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Having a bass & amp as a toy?

Should I be ashamed to have a bass & amp just as a toy?

  • absolutely

  • meh, do what you want

  • not at all

  • Carrots!

Results are only viewable after voting.
#121
I took the u-bass to the park today & a bass guitar instructional book from the library. Most of what I read was like déja vu, and I knew exactly where to go to pick it up in the library, LOL.
There are about 40 books on guitar & ONE solitary book on bass :bored:

I'm fitting right into one of the definitions of insanity & a friendly BM by the name or RizzBot was sure to bring it to my attention today. Thanks Rizzo!

add:

In retrospect, when I sold my stuff at Sam Ash, I should have picked up a Kala U-Bass.
They have them & would have given me a discount on a trade-in.
 
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#122
I have sold off all of my gear except for a 1966 Fender Bassman and Cab and a 1972 Gibson EB-3. I got so fed up playing in a bar/dive country band last year I just gave it all up. I have a Peavey Mini Max head and a GK 2x12 cab for jams because I don't want to chance getting my bassman damaged. The EB-3 is the only bass I have left. I've gigged heavily with it. Now my newer toys are mandolin, my Cordoba Classical and Martin Acoustic.
 
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#124
Killed_by_Death said:
My first new instrument was a Fender Blacktop bass (MIM)
within two weeks I returned it, because the neck was giving way & I had to re-tune it every other day
when the action started getting higher, I realized the neck may be a dud

This bass ukulele will be the next new purchase, because I always bought used (except for the case above)

I'm not a new kid on the block when it comes to shopping used, and scanned all the pawn shops in the area as well as Craig's List
those PowerSpan pickups in the Ibanez are pretty damn good though, so now I don't feel like I'd be happy with a passive instrument in the same price range (or cheaper)

OTOH, I would put my arm out of service playing that new Ibanez too much. I had trouble getting to sleep last night, because of the pain in my arm just for playing roughly an hour over the course of two days.
The u-bass may hang on the wall collecting dust, because I already know I get my thrill from the shopping & the GAS more than I do from the playing
if that happens them I'm out less than $200, instead of $600
Click to expand...

Killed_by_Death said:
I took the u-bass to the park today & a bass guitar instructional book from the library. Most of what I read was like déja vu, and I knew exactly where to go to pick it up in the library, LOL.
There are about 40 books on guitar & ONE solitary book on bass :bored:

I'm fitting right into one of the definitions of insanity & a friendly BM by the name or RizzBot was sure to bring it to my attention today. Thanks Rizzo!

add:

In retrospect, when I sold my stuff at Sam Ash, I should have picked up a Kala U-Bass.
They have them & would have given me a discount on a trade-in.
Click to expand...

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

I love your posts. You are such a dyed-in-the-wool TB'er..
 
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#128
I've been hanging my leather jacket on the one by the door, but it's just about time to put that back in the closet for several months.


Mantis Tobaggan said:
You could have sold the rick on craigs list for more than that alone
Click to expand...

The RIC got sold before that final round. The stuff I sold at SA on the last night was cheapies I bought in pawn shops.

Half of the cash was probably from accessories, cases, gig bags, pedals.
I actually asked the staff to come help me unload the vehicle, LOL
 
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#129
Killed_by_Death said:
I've been hanging my leather jacket on the one by the door, but it's just about time to put that back in the closet for several months.




The RIC got sold before that final round. The stuff I sold at SA on the last night was cheapies I bought in pawn shops.

Half of the cash was probably from accessories, cases, gig bags, pedals.
I actually asked the staff to come help me unload the vehicle, LOL
Click to expand...
Ok good
 
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#131
Now would be a great time to start setting some goal boundaries for yourself. That is what I am doing to keep myself in check from going overboard on gear purchases.

I have the Hal Leonard Bass Method Complete Version (3 books in 1) and I've been picking it up, putting it down, picking it up a few months later only to start from the beginning only to put it back down again about 1 or 2 exercises beyond the last time I picked it up. The last time I picked it up, I happened to be browsing Thomann.de (Europe's huge music retailer). I said to myself, I am not going to purchase anything until I get to the end of book 1. I made a list of what was in my cart then paper-clipped it to the end of book 1. When I saw some other stuff, I made a list and added that to the end of book 2.

Now this will keep me learning or stop me from buying anything that will collect dust if I take a break.
 
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#132
Killed_by_Death said:
Would it be shameful to have a bass & amp (think all in $300) around just for fun once in awhile?

Over the years of owning various gear, I've come to the conclusion that I will never practice or improve, sad but true!

I considered getting an acoustic bass uke, just for plunking around on, but I really like to be able to throw some distortion/OD into the mix sometimes.
Click to expand...

$300 won't get you much - but as toys go, $300 is peanuts. Most nice RC aircraft are more than that.
 
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#133
BAG said:
I suppose the question that should be asked is "do you enjoy playing the bass occasionally?"
Click to expand...

I do, but maybe if I improved my vocabulary or library of stuff to play I'd enjoy it more. I sat in the park playing yesterday & basically ran out of material. My sense of improvisation involves moving a power chord up and down the neck.


5544 said:
Now would be a great time to start setting some goal boundaries for yourself. That is what I am doing to keep myself in check from going overboard on gear purchases.

I have the Hal Leonard Bass Method Complete Version (3 books in 1) and I've been picking it up, putting it down, picking it up a few months later only to start from the beginning only to put it back down again about 1 or 2 exercises beyond the last time I picked it up. The last time I picked it up, I happened to be browsing Thomann.de (Europe's huge music retailer). I said to myself, I am not going to purchase anything until I get to the end of book 1. I made a list of what was in my cart then paper-clipped it to the end of book 1. When I saw some other stuff, I made a list and added that to the end of book 2.

Now this will keep me learning or stop me from buying anything that will collect dust if I take a break.
Click to expand...

That is a good plan & the main reason I put a stop to the Mikro purchase yesterday. I need to hash out how far I'm willing to take this & do something different from the last time.
I went by the thrift store I donated all my bass books to, hoping to buy them back, but alas they were gone.

Then I went to the library & got a hardcopy of their one bass instructional book, but it's SO basic that it hurts to read it (again).
I did discover they've got some online resources, so I will be looking at those next.

Maybe having a goal will make me practice more, & I have my eye on another Mikro now:

GSRM20B_WNF_2Y_01.png
 
#135
Killed_by_Death said:
after the issues with my arm/fingers, I sold up
I couldn't even practice enough to get better w/o my arm acting up, and this was after reviewing & changing my technique

it was a motivator again not to buy a bass, even though I found a nice one for a good price in the local pawn shop
Click to expand...

i assume you've tried a variety of playing positions? i found some weird ones kept my playing during the worst of my shoulder issues, and with a longer scale bass it's more comfortable for me to play sitting on a low seat, lower than my desk chair.
 
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#136
Funny you should mention that. I went around demoing basses again & this time I held the neck up next to my face. No issues later on, which is usually when my arm would bug me, later on.
So I went over to the pawn shop & pulled that Ibanez BTB (MIK) out of there after talking them down 15% & paying cash to avoid taxes.

I'll know by Monday if I can play like this (classical guitar position) indefinitely w/o issues.
If I develop issues again, I'll sell the BTB & go back to the Ibanez dealer for a Mikro with the walnut finish.

I finally realized I need that clank of metal strings, & I can't play Motörhead worth a damn on the bass ukulele.

Oh, I also finally got a new amp, first NEW one for me, a Rumble 40.
I'm hiding everything in my vehicle for now & hope to sneak it in & do a rumbly wake-up call tomorrow morning.

I spent considerably more than my original $300 estimate, but I'm kind of glad I didn't buy that cheap passive "Tradition" bass I originally had my eye on.
Yes, I'm a lunatic for starting all over again, but I think I just needed to reset my brain. Playing is fun again, but I'll need to work at keeping it that way.
 
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#138
I think those rubber strings aren't too good for chords. It sounds like they're actually hitting one another as they vibrate.

add: Dangit!
now my right hand is acting up, DOH!
It's a little painful to grip the mouse, a swollen feeling in my joints, like arthritis.
I swear, if it's not one thing, it's another!
 
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