Is this just a BG thing or is it common here?
Just wondering because I saw a picture of a Englehardt Swingmaster S-9 and its killing me.

I looks like a pretty nice bass for about $2000, not ready to replace my $300 Crumora yet but curious.

Originally posted by gruffpuppy
Is this just a BG thing or is it common here?


Are you kidding me??? DBers not only get GAS, we get much stinkier GAS than BGers...the stuff we get GAS about is typically way more expensive than the average BG. I once made the mistake of playing a $30,000 bass for about an hour, and I had to sleep with incense burning and a fan on for weeks.

Put it this way - if a BG player gets a GAS attack, it'll clear out a room. If that BGer's tastes are anything like JT's, then he might clear out a suite.....but when a DBer gets a GAS attack, it can permeate an entire high rise building and also sour the atmosphere for as much as two city blocks in each direction.

You are entering the deep end of the pool, my friend. Start waving those arms and kicking now and avoid the rush later.

yea i thought that the higher price tags would cure it, but i was wrong. :D

Call me stupid but what is GAS???

Gear Acquisition Syndrome, which is a genuine antimarital sickness.

Originally posted by Chris Fitzgerald
Gear Acquisition Syndrome, which is a genuine antimarital sickness.

You said it, Chris. I always have one eye out for a deal, and the other just out... but I'm lucky to have a wife who's learned there's no sense in resisting. My latest acquisistion is a Charles Bazin bow, not because I needed a bow, but because it's worth at least 3 1/2x's what I got it for. Not a feather was ruffled!

Originally posted by David Kaczorowski

... but I'm lucky to have a wife who's learned there's no sense in resisting. My latest acquisistion is ........ Not a feather was ruffled!


You are indeed a lucky man. My wife is an absolute angel about this kind of thing as well, BUT......whenever I start making statements like, "not a feather was ruffled...." after a purchase, I try to remember to knock on pernambuco as soon as possible after I've said it.

Superstitious, you say? Maybe so, but I'm still happily married and still in full GAS mode (over microphones this time), and every little bit helps.

Originally posted by Chris Fitzgerald
Gear Acquisition Syndrome, which is a genuine antimarital sickness.

And I thought it was only old farts like me that had G.A.S. as I sit here in the office looking at pictures of a beautiful 1820 to 1840 Mirecourt three string on the wall. I am trying to figure out how to mortgage one or two of the kids to buy it.

Mark

Oh, for us it goes way beyond common GAS. Here is actual documented evidence from a Medical journal describing what we go through. Supplied by my friend and teacher, Don Munday.

Here's some information about a medical exam I had. I've shared with one
of my favorite students, including Monte. It may help your marriage or
explain why you behave like you do. Of course this from a reputable M.D.

The actual term is erectus bassicus bassitus. Here's some information from
a medical
journal.

Erectus bassicus bassitus (eh-rek-toos', base'-eh-kus, base-eye'-tus). An
inflammation of the cerebrum, which restricts the cerebrolvascular systems
flow to the frontal lobes and effects the thought process and motor
functions.
Occurs from intimate contact with fine aged wood, horse hair, and
compound rosin substances. The patient exhibits uncontrollable urges to
acquire string basses, which only provides temporary relief since the
patient
will be in contact with the bass(es) for even longer periods of time. This
prolifically contributes the spread of the erectus bassicus bassitus
throughout the cerebrum causing a drastic augmentation of the urge to
acquire string basses inadfinitum. There is no cure.

Contraindications: Increased pulse rate and perspiration when in contact
with or engaged in conversation about stringed basses. Speech is
occasionally slurred and combined with incoherent appreciative grunting.
Patient becomes possessive and will utter phrases such as "Nice bass", "I
need this bass", "I want this bass", "If I had a gun it would be my bass."
American Academy of Musical Medicine Journal November, 1952.

GAS absolutely crosses over to double basses. Only thing that differentiates and often discourages more acquisitions is

- you have to figure out where you will store it

- their costs are generally far greater than a bass guitar

- they are harder to sneak in the house past the wife

The Swingmasters are nice; I sold my blonde Kay a few years ago and miss it.

I've sold a couple Swingmasters in the last few weeks, and the guys were quite happy with them.

http://www.delanet.com/~gollihur/engelhardts.gif

It's hit me pretty bad as a beginner on DB. I'm a wood freak, and I love old things, so this is a BAD place for me to be. Luckily, I've already got some really easy paying gigs that allow me to recoup some of the expense and learn at the same time....a trio doing 19th century sea shanties and some Irish folk stuff. Mostly root-V lines in I-IV-V or some variation of it, stuff that would bore me to tears on BG that's fun on the new instrument. I'm not touching any one else's bass though...that would be suicidal. My teacher tried to get me to play her Juzek the other night but I resisted like the plague!

Originally posted by Bob Gollihur
GAS absolutely crosses over to double basses. Only thing that differentiates and often discourages more acquisitions is

- you have to figure out where you will store it

- their costs are generally far greater than a bass guitar

- they are harder to sneak in the house past the wife

http://www.delanet.com/~gollihur/engelhardts.gif

Bob,

I think I figured out the answers to two of your three points above.

1. I promised her an expansion and remodeling of the house this year.

2. It's amazing how much you can get for a kid these days.

3. I was hoping it would be like my other interests. Keep buying enough of them and she looses track. This is the one that I am still working on. URB's are a little bigger than fishing poles.

Mark

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Bob Gollihur
[B]GAS absolutely crosses over to double basses. Only thing that differentiates and often discourages more acquisitions is

- you have to figure out where you will store it

- their costs are generally far greater than a bass guitar

- they are harder to sneak in the house past the wife

The Swingmasters are nice; I sold my blonde Kay a few years ago and miss it.

I've sold a couple Swingmasters in the last few weeks, and the guys were quite happy with them.

Thanks for the info Bob. I was hoping they would play as good as they look. The number one problem on you list for me is storage, I live in a apartment right know so this is a big one. I guess if i throw out my dinner table i could make room. :D
I will look you up when I am in the market.

GAS doesn't only happen when you experience/want/need a better bass. It happens when you already have a great bass. I bought a phenomenal bass. Then I needed better strings; a pick-up wouldn't do, especially after switching to gut strings, I needed a mic; oh, and I needed a better bow to use on the better bass. Now I'm convincing my wife of my need for a second, plywood or hybrid, bass because the bass I bought is just to good to play on some gigs. Life is rough...

I definitely have the symptoms of GAS. My Lemur catalogs are all dogeared and highlighted, too. But I can't get my wife to understand why a person might need a better bass, let alone more than one. To her credit, she's allowed a lot of "upgrades" in the string, bow and amplification departments without a fuss...
But then it occurred to me...we used to do a lot of hiking and camping together, and of course we each needed our own equipment for that.... :)

How do you think I ended up with 6 basses last year? Sold two, one to go, and I'll have an eminently sensible mix: one jazz, one arco, and one Kay plywood for outdoor or otherwise hostile environments (note to Mrs. David K: a plywood will pay for itself in repairs avoided; I guarantee it; same thing for bows - you simply MUST have a backup. It's just good financial sense.)

Originally posted by Don Higdon
How do you think I ended up with 6 basses last year?

Umm, you're single?

Oh, another thing, Special K, now that you're into gut strings, a friend whose specialty is Baroque music has her gut strings custom made for $400-$500. I think you're ready. You don't want cognescenti sneering at your factory-mades, do you?

Originally posted by Don Higdon
a friend whose specialty is Baroque music has her gut strings custom made for $400-$500. I think you're ready. You don't want cognescenti sneering at your factory-mades, do you?

Don,

I was serious about the 3 string. I need something to go with my Dragonetti bow. I would like to learn more about custom made gut strings, advantages over store bought strings.

Thanks
Mark

Originally posted by Don Higdon
Oh, another thing, Special K, now that you're into gut strings, a friend whose specialty is Baroque music has her gut strings custom made for $400-$500. I think you're ready. You don't want cognescenti sneering at your factory-mades, do you?

I guess if she's good enough to play broke music w/o fixing it, she ought to have $500 strings.

I'm too worried about people sneering at my playing to worry about them sneering at my strings. I considered trying something different, but I get too many compliments on my tone to experiment with something else right now.

Originally posted by Chris Fitzgerald
but when a DBer gets a GAS attack, it can permeate an entire high rise building and also sour the atmosphere for as much as two city blocks in each direction.

You are entering the deep end of the pool, my friend. Start waving those arms and kicking now and avoid the rush later.

yeah, no kidding. i've been scoping out some viola de gambas and barytons. jeezus h. those things are expensive! :eek:

I have got G.A.S too !
Isn´t it also called the D.H.S ?
Don Higdon syndrome ? If true, I have both :-))

Started this last summer and already 5-6
DB´s have passed my hands.

The truly is something special about the DB´s.
Although playing EB all my professional life
this "new" era has given me a kick !

Kind regards,
CV
G.A.S & D.H.S savant ;-))
ps, the scan shows my latest bass...
http://www.geocities.com/trubeatse/magyarbass/side1.jpg

Here's some G.A.S. for you. While at David Gage's today a nice young man named Sam placed a $ 40,000.00 Double bass in my hands. I must confess that the instrument looked and sounded beautiful in my arms. Although I have only been playing a short while, I was magically transformed into Gary Karr. I started to play some incredibly difficult piece that I 'd never heard before. The sound I was producing was so great that all 75 basses in the room started to spontaneously sympathetically sing in harmony with what I was playing. The traffic all over Tribeca stopped in awe.
But then . without warning, my Amex card flew out of my wallet glowing , spinning, savagely white hot. The next thing I saw was that very same card blasting a ten foot wide hole in the wall of Gages' audition room as it made for the hills.
Now that's G.A.S!

I can tell you what new DB'ers get even worse than GAS: IAS (Information Aquisition Syndrome). New players enter the arena starved for knowledge, and tend to spend way too much time on the 'Net just trying to find any little tidbit of info. Bob Gollihur's page (All Hail!) is terribly addictive....