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Are cosmetics that important in a bass??

H

holllowbody

Guest
Mar 25, 2009
148
0
#1
Reading around here it appears that how a bass looks is a big deal to most people if not all.

Why is that? Why do looks matter at all?

I thought is was all about playability, tone and build quality etc.
 
#7
Kwesi said:
If a bass looks like trash, it is trash.

No, I'm not kidding. Of course, everyone's definition of "trash" is definition.
Click to expand...

Lets say it looks like "trash" but it plays well, sounds good and is very well built.

Is it still "trash" even though it plays and sound like a dream?

Are you also suggesting that if it plays like crap and sound like crap but looks good then the bass is ideal for use?
 
#8
If I have a bass I find visually appealing I am more inclined to pick it up over an uglier instrument. Of course, if it doesn't tick the sound/playbility boxes then it goes down again but I think for most people the look is the first thing they notice.
 
#11
People have five senses for a reason. If you go to a restaurant and ordered a dish, and it comes to your table looking like a plate of rancid yak feces, you wouldn't wanna try it no matter how good it smelled. In the restaurant industry, this is called "Presentation."

Oddly enough, it's also called "Presentation" in the entertainment industry. By your logic, all basses could look like the Mothman bass and as long as it sounds good, it shouldn't be an issue. But we all know that's not the case. Do I REALLY need to explain to you why most of us wouldn't be caught dead playing that thing live?
 
#12
My bass refuses to leave the house without foundation, mascara and lip gloss. It routinely takes forever to get ready and makes me late to gigs while nagging me about my driving the whole way there. Very frustrating. So I suppose I'm anti-bass cosmetics.

In this day and age, when there are countless builders available to choose from at pretty much every price point why wouldn't you get a bass that sounds and plays exactly like you want while holding great visual appeal to you as well?

If I don't like the looks of a bass, Even if it "plays and sound like a dream", I won't buy it. Why would I, when I could find another bass that plays and sounds just as good while holding greater aesthetic appeal to me.
 
#14
holllowbody said:
Reading around here it appears that how a bass looks is a big deal to most people if not all.

Why is that? Why do looks matter at all?

I thought is was all about playability, tone and build quality etc.
Click to expand...

Would you buy a bass that you hate to look at? I know I wouldn't. Some people just want a car that can go from point A to point B, and they don't care what it looks like, but for others being visually appealing matters too. Same goes for basses.
 
#15
Kwesi said:
If a bass looks like trash, it is trash.

No, I'm not kidding. Of course, everyone's definition of "trash" is definition.
Click to expand...

No, you were right the first time. Looks, playability, sound, in that order. Of course, the better a bass looks, the better it sounds. These all sound pretty danged good.

JD005blk.jpg


SadowskyBodyPB800.jpg


BN5-Twins-body.jpg


Fodera-Body-01-web.jpg


PinkJO5web.jpg
 
#18
I had a beautiful JSBII, and some friend of one of my kids gouged the body over 11". It started as a finish scratch and at the end was a deep wood gouge. I couldn't play that bass ever again, the pain was killer.

Looks count on some level. I gigged that bass for 20 years.
 
#19
AdamJames306 said:
People have five senses for a reason. If you go to a restaurant and ordered a dish, and it comes to your table looking like a plate of rancid yak feces, you wouldn't wanna try it no matter how good it smelled. In the restaurant industry, this is called "Presentation."

Oddly enough, it's also called "Presentation" in the entertainment industry. By your logic, all basses could look like the Mothman bass and as long as it sounds good, it shouldn't be an issue. But we all know that's not the case. Do I REALLY need to explain to you why most of us wouldn't be caught dead playing that thing live?
Click to expand...

If a bass looks like a work of art and I wanted to keep it that way looking really nice and all, I would be too afraid to do anything with it other than look at it.

I prefer a bass that does not call attention to itself via it's looks, good attention or bad attention.
 

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