Thoughts on Lakland Skyline 55-01

[mikezimmerman]

I've heard that the pre on the 55-01 isn't mounted to anything in the cavity, it's just laying there on top of the wiring unlike my Korean 55-02 which was mounted. Is this true, does anybody know for sure? Jim

On the one I owned with the original preamp, it was just wrapped in foam.

 

[DWBass]

A lot of comments made on the weak pre's in the 55-01s. OP, I strongly recommend that should you decide to buy one, to not be too quick in replacing anything. Give the bass a fair shake as is. I've learned that basses that don't sound all that great on their own can sound very good in an ensemble situation.

Agreed. I would have left mine's alone if the preamp didn't crap out on me.

 

[DWBass]

I've heard that the pre on the 55-01 isn't mounted to anything in the cavity, it's just laying there on top of the wiring unlike my Korean 55-02 which was mounted. Is this true, does anybody know for sure? Jim

I can't recall to be honest (it's been some years) but I think the knobs were connected to a circuit board. Not sure.

 

[Sav'nBass]

The older Korean versions are very heavy and have necks like tree trunks. I've had two which both developed faults and whose truss rods eventually broke.
Because of this I would never even consider another Lakland, especially as they are now made in Indonesia.
This is because many Indonesian guit@rs / basses I have seen use fret wire as soft as solder and I would be even more concerned about quality control.
Peace,
Rob.

I think that this staetment is a matter of relativity.. The weight of Skyline basses fdoes not vary much.. It is a part of the QC that goes into making them. My 55-01 weighs 9.38lbs and the neck is very nice.. Nothing tree trunk like about them.. I am curious.. were the basses you had bought new or were they used? D youy usually prefer basses with thinner necks?

Absolutely NOT true!! All manufacturers may put out a few lemons but the older Korean models are generally considered the better of the versions. I own one of the first 300 built (Korean model). It weighs between 9-9.5lbs). Neck is slim and wide and is stable as any pro neck out there. I've barely done any adjustment over the 10 years or so that I have owned it. I have modded the electronics a few time but have settled on a US Bartolini 5.2AP preamp and I actually put the stock MK-1 pickups back in the bass as it seems to be the best fit for me. I have tried US Bart P2 pickups as well as Nordstrands Big Splits.

I have also owned 2 55-02's, a Custom 44-60, a JO5 and another 55-01. All were very good basses and weighed 9.5lbs or less. The 44-60 was probably 8.5lbs. The JO5 was 9lbs. All had great necks. Straight and true.

I have owned a 55-02 as well.. and as far as the body and neck went there was not much difference between that and the 55-01..

This is the first time I heard anyone say that... while it is a matter of opinion, the opinion on Laklands (US or Skyline) is most commonly that their necks are easy to play. Can you give an example of a bass that you do like? I'm curious now what makes Lakland necks feel like tree trunks in comparison...
I do like Laklands, but never played a 55-01... It's high on my list of basses to try, but would prefer to change it to passive only (with solid pickups like Nordstrands). Older ones can be had for quite low $$, even as far as in the $500s

+1

 

[jnsnj]

I just recently picked one of these up. What appealed to me was the 35" scale and the wider string spacing. The one I got had a neck pocket issue which helped me in getting a good price for it. There was a lot of paint in the neck pocket that either a previous owner or the factory had tried to compensate for with a poorly done shim. About five minutes of sanding the globbed on paint was all that it required to fix. No problems since but I've only had it for about 3 months.

 

[mpdd]

to be perfectly honest with you guys, due to my experience with my skyline that i had only briefly, i'd have to be cautious about the frets and string accordingly, definitely wouldn't be using rounds, neither nickel nor ss

 

[Showdown]

to be perfectly honest with you guys, due to my experience with my skyline that i had only briefly, i'd have to be cautious about the frets and string accordingly, definitely wouldn't be using rounds, neither nickel nor ss

How can you know having one only "briefly"? I've had some with RW on them for 10 years with no issues.

 

[bassstrangler]

to be perfectly honest with you guys, due to my experience with my skyline that i had only briefly, i'd have to be cautious about the frets and string accordingly, definitely wouldn't be using rounds, neither nickel nor ss

What was the experience? What model? Could you elaborate?

 

[bassstrangler]

From the sounds of it two posters have had soft frets? Seems a bit odd that a new $863(not what I paid) bass would leave Lakland in Chicago(they setup all Skylines) with soft frets that can't handle roundwounds.

 

[mark beem]

I keep rounds on all my Laklands (DR Pure Blues nickel. I never use SS strings) and have had no issues whatsoever.

 

[bassstrangler]

My buddy who owned a black 55-01 had zero problems with his. He will not touch anything but Fender USAs for his main basses. He needed a five for a country gig he was doing and he diligently researched all possibilities and went with the 55-01. He is a note bending freak and would never settle on a bass whose frets would show wear or be solder soft in a brief time.

I'm always a bit wary of taking advice from anyone I don't know, but I think the Lakland company stands behind Skylines and insists on setting them up in Chicago despite being made in Indonesia. Their site says if there's any problems they reject the bass and send it back.

 

[Stewy Lj]

Love mine. Had the Aguilar obp-3 installed and will be adding the aguilar super doubles. I can dial it in with the stock mk1s nicely, but just trying something a little different. Best bass I've ever owned in 30 years of playing.

 

[mpdd]

How can you know having one only "briefly"? I've had some with RW on them for 10 years with no issues.

What was the experience? What model? Could you elaborate?

i had a 2013 bob glaub skyline p bass for only six months, which i had to sell to pay my property taxes
the bass was brand new when i got it on the tb classifieds, the neck was too big for the previous owner if i recall
it was easy to play and it had a stunning rock tone, however after six months the frets seemed to be showing some wear, which was strange, because i was
also playing my g&l sb-2 at the time and my gibson flying v reissue, however these basses exhibited zero fret wear in that duration strung with the same xl170s
i never read of anyone else noticing this until i saw a post earlier in this thread, therefore i shared my experience, maybe my bass was an anomaly or perhaps there was a small indonesian batch from that time period that had softer frets

my vox, mia fender, mij fenders, usa fender, usa g&ls, and usa gibsons did not exhibit the same rate of fret wear

 

[bassstrangler]

i had a 2013 bob glaub p bass for only six months, which i had to sell to pay my property taxes
the bass was brand new when i got it on the tb classifieds, the neck was too big for the previous owner if i recall
it was easy to play and it had a stunning rock tone, however after six months the frets seemed to be showing some wear, which was strange, because i was
also playing my g&l sb-2 at the time and my gibson flying v reissue, however these basses exhibited zero fret wear in that duration strung with the same xl170s
i never read of anyone else noticing this until i saw a post earlier in this thread, therefore i shared my experience, maybe my bass was an anomaly or perhaps there was a small indonesian batch from that time period that had softer frets

my vox, mia fender, mij fenders, usa fender, usa g&ls, and usa gibsons did not exhibit the same rate of fret wear

I understand now. It could have definitely been the exception.

I know I've seen two reviews posted on MF about sharp frets since December 2015 and two on Amazon from 2013 about sharp frets. I would think this nearly impossible since Lakland prides themselves in dressing the frets properly. I will however never buy a bass from Amazon again after receiving a MIM P that was horribly sprouted and had obviously been sitting in a warehouse for 3 years in Phoenix. So maybe they got dried out sprouted old basses?

Anyone else have fret issues with the 55-01s?

 

[bassstrangler]

The nice thing about Skylines is the first two numbers of the serial is the year. So hopefully mine won't show up from MF with anything before 2015. My P from Amazon was a 2011 bought in 2014.

 

[mikezimmerman]

I understand now. It could have definitely been the exception.

I know I've seen two reviews posted on MF about sharp frets since December 2015 and two on Amazon from 2013 about sharp frets. I would think this nearly impossible since Lakland prides themselves in dressing the frets properly. I will however never buy a bass from Amazon again after receiving a MIM P that was horribly sprouted and had obviously been sitting in a warehouse for 3 years in Phoenix. So maybe they got dried out sprouted old basses?

Anyone else have fret issues with the 55-01s?

I had to have the fret ends dressed on the 55-60. It can easily happen in the winter if the bass has been stored or displayed without being adequately humidified, and really doesn't reflect on the quality of the bass itself--I've had that kind of thing with several basses. All it takes is a simple fret filing...

 

[mark beem]

I had to have the fret ends dressed on the 55-60. It can easily happen in the winter if the bass has been stored or displayed without being adequately humidified, and really doesn't reflect on the quality of the bass itself--I've had that kind of thing with several basses. All it takes is a simple fret filing...

Same here. Not an indication of subpar QC.

 

[Double E]

Last year I received a 55-02 as a gift. This was my first 5 stringer in as many years, I have been playing bass for 35 years, mostly 4 strings. I had a long stint in my early 30's with a Warwick Fortress 5 which I loved but had to eventually sell.

When I retooled, I started again with 4 strings mainly but tried a couple 5's from Fender and Spector but kept my focus on 4's. Until last summer when I got the 55-02. The neck just felt like home! Within two months I acquired two more 5 string Laklands with identical necks including a 55-01. They are not the thinnest necks out there but the asymmetrical cut and compound radius must be what makes them so comfy. I do have large hands so that has something to do with my gravitation to these necks but they are far from what I'd consider clunky.

I now have a nice stable that covers alot of ground. My 55-01 has been upgraded with Nordstrand Fat Stack pickups that I find match nicely with the cheap stock preamp that everyone hates. I may change the pre one day but the stock one is working fine for now.

All three of mine are Indonesian made and I have a hard time imagining how the Korean ones could be any better in fit, finish or tone. The weights range from just under 9 lbs to just over 10 lbs.

Just my humble testimonial on the Lakland 5 string basses and how I have become an addict. Not trying to push my opinion on anyone, just letting y'all know how one guy digs them in order to balance any naysayer's comments.

 

[Jim Carr]

Rubber & Plastic - Best Bass Gear

Thanks. But these don't fit the Skyline pot shafts, do they?

 

[Jim Carr]

to be perfectly honest with you guys, due to my experience with my skyline that i had only briefly, i'd have to be cautious about the frets and string accordingly, definitely wouldn't be using rounds, neither nickel nor ss

I have used Lakland SS and Nickel Round Wound strings on my 55-01 and 55-60. No issues. These basses have been played a lot. Weird.