Hmmm, so one Lull fan says the Basslines are awesome and Ian says they are his least fav of the 3 he has.
I'm sure it's a personal choice. I would like to have that modern jazz/Marcus tone without a harsh high end. Does that help?
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The Mike Lull Club
- Thread starter Ron Plichta
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Hmmm, so one Lull fan says the Basslines are awesome and Ian says they are his least fav of the 3 he has.
I'm sure it's a personal choice. I would like to have that modern jazz/Marcus tone without a harsh high end. Does that help?
Hmmm, so one Lull fan says the Basslines are awesome and Ian says they are his least fav of the 3 he has.
I should have made something more clear in my post - those are simply *my* impressions regarding the pickups, and the space from the "Great" Aeros" and "Least Favorite" Basslines is a vastly narrow one (something like 9.8 for the Aeros and a 9.3 for the Basslines) compared to most other off-the-shelf, non-custom pickups... which all three are pretty damn far from. I'd play a Bassline or Fralin-loaded Lull for a sub gig or session or even purchase one off the used market (which I did with my Fralin-equipped [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]) with few questions asked, because I realize that at this point we're talking about very small and subjective points-of-view, and that what I hear and like is truly a pretty damn small from what Arthur, Chris, or Timothy prefer and hear themselves.
Toss in what an engineer or soundperson is going to do to *your* tone at a gig or recording session unless it's your session or bass heavy music, that you still have layers of EQ on your bass, on any variety of effects you may or may not use, EQ on the recording console or soundboard, how many members you're playing with and how they want to be heard, EQed... the same as you, which is certainly their right... and finally realize that the .5% difference between Aeros and Lull's Basslines that I started out with might as well be as vast as the Grand Canyon. But that .5% means the word to us, because when we're practicing late at night through decent headphones or louder during the day it may very well be the difference between being distracted by your bass and coming up with a killer bassline/song/riff because you're not distracted.
Appreciate the shout back Ian. It is indeed a subjective thing, and the variation between pickups is pretty narrow then. That helps me assess.
I just finished my first gig with my Lull and I loved it! The EQ was more "monster on a leash" than I'm used to but I loved how the bass cut through on both grooves and fills.
The Bart pickups did well but I'm still contemplating something that is flatter, more responsive and natural. The Sadowsky preamp is a beast! Lots of lows, lots of highs if I needed it.
I just finished my first gig with my Lull and I loved it! The EQ was more "monster on a leash" than I'm used to but I loved how the bass cut through on both grooves and fills.
The Bart pickups did well but I'm still contemplating something that is flatter, more responsive and natural. The Sadowsky preamp is a beast! Lots of lows, lots of highs if I needed it.
You probably already thought of this but you can also try and match you string choice to try and find the tone you want. I don't know what you are using but you can try Nickel's, or another string that focusing a little more on the lows and mids and not the high end sizzle. I also found that this was a nice way to play with the tension on a 35" bass, putting on some D'Addario XL's and the 35" tension felt much more like a 34" scale bass.
As a side note, while I really like the Lull bassline jazz pickups, I would be equally (or close to equally) happy with a number of high end pickups. the Lull bassline P pickup, on the other hand, is really something special.
I have to say guys this bass proved itself last night. I have back problems so I picked up a Spector under 8 lbs. Used it for the first 2 sets. Sounded like crap. Distorted and if you try to adjust it, it hisses at you. Couldn't cut through. I thought the thing had a dead battery. It didn't. After 2 sets I went back to my Lull and felt at home. I was going to trade it for something lighter, but now I can't. I like to have 2 basses. I think my second one might be a Lull too.
+1 Ty!
One day I'm going to send the Duncan Basslines single coils that originally came in my M5V up to Mike and have another M5V built. This one will have an alder body, rosewood fingerboard, 3 color sunburst, tort pickguard, etc. IMO the Duncan's have a nice Fenderish sound, so I want a Lull that cops what I consider to be the classic Fender sound and look.
It seems like I may be one of the few Bartolini fans amongst us. IMO they 59CBJD's still have a Fender-vibe, yet they also have the low mids hump that's typical of Bartolini pickups. Paired with my M5V's OBP-3 preamp, they have lots of punch.
Wow! So you took home this beauty huh? When I saw it in the classifieds I had to save a pic of it in my basses folder... It is smokin' bass. Congrats!
My M5V has the stock Bart pre and SD p/u's and I am very happy with the sound. The one thing I really like about the Bart pre is that the Treble frequency seems to be more in the High Mids than Treble, I've never been a fan of sizzling highs and this plays to my liking very well. The bass sounds "hot" but not as hot as other active eq's I've heard/had, I really like the more low-fi active sound it has - to my ears of course, others may have a totally different description of the tone, haha. I hear more as a Boosted Classic tone, which works for me.
With that said, I am still hoping to find a Lull in the area with different pre and p/u combos... Specifically I wanna hear the Aguilar pre.
My 2 cents anyway.
I've had a Roscoe with Bart pickups and Aggie 3-band pre and liked it. The pickups still maintained their "compressed" character but with the extended boost frequencies of the Aguilar.
Not sure whether step one would be to replace the pickups or to install an Aguilar 3-band. That's one thing about the Sadowsky - it's got a lot of boost but the highs produce hiss, and the bass boost is VERY boomy. I also would prefer some control over the mids.
I'm more interested in a modern jazz tone than a "great classic jazz tone".
I value your feedback guys since you've all got different electronics combos on your Lulls.
Not sure whether step one would be to replace the pickups or to install an Aguilar 3-band. That's one thing about the Sadowsky - it's got a lot of boost but the highs produce hiss, and the bass boost is VERY boomy. I also would prefer some control over the mids.
I'm more interested in a modern jazz tone than a "great classic jazz tone".
I value your feedback guys since you've all got different electronics combos on your Lulls.
Ok, IME the pre-amp will probably be better to replace first. I say this because I have a friend(Saluki here on TB) who had a Bart-Bart combo on a Roscoe and switch to a Aggie pre-amp and absolutly loved it. My .02 anyways
+1 Ty!
It seems like I may be one of the few Bartolini fans amongst us. IMO they 59CBJD's still have a Fender-vibe, yet they also have the low mids hump that's typical of Bartolini pickups. Paired with my M5V's OBP-3 preamp, they have lots of punch.
I like the low mids of the Barts too, but my next one will probably have something different. I figure same preamp, different PUs can get sounds close enough that I won't mess with my sound too much to screw the mix. We run sound from the stage so I can't do radical changes.
They're Barts. I don't know what the preamp is. This used to be Mike Lull's personal bass then he sold it to his friend who sold it to me, according to the freind. It doesn't have a serial number that I can find. I have yet to confirm with Mike as I told the friend I would give him some time to break the news to Mike. I guess Mike will be dsappointed. But I'm going to email Mike in a few days to get the lowdown.
I just want to say that I'm really glad you chose to keep that bass, it is a beauty... I use a Levy's strap that may help with the weight issue... The neoprene padding makes the bass just hang/bounce and it feels a lot lighter. It is model #PM48NP3, the best strap I've ever used, better than Comfort Strap IMHO.
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Go to Straps, then Special Materials, then Ultra Comfort.
I'm kicking myself for not picking up its 4 string brother.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=414668&highlight=lull
If that bass ever comes back for sale I'm getting it.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=414668&highlight=lull
If that bass ever comes back for sale I'm getting it.
I just wanted to put to your attention that our very own Riis (Zooberwerx) just posted his M5V in the classifieds.
So, with that said this could cause you to do one of the following:
1. Give him a hard time period.
2. Give him a hard time for even thinking of selling the Lull (Not to mention choosing to keep a Sadowsky - I am NOT inciting a Lull vs. Sad debate btw just giving some detail and backstory), but then wish him luck so that he can accomplish his financial goal for doing it. (This is what I personally did).
3. Go and snatch up his gorgeous bass.
4. Any other reaction I may have missed.
Just thought I would share.
So, with that said this could cause you to do one of the following:
1. Give him a hard time period.
2. Give him a hard time for even thinking of selling the Lull (Not to mention choosing to keep a Sadowsky - I am NOT inciting a Lull vs. Sad debate btw just giving some detail and backstory
), but then wish him luck so that he can accomplish his financial goal for doing it. (This is what I personally did).3. Go and snatch up his gorgeous bass.
4. Any other reaction I may have missed.
Just thought I would share.
I just wanted to put to your attention that our very own Riis (Zooberwerx) just posted his M5V in the classifieds.
So, with that said this could cause you to do one of the following:
1. Give him a hard time period.
2. Give him a hard time for even thinking of selling the Lull (Not to mention choosing to keep a Sadowsky - I am NOT inciting a Lull vs. Sad debate btw just giving some detail and backstory
3. Go and snatch up his gorgeous bass.
4. Any other reaction I may have missed.
Just thought I would share.
Yeah, lol I saw that. Man, what a beautiful bass!
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