Got any personal preferences on bass?

[Bonedoge]

I wonder what elements make you bassists get a new bass. Definitely not looking for tips as I got myself my own. Just curious.

I only care about the appearance
1. Shouldn't be Fender-looking
2. Shouldn't have maple FB
3. 2x2 head or at least split

Do you have your own??

 

[Ibycan]

1.- Fender Shape Object
2.- Rosewood fretboard
3.- Bound Neck
4.- Block Inlays

 

[Geri O]

I wonder what elements make you bassists get a new bass. Definitely not looking for tips as I got myself my own. Just curious.

I only care about the appearance
1. Shouldn't be Fender-looking
2. Shouldn't have maple FB
3. 2x2 head or at least split
View attachment 5465738

Do you have your own??

The polar opposite of this....

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

FSO w/ a J neck, not too heavy. I'm spit 50/50 in btwn rosewood and maple boards, I like ebony too.

 

[Killing Floor]

C shaped neck. Just something that feels good in my hands.

 

[Ol Sparky]

Unicorn D neck Fender 59 Precision with a rosewood board, still looking.

 

[Spidey2112]

36-24-54

 

[BaltBass5]

Spector. Period.

 

[squarepeg]

36-24-54

 

[smeet]

Don’t care about appearance.
5 strings.
Thin (front to back) neck.
Active 3-band eq, passive mode.
Passive tone in both active and passive modes.
2 pickups, blend control.
Large (flat) fb radius if possible.
18mm string spacing at bridge preferred.
34” scale preferred.
Nobody on my lawn.

 

[pcake]

must weigh under 8 pounds (bonus points for 7 pounds or under)
slim neck (side to side; think jazz bass neck)
working truss rod
must work for me ergonomically (this can include the lower bout size, waist location, etc)
not that i've seen one on a bass, but no V necks. i didn't care for them on my acoustic guitars.

 

[andare]

• If it's not a quirky semi/hollowbody bass from the 60s-70s, if it's not a Rick, if it's not from the Fender catalog, if it wasn't designed by Leo or if it's not a knockoff of the above with the correct headstock, I'm probably not interested
  
• 4 strings only
• nut width must be >= 1 5/8" but ideally 1.75"
• fat profile, possibly oval profile with bulging shoulders so the neck is wider than the fretboard, like an MIJ P bass but with a wider nut
• thick front to back across the entire neck, like a 51 P bass
• heavily rolled fretboard edges
• smallest frets possible
• no Jazz pickups anywhere, especially no P/J
  
• passive electronics only
• can't weigh much more than 4kg
• no neck dive that can't be cured by a grippy strap

 

[foal30]

Stays in tune the best it can

 

[GTHintz]

I pretty much just chase down the biggest tone I can find. I like things that have something unique going on. The only real parameters I have are it being 5 strings, able to blend pickups, left handed, and the rest is here or there. I prefer colors that are sleek and go with the particular body shape. I prefer tighter string spacing over wider. The more I play the more I realize that I'm going to sound like myself no matter what bass I play but there's still going to be basses that fit my playing and the way I want to sound the best.
Warwick, Ibanez SR, and Dean basses have been the most complimentary brands for me but I've held ESP, MTD, music man, fender, Carvin, Rickenbacker Schecter and some others in my hands and all have sounded great when set up the right way. For some reason I can't quite get fenders to sound like I want but everything else I've been lucky enough to find at least one tone that sounds good to me. Most of the time it's pickups blended bridge on full and the neck backed off just a bit to where it starts to tighten up the punch of the notes. Others it's both on full. With that said I can basically pick up anything but those are my preference.

 

[woodyng2]

My preference? Rickenbacker 4004 models, especially the walnut Cheyenne.
I also love my GL L-1000, but I really want a Kiloton.
My Veillette-Citron Standard, Tune wb4 fretless, and Fernandes bp-8 string are also keepers.

 

[chris_b]

Two things a bass has to have before it is of any interest to me, exceptional tone and 5 strings.

After that, I care about weight, feel and appearance.

So show me an FSO that sounds better than my current #1, that plays like a dream and weighs less than 8lbs and I could be reaching for my card.

 

[JakobT]

Must absolutely, positively be black, preferably an FSO. Everything else is negotiable.

 

[prowla]

Rickenbacker or the others.

 

[2112]

5 strings, narrow string spacing.

Other than that, no. I use whatever bass our sound guy thinks sounds best for our mix.

 

[JRA]

- neck that works for me
- lightweight with balance