Univox 335-Style Bass

I have come by a Lyle bass (which has a tag from "Lyle" stating it was made in Japan--but no factory name, just the number: 1220). I paid something close to a buck twenty five, and after a little banana-ing issue was resolved by turning the neck adjustment nut/shaft (which is 2-piece) the guitar plays very well. Mine is tobacco brown and has a silver key for tuning to go against the other plastic black keys--probably a replacement deal. I wonder if Arai designed this guitar as per Gibson contract, since i have read that Lyles were licensed by Gibson. The electronics are lower-end, but the sound is pretty phenominal in my informal studio. I have it married to a Gallien Krueger RB400 III, which does a fine job. I had never heard of or seen a Lyle, and so that's why I decided to snatch it up off'n my local pawn shop guitar guru dude.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
21 fret 4-string hollow body dual f-hole Gibson style bass with two tone knobs and two volume knobs and a three-position selector swich on the bottom panhandle, which is blacklayer on white on black on white, giving the edges a cool oreo sandwiching effect. The body is edged in white as is the neck. the frets are nicely inlaid with the inlaying all done on the two upper (but lowest toned) areas of the neck. Bridge is all silver steel/chrome with dual adjusting wheels. The neck is normal to thin, and plays like butter. The frets are rosewood. I didn't get a case with it. Looking for one.

Full and deliberate waves of tone in each pick-up position, and stays in tune quite well

Well built hollow body, with an excellent fit and finish.
The pick-ups are screw type and were in nicely when I bought the instrument, but after a slight tweak--are now perfect. The intonation still needs adjusting, and I'll get to that today or tomorrow.

Duh! This guitar is either from the sixties or seventies and still--even with original pots etc.--sounds phenomenal.

Never dealt with Arai, Matsumoku or the Japanese factory before,and haven't tried to contact for repairs, since the instrument is in fabulous shape.

I own a portable recording studio, featuring a Roland VS2480CD V-2, Roland DS90s, A Gallien Krueger 210 bass amp, a killer Alvarez acoustic/electric, a nice Schecter Diamond Series tele, A boss drum kit and my Lyle bass guitar. I use upper-end Sure, AKG, Audio Technica and Samson mics.

Made around 1968 (according to www.univox.org) in the Matsumoku factory in Japan where Epiphone, Lyle and other guitars were made. Hollow-body copy of the Gibson 335 series, but a bit smaller body.

Incredible woodwork and finish - colors are vivid and clear finish is glossy and scratch-free after almost 40 years. Dual f-hole model, fully hollow design. Body is fully bound and wood is quilted and beautiful.

Two passive pickups, appearance is chrome covers with screwdriver-blade pickup tips sticking through the cover. Not sure who made the pickups, as the same model appears on both Univox and Epiphone in this time period. Tone and volume controls for each pickup, and a switch mounted in one horn to select neck/both/bridge pickups.

Bridge is a fairly conventional floating bridge with thumbwheel height adjustment and a chrome cover over the saddles. There's also a flip-up mute with rubber pad under the strings on the front side of the bridge. To intonate bridge accurately, it must be slightly diagonal in position. Trapeze-style tailpiece with chrome strap mount. Non-locking tuners are covered-back conventional Japanese models with chrome plated handles. Truss rod access is at the headstock, with cover of b/w/b/w material.

Originally had b/w/b/w pickguard mounted beside the pickups, but it has been lost. I have a tracing of a factory pickguard and will replace it, as the bass is immaculate.

Short-scale neck is bound and has inlays; very attractive. Headstock has early-style cast plastic Univox logo in horizontal position. Early headstock has slightly diagonal "Bart Simpson hair" design.

Came with factory case, mfd. by Victoria Luggage in CA, a case company for many guitars in the 60's and 70's. Case condition is good with bright yellow velour lining and padding. Tight fit to guitar.

Overall construction is excellent - every guitar I've seen from this factory is amazingly well built and has a good neck. With 3-tone burst, body and neck binding and inlays, this guitar compares favorably with those costing much more. Excellent value on used market since they are not considered collectible - yet.

Pictures can be found by looking at the Sunburst model at:
http://www.univox.org/guitars/custom335.html

Typical hollow-body sound in terms of depth. Pickups aren't as sensitive as Fender, etc. but if properly adjusted give good sound. Volume and tone controls work, but after almost 40 years some pot cleaning was needed to relieve scratchy sounds when turning. Pickup selector switch is due for replacement, as contact is intermittent.

Even with Rotosound flats, the sound is brighter than a Fender bass of this era. There is a decent range of bass to treble with the available controls, and I can get very nice, deep sound. All in all, pleasing and good quality sound. As mentioned above, I find it a bit bright and tend to run the bass up and treble down, but it cuts through the mix well. It doesn't sound like a $1000 bass, but the sound is solid and when you want hollow-body vintage sound, this serves it up in buckets.

Factory setup was lost in the mists (or smoke) of the 60's. Pickups and bridge needed adjusted, but that's not surprising after someone else used it for years.

The neck had one high fret (4th one) that caused considerable string buzz on low notes. A $30 visit to a luthier took care of that, and after considerable fiddling with the bridge, the action is moderately low and very playable. I can get lower action from my 60's P-bass, but the action on the Univox is very acceptable.

There is no apparent bow of shift in the neck after many years, and the truss rod works fine. If you adjust a truss rod of this vintage, be careful - the nut tends to freeze onto the rod. If you get it moving, try to get some silicone lube on the threads to maintain easy operation.

I can't find any real flaws in this bass or its equipment, and its condition suggests that it was played only occasionally and the hardware is original. It belonged to the father-in-law of the gent who sold it to me in 2003; I suspect that gent owned it since new or nearly new.

The biggest flaw is that it's neck-heavy. Factory strap button placements are on the bottom of the trapeze bridge, and the upper horn. I've looked at moving the upper button to the back of the neck heel, but even that wouldn't keep it from diving. The practical solution I've reached is to use the bottom strap button, and on the upper end mount the strap using the nylon cord provided with most straps, running it around the headstock above the nut and under the strings. Mounting the strap this way rather looks like a 60's folksinger, but what's wrong with that? Gee, I wonder if their guitars were neck-heavy, too???

The action rates a 7. The fit and finish would rate a 10. I'll give it an 8 to be fair.

Body-wise, the bass is solid and would certainly withstand live performance. Given its age, it's a good idea to have a backup in case of electronics problems. Pots don't last forever, and as noted above, the pickup selector switch is unreliable. Strap button mounts and such are solid. The body, binding and neck are as stable as you could ask for.

This bass is so beautiful that handling it roughly would be a crime. (But those who treat instruments roughly are idiots anyway.) It will easily withstand normal, careful handling and I plan to use it in performances for many years.

Gone, gone, gone.

The Univox and Lyle instruments from the Matsumoku factory are very well made. The knock on them is usually electronics, if anything. Due to the hollow body and room to operate, one could replace the pickups easily. Since they're usually not expensive (compared to Fenders and Gibsons of the era) they make great vintage instruments to play and experiment with. But if you experiment, please do it neatly and with respect for the fine woodwork!

I have a single-pickup Lyle bass of the same vintage that's tobacco brown, but otherwise a match to this one. I'm replacing the pickup and missing hardware and will have a different-sounding hollow bass that's one of a kind.

I love this bass. It looks like is cost $2000 or more. The 3-color sunburst shines, and the sound is good, too. I'll never let this one go, and I'd buy a replacement in a minute if I list it.