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more basses = less skill?

will only 1 bass make you a better player?

  • Your playing will be the same no matter how many basses you own.

    Votes: 582 94.5%

  • Playing more than one type of bass will hinder your abilities.

    Votes: 27 4.4%

  • if you have more than one bass they should be the same brand so they feel the same.

    Votes: 7 1.1%
  • Total voters
    616
#122
i dont like the poll options based on what your thread actually said. I didnt vote but do believe in the power of finding that one bass that is you and learning everything about it. I am still trying to figure my one out. If i could make my $$ look like my marcus or my G&L i think i'd be close, and yes I place some vaule in the astetics of the bass not just how it sounds, my criteria, sound, playability and looks.
 
#123
I completely disagree with what they told you. I played my Ibanez SR 500 Soundgear basses for 17 years before I switched over to Music Man. Since then my playing has actually gotten better. Especially when I play other basses that I don't have. Why is that? Well for starters, with my Music Man basses, I have all sorts of different body shaped and neck widths. I was so used to playing that Ibanez super thin neck for so long that when I played anything else, I sounded like crap. Now that I have re-adjusted from playing my Stingray Classic, to my Sterling to my Bongo's and still from time to time playing my Soundgear basses, when I play a completely new bass such as a Fender Precision bass or Jazz bass, or a Ric or a Spector, my playing on them is much smoother because I have now adjusted to playing a lot more versatile things.

Also, every one of my basses is different. There are tones I get out of my Sterling that I don't get out of my Bongo's. heck, even each Bongo that I have is slightly different from the other. Same with my SR Classic. Even my Soundgears have a different tone to them so if I only had 1 bass, I would be way more limited than I am now and my playing would certainly not be better.
 
#124
Jay Ralston said:
I completely disagree with what they told you. I played my Ibanez SR 500 Soundgear basses for 17 years before I switched over to Music Man. Since then my playing has actually gotten better. Especially when I play other basses that I don't have. Why is that? Well for starters, with my Music Man basses, I have all sorts of different body shaped and neck widths. I was so used to playing that Ibanez super thin neck for so long that when I played anything else, I sounded like crap. Now that I have re-adjusted from playing my Stingray Classic, to my Sterling to my Bongo's and still from time to time playing my Soundgear basses, when I play a completely new bass such as a Fender Precision bass or Jazz bass, or a Ric or a Spector, my playing on them is much smoother because I have now adjusted to playing a lot more versatile things.

Also, every one of my basses is different. There are tones I get out of my Sterling that I don't get out of my Bongo's. heck, even each Bongo that I have is slightly different from the other. Same with my SR Classic. Even my Soundgears have a different tone to them so if I only had 1 bass, I would be way more limited than I am now and my playing would certainly not be better.
Click to expand...

I feel the same. I had the Geddy Jazz which as easy to play as it gets. Then I've got the 4003 Rick which to start with was a bit strange and more difficult to play. In addition I've kept the pup cover on. But now after learning the Rick I feel that I've leaned some new aspects regarding technuiqe. Different basses require sometimes different touch in order to obtain the best out of them. This is the reason I feel that owning several basses might help.
 
#126
It gets broken down thusly:
You start playing bass. Cheap bass. Cheap amp.
You get pretty good and say "I need better $hit"..you go buy it.
You continue to improve and say "A player like me deserves another bass.."
You go buy it.
6-7 years down the road you get more excited to buy new stuff than to actually play.
Your playing suffers and before you know it, you are wearing Hawiian Shirts and playing blues with tube socks and white tennis shoes on with a $3,000 6 string and $2,500 rig...
And then THIS thread comes along...because of..that.....guy

Don't be him.
 
#128
HeadyVan Halen said:
It gets broken down thusly:
You start playing bass. Cheap bass. Cheap amp.
You get pretty good and say "I need better $hit"..you go buy it.
You continue to improve and say "A player like me deserves another bass.."
You go buy it.
6-7 years down the road you get more excited to buy new stuff than to actually play.
Your playing suffers and before you know it, you are wearing Hawiian Shirts and playing blues with tube socks and white tennis shoes on with a $3,000 6 string and $2,500 rig...
And then THIS thread comes along...because of..that.....guy

Don't be him.
Click to expand...

VERY funny!!! :-D
 
#129
The poll is very very broken. I voted 1 and immediately regretted it. Of course any changes to your gear and practice regime will affect your playing, but assuming that these effects are either good or bad is impossible to verify, and even in theory it seems unlikely that there is any direct relation between skill and the number of basses owned.:rollno:

Btw, how about we see if TB can go a whole week without using Victor Wooten as an example for anything, just for the fun of it?:hiding:

Martin
 
#132
funk generator said:
So I was talking to a few very skilled bassists the other day (one of them records for esperanza spalding!) and they both said you Shouldn't have more than one bass. The exception being if you play a fretless and a fretted.

The logic behind it is if you play more than one bass you'll never be amazing at playing one of them. You should get to be "best friends" per say with your main bass and the better you know it the better you'll play.

I countered this with "But victor wooten playes like a billion different fodera's including 6 strings and fretless" (I know his fretless isn't fodera) the reply was "Yes, but he only does the vic thing on his 4 string"
Another point brought up is people like Justin Raines. He has 2 basses, but there both MTD's and probably setup identically.

So my question is this. Does having more than one bass hinder your playing. If you have 2 basses should they be of the same builder or brand?

I know there are alot of one bass threads, but I couldn't find one like this
Click to expand...

So, I have a lot more basses than I have Skill. That being said, I find it hard to switch between a 4 and a 5 string, so perhaps I'd vote for drawing the line there...

Rob
 
#133
HeadyVan Halen said:
It gets broken down thusly:
You start playing bass. Cheap bass. Cheap amp.
You get pretty good and say "I need better $hit"..you go buy it.
You continue to improve and say "A player like me deserves another bass.."
You go buy it.
6-7 years down the road you get more excited to buy new stuff than to actually play.
Your playing suffers and before you know it, you are wearing Hawiian Shirts and playing blues with tube socks and white tennis shoes on with a $3,000 6 string and $2,500 rig...
And then THIS thread comes along...because of..that.....guy

Don't be him.
Click to expand...

OMG - thats me !!!

Ouch...
 
#135
Wow, there are some people that have gotten a little fired up at the op"s topic.
I understand the logic of what the " very experienced players " presented to the op ,
I'm not saying in everyday practical standards that it is relevant.
NeuroPathways are formed with everything we do and are reinforced through repetition.
The angles ,width, dimensions , feel , wear , emotional attachment , experiences of an instrument are things that are reinforced within us consciously and unconsciously.
None of that matters when it comes to nailing a recording , killing it live or jamming with some friends.
Though I do tend to believe that having one favored instrument that you are completely familiarized and have beaten yourself to death over time with. Can & will allow yourself the openness to go beyond your ego and mind to be vulnerable for creativity.
That's just my 2 cents
 
#136
funk generator said:
...The logic behind it is if you play more than one bass you'll never be amazing at playing one of them. You should get to be "best friends" per say with your main bass and the better you know it the better you'll play...
...the reply was "Yes, but he only does the vic thing on his 4 string"
Another point brought up is people like Justin Raines. He has 2 basses, but there both MTD's and probably setup identically...
Click to expand...

Your friend's argument doesn't justify having just one bass, it justifies having a main bass; which everyone does.
 
#139
Whenever I hear someone spout "You Should" or "You Shouldn't", I turn the other way and run.
 

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#140
Today I went from owning three Fender basses to one.
The one I kept is a Marcus Miller jazz. Apparently he has 10 identical ones! (I always wondered how a 30 year old bass looked so clean and fresh...)
A bass is a tool, nothing more or less. Some tools are very specialised and can only do one thing, a hammer can do many!
Ayrton Senna would be faster in my car than I would be in his.
It's more about what is within than what you do it with, Jaco would sound great playing a house brick!
 

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