Aesthetically do you lean more vintage or modern in your preferences ?

[r379]

Vintage...what can I say, I'm old.

+1. Not to the extent of using pickup/bridge covers though 'cause they're a pain in the neck. Being of a pratical bent, I prefer what works over what looks good.

Edit: I play Fender style (Ps and Js) basses.

 

[tplyons]

Very vintage.

 

[lpdeluxe]

Vintage...what can I say, I'm old.

There ya go. This vintage guy likes vintage tools.

Reissues are fine, by the way.

 

[LifeIsBass]

Generally I can't stand the looks of anything "vintage".

 

[JimS]

A tad toward Modern but I enjoy and appreciate...

 

[Double Agent]

Even though I love Fenders, I've always been a more modern guy when it comes to looks. I have owned the Bongo, a Dingwall AB, and 2 Spector NS basses, and have also enjoyed the looks of MTDs, F Basses, and even Warwicks. Its cool to see something different I guess. But, tone-wise I'm a little more conservative I guess. Nothing like a growly Jazz bass to my ears.

Speaking of which, I recently stuck a tort guard on my 3TSB AD Jazz and I love the JPJ asthetic. Maybe I should have voted carrots.

 

[Figjam]

I prefer vintage. I used to be really into the modern boutique thing but then I realized it just wasnt my thing. I really like fender-esque body styles. I think my two favorite shapes are a P bass and a Stingray.

 

[Alvaro Martín Gómez A.]

Mostly modern, definitely. I like Bongos, Steinbergers and Kubickis. The Rickenbacker 4003 may be an "old" bass, but it doesn't look "traditional" or "vintage" to me (and I like it, of course). The only vintage-looking bass that tempts me is the Fender Jazz 75 RI with maple fingerboard and black block inlays.

 

[Dincrest]

I like more modern body shapes. Sleeker, racier, less bulky, better balance. My favorite body shape is that of the Pedulla Rapture. Upon first glance it looks traditional, but has a really sleek, fast, racy shape that looks comfortable and would balance well. I like Soundgear body shape as well.

I'm not a fan of Fender body shapes, particularly the J-bass. Too bulky looking to me. Sound good, though.

 

[joel the bass player]

Vintage for me. Some modern stuff I like, but not as much as vintage looking. A J or a P or a Stingray is what I like. I wouldn't mind an MTD or maybe an Elrick, but those are about the only modern type basses I would ever buy (if I had lots of money).

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

Vintage. The real Non-relic'd belt sander gone wild, not beat with a chain vintage.

 

[EddieG]

Well, I built my Warmoth to resemble what a Jazz would look like, if it were built in the 1930s, art-deco style. I just liked the idea, and it turned out ok.

In that respect, I guess I'm a vintage guy. I'd rather look at a nice Fender Jazz or Precision, than a Mouradian or Auerswald. If you like that kind of thing, great, but I prefer instruments that I have little danger of being impaled on!

 

[markjazzbassist]

Vintage all the way.

 

[dvh]

When I see a painted Fender with chrome hardware (I own a 'burst now, but have owned several painted ones), I think of household appliances from the 50s- washers, dryers, refrigerators, etc.. But when I see an Alembic, I think "this should have been the evolution of the upright".

I love that aesthetic vibe in my 51 P reissue. Mkes me like it even more. (But I'd never have a pickup cover - it would get in the way).

 

[Flintc]

I think we need a translation here. If I'm reading these responses right, "vintage" means "Fender Jazz and clones" and "modern" means "nearly anything else".

I prefer highly asymmetrical body shapes, single cutaways of the SCD persuasion, etc.

 

[Fuzzbass]

I like (and have owned) both, but I like vintage better. I have blue-collar skills and feel weird using a modern bass with a blingy wood veneer. Give me a traditional Fender-style bass, and I don't worry in the least about the inevitable dings and buckle rash. In fact I think they look much better that way.

I don't *try* to scuff 'em up... to the contrary, I'm careful. Even so, they just get scuffed up naturally.

I even like the relic look. I'm thinking about having my butterscotch bass relic'd, because it's too new and shiny:

 

[Double Agent]

I think we need a translation here. If I'm reading these responses right, "vintage" means "Fender Jazz and clones" and "modern" means "nearly anything else".

I would vintage take to mean traditional. A P-bass is traditional(duh!), but I think Gibson and Rickenbacker basses could certainly fit in the vintage area as well as Jazz/Jazz clones.

 

[82Daion]

I definitely lean towards the modern side of things, and generally don't like the aesthetics of Fenders or other "vintage" designs, although there are some exceptions.

Generally, if it has a pickguard, I'm not much of a fan.

 

[dakpluto]

Mostly "modern" designs, but not the ultra modern botique basses that look like they ain't even playable anymore.

But I love me some good ole vintage also. Doing me a fairly vintage looking SX jazz now that will be done up, and then planning on making my old MiM fender P-bass really vintage looking.

 

[Bhuti]

Modern. I right now play a Ramirez 5 tuned e-c and a 4 string '94 Jazz. I plan on getting a Lakland 5 and 50's Precision Bass. The music i play is modern, and the sounds i tend to get are modern. That's me.