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The Mike Lull Club Part 4

#2,983
MattLplaysBass said:
Well I said I'd post pics...
View attachment 3169941 View attachment 3169942

Glad these aren't as hyped up as some other basses, so I can afford 'em, but dang, they are sweet instruments.
Click to expand...

omg, those are the secks.

Even if they have one too may strings! (I kid, I kid)

MV4 owner myself. I love my Lull. Cured me of all GAS.

I somewhat agree with the above about the Wow factor. They are just really well made instruments, with a wonderful feel.
 
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#2,984
Here's mine -

image.jpeg


Fellow Lullites, if I were to change the pick guard, what would be recommended?
 
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#2,986
bassicmike said:
omg, those are the secks.

Even if they have one too may strings! (I kid, I kid)

MV4 owner myself. I love my Lull. Cured me of all GAS.

I somewhat agree with the above about the Wow factor. They are just really well made instruments, with a wonderful feel.
Click to expand...
Very cool
I had one just like that black and maple...Loved it but prefer the 24fret models.
Cheers
 
#2,990
Bass body contours... I've gotten confirmation that this year, Lull has went back to his original, deeper body contours from many years ago. I know this to be true on his P basses for sure; I'm not sure if the same holds true on his other models. These deeper contours are supposed to be more comfortable on the plucking arm/wrist. The past several years, the Lull body contours have been similar to the Lakland body contours, which are more bulky, and aren't cut as deep.

I'm curious how many of you have experience with the deeper contours that Mike is now using, and what your preference is. My two P4's have the more bulky contours, like he's been using the previous several years. It hasn't necessarily been a problem for me, but I'm enticed by the idea of having even more comfort with the newest, deeper contours.

Mike's shop told me I could send in one or both of my current P4's to have a new body built with the latest contours. Mike would basically use the neck and all hardware and electronics from my current bass, and put it all on the new body. The total cost would be $1,000 plus shipping. I've been going back and forth, trying to decide whether it'd be worth it or not. I'd certainly prefer the deeper contours, but I'm not sure that would be significant enough to warrant spending a little over $1,000 for it.

So what are your thoughts? The Lull bodies of the past several years use the same contours as Lakland basses, and Laklands are beloved by everyone who plays them. Does $1,000 seem like a lot to you guys, just to get a body with more comfortable contours? If he's willing to share them, @bdgotoh has some great comparison photos of both body contour styles next to each other. I've seen the pics, and the newest style really is cut a bit deeper, to make it more comfortable for your plucking arm/wrist.
 
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#2,992
My P4 is from 2012 and based on how difficult it is to play high up the neck, I'm guessing I have the shallower contours.

While I would like better access to the higher frets, I wouldn't take the chance messing with the basses correct tone. It's just too good to take that risk.
 
#2,993
The older contours stopped around 2006, so it's been awhile that the shallower contours have been normal on the P4. Mike told me his Jazz body contours have been the same all along, I'm not sure if the 5 string P ever had deeper contours. I don't think the contours near the neck are different, just the forearm and belly contours.

When I found out about the body swap option I took the white P4 below to Mike. It has a great neck but shallow contours and it'll soon have a new Ice Blue body!

IMG_20180908_171900115.jpg


IMG_20180908_192021880.jpg
 
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#2,994
bdgotoh said:
The older contours stopped around 2006, so it's been awhile that the shallower contours have been normal on the P4. Mike told me his Jazz body contours have been the same all along, I'm not sure if the 5 string P ever had deeper contours. I don't think the contours near the neck are different, just the forearm and belly contours.

When I found out about the body swap option I took the white P4 below to Mike. It has a great neck but shallow contours and it'll soon have a new Ice Blue body!

View attachment 3174796

View attachment 3174795
Click to expand...
I don't know if it's just the pic, but the body on the right looks thicker as well.
Maybe 1-5/8" thick on the left one and 1-3/4" on the right.
 
#2,995
bdgotoh said:
The older contours stopped around 2006, so it's been awhile that the shallower contours have been normal on the P4. Mike told me his Jazz body contours have been the same all along, I'm not sure if the 5 string P ever had deeper contours. I don't think the contours near the neck are different, just the forearm and belly contours.

When I found out about the body swap option I took the white P4 below to Mike. It has a great neck but shallow contours and it'll soon have a new Ice Blue body!

View attachment 3174796

View attachment 3174795
Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing those! If I were buying a new P4 from scratch, I'd definitely want the more contoured body. Maybe at some point I'll be willing to spend $1,000 to change one of my P4's to the new body style. I keep telling myself that's too much money for something as simple as body contours. But who knows, maybe I'll splurge at some point.
 
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#2,996
dedpool1052 said:
I don't know if it's just the pic, but the body on the right looks thicker as well.
Maybe 1-5/8" thick on the left one and 1-3/4" on the right.
Click to expand...

The pic looks that way to me as well but the green one is 1.75". I checked another shallow contour P4 I have and it's also 1.75".

The white one looks like the edge radius is smaller than the green, the burst with shallow contours I checked today had the same rounder edge radius as the green one. That edge might be another reason why I didn't like that white body!
 
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#2,998
CaptainWally said:
I don't think of a Lull as a "wow" kind of bass - and I think I know what you mean by this...there have been some instruments, e.g. a fancy Roscoe or MTD, that I've picked up and had that sort of reaction. But for strapping on and rocking on a stage...often with a pick... for hours, these kinds of basses never worked for me too well.

As you know, the Lull is a Fender-style instrument with a higher quality build. Usually no fancy tops or unique designs...just a really well-made tool to rock the house. What sets it apart to me are its dimensions and killer action.

Sadowsky and Lakland make a great product too, but I prefer Lull dimensions and action. Oh yeah, and as you mention, they are light weight usually, which is an absolute must for me these days.
Click to expand...
Well
Said
 
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#3,000
Killens84 said:
Thanks for sharing those! If I were buying a new P4 from scratch, I'd definitely want the more contoured body. Maybe at some point I'll be willing to spend $1,000 to change one of my P4's to the new body style. I keep telling myself that's too much money for something as simple as body contours. But who knows, maybe I'll splurge at some point.
Click to expand...

You could get a cool new color out of.the deal too though....any hues for which you have been pining?
 

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