After much soul-searching, I have decided to put my minty inca silver Lakland Skyline Jerry Scheff 4 up for sale.
Here are the basic specs from the Lakland website:
Skyline
Nut Width 1.6"
Nut Type Plastic
Fret Size .041/.085"
Width at Final Fret 2.46" "
1st Fret Neck Depth .77"
12th Fret Neck Depth .87"
Fingerboard Radius 10"
Scale Length 34"
Frets 22
Bridge String Spacing .78"
Neck Wood Flat-Sawn Rock Maple
Body wood(s) Ash
Fingerboard Rosewood with Dots
Tuners Hipshot Tapered Shaft (standard)
Truss Rod Access Neck Heel: 5/32" Hex
Pickguard mirror
Controls Cut and Boost: Bass, Midrange, Treble, Panning-style Pickup Blend Control, Master Volume (pull for preamp bypass)
Bridge Lakland Dual Access
Preamp Bartolini 3 band
Pickups Kent Armstrong "Lipstick" Style Single Coil
In fact if you want to hear how this exact bass sounds, here are the sound clips that have been played and posted to the Lakland site by TB's own "artiseasy", Ian Allison:
http://www.lakland.com/multimedia/ac_scheff.htm
Here is also the review of this exact Scheff (with apologies to Ian Allison as I copied his review directly from Harmony Central):
Features : 9
2004 Skyline Jerry Scheff 4 string in now discontinued Inca Silver, 22 frets, ash body, flat-sawn rock maple neck w/ rosewood board, Kent Armstrong single coil lipstick tube pickups connected to a Bartolini NTMB preamp with controls for vol/pickup pan/bass/treble/midrange and a push/pull active/passive option on the volume pot, 4-94 body style, patented Lakland dual access bridge (the oval), string thru body option, 9 volt battery compartment, and Hipshot Tapered Shaft tuners . . . but I'm giving it a 9 here because I'm crabby that Lakland doesn't give the Dunlop straplocks to the Skyline models!
Sound : 10
How does it sound? . . . this is the most difficult bass to describe tonally for me. First of all, I was skeptical when I first saw this bass. Frankly, those lipstick pickups scared the $%^& out of me! Give me Lindys, EMGs, Barts, Nords, whatever - but those lipstick tubes . . . aren't those found on basses that sell for around $250? Aren't they invalid for professional use? Aren't they cheesy as hell?
NO!
Although Lakland markets the Jerry Scheff like an updated Danelectro Longhorn, it has MUCH more to offer. Since I'm not very familiar with Danos, I wasn't sure what to think - and this was probably good going in. But I loved Laklands (still do), so I thought I'd give it a shot.
Aaaaanndd . . . it's WONDERFUL. Wonderful for what? For all kinds of things - rock, country, pop, metal, etc. It just depends on what you like to hear, really!
BUT - let's see if I can tanglibly describe sound . . . OK - blended in the middle, it kind of has this snarly, open, punchy crunch with a pick - or tubby goodness with fingers - almost Rickenbacker-ish - but better (and better built). The bridge pickup is very J-like and the neck pickup is P-like. It really does the P AND J thing pretty well actually. But it has a VOICE - for certain. Any pickup selection still maintains this bass's voice. I don't want to use the word "hollow," because I feel that it's a loaded word. Because to me, "hollow" usually denotes "thin." And this bass is FAR from thin. It's hollow like a Rickenbacker should be! That's what I thought from the get go - and I actually sold my 4001 to purchase this bass.
The best way I can describe it is that it seems to have this peaky hollow bark in the midrange that moves almost like a parametric EQ or envelope filter when you move your hand into different playing positions. For example, when you're over the bridge pickup plucking strongly, it barks like a Jazz bass with a 2K (or so) bump. But as you move your hand or vary your attack, that midrange bump seems to move - like an envelope filter - so when you have your hand over the neck pickup plucking lightly, the bump is more like 800-1K. I hope this makes some kind of sense. And I realize that ALL basses do this to some extent, but this one really accentuates YOUR tone - the tone from your hands.
Bring in the EQ and you have this BIG snarling Jazz-ish (bridge), Rick-ish (middle) OR P-ish (neck) tone that still maintains it's own unique and very useful voice.
All I know is that I've used this bass on several recording sessions as of late and it ALWAYS draws attention in the right ways. It seems to stick out in a mix when you want it to, or settle right down when you want it to. It's all about your hands.
I'm playing it with rounds at the moment, but I've heard that this bass mates beautifully with Thomastik-Infeld flats. I think I'll give that a try next.
Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
I got it used, and the last guy had it set up a bit high and stiff for my liking. But it came down mighty easily and it plays like a dream - one of the more comfy, satin necks I've ever played on.
Reliability/Durability : 8
Lakies are really well built - super durable and reliable. HOWEVER, the price you pay for that gorgeous neck feel is a neck finish that will dent VERY easily. So you rock dudes will want to watch for flying cymbal chunks, wiley guitar players, and airborn beer bottles.
Customer Support : 10
I wish I could give Lakland an 11 here. HANDS DOWN THE BEST COMPANY FOR CUSTOMER SUPPORT I'VE EVER ENCOUNTERED - and I hate typing in all caps!
I recently took a trip out to Chicago to visit Lakland. It was my second trip out to Chicago and my second time having a bass worked on by Lakland's chief repair guy, Carl. The first time out, he fixed a small problem with my hollowbody and was extremely attentive and caring - both to the instrument and to my needs as a customer. Hell - he even gave me a ride to my bus stop after I had picked his brain (and probably his patience) for over 2 hours! Unbelievable. My second, and most recent trip involved doing a complete fret file on my JO4 (which he did in under an hour on a Saturday - and for free). He also took a look at my Jerry Scheff (the bass I'm reviewing here) and found that the guy before me had messed with the pickup wires and wired the pickups out of phase! He fixed this and although the warranty should not have applied to me since I was the second owner, he did it for free. And again, the quality of the work and service were unprecedented.
If you purchase a Lakland, you will receive top notch customer service, that is, if you ever need it!
Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing a very long time - probably 14 years or so. I make my living playing the bass. I do frequent session work in Minnesota and am the chair of the bass department at North Central University located in downtown Minneapolis. I am also in a touring rock band called Down and Above.
I own 13 basses - 3 of which are Laklands. And I'm a picky, anal SOB when it comes to my gear. Laklands do not disappoint me.
Lately, I've been favoring basses that have a distinct VOICE. I'm not a fan of basses that try to do everything well - because well, because they don't! Carvin instruments come to mind! That's why I'm so passionate about this bass. WONDERFUL unique and useful tone that works in a variety of contexts. Come on bass players, don't let those Kent Armstrong lipstick tubes scare you! Give Jerry some love.
Good on ya Lakland!
This bass comes with an aftermarket mirror pickguard which in my opinion, really makes the bass pop out on stage. She sports TI Jazz Flats which are a match made in heaven for her. It will ship with the Lakland gigbag.
The Scheff is in excellent shape all-around with the only minor wear being a crescent-shape indent maybe 1/64" deep, if that (I've never measured), on the back of the neck around the 10th fret area. It's never interfered with playing for me. There are also some very fine scratches on the plastic cavity cover on the back and a couple of really minor scuffs on the headstock end (pretty much unnoticeable unless you go looking for them) which occurred when playing under low ceilings. I just wanted to put that out there for full disclosure. The Scheff is really in great shape, top to bottom.
$975 all-in including shipping in the continental US. Unfortunately, I can't do any trades on this unless you offer something that is worth significantly more that I can turn around and sell immediately.
Thanks!
Stephen
