SB-2 output vs Lakland DD output

lildrgn · #1 08-09-2008, 09:35 PM

I may be trading a Sterling for a Lakland Skyline Duck Dunn with Fralin pickups tomorrow. I have never played the DD. I have been with G&L for a year now, being the proud owner of 2 SB-2s.

I am in love with the SB-2 pickups and am wondering how the DD will sound/feel compared with the G&L MFD pups.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

Nedmundo · #2 08-10-2008, 01:54 PM

I have a Fralin in my 2004 American Series Fender, and an SB-2. I absolutely love both split-coils. (I'm not sure if Lakland's Fralins are wound exactly like a stock Fralin, but they can't be too far off.) Since you like the SB-2, I think you'll dig the Fralin's version of vintage P-bass tone. To my ears, they have a similar raw, "gritty" texture, which is the key for me. But the MFD is hotter, thicker, and just...MORE overall. I think the Fralin has more high end, but the MFD has deeper, fatter lows.

4Mal · #3 08-13-2008, 11:11 AM

I find the SB-2 to be a little overbearing in the low mids. There is enough going on somewhere down there that the upper mid's get masked a bit. That's mud to my ear. So I would tend to favor the Fralin and EQ a little low in, and maybe roll the high's back a bit.

To my ear - they are different sounding pickups and I prefer what I perceive as the more balanced tonality of the Fralin.