NBD - Lakland Decade - Original run w/ Darkstar pickups

[stringthrough]

Super neck and sound. Just got it back from a setup by my guitar tech. He was very impressed by the quality of the neck, grouping it with Ken Smiths and Alembic necks he's worked on in the past; and this guy has never been shy about pointing out flaws in necks on my newly purchased basses.

 

[MrAtomic]

First off, congratulations! That beastie looks sharp, and I bet it sounds even better than it looks.

I have a favor to ask: as you spend some time with the Decade, could you please let us know a bit about how it balances while seated/standing, and whether the short lower horn fits comfortably on your leg?

I'm really interested in a Decade, but I (and I suspect other TB members) have never seen one, let alone spent time playing one. It's got such a unique shape that it's hard to tell whether or not it'd be comfortable and balanced without having the bass in hand. Most of what I've been able to read about the Decade on TB.com concerns the sound of the Darkstars or Chi-Sonics, rather than ergonomics/playability.

Again, congratulations, and I hope you play it in good health for many years.

 

[stringthrough]

First off, congratulations! That beastie looks sharp, and I bet it sounds even better than it looks.

I have a favor to ask: as you spend some time with the Decade, could you please let us know a bit about how it balances while seated/standing, and whether the short lower horn fits comfortably on your leg?

I'm really interested in a Decade, but I (and I suspect other TB members) have never seen one, let alone spent time playing one. It's got such a unique shape that it's hard to tell whether or not it'd be comfortable and balanced without having the bass in hand. Most of what I've been able to read about the Decade on TB.com concerns the sound of the Darkstars or Chi-Sonics, rather than ergonomics/playability.

Again, congratulations, and I hope you play it in good health for many years.

Thanks . . .

First impressions: Maybe a tad of a neck dive (didn't even occur to me to focus on it until you asked your question) but much less significant than some other basses I've owned, notably a 5 string version of Gibson's new EB bass.

This guy:

. . . and a recent 34" Danelectro DC bass, this guy:

As for the seating position, there might be less to the bottom horn that would make it a bit more susceptible to sliding off the thigh, but again, if you hadn't brought it to my attention I would not have noticed that "issue".

I should also mention that this bass weights 8.6 lbs (nice!) as it has a bearing on your question.

 

[MrAtomic]

Nice!

Thanks so much for your response. It's really helpful to those of us planning on snagging a Decade.

 

[Eilif]

That is fantastic! I had the privledge of playing a USA and Skyline Decade back when they were introduced. They were the instruments that convinced me to build a dual darkstar bass. Of course mine isn't as nice as either, but I get by.

 

[Korladis]

Always wanted to try a Decade. Such a cool bass.