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Average Price: $3,253
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$400
$1001+
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Price History
Based on price data from 2 merchants for "Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird". Prices shown reflect NEW condition. Tracking began Apr 2, 2026.
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Description
Product Name: Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird
Category: Musical Instruments > Guitars > Electric Guitars > Solid Body Electric Guitars
Born from rock and roll royalty, the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird offers a unique combination of retro-futuristic design and modern performance features. This guitar is more than just an instrument - it's a piece of music history. Co-designed by rock icons Billy F. Gibbons and Bo Diddley, this guitar boasts a lineage that sets it apart from the rest. The original Jupiter Thunderbird was a custom creation gifted to Billy F. Gibbons by Bo Diddley himself. Today's version is an upside-down homage to this original design, with a few updates that make it perfect for today's rock and roll heroes.
The G6199 is built with a heavily chambered mahogany body and an ultra-thin laminated maple top. The result is a guitar that's light, resonant, and full of character. The one-piece mahogany neck is both sturdy and comfortable, and it's topped with a beautiful rosewood fingerboard that's a joy to play.
The G6199 is powered by TV Jones Power'Tron pickups, which deliver a slightly hotter, more powerful take on the classic Filter'Tron bite. The Adjusto-matic bridge with pinned rosewood base offers improved intonation over a traditional bar bridge, and built-in Schaller straplocks keep your strap firmly in place, no matter how wild your performance gets.
Key Features:
- Laminated maple top with a mahogany body in Gretsch’s retro-futuristic Billy-Bo shape
- Classic 24.6 Gretsch scale length provides a slinky feel with effortless bends
- Sturdy mahogany neck topped with a beautiful rosewood fingerboard
- Vintage Small frets provide a fast feel and old-school flair
- Flat 12-inch radius for a comfortable feel and high-performance playability up and down the neck
- Dual TV Jones Power’Tron pickups produce a slightly hotter, more powerful take on the hi-fi Filter’tron bite
- Adjusto-matic bridge with pinned rosewood base keeps your bridge firmly in place and offers improved intonation over a traditional bar bridge
- Vintage-style Gretsch G-cutout tailpiece
- Built-in Schaller straplocks keep your strap firmly in place during energetic performances.
Product specs
| Number of Strings | 6 |
| Left-/Right-handed | Right-handed |
| Body Type | Solidbody |
| Body Shape | Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird |
| Body Material | Mahogany, chambered |
| Body Finish | Gloss Polyurethane |
| Neck Material | Mahogany |
| Neck Shape | C |
| Neck Joint | Set Neck |
| Fingerboard Inlay | Neo-Classic Thumbnails |
| Number of Frets | 22 |
| Scale Length | 24.6" |
| Nut Width | 1.6875" |
| Nut Material | Synthetic Bone |
| Bridge/Tailpiece | Pinned Rosewood-based Adjusto-Matic Bridge/Trapeze Tailpiece |
| Tuners | Grover Sta-Tite Die-cast |
| Neck Pickup | TV Jones Power'Tron Plus Neck Pickup |
| Bridge Pickup | TV Jones Power'Tron Plus Bridge Pickup |
| Controls | 2 x volume, 1 x master tone |
| Switching | 3-way toggle pickup switch |
| Strings | Nickel Plated Steel, .011-.049 |
| Case/Gig Bag | Hardshell Case |
FAQs
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What kind of tones can I expect from the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird?
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The Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird features TV Jones Power'Tron Plus pickups, delivering a powerful, punchy tone with a blend of vintage warmth and modern clarity. It's well-suited for rock, blues, and other genres that benefit from a dynamic and expressive sound.
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Is the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird suitable for live performances?
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Yes, the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird is designed for live performances, offering a striking visual presence and a robust sound that cuts through the mix. Its chambered mahogany body provides resonance and sustain ideal for stage use.
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What is the neck profile of the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird?
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The Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird features a C-shaped neck, providing a comfortable grip that suits a wide range of playing styles, from rhythm to lead.
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Does the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird include a case?
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Yes, the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird comes with a hardshell case, ensuring safe transport and protection for your guitar.
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What is the body material of the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird?
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The body of the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird is made of chambered mahogany, which contributes to its lightweight feel and enhances its tonal richness and sustain.
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How many frets does the Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird have?
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The Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird is equipped with 22 frets, offering a standard range for versatile playing across various musical styles.
Videos
GregsGuitars
Gretsch "Billy Bo" 6199 Jupiter Thunderbird Part1
Reviews
PROS
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Unique and transparent tone; unlike any other guitar
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High-quality craftsmanship; flawless construction and attention to detail
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Lightweight chambered body; easy on the shoulders during long gigs
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Versatile sound; handles blues, rock, jazz, and more effortlessly
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TV Jones pickups; deliver a hotter, dynamic sound
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Comfortable playability; smooth movement across the fretboard
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Retro looks with modern performance; a distinctive aesthetic
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Master volume control on pickguard; convenient and intuitive
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Perfectly finished neck and frets; silky smooth and easy to play
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Durable and reliable; a lifetime instrument worth the investment
CONS
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Top E and bottom E strings may dislodge from saddles during intense play
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Pickguard may show bubbling around screws over time
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Fingerboard material may differ from description, affecting preference
Owner Insights
We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird.
Features and functionality
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The Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird comes equipped with TV Jones Power Tron Plus pickups, known for their dynamic and full vintage sound.
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The guitar's unconventional body shape with a tail fin requires strap adjustment but reportedly sits comfortably when playing standing up.
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The rivets on the guitar are highlighted as a key aesthetic feature, contributing to its distinctive look.
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Mods and upgrades
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One owner plans to retrofit another guitar with TV-HT single coil pickups, indicating a preference for versatile pickup options across different guitars.
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Use cases and applications
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This guitar delivers a great clean tone and excels with overdrive, making it suitable for a range of styles from classic rock to blues.
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Some users find the guitar ideal for heavier music genres like Doom, Crust, and Metal, highlighting its versatility beyond traditional rock and blues.
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Owners describe the guitar's sound as capable of producing intense tones reminiscent of both "heaven and hell," suggesting its wide dynamic range.
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Owners express a preference for the guitar in unique finishes, such as green or silver sparkle, adding to its visual appeal and desirability.
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Comparisons
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Users compare the tonal quality of TV Jones pickups to other high-end pickups, noting their superior dynamic range and vintage tone appeal.
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User experience
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Owners report that the unique design of the Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird stands out amidst the common Stratocaster look-alikes, adding a distinctive aesthetic to their collection.
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It's been noted that, despite its unconventional shape, the guitar is surprisingly comfortable to play, challenging assumptions based on its appearance.
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Build quality
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The guitar's unique aesthetic is polarizing, often described as "ugly cool," yet it delivers exceptional playability and sound, surpassing expectations despite its appearance.
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The guitar is chambered, reducing its weight to around 7.4 lbs, which makes it more comfortable to play despite its substantial appearance.
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Critic Reviews
5.0 out of 5
Based on 1 Review and 6 Ratings
41029
Does it have the TV jones 'power tron' pickups? By the way, that's one sexy gretsch, you're making me wanna go buy one...
Artist usage
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"I also got a Gretsch Bo Diddley factory model, and painted it white so that Alicia Keys and I could be like Bo Diddley and the Duchess— his female stage partner. We would both use those guitars on tour to support the James Bond theme. But when I got hurt and I couldn’t do the dates, Alison [Mosshart] ended up taking on that idea. She plays the rectangular Bo Diddley model, and I play the Jupiter Thunderbird—which is also called the “Billy Bo” because Billy Gibbons brought that idea back to Gretsch."
"This is the new Billy Bo Pros. You can’t really tell but about half of it's smaller all the way around. It'll fit in a regular Stratocaster or Telecaster case instead of the really big normal case. These are, once again, John Bolin-made with a flipflop finish and inspired artwork. This one is made to the stop-tell piece - the first one we've had like that just because of the graphics. Other than that, it's all new old start Gretch parts with a new TV Jones pickup. It's the same thing with the spare guitar: Billy Bo Pro, John Bolin made, Gretsch specs - different colors. It also has a pin strike that we don't use. It's just there to be sure it will be in tune. The era of the Bigsbys are over for us I think. We've been using Bigsbys for four or five years I think. I'm glad they're gone. They keep in tune because we use the gauge seven strings, and he doesn't change guitars all night. We have a tuner in the back so that if we did go out of tune we could tune it. We don't change guitars nightly; we change guitars a couple rounds a year. We change everything - except the fur. We'll get different things, different arrangements, different colors. Sometimes they'll be left-handed. There's always something new, so they just change them all because if we just want a new one then we need a spare and we need the encore. It's a process but we do it a couple times per year at least. When we swap them out they're all new. Billy is really consistent in what he wants. As long as the guitars are really light, we get them chambered - he's been into lately getting the neck chambered as well as the body - because he uses really light strings, 7-38s, so he's go this really light touch. He only uses the eights on the ones with open tuning - that's the heavy strings. He's up there and he's barely touching it. The settings are all heavy metal settings: bass all the way up, gain all the way up, no treble, all mids. I mean it's all muffled, but when he plays it he just barely hits the strings and that works for him. I have a hard time playing in tune because if I put the guitar on it's down to here, and it's got sevens on it so I have to bend over to hit a D chord for it just to be in tune," Billy Gibbons's guitar tech says in a different rig rundown that, says Billy Gibbons's guitar tech about the Gretsch Billy-Bo Electric Guitar.
Tom Petty can be seen using a Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird in this photo.
Rick Nielsen talks about his Billy-Bo in this Rid Rundown from Premier Guitar. At 8:16, he says, “It sounds good. I use this when we do a song called “I Know What I Want.” It has got a good Malcolm Young kind of...”
At 8:30, Rick Nielsen’s guitar tech, Rocky Robert, adds, “It’s a very nice guitar. Low floating bridge. It’s very light. It feels like it’s got some hollowness to it or it’s a light wood.”
"Gretsches sit in a different part of the frequency mix than the Fenders or the Gibsons. They carve a different spot, which is why I played so many live." - Zac Brown
It my be hard to see, but cole is playing a Gretsch billy-bo jupiter in the video. He's been playing it since roughly 2012, give or take a few years.
Genre Usage
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Used With
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