Wrangling the Serek Armitage L2500 - How to get value out of a complex bass

[@klaymeister]

Great video, I think you may have series and parallel mixed up. Usually parallel is the hi-fi cleaner tone and series darker and bassier.

[@ampthebassplayer]

I think you’re right. I always get them confused!

[@dirkidentification]

@@ampthebassplayer 😂you left 'm right !

[@floofthebassplayer]

Great vid, AMP. Holy shit that thing is like a legitimate grocery store with strings, got all the good shit and everything that you need.

[@GuyFi46]

Best comment award goes to this guy hahaha

[@r.l.rachel740]

A superbly constructed video showcasing instrument versatility and bass playing talent. Well done. BTW ( None of my business ) is LowEnd Lobster Ok as he has been silent for a while.

[@ampthebassplayer]

Thank you so much! So glad this one is resonating with people! And yes, Lobster’s just fine. I don’t want to speak on his behalf, but we all need a break sometimes.

[@charlesbernklau6234]

Nice job on both the pu selection and setup on that bass and the way you demoed the sounds live with the band in and out of the mix. I’ve got a Serek 5 string with two Serek singles and it’s a badass also.

[@ampthebassplayer]

Right on! I do love the sound of the singles! What model do you have?

[@taylorhilyard8661]

I bought a used l2500 on reverb and upon receiving it found the battery had busted in the vanity and ruined the electronics. Had it converted to fully passive with coil taps on each pickup and a passive tone. Great instruments.

[@shugemery]

I am really loving your Serek Armitage and have been seeing and hearing it in a lot of your recent vids and shorts. Sounds so fine and you play it like a mutha and do it all proud. Truly enjoy your content. I'm a year into my bass life and watch a lot for inspiration. Funkify Life. Bill Withers gets you extra bass points~

[@ampthebassplayer]

Thanks so much! I really appreciate that!

[@BassRTA84]

OMG, how useful is this video ❤ I've got a sire M5 and never really know what to do when it came to the switches.

[@glowco.717]

Absolutely would love a pedalboard tour

[@simon_plays_bass]

L2K electronics - yup great. Pedal video - yes please.

[@mallowmarkerdon8144]

Your videos convinced me to purchase a Fender Rumble; I use my multi effects a lot and it handles the modulation and distortion very well. You’re giving me a lot of good ideas for what my most versatile bass. I switch between Jam Band and Thrash so I’m looking for a 5 string. This video has given me a lot of good ideas for what makes a good versatile bass.

[@57precision]

Awesome bass. Way better looking than any G&L I've ever seen. I really liked how you showcased the tones in isolation and again with the band mix. Crazy how much like a Thunderbird it can sound! I had a Kiloton once and didn't like the huge percussive "bang" on every note, but you are making it sound good. It also played merry hell with every gain stage on my pedalboard which made it hard to switch instruments.

[@ampthebassplayer]

Yeah the output on those MFD pickups is a lot. I always have to reduce the input gain on my interface to near 0 to avoid over driving it. But now that I’ve got it dialed in, it’s just fantastic.

[@christopherphinney9585]

Great review. The live clips make this. Thanks for this. Hard to find L-2500 live vids. Might see me in Taylorsville. Good luck

[@JorgeGarcia-ej3vy]

Excellent video. More please. Would love to see a similar video about your pedalboard

[@raymondadamsjr5632]

The MFD pickups were the first thing I noticed! That's a killer bass, but I'm curious, why not just go with the L-2500? Is it the 32" scale length that just makes the Serek a bit easier to play?

[@ampthebassplayer]

That is a great question! So my Armitage is actually 34” scale so it’s very similar to my G&L. The main problems I had the L2500 though were the weight and honestly the looks. There’s a 4lb difference between the two and for the 4 hour long gigs I play, that can be all you need to avoid sore shoulders.

[@raymondadamsjr5632]

@@ampthebassplayer Oh wow! A 4lb difference would definitely matter over the course of a long gig. That makes a ton of sense and I'm sure your back and shoulder are much happier! Thanks for the response.

[@skyviewdesign]

Brilliant! What a workhorse bass!!!

[@blousug]

Such a versatile bass and really suits your needs perfectly! Thanks for sharing 😊😊😊 And I would love a pedal video, looking to add a delay and whammy pedal myself.

[@joelosacco]

Great video of the variety of tones for that bass. I've looked at the website and his basses look fantastic and well thought out. Thanks for sharing your bass with us. Look forward to the album too.

[@Rib13Bass]

Congrats on a very nice bass ( I love the G&L electronics on my ASAT) and, ironically, im right in the middle of doing a very similar video about tone shaping the way i did it starting back in my old 1980s Top 40 days.....i was going to mention the series/ parallel thing but somebody beat me to it lol......congrats again

[@smashogre4766]

Great video, and such a sweet sounding bass! Thanks for taking the time to make it, and thanks to that one person who asked for it. It was the same idea which lead me to purchase a G&L L2000. In fact, it was your L2500 video which was a huge inspiration, so thank you for that! BTW, I still use the Zoom B4 (thank you for that video too) on my pedalboard. I bring it in and out as needed with the addition of a loop switcher, which I only recently realized was a thing. (Yeah, I'm late to the party)

[@ampthebassplayer]

Right on! So glad to hear it!

[@benblyze7921]

I love my L2500's, this custom bass is super cool!

[@thefool2007]

That bass is absolutely killer.

[@jdmarino]

This was fun to watch. And it convinced me I could not handle a bass with so many options.

[@ianthomson9363]

My bass (Charvel Fusion V) is the exact opposite of that Serek! It now only has a Double Eagle P-bass neck pickup (louder than anything else I've played) , a volume control and a jack socket. Both original pickups and the active electronics were removed. In the 30 or so years that I've been using this setup, playing in many different bands and with the house band at anything up to four jam nights a week I've come to believe that keeping things simple is best. Plus the fact that nobody listens to the bass player anyway! Except, of course, other bass players. I'm not saying that my way is best, but it's an alternative. Life would be so dull if we were all the same.

[@herobass]

Bro!!! Awesome Bass. Love the versatility. Keep Grooving!

[@nolancassini]

Great video! Been waiting for a video where you talk about this bass since you got it. (also yes please make the pedalboard video)

[@thebassman8687]

You should do the single coil mod for it you can get a 3 way switch to replace 2 way series/parallel switch and choose to either do outer coils or inner coils. If you want to dream bigger you can wire in push/pull knob to add OMG mode and whatever coil tap leftover inner/outer lol G&L preamp and the MFD is awesome

[@ampthebassplayer]

I originally was going to have the K-mod for single coil mode, but I think it got overlooked during the build process. I might make that happen at some point in the future though because goodness knows I don't have enough switches to fool around with.

[@thebassman8687]

Have you seen the YT video with the guy testing the bass with 5 jazz bass pickups his bass had like 20 switches on it lol

[@ampthebassplayer]

@@thebassman8687 I have and it's great!

[@jesserobinson20]

Great vid and I love your Sereks. When making all your changes, how do you deal with the resulting changes in output?

[@ampthebassplayer]

Thanks so much! It’s not really been too much an issue once I got my preamp and compressor dialed in for it. But there’s always the volume knob when you need it!

[@wolfwarren6376]

Awesome vid, awesome bass! Question: since it’s close to an L2500, do you bring your L2500 as a backup, or just bring one instrument? Or, do you bring another instrument entirely? On long gigs I tend to bring a backup, so I am extremely curious what you do. Thank you! 😄

[@ampthebassplayer]

I haven’t brought a backup bass to a gig in years. I got tired of bringing unneeded stuff so I just make sure I have tools and spare strings. Thanks for watching!

[@ianjuby8492]

ABOUT TIME LETS GOOO

[@ampthebassplayer]

This one’s for you!

[@JohnGieschenJr]

God damn the audio quality of this video

[@phipschi4255]

The bass and rig sounds crazy good. Do you use your own bass cabinet/combo or do you go into the PA after the vt bass?

[@ampthebassplayer]

I use an Ampeg RB210, but what you’re hearing for the isolated bass parts is directly from the DI on my pedalboard. Thanks for the question!

[@tmmjppsn]

Great sounds!! What scale length is that bass? Is it DR Hi Beams on it that a lot of Sereks come with?

[@ampthebassplayer]

34” scale and yes, DR Hi Beams.

[@unclemick-synths]

Nice having the comparison of the gig mix vs solo. It's too easy to set up a sound in isolation and it just doesn't work in the mix.

[@ampthebassplayer]

Definitely! I love my mids, and that's usually the piece that's missing from bad tone.

[@neudels4896]

I love that being a bass player on a small stage gets to hide in the back behind the lead section haha 😂

[@MrRickburns]

I love the thin paint job and thank heavens they didn't take a belt sander to it.

[@evil-um4yi]

How do you like the B string? 🤯

[@ampthebassplayer]

I love it!

[@ronbzoom8531]

Very cool bass! Love the Serek Armitage look and it probably plays like a dream. But sorry friend, I just have to ask. Why not just get a G&L 2500?

[@phipschi4255]

He said weight and the look.

[@ronbzoom8531]

@@phipschi4255 Whoops! Missed that. Love my G&L 2500 but she is a back breaker. So digging this Serek Armitage. Hmmm...

[@AndreiPopa1]

why not palm mute on the motown sound?

[@VHToff0li]

So this basically retired the G&L 2500?

[@ampthebassplayer]

Pretty much. This one is better in every way.

[@andrejpliaskin9444]

this pickups has so hot output, when they close to strings they distorts sound

[@travatron4000]

Great vid. though I think you're mixing up series and parallel. Unless my Kiloton is just way different.

[@ampthebassplayer]

You’re right! I always do that! 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@eliakuiper4266]

Fascinating, but I don't actually ever plug my behs in, and I don't own amp

[@serdarozbey]

just like a swiss army knife :)

[@CHEWYCHEWYQQ]

Did you ever get flak for using this bass a lot? Online I read about bass players getting pressure from engineers, producers, and even bandmates to only use p or j basses. This bass is even 5 string, which somehow upsets certain people.

[@ampthebassplayer]

I haven’t, but I’m not doing high profile studio work where that kind of thing is more common. In fact, most of the work I do with wedding bands necessitates a 5 string anyway.

[@CHEWYCHEWYQQ]

@@ampthebassplayer Glad to hear it.

[@ileutur6863]

​@@CHEWYCHEWYQQDude anyone who gives you problems for your gear choices isn't someone worth working with in the first place.