HOW LONG HAVE YOU KEPT YOUR MAIN BASS ?

[climber]

Thnx… I do love this bass. The tuners are shallers. No idea what happened to the originals. Like many things, lost in the fog of time.

There is no date on the end of the neck.

 

[wysiwyg248]

1985 Jazz Bass special MIJ with retroffited K. Smith bridge, which I turned into a Duff McKagan.
Purchased in 1988, still gigging with it every now and then.

 

[sotua]

25 years or so. One of them mid 90s "Fender (Squier series) MIJ" Jbass with the single ply pickguards and the strat knobs. Never have owned or played a bass that sounded as good as that one. I have some that play better (e..g the Ibanez ehb is a joy to play) but none of them come close to what that Fender sounds like.

 

[BassicJazzy]

25 years or so. One of them mid 90s "Fender (Squier series) MIJ" Jbass with the single ply pickguards and the strat knobs. Never have owned or played a bass that sounded as good as that one. I have some that play better (e..g the Ibanez ehb is a joy to play) but none of them come close to what that Fender sounds like.

I totally agree with you on this. May not be the easiest to play of my 5 basses, but noting sounds as good as my J bass.

 

[bassbrad]

42 years and counting. I have had this Carvin LB50 Koa stereo bass since 1983 and it has long been my #1, often wonder why I have so many other basses when this is usually the one grabbed first for any situation unless it really needs a specific sound. I had been on the Carvin mailing list for years, remember those free catalogs they would send out and this one really grabbed me. At the time I had a perfect P Bass that did most of the heavy lifting and a fretless Jazz and wanted a bass that offered a lot of tonal options so was on a search for a pro bass and went on many trips to music stores around the state to find the right solution. I chanced upon a used Carvin LB50 in a shop and after playing and going thru the tones this was what I was searching for. I ordered on the next day and impatiently awaited the allotted 6 weeks for delivery. At the time I was in travel mode aka living in my van gigging all around and working at SHOWCO so it was delivered to my parents house. I remember getting a call from Mom about a huge box being delivered. My folks were rather ambivalent about instruments and my lifestyle at the time but both were impressed with the beauty of this specimen, I still love the shape and look of the different textures of wood, every piece of Koa tells a story.


4 strings, 4 knobs, 4 switches Oh my!

Lovely backside and that neck is flamed and has some birdseye as well.

 

[rtslinger]

My #1 I have since 1975 bought new 50 years still kicks a$$
1975 Gibson L9-S THE RIPPER

 

[pbass2go]

My 57 AVRI I got in Dec of 1982, so 43 years...
Date on the neck is 11-11-82.

Other basses have come and gone but this one will go to the grave with me...

 

[pjbassist]

All Warmoth. Bass on the right since 1988, Center since 2018 (Replace my #1), Left since 2022. I have a type.

 

[BassicJazzy]

All Warmoth. Bass on the right since 1988, Center since 2018 (Replace my #1), Left since 2022. I have a type.View attachment 7333839

You have obviously found what works for you.

 

[Gaolee]

I have had a Gibson EB-2d since 1982. It was my only bass until 2009 when I discovered it was vintage or something. That led to some shuffling, which led eventually to a 1991 Thunderbird and a 2001 Thunderbird. Those have been my go-to bass guitars since about 2013 or 2014. The upright is the only one I have ever owned, so that's pretty much set. I can't see that changing.

 

[woodyng2]

Basses come and go at various intervals. The longest time I ever held onto one instrument was 22 years for my '74 Rickenbacker 4000.
Out of my current batch of 7, my Rick Cheyenne is the one I've had the longest. (11 years).

 

[JimChjones]

Its done every gig I've done since 1982, and I don't see that changing.

 

[rapidfirerob]

I bought my Alembic Spoiler new in 85 and it is still incredible. I rotate three other basses to rehearsals and gigs, but
the Alembic will always be number one.

 

[Shawn Luckman]

My 1964 Hofner Violin Bass bought on the 13th November 1988. Almost 37 years later still my main bass & will always be.

 

[Murv M]

Current main bass is a Lakland DJ5 that is just a few months old. I also have a Sterling 5 string that rivals the many EB MusicMan basses I have had in quality and sound. I have been playing bass close to 50 years and have owned at least half that many basses. From MusicMan, PEDULLA, Fender,
Warwick and too many to remember. Every time I get a new one I think that's the ONE but hear someone playing one I may not have had and it becomes the new flavor of the time. This is the fourth Lakland I have owned so I keep going back to that brand.

 

[Kozmyk]

Still have the first bass I bought in the early 80s, a Ric 4001. I have modded it with active Alembic electronics and a 2-Tek bridge. It's arguably a better bass, but it not longer really sounds like a Ric. Should have left it stock IMHO. It remained my #1 until about 1991 or so.

My second #1 was a Yamaha BB5000. This was a military axe; I never owned one. I miss it.

My current #1 since about 1995 has been a Yamaha TRB6P. The first one I played was a military axe, but I bought my own within a year or two. I used the some military bass over multiple station changes; turned it in when I retired. My personal TRB6P has a cracked finger board and the truss rod is hard to adjust. I may buy a spare.

I have added some of the basses I lusted over in my youth as well. Examples include Fender Precision Elite II, Washburn Bantam (headless), and Daion Powermark X-B. I actually lusted over the Powermark XX-B, but settled for the lesser model.

The only bass I have ever sold was a Kay Upright.

I love the tones from the TRB6P.
I have a pair, one of them fretless.
A bit heavy for my old backbone but fine sitting down ...
Oldest bass ? 1996 Quantum 5 bought new, still my best.

 

[CIIDMike]

since 1976, ~a decade before i was born

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Back in 1983 I saw INXS and Gary Beers playing a Steinberger bass and I had to have one . Bought one at Chuck Levins and it was my main bass for the next 9 years . It was the longest time I ever played one bass ......yesterday after 30 plus years I bought a Steinberger Spirit ........one of those don't need it but got to have it buys .

Bought my 1982 Jazz bass in 1985 and it has been my main bass ever since. If my '65 Jazz that I bought in 1966 hadn't been stolen, I'd still be playing that. However, even if I got it back, my '82 Jazz would remain my primary bass. It has an all-maple neck and the 70's era pickup spacing of 4" canter to center. As a result of that, it sounds a bit brighter than my '65 did and has a lot more sustain. So it would remain my "main axe".

My '65 Jazz that was "it" from 1966 until 1976 when it was stolen along with the rest of my touring gear.

Below is my '82 Jazz that I bought in 1985. I play it for everything unless I need to pick up my 5-string for its low B-string notes. That's what I've played for the last 40-years...

 

[Dadagoboi]

1960 EB0 purchased around Christmas 1964. Put Schaller 6Ms on it then. Modded witha '68 Tele pickup and refinned natural in 1973. Freshened up with a quarter pounder and Hipshots about 10 years ago.

So, sixty one years.

 

[BlacksHole]

I used to have a 1960 stack knob fender jazz bass whose neck became unstable in the mid 70s. Still miss that one. But my main bass since 1986 has been a pedulla mvp