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G&L L-2000 Bass - Anyone finding it underwhelming?

#41
thevintagesound said:
Hey guys
Thanks for the heads up on the tone controls. I found it a little weird that you have to cut to get it to sound right. Not knocking the bass, its a solid beast (weighing in around 9.8 lbs!). Just having trouble bonding with it.

Some of Dave's other tones, without the pedal board have that growl that I have been digging. Another modern bass player is Jon Stockman from Karnivool.
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If you get a chance can you post a track with the clean tone you like? Just curious if I can ID what basses you may like. I suspect you probably will want a true active sounding bass. Don't sleep on a quality Ibanez SDGR either. They can really deliver for the heavy stuff.
 
#42
I happen to love the sound of the L2000 - it does have great versatility BUT just not in the sound range I think you're referring to. I own and play a different bass when I want that trebly modern kind of sound, a Tune. A Warwick or a Spector would be other basses I've owned and played that are closer to what you're looking for.
Sure I love my G&L - it's the right bass for me, but I'm thinking it's just not the ideal bass for you and what you're looking for, so I'm going to say maybe try some other ones out there like the Warwick and sell or trade the G&L.
 
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#43
thevintagesound said:
I've had the bass now for about 6 years. Removed my preamp and tone controls, made each pick up switchable from parallel to single to series a while back. It helped a little in the tone. Ran that way for a bit, but just wasnt happy with it. So I put it back to stock wiring again with the preamp and tone controls, just not digging it. Dull sounding, even with the bright switch enabled, it peaks in the upper mids, not the good ones. Was hoping that with all the switching, I could get something a little more "modern" sounding. Big influence here lately has been Dave Hollingworth from Dorje and Toska. The G&L cant seem to get the clarity on the mids through top end. Looking at just the pickups straight in on a spectrum, there's tons of lows but no high end. Its also missing that low mid growl.

Trying to figure out where to go with it. It was given to me years ago by a friend and would be hard to sell it. New preamp? Pickups?
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What sort of strings are you using?

I have recently put on RotoSound PSD99 (piano string design). They give me a lively and clean sound, with not too much of the lows, a pleasant mix of the highs and just the right amount of mids.

What is your EQ set to? All the way to +0db on treble/bass?
 
#44
I've had two L2500's over the years. Been a few years now since I got rid of the last one. Loved the feel, and build, but always felt I was struggling with them tone-wise, and yes, the MFDs are hot to a fault IMO. They seemed either too aggressive or..dull. Funny thing is, if I go back and listen to recordings I did with them, they sound KILLER. Solid and in the mix like a good P, but unique. Definitely not plug and play basses though.
 
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#45
JIO said:
This is the first time I've heard of someone wanting to change an L-2000 - a bass that doesn't need changing. I'll go as far to say the L-2000 is one of those basses that really shouldn't be 'modded' - it's right-out-of-the-box spot-on. I can't image why anyone would mess with an L-2000, seriously.
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I agree with you but still I did split coil mod ;)
 
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#47
Torrente Cro said:
I think that with L2k tone pots are essentials of the sound, if you open them too much the sound is mud.

While I play all my other basses with 100% open tone pots, with L2K I go between 20 and 50%, both bass and treble.

As far as I know, these pickups are too hot to let them do what they like, you have to restrain them.
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This, this, 100% this! :D
 
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#49
The other day I was researching this bass (or the five-string version), and found two older threads that talked about how to use the EQ controls. Obviously personal preference comes into play, but posters in those threads said that even though the controls are cut only, best results are obtained by starting with them dialled all the way down (maximum cut) and then bringing them back up to taste.

That is, treat the EQ controls as if they're boost only, even though technically they're cut only.
 
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#50
silky smoove said:
I believe the L2000 preamp controls are active (ie boost/cut) and not passive (ie cut only). Likely they’re flat in the middle of their sweep.

You would want to restrain something if it wasn’t sounding how you wanted and needed a change. It sounds like you do. Knobs are meant to be turned.
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the tone controls are passive, cut only.
the active part is a "line driver" preamp: and the treble boost setting is over the top.
 
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#51
I like my Midrange, snarl lives there
20161025_230011.jpg
 
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#52
Huge dave hollingworth fan here too.

Try cutting some bass freqs before your gain/drive stage and lower your action such that you can get some clank when you dig in hard. If required, add any additional low end you need after that drive stage. This is assuming you're a fingerstyle player.

I'd been chasing his tone for a couple years too and only discovered this magic sauce half a year ago.
 
#53
Turn your knobs. Play differently. Use different strings. There is nothing that bass can't do. If there is a problem, it's not with the bass.

It is by no means my #1 bass, but in the end, if it came own to it, it could do anything my other basses can do, with the appropriate massaging of the various controls on bass and amp. I prefer a more direct approach, i.e. if I want the bass to sound like a P, then I play a P; if I want the bass to sound like a J, then I play a J. But just because the L-2000 needs more fiddling doesn't mean that there is something wrong with it. Me not wanting to use it is more about my laziness than the shortcomings of the bass itself.
 
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#54
2F/2F said:
Turn your knobs. Play differently. Use different strings. There is nothing that bass can't do. If there is a problem, it's not with the bass.

It is by no means my #1 bass, but in the end, if it came own to it, it could do anything my other basses can do, with the appropriate massaging of the various controls on bass and amp. I prefer a more direct approach, i.e. if I want the bass to sound like a P, then I play a P; if I want the bass to sound like a J, then I play a J. But just because the L-2000 needs more fiddling doesn't mean that there is something wrong with it. Me not wanting to use it is more about my laziness than the shortcomings of the bass itself.
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You are right to a degree, the problem is not the bass, but the MFD pick ups.
IMHO Leo was compensating for hearing loss, and hence made pick ups which were far too hot.
L1500 being a classic example of being way too harsh like finger nails on a blackboard.
I also had an ASAT and an ASAT semi hollow - clarity wasn’t there.
Basses are fantastically well made, shame about the pick ups and electronics, and they should have made the enclosures regular size to enable easy change outs.
 
#55
bwildt said:
I like my '98 L2500. A lot of my basses wear flatwounds, but I'm happy with DR Lo-Rider stainless on this thing. The Lo-Riders are a little more low-mid forward than the DR High Beams. Stainless because they stay live longer than nickels and I don't want to be buying strings all the time. I run mostly in passive mode. I also agree that it can be kind of wooly with the tone controls set flat (all the way up). I almost always have both the bass and treble tone pots rolled back a little. Usually I also have the volume rolled off just a little bit, especially in series mode.
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This ^^. I actually roll back the bass more than the treble. ...and I roll back the volume a LOT. I mostly play passive but there’s a monster in there if desired. I pretty much use active just for a boost. At the end of the day though, maybe you want a Spector :).
 
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