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Is Lakland a good brand ?

#62
I just recently got my first Lakland Skyline. A Glaub and I have not put it down much. I love the tone, neck and the overall feel of it. I'm basically a Fender person and I own a CS 64' Jazz and 57P RI which I love, but I just purchased a Skyline JO, so we'll see how it compares to the Fender CS. I was impressed with the build quality of the Skyline as I've always been a bit of a US made snob. I'm not disappointed one bit with the Skyline and glad I saved a few thousand in the process!!!:smug:
 
#65
I'm biased, of course, but Lakland offers everything I had ever been looking for in a bass. I owned Fenders, Warwicks, MusicMans, etc. in the past, and only the Lakland has felt like it belongs in my hands completely. Speaking of the quintessential Lakland package (4-94 or 55-94 body/neck combo), the neck geometry, scale, frets (I could go on for days about the frets), electronics packages, and the body (deep, small lower cutaways are a must for me) are a perfect marriage of old and new. I haven't pined for a new bass since the acquisition of my Laklands, but I am now GAS'ing for a Joe Osborn 4-string with a maple fretboard. I haven't owned a Jazz-style body bass in close to 4 years, but I think the JO may fit the bill for me.
 
#66
Fretlessboy said:
:rolleyes: This is based off of what? The Lakland Skyline is a small fraction of what a Sadowsky costs and is quite simply one of the best basses built at any price.
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about built quality....

I saw some Skylines(and it was not cheapo 01´s) here at classfields and hey few of them were really "Strange" in terms of quality built :(

Sorry but what about discolored fingerboard after few years of play????, or awry settled neck on another....I think this is not great feature on 1000+ USD basses in terms of quality!!!

I think they could play like god´s(and I believe they plays like it) bass but there still will be korean signature on them in terms of built quality....

I have no offend against Laklands(I like them!!!) but we should be straight and such quality features makes me sad...
 
#67
I've never played anything that compared to my 55-94's. The necks are perfect- both of them- and the fit and finish is unbelieveable. Best woods I've ever seen, love the electronics, I could go on and on for hours- I've played many high-end basses similar in price-- none came close. IMO Lakland is the best bass manufacturer of all time.
 
#68
Then let me rephrase...
My 55-2 came out of the box perfect, the fretwork was perfect, the neck joint and finish were as perfect as my Smiths. The setup did NOT need to touched to be made playable. %99 of the off the rack Fenders I personaly have played since 2000 needed the frets filed of the rack. Either the edges were very rough or they just weren't level. I am not busting on your experience but mine has been quite different. Every Lakie Skyline Ihave played has had flawless workmanship... and my personak bass gets use more than my Smith's because of tonal that and the tonal versatility for "P" and "J" sounds far surpass the sounds I get out of my "P" and old "J" bass in one instument.



JMO
Let me also say that those here who know me know that I am a major Fender fan
 
#71
Fretlessboy said:
Then let me rephrase...
My 55-2 came out of the box perfect, the fretwork was perfect, the neck joint and finish were as perfect as my Smiths. The setup did NOT need to touched to be made playable. %99 of the off the rack Fenders I personaly have played since 2000 needed the frets filed of the rack. Either the edges were very rough or they just weren't level. I am not busting on your experience but mine has been quite different. Every Lakie Skyline Ihave played has had flawless workmanship... and my personak bass gets use more than my Smith's because of tonal that and the tonal versatility for "P" and "J" sounds far surpass the sounds I get out of my "P" and old "J" bass in one instument.



JMO
Let me also say that those here who know me know that I am a major Fender fan
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I must agree about fenders...and yes its sad that something regarded as "industrial standard" takes such poor factory setup...but at least we know that USA Fenders are MIA (poor guitarist and they Gibson and china rumours :D )

Maybe my experience with Skyline is based on fact that human remember mostly "negative features" and those "positive" take as natural and dont give them to much significance like to those negative....

And about sound of skyline - it kills I heard Juan Aderete of Mars Volta last week and he use DJ skyline - it was like punch of hell when his guitar technic tested instrument...
 
#72
tranceFusion said:
this is pretty much off topic.. but i find the painted on fret markers on the 55-02 to be pretty cheeseball.. and from their website pics it looks like it is the same on the 55-94??
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I've never seen, owned or played a 55-02 or 55-94 with painted on fret dot markers.

The Lakland factory specs for fret dot markers are ebony or figured maple for the US series, and inlaid plastic on the Skylines.
 
#73
All Lakland basses are junk and should be disposed of properly in my bass vault:p!

I suppose it's just like any instrument, you play and it either says "I'm yours" or it doesn't. No doubt they have exceptional quality, but you really have to play one awhile to find out if it's really for you.

I happen to have a Skyline DJ4 which sounds and plays better (to me anyway) than any other instrument I've played in the last 25 years. For all that's worth.
 
#74
20db pad said:
I've never seen, owned or played a 55-02 or 55-94 with painted on fret dot markers.

The Lakland factory specs for fret dot markers are ebony or figured maple for the US series, and inlaid plastic on the Skylines.
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I just got my 55-02 new from a a dealer, and if it is plastic, it seems like the paint has bled over to the fingerboard a bit.. although i guess they could have been painted after being put on the instrument.. additionally, it seems like it is grained like the wood around it, unless that is a brushed on finish or something..

also i think the fact that an instrument w/ a $1300-$1475 street price comes w/ a plastic nut is pretty sad.
 
#75
You've come to the Wrong forum to get an unbiased reply on your question. I know I may get criticized but this site is notoriously Lakland heavy. They make great basses.

I've tried both a Skyline 44-02 and DJ4. I've ended up selling both. Neither really did it for me. The DJ had a nice earthy jazz vibe but waaayyy to heavy. Also I remember it lacking in the low action department. The 44-2 looked great but had some nice drip marks and a few other blemishes for a $1400 bass...me no likey
 
#76
LightGroove said:
You've come to the Wrong forum to get an unbiased reply on your question. I know I may get criticized but this site is notoriously Lakland heavy. They make great basses.

I've tried both a Skyline 44-02 and DJ4. I've ended up selling both. Neither really did it for me. The DJ had a nice earthy jazz vibe but waaayyy to heavy. Also I remember it lacking in the low action department. The 44-2 looked great but had some nice drip marks and a few other blemishes for a $1400 bass...me no likey
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The DJ was too heavy? Weird...mine is just over 9 lbs. For me...it is Lakland 100%.
 
#78
LightGroove said:
You've come to the Wrong forum to get an unbiased reply on your question. I know I may get criticized but this site is notoriously Lakland heavy. They make great basses.

I've tried both a Skyline 44-02 and DJ4. I've ended up selling both. Neither really did it for me. The DJ had a nice earthy jazz vibe but waaayyy to heavy. Also I remember it lacking in the low action department. The 44-2 looked great but had some nice drip marks and a few other blemishes for a $1400 bass...me no likey
Click to expand...

Hmm, my DJ4 has very low action (after some setup work) and is fairly lightweight. I've heard that Lakland doesn't really have a lot of control over the weights of the Skyline series and it can be variable.

I'd agree that there is a strong Lakland bias on this forum. That may have contributed to my choosing a Lakland, but I'm thrilled with the bass anyway so that's good thing. From what I understand, Lakland has great customer service (never needed it myself) and would likely have tried their best to help out with the noted quality issues described here.
 
#80
There are two reasons for the Lakland positive bias:
1. They make a great instruments
2. They have superb customer service
... other than that, they are just like everyone else!! LOL>>>>>>>
 

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