G&L Basses - Why no love?

[Runlikegregg]

You know there's a volume/gain knob on your amp right?
Now I DO like the fact the way G&Ls drive the front of an amp - but you can ALWAYS turn down - you can only turn up so much. Doesn't your amp have an active input or pad? Again - I wouldnt' use that, b/c I like the high output (my one issue with my beloved Danos is their low output - but you can't get THAT sound without it), but into an active input there should be no trouble taming the output of these babies.
I am not argueing that you're "wrong - it's all preference" - just surprized that high output would be a problem for anyone - I know some people say the L2K is a little "generic" in that it has a really good but to some ears "character-less' sound (again - not my opinion - they're the growliest things out there) and I get that - they definitely don't have a "HEY it's a G&L" tone like say a P or a J or Ric or whatever.

i think he was saying that as a positive - not that it was a problem

 

[danosix]

The G&L is the first bass I've ever used in passive mode that could bury the input chain! Took me a while to figure out you start at 50% on all the knobs and work it from there. You will be much happier once you do.

Interestingly (I hope you've seen my second post) I LIKE the push it gives and would never dream of cutting that back. But I have the compressor of my dreams (BBE Optocomp - for me it's PERFECT), it sounds great with my G&L - which as we both agree is HIGH output - works with everything I have - EXCEPT my hofner - even at the lowest gain setting it makes the optocomp sound like a fuzz - it's that over driven. I had to just take it out of the chain when played with the Hofner - sounded great, also really pushed the front end of the amp.

 

[danosix]

i think he was saying that as a positive - not that it was a problem

Yeah, I reread a while later and posted an "oopsy" response.

 

[pbass2]

I have had 2 different L2500s in the past. Even though I don't play fivers now, I still remember them as possibly the best "feeling" basses I've owned--the neck, the balance the body shape, etc. The fit and finish easily as good as my US Lakland. The MFDs are a bit too much for what I tend to go for sonically now, but if I were to buy a new P or J today, the LB and the JB would be at the top of the list.

 

[non]

Aaron Beam of Red Fang always rocks a G&L SB-1..

in a interview aaron did complain about how hard the bass was to play even after it was set up properly.

 

[rujulian]

in a interview aaron did complain about how hard the bass was to play even after it was set up properly.

I can see that as he was originally a guitar player..I can't speak on he's actual bass, but I played an SB2 recently and it felt great..jazz style neck.body felt a bit smaller than my P bass..

 

[Moe Hickey]

Until the latest version of Talkbass, the current one we use now, entry of a search using G&L did not have enough characters to obtain a result. So you couldn't find much about them here. I honestly think that had an impact.

I have an LB-100 and a JB. Fenders feel inferior to me now.

 

[StraffordMike]

My first bass was an L-2000 Tribute. Weighed a ton! Neck was huge and I'm not a small guy. Electronics? Hated em! Too complicated for a beginner! Pickups were way too hot
for my beginners heavy touch. Never bonded with it. Bought a VM Jazz and realized I was happier with a passive bass and eventually found my way to a Precision where I haven't been happier. I may feel differently about the SB's or the new Kilotons but Ive yet to see one in the flesh.

 

[Raw N Low]

Just scored these two (and my first) G&L's off the classified section this past weekend. Knowing good and well the excellent rep, quirks, up and downs...I couldn't be happier. Ended up with a L2500 and a L5500 after thinning the heard. I would say that they are excellent quality but not overstated. No frills instruments that get down to nitty gritty. One of my bass teachers early in my career had a L2000 that looked underwhelming but, when he played it I never forgot how good it sounded. They are really instruments you have to experience to really understand. Probably one of the best production companies out there.

 

[tekhedd]

My theory is that there's no love because G&L owners have less GAS than other bass owners, and therefore spend less time on Talkbass. But this thread is ruining that theory.

 

[tobynjake]

G&L are great Bass guitars..Period.

 

[GregC]

This may already have been said, but distribution for G&L always seems scattershot to me. I'm pretty much in a bass shopper's nirvana here--we have Bass Club Chicago, Chicago Music Exchange has a great bass department, and Rock'n'Roll Vintage is a pretty cool store, too. All are within 30 minutes' drive for me. But none of them are G&L dealers.

The nearest dealer is one hour and 20 minutes away in the southern suburbs. They currently have 6 total G&L basses, only one of which is a US-made four string. The G&L dealer list includes some other suburban locations, but they're mom and pop shops who don't even list their inventory on their website. So who knows if they even carry the basses?

I have so much else to choose from nearby that it's not worth the effort to track them down.

 

[58kites]

I bought a used Tribute JB-2 ...beautiful ash body and beautiful tobacco sunburst finish with a maple neck/fretboard.
The fit and finish are great, the compact body shape is great, I like the headstock shape, the bridge is a great design and made of quality materials.
I could not get the hang of the neck shape, so I sold it at $100 profit after a year.
But the JB-2 pickups sound facking fantastic, I would love those pickups in any bass.
The fact that G&L puts USA made pickups in their Indonesian basses is very cool
If I had a dealer that had the various neck shapes here, I would like to try out the other neck sizes/shapes and see what works.

 

[prowla]

Maybe this headstock is what the naysayers might prefer

That one's ugly too!

 

[mpdd]

That's why I always searched L2000 and went from there

 

[gbrooding]

I visited an independent guitar shop in Seattle last year, and was told that they used to be a G&L dealer, but when they started to carry the Fender line, G&L dropped them. Not sure how all of that works, but it didn't sound like a good approach to me.

 

[bassliner50]

Who no love? I love. That is to say, I appreciate these G&L basses.

 

[Badwater]

In the US, G&L guitars and basses don't stay long in a store. They fly off the walls. They are popular with those in the know. They're not marketed like other brands that can pay a lot for shelf space. And, like Leo's previous creation the Stingray, they are great values for what you get. They been more popular in the early 90s, but have not changed much over the decades holding true to Leo's designs.

 

[LUCE]

Never found one that had a neck that worked. Had a local shop that sold them. They even had one that was made beck in the day that Leo was still there.

Terrible necks. Stupid and bad sounding electronics. Heavy.

Not pretty. I saw a G&L jazz bass that was urine color. And it was heavy and had a terrible neck and tried to fool ya with a jazz look.

I really don't get it either. Aerosmiths Tom Hamilton plays them a lot.

Personally I'm currently down to one bass. A 2013 American Standard. I'm on my 3rd year with this beauty and no other bass has come close in either sound or feel or pure physical beauty.

If you can't find a neck you like at G&L, you didn't look very hard. More options than any other mass manufacturer. I like Fender too, and they gave you a choice of profiles -- in the '70s. Not too many options today in the Pro series...

 

[audreycashin]

I thought G&L always used the same headstock design. Prove me wrong then?

there were at least three......