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Have you found the one?
- Thread starter BassJuju
- Start date
Not rocket science here.
1. I started playing it all the time, stopped playing all the others and stopped trying out basses in local music stores.
2. I let go of the other instruments more or less in the order of which I played the least and/or had least sentimental value.
1. I started playing it all the time, stopped playing all the others and stopped trying out basses in local music stores.
2. I let go of the other instruments more or less in the order of which I played the least and/or had least sentimental value.
My the one is my Geddy jazz. Weird cause I'm a pbass guy and don't like skinny necks or especially flat boards. But the neck and the body resonate exactly the same, it has excellent feedback in the neck, and a lot of mojo in it.
It doesn't impact the stable though. I play lots of classic rock and it fills that standard tuning need 90% of the time, but I also play a lot of stuff half step down, and I have a 57 p for that, and I play enough in D to have a 62 p for, and enough in C and C# to have a ray for. Come to think about it, I probably need some more basses to back up those in case I break a string.
It doesn't impact the stable though. I play lots of classic rock and it fills that standard tuning need 90% of the time, but I also play a lot of stuff half step down, and I have a 57 p for that, and I play enough in D to have a 62 p for, and enough in C and C# to have a ray for. Come to think about it, I probably need some more basses to back up those in case I break a string.
This one is the one as long as I don't have to play in drop tuning. I got a feeling that this one will become the one in about 10 or 15 years when I finally get fed up with musicians. Its also the bass in my avatar.
This one is the one as far as swiss-army-knife-do-anything-workhorse basses go, but I miss not playing a Fender after a while.
My four other basses are pretty cool too, and I reserve the right to declare any of those the one at any time.
This one is the one as far as swiss-army-knife-do-anything-workhorse basses go, but I miss not playing a Fender after a while.
My four other basses are pretty cool too, and I reserve the right to declare any of those the one at any time.
Ha! See my sig. Of course that particular bass has been in a case somewhere in the house for many months...... 
Hi BassJuju
By the time I ordered my Sandberg, I had a very good idea of exactly what I wanted in a fretless bass. Holger made exactly what I asked for and it was Indeed The One. Fits and sounds just right.
I still have them and they get played, but less than the fretless.
may the bass be with you
Wise(b)ass
1 - I did, back in December '15, an amalgam of my favorite basses.
2 - I put all the other basses on the tree lawn to "recycle" them.
2 - I put all the other basses on the tree lawn to "recycle" them.
It was the feeling I got after first pluck. Having never played a G&L before, I thought, wow! This is a unique instrument. My L-2000 has been the only one for about two and a half years.
I sold my spare, a Squier Jazz, after a less than satisfactory gig experience with it and my G&L has taken every single gig I've played since October 2016. It's never sounded or felt anything less than perfect.
My AVRI 58 P Bass. Mainly because over time I have found I prefer the vintage style 7.25 Radius, and I have yet to play a custom shop P that plays or sounds better with a maple board.
1) it wasn’t an epiphany for me, it was over about a decade of gigging that my 1992 Q5 became the one, where it has remained since. Kind of like how someone becomes your soulmate after years of being together, not necessarily the first time you meet them. It was the third bass I ever owned, bought it new, and even when I could start affording other instruments, I always gravitated back until eventually I just felt a bond to it.
2) unlike how you might treat a spouse, I have more than 30 other instruments acquired over the years; a 1976 fretless P bass given to me by a friend, a 1975 Gibson Les Paul Signature also a gift, a Hofner Club bass, fretless Ripper, Gretsch White Falcon, many classic, somewhat distinct instruments. My addiction right now is Fender Frankenstein P bodies with J necks, I have 16 of them all in different variations; pickup brands and configurations, neck and body materials, tunings, etc. it’s fun to tinker. A few of the P basses turned out really nice and I play them on gigs where the vibe calls for it. As far as the older more eclectic stuff, I do play them on occasion, more so when I was actively recording a lot. If a song is looking for the sound of a Hofner or old Guild bass you’re just not going to find it on a Modulus Q5!
2) unlike how you might treat a spouse, I have more than 30 other instruments acquired over the years; a 1976 fretless P bass given to me by a friend, a 1975 Gibson Les Paul Signature also a gift, a Hofner Club bass, fretless Ripper, Gretsch White Falcon, many classic, somewhat distinct instruments. My addiction right now is Fender Frankenstein P bodies with J necks, I have 16 of them all in different variations; pickup brands and configurations, neck and body materials, tunings, etc. it’s fun to tinker. A few of the P basses turned out really nice and I play them on gigs where the vibe calls for it. As far as the older more eclectic stuff, I do play them on occasion, more so when I was actively recording a lot. If a song is looking for the sound of a Hofner or old Guild bass you’re just not going to find it on a Modulus Q5!
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Easy: The moment I've found 'The One', the one bass that will last for the rest of my days, is the moment I stopped growing or evolving as a bassist.
Every bass I own (except for one, which I bought for fun, as a beater or to lend off to others)
has been the one when I bought it. I never bought a bass because I needed a special sound. I bought my first real bass because I was playing a crappy J-copy which I hated. I had not much of an Idea back then so I went with the recommendation of my teacher and got myself a Carvin. I went to place an order for the Carvin, but the one was already waiting for me, right there in the shop.I came to order a build, but left with one of their demo basses because it was love at first sight. That was my one for seventeen years.
The bass that followed was a luthier made custom to my specs.
Which was followed by an Ibanez that costs less than a third of the custom one.
Each bass, so to speak, represents my style of bass playing of a certain period.
On top of that, I changed genres, too. Coming from metal, I broadened my horizons and added genres.
Suddenly, some things that were minor details became more important.
I hope that I will continue like that until I'm too old to hold a bass - and by this, I hope that I never find the one bass.
Every bass I own (except for one, which I bought for fun, as a beater or to lend off to others)
has been the one when I bought it. I never bought a bass because I needed a special sound. I bought my first real bass because I was playing a crappy J-copy which I hated. I had not much of an Idea back then so I went with the recommendation of my teacher and got myself a Carvin. I went to place an order for the Carvin, but the one was already waiting for me, right there in the shop.I came to order a build, but left with one of their demo basses because it was love at first sight. That was my one for seventeen years.
The bass that followed was a luthier made custom to my specs.
Which was followed by an Ibanez that costs less than a third of the custom one.
Each bass, so to speak, represents my style of bass playing of a certain period.
On top of that, I changed genres, too. Coming from metal, I broadened my horizons and added genres.
Suddenly, some things that were minor details became more important.
I hope that I will continue like that until I'm too old to hold a bass - and by this, I hope that I never find the one bass.
You know it's the "one" because it sounds better than the last "one".
In my house, the last "one" becomes the backup and any previous "ones" will probably be sold.
I started on upright bass. I was never a guitar player. For me bass was it.
I played my cousin’s JB in my early electric days. He loaned it to me because his band needed a bass player, and although I knew how to play a bass, I didn’t own an electric.
Somewhere around 1970 I became aware of Rotosounds and it was a major revelation. Then in 1973 I heard Greg Lake playing this weirdass looking Gibson called a Ripper and something in that sound just clicked with me. But the price tag stopped me in my tracks.
A little shy of a year later I managed to scrape up the cash, and that in conjunction with a hefty discount courtesy of my older sister’s mother in law who worked in music retail, and I finally got my paws on a Ripper in ‘74. And I never looked back.
First electric bass I ever personally owned. And my only bass (besides the then mandatory Fender backup I hardly ever played) till the early 80s.
Still got it. It’s still my main player.
I’ve since added additional basses to my assemblage for various reasons. But that Ripper is still what I (and anybody else who’s played with me over the years) thinks of as yours truly’s bass. It’s no longer a Gibson Ripper. It’s my Ripper. So much so I could go back to just that one bass and do everything music related that I wanted to accomplish with it.
I’ve since managed to find a backup that was still factory original. No mean feat considering the abuse most Rippers have suffered. It was something I also very much wanted after a few aborted attempts were made to swipe the original at a couple of gigs.
Here’s the two cousins. The ‘74 is on the left. It’s strictly for home or studio use now. The ‘83 backup - dubbed the “Road Ripper” - is on the right.
Life is good.
I played my cousin’s JB in my early electric days. He loaned it to me because his band needed a bass player, and although I knew how to play a bass, I didn’t own an electric.
Somewhere around 1970 I became aware of Rotosounds and it was a major revelation. Then in 1973 I heard Greg Lake playing this weirdass looking Gibson called a Ripper and something in that sound just clicked with me. But the price tag stopped me in my tracks.
A little shy of a year later I managed to scrape up the cash, and that in conjunction with a hefty discount courtesy of my older sister’s mother in law who worked in music retail, and I finally got my paws on a Ripper in ‘74. And I never looked back.
First electric bass I ever personally owned. And my only bass (besides the then mandatory Fender backup I hardly ever played) till the early 80s.
Still got it. It’s still my main player.
I’ve since added additional basses to my assemblage for various reasons. But that Ripper is still what I (and anybody else who’s played with me over the years) thinks of as yours truly’s bass. It’s no longer a Gibson Ripper. It’s my Ripper. So much so I could go back to just that one bass and do everything music related that I wanted to accomplish with it.
I’ve since managed to find a backup that was still factory original. No mean feat considering the abuse most Rippers have suffered. It was something I also very much wanted after a few aborted attempts were made to swipe the original at a couple of gigs.
Here’s the two cousins. The ‘74 is on the left. It’s strictly for home or studio use now. The ‘83 backup - dubbed the “Road Ripper” - is on the right.
Life is good.
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For me, "the one" can change over time, because one of the variables is how well it works in the musical situations I'm in. For example, I have a 6-string bass that is a wonderful instrument, but no gigs right now where a 6-string makes any sense. In the past, that bass was my main player.
Right now, this Valenti is checking all the boxes. It sounds just like an active jazz bass should and gives me that big funky, growly bottom end I want for my funk/dance variety gig. It's light. The neck feels great. I have it set up just so. I'm sure you'll agree that it looks great.
I have other basses that are fantastic, maybe one or two that are better specimens than this one. But this is the one right now.
Right now, this Valenti is checking all the boxes. It sounds just like an active jazz bass should and gives me that big funky, growly bottom end I want for my funk/dance variety gig. It's light. The neck feels great. I have it set up just so. I'm sure you'll agree that it looks great.
I have other basses that are fantastic, maybe one or two that are better specimens than this one. But this is the one right now.
I found my "the one" 43 years ago and it is still my number one my 1975 Gibson Ripper, I have 14 others but the Ripper is still in first place
It is the only bass I own that I lose myself in and can play for hours.
here she is 43 years ago
recent
It is the only bass I own that I lose myself in and can play for hours.
here she is 43 years ago
I sometimes cheat, but I always come back home to my Q5, disappointed by the other instrument. I used to take such joy from gassing out for and buying new bases, which sadly has been ruined for me now. Even the TB classifieds have lost their luster. Tragic. What am I supposed to do with my money now?
Ah, the one. For me it's the jazz bass I cut my teeth on. First band. Thousands of times on stage. Really learned how to put lines together. Also learned how to work on my gear. Install things, set ups, how much I love custom shop pickups. It was the second bass I've ever bought. Many have come and gone over the last 12 years but it always stays. It's worth essentially nothing on the open market but it's priceless to me. I tried to move to nicer bass, been playing with another build out P and a few EBMMs and I'm considering picking up a Ric. Brought it out yesterday for the first time in a while. Everyone else is going to get a rest. Nothing plays as well or sounds as good no matter what I do. I love this bass.
