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Latest D Lakin bass

jazz Bass 74

jazz Bass 74

Mar 24, 2011
646
1,259
New Orleans, LA
#1
First, let me make it clear I'm not shilling for D. Lakin, nor do I have any association with the Ambassador program, but I think Dan's latest creation, which I saw for the first time in an ad in this month's Bass Player, looks pretty cool. Dan started out as a dealer in vintage Stingrays, and this one looks like it captures some of the original 1976 Stingray vibe.

image.jpg
 
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#3
I just got my issue of BP in the mail and saw this pic - my first thought - it looks silly - like a bad copy of a MM Stingray and that headstock is just not good. Yeah, and the MM pickup is way too close to the bridge. If I wanted this configuration, I'd just add a J pup to a Stingray. I have no interest in anything DL is doing lately - correction, was never interested in the Lakland basses. I never liked the smaller lower horn on his original basses, which were also copies of the Stingray with the added J pup - whoop-de-freakin' do. IMO of course.
 
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#4
Unfortunately, I agree that it just doesn't look right. To me it looks as though parts were taken from 3 different basses.

I believe that if people didn't know the DL headstock, and the name wasn't on it, it would be accused of being a bad copy.

Also, IMO.
 
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#5
I'm a big fan of Dan's designs, and It makes perfect sense that he'd do an active MM/J in his new company but this variation does not impress me at all

The pickguard seems like an afterthought and nothing about any bass with an MM style bridge humbucker arrangement has ever suggested to me that it should be moved even closer to the bridge. I do like the metal control cover, but the mismatched knobs (maybe just the prototype?) are the kind of thing that looks cool on a players own bass, but ridiculous on a production instrument.

Does BP say what the electronics are? All the [This invalid link has been removed] is that' its a 2 band.
 
#8
Eilif said:
I'm a big fan of Dan's designs, and It makes perfect sense that he'd do an active MM/J in his new company but this variation does not impress me at all

The pickguard seems like an afterthought and nothing about any bass with an MM style bridge humbucker arrangement has ever suggested to me that it should be moved even closer to the bridge. I do like the metal control cover, but the mismatched knobs (maybe just the prototype?) are the kind of thing that looks cool on a players own bass, but ridiculous on a production instrument.

Does BP say what the electronics are? All the [This invalid link has been removed] is that' its a 2 band.
Click to expand...

I assume the lower knobs are a tribute to the legendary "radio knobs" used on the earliest Stingrays, like the one in the famous 76 ad. But I agree, using two different style of knobs on the same bass looks weird.

image.jpg
 
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#9
jazz Bass 74 said:
I assume the lower knobs are a tribute to the legendary "radio knobs" used on the earliest Stingrays, like the one in the famous 76 ad. But I agree, using two different style of knobs on the same bass looks weird.
Click to expand...

Good to know. I wonder why he didn't stick with one type, especially since he's got two different kinds of each type on there. I'm not sure I've seen any basses -possibly excepting some early Alembics- that had 4 different knobs on a single instrument.
 
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#12


This is a taste of the tone. The humbucker sounds a lot like a heavy Jazz bridge pickup to my ears. I would like to hear it slapped. I would prefer a Stingray tone with a Jazz pickup adding instead some sort of thick Jazz tone.

I would favor moving the humbucker about 1/2" closer to the neck.
 
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#13
Thanks for that.
Not bad, but not for me. I wasn't impressed with the J tone. I have to say that the idea of a P in the mid position sounds pretty intriguing though. For some reason I think that would better balance out the more bridge-ed MM pup.

Looks like they got the knob situation a bit more sorted though. Now if they can just do something about that pick-shaped pickguard...
 
#14
Eilif said:
Thanks for that.
Not bad, but not for me. I wasn't impressed with the J tone. I have to say that the idea of a P in the mid position sounds pretty intriguing though. For some reason I think that would better balance out the more bridge-ed MM pup.

Looks like they got the knob situation a bit more sorted though. Now if they can just do something about that pick-shaped pickguard...
Click to expand...

I was not impressed with the humbucker tone. I think Lakin could make some noise if he went for the true Stingray sound. As it is, a 55-94 would be more versatile.
 
#16
jazz Bass 74 said:
First, let me make it clear I'm not shilling for D. Lakin, nor do I have any association with the Ambassador program, but I think Dan's latest creation, which I saw for the first time in an ad in this month's Bass Player, looks pretty cool. Dan started out as a dealer in vintage Stingrays, and this one looks like it captures some of the original 1976 Stingray vibe.

View attachment 713905
Click to expand...
Neat design, but that control plate & PG is hideous!
 
#19
Of all the new Lakin stuff, that one looks the most interesting. It's way better than another plain ol' P or J clone. I do wish he'd look to the future, though, rather than trying to regurgitate the past. He's clearly got talent as a designer but you wonder, with a lot of this stuff, why anyone would choose these over proven similar designs already in existence.
 
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