Bass to amplification price ratio

[jonasparker]

The ratio changes back and forth with money and time.
Let's use the most objective criteria, yardsticks we all agree on: the music is rock, the bass is a precision bass, the amp is an Ampeg. I don't personally rock either of the above yardsticks but I'm willing to be objective. If you accept those criteria, you start with a used Squire for 300 bucks and a cheap Ampeg combo for under a grand, you're at about 1:3, and everything makes sense. With the next grand or more to spend, amp gets sold, and the proceeds plus the grand+ all go into a better amp, an SVT-VR and an 8×10. So the ratio has gone ampwise to around 1:7. Years later you get a better job, you spend more on the bass until you get closer to 2:1 rocking a nice Sadowsky that no one in the band or audience cares about besides you. They still show up for how the band sounds, which is a function of how you play plus that type of pickups plus that amp and the other band members not wrecking your vibe. As the years go by you sell the SVT and spend the same money on lighter stuff that you can still haul. If multiple basses are allowed as part of the ratio, it becomes 100:1 as you hoard Alembics and Sadowskys.
It's a problem with multiple bathtubs, one of which gets full before a bigger and less useful bathtub begins to fill.

 

[Titanium]

For me, it’s 1:1.7 roughly.

I believe you said you’re in Europe, so there could be some variation on that. But if you needed some data for averages or reference I hope that helps.

 

[GeorgesEric]

1:1 @ 15 years old
1:1 @ 50 years old

better gear with age.

 

[MobileHolmes]

There are so many variables that it is impossible to say. There’s also a lot of wants vs needs in all of this.

my needs change pretty dramatically from gig to gig, and so would the ratio. Play in 3 bands (2 currently gigging) and sub with a couple others. Main bass is a warmoth J probably worth 1300 or so ( I always carry a backup but we’ll leave this out). Amp is a GK MB500 and 2 112 cabs. Each piece was purchased a few years ago and at the time around 500 each for a total of 1500 give or take. Ratio is about 1:1 (give or take) but sometimes I only use one cab…)

Issue 1- all of this stuff, while not exotic is more expensive than the bare minimum. I could do these gigs on a squire. And I’m sure there is some cheaper amp equally loud.

issue 2- circumstances.
Band 1- 7 piece country. Always full and very good PA. Wedges or in ears. Amp technically superfluous. This weekend, had two gigs, sound guy wanted DI pre eq, so amp is nothing but a monitor. Still brought both cabs because I’m used to having an amp, but it’s just a fancy monitor. I could do this gig with just a sansamp (and may in the future) at which point ratio is like 7:1

band 2- r&b/rock with horns/keys. We own a Barebones PA for keys/vox/horns. Could not cope with bass or drums. We use this for 75% of gigs. For bigger rooms, I need both cabs, smaller just one. And I run fairly hard.

that was a long way of saying “it depends”

but, if I were starting out and on a budget, I’d probably spend more on the amp. You can get a serviceable bass for pretty cheap, but a 20 watt practice amp is useless once you meet your first drummer

 

[MichelD]

I love nice instruments as much as the next guy though I admit that I've never held an instrument that was anything else but a production line standard.

I think anything with strings on it that makes bass-type noises is probably adequate. God knows, I played a couple Teiscos or whatever back in the day that fit that category.

But any old amp probably won't do for bass. You need something that doesn't fart, hum, burp, crackle, overheat, catch fire or cut out while at the same time reproducing those bass-type noises you're trying to make.

I know I'll get arguments from bass guitar gear heads, this is Talk Bass after all isn't it? If we weren't obsessed with the craft and the tools we wouldn;t be here would we?

 

[lomo]

The ratio will vary depending on the total amount spent (budget), volume requirement and other specifics.

 

[musicman556]

I have very inexpensive, moderately priced, and some expensive basses. I now only have more expensive/higher quality amps and cabs, except for a Warwick Gnome iPro and Trace Elf 110 cab that I use for practice while traveling.

There are some inexpensive basses that I really enjoy which play well and sound great. I have owned many cheap amps in the past and continue to try new ones as they come to market, but I am just not satisfied with most lower tier amplification.

In most situations, I have more money in the amp stack I'm using than I do the bass I'm playing. If someone has "beginner" gear and wants to step it up, I always recommend upping their amp game first - unless their bass is really deficient or otherwise a hindrance. I'll help them set up a bass to be more comfy/playable... that's free! You can't really "set up" a modern solid state/class D amp, haha!

 

[amper]

The only thing I can really say about this is that I have said many times that the budget for a professional-quality setup is no more than about $2000 per piece, give or take. $2000 instrument, $2000 amp and cabs, $2000 pedalboard. Obviously, you can spend a lot less than this and get great results, but spending more is past the point of diminishing returns. And obviously, you can shift that budget around a bit between the pieces. There's enough wiggle room in there to cover cases, cables, strings, and other accessories.

This is what is costs to by top of the range gear from the major MI companies, say, a Fender American Professional II bass, Mesa/Boogie head and cab(s), and a comprehensive pedalboard (more for guitarists than bass guitarists, but YMMV).

2022 Fender AmPro2 Jazz Bass: $1800 today at Sweetwater
2022 Mesa Subway D-800+ head: $950 today at Sweetwater
2022 Mesa Subway 1x15 cab: $950 today at Sweetwater
2022 Peterson StroboStomp HD tuner: $150 today at Sweetwater
2022 SKB iSeries instrument case: $341 today at Sweetwater (big improvement over stock, worth the money if you are travelling a lot)

Total: $4191, or $5141 if you buy two cabs for big venues. Add pedals as your heart desires.

What that gets you is a more or less complete top-shelf pro-level set of gear that won't embarrass you no matter what the venue. And the point of the exercise is to demonstrate that owning pro-level gear doesn't require an outrageously large outlay of money.

Even if you add a second instrument of the same calibre, you're talking about an investment in gear that even for a regularly-gigging serious amateur musician shouldn't be onerous, far less than $10K at brand-new replacement prices.

 

[musicman556]

The only thing I can really say about this is that I have said many times that the budget for a professional-quality setup is no more than about $2000 per piece, give or take. $2000 instrument, $2000 amp and cabs, $2000 pedalboard. Obviously, you can spend a lot less than this and get great results, but spending more is past the point of diminishing returns. And obviously, you can shift that budget around a bit between the pieces. There's enough wiggle room in there to cover cases, cables, strings, and other accessories.

This is what is costs to by top of the range gear from the major MI companies, say, a Fender American Professional II bass, Mesa/Boogie head and cab(s), and a comprehensive pedalboard (more for guitarists than bass guitarists, but YMMV).

2022 Fender AmPro2 Jazz Bass: $1800 today at Sweetwater
2022 Mesa Subway D-800+ head: $950 today at Sweetwater
2022 Mesa Subway 1x15 cab: $950 today at Sweetwater
2022 Peterson StroboStomp HD tuner: $150 today at Sweetwater
2022 SKB iSeries instrument case: $341 today at Sweetwater (big improvement over stock, worth the money if you are travelling a lot)

Total: $4191, or $5141 if you buy two cabs for big venues. Add pedals as your heart desires.

What that gets you is a more or less complete top-shelf pro-level set of gear that won't embarrass you no matter what the venue.

That's a great gear list and I'm right there with you - except I get to save a few grand by not bothering with pedals, haha!

 

[amper]

That's a great gear list and I'm right there with you - except I get to save a few grand by not bothering with pedals, haha!

My point is really that, for anyone who considers themselves a serious musician with a life-long passion for playing music, owning pro-level gear isn't something that we should feel embarrassed about admitting what we paid for it, because pro-level gear just really isn't that expensive, in the grand scheme of things.

Instruments are more or less a one-time purchase, and even amps and electronics can easily be shown to have a 30-40 year life span, or longer. Nothing I am playing right now, aside from some of my pedals, is younger than 20 years old, and both my main bass and main amp were bought used at substantial discounts, in mint condition. My number one guitar was bought new 31 years ago.

 

[Bassdrifter]

42

I have come to the conclusion that you are correct. The answer is indeed 42. As always.

As we all know, the hard part is figurering out the question. In this case the question is: How many % of my free income do I spend on bass related "stuff".

If i could just resist the temptation to buy more basses, i should be able to acquire both a Barefaced cab and a Mesa amp before the end of 2023.

 

[Marko 1]

I could not begin to quantify the power to price ratio. But bass gear is getting cheaper, more powerful, lighter, and sounding spot on.

Not where I've been window shopping.