Detailed review of the 2020 Spector Legend Standard bass guitar. Overall, I'd give it a 9/10. Check out the video to see the highs and lows of this bass.
Bloody hell! That was a seriously comprehensive, not to say helpful review mate. Really fancying this Spector bass, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the other main bass on my shortlist (Player Jaguar) in the background!! Thanks very much for this.
Thanks for the review. I currently have a Schecter Stiletto Extreme 4. Great instrument under $500. And electronics looks a mess as well. Been looking at Spector for my next bass and saw these cheaper priced ones. Looks like we've found a winner. Thx Mike.
Thanks for the comment. The Stiletto Extreme 4 is a great looking bass and I've heard good things about its sound. These days, a good bass does not have to be expensive - though I wish I could afford an Alembic...
Thank you for your comment. It seems that the electronics are the weak spot for a lot of basses in this price range. Just after the video was done, I changed the pickups and pots to EMG Geezer Butlers and it's so much better. It added another $100-plus to the cost, but the sound (and quality) is cleaner.
Schecter and spector are great basses you can't go wrong with either tbh the spector legends punch above their weight range tbh, I'd check out the ns pulse from spector they are korean made basses that look super awesome as well 1099 for the 4 string and 1199 for the 5 string ..
Thanks for the video! I have a Spector 2000/5, which are also made in Korea (I think that Legend is). Same thing, dumpy electronics but great build otherwise. Mine now has EMG pickups and the K Haz pre and it sounds killer!
As long as Stu Spector is running the show, you'll not get crap from any of their products. I just bought the new Legend 6 classic at retail because it's worth it.
Hi Chris, yes I agree with you. Now that Spector has been sold to Korg USA, I'm hopeful that quality control will still remain high. I don't blame Stu Spector for selling - he deserves to retire and relax, but he made such good bases that I wonder if Korg will maintain the quality. Congratulations on your Legend 6 Classic, those are great basses!
@@mikesmusicden thanks! I didn't even know they sold out...looks like they still build them in the same factory for now. Hopefully Korg/Spector will stay in Korea and avoid China
Good breakdown , I'm a Spector bass guy I love my old q4 pro which is between a legend and the performer series (ive upgraded most of it only thing factory on it is the emg hz soap bar pick ups it had the emg bts 2 band which is a awesome pre amp but I add a gotoh 18 volt box and a darkglass tone capsule 3 band) it now has a hipshot db7 extender on it. Love it as much as my late 2019 euro 5 lt violet burst (Sweetwater exclusive) and my 2007 Rebop dlx ex(zebrawood) with a emg bqc 3 band pre amp.
Excellent review...As for electronics, first thing I'd do is upgrade to Emg's anyway, so it's not a big downfall for me personally..Very intrigued by these and have been contemplating one..this thorough review is excellent..thanks for putting this out there
Hi Trent, thanks for the comment. Good call on the EMGs. In fact, shortly after the video was done, I changed the electronics and pick-ups for EMG Geezer Butlers. It sounds so much better and the Geezers are plug-and-play - no soldering. Took about 20 minutes.
Hello Mike, maybe you could answer me two question: #1 is it strictly active or is there also a passive mode? #2 what is the average battery life if only active? Thanks!
Hi Tom, the bass was originally all active with no passive option, but I changed all of the pickups to passive EMG Geezer Butlers shortly after the video was made. The battery life I don't really know about because I changed it to passive pretty much right away. The bass is my main gigging bass and has held up really well - changing the pickups to passive was a really good change for me. Thanks again for asking
Hey Mike, great video man! I'm seriously considering buying one of these puppies. I've seen in the comments that you ended replacing the original pickups with a Geezer Butler P/J kit. I'm serious about both the original jazz pickup and the GB one, is any one of the 2 noiseless? Also, how is the original p-bass pup, is the GB much better? I'm looking for a convincing p-bass sound with a balanced noiseless jazz pup for some extra definition when needed, do you think it is achievable with either the original pickups or the GB?
Hi Mr Khaan, thanks for the comment. I felt that the original pickups were very weak. To me they sounded tinny, like listening to a bass on a small AM radio. Also, the wiring was thin and not soldered well at all. When I changed to the Geezers the bass really opened up - in fact, this is my current gigging bass and sounds great. Thanks again for watching!
I was wondering if the Gotoh tuners are an exact replacement? Hole dia , etc. I would maybe change to black hardware later..Great review as I just ordered a Legand 4 STD,.. plus, if you changed to EMG geezer PUs , did you wire for 2 volumes so you could use 4 knobs etc? Any help there would be appreciated. Great review. Need more like this review. Thank you. Robert
Hi Robert, thanks for you comments. I actually did put in Gotoh tuners and they are not an exact replacement. I had to rout out the tuner holes a little to make them fit. I actually routed them out too much and made the holes too big (be careful, it's easy to overdo) but the Gotoh tuners work fine and I have not had any tuning issues, even with my sloppy workmanship. As far as the Geezer pickups, I kept everything standard with the wiring and used the extra hole in the front of the bass for my input jack (I like front mounted jacks). Thanks again!
Thanks this vid helped a lot. I wonder if you looked at 3 more legend basses if they would have the same build quality as this one. Trying to get away from using Squiers but I don't have $2,500 for a pro level Spector lol
@@mikesmusicden I do think however that at some point you're just paying for the name. I'd love to see this compared to a Warwick Rockbass Streamer in the same way considering they're identical body styles and very similar price points. Great vid thanks again
Hi tmbacz, I have not tried Black Beauties on this bass yet, but I might do that next time I change strings. I like fuzz myself and with a good fuzz pedal, the Geezers sound great! Thanks for watching!
Hi Daniel, no it wasn't a Tone Pump Jr. It was a very small, badly soldered circuit board that looked nothing like a Tone Pump or Tone Pump Jr. In fact, one of the reasons I got the bass in the first place was because I was expecting something in the Tone Pump family, but the board that came with it was pretty disappointing.
The kind of reviews we need! Thanks!
Hi Oliver, thank you!
Now that's a review!
Haha, thanks for watching!
Looks like this is the same caliber as the Spector NS Pulse I used to own. And that was $1199. Thanks for this!
Bloody hell! That was a seriously comprehensive, not to say helpful review mate. Really fancying this Spector bass, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the other main bass on my shortlist (Player Jaguar) in the background!! Thanks very much for this.
Thank you for your kind words; the Jag in the back is a really great bass too!
Thank you, sir! This video has been of tremendous help.
Thank you Sofia, I appreciate it!
Thanks for the review. I currently have a Schecter Stiletto Extreme 4. Great instrument under $500. And electronics looks a mess as well. Been looking at Spector for my next bass and saw these cheaper priced ones. Looks like we've found a winner. Thx Mike.
Thanks for the comment. The Stiletto Extreme 4 is a great looking bass and I've heard good things about its sound. These days, a good bass does not have to be expensive - though I wish I could afford an Alembic...
Thank you for your comment. It seems that the electronics are the weak spot for a lot of basses in this price range. Just after the video was done, I changed the pickups and pots to EMG Geezer Butlers and it's so much better. It added another $100-plus to the cost, but the sound (and quality) is cleaner.
Schecter and spector are great basses you can't go wrong with either tbh the spector legends punch above their weight range tbh, I'd check out the ns pulse from spector they are korean made basses that look super awesome as well 1099 for the 4 string and 1199 for the 5 string ..
Amazing review! Thank you, I just order one legend classic and now I'm completely relieve that I make a great choice!
Did you get it? How do you like it? 🤘🤘🤘
Hi Erick, thank you!
Thanks for the video! I have a Spector 2000/5, which are also made in Korea (I think that Legend is). Same thing, dumpy electronics but great build otherwise. Mine now has EMG pickups and the K Haz pre and it sounds killer!
Good choice changing to EMGs - I changed to EMG Geezer Butlers and it made a huge difference; thanks for watching!
As long as Stu Spector is running the show, you'll not get crap from any of their products. I just bought the new Legend 6 classic at retail because it's worth it.
Hi Chris, yes I agree with you. Now that Spector has been sold to Korg USA, I'm hopeful that quality control will still remain high. I don't blame Stu Spector for selling - he deserves to retire and relax, but he made such good bases that I wonder if Korg will maintain the quality. Congratulations on your Legend 6 Classic, those are great basses!
@@mikesmusicden thanks! I didn't even know they sold out...looks like they still build them in the same factory for now. Hopefully Korg/Spector will stay in Korea and avoid China
Excellent Video, Thanks
Hi Alan, thanks for watching!
Good breakdown , I'm a Spector bass guy I love my old q4 pro which is between a legend and the performer series (ive upgraded most of it only thing factory on it is the emg hz soap bar pick ups it had the emg bts 2 band which is a awesome pre amp but I add a gotoh 18 volt box and a darkglass tone capsule 3 band) it now has a hipshot db7 extender on it. Love it as much as my late 2019 euro 5 lt violet burst (Sweetwater exclusive) and my 2007 Rebop dlx ex(zebrawood) with a emg bqc 3 band pre amp.
Hi LowMan, Darkglass makes good stuff - your upgrades probably sound great!
Great review
Thank you, I appreciate you watching.
Thank you for watching!
Excellent review...As for electronics, first thing I'd do is upgrade to Emg's anyway, so it's not a big downfall for me personally..Very intrigued by these and have been contemplating one..this thorough review is excellent..thanks for putting this out there
Hi Trent, thanks for the comment. Good call on the EMGs. In fact, shortly after the video was done, I changed the electronics and pick-ups for EMG Geezer Butlers. It sounds so much better and the Geezers are plug-and-play - no soldering. Took about 20 minutes.
@@mikesmusicden I think I just made my decision! Cheers and Merry Christmas from Canada!
Hello Mike, maybe you could answer me two question: #1 is it strictly active or is there also a passive mode? #2 what is the average battery life if only active?
Thanks!
Hi Tom, the bass was originally all active with no passive option, but I changed all of the pickups to passive EMG Geezer Butlers shortly after the video was made. The battery life I don't really know about because I changed it to passive pretty much right away. The bass is my main gigging bass and has held up really well - changing the pickups to passive was a really good change for me. Thanks again for asking
something that I have about my spector (even the american made Forte has the same issue) is the battery access
I agree. The battery access is pretty bad.
Hey Mike, great video man! I'm seriously considering buying one of these puppies. I've seen in the comments that you ended replacing the original pickups with a Geezer Butler P/J kit. I'm serious about both the original jazz pickup and the GB one, is any one of the 2 noiseless? Also, how is the original p-bass pup, is the GB much better? I'm looking for a convincing p-bass sound with a balanced noiseless jazz pup for some extra definition when needed, do you think it is achievable with either the original pickups or the GB?
Hi Mr Khaan, thanks for the comment. I felt that the original pickups were very weak. To me they sounded tinny, like listening to a bass on a small AM radio. Also, the wiring was thin and not soldered well at all. When I changed to the Geezers the bass really opened up - in fact, this is my current gigging bass and sounds great. Thanks again for watching!
I was wondering if the Gotoh tuners are an exact replacement? Hole dia , etc. I would maybe change to black hardware later..Great review as I just ordered a Legand 4 STD,.. plus, if you changed to EMG geezer PUs , did you wire for 2 volumes so you could use 4 knobs etc? Any help there would be appreciated. Great review. Need more like this review. Thank you. Robert
Hi Robert, thanks for you comments. I actually did put in Gotoh tuners and they are not an exact replacement. I had to rout out the tuner holes a little to make them fit. I actually routed them out too much and made the holes too big (be careful, it's easy to overdo) but the Gotoh tuners work fine and I have not had any tuning issues, even with my sloppy workmanship. As far as the Geezer pickups, I kept everything standard with the wiring and used the extra hole in the front of the bass for my input jack (I like front mounted jacks). Thanks again!
@@mikesmusicden Thank you for reply Mike !!!
Thanks this vid helped a lot. I wonder if you looked at 3 more legend basses if they would have the same build quality as this one. Trying to get away from using Squiers but I don't have $2,500 for a pro level Spector lol
Hi Nick, thanks for the comment. I get it, I doubt I'll ever be able to afford a high-end Spector myself.
@@mikesmusicden I do think however that at some point you're just paying for the name. I'd love to see this compared to a Warwick Rockbass Streamer in the same way considering they're identical body styles and very similar price points. Great vid thanks again
What about this bass with the Geezer pickups + the black beauties strings? I want to start slaying some fuzz tone riffs.
Hi tmbacz, I have not tried Black Beauties on this bass yet, but I might do that next time I change strings. I like fuzz myself and with a good fuzz pedal, the Geezers sound great! Thanks for watching!
Is this one made in Indonesia or Korea?
Is the body curved?
No, it's pretty straight, but it does have the 'tummy cut' at the top. It sits pretty comfortable and is not too heavy.
? Thought that pre was a tone pump jr?
Hi Daniel, no it wasn't a Tone Pump Jr. It was a very small, badly soldered circuit board that looked nothing like a Tone Pump or Tone Pump Jr. In fact, one of the reasons I got the bass in the first place was because I was expecting something in the Tone Pump family, but the board that came with it was pretty disappointing.
Hey it's your guy. Rob
Awesome, hi Rob! Thanks for watching!
If you close your eyes you can hear a young Bill Gates making a bass review
Haha...I can't sing well either!