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Disappointing experiences with basses you thought you'd love

#102
Got a Pelham Blue Jack Casady earlier this year after eyeing the line for a long, long time. Plays pretty well and sounds good but for some reason it being made in China really eats at me and it's making me think that despite the long flirtation it would be better to sell it rather than live with that feeling. Had a Gibson SG shortie years ago I wanted to love, it felt great to play, but sounded terrible for anything other than aping that fuzzy Jack Bruce tone. I was happy to move that one on and would never give an SG bass a shot again.
 
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#106
There's maybe been a few but one that sticks out for me was a Mike Lull PT4. His Pbass with T-bird pickups.
It was 7.5lbs and felt like a toy and sounded like one too. Had absolutely no ass and just got lost in the mix. Which I think was a combination of factors. And obviously I spent a lot of money on it. I know now that although I don't like a boat anchor, I don't like the featherweights either. Has to have a little weight to it, feel substantial.

Later I had one of his Tbirds and that was a different story. It's a shame that those whom he left his legacy to have stopped building them.
 
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#107
I've never truly got on with jazz basses: the offset body felt rather large, i didnt care much for the tone, but loved the necks. Played copies (which had a fatter tone & a chunkier neck profile), dug the ibanez black eagle RI i had tested during on band rehearsal (shouldve bought it when price dropped few years back at my local music shop). I bought a 2006 squier affinity jbass a couple years back, modified it to have a push pull for series/parallel & thats the game changer for me tone wise in jazz basses. Gave that one to a friend who needed a long scale bass for his band. Was given a copy from a friend last summer & had modified the body shape to slim it down, sharper horns, & i believe ive nailed my own perfect jazz bass (it will have the series/parallel switching too). But overall, dont think id ever buy another stock standard j bass.

RIC basses are cool looking & sound great in another players hands, but i couldnt gel with the tone. It also felt weightless (i tend to prefer heavy instruments - lets me know im playing something xD). My dad bought me a copy (logical was the brand, made in china thing), i swapped the electronics & wired a push pull for the ric vintage circuit. Everything else about that copy is stock & its got massive tone - some have said its ric esque, but bigger.

& while not a bass, but NR firebird. Sounded great, but felt even larger than a reverse firebird.
 
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#110
Gothic said:
Anyone ever had one of those?

I'll kick things off with one of mine.

I always liked the look of Stingrays. I'd played a few OLP's in the past but never an original MM. I quite enjoyed the tone and, from things I'd read in fora, I'd thought it would be just fantastic. Fast forward some time and I get to play a beautiful stealth black Stingray 5 HH.

Aaaaaand... nah. Disappointment. The neck was nicely chunky, it was finished semi-glossy which I don't like but it was set up great and despite that, it felt extremely uncomfortable for some reason and the tone... Well, it was a bit "meh", really and I played it through a very nice amp and a kemper!

Now ok, it wasn't BAD by any means but I just didn't quite see me spending that much money on... that. Really put me off MM basses.

So how about you?
Click to expand...

Have not had that experience, yet.

However, my latest acquisition, a Fretless, has put my five, other, fretted, Basses, into their respective cases.
 
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#111
The only Stingray story I've got is that I was going to buy one, but then the seller lost control and drove it into a tree.

Basses I wanted to love but can't? My two Dillion 335-004s and my Gretsch G6072 reissue. In terms of fit, finish, and sound I have found no basses that could be considered superior and few equal. The Dillions are in effect long scale EB2-DCs, while the Gretsch is very mid-rangey compared to the 5440LSB and the big vintage hollowbodies.

But they *all* have that insufferable center block which takes their weight beyond my comfort zone and also affects balance. Heck, the Dillions even balance poorly in the gigbag. BUT, if I were in the position of having to play only seated, I would defret my Dillion loaded with tapes, leave the flats loaded one as is and keep the rounds on the Gretsch, and that would be the end of it. Everybody else, including (probably) my Fenders, would get sold.
 
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#115
The Pbass I had. Owned a Sting Pbass and love it but have to sell because of financial issue. Buy a 70s RI P a few years later. Thought I love it. But after two years, I can't bound with it. Always thought I'm a Pbass guy but I don't like the neck profile at all. Now I have a Sire V7 and Epiphone Thunderbird which I love
 
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#116
I'd been playing my old MMSR5H for years and was so excited when the HH models came out. The ability to have all those different pup configurations seemed like a great idea as I only really had 3 options with the H model. And, when I finally got one I was fascinated with all these options but, after the honeymoon was over, I found that I liked the tone of my old H model in series mode much better than ANY of the many settings with the HH and, the neck pup got in my way from time to time.
 
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#117
I always thought the black Ric 4001's or 4003's with that white binding was just the coolest thing I'd ever seen. Back in the late 70's and early 80's I came THIS CLOSE to buying one (warts and all . . . . . .) but for some reason I could never get a tone I liked out of one. To make it all the more aggravating, had a good friend who was a total Rush-a-holic and could make one sound like Geddy, just great . . . . . and I just never could. Oh well . . . .
 
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#118
Katoosie said:
Oh I Have one more.
Epiphone Jack Cassady.

Felt like the guitar was a drunk guy I was trying to hug awkwardly while trying to get at something else because he was in the way.
...
Click to expand...

Every once in awhile you read a post that calls up such a vivid image you have to laugh. Love it!

Count me as part of the "Love the Stingray look and sound, but only on other people" team.
 
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