1 bass or 2 for gigs

[ELG60]

If I'm being paid, I'm bringing a back-up instrument and bass head.

 

[/\/\3phist0]

While it would be nice to bring a couple of basses (or more) to a gig, IME, it depends on the actual gig itself. Most don't warrant more than one for many reasons including how much time and/or space you have. Logistical reasons. Ideally, I'd love to bring 2 or 3 but usually bring only one.

The vehicles I drive: were chosen for interior storage capacity, as both a Bassist, and sound engineer/pa owner/ lights : I’ve got space covered: (the 425hp hemi is a bonus and the space is welcome being 6’3”)

The drummer hauls the sub, as it’s mostly for his benefit

 

[RavenousPoe]

It's one bass and one amp for me, but if we start landing larger gigs I have no opposition to bringing two. For now, I do regular maintenance on my main bass. No dead strings and regular changes to avoid breakages (also with a spare always in the gig bag), always keeping a fresh battery for the active pickups, and a multi tool at all times to make any necessary on-the-fly adjustments.

While it's not a $5,000.00 bass, I was very intentional with its specs before making the purchase. Reliable and widely available Gotoh tuners & bridge, stainless steel frets, and an easy battery access panel so I can have peace of mind while getting a lot of use out of it.

*Edit for clarification

 

[ultra60]

It's been a few years since I've had an equipment failure on a gig but stuff breaks and doesn't work and gets left at home.

How serious are you when gigging? I am very serious and will never let the band, audience or promoter down because of an equipment failure. I take 2 of everything. Basses, all leads, tuners, straps, fuses, ear plugs, batteries, strings, amps, cabs, the lot. I even have a spare piece of foam for my Precision!! Anyone can screw up but it won't be me.

100% agree. I was once called "The most redundant guy" in a negative way due to bringing a backup for every piece of gear. This includes a backup digital mixing board. Sure, it is a lot to load. But the show is going to continue and I am not going to be the guy who was not prepared.

 

[Ritter667]

I always bring a spare pair of undies too, in case of an accidental #2.

I've found you can get through a gig peeing your pants, but if you crap it starts to stink.

 

[GrapeBass]

I always bring a spare pair of undies too, in case of an accidental #2.

I've found you can get through a gig peeing your pants, but if you crap it starts to stink.

"Depends."

 

[Neil Folkard]

I always bring two. Second as a backup, but usually something different from the primary, so I'll have an excuse to play them both.

For my weekly Sunday afternoon church gig, it's almost always these two.

Whoa. I've always wanted a fretless Zon. Go on, tell me...how awesome does it play?

 

[fretno]

Serious gigs at least 2

 

[embellisher]

Whoa. I've always wanted a fretless Zon. Go on, tell me...how awesome does it play?

Joe's basses are all great, but his fretlesses are magical. I've never played a better fretless, and I've played them all. My main fretless for 25 years now. It plays wonderfully, has a great neck, and is just overall amazing and beautiful.

Here's a couple of pics.

 

[Runnerman]

Looks like I'm an outlier. I always bring 3 basses. One with at different tuning and one just as an additional standard tuning backup. I also like to play different basses during the show......maybe no one notices but I like to give love to my whole collection. Agree with the sentiment that anything can go wrong and you cannot be too prepared. Had an instrument cord fail last night. Guitar player threw me his backup before I could dig mine out.

 

[Jack]

If I need it to play the show then it gets a backup. That's bass, tuner, instrument cable, some way of getting into the pa. Everything else is fine. As an example I only ever do backing vocals so I don't take any spare vocal microphone stuff, but if I sung lead I would.

 

[slagbass]

I usually bring a backup bass in a double gig bag. Most times it is left in the gig bag as I prefer to get a good sound and run with it for the night. I always bring a backup amp.
Lots of players get concerned about bringing a backup bass but in almost 40 years of gigging, I've never had a bass problem out but I HAVE had 2 amps that failed.

 

[Manticore]

No one needs a backup bass...until they do. I always take two.

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Do u guys bring a backup bass to gigs? I’ve been gigging for the last 10 years pretty consistently and have never taken 2 basses. I do have extra strings and batteries but have never even needed those. My amp did die recently so I just went direct and problem solved.

What’s everyone think

I only bring a second bass if we might be playing a song that I need that low B string for. Otherwise I've just taken my '82 Jazz with me everywhere. So from 1966 until 2009 I only brought my Jazz. In 2009 the group I was playing with did about 5 or 6-songs that I really needed a 5-string for. So I bought an inexpensive Rogue LX405 Pro (not Pro II or Pro III). It was made in Korea and I was amazed at the fit and finish of it. Current models are made in China and quality is a crap shoot. I ordered mine sight unseen online at the urging of a fried who had 3 of their basses. I wouldn't do that now, but if I could inspect it and find one like I got, then it would be worth buying.

I did'nt buy a really top quality 5-string because I love playing my 4-string Jazz. It has the same neck shape, profile, and radius that my 1965 did. I bought that in 1966 and it was stolen along with all my touring gear in 1976. Took me almost 10-years to find a Jazz with that same feel to the neck that my '65 had. I've been playing that since 1985, so I will always keep that as my primary bass.

Here's a shot from one of my outdoor venues when I was still playing songs than needed a 5'er:

 

[EricOnTheBass]

If I have a spare set of strings I only bring one. At the gigs I play at a 5-minute downtime for a broken string is not going to be a big deal. And if the crap hit the fan and my bass stopped working, and didn’t work even in passive mode, we’d take a break while I go home to grab another one. Most of our gigs are only 15 minutes away from my house.

But if I was playing at a serious show and not just a pub, I’d bring a spare bass ready to go.

 

[groove pump]

2 Basses
2 Heads
2 Cabs (unless I bring a 4 x 10)
Multiple cables.. both instrument and speaker
Extra Strings
Tool set

Same here - two class D heads go into one little backpack and I have a pair of 2x10 cabs.

When I started gigging early on with my very first band, my one bass at the time had not one but two of its tuning machines get wrecked in transit to the show. Fortunately we were playing a party with some pals in another band and their bass dude let me play his sweet ol' G&L L-1000.

So if we're doing a thing with several other bands I might bring one bass, but if it's no biggie to bring an extra and maybe leave it in the car, that's fine. When it's just us for a full show, I absolutely bring two basses.

 

[Altitude]

I do a couple of gigs where the music is diverse enough that it's appropriate to bring a modern sounding bass, an old-school sounding P-bass with flats (and sometimes Nordy Mute) and upright bass. I don't like shlepping all of that gear, but in one case especially the paycheck justifies it. I also play in a couple of other situations where I might bring a 5-string and the P-bass. I keep them both plugged into an A/B box for easy changing.

If I can get away with it I prefer to bring just one bass. If I bring an active bass that doesn't have an easy battery change I will bring another bass to grab on the fly. I do try to keep on top of battery life in the active basses though, so that hasn't been an issue for a long time.

View attachment 7176148

Those aren’t backups though. They’re different instruments basically. It’s an answer to a different question.

 

[Polfuste]

To me, even if i understand the idea, there is not différence between a pub/bar show and a bigger one: i treat all of them the same way: if my stuff create a problem, it has to be solved the quickest way. So spare bass, câbles, and a préamp to run direct in PA in case of amp failure.

 

[Ritter667]

I once forgot to bring my bass to a big sort of festival where I played bass in 1 band, and guitar in 2.

Fortunately the bass player in one of the bands I played guitar in at that festival let me borrow his.

 

[OkayistBassist]

I typically just bring one. As stated above, I usually have whichever “main” I’m using out during the week, either at a jam or at home.

I joined a new band later in the year last year. They perform quite a bit away from home. I have a Gator dual bass bag. Might be an excuse to use that more often. It’s not much more trouble to throw in an extra stand into my duffel bag.

Rule of redundancies: “two is one and one is none”. If something goes south, we need to move on post haste. Even the Blue Angels bring a spare jet.

Riis

I live where the Angels are stationed. Truly magnificent machines and team. I’m spoiled watching parts of their practices during the week!