The Lab Series L5 is a Lab Series amplifier. It pairs well with the Fulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive and the Carl Martin Hot Drive'n Boost MK3.
Lab Series L5
Lab Series · amplifier
The Lab Series L5 is a solid-state combo amplifier from the 1970s developed by Norlin, Gibson's parent company at the time, with engineering input from Moog, giving it circuitry unusual for a guitar amp of its era and an unmistakable, extremely clean, high-headroom character on its normal channel alongside a distinctly aggressive, saturated overdrive mode. It became a cult favorite among jazz, blues, and funk players for that pristine clean headroom, while also finding an unlikely following among early metal and hard rock guitarists drawn to its surprisingly heavy, thick distortion channel. Players including Mike Stern and John Scofield have long relied on the L5 for its clean tone, while Kirk Hammett famously used one in Metallica's earliest years.
- jazz
- thick
- metal
- hard rock
- funk
- headroom
- distortion
- clean
Good for
- Live
- Studio
Genres the Lab Series L5 is commonly used in
- Metal
- Blues
- Jazz
- Hard Rock
- Funk
- Heavy Metal
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
Pedals that stack with the Lab Series L5
Fulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive
Fulltone
19% matchFulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive's fuzzy fills in what this transparent tone doesn't make on its own
Carl Martin Hot Drive'n Boost MK3
Carl Martin
18% matchThe transparent tone has headroom to spare — Carl Martin Hot Drive'n Boost MK3 gives it high gain to fill it with
Carl Martin Crunch Drive
Carl Martin
18% matchRun Carl Martin Crunch Drive into that high headroom platform and it finally gets some crunchy
EarthQuaker Devices Grand Orbiter V3
EarthQuaker Devices
12% matchKeep EarthQuaker Devices Grand Orbiter V3 after Lab Series L5 in the signal chain, clear of Lab Series L5's own gain stage
Lab Ratz 3D Boum Warming Unit
Lab Ratz 3d
9% matchLab Ratz 3D Boum Warming Unit leans toward low gain, and that's a real, usable character to pair with
Binson Echorec Delay
Binson
6% matchBinson Echorec Delay's saturated voice goes in Lab Series L5's effects loop — it's not there to compete with Lab Series L5's own full character — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Fender Hammertone Reverb
Fender
6% matchPut Fender Hammertone Reverb in Lab Series L5's effects loop, clear of Lab Series L5's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Dr. Scientist Frazz Dazzler V2
Dr Scientist
tonal matchDr. Scientist Frazz Dazzler V2's fuzzy fills in what this transparent tone doesn't make on its own
Questions people ask
What pairs well with the Lab Series L5?+
Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Fulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive, Carl Martin Hot Drive'n Boost MK3, Carl Martin Crunch Drive — Fulltone OCD Obsessive Compulsive Drive's fuzzy fills in what this transparent tone doesn't make on its own.