dub_junkie

^ black onyx Sterlings are cool

The L-2000 doesn't sound like a Stingray but it does do a great range of tones. Some of the P type sounds in passive/series are quite close imitations ( to my ears) and it has a lovely 2 pickup slap tone with the active/parallel switch settings. Compared to a HH Ray,with the G&L you cant have different combinations of the two humbuckers apart from both being on at the same time but you get parallel and series and active or passive.there's also a active with treble boost setting but like the L-1500 is very bright - I rarely ever use this setting. I mostly just run my L-2000 passive with the battery out. An L-1500 in parallel mode is much,much closer to the MM tone but the top end is fierce and will hurt your ears if you don't tame it. With the treble pulled back a bit, it sits in a mix much the same as a Ray if maybe a bit more upfront. It's nowhere near as versatile as the L2K but the L-2000 doesn't sound like the L-1500 either and that's why I have both. imo the L-2000 is a great bass for covering a lot of tones without much fuss. The switching is dead easy and becomes second nature in no time. I've said it before but I've found a G&L's tone doesn't disappear the way a Stingray/Sterling can with a couple of guitars,drums and the like going full tilt. I've compared the MM's to G&Ls at the same rehearsals with the same amp settings and the G&L's tone was way bigger and ballsier (that was when I had a couple of Asat basses with the same pickups and circuit as the L2K) I'm not knocking the MM tone which I love btw,just an observation from personal experience with owning both at the same time. Whether the G&L is the sound you want you'll need to try one for yourself. They're definetely darker sounding than MM's to my ears at any rate.

I love 'em but then again I'm a bit of a G&L fanboi I have a L1500 in the clear forest green and its one of my favourite finishes on any bass I've owned. Cherryburst looks really nice on the 5 too

I love it! Cant wait till the day I can afford one of these.It's going to be an s/s/s/ and not the single H and it'll more likely be a 4 string as they have the same neck profile as the Sterling.

[quote name='Musicman20' post='898012' date='Jul 18 2010, 01:11 PM']I just prefer the sound of the alnico pups and pickguard on the Rays, and luckily they now make Ray 5s with the same alnico pups. Sterlings sound more aggressive and hifi/modern to my ears.[/quote] I'm the opposite. I've never held onto a StingRay 4 for more than a few months probably because I prefer the tone of the Sterlings and SR5's. I also like the switching on both of those. It makes sense for ebmm to have the stingray 4/5 with alnico and the sterlings with ceramic.I've owned SR5s with both types of pickups. This is purely imho but the SR5 EQ sounds a bit softer and fatter to my ears and not as biting on the treble as the 4 string and I think the ceramic pup adds a bit of an edge. I can get the musicman tone I hear in my head with it every time and I choose it (almost) every time over my Bongo Stingray 5's aren't as aggressive sounding as the Sterlings either. I owned a few Sterlings and they were edgier than a SR4 when set flat (I owned both 4 strings together at one time).However the treble boost on the Ray in extreme positions was more than the Sterling which I didn't expect before comparing them.And I didn't expect the Sterling to have more bass on tap than the Ray either but to my ears it did. The mids on the Sterling are definetely more pronounced whatever the setting though.

dougal,did it used to belong to theosd? if so I tried (without success) to trade for it a while back. fwiw the colour's Carbon Blue Pearl anyway,it's one of the nicest looking SR5s I've seen p.s. I'm still taking good care of your old Bongo 5 Keir

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='873154' date='Jun 20 2010, 11:57 PM']Oh shoot! Look at what I've been and gone and done. [attachment=52702:G_L_L_1000_front.jpg] [attachment=52703:G_L_L_1000_back.jpg] [attachment=52704:G_L_L_1000_body.jpg] [attachment=52705:G_L_L_1000_haed.jpg] I've only gone and bought it. [/quote] congrats,that's a beauty!... the one with the fabled OMG setting

[quote name='D-COOPER' post='872974' date='Jun 20 2010, 08:38 PM']I was lucky enough to buy the blue SB2 and it is by far the best bass i have ever played. For a passive bass it sounds huge and powerful and i have since stopped playing my other far more expensive instruments which says everything really [/quote] David, stop it! I miss that one probably more than any other bass I ever let go. good to hear you are still playing and enjoying owning the SB-2. and considering the high end boutique pair of basses of yours I played that day your testament re the SB-2 is high praise indeed hope you're keeping well mate. Keir

the problem with the L-1500 active sound is it is either passive or active with treble boost which is the 3rd setting on the L2K/Asats. Its just a bit too harsh sounding with treble full on. rolling back the treble or keeping it passive tames it a lot. I only ever found this a problem solo'd. Played with a band it sits great another slightly annoying feature on the L2K/Asat/L1500 there is a fairly noticeable jump output wise going from parallel to series. they are not nearly as well matched as on the Sterling/Stingray 5's I'm not familiar with older models like the L-1000/El Toro/SB-1 etc so can only describe my experiences with the ones that are still in production now. there are members on here who can tell you about the older models I'm sure some of the ash bodied ones can be heavy (like stingrays) but all the alder bodies ones I've owned have been 9lb or under. sustain is fantastic on these basses,irrespective of weight. some G&L's I've owned have had microphonic pickups where theres a ringing sound behind the note played. on advice from those on the now defunct G&L forum at TB I bunged some sponge or foam inside the pickup springs and it solved the problem in each case. neck wise,G&L's dont have rounded over edges on the fingerboard like stingrays/sterlings afaik. well none of mine did have at any rate though I soon sorted that myself. I always loved that feature on the MM necks but one thing I definetely prefer on the G&Ls is that they dont angle/dress the fret ends as far in as they do on MMs,so less chance of the G slipping off the edge if played hard. G&L also started Plek'ing their necks a couple of years ago and iirc changed the neck construction from an off centre cut lengthways down the neck to a more regular method of putting the truss rod in. I prefer the 6 bolt necks to the older 3 bolt ones. If a previous owner has overtightened the neck screws and then mucked about with the micro tilt it can cause problems so if you do get one with the 3 bolt be sure and check that out. and lastly,imo their finishes are as good as production basses get ... perfectly flat with no sinkage/orange peel look to them . well at any rate I've never seen one that was less than beautifully done these are just my personal experiences with the 7 USA G&L basses I've owned. I also owned a MIK Tribute L-2000 which with some fettling played as good as the USA ones I miss all 3 of these btw: a pair of Asats I used to have. and my awesome SB-2 which I inexplicably sold earlier this year to a local basschatter. crazy birdseye neck with ebony board and the best passive bass I ever owned bar none hope this helps some

my L-2000 has the jazz neck option which I like. I didnt ever look for a Ray tone out of any L-2000/Asat I owned. I like them for the P type sounds (passive/series) and also the slap tone with both pickups (active/parallel). they are great at doing a load of different sounds,though the MFD pickups and low tech preamp do give the bass its own character imo My L-1500 is quite a fierce sounding bass but it does sounds the L-2000 cant. It is closer to a Stingray tonewise with the pickup in the sweetspot but needs a bit of restraint with the treble control. Its not that versatile comparing it to the L2K but I do like the core tone it has. It has the wider neck (1.75" nut) and the older 3 bolt neck plate (6 bolt on the L2K) I've also owned a pair of Asats(regular and semi hollow),another couple of L-2000s and an SB-2 and they were all excellent. I like both Musicman and G&L equally. I personally couldnt choose one over the other and its been that way a long time with me. I'll always play both.

My 1990 Sabre had a 5 way switch like this [attachment=52059:cfd_sabr...eq_lever.gif] I wish they would do a run of Sabre Classics rather than the sterling or stingray 5 classics which never existed until now

I'd have a punt if I had the funds [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/G-L-SB1-Bass-Leo-Fender-headstock-signature-1987-/150452586567?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item2307ac4847#ht_666wt_1137"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/G-L-SB1-Bass-Leo-Fen...7#ht_666wt_1137[/url]

I'd love a JB-2 but missed out a few months ago on the only one I've seen pop up on BC for sale on account of being skint. I still want one and would go for a Tribute if they did it in sunburst/rosewood,a bit like the USA below. The only options on the Tributes are natural/rosewood and sunburst/maple

[quote name='Doctor J' post='855126' date='Jun 2 2010, 05:28 PM'][b]Godlyke Disciple[/b]. Spent a bit of time on this just tweaking the setup and rolling the neck edges and it really is a superb bass. Sold the Stingray as a result. [/quote] Looks great in that finish and with the Barts too. I'll bet it sounds sweet as well. Was just thinking back on my Disciple 5 fretted and Deity 4 fretless - both terrific basses - the Deity would have made my top ten if I hadnt been such an unworthy owner (ie my fretless playing sucks)

1/ Stingray 5 - this is the lightest SR5 I've owned. still with me 2/ white sparkle Sterling - best of the Sterlings I had 3 + 4/ Bolin NS5 and Valenti No.042. both fantastic and both back with their original owners I believe. 5/ G&L Asat semi hollow - probably the best G&L I've owned 6/G&L SB-2 7/Spector NS5 CRFM (now with crazykiwi) 8/ black Pre EB Stingray 9/Warwick streamer Stage 1 10/MM Bongo 5HH (still with me)

[quote name='Apothem' post='851706' date='May 30 2010, 11:16 AM']The Bongo shares the same pickups and electronics with the Sterling, although it's only available with a rosewood board (again: to some may sound slightly or vastly different form a Sterling maple).[/quote] Bongo pickups have neodymium magnets and an 18v preamp. the dual pickup models are 4EQ Sterling pups have ceramic magnets and a 9v pre with 3EQ I've not owned a single H Bongo but definetely the HS and HH ones are spec'd and sound very different to a Sterling imo

love it in white! (which is odd as I normally dislike black binding) purely on the looks, I prefer an Asat bass with a bound top but these look classy imo

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='839846' date='May 17 2010, 03:57 PM']So, which band are you playing with then?[/quote] Duran Duran tribute. which is fine with me as I love playing John Taylor's basslines