Lakland Bass Guitars

Lakland bass guitars

The Lakland Musical Instruments Company was born from an idea a long time before the first Lakland bass guitars saw the light of day. Dan had an interest in vintage and used basses and starting buying some. Shortly he started selling some to buy others. Soon word of mouth brought people to come and look for basses. In 1994 the first of the Lakland bass guitars came to life. The started off very small and Hugh McFarland, a master luthier joined them. The start up of Lakland bass guitars were rooted in restoring and repairing bass guitars.

The early years were a struggle for Lakland bass guitars. The people involved were novices and had no real idea what they were doing. In 1995 they converted a section of the family factory into a small factory to make Lakland bass guitars. Lakland bass guitars did not become overnight stars amongst bass guitars. They had huge problems during manufacture as they did not have humidity control. The Lakland bass guitars were subject to the weather and the wood contracted and expanded. The makers of Lakland bass guitars were determined not to give up though.

Bass Player Magazine gave the Lakland bass guitars a favourable review in 1995 and this brought attention to the Lakland bass guitars. The few unfavourable things mentioned in this review lead to modifications made to the Lakland bass guitars. These changes fine tuned the Lakland bass guitars to give a better performance. In 1996 they still had no decent marketing strategy for their Lakland bass guitars.

They were disorganised, were not receiving orders and had not contracted stores or dealers yet. During the times when things were hard, they had technical problems and very little money, they just kept on. What this shows is that with determination and talent anything is possible. From these difficult beginnings, Lakland bass guitars have built up a world wide reputation for excellence.

Lakland basses
People often ask many questions about the manufacture of Lakland basses. The best way to refute rumours is to clearly answer the questions people have about Lakland basses. It is not accurate to describe Lakland basses as being ‘kit’ guitars. As is usual, Lakland have their necks and bodies manufactured by an outside company. What must be understood is that all Lakland basses are manufactured to the company’s specifications. The bodies of Lakland basses are manufactured elsewhere, but the wood used is specially selected by Lakland themselves. By having the bodies manufactured by a contractor, the creators of Lakland basses can focus their attention on refining the manufacture processes and details.

The Classic, Standard and Deluxe Lakland basses are electronically the same. The Deluxe and Standard Lakland basses are manufactured from Swamp Ash wood. Both these Lakland basses come with either a translucent or sunburst finish. The Lakland basses in the Deluxe range have an addition in a Maple Flame top or Quilt design. The Lakland basses in the Classic range have the bodies manufactured from Alder wood. All the Lakland Classic models come with a solid metallic finishing plus a non-detachable pick guard. Most Lakland basses come with the Lakland Custom Wound strings as part of the finished product. Both the Decade models and the Hollowbody models come with Joe Osborn Flats strings.

The Lakland basses have different fingerboards. The Ebony fingerboard has a more mellow sound in the treble range, especially in the midrange and a thick bass. The Ebony fingerboard gives a bright sound. The Maple fingerboards are characterised by a growling sound quality that goes exceptionally well with fretless basses. All Lakland basses have fingerboards that have a bright and round sound and can be classified as having piano-like treble ringing sounds. Another feature the Lakland basses are well-known for is their ability for sustainable quality. What is fact is that Lakland basses have become amongst the most respected bass guitars today. They have found favour amongst professional musicians and top-notch amateur bass guitar players around the world. Lakland have been able to combine contemporary innovation with the comfort of vintage style and quality. Lakland Guitar Company has carved out a niche for the excellent bass guitars in an extremely competitive market.