Epi bolt on model, if you install a strap button on the neck heel above the neck plate, the dive all but goes away. And as for how big the bass is, I'm a small dude, and I think it's fine.

see?

ekwatts · Post by **ekwatts** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 11:57 pm

damienblair17 wrote:As for neck dive, on an Epi bolt on model, if you install a strap button on the neck heel above the neck plate, the dive all but goes away. And as for how big the bass is, I'm a small dude, and I think it's fine.

Actually, this works for the majority of neck-heavy guitars. Depends whether you can stomach drilling a hole into the flawless finish on the back of your bass, though.

hotrodperlmutter · Post by **hotrodperlmutter** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:28 am

i would say in that case, playability trumps aesthetics. seems like a worthwhile upgrade.

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 4:22 am

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Josh · Post by **Josh** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 3:04 pm

ebo has a lot of neck dive, which is why i never play it, (that and it has like, no output compared to my pbass)
i also need to reduce neck dive on my p bass b/c of how featherlight the body is.

Ankhanu · Post by **Ankhanu** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 3:05 pm

From what I'd seen on bass forums, the Epi Thunderbirds with the reverse headstock are better quality than the current ones with the tuners on top.