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Thoughts on Lakland Skyline 55-01

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#22
My 55-01 arrives this week. I was originally getting a Ray 35, but MF sent me an open box, heavily damaged model instead of a new Ray. Sad thing was it was the ruby red burst to match my Ray 34, discontinued color and no longer available. Unfortunately MF can't seem to pull their heads out long enough to figure out they miss picked my bass and the new one is still in the warehouse. I'm fairly positive if you order the open box Ray 35 RRB on their site MF will send you a brand new bass! My return is currently in the UPS system, so give it a try.

So, back to the Skyline. In lieu of the Ray 35 I exchanged it for an even trade of the Skyline 55-01 in natural finish with maple neck. My buddy had a black 55-01 and really loved it until he sold it due to uncontrollable reasons. The Skyline story Invalid Link Removed sold me on the bass and all the glowing reviews around the intertube did as well. Plus with my friend's endorsement and the five minutes I spent playing his was sold on it.

I have seen user reviews stating sharp frets. I'm not so sure how that could happen as the use this PLEK method now and according to their info all frets are addressed in Chicago before the Skylines hit the streets.

So I'm anxiously awaiting it's arrival. I hope MF doesn't muff this one. In the last two months they have sent me two open box items mistakenly, the first wasn't even the right model and had to have been a return from their scratches and dent warranty as the bass had heavy finger grime on the fretboard and deep buckle rash amongst other damage. There were no open box 55-01s when I ordered!

So I'm watching this thread in hopes of hearing more great things about the 55-01.
 
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#23
HalfManHalfBass said:
Those necks are really thick -and I don't usually have any problem with thicker necks.
Click to expand...

You've said this several times, but I wonder what necks you are used to because IME Lakland necks are not at all thick. Fender necks are thicker IMO, for example. I find Lakland necks to be very comfortable and feel broken in when they are new, even the Indonesian ones. What basses are you comparing them to?
 
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#24
Here's a pic of mine. 1 of the first 300 built that came with the Gotoh style tuners. I have since changed them out for US Hipshot Ultralights.

9r3zFJKl.png
 
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#25
Chef said:
My lone gripe with the Lakland 55 series is with the upper horn.
It's not long enough to push the body to the right as it ought to, and thus first position is more of a reach than I like.
The 5501 is modern sounding, big lows, high highs, not a ton of mids.
Those two issues meant I changed out pickups and preamp, and then eventually sold it anyway because of the ergonomic thing.
The "wide but shallow" neck feels great, to me.
Click to expand...

Because I'm a stickler for perfect balance (both 55-01s I've had were fairly balanced, but not perfect) I put a 1/4" spacer on the upper horn strap lock. It now balances perfectly and it moves the bass to the right a little too.

I know someone will point out that I said I like perfect balance but am playing a Thunderbird in my avatar (because it has happened before). This particular Thunderbird is perfectly balanced with Res-O-Lite tuners on it.
 
#27
Showdown said:
Because I'm a stickler for perfect balance (both 55-01s I've had were fairly balanced, but not perfect) I put a 1/4" spacer on the upper horn strap lock. It now balances perfectly and it moves the bass to the right a little too.

I know someone will point out that I said I like perfect balance but am playing a Thunderbird in my avatar (because it has happened before). This particular Thunderbird is perfectly balanced with Res-O-Lite tuners on it.
Click to expand...
What did you use as the spacer?
 
#28
Showdown said:
Because I'm a stickler for perfect balance (both 55-01s I've had were fairly balanced, but not perfect) I put a 1/4" spacer on the upper horn strap lock. It now balances perfectly and it moves the bass to the right a little too.

I know someone will point out that I said I like perfect balance but am playing a Thunderbird in my avatar (because it has happened before). This particular Thunderbird is perfectly balanced with Res-O-Lite tuners on it.
Click to expand...


I'm not talking about balance.
I'm talking about reach. where the bass is positioned on your body due to upper horn length and strap button location. Different thing

For me, on a 35" scale bass, the upper horn needs to reach a little beyond 12th position, which "is the sort of normal P/J place on a 34" scale." So the Lakland upper horn would need to reach to eleventh position, and I think it's more like at 13-ish.
If you follow all that.
 
#32
Weird. I think folks have different bodies that work for different basses. I find the 35" neck very comfortable on the Lakland. Other basses, not so much. I had a Yamaha TRB1005 and boy did that thing fatigue me. Chunky neck and headstock position seems so far away! As you can see in this photo, the headstock doesn't even seem far away.

522292_10151222203992240_1838920725_n.gif
 
#33
DWBass said:
Weird. I think folks have different bodies that work for different basses. I find the 35" neck very comfortable on the Lakland. Other basses, not so much. I had a Yamaha TRB1005 and boy did that thing fatigue me. Chunky neck and headstock position seems so far away!
Click to expand...

I like the neck!
I just don't like the reach to first position
ymmv, etc....
 
#34
Imho as with any Bass. in general terms is easy to state something. But Being a particular Bass piece of wood And materials altogehter i suggest try first. A couple of months ago i tríed a Skyline 44-01/2 couldnt remeber. It was the most non resonance, muted, dull, lifeless, And "wet" sound i have heard in a Bass. And i have tríed some cheap ones.... So i wouldnt take the blind route. Unless returnable as a must commitment
 
#35
mantaraya said:
Imho as with any Bass. in general terms is easy to state something. But Being a particular Bass piece of wood And materials altogehter i suggest try first. A couple of months ago i tríed a Skyline 44-01/2 couldnt remeber. It was the most non resonance, muted, dull, lifeless, And "wet" sound i have heard in a Bass. And i have tríed some cheap ones.... So i wouldnt take the blind route. Unless returnable as a must commitment
Click to expand...

I've had a couple 5502's that were -great-; and, one that was just like that. totally useless and dead sounding, even with fresh strings and a great setup.
just horrible wood on that one.
try before you buy is always best. yup.
 
#36
Chef said:
I've had a couple 5502's that were -great-; and, one that was just like that. totally useless and dead sounding, even with fresh strings and a great setup.
just horrible wood on that one.
try before you buy is always best. yup.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, some of us aren't afforded the luxury of doing that. I wish it were possible, but it's not.
 
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#38
The 55-01 is a fantastic instrument, regardless if Korean or Indonesian. I've owned both and both were top notch quality. The weak link in this bass is the preamp. If you swap the preamp for any other quality pre, US Bartolini, Audere, Aguiar, Glockenklang, Darkglass, etc, the bass will come alive. The stock pickups are great, the magnets are in a reverse "P" configuration, but teamed with a less than wonderful pre. Swap the pre before you upgrade anything else.

That being said the stock pre is usable, but is very heavy on the hi end freqs, so you may have to cut the treble.

Other than that, I can't find anything else wrong with them. Skylines are fantastic, comparable or better than MIA Fenders IMO.
 
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