basses (and guitars) - how many is too many?

[macker71165]

2 basses (jazz,, precision,, and soon to be violin bass so 3 all in ) 2 electrics guitars 2 acoustic guitars

 

[Plectrum72]

When you run out of space or money to pay your bills; otherwise, not too many.

 

[smogg]

I have three basses. The red Foundation rarely gets played. So I guess three is my max, maybe. Oh yeah, I also have and acoustic 6 string but all it does is gather dust.

 

[cxcxcx]

Been guilty of too many (15+ in the house) in the past, but have it down to 4-5 basses and guitars now.

Age and experience have shown me what I need to have around. Not looking to experiment with different sounds. I've done that in the past, and would rather refine what I play on the small collection I have now. I also don't NEED a J and a P with flats and rounds, passive and active basses, modern and vintage, all sorts of 5-6 strings, hollowbodies, short scales, short scale hollowbodies and all the variations. A busy studio player possibly could use all that, but there's 3-4 guys that get all the plum studio gigs in my town and I'm not one of them.

I've also found that if you have a huge collection of instruments around, they end up owning you instead of you owning them. Takes time away from the head and heart work of learning songs and improving your physical skills and your accompaniment abilities.

All this said, Tom Petty and Keith Richards owned/now own hundreds of instruments and also managed to write some important and impactful music. So owning a ton of instruments isn't always a bad thing, if you keep them in a warehouse and have a staff to care for them.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Oh, great, now I can see a reason for another pair of acoustics. The market is in the toilet to sell some of the dust gatherers at the moment though to raise the cash to buy them.

My sincere apologies.

 

[Relsom]

2 more than what I have because there's always room for 1 more.

 

[Jefenator]

I got 12 in a studio apartment, plus 2 uprights, a jumbo acoustic guitar and a drum set.
There's physically still room for more.
When I'm late out the door from deciding which axe to take to a gig, that's a good sign it's time to downsize a bit.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

I'm up to 11 electric basses and I use them ALL in the 5-6 groups I work with. They all require different tones/aesthetics plus I keep a couple tuned down a half step (Eb) for those specific gigs. I anticipate buying more instruments in the future.

 

[Gaolee]

I am going to be excommunicated. I have enough of everything.

 

[Mannyinnewyork]

Years ago I had 6 basses and 7 guitars. Now i am down to 2 basses and 4 guitars. I don't play often anymore so even that seems like overkill and I can't picture buying any more instruments.

 

[G On Bass]

I have 4 different basses that all get played, so anything beyond that is too many as I won't own basses that don't get played regularly. I understand that I have no business being on Talkbass with that mentality...

 

[bassdude51]

Great question and it can't be answered.

But, I'll be dogmatic. 4!!!!!!

One Fender SCPB.

One Fender Precision Bass.
Link Removed

One Fender Jazz Bass.

And one Stingray. (The Stingray is optional but the Fenders are not.)

 

[burpgun]

Too many basses is a distraction, especially if your main thing is recording. While I've never cracked 10 basses my ideal is three: one with rounds, one with flats, and one Bass VI. In my most productive phase I was pretty much at two basses. Those numbers are close to where I'm at these days save for some shorties and a practice acoustic bass guitar. I love basses, but I've learned that too many options can derail the real work, so identify what sound you want, what's comfortable to play, stop hunting and focus on the output. Spend the rest of your money on pedals!

 

[MCF]

I've reached my limit. Im not saying what it is in case I change my mind but for now, my limit has been reached.

Sure you have. And least for awhile.

 

[tbz]

this question has been asked a lot around here, but for me, i finally have an answer.

we have two 7-instrument hercules racks full of mostly basses and some guitars and a guitar on a stand. we have 9 instruments in wall hangers, and ariex has a couple guitars in cases under the bed while i have 2 in my closet. since we live in a 900 square foot condo with fitness equipment, amps and my husband's guitar workshop area, we don't realistically have space for more - something would have to move to a small dark area for us to be able to house any more basses and guitars...

so for us, the answer is it's too many when you literally can't fit any more

I think several of us are living like this.

It makes me very worried about the long term value of my guitars and basses. Feels like they'll all just be seen as worthless clutter in a generation or two.

Especially since in 20 years you'll have an app on your subdermal processing chip that can AI generate whatever music your neural implant tells it you want to hear.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

After the 30th.

 

[skycruiser]

Just got my 3rd bass and now feel like I have too many.

 

[sabre79]

since we live in a 900 square foot condo...

I live in a 440 sqft Trailer with my girlfriend. Every square inch is accounted for. I have an elaborate system of storage shelves even suspended from the ceiling that would give the ISS a run for it's money. I have 4 basses. Three are hanging up on hooks and one is on a stand that I had to modify depth wise so that I could open up the drawer of my desk. 4 is all I can do.

 

[neddyrow]

A good general always has reserves.

I have 2 acoustic guitars - 1 I occasionally gig with and the other travels or I loan to people or use for lessons or if I have a jam or practice at my house

2 uprights - my main instrument so I need a backup

3 - electrics - one P one J and one that can do both as a backup

this number works for me. I have no need for more.

 

[bholder]

"Too Many" is maybe 1/3 of what I have now. I'm currently riding somewhere North of "Whattareyanuts that's WAY too freakin' many!"