Is the bass to heavy?

[MaxSpinrun]

I have a first gen V7 that is 11 pounds! As I have aged have done exercises to try to keep up strength needed for heavier bass. Love my V7 but I can not imagine doing a long gig with it. It’s still a keeper though.

 

[Berniez40]

IMHO one should consider weight and balance. If the bass balances well on the strap, IMHO the weight is less of a concern. If the bass has significant neck dive, I am way less tolerant of weight.

Agreed!

 

[PokeyPrasch]

Honorary T-40, mine is just under 13.

 

[Hounddog409]

Hi, I want to buy an Marcus Miller V7 Vintage Alder BMR 2nd Gen bass.
On Thomann they say that the bass weight is 12,4 pounds (5,66kg) an i think that very heavy...
Do you think that the bass is to heavy for me? i am 5,9 an my weight is 149pounds (68kg)

What do you think? i need som tips

How would we possibly know what is too heavy or not for you?
That is a question only you could answer

 

[SC Bassboy]

Hi, I want to buy an Marcus Miller V7 Vintage Alder BMR 2nd Gen bass.
On Thomann they say that the bass weight is 12,4 pounds (5,66kg) an i think that very heavy...
Do you think that the bass is to heavy for me? i am 5,9 an my weight is 149pounds (68kg)

What do you think? i need som tips

That sounds suspect for a bass with an alder body. I could see that happening with one of the ash bodies that accidentally ended up with northern ash instead of swamp ash. If it actually weighs that much it has a very dense body which will give it a naturally compressed tone which might not appeal to you. As for the weight that's a personal preference. My main bass is almost 12lbs but I've never once thought it was heavy. However, I do have a Warwick that weighs over 14lbs and I will admit that I don't care to play that one for more than an hour.

 

[BassFalcon]

https://gruvgear.com/collections/guitar-straps/products/solostrap-neo

 

[GretschWretch]

Making this some kind of referendum on manhood is somewhat unfortunate.

He hoisted his twelve-pound bass and hove to his studly chore.

 

[Dincrest]

I once had a 12.5 pound 6-string bass. Thing played and sounded amazing, but I couldn't shoulder it for more than 40 minutes. It was definitely not a bass I'd gig with. If my only playing were seated in a studio, then the weight wouldn't matter to me as much... but I do most of my playing while standing and prefer a lighter weight bass that won't weigh me down on stage.

So whether a 12.4 pound bass is too heavy... I would say "yes" if you're looking for a gigging instrument but "no" if you plan to keep it exclusively in your home studio or something as a recording bass.

 

[GretschWretch]

stock up on . . . baby wipes . . . and start doing some squats. . . . . QUOTE]

I don't like the direction this is headed.

 

[Ric5]

Is the bass to heavy?

yes if it is a T-40

 

[JW56789]

There's just flat-out too heavy, period. Then there's 'I really like this axe, but geez it's a little heavy': This can sometimes be fixed with the right strap.

Back in the day, Reunion Blues used to make guitar straps, and they made one (I had two of them, lost to the ages by now) that was padded unbelievably well and even made my RD Artist just barely tolerable, and anything else you hardly knew it was there (even with a T40). I'm still looking for a replacement . . . .

 

[devnulljp]

I wouldn't buy it. I had a 12lb 70s Strat and it was an unwieldy boat anchor. Sounded good, but uncomfortable. You can do better.

 

[g-dude]

Ultimately, the decision is up to you, regardless how much the "Don't be such a wuss, man up and get your weak a** to the gym!!!" crowd might berate you. But, relatively speaking, a bass that weighs that much is in the heavier-than-average range.

Making this some kind of referendum on manhood is somewhat unfortunate.

I don’t think anyone is calling him a wuss, at least not in seriousness!

I mean, I’m tipping the scales at about 220lbs, and even I prefer a lighter instrument because my physical health is more important to me than minor tonal differences that will be lost in the mix.

That being said, if you are a healthy guy, getting to the gym is a darned good idea. Having a man’s testosterone means that you have the ability to actually increase your strength pretty rapidly. You can go from never having squatted in your life to being able to easily rep out 1.5x your body weight in under a year in the squat rack, assuming you eat enough food, train right, and listen to your body.

I mean, you’ll look like you lift as long as you keep your shirt on. Take your shirt off and you’re not going to look like a body builder. You’ll just be physically bigger…

…but more importantly, you’ll be less prone to aches and pains. My back problems went away after I started powerlifting. It was great, and I miss it terribly. Unfortunately, life got in the way, and when combined with not really having anyone around who was doing the same thing, meant that I lost the passion for it.

Biggest mistake ever.

Currently have enough pain issues that it’d take me forever to get back to where I was, and that’s assuming I didn’t have to quit along the way. Those pain issues really could have been prevented had I stayed active.

When you go from squatting enough weight that the bar feels like it’s bouncing as you do your walkout to having tendon issues that make doing simple arm curls with 20lbs dumbbells painful, it’s pretty depressing.


So yeah, if you’re a guy, you should get in the gym and lift. If you’re a woman you should do it to. Your body will thank you for it. Unless you do something stupid and injure yourself. Don’t do that.

 

[Jay2U]

It's rather heavy, but if it balances well and it's used with a wide strap, it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Too heavy. A lot of other choices out there.

 

[johnnynitro]

I never knew weight was an issue until I came to TB. I have a 1984 Am PBass that although I have never weighed it, Weighs a ton. I just deal with it. It's one of the best sounding bass's I have ever played.

 

[lomo]

No matter what kind of shape you're in, a strap weighted with 12 lbs pressing down on your trapezius, deltoid and rotator cuff muscles and/or tendons for repeated, long periods is a fool's errand. A 200 lb, fit man and a 100 lb skinny dude are both born with rotator cuff tendons of the same, 6mm thickness. Tendons in general heal very poorly if strained because they have very little blood supply. It won't hurt, until it does.

 

[mmbongo]

If I added 5 pounds of lead to my Dingwall, it STILL wouldn't be 12 pounds!

 

[phillipkregg]

Even if it's well balanced, 12.5 lbs is extremely heavy.

A bass that is designed to distribute the weight more evenly across your body, will feel much lighter.

For example, my FBass BN5 is about 10 lbs, but when I strap it on it's designed so that the body pull further into me and distributes the weight more evenly between my left and right side.

So the bass ends up feeling at least a pound less in weight. I never feel like it's heavy or any soreness - like I do when I play my 10 lb Fender for a gig.

But yeah, over 12 lbs is too much regardless.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Hi, I want to buy an Marcus Miller V7 Vintage Alder BMR 2nd Gen bass.
On Thomann they say that the bass weight is 12,4 pounds (5,66kg) an i think that very heavy...
Do you think that the bass is to heavy for me? i am 5,9 an my weight is 149pounds (68kg)

What do you think? i need som tips

It's not 12 lbs. Buy it.