You'll find eleventy perfect basses before you find a perfect woman.
That's been my experience!
(good thing the current one doesn't read this forum)
Bruce
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does a better bass make a better player?
- Thread starter wrench45us
- Start date
That's been my experience!
(good thing the current one doesn't read this forum)
Bruce
This really depends on the player and their goals. If I consulted a pro and bought a nice P-bass, then some time later decided that I wanted to explore music that required an extended range instrument, then I'd need to make a change.
Not everyone plays the same songs for their entire life/career.
I can't think of many basses under $1k, let alone $2k that would even have a 26 fret board, so that kind of limits you right there.
Blind tests are good for 1 reason, they remove our own brand/origin preferences & prejudices. This allows us to feel the instrument for what it is & not whose it is. The reason I believe this is through experience. I used to be a HUGE pr**k when I went into a guitar store. I'd look for the expensive Fenders, Warwicks, Spectors, etc and wouldn't settle for anything less. This was until a salesman, who is now my guitar tech, sat me down, told me to close my eyes & then handed me a bass that he had set up & didn't tell me what it was. It played ok, the tone was good, pots were responsive & the weight was decent. He then switched it out for another one with similar feel & sound. The pots didn't seem as responsive, but the tone was still there & it played better. He then asked me which I liked better. I went with option 1. He told me it was a Squier Classic Vibe 50s P-bass. Option 2 was a Fender 60th(?) Anniversary 50s P-bass. Both with the same pickup type, control scheme, fretboard wood & general shape.Now, I know that it's possible that this was a diamond in the rough scenario, or a 1-off, but it was an eye opener for me that quality is not in a name, a wood, or an origin.
Science is an important factor of an instrument, not music. Feel & expression are the most important factors of the music itself.
We'll probably have to agree to disagree on these point, though.
Roy Vogt
Supporting Member
- Sep 20, 2000
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- Endorsing Artist: Kiesel Basses, Ampeg Amplification, Hotone Ampero II effects
The one thing I can absolutely state after decades of playing and teaching is there are no absolutes. 
The one thing I can absolutely state after decades of playing and teaching is there are no absolutes.
Absolutely!
The one thing I can absolutely state after decades of playing and teaching is there are no absolutes.
except that one.
and never saying never...except those two times
If you want a $10,000 bass and you can afford it, buy it. If you don't want it, don't.
See how easy that was?
See how easy that was?
But I read in another thread that if you suck playing a $10,000 bass in public, at least one TB'er will piss on your shoes.
My personal experience, back in another lifetime, I went from a fast thin neck, and thin tone as well, to a relatively fat P-bass neck but a tone I liked much better. A few stumbles during the transition, but no regrets. It just seemed like another challenge when I followed up by learning to play upright bass. Now there's a fat neck. Eventually I went back to a thin neck and it felt like heaven. But I've still got a thick-necked beast I get along well with.
IMHO, get a bass you like and like to play for whatever reason, and make sure it's set up. The rest will come with practice.
It's not about getting want you want, but wanting what you've got. What doesn't kill you, and all that nonsense.
Cheers.
I didn't read through more than the first page, but I plan to later because I'm in the same situation. For the past year I've been learning on my used Yamaha RBX, & after wandering into both Guitar Center & Bass Northwest a few months ago and playing some of there mid-higher level basses, I've come to the conclusion that my bass is somewhat fighting me. Not so much in tone, but when it comes to fretting I'm finding it difficult to find the 'sweet spot' when pressing on the first fret of the E as well as the frets above 12. So when I'm running through a measure it makes me pause for many re-dos thinking that I'm just not fretting the note correctly. The action is near perfect I think. It's not so much as a fret buzz, as it is a rattle. When I attempted to play the same passages on basses of a somewhat higher caliber, it was much easier. Better basses are so much smoother to play! That's not to say that someone who knows what their doing can't make a cheap instrument sound great, but I'm finding my instruments limitations to be a definite detriment to my learning. Even my teacher had a few sour twangs coming out when he played it. I'm currently saving some dough for a 'buttery bass' that I've no doubt will enhance my practice sessions, & I personally can't wait! 
I would say yes... to a certain extent. The main obstacle i find when playing terrible basses is not simply that they sound or feel like crap, but as a result of those things, you tend to not want to continue playing, or try to improve, and so on. This seems to be a somewhat common problem for beginners when they buy the cheapest possible instrument they can find (you know, incase they dont like it). They buy a reall piece of a firewood, its sounds terrible, it feels terrible, and so they are put off. a Decent bass will get the creative juices flowing, and will inspire the player to continue to play.
The bass itself can only take you so far though, you still need chops, knowledge of music in general, and all the other things that contribute to being a good bassist.
The bass itself can only take you so far though, you still need chops, knowledge of music in general, and all the other things that contribute to being a good bassist.
I would consider myself an intermediate player ( good enough to hold the line together but no Claypool or wooten) and own a variety of Basses(from a cheap sammick to a High end GMR Hand made 5) I Find I gravitate towards whatever bass sounds best on the songs we have written , I prefer to noodle around on my GMR 5 when I am writing , but it does not always give me what I need for sound , so I run through the stable until I find what I am looking for . I have also had friends who are bass players here that play the 5 once , not being used to a 5 , pick up my $200 Dean Z and love it , so low price does not always = worse bass or player , personal taste, tone chase and a good luthier setup makes all the difference . There are a lot of sub $500 basses out there that will do people just as well as any $4000 piece. If you like the neck and setup , you can change crappy hardware and pickups relatively cheaply to something more your taste, this will in turn keep you practicing and make you a far better player
If looking at the bass makes you want to pick it up, good.
If playing it makes you want to play more, better.
If playing it inspires you, never sell it.
It doesn't matter what it cost or how well built it may be, but the likelihood of finding these qualities go up when considering better built instruments.
How can that not help to make you a better player?
If playing it makes you want to play more, better.
If playing it inspires you, never sell it.
It doesn't matter what it cost or how well built it may be, but the likelihood of finding these qualities go up when considering better built instruments.
How can that not help to make you a better player?
Different strokes for different folks. I have one bass (and a backup that
sits in the back of a closet 99% of the time). I look to technique to get different sounds from the instrument.
That's GOOD advice about buying a cheap bass with a good neck and fingerboard and swapping out the electronics. That and a couple of hundred for a pro setup and you are THERE.
Bruce
As others have pointed out here, better built does NOT necessarily mean more expensive.
And the setup is often the critical factor. A couple of hundred for a pro setup can turn what you thought was a dog into a treasure.
So can a couple of hundred for new electronics if the neck and fingerboard are good.
You could conceivably buy a used bass on Craigslist for $150, and for the additional $400 end up with a really fine axe.
Bruce
Roy Vogt
Supporting Member
- Sep 20, 2000
- 4,433
- 537
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Kiesel Basses, Ampeg Amplification, Hotone Ampero II effects
If you look at the two basses Jeff Berlin designed for Peavey (the Palladium) and Dean (the Jeff Berlin signature) you have pretty much described them.
To this day, I don't think Jeff even has a backup bass. I'm a little too much of a worrywart for that, but more power to him.
I'll check them out.
Me too. My backup is actually in the trunk of my car, secured with a bicycle lock, at every gig. I vividly recall the night someone walked off with my P-Bass just before a gig. I've even made sure my car is almost impossible to steal.
Bruce
I think finding(and having) the best bass for you makes you a better player. More expensive instruments may have a leg up on the cheaper ones, out of the gate, but(as others point out too) cheaper instruments can be upgraded and set up for only a modest investment. What I usually do, for both guitar and bass, is buy something solid that fits my budget and suits me, then look at where some components could be better, and upgrade them. Then I do my set-up and just get on with playing it.
As long as you attain what suits you, suits your style, and inspires you, you're set, IMO.
As long as you attain what suits you, suits your style, and inspires you, you're set, IMO.
Exactly,a better instrument will always inspire me to get creative.A generic soulless instrument will keep me playing for not that long,cause i won't get that joy of the tone I'm normally used to with my instruments.And every time I play my guitars and basses its like having an emotional intercourse with them(for the lack of a better word) .
I think the player is mostly made in the woodshed BUT a really bad bass can hold you back, and I would suppose, at the top end, going from a production bass to a really well set up custom (Fodera, Alembic, Sadowsky, etc) could probably boost your confidence a bit
