Hello, all. My name is Richard, and I am a 40-something nonprofessional bass player currently residing in Virginia Beach, VA. I joined TB about a month ago, but I'm just now getting around to introducing myself in here. I have played bass on and off for about 24 years; however, I recently picked the instrument back up after being on hiatus for several years. (More on that a little later.)
Although I did not pick up a bass guitar until I was 20 years old, I had a musical background throughout my school years, playing multiple instruments in my middle school and high school bands. I purchased my first bass a couple of years after graduation--a white USA Fender JP-90, which to this day remains the worst built, worst playing, worst sounding bass guitar I have ever played. Seriously, that bass was a piece of
, lol. I played this Fender Hall of Shame instrument through a Peavey Mark VI head and a 2x8 + 1x15 cabinet, which I did not even realize at the time had 2 of its 3 speakers blown. I got this setup to join a garage band started by my best friends. We had a big enough set that we were invited to play at local keg parties, and we played enough Alice In Chains covers that we probably could've been sued. I was part of that project for about 2 years, before saying goodbye to my hometown for good, and moving away for university.
For the next couple of years, I mostly noodled around on bass and practiced on my own. I eventually traded the JP-90 in for a Fender 50th Anniversary P-bass, one of only 500 built. I sold the Mark VI and cabinet as well, and got a Carvin Red Eye 600W head running bi-amped into a 2x10 and 1x15 full stack. This rig sounded both great and loud at the same time, which was something I wasn't used to. My wife at the time (now ex) hated my bass and equipment almost as much as she hated me, though, and she sold all of it one day while I was out of town on business. All of it.
This started my 5 year hiatus from bass, as well as pretty much all other musicianship. I decided to take a sabbatical and work on fixing some personal things in my life. I moved to Virginia Beach, got divorced (duh), made a lot of new friends, worked on getting myself right with God, met a great Christian lady, married said lady after dating for a couple of years, and finally joined our church's worship band a few months ago.
I'm now playing a Squire VM 70s Jazz 5 through a Rumble Studio 40, and I really like it. It's all now easily transported from home to practice to stage, and the sound, finish, and playability of the Squire is light-years better than that old JP-90. (I'm serious, that bass was terrible, lol.) My future purchases will probably be an acoustic, and maybe the MIM road worn 60S Jazz. I also plan on doing the usual pickup and bridge upgrades on the Squire one day.
Anyway, I am loving my life right now, I'm loving bass again, and I'm happy to join this community.
Best regards,
-Richard
Although I did not pick up a bass guitar until I was 20 years old, I had a musical background throughout my school years, playing multiple instruments in my middle school and high school bands. I purchased my first bass a couple of years after graduation--a white USA Fender JP-90, which to this day remains the worst built, worst playing, worst sounding bass guitar I have ever played. Seriously, that bass was a piece of
, lol. I played this Fender Hall of Shame instrument through a Peavey Mark VI head and a 2x8 + 1x15 cabinet, which I did not even realize at the time had 2 of its 3 speakers blown. I got this setup to join a garage band started by my best friends. We had a big enough set that we were invited to play at local keg parties, and we played enough Alice In Chains covers that we probably could've been sued. I was part of that project for about 2 years, before saying goodbye to my hometown for good, and moving away for university. For the next couple of years, I mostly noodled around on bass and practiced on my own. I eventually traded the JP-90 in for a Fender 50th Anniversary P-bass, one of only 500 built. I sold the Mark VI and cabinet as well, and got a Carvin Red Eye 600W head running bi-amped into a 2x10 and 1x15 full stack. This rig sounded both great and loud at the same time, which was something I wasn't used to. My wife at the time (now ex) hated my bass and equipment almost as much as she hated me, though, and she sold all of it one day while I was out of town on business. All of it.
This started my 5 year hiatus from bass, as well as pretty much all other musicianship. I decided to take a sabbatical and work on fixing some personal things in my life. I moved to Virginia Beach, got divorced (duh), made a lot of new friends, worked on getting myself right with God, met a great Christian lady, married said lady after dating for a couple of years, and finally joined our church's worship band a few months ago.
I'm now playing a Squire VM 70s Jazz 5 through a Rumble Studio 40, and I really like it. It's all now easily transported from home to practice to stage, and the sound, finish, and playability of the Squire is light-years better than that old JP-90. (I'm serious, that bass was terrible, lol.) My future purchases will probably be an acoustic, and maybe the MIM road worn 60S Jazz. I also plan on doing the usual pickup and bridge upgrades on the Squire one day.
Anyway, I am loving my life right now, I'm loving bass again, and I'm happy to join this community.
Best regards,
-Richard
