NBD - MTD Kingston LK4 32" scale. Just got this yesterday. "B" stock at a great price! Here are some pics and thoughts:
I don't know why it was "B" stock. I suspect it was the finish flaw on the back of the body (see pic), although the back contour seems a bit, well, angular (see pic). Being a bolt-on neck, I'd have thought they'd just swap the neck onto a nicer body, as the neck is great! Awesome fretwork! 2 octaves. Each fret is rounded at the end and there are no sharp ends. I wonder if it was made where my Firefly double-neck was made. That's the only other recent instrument I've see with that sort of fretwork. Perfect (for me) relief. The action was a bit too low (!) for me, but not unplayable, and I'm kinda fond of low action! There is a neck/headstock joint that's pretty odd (see pic), I've only seen one other in that location, on a BC Rich Mockingbird I had in the '80's. The battery compartment is NOT a quick access, held by 2 screws. The battery itself is wrapped in a foam "cradle" so you have to pull the foam out to extract the battery. Odd...
It comes equipped with a zero fret and a Buzz Feiten tuning system, which is a bit esoteric but does make for a nicely in-tune bass. Doubt I'll ever be able to replicate it. There are YT videos explaining it. Guess I'll just have to restring it with whatever it came with! No silk on the bridge end, yellow silk on the tuner end. Anyone know what they might be?
Electronics are: Active mode - V, Passive Tone, active B/Mid/T, Pan pot. Passive mode - V/Bal/T. Active/passive switch. P/J pups. Don't know the brand but they sound pretty great even through my old Crate BT25 living room amp. They are, of course, positioned differently than a standard P, J, or P/J given the scale length and 24 fret neck. The sonic options are really great and useable. I was very pleasantly surprised! Smaller body, lighter weight (sorry, I don't have a scale). Worth the street price? I dunno... Worth the "B" stock price? Yeah! Looking forward to a gig test drive next weekend but this week's gigs call for a 5 string, but they do make an LK5!
Features;
The Bar Band Bassman
Attached Files:
I don't know why it was "B" stock. I suspect it was the finish flaw on the back of the body (see pic), although the back contour seems a bit, well, angular (see pic). Being a bolt-on neck, I'd have thought they'd just swap the neck onto a nicer body, as the neck is great! Awesome fretwork! 2 octaves. Each fret is rounded at the end and there are no sharp ends. I wonder if it was made where my Firefly double-neck was made. That's the only other recent instrument I've see with that sort of fretwork. Perfect (for me) relief. The action was a bit too low (!) for me, but not unplayable, and I'm kinda fond of low action! There is a neck/headstock joint that's pretty odd (see pic), I've only seen one other in that location, on a BC Rich Mockingbird I had in the '80's. The battery compartment is NOT a quick access, held by 2 screws. The battery itself is wrapped in a foam "cradle" so you have to pull the foam out to extract the battery. Odd...
It comes equipped with a zero fret and a Buzz Feiten tuning system, which is a bit esoteric but does make for a nicely in-tune bass. Doubt I'll ever be able to replicate it. There are YT videos explaining it. Guess I'll just have to restring it with whatever it came with! No silk on the bridge end, yellow silk on the tuner end. Anyone know what they might be?
Electronics are: Active mode - V, Passive Tone, active B/Mid/T, Pan pot. Passive mode - V/Bal/T. Active/passive switch. P/J pups. Don't know the brand but they sound pretty great even through my old Crate BT25 living room amp. They are, of course, positioned differently than a standard P, J, or P/J given the scale length and 24 fret neck. The sonic options are really great and useable. I was very pleasantly surprised! Smaller body, lighter weight (sorry, I don't have a scale). Worth the street price? I dunno... Worth the "B" stock price? Yeah! Looking forward to a gig test drive next weekend but this week's gigs call for a 5 string, but they do make an LK5!
Features;
- •32" scale 4-string
- •24 medium jumbo frets
- •Zero fret 40mm nut
- •One-piece neck with satin polyester finish
- •Carved Basswood body
- •Metallic Gloss finish
- •MTD quick release bridge, 19mm string spacing at bridge
- •Double-action truss rod
- •Maple fingerboard
- •Black front and side dots
- •Five controls: volume, blend, passive tone, mid, stacked bass/treble, active passive switch.
- •MTD P/J pickups
- •Shielded electronics compartment
- •Buzz Feiten Tuning System
- •Weight - 7.5 - 8lb/3 - 3.5kg
https://www.talkbass.com/attachments/lk4-5-jpg.5103557/
The Bar Band Bassman
Attached Files:
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Gain is a bit lower than average. Also worth noting the pickups are not quite in the same relative positions as on a typical 34" scale p/j.
