This bass just screams neck-dive to me. My JO has a bit of dive to it, and these have shorter upper horns. Anyone here with any experience on this bass?
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This bass just screams neck-dive to me. My JO has a bit of dive to it, and these have shorter upper horns. Anyone here with any experience on this bass?
Nope...only a few...very few 4 string versions out there.
.....and no US DJ fivers in the near future.....dunno why
Upper strap button is very near the 12th fret which should equate to zero neck dive, especially if straploks are used which extend the contact point out another half inch or so. Of course a light body and heavy neck would change everything.
I saw this bass over on the LOG and the upper button is well below the 12th fret, even with a straplock. This view is a 3/4 view looking down, of sorts, so it looks closer to the 12th fret than it is. I never understood why manufacturers don't offset the bottom button slightly. My Roscoe was like that and it was perfectly balanced. Either way, it's gorgeous...
My guesses are that there is currently no specific agreement in place with Darryl for royalties on a US made bass, and the imports are selling well, and the USA shop is rolling near its' (small) capacity and in the black so if nothing's broke, don't fix......
I've had my 55-14 for almost a month now. It's been on several gigs with me already, and I've spent a lot of time with it at home. So I'll give my impressions, now that I've established more credibility with the bass...
My 55-14 is my first and only Lakland, and I really like this bass a lot. The feel and ease of playability is practically flawless. It's not too heavy either, which helps with the playability. It's obvious that this bass is a very high-quality instrument, that was built to extremely high standards.
I put D'Addario Nickel XL's on it when I first got the bass. I liked the tone for the most part, but thought it was just a little too bright and mid-forward for my tastes. However, now that the strings have had time to mellow out a bit, the tone is right where I want it. The alder/rosewood combo already gives the bass a push in the mids, so the strings mellowing out a little has given it just the right balance of aggressiveness and smoothness. The tone is right in the sweet spot for me. I also just ordered some DR Sunbeams to try on it.
I'm amazed at how versatile this bass is. The combination of the MM and Jazz pickups, plus the EQ and coil switch give it such a wide range of sounds to choose from. Everyone always raves about how good Lakland necks are, and how good their low-B string sounds. I've found that to be 100% accurate on both accounts. The neck on this bass feels amazing, and the low-B string is so thick and full sounding.
I've been playing passive Jazz and Precision basses for years, so it's taking a little adjusting for me to get used to the hot active output of my 55-14. On my Jazz or P bass, I can dig in when I need to, and it doesn't really overdrive or distort. On the 55-14, it really boosts the signal when I dig in, sometimes overdriving the gain on my amp or in the house. This is no big deal... It's just a matter of me getting used to this bass, and approaching it a little differently than my passive Jazz and P bass.
I'm loving my 55-14 so far. I still use my Jazz and P bass as well, but this Lakland really hits the mark for the applications in which I need a 5-string.
My 55-14 is my first and only Lakland, and I really like this bass a lot. The feel and ease of playability is practically flawless. It's not too heavy either, which helps with the playability. It's obvious that this bass is a very high-quality instrument, that was built to extremely high standards.
I put D'Addario Nickel XL's on it when I first got the bass. I liked the tone for the most part, but thought it was just a little too bright and mid-forward for my tastes. However, now that the strings have had time to mellow out a bit, the tone is right where I want it. The alder/rosewood combo already gives the bass a push in the mids, so the strings mellowing out a little has given it just the right balance of aggressiveness and smoothness. The tone is right in the sweet spot for me. I also just ordered some DR Sunbeams to try on it.
I'm amazed at how versatile this bass is. The combination of the MM and Jazz pickups, plus the EQ and coil switch give it such a wide range of sounds to choose from. Everyone always raves about how good Lakland necks are, and how good their low-B string sounds. I've found that to be 100% accurate on both accounts. The neck on this bass feels amazing, and the low-B string is so thick and full sounding.
I've been playing passive Jazz and Precision basses for years, so it's taking a little adjusting for me to get used to the hot active output of my 55-14. On my Jazz or P bass, I can dig in when I need to, and it doesn't really overdrive or distort. On the 55-14, it really boosts the signal when I dig in, sometimes overdriving the gain on my amp or in the house. This is no big deal... It's just a matter of me getting used to this bass, and approaching it a little differently than my passive Jazz and P bass.
I'm loving my 55-14 so far. I still use my Jazz and P bass as well, but this Lakland really hits the mark for the applications in which I need a 5-string.
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Nice review! Have you tried pulling up on the volume pot to switch into passive mode? If the output is a little too low, you can adjust a tiny trim pot on the LH3 to boost it a little.
I've played it in passive mode some. I really like the tone, but miss having the EQ adjustments of the active mode. I haven't explored the trim pot yet, though.
Might be something to try out.
The only pedal I use is a compressor, use very little compression and I've never had issues with the output being overdriven even when I dig in.
The only pedal I use is a compressor, use very little compression and I've never had issues with the output being overdriven even when I dig in.
They matched better than I thought. This bass is a tonal beast with the Nordstrand Big Splits and the Nordstrand pre. Gonna take me a while to get used to the different combinations.
Awesome, it's almost like they're see-through little portholes or lenses magnifying the finish underneath 
That looks really good. I need to try the Big Splits one day.
On another note, I'm convinced that there is something wrong with me. I'm down to three basses and one cab and I'm considering putting another bass on the block. Maybe I need to stop freebasing Oreo's...
You only 'need' one bass, but that said - think before you leap
Agreed, I've bonded with my 55-02D and Duck Dunn in that special way. I'm still considering selling a recent acquisition from another company simply because I have taken my self out of the game locally and have no need for a large herd. However, as funny as it sounds, I like the idea a several totally black basses. Maybe you have influenced me, maybe I've listened to the Cure too much lately, who knows.
I'm nearly down to one bass, I have one cab and one amp, and a small assortment of pedals: It's not a bad thing. I spent a lot of energy trading gear only to come back to a passive 4 string jazz and a sealed cab setup.
I want to try other gear but I'm trying to make myself focus more on the music and less on the gear.
outstanding. I really liked that pickup/pre combination in the spalted maple 55-01 I had for a while. And I love the knobs because I like unique things.
My little minions? Yes, they do keep me company. Although, I'm down to four, was at three for a while, but since I mostly do recording and composition these days, it's nice to have a few variations. Oh, lest I forget - black is not a phase
