Overhyped Features You Just Had to Have

[nostatic]

A trend that really needs to die is owning more than 2 basses.

If you only play in one band or at home, maybe. If you play in a lot of different situations, then having a variety of tools is useful.

 

[RED J]

I really thought about this. Though I'm as full of GAS as anybody, but couldn't come up with anything.
My one obsession was having a really loud amp I didn't have to max out. I achieved that.
Now I don't need one. But I have one. Anything that needs more than my old Nitro 450 and two cabs, I don't wanna be there.

 

[Pumpkin]

Does a split coil pickup count? I didn't get one until my 8th bass and I got it because somehow I got the idea in my head that to have a complete arsenal I needed to have a passive bass with a split coil in the P-position. I enjoy it, but I still spend far more time playing my active basses.

 

[twinjet]

I think everybody, especially newbies, gets caught up in hype, and goes crazy for features on basses and amps that are not really necessary.
Back in the Seventies and early Eighties, I just swore I needed a 24 fret bass for "soloing and more expressive" playing, after all, Stanley Clarke had a two octave neck, didn't he?

The irony was that I was playing by ear and didn't know the notes on the fingerboard, and I only had basic knowledge of chord structure. In other words, I had none of the skills needed to make use of extended range.

I also think about Steinberger and graphite necks for stability. Heck, I was afraid to touch a trussrod, and did not understand intonation. When you are a bedroom player 90% of the time, as was for the first 17 or 18 years of playing, you can wallow in ignorance a long time.

The bottom line is the more I got out and started playing, the more it really sank in that the player, not the bass, makes the difference.

Yep... Had to be a 24-fret bass for when I would solo. Then I owned one, and in those eight years I almost never used it. I'm now at 21 frets and that does the job.

 

[Ooba Tooba]

Honestly the only time this affected me was at around 13 when I was strictly a 6 string lead guitarist lol. HAD to have a BC Rich with a Floyd Rose blah blah and fine tuning blah blah blah. After that quickly died out a Tele and Peavey T60 were just what the Dr ordered.
*BC Rich and Bart Simpson shirt will make it easy for future generations to date this pic.

 

[andruca]

For me it's tube whatever. Just this past weekend I got to play with a metalcore band I sometimes sub for and there was this other band whose bassist brought an Ampeg 810E Classic (we all shared) and an Ampeg all tube head. When I plugged my head (SansAmp RBi + good old Hartke 3500 head) it sounded way heavier, punchier, grittier than his. He hadn't ever heard his fridge sound so wild and with such authority. Same thing happens when I bring my portable solution (Zoom MS60B emulating SansAmp + old Peavey TNT150 combo). Tweaking and defining your sound and learning how to achieve it on any rig is gold.

 

[The Chuck]

10 String Purple Heart wood Chapman Sick- Does that count?

It was fun but I just never really clicked with it.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I would say after you spend a bunch of money on a guitar and the neck warps and/ or twists. You start to really appreciate graphite (or other materials). But I would also argue that graphite definitely HAS a Sound. That might be desirable or not but (to me) it has a very substantial impact on the tone.

But to me... Overhyped features would be:
Phase switches
Whiz bang nuts (the really expensive ones that seem to do everything but allow individual adjustment of the strings).
Built in tuners (built into the guitar, like many ABG with the Fishman)
Built in effects (a la gibson)
Fatheads (or other added mass devices on the head stock)

I will say that one(two) of the BEST add ons I have seen lately are:
The pop out battery compartments
And as a related thing, magnetically held on control cavities (replacing screws).
and not new.. But.. Sperzel locking tuners.

I had two Q5s, and they were great. My issue was that I was worried about warped necks, and I never even learned neck maintenance.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I think everybody, especially newbies, gets caught up in hype, and goes crazy for features on basses and amps that are not really necessary.
Back in the Seventies and early Eighties, I just swore I needed a 24 fret bass for "soloing and more expressive" playing, after all, Stanley Clarke had a two octave neck, didn't he?

The irony was that I was playing by ear and didn't know the notes on the fingerboard, and I only had basic knowledge of chord structure. In other words, I had none of the skills needed to make use of extended range.

I also think about Steinberger and graphite necks for stability. Heck, I was afraid to touch a trussrod, and did not understand intonation. When you are a bedroom player 90% of the time, as was for the first 17 or 18 years of playing, you can wallow in ignorance a long time.

The bottom line is the more I got out and started playing, the more it really sank in that the player, not the bass, makes the difference.

Wise words Doc! Thumbs up

 

[fishdreams]

A P-bass

 

[carolonbass]

When I started out I was told I needed an active bass to sound proper, then I played a passive P and wow!

 

[lowendblues]

Back in the late 70's, I fell for everything from brass nuts, to big heavy brass bridges, replacement pickups, modding vintage instruments just because everyone thought you had too just because player X in "that" band did it.

Sigh,,,so young and influential back then........

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Graphite reinforcement rods in the neck. I'm so paranoid now that I almost won't buy a neck without them. Almost.

Well own two with and two without ... I deem a nice fretwork a more important parameter all in all ...

 

[madbass6]

I think everybody, especially newbies, gets caught up in hype, and goes crazy for features on basses and amps that are not really necessary.
Back in the Seventies and early Eighties, I just swore I needed a 24 fret bass for "soloing and more expressive" playing, after all, Stanley Clarke had a two octave neck, didn't he?

The irony was that I was playing by ear and didn't know the notes on the fingerboard, and I only had basic knowledge of chord structure. In other words, I had none of the skills needed to make use of extended range.

I also think about Steinberger and graphite necks for stability. Heck, I was afraid to touch a trussrod, and did not understand intonation. When you are a bedroom player 90% of the time, as was for the first 17 or 18 years of playing, you can wallow in ignorance a long time.

The bottom line is the more I got out and started playing, the more it really sank in that the player, not the bass, makes the difference.

That custom mirrord pick guard!!

 

[DigitalMan]

A trend that really needs to die is owning more than 2 basses.

Yes, nobody can have nice things!

 

[Mustang Surly]

I got serious about playing bass late in the game (a couple years ago) after decades of playing guitar, so I wasn't quite as susceptible to hype when it came to bass. But as a young guitar player, I "had to have" whatever guitar my current idle was playing, not realizing that a good player can make just about anything (within reason) sound good. Spending time in the woodshed is a far better investment than spending money at Guitar Center.

 

[Wfrance3]

A fretless bass. That was huge. Wasn't for me. For a while there I thought if I kept upgrading components it would get better. It didn't. Now, having said that, I do have a fretless aeb. Don't play it real often, but it comes up. Usually for church stuff.

 

[Wfrance3]

Whoops hit send a little quick there...
I was going to add that I still don't prefer the fretless thing much, but on an acoustic it makes sense to me. It's like having a miniature double bass, but not really..,

 

[bassbooty]

18 volt pre in an active bass.


An exotic wood top with beautiful grain.



(Added: A wenge neck.)

on all 3...Hey, that sounds like you're describing my main bass!

 

[JRA]

wouldn't catch me playing a lowly passive bass.

i felt that way for two decades: now i prefer them, most of the time.

I notice that the more I play the less I care about anything.

same here: give me an instrument that feels good in my hands. the rest is what cheese is calling hype (for me)!

A trend that really needs to die is owning more than 2 basses.

ha! i own more than two because of 'legacy hype'!

the player, not the bass, makes the difference.

my "overhyped" bit was having two custom builds (fretted/fretless). i just had to do it to 'play my best'. i still have one of them, but i'm playing my best these days on a couple of modded cheapies. i just didn't know any better at the time. i could have saved $6000 for something else!