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Gibson Thunderbird 2021


NancyJohnson

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8 hours ago, lou24d53 said:

Why do you (hardly ever) never see Epi Vintage Pro's for sale 2nd hand?

Because they're really good! 

I'll assume the Thunderbird social media groups are a fairly typical group of owners. To buy any Thunderbird you have to really want yhat specific shape and sound. Most who want the Vintage Pro sound don't like the modern Gibson and a bicentennial will cost you a big old pile of cash. 

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4 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

Because they're really good! 

I'll assume the Thunderbird social media groups are a fairly typical group of owners. To buy any Thunderbird you have to really want yhat specific shape and sound. Most who want the Vintage Pro sound don't like the modern Gibson and a bicentennial will cost you a big old pile of cash. 

Would you say they are circa £500 new, "good"...?!

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3 hours ago, DaytonaRik said:

I have both a Gibson and an Epi IV as a spare...and I really struggle to tell the difference between them in feel and sound, certainly in a mix.  

Definitely. It sounds excellent and the quality of finish was better than my MIM Fender Jazz. 

I got mine new for £450 but I haven't seen any that cheap since then. 

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20 minutes ago, SteveXFR said:

Im quite liking the look of the new Embassy bass. Looks like Thunderbird hardware and pickups in a different body

Screenshot_20210206-101105.png

I wish they'd kept the original headstock.

The original run from a couple of years ago had intonation problems due to the bridge being in the wrong place (a tribute to the original Thunderbird perhaps?) but I think this has been sorted now.

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  • 3 months later...

I spied a 2005 tbird with what looks like a regular high mass bridge and a smaller headstock. Are the neck profiles thin on these as per the Epi 60s new one?

Do the Epi Pros have comfy necks? As in which one to avoid with a baseball bat neck ...

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3 hours ago, barrycreed said:

I spied a 2005 tbird with what looks like a regular high mass bridge and a smaller headstock. Are the neck profiles thin on these as per the Epi 60s new one?

Do the Epi Pros have comfy necks? As in which one to avoid with a baseball bat neck ...

The bolt-ons have necks closer to Precision size, but they could never be described as baseball bats.

My Vintage Pro has a supremely comfy neck - for me. I like a narrow nut but not a shallow profile - this Thunderbird has a nice deep curve to the neck.

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47 minutes ago, barrycreed said:

@Cosmo Valdemar This is similar to the one I saw for sale. Set neck I think. But no idea of the neck profile on these ones.

20190529_163614.jpg

Studio. Stripped back Gibson cash in.  Yuck.

Well, I wouldn't buy it; if nothing it's simply from the perspective that if you're desperate for a Thunderbird you'll pull the trigger on this then wonder why you didn't just buy a IV.

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1 hour ago, NancyJohnson said:

Studio. Stripped back Gibson cash in.  Yuck.

Well, I wouldn't buy it; if nothing it's simply from the perspective that if you're desperate for a Thunderbird you'll pull the trigger on this then wonder why you didn't just buy a IV.

What was so bad about the Studios? I did try a Studio 5 once - I didn't like it much, but I'm not too fond of 5 strings or modern Thunderbirds so it was never going to work for me.

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I tried the 5 string version of the Gibson Thunderbird Studio at a point in the 90s when it was the only way of getting a 5-string bass in a Thunderbird shape without going for a custom build. Very underwhelming IMO, because it was simply a very ordinary 5-string bass with a Thunderbird-shaped body. Had almost nothing in common with a classic (76 re-issue or earlier) Thunderbird other than the shape. Proof (if any more was needed) that even Gibson can't get their legacy basses right.

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1 hour ago, barrycreed said:

@NancyJohnson There is a desperate streak in me at times :(

I understand the desire for purchase/ownership; at one point I was into double figures for Gibson Thunderbirds so believe me when I say that these Studio models look like Thunderbird IVs, they're an underwhelming model by comparison.  As @BigRedX has already pointed out, they're just very ordinary basses with a Thunderbird shaped body.

I've attached two photos below of Firebird Guitars - yes, I know they're not Thunderbirds, but this more than demonstrates the differences.  Which one would you rather own?  If it's the one with the white scratchplate, then save up for IV.

DSFS18VSCH1_MAIN_HERO_01.jpg

 

Gibson-2019-Firebird-Vintage-Sunburst-190016820-2.jpg

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The white scratch plate is the better of the two, but ideally I'd want it with a Vibrola tailpiece and banjo tuners.

I've been a massive fan of both the Firebird guitar and the Thunderbird bass since forever, but the Gibson models that tick all the boxes for me have always been way out of my reach price-wise.

In the end I sacrificed authenticity for something that embodied some of the spirt of the originals but was far more playable than the modern "name" reproductions in the shape of an Overwater Original bass:

DSC01105.jpg

And a Fretking Esprit guitar:

DSC01135.jpg

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