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How does one justify owning several basses?

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#61
By making them all different - looks, sound, feel, # of strings, etc. (whatever it takes, haha) - so that they have different applications.

My family: MIA (passive) J4, Custom Classic (active) J5 and an Ibanez AGB140 semi-hollow w/ flats. The J4 and semi-hollow are getting more play time right now cause my only project at the moment is a blues/rock kinda thing and those fit the sound best.

I struggle with this too, I have 3 and GAS-free for the moment though a fretless would be nice but it's not something I'm gonna save up to try and get anytime soon.
 
#64
dan.ablett said:
fair enough, and ofcourse you have the right to spend your money how you want, but i dont think adopting an attitude of "other people can justify exsessive and unnecessary spending habits, so im going to buy more basses" is healthy. NOT saying thats your own attitude.....

personally i think there are just more important things in life then owning a bunch of nice basses, and i believe that the joy in music comes from the playing of music, not the posessing of gear. before my Marcus miller IV, i was playing a Squire Affinity Jazz. the squire was fun no doubt, and i still enjoy playing it (now in posession of my gf), but granted the MMIV is a much nicer instrument. paired with my MarkBass amp, i can dial in a stack of tones, more tones then i use, thats for sure! it has an active/passive switch, some nice pickups, and looks beautiful. the amp can do pretty much anything i want, and ive never turned her up beyond 4. i have a few pedals, a 410 cab...

not to turn this into a drive for social justice, but i can see a grand getting dropped on my next bass going to incredible use for world aid, towards orphanages or mission trips, or even towards a home deposit, an engagement ring, paying off next years car insurance and rego....

considering the usefulness of that amount of money, and the dexderity of my rig, i find it hard to justify ANOTHER bass. i could justify upgrading my guitar to a tele texas or something, as i play guitar at church regularly and should look into something that is step up from my entry level yamaha...
and even if i was earning enough to not worry about car insurance, and i had my mortgage paid and kids had finished school, but my rig still satisfied, there is still 1000s of better places my money could go.

and im not saying my rig is PERFECT, but has handled every situation put in it's path thus far....

does that make sense or is my heart bleeding too much? :hiding:
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Just as I don't believe it's healthy for anyone to project their own moral convictions on how anyone spends their money.
 
#65
I played for 8 years on an MIM P-bass that was handed down to me from my sister. For the longest time, that WAS bass, as far as I was concerned. Eventually about a year ago, through experimentation, I discovered that the sound I really desired was a semihollowbody with a pickup right up against the neck and flats. I just got one, and am happier than ever about bass. The P-bass will go in the closet unless something drastic happens (I'm not too worried about taking backup to gigs because every bill I'm on has at least one band I'm friends with), I might put a Dark Star at the neck to try and get "that" sound. As far as I'm concerned, I've found my ideal bass and have no desire for more, except for an upright or EUB. I don't want a fretless (I'd rather get an EUB), I don't need an extended range, I hate rounds and don't want to ever play on them again, and if I want a different sound I switch from fingers to pick and vary where on the strings I'm picking.

I like having a rapport with one instrument where you know exactly what will happen when you pick it up. I have so many memories with my P-bass and will log many more with my new (to me, it's over 30 years old) bass. I love shiny newness but not as much as warm familiarity.
 
#66
dan.ablett said:
fair enough, and ofcourse you have the right to spend your money how you want, but i dont think adopting an attitude of "other people can justify exsessive and unnecessary spending habits, so im going to buy more basses" is healthy. NOT saying thats your own attitude.....
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I'm single, no kids, cheap car, small mortgage on second property (first is paid) and I have two hobbies: designing and building audio gear and bass. These bring me lots of enjoyment, and I worked (fairly) hard for my money, so why not? I also love some basses as pieces of functional modern art and have a couple for that purpose (even though they're all players and get played) just because I could enjoy looking at them.
I have a more than sufficient number of basses, and I'm going to sell off a few as some were part of a learning process and I know which one's I like best where they overlap in abilities.

dan.ablett said:
not to turn this into a drive for social justice, but i can see a grand getting dropped on my next bass going to incredible use for world aid, towards orphanages or mission trips, or even towards a home deposit, an engagement ring, paying off next years car insurance and rego....
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My bills are paid, and I'm going to be clear of the mortgage in 3 years.
I've spent most of my life taking care of other people, both family and as part of working and volunteering in social welfare and criminal justice, often at an expense to myself and I feel I've done my time, so now I'm finally doing things for me. If you feel some of your money is better spent on social programs of some sort, wonderful I applaud that, but it's your decision. Follow your gut.
dan.ablett said:
does that make sense or is my heart bleeding too much? :hiding:
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You're the one who has to make the decisions. If you're happy with one bass, wonderful. If you want 200 and all your bills are paid, why not? Life's to short to worry about stuff, when if you listen to your gut, the best answer will be obvious.
dan.ablett said:
handbags? to say to the world, "im important. dont believe me? look at my handbag. im important enough to have this handbag, some respect, please"

ferrari in inner city areas? to say to the world "this is to compensate your opinion of my manhood in the event that you might see me naked"
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LOL, so true.

All the best.
 
#68
spade2you said:
Which is why I'm stocking up now! :D
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Be forewarned.... There's at least a 75% chance that when you do end up living with a woman, whether by marriage or moving in together, you'll hear "You are NOT bringing ____________ into MY home!" I hope it doesn't apply to any of those basses!

:hiding:




FWIW, my wife moved into my apartment when we first got married but we ended up buying a house about 8-9 months later. A year after that, just about the only things of mine that survived were my clothes, my stereo, and the two guitars I had at the time. I was somewhat surprised I wasn't been replaced in the process as well! :p
 
#69
On the one hand...

Two of the most recorded bassists of the '60s and '70s--Jamerson and Joe Osborn--played one bass each through most of their professional career. A P for Jamerson and a J for Osborn. They apparently never changed strings and rarely changed settings, for that matter. Same sound almost all the time. Some change made to EQ in post production by the engineer, at least in Osborn's case.

So I don't feel too bad about playing the same J bass for 31 years. Only owned one other, that I still have. A '60s Burns Bison that is apparently worth some bucks. Sentimental attachment.

On the other hand...

My main bass is now worth $5 grand or some such (minty '73 Jazz), and I'm getting scared to take it to gigs. So I'm thinking about a cheap Essex backup. And a 5-er. And maybe a fretless.

Dang TalkBass.
 
#72
Everyone needs 5 basses.
Main
Backup
Fretless
Different
Vintage
No exceptions.

Read this, it's interesting: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

That said, I currently have 8 basses, and have had difficulty getting it down to 4 or 5. Once it gets above 4, in my experience,I'm not playing at least one enough to justify the money/upkeep/etc.
 
#73
lomo said:
I certainly have more basses and gear than I need. Although there is rationale for some of them, it's basically a collection of functional art. (
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Agreed. I have the following inventory:

1963 P
1960's-70's Univox hollowbody (two pickups)
1960's-70's Lyle hollowbody (one pickup - being restored)
1970's Kay KB-2 SG-style bass
2000 MIM Jazz
2005 Rogue VB-100 Beatle Bass
2006 Jay Turser JTB-401 '54 P clone
Unknown year fretless P-special (custom by me)
2007 Epiphone EB-0
80's Applause (Ovation) acoustic-electric bass

So I have two SG-style basses, two hollowbodies plus an ABG, a P, a '54 P clone and a P-special, a J, and a Beatle Bass. There's definitely some duplication in there - gut you know what? I bought all of them at low prices (all under $250), they provide plenty of variety, I enjoy them, and they really ARE functional art. An instrument in good condition is a beautiful thing. (I dislike relics and highly worn instruments.)

So what's not to like? :smug:
 
#74
KJung said:
While I do enjoy the different tones and feels of the different basses I own, there really is very little justification for it. Most of the professional freelance bassists (the serious cats) that I know own and play one bass (with maybe a backup or an additional old banger that might have some sentimental value). I have not gotten nor lost one gig due to a specific instrument I was playing, or having a J instead of a P, or a modern boutique instead of a lower end instrument.

My owning of multiple instruments is more based on 'the love of bass' than any need.:bassist:

Tone really is 'in the hands'!
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This is the sentiment that I agree with mostly. However, professionally, this is what I need.

Jazz Bass
P Bass
5 String
Fretless
Hollowbody

This covers my bases for studio and live work. Everything else is just subjective, but I do own a bunch of jazz basses, and that is because some have a different vibe. I love hearing the difference between Ash/Maple, Alder Rosewood, Nordies vs. Sadowsky etc.

This below picture is a little overkill;)..... :smug:
jazzes2.jpg
 
#75
dave64o said:
Be forewarned.... There's at least a 75% chance that when you do end up living with a woman, whether by marriage or moving in together, you'll hear "You are NOT bringing ____________ into MY home!" I hope it doesn't apply to any of those basses!
FWIW, my wife moved into my apartment when we first got married but we ended up buying a house about 8-9 months later. A year after that, just about the only things of mine that survived were my clothes, my stereo, and the two guitars I had at the time. I was somewhat surprised I wasn't been replaced in the process as well! :p
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That's just sad.
 
#77
Me?
I tend to overdo everything I can get my hands on.
Motorcycles? I have owned over 100 since 1978
Tools? Well over $40K to replace what I have right now.
Basses? I have 23. All but one I bought used. The most I paid for any of them was $285. Most cost between $100 and $150
Some are Mid pack players.
A few are really good.
1 needs to be used for firewood.

I couldn't buy any of these when they were new, but I can now. Nothing wrong with used. More bass for the money.
Made in Japan P-bass for $145? I will buy as many as I find.


Ken R
 
#78
i own 2 with the idea of having a backup. but the sound of the two are sooo drastically different.

My fender jazz w/ barts and j-retro is very vintage sounding as well as well suited to old school rock, and some very nice modern tone w/ a bit of tweaking, the tone overall though is very tight. strung w/ some worn down nickle rounds 34" scale.

My peavey millenium plus is a slap monster. My cheap alternative to that stingray sound. very bright, also sounds nice played w/ a pick for punk and whatnot. 200% different vibe than the jazz. Strung w/ Pedulla MVP Steels, 35" scale.

If both these didnt have drop D tuners id want a 5 string too. right now im saving for that 6 string i dont need..


its nice to have two instruments w/ a very different character to keep you from feeling stagnant w/ your playing.
 
#79
nickbear said:
i suppose i cant justify owning 4 basses that well really. 2 of them are sentimental to me and dont see much use and i know if i sold them my dad who i rarely see would be quite upset. the other 2 basses i use a lot more and they both sound really different. depends what the gig is to what bass i use
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since i posted this earlier today i have come to the conclusion that i cannot justify owning all these basses, im moving out of my current house and i am going to have to sell some gear. i will only sell one of the basses though. and as i went halfs with my dad with it i will split the money i get for the bass with my dad.. he is cool with it as well.

seems i really cant justify owning all these basses!
 
#80
Because I like how they look on the wall! :smug: (JK)

Squier Precision
Well, the first bass I got was very cheap. It broke and like an idiot I dumped money into it. :scowl: Now I cannot get rid of it, I actually like it too much.

ESP 5 String
I like it. It looks nice, sounds nice, plays well and I never have to retune when playing with my friends.:bassist:

My Warwick Fretless
I played it in the music store, and then I had had to have it.

I guess I really like basses. I see no need to get rid of any of them, so I won’t. If I want another bass I will save up for while.
 
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