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Sadowsky vs Mike Lull

#81
Honestly, Sadowsky has a target painted on their back.
There is a reason why we see threads like "MY SX IS AZ GOOD AZ A SADOWSKI".
They make some basses that IMHO approach perfection for the Fender form.
Lull basses kind of remind me of Stingrays (in a good way). They are very solid and have great action. I find it hard to fault either companies basses at all. However, I woudl certainly go with a Sadowsky just because they, how do I put this, they seem to have a bit more soul to them. I don't know if it is a quantifiable thing. But Sadowsky basses, esp the vintage styled ones, just give me the goods.
I will say that the last time I went into a boutique store to check out basses, it came down to a Lull and a Sadowsky for me as well. Then the salesman came up and shot himself in the foot. Gelb Music (Redwood City) sales people really need to recognize that you sell basses by being nice, not by chastising men in their 40's for touching your stock!
 
#82
Calaverasgrande said:
Honestly, Sadowsky has a target painted on their back.
There is a reason why we see threads like "MY SX IS AZ GOOD AZ A SADOWSKI".
They make some basses that IMHO approach perfection for the Fender form.
Lull basses kind of remind me of Stingrays (in a good way). They are very solid and have great action. I find it hard to fault either companies basses at all. However, I woudl certainly go with a Sadowsky just because they, how do I put this, they seem to have a bit more soul to them. I don't know if it is a quantifiable thing. But Sadowsky basses, esp the vintage styled ones, just give me the goods.
I will say that the last time I went into a boutique store to check out basses, it came down to a Lull and a Sadowsky for me as well. Then the salesman came up and shot himself in the foot. Gelb Music (Redwood City) sales people really need to recognize that you sell basses by being nice, not by chastising men in their 40's for touching your stock!
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I think the target on Sadowsky's back is mainly a TB phenomenon. In the real world, bassists play lots of instruments, and Sadowsky is just one of many fine options.
 
#83
Calaverasgrande said:
I will say that the last time I went into a boutique store to check out basses, it came down to a Lull and a Sadowsky for me as well. Then the salesman came up and shot himself in the foot. Gelb Music (Redwood City) sales people really need to recognize that you sell basses by being nice, not by chastising men in their 40's for touching your stock!
Click to expand...

I had the exact same experience at the exact same store (I'm in my thirties, however). Velly internesting. You didn't slap, did you? :rollno:

That aside, I just pulled the trigger on a Lull in the classifieds, because it scratched a serious itch I've had for something "traditional+," as well as for a four string. Having played both, I feel that Lulls get me closer to where I want to be tonally, and do it at a price point that doesn't make my wife look at me like I'm speaking another language. That said, Sads have serious... je ne sais quoi... and that is reflected in the cost, particularly for the US instruments.
 
#84
Archaeobass said:
I had the exact same experience at the exact same store (I'm in my thirties, however). Velly internesting. You didn't slap, did you? :rollno:

That aside, I just pulled the trigger on a Lull in the classifieds, because it scratched a serious itch I've had for something "traditional+," as well as for a four string. Having played both, I feel that Lulls get me closer to where I want to be tonally, and do it at a price point that doesn't make my wife look at me like I'm speaking another language. That said, Sads have serious... je ne sais quoi... and that is reflected in the cost, particularly for the US instruments.
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Which one did you get? I keep looking through the classifieds, though I can't realistically buy anything for at least another year or two...

EDIT: ah, you got the natural/black/maple 4? Very sweet.
 
#85
Archaeobass said:
I had the exact same experience at the exact same store (I'm in my thirties, however). Velly internesting. You didn't slap, did you? :rollno:

That aside, I just pulled the trigger on a Lull in the classifieds, because it scratched a serious itch I've had for something "traditional+," as well as for a four string. Having played both, I feel that Lulls get me closer to where I want to be tonally, and do it at a price point that doesn't make my wife look at me like I'm speaking another language. That said, Sads have serious... je ne sais quoi... and that is reflected in the cost, particularly for the US instruments.
Click to expand...
No, while I do know how to slap. I am not "one of those guys". I prefer to check out how a few songs I play fingerstyle, and a few picked ones, will come out on a bass. Mostly originals from past punk, metal or new wave bands I have been in. Though I do throw in an Allman brothers or Meters tune every now and then.
 
#87
roadkill2309 said:
Which one did you get? I keep looking through the classifieds, though I can't realistically buy anything for at least another year or two...

EDIT: ah, you got the natural/black/maple 4? Very sweet.
Click to expand...

Si, I pulled the trigger on Spencer's black and tan. Not only was it exactly the "style" I was after, but I'm a ramp player as well, so he saved me the step of having one made! I'm well and truly psyched to get this bass.
 
#89
Archaeobass said:
Si, I pulled the trigger on Spencer's black and tan. Not only was it exactly the "style" I was after, but I'm a ramp player as well, so he saved me the step of having one made! I'm well and truly psyched to get this bass.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that one's lovely. If I were in the market, that's probably what I'd have wanted as well.

I've never played with a ramp. Is it really that big a difference?

Or rather, not being a virtuoso, would I see any benefit?
 
#90
I know Lull is known for its fret work (plek and all...), but the last 3 new ones I played had so-so frets. Good for production standards, but just didnt seem to have the kind of perfect end bevelling and rounding that I see in Sadowskys. (Im not a Sad fan boy either, for the record!) Surprising. A Nashville colleague bought one direct from Lull & sold it a week later. ?

I want to be wowed, but so far- so-so. I'll keep trying them though! :-)
 
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#93
Being an IT guy, I trust the accuracy of computers over humans. Every bass I've played of Mike's has had impeccable fretwork. The Sadowsky I owned I had Pleked because, although it was little used, could have had more even frets. I've still never played a Sadowsky that could get close to the low action of a Lull without buzz.
 
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#94
Scott McArron said:
Being an IT guy, I trust the accuracy of computers over humans. Every bass I've played of Mike's has had impeccable fretwork. The Sadowsky I owned I had Pleked because, although it was little used, could have had more even frets. I've still never played a Sadowsky that could get close to the low action of a Lull without buzz.
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Im sure that is the case. I probably just got unlucky! :)

Still, Im not sure the PLEK is set up to really shape a fret end like a person. Isn't the final shaping and polishing supposed to be done by people anyways with a PLEK?
 
#96
roadkill2309 said:
Yeah, that one's lovely. If I were in the market, that's probably what I'd have wanted as well.

I've never played with a ramp. Is it really that big a difference?

Or rather, not being a virtuoso, would I see any benefit?
Click to expand...

I'm far from virtuosic, but I find that it helps me lighten my touch and rely on my amp more. That has saved me from RSI and simultaneously improved my tone. My playing is more consistent, I'm more conscious of dynamics... the ramp is a win for me.
 
#97
scotch said:
Im sure that is the case. I probably just got unlucky! :)

Still, Im not sure the PLEK is set up to really shape a fret end like a person. Isn't the final shaping and polishing supposed to be done by people anyways with a PLEK?
Click to expand...

You may be right on that. I don't think the PLEK takes care of the fret ends, so that takes it out of the "poor fret job" equation.

My current Lakland was PLEKed just the same as my last one. While the last one was incredible, this one does have rougher ends. Action still gets good and low, so that probably speaks again to what the PLEK does and doesn't do for a bass.
 
#98
I am thinking this may be the beginning of a PLEK backlash.
I have seen a lot of instruments that are "PLEKKED" and to me it just makes them all play like a brand new Schecter.
That is not a good thing.
The fella hit the nail on the head when he said even after they are plekked, they still need final finishing by a human.
 
#99
scotch said:
I dunno. My reaction has been opposite. Methinks PLEK has a place in mass-setup execution, but nothing is gonna trump a master fret worker with files, sandpaper, a straightedge and playing experience as a musician.
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I agree completely. I'm on TB record as a PLEK non-believer. Or rather, on a boutique bass. I agree that it's a step up from a lot of non-PLEKked mass-produced axes as well.
 
#100
Calaverasgrande said:
I am thinking this may be the beginning of a PLEK backlash.
I have seen a lot of instruments that are "PLEKKED" and to me it just makes them all play like a brand new Schecter.
That is not a good thing.
The fella hit the nail on the head when he said even after they are plekked, they still need final finishing by a human.
Click to expand...

All a PLEK does is level frets with more accuracy than any human could achieve. The caveat is the the bass has to be well set up before being analyzed by the PLEK software, so some user action (and skill) is required.

I don't know if PLEKs work on anything more than height and shape of the frets or not. That's all Incan gather from what I've read about it. That being said, every bass I've taken in for a PLEK job (about a half dozen) all came out noticeably superior. That includes Sadowsky, Fender AmDLX, and well used Laklands and Lulls.
 

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