G&L Club Part 7

[/\/\3phist0]

The rod only needed 1/8th of a turn....action is nice and low. Some of that may simply be due to the change from NC to Quebec. Humidity here fluctuates wildly.....as hot & humid as Mexico City in the summer and as cold & dry as Leningrad in winter. The intonation was obviously what took longest, but was still a breeze. After 15 years of only playing 5ers, I recently tried the BEAD 4 thing to push my musical brain in a different direction and am loving it. Time will tell how much 5 I am playing down the road, but I will definitely keep a couple of both. As far as the preamp goes, it suits me fine. I much prefer passive basses...... IMHO unnecessary batteries are piddle on the shoes of the planet and our kids......and I have more than enough eq elsewhere in my signal chain. I am perfectly happy in passive mode; between the 2 pups and series/parallel toggle there are plenty of options. I like my basses simple.....my ideal would be the L1K configuration, and there's probably one of those in my future, after I sell another 5. Trouble is that I love all my 5s to bits......which, as my mom would always say "should only be my biggest problem"

Know that the "Preamp" is after the tone controls. It's a fully passive circuit, with a full band signal boost, 3rd "treble boost" setting removes a cap which attenuates the treble (the second position).
The tone controls are CUT only and again fully passive. You can take the battery out entirely if you wish

 

[lomo]

You can take the battery out entirely if you wish

Thanks-I watched the explanatory vid on the G & L site. Battery already donated to grandkid's toy

 

[T-34]

I've thrown the battery out right after receiving mine. Never needed one, enough good tones in passive already.

 

[Glazenn]

Howdy, I have a question about a pickup set, if that's OK - This pair of J pickups was included with a 2019
USA JB-4 that I bought some time ago (bass came with aftermarket pickups installed). I kinda forgot all about them, but in my recent cleanup efforts I found them in the case pocket.

The build sheet just indicates "G&L JB Alnico 5 single coil" - I couldn't find much online for wiring diagrams specific to the JB-4 but I'd be interested to know if these appear to be correct for the bass. I can tell by their lengths which is the bridge pickup But I don't have a meter (or the skills to drive one ) so I'd be interested to know which is the hot lead and which is the ground for each.

Anyone familiar with these pickups relative to JB-4? Thanks for any input!

View attachment 5161718 View attachment 5161719

What I see in mine:

 

[spike42]

Great, thank you for taking the time to respond!

 

[Kubicki Fan]

So....I strung up the monkey pod L2K BEAD with a super light set of Rotosound Swing bass steel rounds (120B...did not have to change or file the nut) and it sounds amazing! The neck 'bucker solo is really the sound in my head........like an Uber P with the most satisfying grunt! I cannot believe that I hadn't tried one out yet. I knew it was a beauty and would be super comfy due to the light weight, but never anticipated it'd provide a tonal epiphany as well. Now I feel a G & L fever coming on........might have to put a 5er or 2 up FS.

Infected
... for life.

 

[Glazenn]

What I see in mine:

I post this picture again as it does not show up on some devices

 

[T-34]

I post this picture again as it does not show up on some devices
View attachment 5163046

So red is ground and yellow is hot

 

[jfh2424]

Hello!

I am interested in making one of my basses lighter. It is a G&L L2000 from the early 2000s.

I found this in the classifieds: For Sale - Hipshot Ultralite tuners - USA 1/2" (set of 4) | TalkBass.com

Would any of you know if these will drop right in, is the hole the right size? Also, do you know how much weight I will save by doing this?

Thanks!

 

[Ricky Rioli]

I'm way out of my depth here, but I'm beginning to suspect that the trussrod on my SB-1 is not simply maxed out, but is in fact doing nothing, letting the quartersawn neck slowly bend - the action seems to be getting higher and the bass more difficult to play. Despite having changed from a 200 lb set of strings to a 180 lb set. To say I've got a sinking feeling scarcely covers it. Going to find some sand to bury my head in.

Still sounds great, obviously

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Hey, any of y'all ever but Black Labella tapes on a G&L fretless JB?
Did the E string fit the nut slot or did you have to take a file to it?

 

[jglunt]

I'm way out of my depth here, but I'm beginning to suspect that the trussrod on my SB-1 is not simply maxed out, but is in fact doing nothing, letting the quartersawn neck slowly bend - the action seems to be getting higher and the bass more difficult to play. Despite having changed from a 200 lb set of strings to a 180 lb set. To say I've got a sinking feeling scarcely covers it. Going to find some sand to bury my head in.

Still sounds great, obviously

Dunno how old your SB-1 is, but if it's old enough to have a single action truss rod, you can remove the strings & unscrew the truss rod nut. Then you can put a couple lubricated washers under it and screw it back in. A couple of cautions: (1) This operation can be a colossal pain in the arse because finding a washer that both slides over the truss rod and fits in the hole is nigh unto impossible. (2) This has been known to put enough pressure on the truss rod that it splits the fretboard between the nut & first fret, as it did with my 2007 SB-2. Still, if your careful, it's been known to work well. And of course, if your truss rod isn't working and it's a dual action, there is no way to remove the nut, and the fretboard has to be removed to replace it. I don't know when G&L USA made the switch to dual action truss rods, but Memo at [email protected] can tell you.

 

[FearNoEvil65]

I'm way out of my depth here, but I'm beginning to suspect that the trussrod on my SB-1 is not simply maxed out, but is in fact doing nothing, letting the quartersawn neck slowly bend - the action seems to be getting higher and the bass more difficult to play. Despite having changed from a 200 lb set of strings to a 180 lb set. To say I've got a sinking feeling scarcely covers it. Going to find some sand to bury my head in.

Still sounds great, obviously

Bummer !! The stock XL170s have like 166lbs, but the neck should have no problems. If you were in the USA, I'd say send the bass back to G&L, with a pack of stings you want to use. They'd probably replace the neck, and hopefully set it up with the different than stock strings.
I did nothing to my option order, and after about a month the neck warped. The truss worked but it had a ski jump where it was bolted on and was slightly twisted. G&L replaced the neck under warranty, so far the new one's been good, I haven't had to adjust it or anything.
Best of luck !!

 

[Lammchop93]

Took my new b-stock fallout to band practice tonight and wow! At home the OMG mode was too much, but in a band mix with a light touch, it sat so well in the mix! Especially songs with a flat wound-esque tone. I'm loving this bass more and more everyday!

next week I should get my new graph tech nut and I will do a full fret dress and setup on the bass. Should be just as good as my Fullerton G&L's I'd imagine.

 

[woodyng2]

Hey, any of y'all ever but Black Labella tapes on a G&L fretless JB?
Did the E string fit the nut slot or did you have to take a file to it?

Presuming you are referring to the *lighter gauge* Labella tapes, they should fit most standard cut nut slots
with little to no additional sanding.The heavier gauge, not so much.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Presuming you are referring to the *lighter gauge* Labella tapes, they should fit most standard cut nut slots
with little to no additional sanding.The heavier gauge, not so much.

I'm talking about the 60-115 4-string set.
Too fat?

 

[Ian774]

I'm way out of my depth here, but I'm beginning to suspect that the trussrod on my SB-1 is not simply maxed out, but is in fact doing nothing, letting the quartersawn neck slowly bend - the action seems to be getting higher and the bass more difficult to play. Despite having changed from a 200 lb set of strings to a 180 lb set. To say I've got a sinking feeling scarcely covers it. Going to find some sand to bury my head in.

Still sounds great, obviously

The other day I tried to tighten the rod on my LB-100, using the allen key that came with it. It wouldn't budge. I was able to loosen it but impossible to tighten it.

I panicked and took it to my local luthier before practice. He used a longer allen key, and was able to actually tighten the neck. I asked if the truss rod was maxed out, he said it wasn't. He said there wasn't much more room to tighten it more though as the bass would become badly set up, but at least the truss rod isn't knackered.

Are you experiencing something similar?
Mine is also quartersawn maple.

 

[mellobud]

Yes......and before I fell into the BEAD rabbit hole it was the only thing I GASed for, since I had avoided G & L 5ers only because under 18mm spacing doesn't work for me.....but now I'd prefer to shed a 5er or 2, not get another

Do the 750 series L1k. No regrets.

 

[Ricky Rioli]

The other day I tried to tighten the rod on my LB-100, using the allen key that came with it. It wouldn't budge. I was able to loosen it but impossible to tighten it.

I panicked and took it to my local luthier before practice. He used a longer allen key, and was able to actually tighten the neck. I asked if the truss rod was maxed out, he said it wasn't. He said there wasn't much more room to tighten it more though as the bass would become badly set up, but at least the truss rod isn't knackered.

Are you experiencing something similar?
Mine is also quartersawn maple.

The maxing out of the truss rod was pointed out to me a year ago by my tech, when he tried to accommodate the 50-110 Roto Bass nickel rounds a year ago. I did later try totally loosening the strings to see if that would allow any more movement. No.

At the time I shrugged and thought I can put up with this action, but the neck has slowly moved since then. A neck that was previously enjoyable to play is now a battle. I've been trying very hard to accept the maxed out truss rod as something I could put up with, so I've been resistant to admitting the problem is progressing.

I have recently been noticing that the bass is no longer sounding so aggressive with both V and T on 10; after posting yesterday the penny dropped and I realised that the strings are now slightly further away from the pickups.

 

[RocketMusic]

I'm way out of my depth here, but I'm beginning to suspect that the trussrod on my SB-1 is not simply maxed out, but is in fact doing nothing, letting the quartersawn neck slowly bend - the action seems to be getting higher and the bass more difficult to play. Despite having changed from a 200 lb set of strings to a 180 lb set. To say I've got a sinking feeling scarcely covers it. Going to find some sand to bury my head in.

Still sounds great, obviously

The other day I tried to tighten the rod on my LB-100, using the allen key that came with it. It wouldn't budge. I was able to loosen it but impossible to tighten it.

I panicked and took it to my local luthier before practice. He used a longer allen key, and was able to actually tighten the neck. I asked if the truss rod was maxed out, he said it wasn't. He said there wasn't much more room to tighten it more though as the bass would become badly set up, but at least the truss rod isn't knackered.

Are you experiencing something similar?
Mine is also quartersawn maple.

I'm reluctant to post this advice, I don't want anyone to damage their bass, but...

Imagine your bass laying on a workbench face up. Find something firm but also soft (i.e. no give, but also won't dent your neck finish) to put under the neck about halfway between the headstock and the body. Or another way to do it is to lay the bass such that the headstock is in the air to the side of the bench, and then clamp the body to the bench (with a padded clamp, don't hurt the finish). If you're trying to put more tension on the truss rod to lay the headstock back, then you can gently but firmly push down on the headstock as you simultaneously attempt to tighten the truss rod. You probably need somebody to hold the body down to the bench if you didn't clamp it. You're basically helping the neck move in the direction that you want the truss rod to take it. That reduces the friction/resistance that the truss rod sees and might let you take it a little bit farther than you otherwise could.

Just please don't be a gorilla when you do this. You need to be firm, but don't go all Schwarzenegger on it.

Also - the newer G&L truss rods can be confusing. If you get nowhere in one direction, maybe try the opposite direction and see if that helps? In fact, maybe start with this before trying the above.