Here's a post I've been kicking around for a while, and with Thanksgiving right around the corner, it seemed appropriate in a convoluted sorta way. Lots of you have essentially said the same thing in various threads already, but what the heck.... 
Now I'm an admitted gear enthusiast and tone junkie, and love to try out new stuff. Nothing wrong with that. If I wasn't, I wouldn't hang so much in this forum. A quick perusal of threads in "amps" will reveal that I'm not the only one with this issue.
Nevertheless, I think we frequently forget what amplifiers are for and why we bought our first one. Granted there are some exceptions, but i bet most of us didn't take up the bass with the desire to become obsessed with frequency response curves, plate voltages, and the merits of the fender tone stack. We wanted to play music, and for whatever reason we gravitated towards the electric bass. We got an amplifier because the darned thing just won't make a sound without one!
Take away all the bells, whistles, charts and schematics and an amplifier is simply a tool for helping us make music by making the bass audible to whatever level required by the gig. Find one that's loud enough for your needs and that sounds good to you and you can get back to the serious buisiness of playing music. As a tool, an amplifier is a means to the end, not the end itself. (Don't tell the cats over in "basses", but a bass is simply a tool for making music as well, but that's another story.) -
I've owned a good amount of rigs, more than some, and less than a lot of cats. Minor complaints aside, they've all done the job. My current rig is no slouch, it ain't the most boutique, but it does the job. (but so did the peavey rig i had in the eighties)! Despite being a tweaker, my ususal time spent with it is transport, setup, and turning it on. I think that comes from gigging an average of at least once a week. I spent more time worrying about and messing with my settings when i played less.
Of course, the most liberating thing about the mindset i'm trying to convey is that all that time you don't spend obsessing about gear induced tone, settings, wondering if new gear is better than yours, etc...is time you can spend practicing, playing, and just plain enjoying making music.
Happy Thanksgiving - Be thankful for what ya got. Now quit thinking about it and go use it.
Now I'm an admitted gear enthusiast and tone junkie, and love to try out new stuff. Nothing wrong with that. If I wasn't, I wouldn't hang so much in this forum. A quick perusal of threads in "amps" will reveal that I'm not the only one with this issue.
Nevertheless, I think we frequently forget what amplifiers are for and why we bought our first one. Granted there are some exceptions, but i bet most of us didn't take up the bass with the desire to become obsessed with frequency response curves, plate voltages, and the merits of the fender tone stack. We wanted to play music, and for whatever reason we gravitated towards the electric bass. We got an amplifier because the darned thing just won't make a sound without one!
Take away all the bells, whistles, charts and schematics and an amplifier is simply a tool for helping us make music by making the bass audible to whatever level required by the gig. Find one that's loud enough for your needs and that sounds good to you and you can get back to the serious buisiness of playing music. As a tool, an amplifier is a means to the end, not the end itself. (Don't tell the cats over in "basses", but a bass is simply a tool for making music as well, but that's another story.) -
I've owned a good amount of rigs, more than some, and less than a lot of cats. Minor complaints aside, they've all done the job. My current rig is no slouch, it ain't the most boutique, but it does the job. (but so did the peavey rig i had in the eighties)! Despite being a tweaker, my ususal time spent with it is transport, setup, and turning it on. I think that comes from gigging an average of at least once a week. I spent more time worrying about and messing with my settings when i played less.
Of course, the most liberating thing about the mindset i'm trying to convey is that all that time you don't spend obsessing about gear induced tone, settings, wondering if new gear is better than yours, etc...is time you can spend practicing, playing, and just plain enjoying making music.
Happy Thanksgiving - Be thankful for what ya got. Now quit thinking about it and go use it.
Happy Thanksgiving!
