Are you set for life (till death)?

[chris_b]

The instrument has never been the thing for him, only the music. . . .

The truth. . . .

 

[lomo]

I am 62 & GAS'ed ridonculously for the 22 yrs I have been playing.....burned through a ton of gear and enjoyed every moment of it. I have more than I need and am definitely less impulsive & more deliberate with gear purchases but still peruse the classifieds and local FB marketplace for amp gear. I buy less and have been mainly selling off pieces that don't see much use. I have zero bass GAS, but I just bought my 1st vocal mic

 

[chris_b]

I'm not sure that age has anything to do with it. I never had a high turnover, and played my Precision for 26 years before the internet came along. I've owned most of my current gear for 10 years or more.

Any new gear has to be an upgrade, and finally I got to the point where I didn't need a better sound, better weight, more volume or better playability. I haven't stopped looking, but I stopped buying.

 

[Zooberwerx]

I am 62 & GAS'ed ridonculously for the 22 yrs I have been playing.....burned through a ton of gear and enjoyed every moment of it. I have more than I need and am definitely less impulsive & more deliberate with gear purchases but still peruse the classifieds and local FB marketplace for amp gear. I buy less and have been mainly selling off pieces that don't see much use. I have zero bass GAS, but I just bought my 1st vocal mic

I'm always gear-curious but have reined-in my impulse buying. Don't get me wrong, I'll do a preamp upgrade and such now-and-then but no major purchases.

Riis

 

[Gervais Cote]

My GAS seems to be over for these reasons :

My talent is rather limited and a boutique bass won’t change that fact (although I can afford it !)

When I play with my band, a basic p bass with hot pickups and round wound strings ALWAYS work perfectly.

I sometimes have a rehearsal with a very cheap amp kit and nobody complains.

I play almost exclusively rock songs that are more rhythm oriented rather than melody oriented.

And playing music is much more fun than having the nicest bass or the best amp.

 

[2saddleslab]

Mid 60's and have been content w/ my basses for years. Still enjoy tweaking the tone w/ bits & bobbles but the basses remain as is.

 

[BobKos]

I'm with SpiderBass1965. I still check basses & gear out. You never know when something really outstanding will fall into your hands. I recently bought yet another Warmoth Jazz Bass that is pretty good. My old Markbass / Eden amp was way more than I ever will need but my Mesas are the cat's a$$. So I'm glad GAS still persists just a little bit for me. I get to enjoy gear that is really high quality and VERY affordable compared to what equivalent gear costed 30 years ago..

 

[Stylee Mousse]

I’m also 58 and done with gas.

Owning things doesn’t please me, using things and most importantly; learning things does.

So I keep a pretty large rehearsal studio full of my bass, guitar, synth, and drum gear set up and ready to go and play and record 4 days a week.

Going there in 10 minutes. 6am my time.

I gassed plenty to get all that and it would be sad to just let it gather dust.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I don’t want to eat a bunch of meat all the time now, don’t want to “love” every woman I meet, don’t want to compete with everyone (anymore).

Such a relief!

 

[gtirard]

Sorry for the morbid thread title. In over a year not quite 2 I will be in my sixth decade. Unless something breaks ( like an amp or a powered speaker) I don't see myself ever needing any more bass or any instrument for that matter, Just consumables like strings, drum heads.

For those of you that have crossed that milestone, have you stopped GAS? I am asking specifically folks that have been playing for a while at lest 20 years or more and not those that just picked up based recently. I think other factors too, like living on retirement income would make one stop,

I played with folks over 64 and even though these cats have money, I haven't seen them acquire more instruments and those in the 70's or more are even giving or selling stuff away, They are still playing their asses off.

I hope that it happens to me. And motivated inside, not because of external factors.

I’m 57 now, and I think I’ll be done with GAS by the time I’ll be 60. Lol, hopefully.

 

[Al T.]

I have 3 basses and a combo amp and a cab and amp and a few pedals. I don't need or want any more gear as I am only playing at home for now. In the event of a fire I'd grab the F-Bass first and I would miss my Warmoth and my Elwood but I could afford to replace those 2. I'll be 74 in June and that was really unexpected.

 

[Danny O Danny]

Pretty much, yeah. I'm 62, retired, and I've whittled down to three basses:
Fretted Fender P bass w/ nickel rounds.
Fretted Music Man Stringray w/ flats.
Fretless Rob Allen with tapes.
For the types of music I play, this covers all my needs.
Amp-wise, I've got a Demeter 400D & a RevSound 1x12 cab, and a little Fender Rumble 25, and a couple of headphone bass amps.
A handful of pedals (tuner, compressor, octave, chorus).
And a nice pair of IEMs.

 

[rickwebb]

I'll be 60 this fall. And i'm always looking at new preamps, amps, effects, bass guitars, acoustic guitars, etc. The only Major Rule from my incredibly patient wife is- If A New Bass Comes In, An Old One Has To Go. I can live with that. Now if you'll excuse me, i'm going to go try figure out this Ibanez 6-string Soundgear i just bought

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

I long ago moved beyond what these discussion forums call GAS. I buy musical instruments (not just bass guitars...) as I please, with cash. I don't buy them as "investments" or "tools" or try to make some other rationalization. Playing music brings me satisfaction and joy, and the instruments I play it with are a big part of that. It's really pretty simple... I buy them if:

1. I like them. (okay, I like a lotta' things, but...)
2. I can afford them... now. No debt, no credit, no layaway. Ca$h and carry. Or forget about it.
3. They don't exactly replicate something I already have.
4. They complement something I already have somehow.
5. There's some other element that speaks to me about a specific instrument. Could be anything.

 

[ElectricBass72]

No...but at age 52 I have 3 more before I call it quits. 15 basses currently.... but I need a Gibson Thunderbird, Ovation Magnum copy and Shecter 12-string to round off collection.

 

[Ostie]

Every time I buy a new bass I say it’s the last one. I’ve done that nine times….so far….

 

[sleddogn]

55 and going full speed buying then selling when needed...no kids, only live once...lots to try

 

[biobass]

I'm approaching my mid 70s and have been playing since I was 12. I've mostly acquired things when I need them more than just want them. I also hold onto things rather than flip them. I've had my '65 Jazz since 1973. My other basses, have all been with me for 20 years or more, with the exception of my Kala U-Bass, the only bass that I purchased new about 6 years ago. I got my Roscoe Beck V when I needed a five string, although it took me over two years to find one. When I needed a fretless I found an A/E Precision fretless. Later, when more shows called for five string fretless, I got my Turner Renaissance V.

I still have my 1966 Ampeg SB12, my first real bass amp. I have sold my B15S, but only three years ago. My BT-25 was stolen from a club many, many years ago. I still have my Yamaha B100-III, a nice amp from the '80s, but under-powered and heavy by today's standards. I haven't been able to find any takers for it, even for free. I'm using my '90s Hartke Kickback 120 right now for a production of Annie (I've got to leave for today's matinee in a few minutes). I got my current main rig components, Genz Neo-Pak 3.5, Shuttle 6.0 and Bergantino Ht112/EX112, about 15 years ago. I see no need in changing them.

Pedals seem to be more of an impulse purchase for me. I did have a bit of a GAS attack when the Magellan Pre/DI came out. I got that pretty quickly, and use it all the time. It has even replaced my Fishman pro Platinum Bass pre for my upright. But, my Sansamp pre/DI, VT-Bass, and a whole host of effects pedal sit pretty much unused, except for the occasional chorus when called for.

I do have a hankering for an upright better than my '39 Kay. I could afford a much nicer bass, but, frankly, for musical theater, that thumpy old Kay just works pretty darn well. At this point in my music career my gigs are winding down, a newer to me upright might not pay for itself, depending of course on how much it cost - $5000, yeah, maybe, $20,000, nah. Not that that would be my primary motivation in getting one.

So, long preamble to the question. I'm pretty well set. If I ever stop gigging completely, I'll start to off load my gear, with the major exception of my '65 Jazz. That will be with me until the end. Then it will go to my brother, who is also a bassist.

 

[Dincrest]

I turn 47 in May and started playing bass when I was 15 back in 1994.

I'm at a point where my gear needs are more than met. I still enjoy looking, but love what I have at home. Sometimes human nature's "the pleasure of possession" happens. I'd love a fancy bass as much as the next TBer. But I've also been at the point where the stuff I own ends up owning me. And that's when I started paring down my possessions and really reflecting on what's important.

 

[Passinwind]

Sorry for the morbid thread title. In over a year not quite 2 I will be in my sixth decade. Unless something breaks ( like an amp or a powered speaker) I don't see myself ever needing any more bass or any instrument for that matter, Just consumables like strings, drum heads.

For those of you that have crossed that milestone, have you stopped GAS? I am asking specifically folks that have been playing for a while at lest 20 years or more and not those that just picked up based recently. I think other factors too, like living on retirement income would make one stop,

I played with folks over 64 and even though these cats have money, I haven't seen them acquire more instruments and those in the 70's or more are even giving or selling stuff away, They are still playing their asses off.

I hope that it happens to me. And motivated inside, not because of external factors.

Age 72 here, I've been at that point with basses for several years now, and have sold off two of my four over the last year or so. But I'll probably continue to mod the two I kept from time to time, as the technical side of music gear has always been even more of a passion than playing.

However, I'm not nearly done with learning and acquiring other instruments, and just bought my first acoustic guitar a year ago. And one of those other instruments is my voice, which I've taken on a whole new approach to since I got the acoustic guitar. I've kind of moved on from GAS to PAS, player acquisition syndrome; whatever it takes to get with the best local players in any genre I enjoy, of which there are many.

 

[bulldean]

So there is life after GAS?