Have your tastes changed over time?

[Element Zero]

Not really. I like what I like and don’t like what I don’t like. My tone goals have been refined but aesthetics are still pretty much the same. Feel trumps everything for me.

 

[Kerem Koseoglu]

I went through Jazz Bass, Stingray and Fodera phases. Nowadays; all I have is an AO 60's P with rounds + a Postmodern P with flats. Plus, a small board of pedals. Fills the mix the way I (and apparently band members) like in any situation I'm invited to.

In my opinion, taste changes over time in a couple of different ways; such as:

• Our ears get more refined
• We get a better understanding of how a mix works
• Our musical orientation changes
• Our technique evolves and we like some neck / etc profiles better

I like how a P bass sits in the mix. It is like a "Kapha" friend I can trust and lean towards. Playing a P is like driving a truck: It is slower to maneuver around, but I enjoy the power and solidity it provides.

If you asked me 10 years ago, I would say that P basses are primordial one trick ponies and I'd prefer versatile basses with paper-thin necks. That's how my taste changed.

 

[rojo412]

Basswise, I've spent my life running from the P that I started with. Many different ones later and I still have no love for a basic P (but don't deny that they sit great in a mix).
For years now, I've been more into high output 5 strings, with extremely functional electronics, excellent feel and ergonomics, and essentially couldn't find basses on the market that would do it for me (aside from the Status 5'ers that I foolishly let go of). My 89 SR5 is a keeper and about as close as it got and I do love that, but wanted more. Couldn't afford all of the crazy custom stuff, so I started making my own basses from scratch, only slightly looking back to lust after a headless Status 5 string every once in a while (still looking for that, too).
I've tried to turn back to passive and 4 a couple times, but it just isn't me. Having a bypass on a 5 is way better.

Ampwise, it's been weird. I was all about bigger volume and clarity. Eventually, it was all GK, all the way. And I still love that sound and have 2 of them. But a rig was donated to the practice spot - a Sunn Coliseum head and Peavey 2x15 cab from the 80s. It's the exact opposite of what I'd buy... but I leaned into it for band and it works great. I even got into pedals to make it sound even weirder and that has been a hoot.
Though if I had the cash and needed a rig to play elsewhere, it would be a GK Legacy 800 2x12 combo.

Strings are my only real constant: I love Ken Smith Tapercores! I'll play other stuff if needed, but that is my go-to.
Oh, and I still use the first strap I ever got when I started playing and despite having a few much fancier ones, it's still my favorite.

 

[lunarpollen]

I wouldn't say they've changed; they've just gotten more refined and fleshed out over time after trying out so many different types of instruments... And although I might still really love the look of some, I know they would be wrong for me because of how they physically feel to play...

 

[Rib 13]

Lol.....my preference timeline based on my Number 1s (always brand spanking new Rounds):

80s - Jazz basses, Alembic, G&L L2K briefly, Stingray
90s - Stingray continued, G&L L2K (ASAT)
00s - G&L L2K (ASAT) continues
10s - G&L L2K (ASAT) continues, Jazz basses,
20s - Stingray, P-J basses and Reverse P-J basses

....so, I'd say 'Yes'

 

[el murdoque]

I started on a FSO. A cheap J copy. I hated it.
Then I looked for the best bass for metal. I found it in a Carvin LB75. This set the pace. I was playing active neck through 5 string basses for more than 20 years, would not even look at others.
I would not look at strings, either. I just slapped a set of Elixirs on any bass that came into my possession.


Today, my main bass is a passive bolt-on 6 string with flats.
My other bass is a P with flats.

I do have others, but that's more due to the fact that their sentimental value exceeds the monetary one.

 

[NeonVomit]

Not too much. After my first P-bass knockoff, I was always into slimmer necks, active electronics, and big, powerful tones. Always at least 5 strings, I want that low B on hand. The only different thing I want all of my basses to have nowadays is a passive/active switch, and that's more for having a reliable option should a battery die during a gig, and for a different vibe our sound in the studio. I'm definitely more about versatility in my instruments than any specific signature sound.

I'm getting my hands on a more old-school type 4-string PJ bass soon, but that one is a custom job with active electronics (and passive/active switch).

Always rounds, all the time. Flats feel nice but not a fan of the sound.

So no, my tastes haven't changed that much when it comes to basses. Same with amps, I'm not too fussy with them, I just want them to be as reliable and well-built as possible above all, and then after that as versatile-sounding as possible. After a 2-year hiatus I'm starting to travel for gigs a lot again, and reliable, easily transported gear is the #1 thing that matters in those cases. I'm even less choosy when it comes to cabs, as often on the road I'll just use backline rental or whatever the house cab is. The key criteria for my own cabs are small, compact and light.

 

[pcake]

having shoulder damage has changed what i can play.

my personal preferences haven't changed that much except in one way. the first bass i bought was a passive P/J with a 1.5" nut, and i still like that combination. that being said, for a couple decades, every single bass i owned was black. then one day i got to thinking about that. nowadays, i own a green mikro, a red bronco, a daphne blue jazz and a daphne blue tiny bass, a red mini precision, an orange ibanez mezzo, a wood-tone ibanez GSR100 and a yellow glarry P bass. and i do own a couple black basses...

 

[bassdude51]

Although I go back as far as 1987 for owning a P Bass, they have been a mediocre bass to me. But, my favorite bass was a J and I liked fancy wood basses. Also, tech features like active eq and fancy hardware. The more expensive the bass the better. Old Ken Smiths and Alembics I dreamed for and lusted to own one.

But little by little, I was changing.

In the mid 90s, I bought a Fender MIJ slab body bass mainly because I thought that the slab body looked cool. I wasn't all that excited about the sound but it looked cool.

Game changer. About 2008, my son found me a 1966 P Bass being sold by a friend of a friend. A well worn '66. At first, I wasn't all that impressed that I owned it. But little by little, I started loving this bass. It's looks. It's mojo. The fact that it was not pretty. It was an "anti-hero" bass guitar.

Since 2008, I'm now into simple! P Bass is the only bass! (IMHO) I like dings, scars, war wounds. Organic. My '66 changed my life and attitude. The Japanese philosophy of wahbi sabi.......................In traditional Japanese aesthetics, wabi-sabi (侘寂) is a world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of appreciating beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete" in nature.

Now, my favorite basses are the single coil P basses and the old split coils. Story over!

A am the proud owner of a real deal 1953 P and an 1966 P. What more could I want?

So, not only has my taste changed in bass guitars, it has changed all across the board. Simple is best! (Changes took place from about age 45 to 65. I'm now 70.

(Musical taste has changed too since the late 80s, simple instrumental surf music is my favorite. (And I love Blue Grass too!)

Simple is best!

Excellent thread neddyrow !

 

[Standalone]

I feel like my tastes have not changed, but the bass community in general has experienced a period of regressive nostalgia.

When I first started reading these forums, which would be about 19 or 20 years ago, tastes were much different. That period in the early 00s was defined by exotica; beautiful objects with a look and sound which made them art as much as they were instruments. It was a time of wild experimentation, with more and more strings being added, new styles and sounds being used.

My tastes were formed in that time, mainly 5 and 6 strings, active, exotic woods. I loved the great masters, Ken Smith, Pedulla, Fodera, Warwick etc. Now, nearly two decades later, I play the stuff I dreamed of owning as youngster. I prefer 5 strings to 6, mainly because the ergonomic trade-offs weren't worth it for the larger neck of 6 strings when weighed against the amount of use I got from the high C. I like 6s and I'll always own at least one, but when it comes to my favourite basses, 5 string will always win.

Talkbass has always been a somewhat narrow view of the bass world; perhaps skewed towards middle-class, relatively affluent folks from the US, Canada and UK, but I still think it provides a valuable insight into the minds of bass as a much bigger community than simply those who use Talkbass. In those early days of exploring the world of bass, Talkbass was like a treasure trove. Everyone had such amazing instruments, the place was overflowing with beautiful, exotic woods and modern designs. Now, that is mostly gone. There is far less variety and a much, much greater homogeneity of thought. When bass guitar went through a period of being much more progressive, with instruments designed to encourage new techniques and tones that made the bass player stand out, this tide of change ebbed and sank back into the sea. Conservatism has been grasped tightly by many in the bass community. Retro is cool, safe, comfortable.

I do wonder what lead to this resurgence of old designs catching the attention of so many, but I think you'd have to be a sociologist to figure it out. I personally feel like the lack of a really strong cultural and artistic aesthetic in the last 15 years of so has created a clamour for nostalgia, and with nostalgia, it is safe to say that everyone has their favourite flavour. When I think broadly of the decades as they passed through the 20th century, each had distinct and vibrant artistic, aesthetic and musical identities. Moving from 1955, to 1965, to 1975, to 1985, to 1995 was like twisting a kaleidoscope and having a different picture every time, totally different from the last. We can all envisage a cultural "picture" of each of those decades so clearly, but can we do the same for the 2005 or 2015, for example?

Of course, there is nothing wrong with indulging in nostalgia, particularly when bass guitars are, for 99.9% of us, an indulgence. This fondness for nostalgia has lead to this clamouring for retro gear. Everyone wants a P bass, they want flats, they want bass that is "felt not heard", they want "mud 'n' thud". There's nothing intrinsically wrong with that, it's just what makes people feel comfortable.

And indeed, I am as guilty as anyone of loving what I grew up on in my formative years. It's no surprise that I went from daydreaming looking at pictures of Ken Smith basses on Talkbass to owning one. My current collection and my ownership history is what I dreamed of when I first started to appreciate bass guitar. I accept too, that my tastes will probably never change.

That brings me to our final point; do our tastes ever change, or just take a long time to finally settle back where we started? While there will always be some who cut their teeth on metal but play a Hofner bangbox these days, or someone who grew up loving bar room blues who has sworn his heart to a 9 string Conklin, I think most of us end up owning the basses we dreamed of in our formative years, once we reach a point in our lives where we have the time and funds available to procure them. With the way the population of the western world is aging at an unprecedented rate and the average age per capita in the world's richest western nations is shooting up, the adoration of retro gear perhaps shouldn't come as such a surprise.

I’d say that you think like a sociologist. There are a lot of great observations here. I saw the same shifts. The perception of homogeneity of the last two decades seems true to me. Your kaleidoscope image is accurate.

Like you say, this might be limited to North America and Western Europe.

 

[glocke1]

Not really...

I was always attracted to the " Hippie Sandwich " basses (Alembic, etc.), and still am. I own two that I won't part with unless I have to. What changed for me was the realization and being honest with myself that I am just far more comfortable playing Jazz basses. I honestly wish that wasn't the case, but it is the truth.

 

[matthewbrown]

I stopped playing fretless. The less vibrato I used the better it sounded; the more in tune I played the better it sounded. Fretless, which I'd played exclusively for years had begun to seem like slap bass: A special effect that I didn't need to use any more. I still like the sound when it's done right, though.

Then I started playing chords on my fretted and had to rethink that, too!

 

[chris_b]

. . . . What parts of your tastes have changed over the years?

I started with a Fender Precision, moved to MM, Wal and Lakland, and now I'm back playing a P bass, a 5 string this time around. My musical and tonal preferences are pretty much the same as when I started.

My gear preferences are very different. I'm definitely benefiting from the quantum leap in the development of amps and cabs of the last 20 years.

So everything changes and everything remains the same.

 

[JOME77]

I guess that I've actually gone 360 degrees since I started playing in the 70's. I started out on 4 string basses (a Gibson Les Paul 4 and then a Fender Precision) and evolved to active with the release of the Musicman Stingray 4, then G&L L2000. Then eventually evolved to the boutique basses starting out with an Alembic Point model 4 and then Pedulla MVP 4. Then when 5 strings started really hitting the scene I upgraded to a Pedulla MVP 5 for my first 5 string. From there it was only boutiques for about 20 years. Most Roscoe 5's and 6's.
Then about 3-4 years ago I pretty much quit playing out, primarily driven by the fact that most venues and churches were going with IEM's, which I greatly despised. That led to me connecting back to a lot of my old band mates from the 70's and 80's that resulted in regular jam sessions doing mostly classic rock stuff. I found that the 4 string just worked better with the classic rock stuff and now days own more 4 string basses than 5's (and no 6'ers).
I guess that the saying "the more things change the more that they stay the same" is definitely true for me.

 

[Savage_Dreams]

Changed? No.
Grown? Most definitely.

Everything I loved in the beginning I'm still into, Ive only added to my tastes.

 

[pepj]

I started on passive Jazzes as my first proper upgrade, and all these years later, going through from MM to Soapbars, actives, Customs etc etc, I've settled on
Jazz with singles plus pre amp.
34" and 21 fret on a 4+1.
I have a 20 fret which is on its way out and I'll pick up another.
If I dont gig them, I dont see much point keeping them.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I've been playing bass for about five years, after being a totally non-serious guitar player for like 30.
The first four years of my bass playing I only played Rickenbackers.
To be honest, I didn't consider myself a bass player - I considered myself a guy who could make cool low noises on a RIC.
Then I switched to a fretless RIC.
Then COVID happened, and I practiced my ass off for two years.
And then I discovered jazz basses - I have a fretted and fretless G&L jb.
Now I'm considering moving away from the RICs completely - and I think after all the serious practice over the past two years, I'm an actual bass player, not just a guy who pounds on that Ricky.

 

[smtp4me]

My tastes in basses have done a complete 180. I used to like active basses with rounds and 2+2 or 3+3 headstocks.

Now, I exclusively play passive basses, TI flatwound strings, 4 strings (in a row) Fender-style basses - I make/modify my own parts basses. I recently tried a 5-string active, and a 6er and just couldn't get into it. Didn't like the feel or the tone at all!

What's even funnier - I don't even have a band I play with on electric. I have been exclusively an upright player in a fiddle/bluegrass band. I just play and build/modify BGs as a hobby.

But I digress - I just came to this revelation that my tastes are totally different the other day as I was messing around with a bunch of different basses at a fellow bass players house.

What parts of your tastes have changed over the years?

Apparently I'm too rigid... I've been playing passive, dual-pickup (e.g. Jazz style), 4 string, round wound stringed, basses for about 43 years. Had two active basses. Both have been sold. Have tried 5 strings in the local stores - nope - 4 is enough for me. I still believe that the Chris Squire/Geddy Lee, slightly over-driven sound is tone nirvana.

 

[FrenchBassQC]

Yes, they did, I use to play passive 4 strings exclusively and now I play both passive/active 4 to 6 strings. They only thing that hasn't changed is that a 34" scale is a must.

 

[TTA]

My tastes in basses have done a complete 180. I used to like active basses with rounds and 2+2 or 3+3 headstocks.

Now, I exclusively play passive basses, TI flatwound strings, 4 strings (in a row) Fender-style basses - I make/modify my own parts basses. I recently tried a 5-string active, and a 6er and just couldn't get into it. Didn't like the feel or the tone at all!

What's even funnier - I don't even have a band I play with on electric. I have been exclusively an upright player in a fiddle/bluegrass band. I just play and build/modify BGs as a hobby.

But I digress - I just came to this revelation that my tastes are totally different the other day as I was messing around with a bunch of different basses at a fellow bass players house.

What parts of your tastes have changed over the years?

yes. In the mid 90’s i was a kid and wanted a 5 string ibanez. But got a mim b stock fender jazz instead (amazing choice in retrospect). Then i fell in love with 4003’s. Still love them. Still live j basses. Then i discovered dingwalls and continue to love the look, sound, feel… and i just marvel how incredible my ab1 is.