Does a wider strap help with back and shoulder pain while playing?

[2F/2F]

IME, no. Posture, stance, abdominal strength, leg strength, footwear, and technique (a major part of which is positioning of the instrument and the strap – something that most people pay very little attention to, and probably never learned) are what will matter. The proper adjustment of your mic stand can even make a big difference, if you do backup vocals (or lead, as some bass players do). And even something as seemingly unrelated as nutrition and water intake the day of the gig can make a difference.

I don't have the world's best back. Eight years as an engine and machinery room mechanic in the submarine service, followed by general construction, auto mechanics, then a new career in photo/grip work, and never having had a nice mattress, has definitely taken a toll. But it doesn't get any worse by me playing 10+ lb. basses on standard 2" canvas straps, or even those sub-1" "Bobby Lee" style leather straps that came with the American Vintage Series. What makes my back hurt is not taking car of myself physically, wearing the wrong shoes, sleeping wrong, standing wrong, etc.

OTOH, wide straps are a major source of discomfort and annoyance for me. They look and sound like they'd be very luxurious...but I've never worn a type of strap so uncomfortable for me as they are.

The weight of basses and the width of straps are, IME, non-issues that have been made into seemingly major issues, in the age of Internet forums.

 

[Pontiac Thrasher]

IME, no. Posture, stance, abdominal strength, leg strength, footwear, and technique (a major part of which is positioning of the instrument and the strap – something that most people pay very little attention to, and probably never learned) are what will matter. The proper adjustment of your mic stand can even make a big difference, if you do backup vocals (or lead, as some bass players do). And even something as seemingly unrelated as nutrition and water intake the day of the gig can make a difference.

I don't have the world's best back. Eight years as an engine and machinery room mechanic in the submarine service, followed by general construction, auto mechanics, then a new career in photo/grip work, and never having had a nice mattress, has definitely taken a toll. But it doesn't get any worse by me playing 10+ lb. basses on standard 2" canvas straps, or even those sub-1" "Bobby Lee" style leather straps that came with the American Vintage Series. What makes my back hurt is not taking car of myself physically, wearing the wrong shoes, sleeping wrong, standing wrong, etc.

OTOH, wide straps are a major source of discomfort and annoyance for me. They look and sound like they'd be very luxurious...but I've never worn a type of strap so uncomfortable for me as they are.

The weight of basses and the thickness of straps are, IME, non-issues that have been made into seemingly major issues, in the age of Internet forums.

I owned an automotive upholstery shop so have made my own straps, I made the first strap and later duplicated the dimensions using other materials, and none of the duplicates are as good as the original, the point is that you should try straps everywhere you can till one just feels far better than the others. Pic is of my first, and best feeling strap.

 

[gazzatriumph]

I recently bought a Maruszczyk leather padded strap, very comfortable its10cm wide, my bass isn't heavy but as getting older every little thing helps. Also as others have said decent footwear I've gone from Doc's to Sketchers, not very rock and roll but again made a difference.

 

[Watchootognbout]

Upper back?
Lower back?
Some core strengthening exercises may be in order.

Edit :I found out that the OP is 73.
That itself may mean something.

 

[Rib 13]

I find wider straps useful to reduce neck dive on my basses that are prone to neck diving, like my Ibanez Destroyer..........What alleviated a lot of my back issues was jogging/cardio and losing 40 pounds

 

[3bc]

I have an 8 lb bass that I play that is very comfortable with a 3” strap. I have a 9.5 lb bass, that I think has a 4.5” levy’s strap with a foam core. When I switch between the two I really don’t notice the difference because the xtra weight is more widely distributed.

ymmv. I’m 6’4 and 168lbs so tall and skinny. My shoulders are pretty wide but not bulky, so nothing digging into my neck. I do work out including my back and shoulders, but I also have a pretty bad back that is often on a knifes edge. And it seems like once a year I give it a real bad weeks’ long tweak doing something silly.

Anyhow I’m a big fan of a wide strap, it makes a heavy bass more comfortable for me.

 

[Watchootognbout]

What’s an inversion table???

You've seen them.

 

[mutethatguitar]

I have a trashed shoulder etc. and using the usual strap does not work for me. But I found a solution that works.

Guitar Straps | Bass Straps | Camera Straps | Slinger Straps

I use the waist strap. Looks cool and works great. Best of luck with your search!

*edit. Btw I use the strap on a six-string neck-thru bass that is rather hefty. No problem even with extra weight.

 

[wiscoaster]

...
Edit :I found out that the OP is 73.
That itself may mean something.

It means nearly everything. (I'm 72). If the OP's still gigging at 73, way to go!! Don't give in to pain. Do what can be done, but keep on keepin' on!!

 

[51PRI]

Upper back?
Lower back?......

Usually right under the left shoulder blade.

 

[51PRI]

It means nearly everything. (I'm 72). If the OP's still gigging at 73, way to go!! Don't give in to pain. Do what can be done, but keep on keepin' on!!

Thanks!
Yeah, an update on the strap situation. I got a 4.5" wide padded leather strap and I'm still having backaches when playing. They are all across my upper back.

SIDEBAR: Can backaches be a psychological reaction to one's feeling that the band they are in are capable of much more and aren't giving it their full effort? Or being bored with the material? Or some other non-physical issue?

 

[BOOG]

Daily full body stretching and exercise has worked for me. I would like to blame my band for the aches and pains but I hate to give’m that much credit.

 

[wiscoaster]

...

SIDEBAR: Can backaches be a psychological reaction to one's feeling that the band they are in are capable of much more and aren't giving it their full effort? Or being bored with the material? Or some other non-physical issue?

Of course, but rule out the physiological causes first.

 

[Collin Bass]

Thanks!
Yeah, an update on the strap situation. I got a 4.5" wide padded leather strap and I'm still having backaches when playing. They are all across my upper back.

SIDEBAR: Can backaches be a psychological reaction to one's feeling that the band they are in are capable of much more and aren't giving it their full effort? Or being bored with the material? Or some other non-physical issue?

100% it helps. As does padding and a feltlike backside. I've done a lot of strap searching for something that doesn't hurt my torn rotator cuff injury. Comfort straps don't work BC they're too bouncy and a lot of other stuff is just goofy looking or ugly. I did find this due, though, at: Well-Hung Guitar Accessories Well-Hung Guitar Accessories | Reverb

This dudes straps have been a lifesaver for me. They're wide, very well padded, soft, and just donangreat job relieving shoulder pain. What's more is they are of great quality, look fantastic, and good sir behind the computer screen will even do custom work. But hey, I'm not only a fan, I'm also a customer a few times over!

As you can see, these have become my favorite straps. Check 'em out!

 

[AlfBrewdog]

I've been having some back pain when playing bass at a gig. Would an extra wide strap with padding help?

I think a lot of shoulder pain is to do with the distribution of weight and the nature of the bass being longer, so we have our arm out further and also the neck pulls the instrument down (neck dive). I’ve got guitars that are heavier than my basses but the bodies pull the neck up, and I never have shoulder pain like I have with my basses.
One thing I did with my P bass was swap out the machine heads with Hipshot Ultralites and this helped immensely.
These days I’m primarily using a Sandberg TM4 and not only is this light. But it’s very well balanced.

 

[51PRI]

I think a lot of shoulder pain is to do with the distribution of weight and the nature of the bass being longer, so we have our arm out further and also the neck pulls the instrument down (neck dive). I’ve got guitars that are heavier than my basses but the bodies pull the neck up, and I never have shoulder pain like I have with my basses.
One thing I did with my P bass was swap out the machine heads with Hipshot Ultralites and this helped immensely.
These days I’m primarily using a Sandberg TM4 and not only is this light. But it’s very well balanced.

My experience, so far, with the 4.5" strap is that it has little effect on which nights I might have back/shoulder pain and which nights I don't. I haven't been able to find anything else that is a factor...maybe being tired? Some nights it's bad enough that I have to play seated.

 

[FearNoEvil65]

It comes down to the actual weight of the instrument for me, lighter is better. All my basses balance well so that's no issue for me. The actual strap does make a difference for me, I have 2 similar straps in different colors, one has a bit thicker padding. I was playing my 9.8lb bass today, and although the strap with the thinner padding matches best, after a while I went back to the one with thicker padding and wow what a difference.
Going forward, I'll never buy a bass over 9lbs. I have 2 basses at 7lbs, and those are what I play mostly now.
I'd never considered selling any of my basses, but possibly may weed out my over 9lbers soon.

 

[Parzival]

check out CFG straps.. It solved my issues

This. Thought it was probably just silly marketing when I saw them. But, they had a cool flame strap and I said what the heck. I don’t know what it is, I’ve always had wide padded straps, but man the straps are great. Play a 4 hour gig and don’t feel a thing in my back. They are really good.

 

[51PRI]

It comes down to the actual weight of the instrument for me, lighter is better. All my basses balance well so that's no issue for me. The actual strap does make a difference for me, I have 2 similar straps in different colors, one has a bit thicker padding. I was playing my 9.8lb bass today, and although the strap with the thinner padding matches best, after a while I went back to the one with thicker padding and wow what a difference.
Going forward, I'll never buy a bass over 9lbs. I have 2 basses at 7lbs, and those are what I play mostly now.
I'd never considered selling any of my basses, but possibly may weed out my over 9lbers soon.

I have a Hohner Steinberg licensed 5 string that weighs nothing. I'm thinking of trying it.

 

[sc_precision]

I had the opposite experience. A wider, padded strap hurt my shoulder more than the narrow padded strap. Not sure why that is. Maybe the wider strap sits right on the collarbone where as the narrow one was more on the upper shoulder muscle that goes up around the neck.