Do you ever actually NEED more than one bass?

[Ghook]

Who in gods name would consider having but two bass quitars. I "need" to be able to justify having a reason for as many as I can.....well, justify. Actually I only have two presently but that will not remain that way. I promised myself to sell a couple of my six strings before I added two more basses. Currently I have 7 guitars on my 5 place stand. A Hofner travel is a definate and I'm really lusting after the Ibanez SR1400 Natural or the SR400 DEB. Personally...I need the joy that guitars provide, musically , visually and spiritually.

 

[pcake]

+1. If you're a freelance bass player, it's a good idea to have a jazz bass, a precision bass, and a 5-string bass if neither the P nor J are.

With those 2 or 3, you'll have the bass that gets requested of you 95% of the time a bass gets requested of you.

If you love none of those and only have them as tools, maybe you have one more that you use when it's strictly your choice.

you might also need a fretless and a standup.

Do people actually request a specific model of bass? How often does this happen? What happens if you say you don't have a Precision, just a Jazz or, God forbid, a Yamaha?

I'd just turn up with a bit of tape over the manufacturer's name or say that Fender have a new P model out called the Yamaha and they wouldn't notice the difference.

there are a couple threads somewhere about bands that required an actual fender bass. also some cover bands that do a particular era's music might require basses that represent that era. a steinberger might look cool for devo-type music.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Do people actually request a specific model of bass? How often does this happen? What happens if you say you don't have a Precision, just a Jazz or, God forbid, a Yamaha?

I'd just turn up with a bit of tape over the manufacturer's name or say that Fender have a new P model out called the Yamaha and they wouldn't notice the difference.

I think decades ago, some people would get their panties in a twist if you didn't show up with a Fender. But there are so many good basses (never mind so many people play modded/homebuilt (Warmoth and such)/small name instruments, I doubt anyone cares.


I've been playing out for over 30 years, not to mention in the studio for my bands and others. No one has ever told me to bring a particular instrument, or that what I brought was wrong.

 

[Uncle Hanky]

I think decades ago, some people would get their panties in a twist if you didn't show up with a Fender. But there are so many good basses (never mind so many people play modded/homebuilt (Warmoth and such)/small name instruments, I doubt anyone cares.


I've been playing out for over 30 years, not to mention in the studio for my bands and others. No one has ever told me to bring a particular instrument, or that what I brought was wrong.

I saw a guy in a country band playing an Ibanez with Barts a while back. If that ain’t indicative of times a-changin’, I don’t know what is.

 

[Slevage]

Many years ago I had one amp and one bass because that’s all I could afford.
I gigged over 100 x per year.
My G&L stopped working on a Wednesday and I had to borrow a bass for a Thursday gig.
So I voted 2 although I have about 7.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I saw a guy in a country band playing an Ibanez with Barts a while back. If that ain’t indicative of times a-changin’, I don’t know what is.

@BassCliff - about the busiest country bassist here, plays a Carvin 6.

 

[Newer Dave]

I think decades ago, some people would get their panties in a twist if you didn't show up with a Fender.

I know it's not happened to you, but do you know if those panty-bunched folks were bothered if the Fender was a P or a J?

I know it's close to heresy on here but I can't help feeling that either can work for any kind of music and it doesn't really matter. I'm not saying all timbres work for all kinds of music but I am saying that you can find a timbre (or maybe even more than one) on either of those instruments that will work (and work very well) for any kind of music.

 

[James Collins]

-1

Blasphemy! What kind of negativity do y’all preach here!?

Well at least I have United everyone! I think these threads are ridiculous. You need 1 bass as much as you need 15 basses. People like to second guess other people's decisions.

 

[Bent77]

Poll is void. No carrot option

 

[Newer Dave]

People like to second guess other people's decisions.

Well mister - I know what you're thinking.

And you're wrong. I don't.

 

[gidbass]

If you gig, you need at least two. One for back up.

Good Luck!

 

[FrenchBassQC]

For many reasons, P bass/J bass, active/passive or even three basses passive (P bass and J bass) and one active 5 or 6 strings... And it could go on and on.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I know it's not happened to you, but do you know if those panty-bunched folks were bothered if the Fender was a P or a J?

I know it's close to heresy on here but I can't help feeling that either can work for any kind of music and it doesn't really matter. I'm not saying all timbres work for all kinds of music but I am saying that you can find a timbre (or maybe even more than one) on either of those instruments that will work (and work very well) for any kind of music.

People wanted to see "Fender".

I played a Fender Jazz (with a P neck) for 20 years. The past 15 years or so, I played that about 25% of the time, and a Lull P4 (precision) the rest. No one never said nothin'.

Jamerson played a P. Pino plays a P, Duck Dunn played a P, Carole Kaye played a P with the wrecking crew. - you could never go wrong with that. But Joe Osborne played a J. Between those 5, there are hundreds of hits.

 

[QweziRider]

@BassCliff - about the busiest country bassist here, plays a Carvin 6.

Lately in one of my country acts I've been rebellious, using a Warwick Vampyre. Tuned BEAD. Just because.

Damn, it sounds good.

 

[theduke1]

NEED is a very strong word
My friend
Duke

 

[BurtMacklinFBI]

Need, no. Want, sure.

 

[GIBrat51]

Like I've said before; I'm not a musician who also likes motorcycles. I'm a biker with some bass guitars. If it boils down to essentials? Well, I'm the sole "None" vote so far; my basses are lots of fun, and so was being in a band for a while. But.. you're looking at what I "need"...

 

[Dabndug]

No one really needs a bass at all. You could just hum the bass part into a vocal mic.

 

[2F/2F]

No, I do not need any more than one bass. I just want a single vintage style P-Bass if it comes down to having just one. But I'm a hobbyist/collector/tinkerer as well as a player, and I like having some variety just for fun.

The funny thing is that I am primarily a bassist, and less of a guitarist (though I am quite competent on guitar). I play bass in a band, but not guitar. Yet I have a handful of basses and probably two dozen guitars!

FWIW, my basses are:

'76 Musicmaster, Oly white
'77 Stingray with '80 Sabre fretless neck, clear
'96 L-2000 fretless, clear
Frankenstein early '60's style P-Bass (MIJ+MIA parts), black - my main bass for years
AV '58 P-Bass, blonde (newish to me - under a year of ownership)
AV '64 Jazz Bass, Oly white (newish to me - under a year of ownership)

...and three builds in the works:

Extra long scale slab P-Bass (Charcoal Frost)
Accurate repro slab P-Bass (Midnight Wine over BSB, with white painted black Bakelite guard)
Single-pickup J-Bass, "alternate universe" style, as if J's had existed in the '50's (Inca Silver with single ply white guard and one piece maple neck)

The only redundancy there, from the point of view of features, is between the G&L and the Music Man. There are both active, both fretless, both ash bodies with maple necks and ebony fretboards – and hell, they are even both clear finishes! The two P-Basses are very different, one being basswood with rosewood board, and the other being ash with a one-piece maple neck. Also one has a vintage style pickup and the other has a 1/4 Lb. The Jazz and the Musicmaster are obviously different from everything else there. So my master plan is to strip the L-2000 and have it refinished in 3TSB by MJT, with no aging, and have frets added to the neck (or have G&L make me a new neck to spec – but $900 is a bit steep). That way I have a fretted active bass and a fretless active bass, with different paint jobs, instead of two fretless active basses with the same paint job.

 

[Pet Sounds]

Is this a trick question?