• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

LB-100 vs. SB-2

Willem

Willem

Dec 26, 2005
2,055
11
Belgium
www.myspace.com
#1
Are they comparable?

Do they have the same neck?
Is the SB like an LB but with an extra pickup and a 'vol bridge pup' instead of a 'tone' knob?
Will the SB2, with vol neck at 10 and vol bridge at 0, sound the same as the LB 100 with tone at ..?

I want to know because I'm really interested in an SB2, but have more chance to try out an LB100...

Thanx people!
 
#2
IIRC, SB-2 uses a different p'up than the LB-100 does. LB is more of a traditional P-bass pickup.

LB neck is more P-bass as well. SB-2 is a Jazz profile. I love it!

SB-2 is a super-versatile bass. The pickups are both on the bright-side of the tonal spectrum, but the neck can be darkened a bit just by turning its volume down a bit.
 
#4
The SB-2 uses an MFD pickup. Nothing except another MFD equipped bass will give you a clue what an MFD will sound like.

Want to hear an SB-2 with flats....

Aces High....

My buddy Wanda plays in The Iron Maidens and everything she does with them is using an SB-2.

Invalid Link Removed

An MFD has more clarity and response than a typical P style pup. It can be very aggressive with far less effort.

Jim
 
#6
sunbeast said:
Shes got awesome tone- not that clickiness that Steve Harris has, but maybe better! Shes also got that 3- finger gallop down pretty well, much better than me........(phone number please):p

Karl Zickrick
Click to expand...

Steve himself only uses 2 fingers and Wanda does as well. I've discussed it a bit with her and Mike Kenney, Steve's bass tech, 2 fingers only. :eek:

She is also the principal bassist in a So Cal symphony. I helped her build a new rig but I'm not worthy to tune her bass. She is a hell of a player.

Jim
 
#7
I have no doubt the MFD split-coil sounds very different from a traditional P-bass, but how does it behave if you add a tone control? How much closer to a traditional P does it sound with a little treble rolled off? I still haven't scratched my years old P/J itch, and the SB-2 is on the radar for sure.
 
#8
Does he use the pointer and index fingers then? The way he holds his hand over the strings its hard to tell, it always looks like hes hardly playing but he'll be shooting off some super fast riff....I always assumed he did normal two finger alternating with the pointer and index and then threw in the middle finger on the galloping triplets parts- I thought I'd read that somewhere as well...

Either way, your friend is a great player no doubt! I wouldn't have the guts to do a whole set trying to play like Steve Harris!

Karl Zickrick
 
#9
Nedmundo said:
I have no doubt the MFD split-coil sounds very different from a traditional P-bass, but how does it behave if you add a tone control? How much closer to a traditional P does it sound with a little treble rolled off? I still haven't scratched my years old P/J itch, and the SB-2 is on the radar for sure.
Click to expand...

To be frank it has been about 2 years or more since I plugged in my P bass.
The SB-1 I have the tone really pulls a ton of treble out of it to tame the thing down.

Does he use the pointer and index fingers then? I always assumed he did normal two finger alternating with the pointer and index and then threw in the middle finger on the galloping triplets parts- I thought I'd read that somewhere as well...

Either way, your friend is a great player no doubt! I wouldn't have the guts to do a whole set trying to play like Steve Harris!
Click to expand...

I thought so as well but in the Bass Player article he says 2 fingers unless chording. I debated Wanda a bit on that but she was adamant 2 fingers only and that is what she does also.

Her and her bandmates have a lot of skill and nerve to get up and take on a full Maiden set. I first went to see them to hear the SB-2 in action and was blown away by the energy and life they put into the performance. I have been singing their praises since. All of them are outstanding!

Jim
 
#11
Willem said:
I like the girls tone a lot!

About the MFD pickups... I could easily check out an L2000, how should I set the controls of that bass to get an SB2 like sound?
Click to expand...

I'll tinker with mine and see what is closest to the neck pickup sound.

It will not be 100% but bear in mind the clarity and low end of the 2K will be similar on the SB-2.

Wanda just uses the neck pickup alone FWIW.

Jim
 
#15
Wow, that seems like WAY too much work - and I don't know how the end result would sound since G & L doesn't make those pickups in a 5 version. Plus the routing work to install the 5 bridge, and adding another tuner on the headstock??

I'll stick with the L2500 til they make one.... ;)
 
#18
I have both an SB2 and an LB 100. The depth of the necks are the same on mine because both sport the same 1-3/4 nut width. They are the same necks.

I slapped a tone control on my SB because it was too bright and snotty sounding for my liking.

The LB imo does not have as thick and meaty a sound as a Fender P. That's not to say it sounds bad or inferior. It's just a different sound.

I wish G&L would bring the LB100 back to production!
 
#19
I don't know if you can duplicate the exact sound of the split MFD with the soapbar MFD. They sound different to my ears.

As much as I love the L-1000, I like the splitters even more. Tried a lot of the P-type pups, but the MFD is in a league of its own.
 
#20
Willem said:
Anyone ever bought an SB2 with #10 neck and made it a five string? Or is this just a bad idea?
Click to expand...

probably a bad idea.

you'll get a much better bass for less money and time by getting one that is designed to be a 5'er.

The L-2500 is what you need. I have 2 of them, fretted & fretless and they're really well-balanced instruments. Don't be afraid of the Tributes...they are good players and you can probably get one for less than an SB-2.

hth.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back