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Lakland Owners Group #52

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#121
ModuMan said:
I just got back from Chicago (it's my kind of town) and a visit to Bass Club Chicago's new location.

The bad: there's some sort of electrical (or something) issue in the store as every bass with one exception buzzed like mad when you solo'd a pickup. Hopefully they can work that out and even more hopefully set up a demo room. It gets pretty noisy with even two people trying stuff out.

As for the AJ's, I tried a Skyline 5 and a US 4.

The Skyline 5 has no active/passive switch. I thought the B had pretty decent tension, better than a US JO5 I also tried. The EQ was far broader than the video posted a few pages back might indicate. The buzzing made it impossible to get a good idea of each pickup though. The neck, like any other Lakland 5, was very comfy.

Does the Skyline have a fotoflame finish? It looks "okay" but not quite convincing, especially next to the US.

The US was another animal. First, no buzzing! I assume each pickup is hum-canceling on its own? There is an active/passive switch. There's plenty of low end. I liked this bass a lot.

Truth be told though, the one I wanted to walk out with was a US passive JO4. It felt great, sounded awesome.

Not exactly an in-depth review but I was doing my best to work quickly and try as much as I could. I don't think you'll go wrong with a Skyline but the US still has the edge in my opinion. They are big-sounding, no doubt about that.
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Split hum cancelling pickups on the US AJ...straight singles on the Skyline. No fotoflame....it's a real top.
 
#126
Holdsg said:
We must have been in the shop roughly the same day, I just got back as well. I didn't notice the hum issue, were you playing thru the Aggie? I played at least 3 of the same basses you did, the AJ4, the AJ5 and the JO4CS. I agree with your reviews. My favorite, as yours, was that JO4 with the chi-sonics and stacked pots. What a light, comfy, perfect bass. Some one please buy that before I do something I'll regret.
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I was there on Monday, and I did indeed play through the Aggie. First we tried the ground lift but it made no difference. We ended up using another rig but along the same wall (different cables as well) with the same results. The buzzing was so fierce you could actually control it by tilting the bass forwards or backwards. So if you slouch back far enough... well, it was still rough.

I did ask the price on the JO4 and after playing stuff like the Fodera it seemed like a bargain! What a sweet bass.


MarkusBass said:
Split hum cancelling pickups on the US AJ...straight singles on the Skyline. No fotoflame....it's a real top.
Click to expand...

Interesting about the top. I think if it is a veneer it might explain why it didn't look as appealing. There wasn't any depth to the flame lines whereas the US looked, well, much better.

I was kind of surprised that there was a difference in electronics. It definitely made a difference under those conditions.
 
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