Hello Talkbass. I’m off work for the next nine days with this whole COVID-19 thing disrupting my work schedule. I figured I’d post my history of bass guitars, and see if anyone wanted to post theirs. I’ve been playing bass for about 17 years now and I’ve owned a total of 10 Basses. So here we go!
My first bass was a Race Red Squier Affinity P-Bass. My parents bought it for me when I was in 7th grade (12 years old) and had decided to switch from my mediocre attempt to play guitar. I enjoyed it as it was my first bass but I only owned it for a short while before succumbing to GAS and trading it for...
A Jewel Blue Ibanez GSR200. This bass was a sweet little thing. Compared to the P-Bass it was lightweight, the neck was fast and tiny and the active electronics (with bass boost knob!) made me feel like a hero. I experimented a lot on this bass- drop tuning and down tuning to BEAD. That’s actually how I broke my first and only bass string, by tuning the E down to B and picking vigorously. After that my Dad bought me my first set of flatwound strings (D’Addario Chromes) and I’ve loved flats ever since.
Sometime in high school I was offered a Fender BG-31 by my friend. $100 with a hard shell case was a steal of a deal! This bass wore Fender nickel rounds for the first few months I owned it. I also tried D’Addario Phosphor Bronze rounds on; never again! I quickly installed D’Addario Chromes and left it that way.
While I still owned the GSR200 and BG-31 I decided to add my first 5-string to the stable. I chose a Squier Affinity Jazz V. In hindsight this was a solid 5er to get my feet wet with. This is the only bass I owned that I’ve ever used RotoSound Swing Bass 66 strings on; I didn’t like them. I also used Ernie Ball Slinky rounds for a time but the majority of my ownership saw this bass wearing D’Addario Chromes.
In my freshman year of college I decided to trade my Affinity Jazz V for this, a Squier Standard Precision V Special. I’m not sure why I did; the pickups on this bass were 4-string Jazz pickups (from the factory!) that never worked well tone wise. I used GHS Precision flats, La Bella Deep Talkin’ flats and D’Addario Tapes in this one. I sold this to GC for a little less than what I bought it for after eight years of ownership.
My first go-round at fretless bass was a SX LPB-62 fretless P. It looked good but the pickup was garbage, the strings were no better than rubber bands and I never invested the time or money into making it better. I never had a setup done to it either. I sold it to a TBer in Florida.
Ah, the one that got away. Sometime in my sophomore year of college I bought this Squier Affinity P-Bass 20th Anniversary Edition for $100 at GC. It was in excellent condition and felt and sounded incredible. I had RotoSound Nickel Swing Bass strings on it for a while. It was most magical with D’Addario Chromes, and it briefly wore D’Addario Tapes. In a moment of charitable giving I donated it to a music school for underprivileged children in Grand Rapids, MI and decided to keep the Precision V. Oh well. I’m sure lots of kids have learned on it!
Here’s my current lineup- the one I’ve owned longest is the Ibanez AEB5E acoustic. It was a surprise gift to me from my new wife for our first Christmas together in 2012. It’s had the same set of D’Addario Tapes for almost seven years now. Pure magic, and it’s never going anywhere.
The Schecter Raiden Special-4 was my first Father’s Day gift in 2014. I’ve had the following strings on it- Dunlop Super Bright Nickel and SS, La Bella Copper Tapes, La Bella White Tapes (current set), Fender 9050 flatwounds, Ernie Ball Cobalt flatwounds (BEAD and standard tuned) and Ernie Ball Slinky nickel rounds (BEAD). It’s a nice enough bass but it may be passed on if I ever purchase another bass. It’s nothing stellar sound wise but it’s light and it feels nice.
My most recent acquisition is the Squier VM Fretless Jazz. It had D’Addario Tapes for a short while but is currently strung with TI Jazz Flats and it is my #1. I love the neck, the tone and the strings but I’m not sure I’m 100% a Fretless guy. Time will tell!
My first bass was a Race Red Squier Affinity P-Bass. My parents bought it for me when I was in 7th grade (12 years old) and had decided to switch from my mediocre attempt to play guitar. I enjoyed it as it was my first bass but I only owned it for a short while before succumbing to GAS and trading it for...
A Jewel Blue Ibanez GSR200. This bass was a sweet little thing. Compared to the P-Bass it was lightweight, the neck was fast and tiny and the active electronics (with bass boost knob!) made me feel like a hero. I experimented a lot on this bass- drop tuning and down tuning to BEAD. That’s actually how I broke my first and only bass string, by tuning the E down to B and picking vigorously. After that my Dad bought me my first set of flatwound strings (D’Addario Chromes) and I’ve loved flats ever since.
Sometime in high school I was offered a Fender BG-31 by my friend. $100 with a hard shell case was a steal of a deal! This bass wore Fender nickel rounds for the first few months I owned it. I also tried D’Addario Phosphor Bronze rounds on; never again! I quickly installed D’Addario Chromes and left it that way.
While I still owned the GSR200 and BG-31 I decided to add my first 5-string to the stable. I chose a Squier Affinity Jazz V. In hindsight this was a solid 5er to get my feet wet with. This is the only bass I owned that I’ve ever used RotoSound Swing Bass 66 strings on; I didn’t like them. I also used Ernie Ball Slinky rounds for a time but the majority of my ownership saw this bass wearing D’Addario Chromes.
In my freshman year of college I decided to trade my Affinity Jazz V for this, a Squier Standard Precision V Special. I’m not sure why I did; the pickups on this bass were 4-string Jazz pickups (from the factory!) that never worked well tone wise. I used GHS Precision flats, La Bella Deep Talkin’ flats and D’Addario Tapes in this one. I sold this to GC for a little less than what I bought it for after eight years of ownership.
My first go-round at fretless bass was a SX LPB-62 fretless P. It looked good but the pickup was garbage, the strings were no better than rubber bands and I never invested the time or money into making it better. I never had a setup done to it either. I sold it to a TBer in Florida.
Ah, the one that got away. Sometime in my sophomore year of college I bought this Squier Affinity P-Bass 20th Anniversary Edition for $100 at GC. It was in excellent condition and felt and sounded incredible. I had RotoSound Nickel Swing Bass strings on it for a while. It was most magical with D’Addario Chromes, and it briefly wore D’Addario Tapes. In a moment of charitable giving I donated it to a music school for underprivileged children in Grand Rapids, MI and decided to keep the Precision V. Oh well. I’m sure lots of kids have learned on it!
Here’s my current lineup- the one I’ve owned longest is the Ibanez AEB5E acoustic. It was a surprise gift to me from my new wife for our first Christmas together in 2012. It’s had the same set of D’Addario Tapes for almost seven years now. Pure magic, and it’s never going anywhere.
The Schecter Raiden Special-4 was my first Father’s Day gift in 2014. I’ve had the following strings on it- Dunlop Super Bright Nickel and SS, La Bella Copper Tapes, La Bella White Tapes (current set), Fender 9050 flatwounds, Ernie Ball Cobalt flatwounds (BEAD and standard tuned) and Ernie Ball Slinky nickel rounds (BEAD). It’s a nice enough bass but it may be passed on if I ever purchase another bass. It’s nothing stellar sound wise but it’s light and it feels nice.
My most recent acquisition is the Squier VM Fretless Jazz. It had D’Addario Tapes for a short while but is currently strung with TI Jazz Flats and it is my #1. I love the neck, the tone and the strings but I’m not sure I’m 100% a Fretless guy. Time will tell!
i'd have to recreate my own experience with marble and chisels.
