Firebird

[Big Poppy Big]

Doing a Firebird build. Gonna be a killer.
What is going to be close to factory?
Is there something else to consider for tone and personality?
What would YOU use considering it will be, well, for playing the Blues? (Is that starting to sound cliche'?)

 

[jeremy]

Re: Firebird

with zero hesitation i would put a set of antiquity firebird pups in there. they are fantastic and very close to an old '65 fb tone

 

[Big Mike Blues]

Re: Firebird

Love the SM3s myself.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Firebird

i like the duncan offerings and have played all the production versions. the sm1 is a good classic fb pup, the sm2 is a thicker/fatter/hotter tone that i like much better than gibsons current offerings, and the sm3 is a little fatter more modern sounding than the sm1 without being super hot (relatively speaking) like the sm2. the sm1 and antiquity have traditional fb pup construction. the sm2 & 3 have different construction with a single magnet rather than the two of the vintage fb so sound a little different but still sound great

 

[allstarrme]

Re: Firebird

I have a newer Firebird and the pickups were so muddy from Gibson. I like a hot pickup but the neck was all bass and the bridge was still thin sounding. I put the sm-2 custom set in, but have played around with the sm-3 Seymourized neck too. Hot but much clearer and brighter. Thicker in the bridge but still has definition to the chord sounds.

If I get another I will do a vintage neck with a Seymourized bridge.

Whatever you pick will be better than anything Gibson is offering.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: Firebird

Depends on what kind of Firebird. They came "reverse" and "non-reverse," with Firebird pickups, with P90s, 1-2-3 pickups, with Vibrolas and Maestro Vibrolas, etc.

My personal favorite is a tie.

1. White mid-'60s VII with the Maestro Vibrola:



2. Red mid-'60s III with the three P90s and standard Vibrola (really wish these had come with the Maestro, though):



The reverse ones are actually more ergonomic for me, but I prefer the looks of the non-reverse ones.

What I've always wanted to see does not exist. I want to see the non-reverse body shape used to make a reverse Firebird. Might be a fun thing to do for a build.

 

[elelpe]

Re: Firebird

P-90 and Mini sound great in slab of mahogany. The best of both worlds would be P-90 bridge and Mini neck. Or the opposite position, depends on your taste. If it were 3 pickups, I wouldn't hesitate put Filtertron sounding pickup in the middle position.

 

[treedroppings]

Re: Firebird

Got a pair of Zhangbuckers. Sounds vintage to me.
The neck is like Brian Jones and the bridge is bright. The middle position is glorious! I have 11kOhms & Alnico 5 in the bridge with 43 gauge wire and regular gauge in the neck with a2/A5 and 6.2 kOhms. I told him I like metal, so the bridge pickup is wound differently.

 

[Big Mike Blues]

Re: Firebird

Mahogany early kauer banshee
Duncan SM3 in Mini hum ring
50 watt metro amp kit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq55cjTp-tE