I buy for feel and playability, then get out the dremel, soldering iron, and the internet tutorials on stuff. My gear is a pile of modest junk that plays and sounds great and I love it. My main axe is sunburst, and I don't really like sunburst, but at the end of a gig I'm all smiles.
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Looks over tone?
- Thread starter twinjet
- Start date
Totally. I think it's even less pronounced with a band - I was speaking for when I'm sitting there playing alone... I do find I cut through better with my jazz, but otherwise I'm hard-pressed to hear a huge tonal difference when the band's going. On a recording is a little different because of all the EQ and level options when mixing, but that's a whole other can of worms. Technique ultimately shapes my tone more than anything else.
The only way I'll do that, is if it's really ugly. Actually, I haven't seen a bass that is ugly enough to sacrifice its tone for looks. Plus, the basses I play aren't that ugly. P Basses sound and look good. As well as Rickenbackers, jazz basses, mustangs and more.
I have been guilty of this in the past. I consciously avoided anything that wasn't a Fender, G&L, or Ric. While a good deal of this was based on sound, looks definitely figured into the equation. For most of my playing years I was in bands doing Alternative or Indie type rock. I passed on a good deal on an Alembic Spoiler which sounded and played incredible about 6yrs ago because it was aesthetically incongruent with the music I was playing.
Same here! I'm currently rehabbing a budget short scale with all new hardware, pickups and wiring. It was my very first bass ever as I love how it plays.
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I am in the camp of having both since it will only ADD to you tone palette. I have both a P and a J (as well as a Charvel and a Hamer) and now I have an endless selection of tone.....AND most of the looks that I want. (My next addition will be a LPB J bass of some sort)
I wouldn't call it sacrificing because I have eight basses at the moment with a wide variety of pickup configurations. But I do have one bass that is very cool looking and a bit unique but lacks a bit in the tone department. I can't bring myself to get rid of it because of how much I like the look and quality of construction. I ended up setting up a special patch for it on my Zoom B1on which opened up the sound quite a bit!
As for your dilemma, I prefer J basses to P basses so if it were me I would probably go for the J if it is really what you want. Worse thing that can happen is you end up going back to a P bass.
As for your dilemma, I prefer J basses to P basses so if it were me I would probably go for the J if it is really what you want. Worse thing that can happen is you end up going back to a P bass.
I require looks AND tone. I don't compromise. However, I also spend a lot of money in the name of enhancing the sound of my basses, so a few hundred extra dollars for the right pickups and preamp is my MO. Because once I take an otherwise amazing bass and load it with the perfect electronics, I have an instrument that never makes me question it's sound and I really can connect with the instrument and how it responds to my playing. Nothing sucks my inspiration out of me like an instrument that won't feel or sound right, regardless of how I play it. Just leaves me feeling all clammy. It's for the birds, imo.
I'm also pretty picky about looks. It's gotta be fly.
I'm also pretty picky about looks. It's gotta be fly.
yeah, I'd get that jazz in a heartbeat.
thing is, Jazz basses also have great tone.
then again I can not stand the look of burst unless it is thoroughly beat to piss.
thing is, Jazz basses also have great tone.
then again I can not stand the look of burst unless it is thoroughly beat to piss.
looks are last on my list. luckily all my basses look awesome.
i can sacrifice tone for feel- in small amounts. if it doesn't feel right i feel like im fighting the instrument all night. not in terms of action, but specifically in neck profile (i like FAT necks!) and string spacing.
i can sacrifice tone for feel- in small amounts. if it doesn't feel right i feel like im fighting the instrument all night. not in terms of action, but specifically in neck profile (i like FAT necks!) and string spacing.
Not guilty. In fact, my current bass is quite possibly the ugliest I've ever had, but also the only one I haven't sold/flipped in 15+ years.
I voted "guilty" due to the fact that my Yamaha BB1025x was a sonic disappointment. I "repented" before I chose my Lakland. Some people complain about the short lower horn but for me it's a sheer joy to play!
Buy a Ric. Problem solved.
If they produced a fiver w/35" scale I'd sell my guitarist for it.
I hate to say this, but I do it more often than I might like to admit. My 2008 American Standard P-bass has never let me down and does get played at least once a show (if not entire shows), but it gets subbed out for basses I like because they are cool, or, *owch* look good. My stable has Gibson T-bird, a Ric 4003, a Geddy Jazz and a Steinberger. They all sneak out with me to shows from time to time, get played and then ultimately replaced within a set or two by my ole reliable US P.
