Do you ever feel like your gear is way too good for you?

Evil Undead · #1 01-23-2011, 08:49 AM

I'm having this problem at the moment. One of my basses (Warwick Corvette) is amazing, plays like butter and cost an arm and a leg... but I feel like I'm not good enough to justify owning it!

Don't get me wrong, I'm ok and all that, but I have a cheaper bass that I feel like I should stick with and sell the Corvette - the money could be put to good use at the moment. But I love this bass, so I don't seem to be able to pull the trigger.

I'd appreciate any thoughts on this or hearing your own experiences...

jacojbass · #2 01-23-2011, 08:51 AM

one word: NO

REAPER52 · #3 01-23-2011, 09:00 AM

I dont think looking at the monetary value of something is good, in general. If you are lucky enough to enjoy it -so be it. now if you spent money you dont have and it took away from something else - like if you had children for example= then it would maybe be not so good. Cheaper -more expensive are not the way i prefer to lay my value on something.

Medford Bassman · #4 01-23-2011, 09:06 AM

Hey, I feel my gear is too good for me as well. But speaking from experience as someone who has stupidly sold great instruments and regretting it later...DON"T DO IT

jsingles · #5 01-23-2011, 09:07 AM

Music is ultimately about nothing more than enjoyment. If you enjoy your bass, there is no reason to sell it unless you are in real financial trouble.

DeathFromBelow · #6 01-23-2011, 09:10 AM

Keep playing it,and you will grow into it as you progress. Problem solved.

thumpbass1 · #7 01-23-2011, 09:11 AM

Never! Be glad you can afford, or got fortunate enough to have some premium gear. Ain't no sin having a top level instrument. Besides, you'll be kicking yourself down the road with a bad case of the ' I really shouldn't have done that.' I wouldn't sell it unless your finances were in a truly dire state of affairs.

s_mcsleazy · #8 01-23-2011, 09:11 AM

in some ways yes and no

Stingray89 · #9 01-23-2011, 09:12 AM

I feel this way at times. I've got an Ampeg SVT 4 Pro and an ampeg 8x10 that I love but most bassplayers don't have this. It cost me an arm and a leg but I paid it off. Do I ever regret spending so much money on it? No because every time I plug in and play and create a small earthquake I enjoy it.

panama · #10 01-23-2011, 09:18 AM

You're a bass player. You love the bass you chose.

The skill level doesn't need to reflect the cost of your bass.

How many excellent but poor bass players are sitting at home right now jamming on an SX?

DiabolusInMusic · #11 01-23-2011, 09:19 AM

I've always hated seeing guys with $5k of gear an 0 oz of talent on stage. So yes, this has affected my quality of gear purchased. I have spent years working up to my SVT. Keep in mind though, money IS an object to me, if you can afford to drop 3k on a piece of gear and not really notice it financially, why not buy quality? (Although I'd probably spend as much on music education in said scenario...)

jsingles · #12 01-23-2011, 09:22 AM

People who hate somebody else for having nice gear are just jealous and/or getting offended by every little pointless detail they can find to complain about. There will always be people like that.

Lady Kayri · #13 01-23-2011, 09:28 AM

At the moment the quality of my bass (I have a Dingwall) exceeds the quality of my playing, but I just view that as incentive to improve the quality of my playing!

BrandonBass · #14 01-23-2011, 09:28 AM

I bought a stingray after playin for just 1 year cause it was such a steal, and yeah i was kinda insecure because well i kinda sucked lol, and the stingrays cutting tone doesnt help much in hiding my mistakes.

While I wouldnt say I get 'jealous' per say when I see a newbie with nice basses, i found it quite amusing seeing this guy with a warwick thumb trying to impress me and my friends with some very fast line of random notes with no groove, but when it came to the song he was struggling to play 8th notes 100bpm on time.

Edward G. · #15 01-23-2011, 09:29 AM

As long as it doesn't deprive you or your family of food, clothing and/or shelter, you should play whatever the hell makes you happy. Feeling that you're not worthy of X equipment is silly. There is no magic in equipment. Period.

jsingles · #16 01-23-2011, 09:30 AM

guys like that who just try to act like they are victor wooten are way more offensive to me than people with nice gear. they are just clowns making my instrument look bad, and they obviously only play to get attention, which is another pathetic insult to music.

Edward G. · #17 01-23-2011, 09:33 AM

Corollary: Buying status through equipment is equally silly.

Infidelity · #18 01-23-2011, 09:37 AM

Felt this few weeks ago and I guess it's stupid for my part.. If you have good gears the only one thing you need to focus about is getting good chops..

The Stingray · #19 01-23-2011, 09:37 AM

Mate do NOT sell it ! NEVER EVER sell a bass unless it is to get something better ! As someone else said keep at it and it will grow on you, up your game so you feel justified when playing it.

Evil Undead · #20 01-23-2011, 09:41 AM

No, we still pay the rent and have enough to eat etc, but when it comes to things like helping my parents out with cash and fixing my car (need a new window as some **** smashed it last night when breaking in to see what they could steal) I just realize how much the cash would really come in handy. Even if I did sell it I would still have everything I need with my Kramer and amp/effects etc. But the Warwick is just so damn nice.

Also, I neglected to mention that due to my fear of getting something so expensive stolen or broken at a gig, it only gets played at home... yeah, I know...