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My Day at D. Lakin basses

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_jojo_bass

_jojo_bass

Supporting Member
Dec 13, 2009
478
727
Los Angeles, CA
#1
I just spent the last couple hours over at Dan Lakins spot here in Chicago. Having seen him around my restaurant and running around, I thought now would be a good time to see what he's been upto and the basses he's got on production.

FIRST OFF... Yes.... He makes a passive jazz and a passive P.... Doesn't a lot of companies do that? Yes they do. Be as skeptical as you want, but they are as fine as any other passive, classically modeled bass I've played from both USA and overseas.

Looks gorgeous. Not a nick or scratch on it (I really don't mind that kinda stuff, nor should anybody). Good clean poly gloss around the body and headstock. Oil finish behind the neck that's not overdone to the point where it's sticky. All USA hardware. Vintage reverse tuners (a little surprising, but I got use to it in a minute or so). Truss-rod wheel (best invention in the world). The P also has a 1.5" nut option. All basses are going to be strung with Pyramid Nickels (fantastic strings if you've never tried them). String through body. All of this is standard on all of Dans basses. What else do you want?!? Because it's Korean made should deter you whatsoever.

Bodies are alder on all the basses, possible soon to have an ash option. 5 string possible to come in addition to an active bass.

The colors that these basses come in are astounding.... There's almost too many. No up charge for different colors, no up charge for matching headstocks, and the only think you might owe him is a smile from a happy buyer.
...................................

Down to the nitty gritty....

The Jazz:

I'm a Jazz guy, so that's where I'm gonna start. The neck, in simple terms, is just a great feeling neck. In general. In complex terms, you can tell that there was a lot of thought into it. There are a lot of necks out there, this one in particular sat perfect in my hot giant hand and it felt right. The pickups fantastic. They have a good aggressive growl, but aren't too hot. Great slap tone. Overall a great vintage style jazz bass.

The Precision:

This is the first P bass that wanted me to be a P bass kinda guy. It was fat, it was strong, it was punchy, but the midrange wasn't overwhelming. The neck was modeled after a 63' or 64' fender P, where the back of the neck was pretty thin and flat, but not ibanez thin and flat. It has a bit more meat on in than that.

Overall:
They're fantastic basses. Construction is super solid. Colors are awesome. The price point is bonker (in a good way). I couldn't find a damn thing wrong with it.

They have officially moved to the top of my gas list.... I'm so ashamed...

I'm sure he'd be glad to answer any questions you have.Tell 'em Joe sent ya! (But actually tell him)
 
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#7
Sounds like a good day! I like that there's no charge for matching headstock or blocks. Should come with at least a poly foam case though for that money.

Waiting for a 5 to come out before judging. I'd be in for a JO5 with blocks and a matching headstock.
 
#11
Tunaman said:
Sorry Lakin... Carvin, Fender, G&L & EBMM will EASILY get the nod over $1250 import copies with less features.

Will reconsider if some innovation is proposed.

Just MY opinion, yours can differ & I wont have a problem with that
Click to expand...

The only thing they have going for them is the truss rod wheel at the heel, which is something I think every manufacturer should utilize anyway.

I have a hard time getting excited at the prospect of paying $1250 which doesn't include shipping and doesn't include a case when my G&L LB-100 was $1100 and the Carvin I just ordered was almost $1200 and both came with shipping and a case included, and I got to choose my options to varying degrees.

I also can't get excited at a Korean made bass being priced that high with Dan basically being a glorified quality control inspector. I mean it's nice having a single man making everything is good and all, but it doesn't seem worth the price.
 
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#13
Why does the country of origin matter if the quality is there?

At the end of the day, you can get what is by all accounts an excellent quality bass with Hipshot hardware and all of the features of a Fender American Standard jazz for $100 less. Except that Fender gives you a choice of 6 colours and no options for matched headstock or block inlays. D.Lakin supposedly has a much larger choice of colours, blocks and matched headstocks.

Remember, this guy is starting a new company, pretty much from the ground up. If he came along and had something completely different from anything else, it might find a few hardcore fans but not make much money and then all of his capital is gone. If he starts with something that is hugely popular with a few more options and/or a lower price point than the competitors, he has something to build a business on.
 
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#14
No, they don't have active electronics (yet) and yes they're made in Korea, but the attention to detail, the options and the quality of the workmanship is better than any Skyline, American Fender, or other 'copied' basses (as far and passive Js and Ps).

If the fact that there is no preamp as issue for you, that's coming. I didn't think much of them when I saw them at first, because there are a million companies that do that, but man.... It's really somethin else....

Talk all you want about them, but I really don't think you'll understand until you sit down with one.
 
#15
To me the country of origin matters if the bass is coming from a country that is supposed to produce a cheaper product, yet they're offering less for the money. We've been lead to believe that manufacturing a product outside of the U.S. leads to a cheaper product for the consumer and in a lot of ways, yes that's true. But for example, I just priced a Carvin PB4. Ferrari Red, Alder Body, matching headstock, white pickguard...the exact same thing you'd get from Dan, but with a hardshell case...and free shipping....for $838. I also priced a G&L LB-100 through http://www.americanguitarboutique.net/LB100BassGuitarGen.html. Same deal. Alder body, white pickguard, solid finish, matching headstock, rosewood board WITH a case...$1162. Even with shipping from the dealer, that's no more than an added $50 or so. So that brings the price up to $1212. Still less than what Dan is offering.

This matters to me because for the $1250 that Dan is charging, you are getting an instrument that is not made in this country and not made by him, but by mass produced labor. Yes Carvin & G&L are mass produced to a degree, but it's still built in this country BY the company that is selling the product. You're also getting essentially a custom instrument for that price. With Dan, you're getting a limited amount of options. The whole "ANY COLOR YOU CHOOSE!" angle doesn't excite me because in the end, it's not really THAT big of a deal. You're stuck with whatever fretboard radius he picked (which btw, he doesn't even know. At first he told me it was 7.5" radius and then he wrote me back and said it's 10", as he had to check with the factory). So he's selling a product he doesn't even know. I know it's a startup but shouldn't he at least know the basics of the product he's selling? It's not like those are specs that he hasn't worked out yet.

...and it's not as if his basses will feel substantially better than what you can get from a company in the U.S. for cheap. How can it?
 
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#16
You gotta play it... That's it. What you say may be true, but you gotta play it. Even after the fact, generally it is a well made instrument and it may not be for you, but I can say that I like and a lot of other Chicago cats dig it too.

I put this up to tell you some of the facts that I know about the basses and what I thought of them. You got both of those things. Saying that Carvin and G&L are better, doesn't make them better... You don't know exactly what you're comparing, because your just comparing words on a website.
 
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#17
Happynoj said:
Why does the country of origin matter if the quality is there?
Click to expand...

All else being equal, if my money can help a guy (say, a guitar factory worker) in California put food on his table versus helping a guy in Asia, I will choose to help the guy in California. It's better for him and it's indirectly better for me. Not having a trade deficit is (or would be) good for the whole U.S..
 
#18
fourstringdrums said:
To me the country of origin matters if the bass is coming from a country that is supposed to produce a cheaper product, yet they're offering less for the money. We've been lead to believe that manufacturing a product outside of the U.S. leads to a cheaper product for the consumer and in a lot of ways, yes that's true. But for example, I just priced a Carvin PB4. Ferrari Red, Alder Body, matching headstock, white pickguard...the exact same thing you'd get from Dan, but with a hardshell case...and free shipping....for $838. I also priced a G&L LB-100 through http://www.americanguitarboutique.net/LB100BassGuitarGen.html. Same deal. Alder body, white pickguard, solid finish, matching headstock, rosewood board WITH a case...$1162. Even with shipping from the dealer, that's no more than an added $50 or so. So that brings the price up to $1212. Still less than what Dan is offering.

This matters to me because for the $1250 that Dan is charging, you are getting an instrument that is not made in this country and not made by him, but by mass produced labor. Yes Carvin & G&L are mass produced to a degree, but it's still built in this country BY the company that is selling the product. You're also getting essentially a custom instrument for that price. With Dan, you're getting a limited amount of options. The whole "ANY COLOR YOU CHOOSE!" angle doesn't excite me because in the end, it's not really THAT big of a deal. You're stuck with whatever fretboard radius he picked (which btw, he doesn't even know. At first he told me it was 7.5" radius and then he wrote me back and said it's 10", as he had to check with the factory). So he's selling a product he doesn't even know. I know it's a startup but shouldn't he at least know the basics of the product he's selling? It's not like those are specs that he hasn't worked out yet.

...and it's not as if his basses will feel substantially better than what you can get from a company in the U.S. for cheap. How can it?
Click to expand...
Couple points here.
*With the D. Lakin Glaub, there's a choice of 1.5" or 1.75" nut width. At G&L, there's a $50 upcharge for the other neck options.
*Blocks and binding are an option. (Currently no charge, although this may change.) Not so with G&L, correct?
*The wide range of color options is worth it for some folks, even if it isn't for others.
*All but one of the Lakins I picked up this past Sunday were clearly under 9 lbs. by my reckoning. A sub-9 lb. G&L is the proverbial needle in a haystack. Again, maybe not a big deal for some players, but a pretty big deal for others.
*The Lakin basses have graphite rods in the neck--I know some vintage purists balk at that, but they do provide added stability. Not sure if G&L has that.
 
#19
_jojo_bass said:
You gotta play it... That's it. What you say may be true, but you gotta play it. Even after the fact, generally it is a well made instrument and it may not be for you, but I can say that I like and a lot of other Chicago cats dig it too.

I put this up to tell you some of the facts that I know about the basses and what I thought of them. You got both of those things. Saying that Carvin and G&L are better, doesn't make them better... You don't know exactly what you're comparing, because your just comparing words on a website.
Click to expand...
Yea but what are the 'facts'?. These are your opinions but the likelihood is that a U.S. built Fender will be worth more on the used market than a Korean Lakin bass imo and that is crucial. These Lakin basses just give me nothing to get excited about. Yet another Fender clone from what I can see.
 
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#20
I wonder if more people will be happier if Dan instead of manufacturing his basses in Korea decided to buy parts from warmoth , USAG or any other parts supplier, paid somebody to paint the bodies, do the assembly in his office and charge $ 2,500 for a ''boutique'' bass, just like many other builders do, I am sure that at the end of the day Dan will deliver the same quality but people will feel they got a better bass just because the price they paid.
 
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