Jean-Luc Pickguard

The bass was listed just as an epiphone thunderbird, not specifically as a vintage pro, so it may have been priced as one of the standard bolt-on models. Even though the case costs around £100 new, they probably didn't factor in more than a few quid for it if anything at all. Like most things in Cash Converters it was a bit grubby, but it didn't take long to get it cleaned up. There was a shallow dent on the back of the neck and a scrape on the lower back edge of the headstock, both of which I've filled & levelled with white milliput and elbow grease. The strings were as dead as Bojo the clown's capability for empathy and the setup was terrible with high action and zero relief on the neck. I've set it up to play a lot better with the current strings and will take it apart for a deeper clean/polish and further tweakage once I have some some cobalt flats to put on it.

I originally wanted a white one when these were first launched, so extremely chuffed to get this one for £249 (plus a tenner p&p!). It was indeed a bargain - especially with the latest version of the epiphone fitted hardcase thrown in. I absolutely love these basses - the pickups are amazing. The wilkinson tuners work well, but Gotoh GB640 reso-lites are an essential upgrade for me as they complete the vintage look, reduce the weight of the headstock, and unlike similarly vintage styled large plate tuners they turn the right way. I think this bass still has the stock roundwounds which are now totally dead, but I’ll be putting on a set of EB cobalt flats asap.

I now have a third Epiphone Thunderbird Vintage Pro - this was a bit of a bargain when I first noticed it before xmas on the Cash Converters website at just £299 with the matching hardcase included. I managed to stop myself from buying it then and expected someone else to snap it up, but when they knocked off another £50 I really couldn't resist.

According to one reviewer on Thomann's site, these are best when played without trousers.

as they say: "beauty is in the eye of the beerholder"

Congrats! These are fantastic basses. The pickups sound excellent and the necks feel like a really good jazz bass. I have a matching pair of sunburst ones and have a white one incoming - due to be delivered tomorrow. I'll probably end up getting a black one to complete the set at some point as well.

Who'd pay £80 for a setup on a new instrument? Seems a bit high when the Gallery charges £35 when you bring your own instrument in for a setup. Surely a bass should always have a 'one size fits all' set up if its on the shop floor for people to try out. A beginner probably won't be able to tell the difference between a decent bass that badly needs a setup and a crappy bass.

I used to use Thomastic JF-324 32" medium scale flats on my CIJ mustang & they fitted fine. I initially thought it odd that Fender's stock strings on the JMJ are 9050L which are long scale stainless steel flats, but the aditional length doesn't seem to have any adverse effects & liked them so much on the JMJ that I also use them on the CIJ now.

According to wikipedia Roget Rosmeisl worked at Fender from 1962 to 1973 where he designed the Coronado range which I'd always assumed had been designed by a committee.

I've upgraded both and they're as good as each other but the first one is a defintite keeper so if the second one gets its marching orders I'll have to put the original tuners back on and move the reso-lites & cobalt flats onto the white one.

I have all the basses I need so the plan was to not buy any this year, or at least hold off from buying any for as long as possible. However I saw a deal on a white epi thunderbird vintage pro which I managed to resist before xmas that had been further reduced to a price where it would have been rude not to. I have two vintage pros already, both sunburst so I don't really have a tbird-shaped gap in my collection although I've really wanted a white one since they were first launched. Not sure how I'm going to explain the appearance of a white one, I guess its better to ask for forgiveness than permission. I'm a little ashamed that my gear abstinence resolution only lasted three days though.

I have a played-in set of LaBella white nylon tapewounds on mine currently - lots of lovely mwahh, the TI JF-344s I had on it previously were good as well.

I put together a bitzer Precision about 17 years ago using a brandoni sunburst body & neck with an unlined ebony fingerboard. I whittled the nut from an imitation ivory chopstick from Wing Yip. Its a lovely bass and I've swapped out various bits & pieces over the years. It currently has hipshot lollipop tuners, a 1986 EMG active pickup powered with 2xA23 batteries (24v), a badass II bridge, rosewood thumbrest and a cheapo (£8) Chinese 4 ply torty pickguard which I think looks a lot nicer than it should. I don't find it particularly hard to play compared to a fretted bass and it sounds great - the EMG pickup suits it really well giving it a beautiful growl.

I can’t offer any input regarding the solid bodied ubasses, but I have recently put a set of the kala/gallo flatwounds on my ubass & this has tightened up the attack without losing the tone. Martin at the Gallery filed the nut slots, and the strings just feel right now. Although I have only used them on my ubass-1, if I was to ever get a solid uke bass I’d definitely fit a set of these strings as they sound so good and actually stay in tune unlike the stock kala Pahoehoes, or the popular but awful aquila thunderguts.

The Epiphone Bass Probucker #760s as fitted to the Vintage Pro Thunderbirds & Embassy Pro basses are excellent, so if you can track down a set I doubt you would be disappointed.

Listed as Jamerson at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floy_Joy_(album)

I have one of those Fender curly cables in daphne blue - it looks great with my JMJ mustang & matching levy’s suede strap

Give Aaron Armstrong a shout. I expect he would be able to make something to fit your exact requirements. http://www.armstrongpickups.co.uk/

My CIJ Mustang is a great bass, but my JMJ takes it to another level. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the stock fender flatwounds suit it.

The pic is of a Gibson, not an epiphone. I don’t like them - they look like they were designed by a committee. And the pickguard is fugly.

hit parade? ...more like 5hit parade!

Melvin's so quiet he said eight words last year; and six of those were 'airport'... My favourite live album, I never tire of listening to it.

Say what you like - the chap that built it won't mind as he is dead. He was a bass custom builder and the seller bought up his entire estate

My back is hurting just looking at these