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Geddy Lee vs. Marcus Miller
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I owned both and can say they are both great basses. I had both of them at the same time so I was really able to A/B them and went with the Geddy. Let me also say that after owning the Geddy Lee for a while I found the neck to be too thin and I swapped it out for a Warmoth neck. I also tried several different pickups and went with a pair of the Nordstrand NJ4. So it is not a GL any more but when I A/B'ed the two they were both stock. Here are a few pros and cons that I found with each that might help.
Geddy Lee
Pros: fairly light weight, looks good, great clarity of notes, simple passive electronics, Badass bridge, 70's pickup spacing
Cons: thin neck caused my hand to cramp up after playing for a while (other players love it though), painted block inlays, tuners were cheap (replaced mine with Hipshot)
Marcus Miller
Pros: active/passive electronics w/ switch, Badass bridge, 70's pickup spacing, true fretboard inlays, very nice slap tone
Cons: very heavy, tuners were cheap (replaced mine with Hipshot)
Geddy Lee
Pros: fairly light weight, looks good, great clarity of notes, simple passive electronics, Badass bridge, 70's pickup spacing
Cons: thin neck caused my hand to cramp up after playing for a while (other players love it though), painted block inlays, tuners were cheap (replaced mine with Hipshot)
Marcus Miller
Pros: active/passive electronics w/ switch, Badass bridge, 70's pickup spacing, true fretboard inlays, very nice slap tone
Cons: very heavy, tuners were cheap (replaced mine with Hipshot)
I played both in the store and bought the Geddy.
Just gives the classic J vibe much more than the MM IMHO.
I didn't care for the electronics on the MM, but that's just me.
The GL is an awesome bass, hands down.
-M
Just gives the classic J vibe much more than the MM IMHO.
I didn't care for the electronics on the MM, but that's just me.
The GL is an awesome bass, hands down.
-M
The Marcus Miller is such a confusing bass to work out (by which I mean I could not figure out the electronics by myself in the store) and it is pretty heavy, but if you're a man who will sacrifice anything for tone, it's a must have. It pretty much slays the GL for overall funk. It's just a tone-monster!
- Jun 25, 2006
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- Owner, Pike Amplification & 3Leaf Audio
It's all about personal preference. The GL has an alder body with a thinner neck, and it sounds great but isn't the most versatile bass out there. The MM is ash-bodied with the classic Jazz bass neck shape (why would anyone mess with that?) and has a tone that's better for playing many styles. It does have that awful preamp though...
I have met Geddy a few times socially in Toronto (Blue Jays games, fine wine events, etc) and he is a fairly small guy.
I would bet my money on Marcus. Marcus is bigger and will kick his ass.
Oh.... The basses.... I love my Geddy but I am getting pissed at my tuners. They are cheap. I need to reef on my A tuner but the D is really loose... drives me nuts.
I played both and I liked the Geddy more from a sound/ergonomics perspective.... not sure if the MM has the same crappy tuners as the Geddy but I think it had the Bad Ass II which rocks!
I would bet my money on Marcus. Marcus is bigger and will kick his ass.
Oh.... The basses.... I love my Geddy but I am getting pissed at my tuners. They are cheap. I need to reef on my A tuner but the D is really loose... drives me nuts.
I played both and I liked the Geddy more from a sound/ergonomics perspective.... not sure if the MM has the same crappy tuners as the Geddy but I think it had the Bad Ass II which rocks!
The neck is why almost everyone buys the Geddy bass. It is the fastest I have ever played.
Why would it annoy you?
Bizzare comment unless you bought it without touching/trying it ....... or if you prefer big necks and thought it was a P...
People used to playing P-basses or Warwicks will find the neck an alien and impure thing. I have a Geddy, and it rocks the house. What an awesome tone.
My only concern is that the neck is so thin that it tends to bend easily with tempurature changes.
My only concern is that the neck is so thin that it tends to bend easily with tempurature changes.
Tried both, Marcus was a little heavy and machine heads were not the best but that's easy to sort out. I prefer passives but the actives on the model I tried were fine. The neck radius was a little out for me being 7.25mm, I'm used to 9.5mm. The Badass bridge is a bonus also.
The Geddy is the one I ended up with, if you're looking for classic Jazz simplicity with a great tone, a super slim fast neck at 9.5mm radius, a good even weight (Alder not Ash) and the bonus of a Badass bridge, Geddy wins for me
Prefer the geddy just bought one here in orlando from bass central they sugested installing a j-retro took ther advise
man what a bass havent put it down for a week.I would have to agree with about everyone else the tuners are cheap i
will be changing mine soon.Go with the geddy.
man what a bass havent put it down for a week.I would have to agree with about everyone else the tuners are cheap i
will be changing mine soon.Go with the geddy.
I also own and play both basses. Both have pro's and con's which were mentioned here so I won't get into that. I removed the BadassII one my Geddy so it's more or less just a regular early 70's jazz now. My marcus bass is no heavier than any other jazz I own but does get less playing time than the Geddy. The Geddy also get more gigging time than the Marcus but that is due to me gigging more with passive basses. Both basses are excellent for what I do but the Marcus miller is more in your face. Btw with the Marcus Miller pre-amp a little goes a long way!
I think either way you end up with a great bass - you can't go wrong.
I own a Marcus and love it. I bought it and thought I would have to swap the pickups and pre but the bass sounds amazing in both passive and active. As for the pre, it's boost only, no cut, so you only want to touch those knobs a little bit!
Try them both and see how you feel - the Marcus was what I needed and it's way more verstile than you would expect.
I own a Marcus and love it. I bought it and thought I would have to swap the pickups and pre but the bass sounds amazing in both passive and active. As for the pre, it's boost only, no cut, so you only want to touch those knobs a little bit!
Try them both and see how you feel - the Marcus was what I needed and it's way more verstile than you would expect.
When shopping for basses a little over a year ago, I tried both and ended up with the Geddy, but it was a toss up. I have to say that early on I questioned my decision... Then I replaced the BAII with a stock bridge and all my questions were answered! Great bass!
I'm a P-Bass guy at heart, but after an initial 'break-in' period, the GL's neck has not posed any problems...
About a month ago, I was again shopping for basses and tried a Jaguar... Had one been in the store previously, I would probably have never ended up with the Geddy! Fantastic player, sounds great in both passive and active modes, very comfortable body shape. Does the J-bass thing outstandingly... The pre-amp's a bit touchy, and mine had some grounding issues, (which seemed huge at first but were ridiculously easy to correct)...
During this latest shopping phase, I also had occasion to try two different Marcus Miller's... No doubt they're nice, but a different animal that what I was in the market for...
-robert
I'm a P-Bass guy at heart, but after an initial 'break-in' period, the GL's neck has not posed any problems...
About a month ago, I was again shopping for basses and tried a Jaguar... Had one been in the store previously, I would probably have never ended up with the Geddy! Fantastic player, sounds great in both passive and active modes, very comfortable body shape. Does the J-bass thing outstandingly... The pre-amp's a bit touchy, and mine had some grounding issues, (which seemed huge at first but were ridiculously easy to correct)...
During this latest shopping phase, I also had occasion to try two different Marcus Miller's... No doubt they're nice, but a different animal that what I was in the market for...
-robert
I tried out 4 geddy's at bass central,i found one that seemed ok,
but all in all i just don't like the neck,the body and electronics are good though,but i did not like the badass bridge or the neck,the neck just seemed to reverberate strange,no meat and potatoes or sustain.I ended up throwing an
old pbass neck on the geddy body and it sounded damn good,but the neck is a monster and i got tired of that also,
this was an old pre cbs pneck and it sounded great,blew the geddy away.I am happy with my roscoe beck basses,and i will keep those.
but all in all i just don't like the neck,the body and electronics are good though,but i did not like the badass bridge or the neck,the neck just seemed to reverberate strange,no meat and potatoes or sustain.I ended up throwing an
old pbass neck on the geddy body and it sounded damn good,but the neck is a monster and i got tired of that also,
this was an old pre cbs pneck and it sounded great,blew the geddy away.I am happy with my roscoe beck basses,and i will keep those.
Very different feel on these basses. Whichover you go with, I'd make sure you play the actual bass you're going to buy. Don't just order one. Fender can make some really nice stuff when they want to, but a lot of their signature basses are a mixed bag, ranging anywhere from above average to just pure crap. I'd want to check it out first.
