Opinions on Lakland Skyline DJ5?

[TJ1]

Hi

 

I am not  too happy with the sound or feel of my current bass. But I might be able to acquire a nearly new one of the above Daryl Jones signature Lakland Skyline 5 string, however ,because of Lockdown I am not sure if I will be able to try before buying.

 

Does anyone have experience of these?

 

Thanks in advance

 

 

[Storky]

Yes, I had one as my main bass for about three or four years before I sold it a year or so ago.

Its a good bass. Good weight, balanced well. Neck is quite wide which is good if you like wider string spacing. It’s a 35” scale so good B string. It does feel a tad bigger length wise than a 34” scale, but not hugely so. Also it flattens out the further up the neck you go, so it’s a C shape at the nut and more of a U shape towards the body.

There were some rehearsals and gigs where I played it and it sounded fantastic. I’m not sure what I did on those occasions but it always sounded at least like a good Jazz bass. (Mine was passive VVT).

It’s well built and slightly smaller body shape than a traditional Fender.

[Graham]

I have one as my main bass, I really like it - very comfortable neck and it has the best sounding bridge pickup I've personally found on a jazz bass - YMMV of course.

About a year ago, I tried out some other higer end five strings in London - Sadowsky Metro Express, Sandberg California TM, Stingray Special, Dingwall NG3; but I liked my Lakland more than all of them.

[Muppet]

I had two of the four string versions. The build quality was excellent and the neck was superb, albeit too narrow for my liking. I installed a John East DJ Retro preamp which was a great addition. The paint finishes are very deep too. I had a white pearl and a sky blue one which were lovely. 

[EBS_freak]

A great bass. If you like jazzes, it's just a nicely made jazz bass, albeit with a little different shape.

[ead]

I had one for a while.  Lovely neck, sub 9lbs and genuinely a very good instrument.  Gratuitous pic.:

Edited January 6, 2021 by ead

[TJ1]

Thanks for the replies so far. Assuming they are all built to a consistent standard, it sounds like it might worth the risk. Lovely looking pearl inlays(not that this should be relevant)

[silverfoxnik]

I had one for a couple years back in the late Noughties..

Echoing all the above comments, they are excellent basses! 

One of the basses I really do regret selling.. 

[Sibob]

I had a DJ4 for a short while and sold it fund a custom US 44-94. It was bitter-sweet because the 44-94 is excellent, but I regret selling the DJ4, best Jazz Bass I ever owned!

So much so that I recently bought a DJ5 to make up for it haha; equally excellent!

Si

Edited January 6, 2021 by Sibob