Brand new G&L Tribute L-2000 for £390!

[solo4652]

Hi everybody,

I've just spotted this:

[url="http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l-tribute_l-2000_standard_black-11098.html"]http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l...lack-11098.html[/url]

Brand new G&L tribute L-2000 including gigbag and delivery from France for £390. Looks a real bargain to me.

Anybody have any experience of this supplier, please? Do you still have to pay any import duties on top of this price - I'm not sure, given that it's within the EU.

Steve

[William James Easton]

[quote name='solo4652' post='287091' date='Sep 19 2008, 09:54 AM']Hi everybody,

I've just spotted this:

[url="http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l-tribute_l-2000_standard_black-11098.html"]http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l...lack-11098.html[/url]

Brand new G&L tribute L-2000 including gigbag and delivery from France for £390. Looks a real bargain to me.

Anybody have any experience of this supplier, please? Do you still have to pay any import duties on top of this price - I'm not sure, given that it's within the EU.

Steve[/quote]

strange. bargin on the g&l but seem to charge almost 900 clmas for a fender jag that retail at 600!

[noelk27]

No, VAT and Duties across the EU are harmonised. In fact, the rate of VAT in France is 19.6% so you're paying more in VAT there than you would here. Having brought other bulky goods in from EU countries I've been charged handling fees, but that's an issue with couriers. Great basses, and with postage and some freebies thrown in this is a great deal.


[quote name='Rusty Shackleford' post='287100' date='Sep 19 2008, 09:05 AM']strange. bargin on the g&l but seem to charge almost 900 clmas for a fender jag that retail at 600![/quote]

MRP for Fender Jaguar is circa £769, so that's not really a fair comment - all you can say is that at this time they've decided not to discount this particular line. There could be many reasons for that - distributor agreements, high demand/low supply, etc. It's not as if they're price gouging.

[kingforaday]

i very nearly bought an acoustic guitar from these guys a couple of years ago because they were cheaper than anywhere else but when i went to pay it all got a bit confusing - basically when they took the payment they took it in two instalments a percentage (deposit?) there and then when i placed the order and then i guess they planned to take the rest of the fee when the item was despatched... my bank stopped the second payment and wrote to me saying there was odd account activity. so i tried using my girlfriends card (different bank) but had the same problem after a couple of weeks of messing about i bought it from somewhere in the uk for a little more.

so not sure if that helps but its something to look out for, maybe that's a standard thing and I'm just a fool, or perhaps someone knows a way around these things? or maybe they've changed their policy in the last 2 years? who knows! but if you do order don't panic if your bank tells you about any strange account activity. both deposits were refunded, there was nothing dodgy going on.

Edited September 19, 2008 by kingforaday

[William James Easton]

[quote name='noelk27' post='287134' date='Sep 19 2008, 10:42 AM']No, VAT and Duties across the EU are harmonised. In fact, the rate of VAT in France is 19.6% so you're paying more in VAT there than you would here. Having brought other bulky goods in from EU countries I've been charged handling fees, but that's an issue with couriers. Great basses, and with postage and some freebies thrown in this is a great deal.




MRP for Fender Jaguar is circa £769, [b]so that's not really a fair comment [/b]- all you can say is that at this time they've decided not to discount this particular line. There could be many reasons for that - distributor agreements, high demand/low supply, etc. It's not as if they're price gouging.[/quote]


yes it is.

I hate it when people have some sort of argument backed up with some figure!

i joke.

[Platypus]

£390 is about the going rate for a new one of there

There is a selection available from Germany from music-productiv
EUR 499 = £ 394 ish

Link here is in german there is an English version also:

[url="http://www.musik-produktiv.de/shop/Artikelliste.aspx?seite=1&suchbegriff=g+%26+l&filterKategorie=29%7cGitarre%2fBass"]http://www.musik-produktiv.de/shop/Artikel...cGitarre%2fBass[/url]

[noelk27]

The lowest UK new price I've seen has been £429 (543 Euros) - although this was a discounted example, and the price is more regularly around the £500 mark. So, £390 shipped to your door is a good deal.

With the Jaguar, the lowest UK new price I'd spotted was £549 - about 693 Euros. Full UK MRP of £769 works out at about 972 Euros. So, there's a bit of a discount going on there too, just not quite as good as on the L2000.

It does make you wish the £ was in the Euro zone from time to time (as we wouldn't get hit with bank charges/exchange rate fees buying from other EU states).

[solo4652]

Even closer inspection of the original website shows G&L Tribute L-2000 Premium (as opposed to Standard) for the same price:

[url="http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l-tribute_l-2000_premium_rw_natural-11089.html"]http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l...ural-11089.html[/url]

Apart from the finish, are there any other differences that might make the Premium a better-value buy?

Regards,

Steve

I'm going to buy one - I can feel it coming...

[noelk27]

[quote name='solo4652' post='287207' date='Sep 19 2008, 11:07 AM']Apart from the finish, are there any other differences that might make the Premium a better-value buy?[/quote]

Nope.

The one thing to watch out for is gig bag or case - Tributes usually ship with a padded gig bag. Some Tribute Premiums (Japan) now ship with a hardshell case. Although, saying that, resellers in the UK often don't include the gig bag. No idea why.

[budget bassist]

well nobody is gonna be interested in mine now! Thanks a bunch

[yorks5stringer]

I bought my MarkBass gear from them, no problems(touch wood) and a two year warranty as well.

I notice the 5 stringer Tribute comes out at £510 however.....

Edited September 19, 2008 by yorks5stringer

[mistahbenn]

Why not get a L2500 premium for £40 more? [url="http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l-tribute_l-2500_premium_rw_sunburst-11090.html"]http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l...urst-11090.html[/url]

[mathewsanchez]

I've bought from playback and had no problems. That G&L seems a decent price.

[solo4652]

[quote name='budget bassist' post='287278' date='Sep 19 2008, 01:46 PM']well nobody is gonna be interested in mine now! Thanks a bunch [/quote]


Ooops. Sorry - I hope I haven't caused you a problem here. Certainly wasn't my intention.

[budget bassist]

Lol dont worry about it

[solo4652]

[quote name='mistahbenn' post='287418' date='Sep 19 2008, 04:24 PM']Why not get a L2500 premium for £40 more? [url="http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l-tribute_l-2500_premium_rw_sunburst-11090.html"]http://guitare.playback-europe.com/g&l...urst-11090.html[/url][/quote]

Because I can only just about cope with 4 strings!

[Bass Culture]

What's the neck like on these, folks? I've read references to them being more Precision-like than Jazz-like and the nut width seems to indicate that. But what does the neck feel like front to back? I've got pretty small hands but I had a Yamaha TRB 1004 which I loved and sold on after I talked myself into deciding that the 35" scale was 1" too long for me! I'd only played custom basses for a few years before that (sorry - that wasn't a brag, just an explanation as to why I lack a reference point!) and that never felt anything other than comfortable. How might the G&L compare?

Cheers,

Mark

[Frusty]

I played one in a shop once and the neck did feel very chunky. Played beautifully though.

Edited September 19, 2008 by Frusty

[budget bassist]

They are precision/stingrayish but finished very well and play very nicely if that's the sort of thing you like.

[noelk27]

[quote name='Bass Culture' post='287637' date='Sep 19 2008, 07:19 PM']What's the neck like on these, folks? I've read references to them being more Precision-like than Jazz-like and the nut width seems to indicate that. But what does the neck feel like front to back? I've got pretty small hands but I had a Yamaha TRB 1004 which I loved and sold on after I talked myself into deciding that the 35" scale was 1" too long for me! I'd only played custom basses for a few years before that (sorry - that wasn't a brag, just an explanation as to why I lack a reference point!) and that never felt anything other than comfortable. How might the G&L compare?

Cheers,

Mark[/quote]

Well, as with all things G&L, the answer to that question is a little more involved that you first think. 4-string bass necks come in two widths and two radii - 1 3/4" and 1 1/2" widths and 7 1/2" and 12" radii. These are often referred to by users as the standard and the narrow versions. Saying that, it is only the Japanese Tribute Premiums on which it is possible to order either standard or narrow versions. What you're looking at is, I'm assuming, an Indonesian Tribute, and this will come with the standard 1 3/4" width and 12” radius. Necks are unfinished, all maple or maple capped with rosewood - there are no other options on Tributes - and although you can get a lefty model in the Indonesian Tribute series you have to go to the Japanese Tribute Premium series if you want a fretless - which comes lined as standard.

Now, as to feel. First things first, these have nothing in common with the feel of Stingrays - which to my mind feel much more like 80s Precisions. I would relate the feel of the G&L standard neck to that of a 60s oval Precision - but with a more comfortable shoulder. My usual description is wide and comfortable - and I find the G&L neck totally outplays modern Precisions.

Like you I’ve played lots of Japanese basses - mostly Aria SBs and Yamaha BBs - and I also have small-ish hands.