G&L basses

[spideyjg]

G&L? Whassat?

Jim

 

[ndrly]

I think they sound a lot like Wal basses.

WHAT??? Somebody told me that nothing sounds like a Wal EXCEPT a Wal!

Or are you just referring to Justin Chancellor's tone? If so, don't worry, that's the only Wal tone I know too.

 

[badboy1984]

G&L is the best and simply amazing. I bought a Korean made Tribute 2500 and is just love it. Is a passive bass that can go active. Like someone said they are tone master. You can get all sort of tone from the bass.

Also this bass will growl like mad. And i mean they growl like mad. I love those growl tone

 

[Reefer]

I've owned a ton of G&L's. The early ones (when Leo was still alive) are outstanding instruments. '83-'90 were the best years IMO and you can find those for the same or less money than a new Tribute and they are MUCH better. The L1000, L2000, and the El Toro were the top models.

 

[ack]

'83-'90 were the best years IMO and you can find those for the same or less money than a new Tribute and they are MUCH better.

MUCH better? Please explain. I'm really interested in the answer.

Thanks.

ack

 

[plankspanker13]

Even among G&L fans, there are divided opinions about which model does it for them. You'll find many strident fans of the L series; Dr. Cheese and I are firmly inthe JB-2 camp, and still others will swear by the holy grail of P-bass thunder that the SB-2 is the P-bass sound that goes to eleven and beyond, thanks to the J pickup. Whichever flavor you choose, it would be tough to go wrong.

 

[Timi]

G&Ls too modern looking? Fender hasn't changed his designs very much since the Precision and Jazz bass days...

Not the shape, its pretty much a P bass! I'm talking about having two giant pickups, lot of switches, no pickguard, giant bridge ect. I call that "modern".

 

[Flintc]

Personally, I've always loved the sound of the G&L, but the overall feel of the bass doesn't work for me. I keep trying because it sounds so good, but something just doesn't happen right in my hands. I'd say if you like the way it feels, you can't possibly go wrong.

 

[Horny Toad]

Personally, I've always loved the sound of the G&L, but the overall feel of the bass doesn't work for me. I keep trying because it sounds so good, but something just doesn't happen right in my hands. I'd say if you like the way it feels, you can't possibly go wrong.

+1

I've owned an ASAT semi-hollow and two L-2000's (see below) and while I can't say a negative thing about them, I sold them all. They just didn't stick with me for some reason.


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[lug]

I like the G&L product. Only reason I never bought one was because the necks seemed a little too chunky for me.

The L2000 comes standard with a baseball bat of a neck, but there are 4 different neck options available in the US models, 2 "jazz" sized and 2 "P" sized.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

Even among G&L fans, there are divided opinions about which model does it for them. You'll find many strident fans of the L series; Dr. Cheese and I are firmly inthe JB-2 camp, and still others will swear by the holy grail of P-bass thunder that the SB-2 is the P-bass sound that goes to eleven and beyond, thanks to the J pickup. Whichever flavor you choose, it would be tough to go wrong.

You're right about me loving JB-2s, but I love L-2500s and SB-2s also.

 

[Stanley Design]

I've got two L2000's, one with the P-bass neck, one with the Jazz neck, they are very dramatic in how different they are, very dramatic. If you want to try the thinner neck, look for an ASAT, they come stock with them.

 

[bkbirge]

I had a beat-to-heck L2000e from '83 that I loved. Great tone, great playability, etc. The body was missing chunks from previous owner so I decided to do a homemade refinish in green. Ended up looking like a homemade finish in green if you know what I mean. At the same time there was an ebay auction for a more recent L2500 in translucent green with an ebony fingerboard. So I sold my L2000 and got the L2500. Hey, newer model with one more string can only be better right? The new one was a tone monster as everyone says but the feel wasn't right and it was different from the '83 I had. I probably didn't give it enough time to grow on me but I got rid of it after a couple months. Put me in the camp that fanatically loves the early G&L's and just 'likes' the newer ones. I'd look into a G&L of any model before looking at another new bass from any manufacturer though, not saying I'd buy it for sure but it'd be on my 'must try in person' list.

 

[Basshole]

Buy one used, for some odd reason, they don't hold their value. They are truly the "Swiss Army Knife" of bass guitars. At least 2 good P-basses, and 2 good J-basses, as well as a few other tones are available. GREAT basses for the money, ESPECIALLY on the used market.

 

[bradjonesbass]

Or if you can find a dealer's demo for $850, in which case you should snatch it up immediately - that's what I did! New warranty, brand new bass, used price!!! I love mine - L2500. I've toyed with selling it and getting something more modern, but I can't bring myself to do it. It's my default bass. Only issue is they're a little noisy for studio work, but that's easily remedied by shielding the control cavity - why a $2000 plus bass comes from the factory without a shielded control cavity is beyond my imagination, but if that's the biggest gripe anybody has about them, I guess they're doing something right.

 

[gweimer]

Prices are slowly climbing up, though. As recent as 5 years ago, you could get a really nice old L-1000 for $500. Now, you're looking at about $1000. Still, it's a better $1000 spent than the $5000 you might spend for a vintage Precision. And the early years of G&L, as I recall, had really solid quality so you're taking less of a crap shoot.

 

[ConspiracyBass]

Out of the basses I own, my G&L 1505 is the built the best. Well, it's tied with the Cirrus, but its a very well built bass. Tone for days, cuts through a live mix like nobodies business. I'll never sell, even though I never really play it.

 

[RayO5421]

To me it seems like a G&L L-2000 would be the holy grail of basses. You've got the Stingray tone, a Jazz, and the other tones you'd get from an HH bass. I don't know for myself because I haven't got much play time on one yet. It does seem odd that most people will still go for a Fender and other multiple basses if *in theory* you could get the same or more useable tones from one G&L.

It'd be really cool if G&L could make a pickup selector setting with the first 'bucker to turn on the front magnets on the E and A strings and the back two on the D and G for a P bass tone as well. That would be the holy grail right there.

 

[4Mal]

I currently have a Tribute L-2000. Mine is an earlier made in Korea version. It is by far the best feeling G&L I've had*. Fit and finish aren't quite up the the MIA standard but it sounds every bit the same and the neck profile is great and I really like the vintage sized, small frets. The finishing flaws are really minor - they got the major stuff just fine. Tight neck pocket, good alignment, no dead spots. Great feeling, great sounding bass.

I like the L-2K passive tones more than the active tones. The preamp seems to be kinda of overstated to me. YMMV... I'm doing a preamp swap on mine shortly so we'll see how that goes. In spite of that these guys go for what $350 USD in the used market ? - that's a whole lotta bass for that kind of dough.

So far I've had
2 MIA L-2000's, both were mid 90's.
1 very early L-1000 (1981 ?)
1 MIA SB-2
2 MIA JB-2

So I have some G&L experience under my belt. The L-1K was a killer DUB machine but neck was freakin' huge. The SB-2 is a killer bass. The current owner isn't going to let that one go. I was probably nutz to do so ... The L-2000's - the fret size is the show stopper for me. Speed bump sized frets are not my thing. The JB-2's are - very well built, pretty, Jazz basses that - don't really get the J vibe - fit & finish were beautiful but neither could hold a candle to my current MIJ 75 RI or ex- MIA 62 RI. I did lot's of neck and fret work, pickup swaps and - they just aren't jazz basses. They are beautiful basses though. Just a bit off the mark for those needing a classic J with classic J vibe.

So the upshot for me. I'll probably end up with a pair of the Trib L2K's. 1 with rounds, 1 with flats. 1 with stock wiring, 1 hot rodded. I'll have about the same in the pair as a good used L2K. That scenario fit's my situation better as I want as many tones in my arsenal as possible.

 

[Infernal Affair]

Not the shape, its pretty much a P bass! I'm talking about having two giant pickups, lot of switches, no pickguard, giant bridge ect. I call that "modern".

Gotcha. Just seems like a natural progression from the Stingray to me.