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Lakland Owners Group #69

#3,221
Settling in for 20-30" inches of snow here on Long Island. Trying to decide which of these two is getting Chi Buckers. The shorty has the original Chi singles. Markus' old MST/Rootbeer long scale has the Vintage Alnico Chi singles. I just traded a Glaub for it a couple of weeks ago. They sound similar in a general way yet very different too. I put the same Daddario XL nickels on each to compare. At first I didn't really like the Vintage Chis. They seemed anemic compared to the originals. But the pickups had been really screwed down and were too far from the strings. Now I'm really liking them. I'd say they are more articulate than the originals. They have a piano like clarity when not digging in that is really great. And they bark a little brighter. The originals are a bit darker, woolier and fuller. I'm sure the scale difference has something to do with this. Anyway right now I'm leaning towards putting humbuckers in the shorty. Initially I thought it'd be the other way around, but that booming clear piano tone has its hooks in me. The neck pup on the long scale is also a good 1/2" further away from the neck than on the short scale. I have never actually heard the Chi buckers but want to make these two more tonally different. Anyone with experience with the buckers feel free to voice an opinion.

_DSF2858_zps37608ea4.gif
 
#3,222
Bill, I had a Skyline Decade with the 'buckers and a passive tone stack. They sounded enormous, which can of course be a good and bad thing. My concern with putting them in the shorty is that the resulting sound might be *too* tubby.

On a related note, I had a push-pull on the volume knob on that bass so I could nominally switch into single-coil mode. However, the sound was thinner and less ballsy than the actual single-coil Chis. I then understood why the original run of Skyline Decades (made for the Dudepit) came either with singles, or with buckers and a preamp.
 
#3,224
ShowKing said:
I'm just considering some mods for a future Skyline purchase..

Has anyone changed their Skyline licensed tuners for Hipshot US tuners?
I assume this would require some drilling to make up for any size differences?

Also what's the best way to black out a Lakland bridge?
Click to expand...

Call Hipshot on both counts. They'll black out your bridge and can answer your tuning machine questions.
 
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#3,225
GregC said:
Bill, I had a Skyline Decade with the 'buckers and a passive tone stack. They sounded enormous, which can of course be a good and bad thing. My concern with putting them in the shorty is that the resulting sound might be *too* tubby.

On a related note, I had a push-pull on the volume knob on that bass so I could nominally switch into single-coil mode. However, the sound was thinner and less ballsy than the actual single-coil Chis. I then understood why the original run of Skyline Decades (made for the Dudepit) came either with singles, or with buckers and a preamp.
Click to expand...

Thanks Greg. I'm definitely not going to go with a coil tap. Ive heard that a lot, that the tapped Buckers are not as ballsy as the straight singles. I might just have to try the buckers in both to see which i like better. I spent most of the day playing through my walkAbout as it has been neglected since I got the Reeves. It sounds great through the Reeves sealed 410. Through that set up I was really favoring The long scale with vintage singles. It was just more articulate and punchy. I just spent the past half hour or so playing both through the Reeves. Both sounded absolutely amazing just different. The shorty was a bit warmer and less bright but had plenty of articulation and punch. Both fantastic just different.
 
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#3,226
saltymonkey said:
Settling in for 20-30" inches of snow here on Long Island. Trying to decide which of these two is getting Chi Buckers. The shorty has the original Chi singles. Markus' old MST/Rootbeer long scale has the Vintage Alnico Chi singles. I just traded a Glaub for it a couple of weeks ago. They sound similar in a general way yet very different too. I put the same Daddario XL nickels on each to compare. At first I didn't really like the Vintage Chis. They seemed anemic compared to the originals. But the pickups had been really screwed down and were too far from the strings. Now I'm really liking them. I'd say they are more articulate than the originals. They have a piano like clarity when not digging in that is really great. And they bark a little brighter. The originals are a bit darker, woolier and fuller. I'm sure the scale difference has something to do with this. Anyway right now I'm leaning towards putting humbuckers in the shorty. Initially I thought it'd be the other way around, but that booming clear piano tone has its hooks in me. The neck pup on the long scale is also a good 1/2" further away from the neck than on the short scale. I have never actually heard the Chi buckers but want to make these two more tonally different. Anyone with experience with the buckers feel free to voice an opinion.

_DSF2858_zps37608ea4.gif
Click to expand...

First of all, those are two absolutely gorgeous decades! Secondly, are the two bodies of the decade the same size? I always assumed they were shaped differently, but if I could place a short scale neck onto the body of a skyline decade, that would be incredibly tempting.
 
#3,227
birdman14 said:
First of all, those are two absolutely gorgeous decades! Secondly, are the two bodies of the decade the same size? I always assumed they were shaped differently, but if I could place a short scale neck onto the body of a skyline decade, that would be incredibly tempting.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Yes they are the same size. You'd have to move the bridge but sure. I don't think US and Skyline neck pockets are the same though. I had a HB like that for a short while. Skyline body, US SS neck.
 
#3,229
ShowKing said:
I'm just considering some mods for a future Skyline purchase..

Has anyone changed their Skyline licensed tuners for Hipshot US tuners?
I assume this would require some drilling to make up for any size differences?

Also what's the best way to black out a Lakland bridge?
Click to expand...

I replaced tuners in my 55-02 with US ones. No drilling. I just needed to buy a different set of ferrules and replace those in US tuners. Bestbassgear sells them.
 
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#3,237
lomo said:
So that's where my Walkabout and custom headcase ended up :) Glad it found a good home....looks like the perfect li'l bro to Reeves!
Click to expand...

It truly is. I could play through either and be really happy with my tone but the Reeves is something special, always smile inducing. Huge warm clean tube tone. I bought your WalkAbout from the guy you sold it to who later tried to buy it back. This is my second one so I knew I'd miss it. Plus as you say it's a perfect back up to the Reeves and easy to get a similar tone if you don't feel like carrying the big head.
 
#3,239
Just to pile on with some more Lakie Love, just got back my #1, the modded to h*ll and back Scheff. Carl Pedigo worked on it. He replaced a bad volume pot and also replaced a Nordie NP4 with a Hanson Vintage P. I just love the Nordie, but it left me feeling a little flat tone-wise. The Hanson works better with the weird pickup configuration. Hanson as a little more "air" to it, if that makes sense. Sounds killer soloed! And SUPER killer when mixed 50/50 with the bridge pickup. IMO, YMMV, etc etc.

Anyway, Carl did a superdy-duperdy good job. Bass plays like the proverbial buttah and sounds terrific. It now sports all Hanson pickups and electronics. Pre is a custom LH3 with two blends.

I talked to Carl when the bass was going to be next up on his bench. What a nice guy! We talked and BSed for a while about pickups and tone and the Lakland company in general. I've had the pleasure of interacting with Dan Lakin and the current owners and now Carl. All my experiences have led me to these conclusions: A) Man, these guys really care about their product! B) And I've got to start saving my pennies for 44-14!!
 

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