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epi thunderbird


regaal

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i have a gothic tbird already and just got bought a white tbird on ebay for $250 today and dont really know much about it. was wondering whats different about the two tbirds besides color, if anything. the pickups seem to be different but again dont know what about it. im wondering if i got a good deal or not. i got my gothic tbird for $150 a few months back and love it. but ive been jonesin' for a white tbird for as long as i remember so when it came up i got it without doing any research first. but all the stuff im finding on white tbirds are more like your standard vintage burst or the gothic only white.

 

 

sorry for the rambling.

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i have a gothic tbird already and just got bought a white tbird on ebay for $250 today and dont really know much about it. was wondering whats different about the two tbirds besides color, if anything. the pickups seem to be different but again dont know what about it. im wondering if i got a good deal or not. i got my gothic tbird for $150 a few months back and love it. but ive been jonesin' for a white tbird for as long as i remember so when it came up i got it without doing any research first. but all the stuff im finding on white tbirds are more like your standard vintage burst or the gothic only white.

 

these pics are all from the auction.

 

 

sorry for the rambling.

 

Welcome regaal...

 

The difference is that White T/Bird is no good!

 

So, you can send it to me immediately to deal with [thumbup]

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I'm not sure what the specs are for the white T-Bird, but it looks just like my Silverburst one... except that it's white [razz] Haha!

 

I did have a older T-Bird as seen in my sig. and once I got the SB T-Bird I sold it. The sound of the SB is a little brighter and has a wider range of tone. My old one seemed to have a good sound once it was dialed in, but was a little muddier than the SB. I usually mod the hell out of my guitars, I had planned to with the old T-Bird, I just never got around to it. The SB sound is so good is going to stay stock, except for the Grover Tuners that I had left over from another project.

 

I think for $250 you got a good deal.

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The only possible difference that I know of is the body material. The Goth is mahogany, and If I am correct, the regular T-Bird-IV is Alder with the exception of the Silverburst, which is also mahogany. Not sure about the white T-Birds specifically, but they are probably the same as the standard T-Bird IV.

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I'm not sure what the difference in nut witdths from one T-Bird to another might be, but I can say without a doubt the nut on my 'Bird is narrower than either my P-Bass or my brother's J-Bass. At least it feels narrower. It also feels narrower than the EB. My 'Bird is the standard issue tobacco burst version. If there are narrower necks, they are narrow indeed.

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The nut on my standard is near the 44mm mark 1.73" on the epi specs.

 

The Goth is thinner at 1.5" or 38mm

 

Don't you love how the mix imperial and decimal :lol:

 

My P sits around the 40mm mark although the neck is deeper. I wish the two would mate and make nice wide deep babies

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My P is 1-3/4" wide, which I like. It is nearly an inch thick at the nut, as well. It's a pretty big piece of wood. The 'Bird is almost the same size, according to the tape measure, but feels much, much smaller. It isn't quite as wide or quite as thick, but it's not as much smaller as I thought. Go figure. I had not measured either of them before. The EB is the noodle of the lot, at 1-1/2" and about 3/4" thick. Something about the Gibson's shape must be exactly right to make it feel bigger and more comfortable. I guess our hands can deceive us.

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The nut on my standard is near the 44mm mark 1.73" on the epi specs.

 

The Goth is thinner at 1.5" or 38mm

 

Don't you love how the mix imperial and decimal :lol:

 

My P sits around the 40mm mark although the neck is deeper. I wish the two would mate and make nice wide deep babies

Did you measure it yourself? Because typically, Epiphone basses are 1.50 & 1.65". That, and all of the other T-birds are spec'd at 1.5" , including the Pros and Elitists. Epiphone 5-string basses are typically at 1.73 with the exception of the T-bird Pro at 1.93". Its not uncommon for Epiphone to have their info mixed up. The only other 4-string basses spec'd at 1.73" are the acoustics.

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Did you measure it yourself? Because typically, Epiphone basses are 1.50 & 1.65". That, and all of the other T-birds are spec'd at 1.5" , including the Pros and Elitists. Epiphone 5-string basses are typically at 1.73 with the exception of the T-bird Pro at 1.93". Its not uncommon for Epiphone to have their info mixed up. The only other 4-string basses spec'd at 1.73" are the acoustics.

 

 

Yip measured my self. I'm real sensitive to neck shapes due to a medical problem and altough the T-bird is probably the favourite player I suffer soon after. So I done a lot of measuring

 

Epis own specs give the 1.73"

 

114_04.jpg

 

The only thing I have wider is the 6 string bass. The P IIRC is 42mm it's also about 2 mm deeper then the Viola is the skinniest of the lot but around the same depth of the T-Bird. But the skinnier neck and less taper makes it feel rounder.

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That is such a strange specification for an Epiphone 4-string. And a pretty big difference from 1.5". Its good that you measured it yourself, though. The specs on the Epiphone site are not always correct...which is why I asked after looking at their website.

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I believe the specs, since I measured the plain jane Epi Thunderbird I own. I was very surprised to find it is a very similar width and depth to the P-Bass, which I also measured myself. The real shock, to me, was how small the old EB neck really is. Somehow, the 'Bird neck is shaped in a way which makes it seem much smaller than it actually is.

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thanks for all the info everyone.

 

unfortunately for me the bridge is a little messed up. not being a guitar tech i dont know if its an easy fix or not.

 

if play it looking down at the bridge, the top screw/peg does not stay tight in the body. it comes out about 3/8th of an inch. causing the action to be a little off.

 

anything i can do to fix this myself? or am i going to have to take it somewhere to have it fixed?

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Do you mean the body insert that the bridge screws screw into??

 

If you do I've heard of people taking them out putting a bit of epoxy around the and knocking them back in.

 

Apparently it can be caused by having the bridge tilted too far forward.

 

I say apparently because I don't have any experience of it happening.

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i do in fact mean the the body insert the bridge screws screw into.

 

when i got it the front as almost touching the body

 

i adjusted it to how my goth tbird is and thats when i noticed the body insert was out.

 

if i use the epoxy will that effect any sound or tone?

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Yea smear a bit on the splines and hammer it in being careful not to get a bit on the inside and that will glue it in good and proper.

 

 

As for affecting the tone. Well that is a can of worms depending on what side of the fence you sit on. But I would reckon if it does nothing you would notice and probably a lot less than a change of strings.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 months later...

I bought the Epi T-Bird IV (vintage sunburst) through mail order a while ago. Didn't get a chance to plug it in until yesterday. Everything seems to be ok exept for the neck pickup. It doesn't make a sound. The volume pot for it isn't doing anything. Haven't yet opened the bass to see if the wiring is good.

Any ideas? Most likely it's the wiring but it's a shame since it is a brand new instrument =(

 

Other than the neck pickup the bass itself looks and sounds awesome.

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