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Lakland 5501 vs Yamaha TRB1006

A

Amirault

Oct 12, 2007
13
0
43
#1
Hey everyone.I've finally narrowed down my search for a new 5 or 6 string bass and it comes down to these 2 basses.I've been eyeing up the TRB1006 for a long time now and finally Yamaha has lowered the prices considerably in Canada from the strong dollar.Since I can get the Yamaha at cost from work I'm leaning towards it but hearing so many good things about Lakland basses recently I'd like to know what are the major differences between these 2 basses?

For all the TRB1006 owners out there,can anyone give me measurements of the width at the nut and last fret in mm and how different is this neck compared to an Ibanez SR506?Also how is the output of the Yamaha compared to the Lakland with both basses set flat?I much prefer higher output.I tried an Ibanez SR506 and loved the neck but hated the tone which is another thing I'm wondering how close does the SR506 sound to the 5501?Both use the MK1 Bart pickups and I found the SR506 was too loose/muddy on the low end and harsh weak sounding on the high end with bad string balance and low overall output.

Although I'm pretty set on these 2 basses,the only other basses I'd consider are the Lakland JO,Lakland DJ and MTD Z6 even though they are slightly above my budget.Any advice on these basses would be appreciated.
 
#2
I've never had the pleasure of playing any Lakland basses however I do own a TRB1006. It is the single nicest bass I've ever played. The output is very high, but not so high that it'll destroy things:p The neck is surprisingly thin and very fast. I haven't played the Ibanez you asked for a comparison though so I can't comment on that.

As far as measurements go, at the nut, it is about 45mm, at the last fret it's 75mm.

The only thing I don't like about this bass is that if you boost the treble too much, there is quite a lot of hiss. However, in most cases the treble won't need to be high enough to cause this.

As I'm sure you could expect, the best advice I can give is to try out both and see which feels best to you.
 
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#3
That's good to hear about the output I play with a pretty light touch so good action and high output really helps me out seeing as guitar is my primary instrument so my right hand fingers still need to work up strength.I'm sure you meant 45mm and 75mm otherwise that would be quite a neck! :smug: haha

Although I appreciate the help I still think that's not quite right and seems too thin as it seems to me I read somewhere that the Yamaha TRB1005 is 43mm and 76mm and I know the Ibanez SR506 is among the smallest 6 string necks out there with 54mm and 83mm according to the official site.If you or anyone else could measure it quick with a ruler that would be super.

When you say a hiss if I was playing at the same time with the treble pretty high would I hear it?Does anyone else who owns this bass have the same problem?And before I forget I read some people have problems with battery life how long should I expect a good Duracell/Energizer to last?
 
#4
Ha yeah that is what I meant. I just measured again...at the nut, closer to 50mm and at the 24th fret, 85mm. Must have just read the thing wrong.

As far as battery life goes, the battery that came with mine lasted a good 2 or 3 months of regular use. I played it maybe 3-4 hours a day, 2 days a week it was plugged in for 3 hours straight on top of the usual due to band practises. I changed it almost a year ago and have only just recently had to change it. Not even out of necessity, I just had a gig coming up and was a bit wary on how much longer the battery would last.

As for the hissing, when playing it's really not noticable at all. Just when you stop playing for the most part.
 
#5
Great thanks alot seems like the neck is pretty manageable then at that size.Having only briefly tried an Ibanez SR506 and BTB1206 Prestige for sixes I wouldn't want the neck to be much bigger then those.I'll have to get used to the tighter spacing but I can live with that since I don't do any slap.Glad to hear about the battery lasting plenty long too.

I got pretty much all the information I wanted to know about the Yamaha TRB1006 so has anyone done a direct comparison between the Lakland 5501 and the Yamaha?
 
#7
I think the Lakland sounds better than the similarly equipped Ibanez basses I've tried--although it might just be that I spent more time with the Lakland and was able to dial the sound in a little more.

The TRB is an excellent bass, but I couldn't get over the tight string spacing. I mainly play a Peavey Cirrus (pretty tight string spacing) and I was still really uncomfortable on the TRB.
 
#9
Well guys I couldn't stand it anymore I've been debating dozens of 5 or 6 strings for months now so I finally went ahead and ordered the TRB1006!

Although I'm sure the Lakland is a great bass I'd much rather order it locally where I work incase something ever goes wrong,the great deal I get obviously and I didn't want to get a 5 string just to find out I really wanted a 6 string.If worse comes to worse I can always return it or sell it and order the Lakland instead but I'm sure it will be great I've always been impressed by the quality of all Yamaha products.

Once I get it I'll let everyone know what I think about the bass. :D
 
#10
Man I can't believe I waited this long to get the Yamaha TRB bass because I had some high expectations and many worries about the neck and other things but all that was quickly gone as soon as I put my hands on the bass I'm VERY impressed so far with this bass,I can't believe I doubted Yamaha! :smug:

The neck is very thin and so comfortable I like it even more then the Ibanez necks I tried and the action is ridiculously low it played like a dream right out of the box.The output of the bass is very hot I love it and the EQ section is very powerful,especially the bass knob(maybe even a little too powerful :D ).The mid knob sounds fantastic when boosted and the treble knob is not as dramatic as the other knobs and needs to be boosted much more to be noticed but I don't play slap so I doubt I'll ever use it.The string balance is very good and the string spacing is quite comfortable although it will take some getting used to.Also I'm glad the hum from boosting the treble full is barely audible and the only other time there is a very slight hum is soloing either of the pickups fully.

Overall the quality and feel is great with the neck fitting in the pocket tightly,fantastic looking top and no blemishes that I could see.I couldn't be happier with this bass!
 
#11
Amirault said:
Man I can't believe I waited this long to get the Yamaha TRB bass because I had some high expectations and many worries about the neck and other things but all that was quickly gone as soon as I put my hands on the bass I'm VERY impressed so far with this bass,I can't believe I doubted Yamaha! :smug:

The neck is very thin and so comfortable I like it even more then the Ibanez necks I tried and the action is ridiculously low it played like a dream right out of the box.The output of the bass is very hot I love it and the EQ section is very powerful,especially the bass knob(maybe even a little too powerful :D ).The mid knob sounds fantastic when boosted and the treble knob is not as dramatic as the other knobs and needs to be boosted much more to be noticed but I don't play slap so I doubt I'll ever use it.The string balance is very good and the string spacing is quite comfortable although it will take some getting used to.Also I'm glad the hum from boosting the treble full is barely audible and the only other time there is a very slight hum is soloing either of the pickups fully.

Overall the quality and feel is great with the neck fitting in the pocket tightly,fantastic looking top and no blemishes that I could see.I couldn't be happier with this bass!
Click to expand...

Kudos to your new purchase. What is the story with the string spacing? From pictures I've seen, Yamaha uses a pretty wide fret board. However, some TB'ers have stated that Yamaha's TRB has tighter string spacing. Maybe the fact that they use two truss rods makes it seem wider?

I've never considered a six string, until recently when messing with a Schecter Stiletto Studio Six at Guitar Center. I usually shy away from this company, because Schecter seems like a "guitarist" company. It had a nice action and a good growl, but I felt the small string spacing would be an issue. In my mind, looking at the Yamaha, there seems to be more room to work with the TRB fret board. Am I off base?

Are there any other six strings that I should look at in the price range of the Schecter and the Yamaha?
 
#13
Sorry to hear you still haven't got yours I was very lucky it was the only TRB1006 natural in Canada at the time I ordered it and it was in Vancouver and I got it in 5 days in Nova Scotia.

When I seen the pictures I thought it would be very wide too but I was surprised once I got it.The fingerboard is fairly narrow at the nut but it gets quite wide right at the end which I think makes it look much wider then it is because of that difference from looking at the nut compared to the 24th fret.I thought it was still very manageable because of the neck being so thin and the 40" radius which makes it quite flat.The action on mine is so low it makes it a breeze to play too.I can't compare to the Schecter unfortunately but I believe the Schecter is 16.5mm and the Yamaha is around 17mm which isn't a huge difference so it maybe a little too tight still for you.I believe the Ibanez BTB series has 17mm spacing so I would try to play on one of those to see how it feels.Another option is an Ibanez SR506.Although I did not like the tone at all,I was quite impressed with the smaller neck and playability but the spacing is 16.5mm which is tight.

For me the left hand was what I thought would be the difficult part to adjust to but so far it's been a total pleasure to play.It's definitely the right hand which will take getting used to,especially if you made the jump from a 4 string.
The string spacing is a little tight though and will take some getting used to I notice I get some ringing open notes especially when skipping multiple strings so I'm going to have to work on my right hand technique.I think I will enjoy the tight spacing once I get used to not hitting open notes because it seems a little easier to do fast runs and leads with less hand movement needed from string to string especially since I play quite softly.It all depends if your willing to learn and adjust to playing on tight spacing or not.

If you play slap it could take alot of practice to not hit the other strings so precise technique would be very important.Also the tone of the bass is overall on the warmer side and while you can get a decent slap tone,there might be better options out there tone-wise.If I was a slap player I would probably want wider spacing although again with proper practice I'm sure it could be managed.

Being a guitarist primarily I've played some Schecter guitars and while they looked nice and all,I was a little let down by the overall quality and feel of the instrument.This may not be the case on their basses though.

Other basses to try would be the Spector Legend 6,MTD Z6,Dean Edge 6,Peavey BXP 6 and the new Ibanez SR706.Only the MTD will have close to full spacing with 18mm.If you dont mind used,the older Yamaha TRB6 and TRB6II have wide necks and full 19mm spacing.Another choice would be a used Warwick Corvette 6(16.5mm or 20mm wide spacing) or a Peavey Cirrus 6 although this has tighter spacing(17.5mm).
 

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