Bass height- How high and why?

[samurai shotgun bass]

Off the hip.
View attachment 3056052

Your basses looks amazing. What brand is that?

 

[Big Hoss]

Since you brought up straps (a favorite topic of mine) here's a PSA for you... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Y0CG0XU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
A Perris 3.5" leather strap... $11 !!!! I have several of them in black, brown and one red ($16). The leather isn't soft and supple, but you can break them in like a baseball glove. IMO the absolute best buy on the market. Also Walker and Williams have great straps for half to 1/3 the price of other comparable brands.

UPDATE!
I took what everyone said to heart. I can't wear my guitars or basses low. My wrist just doesn't work that way. But my Yamaha is close to the picture I copied previously and my Fenders are about where Paulabass has her hung. My Ibanez is somewhere in the middle. For the most part I ended up raising my basses up about an inch from where I was playing them. I had to drill a hole half way between two existing holes on the extension straps on a couple of the straps, but the extra holes helped dial in the height better.

Thanks everyone!

Time to replace my Perris 2" straps! My 5 string Ursa 2 (Jazz Bass) is a real shoulder breaker after an hour or so... Seriously that's why I added the seat belt cover thing to the strap, to make that bass bearable for my old messed up back to play... And so far it's been succesful. My concern with a 3.5" wide strap is lack of padding though... Good weight distribution, but padding helps, a LOT...

Oh break in is a piece of cake. Saddle soap the crud out of them and roll them back and forth a few times. Preferrably after laying out across a car hood in the Texas Summer heat. Worked great for me!

 

[Big Hoss]

Off the hip.
View attachment 3056052

That's how I wear it, just pile a bunch of pounds on the player is all...

 

[Rip Van Dan]

There seems to be a lot of variance in how high different players strap on their basses. I'm trying to figure out the optimal height but haven't quite dialed it in yet. Some guys sling their basses down by their crotch. I'm curious as to why, even though I would never do that, as that seems to make serious playing more difficult. But some guys seem to like their basses super high, and I'm most interested in why they do that.

What makes or breaks a given height for you?

I used to hold my bass down a bit lower in my younger years (according to my old pics) but definitely was not one of those "down at my belt" guys. I can't hold it down there anymore because I have a gut now (yeah, I'm fat), and it's not comfortable to hold at the apex of the swell of my gut.

I now hold my bass up higher, which not so coincidentally is the exact same height that I hold it when playing seated. My suggest would be to sit down; hold your bass comfortably; and adjust your strap to that length. Then, when you stand up you will find it is still at that same comfortable height. It's that old Goldilocks thing.- not too low, not too high, Just Right! Then you won't have to make any adjustments when you sit down or stand up and usually that will result in much better angles in your wrists so less chance of painful playing.

 

[vvvmmm]

So, I guess like some of ya's, about 8" below the moobs, semi-horizontal on the guttage.

 

[swafran]

hella high

 

[2saddleslab]

Your basses looks amazing. What brand is that?

Thanks for the kind words! They are my own concepts with lots of help from Warmoth and Leo Fender. I originally put these together in the 1990's and both had overhauls 4 & 5 years ago.

Here are links to each:
Meet Keef, Relic Haters Might Wanna Look Away
Makeover Complete, Frankenstein's Facelift...

 

[vindibona1]

Time to replace my Perris 2" straps! My 5 string Ursa 2 (Jazz Bass) is a real shoulder breaker after an hour or so... Seriously that's why I added the seat belt cover thing to the strap, to make that bass bearable for my old messed up back to play... And so far it's been succesful. My concern with a 3.5" wide strap is lack of padding though... Good weight distribution, but padding helps, a LOT...

Oh break in is a piece of cake. Saddle soap the crud out of them and roll them back and forth a few times. Preferrably after laying out across a car hood in the Texas Summer heat. Worked great for me!

If you noticed, all my sensitivties are like "the princess and the pea". I've got several paddded straps (Franklin, Walker and Williams) and weight distribution trumps padding all day every day. Padding add weight, bulk and if not sewn in right, pressure points. The rough finish of the underside of these straps also helps if your bass likes to neck dive. My expensive Franklin straps have been "sent down to the minors" of my 2nd tier guitars . The only strap I like better is a 3.5 incher that I got around 1980 with my first good acoustic and I think I paid $30 at the time. But also check out Walker and Williams.

Oh... BTW.. The Perris straps don't have the squared off end as pictured on the Amazon cite. They're rounded off which I like better, as shown in my photo below.

 

[Big Hoss]

If you noticed, all my sensitivties are like "the princess and the pea". I've got several paddded straps (Franklin, Walker and Williams) and weight distribution trumps padding all day every day. Padding add weight, bulk and if not sewn in right, pressure points. The rough finish of the underside of these straps also helps if your bass likes to neck dive. My expensive Franklin straps have been "sent down to the minors" of my 2nd tier guitars . The only strap I like better is a 3.5 incher that I got around 1980 with my first good acoustic and I think I paid $30 at the time. But also check out Walker and Williams.

Oh... BTW.. The Perris straps don't have the squared off end as pictured on the Amazon cite. They're rounded off which I like better, as shown in my photo below.

View attachment 3056610

That is great to know...

FWIW, I am using the Planet Waves Strap Extenders which are great for big guys like me. With just the strap the bass ends up just about mid gut. With I can set it where I like it, and have plenty of strap left over. The entire thing ends up slightly longer than the Guilds I have... I have swapped one of the Guilds over to the Ursa 2 as it does REALLY help out with the weight / shoulder issue...

Back to the OT though. Have already explained where. But why? Comfort, and like the sidebar went along. Back issues. Slung too low and I have to stoop / stretch too much to play and it is actually painful. too high up feels claustrophobic to me...

 

[Luciferiad]

Right about here for me.

That thing looks big enough it won't need a booster seat to ride up front in the car anymore.

 

[Josh Kneisel]

I tend towards the higher side... I guessI try to have the center of the strings going more or less across my bellybutton. It's where it feels most comfortable to play across all strings and the whole fingerboard and doesn't seem keep me from playing fast like when I used to wear it lower.

 

[Dr. Keebs]

I'm in the Billy Sheehan school on this. Adjust your strap seated so that your bass lays right in your lap comfortably. Use the same position standing or seated.

 

[Mr.Ace]

Whatever height allows both your right, and left hand to be in a natural comfortable position. For me it depends on the bass. Playing in an unnatural way to achieve a certain look will certainly cause damage to your body in the long run.

 

[juancaminos]

Cool bass! What is that?

Ditto

 

[BassikLee]

It would seem that regardless of attire, I go for medium low.

 

[Denis F C]

As high my strap can go. That way if i sit with my strap, it is at the same high than standing up. Dont ask why, I just love it that way.

 

[vindibona1]

It would seem that regardless of attire, I go for medium low.

I suspect that your have more facility with the medium height.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

There seems to be a lot of variance in how high different players strap on their basses. I'm trying to figure out the optimal height but haven't quite dialed it in yet. Some guys sling their basses down by their crotch. I'm curious as to why, even though I would never do that, as that seems to make serious playing more difficult. But some guys seem to like their basses super high, and I'm most interested in why they do that.

What makes or breaks a given height for you?

I usually position my bass so the lower curve of the body is above my belt, which prevent buckle rash. I also tend th have my neck almost parallel to the ground.

 

[mikewalker]

 

[Rojd]

I wear my bass very high. It's in the same position sitting or standing. I use Ergo Straps, which work well for me.