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G&L L-2000 opinions

S

sixgunner

Nov 12, 2008
104
0
USA
#1
I found a used G&L L-2000 for $350 which seems like a great deal.
I'm not sure of the year, but if I had to guess I'd say mid-late 80's.
It's got a maple fretboard,the sculpted headstock that says "guitars by leo", and 3bolt neck.
2 humbuckers w/ onboard pre-amp.
It plays very nice and is heavy as hell!

Anyway, I'm thinking of buying it and wondered what the opinions of these are...
Any known issues?

Also, I'm kicking around the idea (if I buy it) of *maybe* rearranging the knobs/switches to my liking since I don't want/need all of the available tome options and prefer a minimal design.
What I'd do is fabricate a control plate and then set it up with: 1Vol 1 Tone, pickup selector, preamp switch.....basically eliminating the other switch and knob.
This is just brainstorming, and I very well could keep it stock.

eTA:
This bass dates to 1985 per the serial number.
 
#2
Buy it. That's a screaming good deal on a US made G&L L-2000.

Then, put down the screwdriver and slowly back away.. I think once you spend some time with it you'll see the genius that was Leo Fender and appreciate what all those switches and knobs do. And for God's sake, please don't "pickguard" it..
 
#4
First off, great price, a steal. Probably not an 80's model. Easy enough to figure out with a serial number. 3 bolt micro tilt lasted into the '90s.

Sounds like it's more bass than you want. It's worth a little more than $350 ya know. Instead of doing mods to it that will suck any value it might have had out of it maybe you should buy it and flip it for something you'd really rather have.

Just a thought.
 
#6
artistanbul said:
it's probably 80s with micro tilt neckplate.
it's an excellent deal. get it. don't mess with it.
Click to expand...

It is.

BTW, I've had a couple of US g&L six-string electrics just not any basses.

rockinrayduke said:
Sounds like it's more bass than you want. It's worth a little more than $350 ya know. Instead of doing mods to it that will suck any value it might have had out of it maybe you should buy it and flip it for something you'd really rather have.

Just a thought.
Click to expand...

That's just it...I haven't really found anything that I like as much.
I like P basses, but mostly just for the body shape which the L-2000 has covered.
I played it for a few hours and I really like the sound and feel of it a lot......it's just got more stuff on it than I need,that's all.
I don't really have any interest in resale value on it at all, I'm looking for something to keep and play.

I suppose if something came along that I like better then I could buy it and resell it, but it ain't gonna hang there forever either if it's as good a deal as you say.

BTW, what *is* it worth if $350 is a such a greeat deal?
I'd rate it at a solid 85%...maybe better. Has OHSC

Spiritfield said:
Buy it. That's a screaming good deal on a US made G&L L-2000.
Then, put down the screwdriver and slowly back away.. I think once you spend some time with it you'll see the genius that was Leo Fender and appreciate what all those switches and knobs do. And for God's sake, please don't "pickguard" it..
Click to expand...


Wait a minute...
Um....yours has a pickguard! :D
Control plate...whatev....that's what I was thinking of, but I don't really like the looks of that particular plate (no offense)

Obviously you've never seen my work. I'm pretty handy with gee-tars. ;)

At any rate, I didn't say I was dead-set on doing it...just kicking around an idea.
(that doesn't always mean it's a good one)

Like I say, I've run it through all it's paces and it does have a lot of options ...that I wouldn't even use.

I dunno', I may pick it up, I may not....
Really the only thing holding me back is the money....if I had enough right now, I'd be sitting here telling you how much I love playing it.
 
#7
sixgunner said:
BTW, what *is* it worth if $350 is a such a greeat deal?
I'd rate it at a solid 85%...maybe better. Has OHSC

I dunno', I may pick it up, I may not....
Really the only thing holding me back is the money....if I had enough right now, I'd be sitting here telling you how much I love playing it.
Click to expand...

Lots of ifs, color, fretboard/body wood etc, but $650-$700 I'd venture to guess on an '80s L2K.

Just buy it, find the setting you like and leave the controls alone going forward.

If you aren't going to buy it for such a stoopid price, one of us will so fast it will make your head spin.

Jim
 
#8
Hmm.. if it doesn't have a control plate and has rear loaded controls and the 3 bolt, it's most likely a 90's era bass. For reference mine is an '84. As Jim said, depending on body wood, color, etc. etc. it's a potential $700+/- bass as it sits. Is the case a molded plastic G&L case or a tolex covered hard case? To me the package would be worth even slightly more for the tolex case..
 
#9
Well I just paid $350 for my L2000 Tribute bass, so to get a US made one for the same price is certainly a great deal/steal.

G&L makes outstanding, horribly underrated basses, IMO. If I had to complain about any aspect of them it's that they do tend to be on the heavy side (though the Tributes are noticeably lighter), and it would be nice to have a pickup blend knob or separate volume control for each PUP. But with a bass that sounds as great as they do, those are minor gripes.
 
#12
As, noted above, $350 is a screaming deal. I wouldn't touch the electronics either. If you find the one sound you're looking for, there's no need to rip out the other options. You might be surprised at what you might want it to sound like 6 months from now. It might be completely different. It's always nice to have options.
 
#13
spideyjg said:
Lots of ifs, color, fretboard/body wood etc, but $650-$700 I'd venture to guess on an '80s L2K.
Just buy it, find the setting you like and leave the controls alone going forward.
If you aren't going to buy it for such a stoopid price, one of us will so fast it will make your head spin.
Jim
Click to expand...
Maple board,solid black body, black(crinkle) neckplate/bridge
It's not a matter of the price, it's a matter of I don't have the extra $350 right now...but I may lay-away it if I can.

Spiritfield said:
Hmm.. if it doesn't have a control plate and has rear loaded controls and the 3 bolt, it's most likely a 90's era bass. For reference mine is an '84. As Jim said, depending on body wood, color, etc. etc. it's a potential $700+/- bass as it sits. Is the case a molded plastic G&L case or a tolex covered hard case? To me the package would be worth even slightly more for the tolex case..
Click to expand...
I don't recall the case, but I *think* it's a molded G&L.
I'll check on that.
Yeah...I'm not exactly sure of the year and it may very well be a 90's guitar. Like I said, it has Black crinkle bridge/neck plate, and "guitars by Leo" on the headstock.
You're saying $700 used, so I'd hazard a guess that in it's condition, it's probably in the $600 range.
 
#15
As others have said:
Buy it immediately and don't change a thing about it. If you don't like it (and assuming the neck is good, etc.), you can probably make some good money turning around and selling it. But, you might also be blown away by it. (A very good possibility.) These are great instruments.
 
#17
Get it now. At $350 if you totally hate it you can flip it here for twice that or possibly more provided it's in decent shape. I wouldn't if I were you, though. This is probably the most versatile bass out there. I owned a cream see-through finish L-2000 for several years and loved it. Those active-passive pickups allow it to do everything from a p-bass, to a music man and beyond. Great slap bass, great finger style bass, and though I'm not a pick player it's easily one of the all time best for that, too.
 
#18
Some advice: Don't be put off by the profusion of controls. You don't have to feel like you need to use all of them. I have a 1981 model, which has humbucker vs. "single coil w/bass boost" switching (as opposed to the later series/parallel switching); I use it in passive mode 100% of the time and for about 95% of the time I use the neck pickup only, in single coil w/bass boost mode, with the tone controls both about halfway up. That gives me a fantastic "fat but clear P-bass" tone. I could probably duct tape all the knobs and switches in place and be satisfied for a long period of time. But, that's just me-- I don't find myself twiddling with settings. Anyway, it's nice to know that all those options are there JUST IN CASE!
 
#19
sixgunner said:
Anyway, I'm thinking of buying it and wondered what the opinions of these are...
Any known issues?
Click to expand...

I have one of about the same type and it has been my main bass until my L2500 which has pretty much taken over.

If that one is like mine, it'll have an absolutely beasty sound, even heftier than the stingray if you can believe it, especially if you run really light gauge strings.

Leo Fender thought the L2000 was his very best design and I'm inclined to agree.....

350 is a total steal as they usually are about twice that used (for the MIA's).

The only issue is the onboard preamp - the pickups are so hot they can overload it if you pluck really hard. You'll get a loud "brrrap" in active mode if you hit it too hard (my L2500 does this too. Just don't pluck that hard or run it in passive mode).

Agreed with the others that you shouldn't mess with it....

The G&L is the best bang/buck ratio in the entire industry, IMO. A true Fender with all the good stuff of the original Fenders kept but the broken crap all fixed by Leo himself. What more could you ask for.....

LS
 
#20
Black crinkle bridge and control plate? I missed that.. definitely older than I thought. That woould put it around 82-88 or so... definitely a good deal for that vintage. Leo was still at the helm then. Heck, I'll stand in line for that one if you decide against it. I love black/maple...
 

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