Its really a wonderful bass. Works with all effects, great on the ampeg but
what isnt (even the silvertone rock bass sounds good on ampeg)? Its strap
holders is the only real flaw. Swap those out and you are good. Its a solid
bass with alot of performance and sound that will blow your band away,
while being a wonderful visual aesthetic.
a must buy for the lovers of rock
Price: $400.00 (new)
Where Obtained: shitty guitar center
Ok so this is a remake i know im not gonna go into the wood and all that
and get deep im gonna tell you how it feels to play.
The wood is nice its epiphone and they do a good job.
Standard tuners, cased pickup and a nice bridge setting tho i did change
mine.
YOu have low end, mid and high controls right on the bass these also
effct your volume, im not a fan of that but i use a volume swell anywas so
im good.
This is all that should matter anways besides tone.
Awesome for any finger or pick players alike. This bass can get suck a low
end out of it then just afew changes and you have classice punk twang. It
sound slike a different bass in just a few turns of your knobs. Its not the
best percussive bass but who would slap on a thunderbird?
It is a little front heavy due to the size of the headstock but it just soars
(pun intended).
It is as good as the original but its cheaper. Not as nice of pickups or
wood but its a great bass. I wonderful visual aesthetic with the sound to
back it up.
AS i stated above amazing sound. Deep lows, nice highs and if you use
Marcus Miller Fat beams you will be in heaven. It plays so warm and rich
that if you have the right mids you can have a nice upright sound almost.
Its great for everything but sorry funk players not a great slap bass so
learn to slap less you damn show offs and play the pocket with some
style! j/k but not really.
i use it through the ampeg b-210sp and its awesome. My super overdrive
sounds wicked, my chorus and flange through it its just the best. You
want to hear its many qualities find some live cure recordings. Simon
gallup plays the s--- out of this bass so go now find them i beg you!
Ok super flaw in the bass. You have to have a universal case. It doesnt fit
anything else. No gig bag will fit this bass the head stock is too large. If
you try the top will jut out and you will chip and scratch it. If you like your
bass with battle scares it just makes the head stock look like a monster
that one a hard fight.
So as far as duribilly it goes its ok. The strap holders cannot support the
weight of the bass. Because of its odd of balance in weight you tend to
rest harder on it while you play this cases the strap holders to wear right
out of the bass. So if you get it put in stronger strap holders. Locks will
do just fine or what i did was put in a strong and longer screws (sheet
metal was good) and a lil gorilla glue and your fine.
other than that is supurb.
I am giving this the highest rating overall because for $400, it's a steal. If you're looking for a bass in this price range, you gotta try it. If you want to add another to your collection, this is a great place to spend your money. I don't think the Gibson version is worth 4X the money, but this one is worth twice what it cost.
Model Year: 2005
Price: $400.00 (new)
Where Obtained: American Musical
It's Korean made, but don't let that scare you. The Koreans will make it as good or as bad as they are paid/instructed to do. Unlike the Gibson version, this is a bolt-on neck. However, it's set very tight for great sustain. The pickups are passive, but sound good.
The action is a bit high, so I will probably take it down just a tad. However, it's very playable. It's not as playable as my Spector Euro 4LX, but it's still better than anything else in that price range by far.
This puppy has some ass. When we play live, I usually use the Spector. But some songs like "White Room" cry out for the Thunderbird. If you like classic rock, you'll find the sound right there.
It's well built. You hear comments about it being neck heavy. Well, duh, look at the body shape! The only time it's an issue is if I'm wearing a very slick shirt, like the goofy polyester Speed Racer shirt I sometimes wear. With an ordinary shirt and my comfort strap, it stays in place when I let go with both hands.
This is really, really heavy. If I had a different strap to support that weight, it would be great. But when you hold this, you know you've got a hold of something, If you let that neck go, though, down it goes. This bass means business, so you have to mean it as well.
Price: $350.00 (new)
Where Obtained: 63rd St
This was functionally brand new when I got it, with just a bit of wear at the 3rd fret. Otherwise, I basically robbed the guy. How do these knobs relate to each other?
I like the solid bridge construct. Those strings are IN PLACE. The neck is pretty nicely shaped for quick changes. The head is huge, man, you are holding a beast of a piece! Big instrument.
It plays very clearly, and deserves a huge amp. I still have no idea how the knobs relate to each other.
Everything on the bass was built to hang. Trying to shake anything loose will result in shoulder damage.
I looked at several basses, an epi explorer, a couple different ESP models, BC rich, ibanez, and others. i got this for looks, tone, and price. it was 100 dollars less then the rest, and im on a tight budget. plus its a big jump from the standard fender look. if u want somethin different, this is the axe to get.
Model Year: 2003
Price: $350.00 (new)
Where Obtained: musicians friend
Made in korea, hard maple neck, 20 frets, with a single roman numeral 12 (XII), no other fret markings. 2 pickup knobs and a tone, id rather have one volume knob like the nikki sixx version but o well. 2 thunderbird special soapbar pickups, passive. this is the goth version, with a matte black finish, all black hardware. non locking tuners, but theyre pretty solid, rarely am i really out of tune. bolt on neck, very interesting bridge, its alot different then a regular P bass bridge, kindof floats. black pickguard with a cross on it.
My preferred action is kinda in the middle, just hign enough for no fretbuzz. fortunetly my bass came exactly like i want it. got a prety fast neck. plays very well, the neck is a little topheavy, which effects my playing somewhat, cuz i allready play pretty low (think james hetfield).
Iv run my bass thru a peavy 20 watt practice amp, which was allright, and then through my gallien-krueger backline 112. has a great tone through the backline, very full and warm. sounds good on the B channel (distortion), also had good sound through a Boss bass overdrive, and through this odd autowah ibanez pedal. rarely any feedback. i play mainly metal and punk, well suited for both. if u play with the tone knob, u can get a very deep tone, good if ur in a metal band. EQ it a little and ull sounds excellent. turn the tone knob to 10, and it keeps the warmth and deepness of "metal" tone but brings the mids and treble up a bit, perfect for your punk rock needs. id recomend this for any style, its very versitile.
Its very reliable, i havent had to adjust it yet. when i change strings again i might have to, but o well. the strap-locks are wide, and keep on very well. i recently bought a kepur strap, and it wont come off without a lot of force. i would say this bass only has one fault, and its a big one. its very topheavy, so u need a good strap to help keep it up. a nice leather strap by gibson or levy would do great, but i highly recommend kepur
Th only thing that I would change about the bass is that the balance is not very good. The neck is very long and heavy. You have to have long arms to play it. other than that, It would be anybody perfect bass...unless you can afford the Gibson version!
Model Year: 2001
Price: $359.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Musicians Friend
This Thunderbird IV bass was made in Korea (I think). i am not sure of all the specs on it. All I know is that it sounds great. Nice tight lows and punchy mids. Passive pickups are very commendable, and the tone knobs actually work. The tuners, made by Epiphone, are very sturdy and once tuned, stay in tune. Mine has a TobaccoBurst finish.
The precision that this bass was put together with was great. I had to even look at the truss rod cover twice to make sure it was not made in the US. The nut is cut perfectly.
The sound is very dark, low lows with punchy mids. There is a quite a bit of treble if you use the bridge pickup and set the tone knob wide open. Like I said before, the tone knob actually does work on this bass!!!
I have only had it for one month and it has weathered 8 gigs and I have not had to tune it after soundcheck yet!
I would definetly buy this bass again if it was lost or stolen. its a very nice sounding bass, although its a tiny bit tall and its head sticks out of my case!
My favourite aspect is the cool shape of it but i dont like it how the bass's body is so heavy.
Model Year: 1998
Price: $800.00 Australian (new)
Where Obtained: Jo's Workshop
The bass was made in Korea, the body is made of alder and maple, it has 20 frets. It has two volume knobs and a tone knob. There are two pickups. The finish is smooth vintage sunburst and the body style is a kinda weird wavy shape, like the gibson thunderbird. It has small metal tuners.
Its hard to get used to at first because its a bit uncomfartable as the body is very heavy and the neck is quite light.Though It sounds good compared to the other basses ive had (emperador, squier p-bass).
It has a very nice phat tone and you can slap pretty well on it. I use a samick 60w amp and a zoom 506 with it.
SO far it hasnt had anything adjusted and everythings looking ok. but it looks very durable even though i havnt dropped it yet :)
And we've just had summer and its still the same.
Before choosing this bass I looked at Fender, Ibanez, and Schester. I chose this one because it was the best one in my price range. I would definatly buy another Thunderbird if this one were lost of stolen. My favorite aspect is the cool design of it. My least favorite is the obstuction of the higher frets (18, 19, 20).
Price: $359.99 (new)
Where Obtained: Musician's Friend
This bass was made in Korea. The body is made of maple and alder. The neck is made of mahogany. The fretboard is made of rosewood. It has 20 medium-jumbo (I think they are medium-jumbo)frets. It has a volume control for each of the two pickups and a tone control. So 3 controls overall. There are 2 pickups, one at the neck position, one at the bridge position. I believe the electronice are passive. The pickups are stock humbuckers. The finish is vintage sunburst. The body style is the same as a new Gibson Thunderbird. With the cool wings on the sides. The bridge is cool, I'm not sure what type I am bridge illiterate.
I have high action on this bass and all is well. The neck is longer than a usual bass, but I have long arms and big hands so that doesn't really matter. The neck does tend to be unbalanced with the body and tends to dive toward the earth. I have played other basses that are easier to get started on, you have to get used to this one. The only flaws are the unbalanced body and neck and that it is difficult playing the higher frets, like 18, 19, and 20. The body shap blocks your hand from reachin those frets.
I currently play it on a Fender BXR 100. The effects I use are a Zoom 506, and a CryBaby Bass 105Q. I play Praise & Worship and Metal. The sound can be varied quite a bit so it sounds well with each style. You can get a pretty good slap sound out of it. The sound is warm and kind of crunchy. I haven't played many other basses besides a Squier P-Bass and a Fender Acoustic Bass. It is better than the Squier by far. The acoustic is in a different category. The pickups are kind of noisy when the volume is really loud. I might replace the stock pickups with EMG's.
It is very durable. In the short time I have had it, it has been dropped, banged, and knocked into a ceiling fan. No visible marks on the bass. I had to adjust the truss rod when I first got it. I wish I didn't have to since I don't know much about it. The strap buttons are ok, sometimes my strap comes off though. The controls and hardware are fine. On my other bass I lost the volums control the first thing. It does fine in climate changes. I've had it in high tempuratures for a long time and it still worked great.
I love the way this bass looks and sounds, id buy it again if it were stolen the bss could be better by adding some weight to the back of th ebody so that it balences out a but the sound and everythign else is great , its a god bass epsicaly for the cash
Price: $349.99 (new)
Where Obtained: Sam Ash
This bass was made in Korea, neck and body i belive are both adler, 20 frets, two volume and one tone control, which i found highly effective, The picke ups are two humbuckers, (soap bars?) well they look to be jazz styles, not split, Passive electrioncs i found give it a nice warm sound, The finish i have is a very rad vintage sunburst, the body style is what i first saw about this bass, its VERY different that yoru run of the mill fender look alike, hard to descrie one must see it, the bridge is werid, not srting though tbody i like it, it works, turners umm i dunn the ones that came with the bass althought it was a little hard to get in tune, but that may be because of my cheap tuner...
The bass, its great, its a little weird to get used to playing though, the biggest problem i found with it is here, the neck, since it is rather long, out weighs the body were the strab button is so the neck is pushing down on you playing hand, thats my biggest problem other than that, its great.
I play all types of music on it and it all sounds good, i curently use a bassman 60 amp, and it sound great nice warm, low sounds that a bass should deliver its a great streight sound very specific to the bass
I havnt had the bass for VERY long at all but i can say that it is like a rock, its very stable, it could be used as a weapon if neededd
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