Mr. UPS man.......

Hi All,

I am sitting here, waiting for the UPS man to bring me a 3-bolt SB-2. It's "out for delivery." And the stupid birds decide to imitate my doorbell. I run to the front door and...... Nada. My "doorbell" is ringing still. Stupid birds

edg

Three-bolt SB-2? Any details while we wait for the pics? An old J/J, or the newer P/J setup?

Ken

It's here

I haven't opened it, so no pix. Tonight or tomorrow.

It's supposed to be J/J.
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Approx. 30 minutes later.......

One thing I hate about the 3 bolts G&Ls is that the SN is hard to read.

Going by the SN, it would appear to be a 1984. Assuming that I read it right. Tomorrow. Everything is tomorrow...... Pix & all, but in the 1980-1991 category. My first instrument in that category And it was an eBay rescue.

My daughter is sick and has gone to sleep, so I can't hook it up & play it out loud. But I hooked it up to a tuner, and both PUPs work to tune it.

It's black, with black hardware, and a maple fretboard. A nice amber color.

Pix & registry tomorrow or Friday. Promise.

Later,

edg

Hey Ed,

Congrats Since black guitars sound better, can't wait for yer tone report and some pictures.

A bit of an update.

Added to the registry.
Neck is Mar 84, body July 83. No clue on wood type.

Pix later. Gotta restring it first

edg

Congratulations Ed! Hurry up with those pics!

Looking forward to seeing the photos!

Happy N(O)GD!!

Since it does not exist with out pix, here we go.

Tone report later today, I hope.

edg

Score !!
Eager for a tone report. Do you have a L-2000 to compare it to?

So I got a chance to play it some. I am less a bass player than I am a guitar player, so I might not be the best person to comment on the tone. That said....

The neck pup sounds way too bright on the G string when amplified. Un-amplified it sounds right. And the bridge pup sounds much better than the neck pup, amplified. Next week I will take it to my G&L guy and get it looked at. Maybe it's me?

Elwood: You asked if I had a L2k. The answer is no, but I do have an ASAT bass. In passive mode, the ASAT is smoother sounding, to me. Active I will have to test later. I assume it's HB vs. SC.

I also have a home brewed SB-2, using the current pups in the SB-2. Sound wise, my fave is my home brew bass. Nit seems to have more depth and rumble to me.

Later,

edg

That's a great score Ed! That neck seems pretty late for an SB-2, as they were getting the contoured bodies and Lynx decals by the beginning of 1984, IIRC. The wood on that model is going to be maple. Ash didn't show up on the SBs until the second generation came out a couple of years later.

In my experience with these pickups, the string choice will have a tremendous impact on the overall tone. That's true for any bass, but especially so for the early SB series and the Lynx. My preference on these is a set of nylon tape wounds, particularly the GHS black nylon set. They mellow out some of the top end, but still have plenty of zing left. I had a set of these on my '83 SB-1 until the E finally died (after ten years in my hands, and who knows how many more years with a previous owner). I tried a set of D'Addario black nylons on my '83 SB-2; they sound and feel very nice, but not quite as nice as the GHS set did on the SB-1.

I've been running a set of flats on my Lynx for 2-3 years now. I believe they are Rotosound RS-77s, but I can't get to the case right now to check the package insert. Anyway, they are a great match for the pups, which are identical to the set in your SB-2. They take a bit of zing, but not any clarity, off the top end. They also emphasize the mid-range punch of those pups.

My least favorite match for an early SB or a Lynx are round wounds. The pups are very bright to begin with, and a ringing top end just adds too much treble for me. If you slap and pop, though, they could be perfect. I put a set of rounds on the '83 SB-1 when the old E string broke, just because they were the only spares on hand. I will be changing back to GHS black nylons soon.

I don't know if you've spent much time with a Jazz-type bass before, but you should get most of the sound - and all of the bottom end - from the neck pup. The bridge pup can add in some snarl, but start full on the neck, get your amp settings where you want them, and then add in bridge pup to taste. I don't run the tone controls wide open on many of my G&Ls, and especially not on the early SBs or the Lynx. I would start with the volume about 80%, and the tone midway, for starters.

The SB-2 is an entirely different beast than an L-2000/ASAT Bass, even in passive mode. It's the pups and the circuit.

Ken

KenC: Thanks for the comments on the strings. Back I go to buy more strings. Fortunately, my local store carries both GHS and Rotosound. The current strings are Rotosound roundwounds.
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Next day - update

I got some Black Tape strings this thing, and now the tone is happening. Much better.



Later,

edg

Glad to hear the strings are working for you. I bet they look nice on the black/maple combination, too!

Ken

KenC, it's pretty much all black & maple now. The only chrome are the tuners, frets, and knobs. Everything else is black. Now I need to find a black cable for it. I already have a black strap for it.

And since black sounds better, this thing sounds awesome

edg

Great news Ed,

I love how black tapewounds look (and feel, and sound).
You know now we need mo' new pics
Good luck finding a black cable.

elwood

Damn, Elwood. You are SO demanding

If it weren't for the neck, you would not even know that the guitar had strings on it, there is so much black on the body.

Enjoy,

edg

Beautiful Ed !! .....