ped

Just realised something - of course the middle switch isn't series/parallel - on the older basses the switch goes between both pickups in humbucking mode (flicked towards bridge) and single coil mode with 'bass boost/OMG mode' towards neck. The latter is not an active boost, in fact it puts the front half of each pickup through some caps that produce a bass response whilst the treble comes from the back coil. That's why it does such a fantastic P bass sound. In this mode you can roll off the passive bass cut to bring out the mids which sounds fantastic. With both pickups the spacing is something a bit like 60s but further back, giving that Smith vibe. A common mod is to reverse the way the front pickup works, giving front coil treble and 70s jazz spacing but I really like the sound if it how it is, and will leave well alone!

Sweet. I loved mine 👍🏼 It was a four string though.

Just adding my August ‘82

I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to try one. I’m not sure I’m going to bother with the k mod actually - it would be nice to keep it original. Realistically I’d never use my J or MM if I did!! The slap sound on this is something else - it’s got the best bits of everything else rolled into one. And as I’ve been playing my SB1 so much over the last few years, the identical neck and feel makes it super familiar. Reckon it could be my only bass if it had to be. One thing I really like about the SB1 is how the knobs do so much - really altering the sound in a musical way (I tend to leave 2/3 band active EQs basically flat) and this bass builds on that theme to the extreme.

I think he’s referring to the K mod, where a single coil can be selected. On an L1000 it’s within the one pickup (and same on L2k if you select one only)

Blimey. This thing is amazing. I'm loving the PTB (passive tone/bass) pre-pre amp! So much tweak ability. In series mode you can roll off loads of bass to shift how the sound sits, so you can get a really smooth P bass sound and then at the flick of (3) switches and some knob twiddling you're in super hifi snappy slap territory. It really does sound like a perfect mixture of Vigier passion and Smith, with a P bass on tap. I've been 'learning' the rear pickup, starting to work out the magic that lies within. I've found a great burp kind of 60s J rear pickup sound in Parallel, and in Series with the tone down it's like a slightly stiffer Stingray sound. I've got a mental weekend but I'll try and record a few samples next week

I’m locking down anything in off topic the second it gets unfriendly. Don’t like it? Go elsewhere.

That's called a belt

Haha I know what you mean, it does seem pretty random - I can appreciate a bass that just does one thing but I also enjoy having massive possibilities - the two basses will compliment each other that way. As I know the bass is capable of more with a simple mod, even if I don't use those extra things, it seems silly not to have them. Most of all I'm just delighted with the core sounds I'm using now, and this is after only a couple of days - I think in time I'll get to know it even better, and of course have yet to try it in the all important band setting which can be make or break!

Yes that would be a good solution. I'm probably not going to modify this irreversibly but these basses aren't worth much in comparison to their better known counterparts so I don't need to be particularly protective of it.

Arise... now officially 'puppeted'

Yes possibly - for some reason I don't really like push/pull pots so ideally I'd add an extra click to a switch or a new switch somewhere, but I'll see what's possible when I talk to the tech. The fun thing is that these options are possible, but the bass itself has a really great core sound (well, two sounds). The guys at Mor Music are familiar with the K-mod so it shouldn't be too tricky to explain what I'm after - but the outer coils are what I'm really keen on. It hadn't occurred to me before but the pickup locations are similar to those of my Vigier, which is naturally why I'm finding the bass familiar in some respects but totally separate from my others in other ways!

My measurements show that the outer coils on each pickup are almost exactly 4” apart, giving that 70s jazz spacing which I prefer. So that should be great once the K mod is complete. I’m actually going to ask if it’s possible to use another switch to swap the soloed coils to inners.

Hard to say as a lot of that might be down to the way it’s recorded and processed. Sounds like a low action giving a nice growl, fairly heavy attack and I should think there’s some limiting going on at some stage. The nice thing about playing and recording through headphones is you hear a lot more of the instrument than you do through a speaker, especially at home.

Cheers! It’s a really fantastic bass - I play my P most often but sometimes like to take a ‘roundwound’ and ‘modern’ bass with me to contrast with it. The L2000 will be a good choice I think, especially as I think the pops on the G string which I like to use as accents will cut through so well. I also really like the Smith qualities to the sound which I have to say I wasn’t really expecting. It’s great that it has a sound all of its own, without fully treading on the J and MM’s toes.

It’s what a northerner calls a singular Mentos Mint

60s spacing jazz bass 👍🏼

SO I've heard! Thing is, with my SB1 I nearly always have the vol down and tone on about half, so imagine an SB2 would be a whole new thing again. And I have only seen one in black crackle, which was in Japan, and sounded knackered!

Thanks, they aren't quite as battered as they look in those pics to be honest, and they match the rest of the hardware - that said, I'm tempted with a couple for the SB1 to match 😄

It's nearly earned it's puppets.. an honour bestowed only on the very best basses 😄

OK, back today with fresh ears. I've been having a lot of fun finding 'my' sounds. There's a lot to learn with this bass, it's not like normally when I get a bass and click with it right away, or realise it's not for me. This one has so much flexibility I feel it'll reveal it's secrets in time. My fave 'go to' sound is like a 'dirty Ken Smith' - I sold my Smith basses as I felt they were a little too 'polite' for my style, and not very flexible. With both pickups selected in parallel, you get that Smith upper midrange, plinky G string and gnarly bottom end, paired with some lovely clank from the now beautifully setup neck (even if I do say so myself!). It has a growl and even output which I think will be fantastic in the mix. The G string popped in particular I spent some time getting right - it seemed too loud and too much Lowe mids - adjusting the pickup poles and heights has finely balanced this now to be a really clear 'plink' with a lot of girth at the same time. I think it sounds best in Active mode in this setting - it seems to shift the treble centre northwards, allowing me to roll off some using the passive control, leaving plenty on tap if required. Next up is a P bass sound. Sometimes when selecting an individual pickup I feel like a bass loses something. Certainly I've never been able to coax a great P sound from any jazz I've had (including my Celinder). This felt like the case when I solo'd the front on the L2000 too, using the same settings as above. However after some playing around I have found the key. Passive mode, series, less treble rolloff, more bass rolloff. It gives some forth, tamed with the rolloff, and the crunchy full range of the pickup comes through with authority. I'd say a 'P on steroids which is what people generally say, however I think it sounds very P like, and in fact going parallel gives a more clanky aggressive steroids vice. In series, it's bang on. Whilst I don't think the back pickup sound is really me, I do love my Stingray. The L2000 does an OK impression when played finger style, active, in series. I back off the tone control and turn up the bass a touch. It doesn't do the Stingray slap sound (at least I haven't worked it out yet) and suspect the pickup is too far back for that (K-mod middle coils is allegedly similar). It's a really punchy sound with plenty of definition - I will have to spend longer with this one. ..So that's how far I've got - I look forward to learning the instrument and allowing the tones to arrive in good time. What a beast! I've backed off the vol about 1/3 on each setting, because I like having some boost on tap - unlike the MFD in my SB1, it doesn't seem to adjust the character of the output when you adjust the first half of the travel. If it did, I think that would throw another spanner in the works and give me a whole other variable to get my head around!

@Killed_by_Deathshall we stay away from dredging up an old argument, if you hadn’t noticed this thread is a year old and doesn’t need any fresh action. Hellzero has already agreed that the one true bass oracle is yours truly so really there’s nothing to say.

Well if they still argue about it then they’re just like us!

It's a good way to balance the sound, and think I have found that turning each down about half way gives a naturally balanced tone. The sound is very smooth, using mostly both pickups in parallel currently. There's a nice bark midrange but it can get buried if you max the bass and treble. The sound is a little bit like the Smith sound in some ways, but with a more 'cocked wah' sound to it which I'm quite liking, although the pops on the G string aren't quite to my taste in this mode. I found EQing out some 2khz helped tame that but ideally I like everything to sound perfect flat. The front pickup in parallel is another great sound; very grindy and open sounding. The current options pre-K mod are series/parallel (middle switch) affecting each pickup. I still have a lot of experimenting to do; today I have spent so long adjusting and trying things out I have some ear fatigue and need to walk away and come back to it tomorrow or more likely tonight. The neck feels exactly the same as my SB1 which is nice - I'm not particularly sensitive to different neck profiles but I was concerned it would be a bit wider. It's not the lightest bass in the world but I mostly play sitting in my pants as you all know so that's fine. I think the body is mahogany, as all the chips show a very dark wood beneath. The next and fretwork is perfect, action is bang on - so I'll see how I get on with finding 'my sound' over the coming days!!! Cheers ped