Ric5
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- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
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- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
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does a better bass make a better player?
- Thread starter wrench45us
- Start date
+2
I good instrument is helping a lot in my opinion... But there is no magic! You must practice and be patient.
These pedals will make you a better bass player!!!
I'll take 10!
In all seriousness, the right instrument will make you better (like everyone else has said). Numerous times I have seen friends drop whatever they are playing because their guitar/bass/wind instrument/drums were of subpar quality. Put them on a better instrument - heck, a better set-up instrument, and guess what, they sound a million times better! That, and guess what; they want to play and practice more.
This is why I love my Tune and my Schecter. Both inspire me to play more (when I can) and there will be times when I don't play I feel disappointed that I did not play. Music shouldn't be a chore; it should be fun, and the instrument shouldn't limit the musician's potential.
I dunno, I had a knockoff P bass and all I could play was pop punk basslines...I got an Alembic and all of a sudden I was a jazz master 
No, but in all seriousness, a better bass will make you want to play more, helping you to get better.
No, but in all seriousness, a better bass will make you want to play more, helping you to get better.
Does a better bass make a better player?
Well, most of the hotshot, prima donna soloists have expensive, boutique basses.
But very few of them BECAME top bass players with them. They got there playing perfectly ordinary, production basses. For most of their careers they simply couldn't afford them. Their kind of bass playing is not in high demand. Openings in that realm don't come often.
And they didn't get to where they are by spending all their time trying to choose the best equipment and spending all their money on it.
They spent their time practicing, and their money on rent and food so that they COULD practice.
Bruce
Well, most of the hotshot, prima donna soloists have expensive, boutique basses.
But very few of them BECAME top bass players with them. They got there playing perfectly ordinary, production basses. For most of their careers they simply couldn't afford them. Their kind of bass playing is not in high demand. Openings in that realm don't come often.
And they didn't get to where they are by spending all their time trying to choose the best equipment and spending all their money on it.
They spent their time practicing, and their money on rent and food so that they COULD practice.
Bruce
A better bass made me want to practice more or maybe I should say a good looking bass, Im not sure I would have practiced as much if I had an ugly bass. Im about to get my second bass and it is 1/4 the cost of my first but it looks good and this will probably keep me interested another year. I have a feeling Im gonna buy myself a new bass every time I complete a year of practice , its kind of a reward to myself and it hopefully will keep me going until I learn to play . Sorry if I strayed off topic here guys ....
<shrug> You've got to feel good about the instrument.
Speaking of which, I think a lot of the really high end basses are ugly as heck.
Bruce
+1
But a better bass can make you FEEL like you are a better player, even if you haven't really improved.
I posted in a thread a while back about people who've gotten rid of a lot of their expensive gear but kept their cheaper stuff.
I'm in the process of getting rid of everything with the exception of my reasonably heavily modified Yamaha RBX170. It's cheap (the use of agathis rather than a more expensive wood like alder, cheap hardware/pickups, no belly route in the back of the body, control cavity cover wasn't originally recessed into the body), but the fit and finish are excellent. Importantly, it also plays really, really well.
It's my first bass and something that I've picked up and played on a regular basis for near on 10 years. Playing it is the bass equivalent of putting on a comfy, worn-in pair of sneakers. I tend to find that I'm much freer in my playing and as a result, more creative. It's by no means the classiest bass going around, but I think I play better on it than on anything else I've owned or played.
I'm in the process of getting rid of everything with the exception of my reasonably heavily modified Yamaha RBX170. It's cheap (the use of agathis rather than a more expensive wood like alder, cheap hardware/pickups, no belly route in the back of the body, control cavity cover wasn't originally recessed into the body), but the fit and finish are excellent. Importantly, it also plays really, really well.
It's my first bass and something that I've picked up and played on a regular basis for near on 10 years. Playing it is the bass equivalent of putting on a comfy, worn-in pair of sneakers. I tend to find that I'm much freer in my playing and as a result, more creative. It's by no means the classiest bass going around, but I think I play better on it than on anything else I've owned or played.
"Better" is a subjective word, once you get past the basics.
Buy a new bass for $750+/- and have it set up by a luthier
who knows basses for $200, and there isn't any bass in the world that will beat it on the blindfold test:
Get the two basses you want to test, and a couple of others.
Take them to a decent player wearing a blindfold (don't let
him feel the shape of the body or head with his hands). 5 times
out of 10, the $1000 bass will be chosen as superior to
the $6000 bass. Because it's just a toss of the dice. They
aren't any different in fundamental, essential ways.
What you are mostly paying for is cosmetics and name
snobbery.
Want a good bass cheap? Have a bass luthier build the neck
for you, without any frills like inlays and position markers,
and you can do the rest yourself. I have a friend who made
one for a little less than $500 that way. It's a fine instrument.
The only tricky part of a solid body electric bass guitar is
the neck.
Bruce
The test for superiority is simple. Put on a blindfold and play them through the same amp. I've played $5000 basses that weren't a whit better than my P-Bass. They didn't sound better and they didn't play better.
Expensive bass =not necessarily
A bass that fits and an amp with some tone and headroom = more enjoyable which can = inspiration which can = playing more which can lead to better mechanics ....
Still won't teach you to read or learn theory ...
A bass that fits and an amp with some tone and headroom = more enjoyable which can = inspiration which can = playing more which can lead to better mechanics ....
Still won't teach you to read or learn theory ...
I have to agree with several here. A better bass does not make you a better player (magically). But do make sure it is properly set up for playing 
For example, I have two bass guitars. My Ibanez Ergodyne has not been properly set up (and wasn't when I got it). So when I attempted to slap and found I had to beat the strings just to get a decent tone, I thought it was me playing wrong. I then received a Squier P-Bass from a friend that WAS properly set up and I can slap all day long on it with no problem.
Point being, it's not that the guitar made me a better player. It was the quality of the instrument I was playing (and proper set up
)
For example, I have two bass guitars. My Ibanez Ergodyne has not been properly set up (and wasn't when I got it). So when I attempted to slap and found I had to beat the strings just to get a decent tone, I thought it was me playing wrong. I then received a Squier P-Bass from a friend that WAS properly set up and I can slap all day long on it with no problem.
Point being, it's not that the guitar made me a better player. It was the quality of the instrument I was playing (and proper set up
)
Keep in mind your friendly neighborhood mods tend to own a lot of these "ugly as heck" basses.
Keep in mind your friendly neighborhood mods tend to own a lot of these "ugly as heck" basses.
Oh ho! Time to duck and cover.
You know, a lot of those high end basses are really nice looking.
(And that's true.)
Bruce
This is the best use of a $250 bass you will ever hear....
That, ladies and gentlemen, is a Torch.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is a Torch.
