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Totally agree here. In fact I like to unwind the string after tuning it up the first time and then re-orientating it at the bridge as necessary to make sure when you put it back on the tuning peg it's not twisted at all. You can't do that when it's strung through the body.
Doesn't matter much on new basses because all of the five string bridges are strung through the body only anyway.
I've done this on a 35" scale Lakland for the same reason, and also did it with TI flats because I didn't want a sharp bend in that big B string. Truthfully I can't tell the difference in sound. Someone with a more discerning ear might though.
I watched a Precision flats video and all I could think was yuck. Do i dislike flats or something? Chromes aren't a good sound either. Maybe I'm just picky.
I do like the sound of worn-in roundcores. The set I have now are too worn and are losing their edge. I want something with a strong low end, but not so much it's just mud.
So have you dedicded on what way you are going on the whole tapewound question? Would love to hear your thoughts.
I'm wanting to try something on the Stingray, but I like having tonal distance between the Ray & the G&L. Dont want them to be wearing the same strings.
If that's the Dave Pomeroy video, it doesn't do them justice. I've also got them on a Peavey Fury with the EMG Geezer Butler pickup on board, and the results are really good. I was playing "Somebody To Love" by Jefferson Airplane at a cover band rehearsal the other night and working on emulate JC's aggressive, frenetic approach to that song. The grind and punch from that combination were crazy satisfying. I know that seems improbable with flats, but it worked. These strings don't sound all that impressive in my studio, but out in the real world with a band it's a different thing. Combined with the SB-2's bite, the results are great.
After playing with my new L2500 all day I think I've figured out how it works. Let me start by saying that I understand how the pickups are wired through the three way switch to get series, single coil and parallel so I know how it's all supposed to work out. This bass does not work like I thought it would/should and I'm not sure if the factory meant to wire it this way or not....By tapping on the pickup poles in each position and studying the wiring cavity I think I've got it figured out.
This is how this bass works right now. The parallel position works exactly like it should whichever pickup combination you've selected. Single coil works exactly like it should using the outer coils. Series is where things get weird.....With both pickups on and in series all coils work like you would expect them to. But.............with just the neck pickup selected only the front coil of the neck pickup works. It's just as if it was in single coil mode/front pickup, there is no difference between the two. And..........with the bridge pickup selected (and in series) both coils of the bridge pickup and the rear coil of the neck pickup works.
Very strange indeed!
All I can say is it makes the rear pickup selection massive sounding. Way louder and more bassier than the rear pickup is by itself. In fact it's the meatiest setting of all. It's more meaty then both pickups in series mode.
I'm still not sure if this is a factory screw up or if it's something new their doing. I dig it so far. I can provide wiring schematics for anyone if their interested in how they have this wired up.
This is how this bass works right now. The parallel position works exactly like it should whichever pickup combination you've selected. Single coil works exactly like it should using the outer coils. Series is where things get weird.....With both pickups on and in series all coils work like you would expect them to. But.............with just the neck pickup selected only the front coil of the neck pickup works. It's just as if it was in single coil mode/front pickup, there is no difference between the two. And..........with the bridge pickup selected (and in series) both coils of the bridge pickup and the rear coil of the neck pickup works.
Very strange indeed!
All I can say is it makes the rear pickup selection massive sounding. Way louder and more bassier than the rear pickup is by itself. In fact it's the meatiest setting of all. It's more meaty then both pickups in series mode.
I'm still not sure if this is a factory screw up or if it's something new their doing. I dig it so far. I can provide wiring schematics for anyone if their interested in how they have this wired up.
Very nice bass.
I have modded my 1997 L2500 Custom with a 3 position switch (SC on outer coils) and it works very well (it has the OMG caps). Same on my 1900 ASAT bass.
As you described it, something looks wrong with the neck pickup if - when taping the polepieces - there is no difference between SC and series. The difference should be : in SC, the inner polepieces are silent (disconnected through the switch).
As to the bridge pickup, I don't understand well the case. Is it the same or do you hear a difference when taping and switching between SC and series?
When the pickup selector is on the front pickup and it's in series mode only the outer coil works. Which is exactly like it works if you put it in single coil mode. I know there's nothing wrong with the pickup because both coils work in series when both pickups are selected and everything works like it should in parallel mode. When the rear coil is selected everything works right in single coil (outer coil) and in parallel. Only difference is in series mode where in adition to the rear pickup the inside coil of the front pickup also works. So you have three coils working. I've verified this by tapping on the pickup pole pieces and I can totally see why this is by examining the way the swith is wired. I know how to wire it properly to make everything work right. It must have just been a mistake at the factory. I'd wire it back up right today but the way it is when the three coils are working together it sounds HUGE. Massive bite but with balls. Like I was saying, it sounds more massive than both pickups in series. Normally I would never consider using just the rear pickup on any of my L series basses even in series mode because it's just not fat enough for my tastes but for some reason with the three coils together it's way more heavy and louder even. I'm not going to change it untill I play it with the whole band.
There is a green wire from each pickup. The green wire from the rear pickup should be grounded and the green wire from the front pickup should be soldered to the switch. What happened was the wires got switched on assymbly. That's why, when in series mode, there's three coils that work together when the rear pickup is selected and one coil when the front pickup is selected. It may have been a mistake but I think it's actually a very usefull mod as there's lots of killer sounds here!
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I've had my L-1500 listed in the classifieds for a few months with very little interest (don't worry, this is not a sales ad in the basses forum!). Recently my band has had a big shakeup with the lead deciding to travel a bit and move to Mexico for 6 months or so. Last night was our first rehearsal without him, so we decided to start working on some new material written by another band member. My L-1500 hadn't been played in a while because my L-1000 always sounded better with the band. With the new configuration, we don't have a guitar player at all and the new music is more organ focused with violin melodies. I decided to bust out the L-1500 just because I hadn't played it in a while and it sounded amazing in that context! More punch to cut through the left hand of the organ and sits nicely in the range that the low end of the guitar used to occupy. I may not be selling it anymore! I just figured the members of this club would appreciate a story about reconnecting with a G&L.
And, because pics or it didn't happen...
And, because pics or it didn't happen...
@lakefx as i said in your listing, gorgeous bass, I nearly sent my bass away, but then some TLC with a capacitor Mod and it is back in action and sounding amazing.
The next job I have is my ASAT solid body which I think I will go for outer-parrrallel-inner could Mod which will give me something different.
I use my ASAT Semi hollow in series mainly and will keep that as factory but have just put DR DDT extra heavy strings on, tunes it to BEAD and it sounds huge!
The next job I have is my ASAT solid body which I think I will go for outer-parrrallel-inner could Mod which will give me something different.
I use my ASAT Semi hollow in series mainly and will keep that as factory but have just put DR DDT extra heavy strings on, tunes it to BEAD and it sounds huge!
I'm not sure why L-1500/1505s get the tepid reaction they do. Resale prices are among the lowest of all current G&L models and they seem to take forever to sell. But I'll tell you this--run one in passive/parallel into a SVT-type rig and you have an incredible blend of cut, punch, and balls. My 1505 would be my #1 if it wasn't for how comfortable and easy my L-5000 plays.
