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Plotting a route through the 27 tones of the L-2000

#21
I don't know if it's how the bass was recorded, his setup, or what, but compared to my L2500, that one sounds incredibly underwhelming.
My '96 came with Parallel and Series Split Coil, which is OMG. It did not come with straight Series wiring, but I added it later with a push-pull Volume pot.
I still only use either Parallel or OMG. I just dislike Series and the incredibly nasal midrange it has. I also added a 4th mini-toggle to switch inner and outer coils in OMG.
When I plug that bass in, it is like a wall of sound - huge and burley. The bass in the video sounds small, compressed, and without character. Odd.
With the preamp, I typically stay in Active or passive. Never really Active+, but maybe if I use Series I would, to add some treble to combat the nasality...
 
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#24
BrentSimons said:
My favourite on my L2K is both pickups parallel in either passive or active depending on desired crispness. :) Kinda gives me a Stingrayishjazzbass kinda tone?
Stay healthy y'all,
Brent
Click to expand...

My favorite is tone controls wide open, both pickups in series. Active switch depending on how much "snap" I want. Pretty much set and forget for the night.
 
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#27
eastcoasteddie said:
I don't know if it's how the bass was recorded, his setup, or what, but compared to my L2500, that one sounds incredibly underwhelming.
My '96 came with Parallel and Series Split Coil, which is OMG. It did not come with straight Series wiring, but I added it later with a push-pull Volume pot.
I still only use either Parallel or OMG. I just dislike Series and the incredibly nasal midrange it has. I also added a 4th mini-toggle to switch inner and outer coils in OMG.
When I plug that bass in, it is like a wall of sound - huge and burley. The bass in the video sounds small, compressed, and without character. Odd.
With the preamp, I typically stay in Active or passive. Never really Active+, but maybe if I use Series I would, to add some treble to combat the nasality...
Click to expand...

Pretty sure it's the recording. He's probably just mic'ing a small practice amp, if not just using the mic in the ol' iPhone. You have to listen to it DI to hear that real meaty, chocolately type of thing...

He's also consistently plucking in between the PU's, which is a good technique for smoothing out the attack, but it does make for a "nicer" kind of tone. For true OMG you have to pluck directly over the PU with as vertical finger pads as possible and a light touch.

I run mine through my Cali76 compressor (with appropriate reduction on the volume to prevent overload) and go from that to my Ampeg SCR DI and then the headphones. All my basses sound great that way, and the L2K gives a particularly meaty and thick tone when DI.....

L
 
#31
Ha! You should try getting your head around the L2000 into a Mesa TT800 with two separate channels and EQs. :wideyed:
20201028_205425.jpg


Seriously, though. Both pieces are very intuitive when it comes to their layout and design. If you're playing along and need something a little different, it just kind of "makes sense" which knob, button, or switch to fiddle with to get you there.

Also keep in mind that there are very subtle differences in many of the tones on the L2000 video.... differences which will make little or no difference in a live setting.
 
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#32
I don't have one favourite tone, but my go to tones are;
Volume - always 100% (unless fading out or sweloing)
Passive, Series, front pickup humbucking, bass knob at 60-70%, treble to taste depending on what the song demands - I find this is a P tone with muscles.
Passive, Series, rear pickup humbucking, bass knob at 60-70%, treble to taste depending on what the song demands but usually 100% - I think this does a Stingray type tone with added mids and growl.

I don't have the K-Mod but I'm really keen to have this done with inner coils for again something different.
 
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#33
stretch80 said:
Is it possible to get the K-Mod done after the fact? By a G&L dealer, or is there a schematic that any tech could follow? It sounds interesting.
Click to expand...

Can definitely be done after the fact and is apparently an easy and reversable mod.

Folks in this thread are friendly and the K-Mod is discussed regularly with links to schematics...

G&L Club Part 7

And folks over at the Basses By leo forum are super helpful as well.
BassesByLeo.com, est. 2009 • View forum - G&L Basses
 
#34
Boy, do I love talking about G&L. I have had my '89 L-2000 for five years this month. Just a fantastic instrument. It wasn't one I had planned on falling for, but it happened anyway.

I never thought I would ever make use of those 27 tones, but I have certainly made an effort. Just too many good sounds!
 
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#35
2F/2F said:
The bass had an OHSC, but no manual. I was a high school senior, with my first bass that was actually MY bass, not borrowing my dad's. I had been playing bass for nine years already (electric and upright), but I wasn't very technical about the instruments themselves – pickups, switches, etc. I had no idea what all the switches did. I knew it was an active bass, so it needed a battery, and that battery needed to be changed periodically, and I shouldn't leave the bass plugged in unless using it. I knew what the volume, bass, and treble knobs did. But that's it.
* * *
IMO, the point of basses with a ton of tonal options is not that one person can make use of 27 tones. It's that one person can choose which of the 27 tones they like. In other words, it's not about having a bass that can do everything for one person. It's about having a bass that can do that one thing, but for a variety of people. It's about making the bass a "one size fits all" instrument. One person doesn't need 27 tones. But when an instrument has 27 tones, you can be pretty certain that every person will be able to find at least one "good" one.
Click to expand...

Your story reminds me of when I got my first bass, a Peavey T-40, when I was a junior in HS. I had absolutely no clue what all the switches did, so I just plugged in and fiddled around until I like the sound. That thing was so freakin' heavy that, even as an over-amped kid, I got a neoprene strap to manage the weight.

Like others here, I also typically pick a couple of "go to" settings on my basses, whether my J-basses or my M-2500. In rock bands, I usually pick one of those, and leave it for the whole set. But some projects do require more flexibility, especially musical theater IME. I bought my M-2500 for a musical, and the EQ and pickup panning were extremely useful. For example, one track had a deep club bass synth part on the Broadway cast recording, which for some reason was omitted from the bass and keyboard books. I decided to play it. With the M-2500 I just cranked the bass EQ and palm-muted with a pick, and it sounded great.
 
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