Gibson Lab L5

1978 AMP. MADE BY NORLIN,COMBO, TWO SPEAKERS,TWO CHANNEL,SPRING REVERB,COMPRESSOR,MULTIFILTER,FREQUENCY CONTROL FOR MIDRANGE,EFFECTS LOOP,REVERB FOOT SWITCH,SOLID STATE,100 WATTS.I PLAY BLUES,JAZZ AND ROCK,LOTS OF DIFFERENT TONES YOU CAN GET WITH THIS AMP.

I USE A STRATO AND A GIBSON 335 AND FEW STOMP BOXES,I ALSO HAVE A MARSHALL HEAD 3203 ARTIST.
I LOVE THIS AMP FOR THE WIDE RANGE OF TONES YOU CAN GET,SOLID STATE?MUST BE THE ONLY SUPERB SOLID STATE AMP AROUND,I DON'T NOW HOW THEY DID IT...
I DON'T LIKE THE DIST.,YOU REALLY NEED TO GET A EXTERNAL UNIT FOR THAT,BUT THIS BABY GOT GREAT TONE WITH PERSONALITY,TURN THE MULTIFILTER(DESIGNED BY MOOG)IN COMBINATION WITH THE FREQUENCY AND FIND A BIG PALETTE OF TONES,NICE....

I HAVE THIS ONE FOR ABOUT 10 YEARS NOW AND NEVER HAD A PROBLEM.

NEVER HAD A PROBLEM

I LOVE THIS AMP. AND IAM NOT GOING TO CHANGE IT,IT IS NOT FOR HEAVY SOUND BUT I DON'T PLAY THOSE STYLES,MANY TIMES AFTER A GIG PEOPLE TELL ME THEY LOVE THE SOUND I GET FROM IT,FUNNY THING JUST FEW PEOPLE NOW THE BRAND OF IT....

Bought this new in about 1978 for $700+ with standard features. I use it for practice, jamming and gigging

I use a Seymour Duncan customized Fender Strat 1972 that I also bought new. The amp is perfectly clear and no amp matches it for a BB King or Pretenders sound. With the right effects, Soldano distortion pedal, Roland digital delay rack and chorus etc this amp is unmatched because it has the capacity for such a pure base tone.

Apart from the compression unit dying early on this amp is bulletproof

n/a

I have a bit of experience playing in bands with all sorts of gear all over the world since 1964. Too much to list but including Fender, Accoustic, Boogie etc amps and most guitars. If I was to replace this I might go for a Soldano amp.

The amp is a bit too heavy and powerful for practice situations but I've given up being a collector and want the best simple setup that can also do it all. I play most styles from bluegrass to Jazz, flamenco and metal and I also play a couple of dozen different instruments so I need a flexible amp. Moog knew what he was doing.

My L5 is from 1979 per date stamps on components.

The amp sports 2-12" CTS ceramic magent speakers, dual non-footswitchable channels, dual hi/lo inputs per channel also with a bright switch, 100WRMS, effects loop, global compressor and master volume.

The normal channel (channel #1) has 2 hi/lo inputs, mid, bass, and treble controls and a bright switch. I don't notice as much of a difference using the bright switch in channel #1 as I do on channel #2.

The 2nd channel has hi/lo inputs, bass, mid, treble, midrange parametric EQ control, and another control that like someone here or elsewhere said, acts like an exicter or a way to clear up tone without being a bright switch. Reverb is also available on the 2nd channel.

The reverb is true spring reverb with a 19" tank secured to the bottom of the amp in typical 70's naugahyde fashion.

The compressor is global, working across both channels. It's action is simple: when engaged, it softens tone. to engage it, you set the threshold of when it kicks in, such that if you exceed that DB threshold, the compressor is enabled (as evidenced by the tone as well as the compressor light). The idea being that like a tube amp adds natural compression when you dig into strings for louder volume, so to this control.

The amp has 2 removeable back panels, 4 removeable casters and is about the size of a Fender Twin Reverb, tipping the scales at a relatively light 55lbs.

Can't comment on versatility until later, but I give this thing a "10" for sheer number fo tonal controls.

Compressor - sounds better for jazz than anything else, smoothing out the tone very nicely.

Channel #1 - best for jazz, IMO. Channel #2 has so many tonal controls, it's hard to dial in the right tone for a song. This channel is also excellent for fornt-ending with a pedal for rock/blues as it does not color the tone very much on its own. Sounds great with a preamp'd flattop, too.

Channel #2 - many tonal controls... too many for me to fiddle with... maybe later when I feel like spending the time. Still, cool sounds to be had.

Neither channel is noisy... eh, maybe a little with the compressor full tilt.

I am using the amp for jazz, blues and rock. For each, I front-end the amp with my Zoom GFX-4 multi-FX pedal. The amp has no distortion to speak of - evne when at full volume. Yeah, engage the compresor and you get a some breakup, but you'll still need a pedal.

I'll give this amp a "9" on clean tones alone.

Whew. 1979 - looks and functions like new... "10"

A nice amp that no one else is bound to have when you gig. Granted the L5 was/is used by a number of folks from BB King through Ty Tabor to Ronnie Montrose and many other names, including instructors at G.I.T. in LA in the 70's-80's.

This is probably one of the few SS amps that I think is worthy of use on gigs - with the right front-end pedals. The thing loves pedals and flattops - unlike many/most other SS amps.

Will I keep it forever? Come on, I play guitar... who amongst us is married to the exact same gear forever - very few, I would venture. I mean I've had dozens of amps, but mostly tubies. This is perhaps only one of 2 SS amps I would consider keeping. The other one being a US-made Fender Princeton Chorus.

I don't miss footswitchable distortion as I never use the amp's distortion anyway - even on my tube amps. I always use pedals to give me supreme control over effects and volume.

If you need a sub-$500 workhorse for jazz or blues/rock with a pedal that is fairly unique in appearance and name and you desire SS over tubes, you should check out the Lab Series of amps.

Made somewhere around 1980, two clean channels (one basic, one versatile), not a lot of features but very professional. All solid state. I used one of those around that time and I never forgot the great sounds I got with this model. Haven't seen one for about 20 years but just bought one again, now I still need a second since I play stereo. Anyone? Let me know!

No matter what guitar I use it sounds great. It gets a little noisy when setting the volume pots high but I want to have the amp checked and I want all the IC's replaced by newer models that are more quiet. Using a good guitar equipped with EMG pickups and a tube screamer kinda distortion gives you a very professional lead sound, even on rhythm pickup no mess. Try that on a Marshall...

It's at least 20 years old and still works okay. Only the reverb lost it somewhere but that could very well be a loose wire or so.

Usually Gibson is quite helpful with their old products so I don't worry about that.

... ...

Great clean sound from this solid state amp, just bought it for 150 Euros second hand, mounted on roller wheels and weighs a ton!! Two channels, one is good (with reverb & extra equalisation.) for playing direct, and the other is good for using different effects. It would be good to have a switching unit. But for the moment you are obliged to pull the cord and plug it elsewhere.

Using the amp with a Telecaster copy made by Vester. Haven't tried the amp in the studio yet, but in the apartment the sound starts to make the walls shake.

Just got it so no news about the reliability yet, however the Compressor does not work, the LED comes on for a couple of seconds then goes out. Is this a common problem as I see I am not the only one to have this go wrong

Don't know about this one yet

circa 1979

Rock, Jazz, Blues. This amp suits my styles well.

Never let me down in a gig.
However I did have the switch/circuit breaker break on me. I had trouble finding the replacement so I want to post the manufacture here.

The switch is made by ETA circuit breakers, go out to the web at
http://www.etacbe.com/n_america/e-t-a/etacbeframeset.html

the product number of what your looking for is 45-000-P10 and there
may be an -H
tacked on to the end
and I don't remember the amperage, so be careful, looks like they have
1.5, 10,
15 & 17 amp circuit breakers. Check your existing one or look at the
amp specs I
sent you.

You may have trouble getting this because these distributors are
wholesalers,
but you should be able to pull it off. Good Luck.

Refer to previous reports. I think this amp has all standard features of current SS Amp.

I use Gibsons ES-335, LP Standard and the SG Std. I play mostly Blues, and this Amp sounds just right for my kind of tone. It is quiet, but when I crank the volume up, it can thunder. I would say it is very bluesy and twangi with my Gibsons, and crystal clear - just as the way I like it. Overdrive compressor did not work from the start as this amp is old and obviously this thing is gone, but I never really like OD sound, although you need it for some music. I will get a BOSS pedal or something later.

I got second hand from a private seller - who discribed himself as a frustrated rock musician. I am not sure if he kicked this amp so hard out of some frustration, but all was OK apart from Compressor is not working. I did not check this out foolishly, as it was late night after my long and hard days work and 400 miles drive, I just wanted to close the deal. Apart from that all seems OK. Will see, as I had it for a couple of days.

Dunno

I think this amp is great for the money. It has rusty 2 x 12" huge speakers in it, and it is written Mexico, but no other writings. But at the back of the case, it says Made In USA by Norlin or somthing...
It looks better than brand new current SS Amps at that price. I could not stand these low level brand new SS Amps for thier crappy sound. This L5 is really bluesy, twangi and fat and creamy and yet crystal clear, and this is where it scores. So now I can play downstairs (when my wife is out) with the Fender Champ 12 Tube amp, and upstairs with this L5. Great Amp.

Channel 1: 2 inputs, volume, bass, mid, treble, bright sw.
Channel 2: 2 inputs, volume, bass, parametric mid, treble, bright sw.
Master Volume, Reverb, Compressor w/ switch, multifilter
Speaker Out, Reverb siwtch, Preamp out, Power amp in
Circuit breaker
AC power receptacle
Grounded power cord
2x12 speakers, 16 ohms ea. in parallel
Built like a tank, reasonable weight
Norlin was Gibson's parent company at this time. Moog Music did teh design work.

The Channel 2 EQ was awesome. I never used channel 1, although it was nice when there was another guitar player at a small gig where we only had room for 1 amp. Great reverb. The compressor was fine. The only solid state amp I ever really loved. (I only sold it because we desperately needed money one Christmas while I was in college.)

Mainly used my Hagstrom 1 (http://www.rru.com/~meo/Guitar/UD/) although a bandmate played a Gibson archtop copy through it,
and occasionally his custom acoustic. Worked OK for bass in
a pinch. We played mild rock, country, jazz, and an old hymn or two. It also worked really well for blues (just ask BB) and harder rock.
Would have worked for surf with a tremolo. 8^)

Worked great at all volume settings. Distortion was pretty good unless you tried for hevay distortion. Did great with a Big Muff Pi in front of it for 60s/early 70s sounds. Between that, a Crybaby, a Ross flanger and a couple of different phasers, I could do just about all the different 60s and 70s sounds. Worked better than any other SS amp I've tried for everything from BB King to Cream to Hendrix to the Airplane.

Had it a year as my only amp other than a practice amp. Gigged a fair amount with it. No problems. Solid as a rock.

Bought it used, no idea.

I bought it because nothing else I could find at the price could touch it. ($200 in 1978) It sounded great, and I trusted Moog WRT solid state electronics.

I really wish I could get another one of these. Unfortunately, they only seem to show up when I don't have any extra money. 8^(

100W, 2*12" speakers, 2 channels with each 2 inputs (high, low) Reverb, pre-amp in, signal out, builed somewhere end '70 - begin '80, built in compressor.

I play some 60s Garage-Trash on the amp, at rehearsals, as well as on stage. I use either an early 70s Gibson SG Custom, or a Fender Jaguar. It suits our style better than any other Amp I know. I play it with the Volume and Midrage on about 8, which provides me with a distortion, that isn't as "cheesy" as those modern distortion pedals.
I think that the distortion is rather smooth, but you wouldnt wanna use it if you play Metal, or anything like that.

I've got this amp for over 10years now, and I play it quite often. I also travel to concerts with the amp, and it's got a hard life on stage. After all, it never let me down, no problems - I bought it used.

No support as far as I know.

As I said, I use this Amp in my band "Achtung Spitfire Schnell Schnell !!" for 60s Garage-Punk. We also play Surf-Instrumentals, which you can't use the L5 for, as a matter of fact, I think you can only use Fender Amps (Twin Reverb) for Surf-Music. And That is what I do.
Visit our homepage to download MP3s of songs I used the L5 for.
http://www.achtung-spitfire.de

The Gibson Lab Series L5 combo guitar amplifier was a 100 watt, 2-channel (non-switching) 2 - 12" speaker combo that was made from roughly the late 70's to early 80's. It has 4 inputs, built-in compressor(!), reverb, and a "mid-frequency" knob that gives you MUCH control over the mid-range of the amplifier. It also has speaker outputs, pre-amp inputs, etc, but no FX loop.
Although the amp is a Gibson, it DOES NOT say "Gibson" on it in any way. It was manufactured by a company called Norlin FOR Gibson. (I guess much like how Jim Dunlop makes the re-issue Vox V-847 wah-wahs for Vox.) This is a solid-state amplifier known for its warm tones and used by many famous players including BB King, Allan Holdsworth, Ronnie Montrose, and Ty Tabor of King's X. I'm a big Ty Tabor fan and always loved his tone on the first 4 King's X albums. I hunted for one of these amps for over 5 years after finding out that this was the amp he used. I traded some gear in for it at Tundra Music in Toronto on Dec.28th.1996. (I eventually sold the amp to someone on the Internet in the U.S. in September of 1997) I find the features on this amp to be quite useful and "ahead-of-its-time" for the era it was made in. Some people might find the compressor quite unique to be found on an guitar amp. I really like the control of the mids with the "mid-frequency" knob. As far as feature, I personally enjoyed the control of the mids and the reverb as it sounded really nice.

I find that the L5 had an "OK" distortion sound and was definately "unique" from most other amps, especially for solid-state. I liked the amp in the beginning, but as my taste for tone grew, I found that the amp wasn't giving me what I wanted - a warm tube sound with lots of controllable gain. I have to say that the L5 "cleans up" real nicely when you use the distortion channel and turn your guitar's volume control down. (Something that is an actual "technique" of Ty Tabor's) The reverb is really nice! It's a spring unit, no where near a Fender-type reverb, but it's quite warm without too much "sproingy-ness." The clean sounds are ok too, and some people rave about the clean sounds on the Lab Series - but it's just not for my taste anymore.
Since I bought the amp to replicate some of Ty Tabor's sounds, I found that I really needed to pair it with the type of guitar Ty used - an active pickup Fender Elite Strat with mid-boosted pickups. (I use a Mexican-made Standard Strat with a maple neck, 2 Seymour Duncan '59 Humbuckers, and a Seymour Duncan "Duckbucker" single-coil in the middle position) Obviously, Ty loves "mids" on his sound and this is evident with both pieces of gear having lots of mid-control.
As I only used the L5 at home in my bedroom, I found that 100 watts is WAY TOO MUCH power. But I do think that solid-state amps (at least the ones I've owned) sound better at lower volumes than tube amps. I couldn't go past "3" on the master volume or "4" at the most in my room. I'd rate a "7" for distortion and "6" for clean sounds.
At some points, I found myself getting a bit of Ty's tone, but I think if you used an Elite Strat it would be EXACTLY like those old King's X albums. :)

The only problem I had with the L5 was that the reverb unit would sometimes go out on me, and I'd have to re-tighten the connecting cables to the reverb tank. That would fix it. But this did happen a few times. (Maybe 6-7 times total) When I got the amp it had an original un-marked, no-named speaker and a Celestion 80-watt speaker. It had only one speaker cable and that was connected to the original. I hooked it up to the Celestion and it didn't sound as good. (Probably because of the high-wattage and I was using it at a low volume.) I much preffered the original speaker and it sounded quite good! (Does anyone know the exact wattage rating of these speakers? If you do, please e-mail me!)

Norlin has been long out of business and I don't know if Gibson would give customer support on these products anymore. (You never know though)

I would definately NOT buy this amp again or any of the Lab Series amps. I use to like solid-state amps, but now I rely on tube amps for a warmer, truer sound. I have to say that I've heard that you can pick these amps up used for quite cheap. I first spotted this amp at Songbird Music in Toronto (my FAVOURITE guitar store in all of Toronto because they have used gear at GREAT prices and they are very friendly and know their stuff - visit them at www.songbirdmusic.com) where it was on sale for around $300, and then I saw THE SAME AMP at Tundra Music for $1000!!!!!! I even e-mailed Pete Prown of Guitar Shop magazine to ask if this is what these "vintage" amp were going for. He said they shouldn't be sold for mmore than $300-$400. Anyways, I don't like what Tundra Music does as they "price" their items "per customer." I once contacted them concerning a Peavey Delta Blues amp and they were charging more than list price!!!??? KEEP AWAY FROM THIS MUSIC STORE!
One last point about the L5 - If you hear BB King playing one of these amps, it'll blow your mind with the tone he gets! Every time I hear BB play with a Fender I wish he wouldn't! :) This amp really suits his sound. This also goes to show that while I might not like the amp, that someone else might. Take the opinions from the others who have submitted about the L5 as a "benchmark" and not as THE word. Check it out if you like good sounding solid-state amps for cheap. (Depends where you buy it from though.) :)
Also, I run "The Unofficial Ty Tabor Home Page" (http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Club/2860) and I have a picture of my amp in the "Ty's Equipment" section as well as additional information. If you have ANY question about the L5, please contact me at dwool@yesic.com and I'd be GLAD to help you out. :)

100W, 2*12" speakers, 2 channels with each 2 inputs (high, low) Reverb, pre-amp in, signal out, builed somewhere end '70 - begin '80. I use(d) this amp on stage and for practicing. The basic of what an amp has to do is good: it produces a lot of volume.

I use(d) the amp with a Peavey Falcon. The clean sound is really good with a very warm sound. The distortion on the amp is lousy, if you ever get anything that is worth calling distorion. An effect-box is really necessary, but even then the results aren't really good (I use(d) a Boss HM-2). Since I play in a Metal Band, the sound of this amp isn't what I was looking for.

Only once the amp broke down: a blown-out fuse. Replaced it and never had any trouble again. The combo has wheels and I used to drive around on it, the amp when down some stairs the fast way, it has beer spoiled over it, but there is still coming sound out of the amp

Don't know, I never had to use it.