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Overhyped Features You Just Had to Have
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
I had to had some stuff like I really wanted a 5 strings very early on and I still own that 5 strings and still like it. I then moved to 6 strings and love it, used them all the time. The I had to have a fretless, I do have a 6 strings fretless...
So no, nothing is/was over hyped in my case as I still use them. I've got my first 6 strings 11 years ago, my first 5 strings 15 years ago.
I guess my overhyped would be to have instrument that cost 2k and more while less expensive could do it but it wasn't what I wanted. I've learned quite early one that I should never settle to something less expensive than what I truly want because I will be disappointed, sell the less expensive and one day buy the one I wanted in the first place and be happy. So this is what I do. I don't buy instrument very often because of that and I'm happy. Less prone to GAS.
So no, nothing is/was over hyped in my case as I still use them. I've got my first 6 strings 11 years ago, my first 5 strings 15 years ago.
I guess my overhyped would be to have instrument that cost 2k and more while less expensive could do it but it wasn't what I wanted. I've learned quite early one that I should never settle to something less expensive than what I truly want because I will be disappointed, sell the less expensive and one day buy the one I wanted in the first place and be happy. So this is what I do. I don't buy instrument very often because of that and I'm happy. Less prone to GAS.
Man, "not really" is right. I don't know why players can't give the ABG (fretless or fretted) credit for its own sound.
I sold my last Q5 as an overreaction to a financial crunch. If I had known I would not be able to buy against 18 years later, I would have kept it.
Hey if you are truly playing what works for you, cool.
Yes for the pas 10 years I played almost exclusively 6 strings basses. They just give me what I want. The Warwick I bought last year was a dream come true and still love it like the day I got it. Same thing for the fretless I now have.
I ordered an EBMM Sterling 4h not so long ago because I wanted a 4 strings for some stuff that I've found the 6 to be a little overkill and also just to have a 4 strings around.
My hyped and useless features was the typical mancave attributes:
Pedals.
Today I don't even want a tuner pedal on the floor. Bass -> cable -> amp. But OK I will dive into one overhyped bass that I bought:
DOUBLE NECKED 8 string, 4 string.
Looked cool on stage, but never found any uses for the double course 8 string. We didn't churn out King's X riffs all of the time, let alone ever. And besides all this, who haven't been an obsessed gearhead, and gas in their younger years? In anything, not only bass, or music gear? There were a few things that got me wary that everybody else fell for. It was the locking tremolo systems of guitars. When I saw them first, I went "what's the point of headstock then?" Half a year later a saw the first Steinberger with trem in a music shop in NYC. The first ones on display, and thought "now, that's how it should be done". I have always been wary of anything "hyped" feature that is a fad gadget of the day. I got headless systems early on, and understood it, and as it did take away from the "MORE IS MORE" and went "LESS IS MORE" I thought just good things about it, and wasn't wrong about it either. I could see its advantages all over the place. Except for that dead spot that was gone anyway... fingre benefit...
Pedals.
Today I don't even want a tuner pedal on the floor. Bass -> cable -> amp. But OK I will dive into one overhyped bass that I bought:
DOUBLE NECKED 8 string, 4 string.
Looked cool on stage, but never found any uses for the double course 8 string. We didn't churn out King's X riffs all of the time, let alone ever. And besides all this, who haven't been an obsessed gearhead, and gas in their younger years? In anything, not only bass, or music gear? There were a few things that got me wary that everybody else fell for. It was the locking tremolo systems of guitars. When I saw them first, I went "what's the point of headstock then?" Half a year later a saw the first Steinberger with trem in a music shop in NYC. The first ones on display, and thought "now, that's how it should be done". I have always been wary of anything "hyped" feature that is a fad gadget of the day. I got headless systems early on, and understood it, and as it did take away from the "MORE IS MORE" and went "LESS IS MORE" I thought just good things about it, and wasn't wrong about it either. I could see its advantages all over the place. Except for that dead spot that was gone anyway... fingre benefit...
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My first guitar amp was a Marshall Valvestate AVT150 combo. Four channels (clean, acoustic emulator, OD1, OD2...). Scoop switch on the OD channels. Built in digital effects.
In the end it transpired that I only needed the clean channel, producing my distortion with pedals, and the mid-scoop was easily done with the EQ knobs without need of an additional switch.
It was a nice amp though, served me well through a number of bands and many gigs. Still had the same pre-amp 12AX7 in it when I sold it fifteen years later. Better than it gets credit for.
Another example is the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone. I wanted to play metal, so it made sense. I still maintain that it's a great pedal, and certainly the sheeple need to shut up about it, but yeah it's not the best option out there.
These days, and certainly by the time I moved towards the bass guitar, my tastes are simpler. Guitar, amp, 7 or 8 pedals, and I'm sorted. Each individual item though is as simple as can be, no bells and whistles with no purpose.
In the end it transpired that I only needed the clean channel, producing my distortion with pedals, and the mid-scoop was easily done with the EQ knobs without need of an additional switch.
It was a nice amp though, served me well through a number of bands and many gigs. Still had the same pre-amp 12AX7 in it when I sold it fifteen years later. Better than it gets credit for.
Another example is the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone. I wanted to play metal, so it made sense. I still maintain that it's a great pedal, and certainly the sheeple need to shut up about it, but yeah it's not the best option out there.
These days, and certainly by the time I moved towards the bass guitar, my tastes are simpler. Guitar, amp, 7 or 8 pedals, and I'm sorted. Each individual item though is as simple as can be, no bells and whistles with no purpose.
I wish my Precision had 21 frets. Sometimes I'm noodling, and I could do with that one final E way up there...!
Yes, for the love of God, get with the program!! P bass only. No exceptions!
- Jun 6, 2012
- 4,837
- 6,859
- Disclosures
- I don't wait 30 minutes after eating, to go swimming.
Exactly. I still have 6 string basses, 5 string basses, 7 string basses, 4 string basses, 8 string basses, fretless basses, ABG, Graphite neck bass and yes, even a Steinberger bass. These things may go up and down in popularity but are they just hype? Well that is the question I always ask. Is this thing "something" or is it "nothing". Humans are all herd animals and tend to be badly influenced by hype. So you try it. If it's "nothing" like some new color, or turned sideways and has stickers on it, or is some "Signature" creation of some famed player who "invents" a bass with all the knobs removed from it, yes it's hype. One of my pet Peeves is Fender inventing things that make sense (like say their 1U light weight amp) which they try to market as a hype fad and when it doesn't sell they discontinue it leaving other makers to discover it later. So they sell the same exact basses they've sold from the beginning but have all these "nothing" things like popular player "signature" images, but they still can't seem to sell a 5 string PJ.
Look. When you do things different ways, whether it is pick or fingerstyle, P-bass or Jazz, right or left handed, Trad or matched grip on drums, whatever. Almost always unless the idea is a total dud, one way will be best for somethings and the other way will be best for others. A sports car and a dump truck are both vehicles and will take your butt from A to B, but they aren't very interchangeable for doing what they do best. Sure everyone may be driving huge pickups now as a hype fad without ever wanting to haul gravel but that does not make anything useless. It's still only a matter if YOU have an interest in doing the thing that whatever it is does best.
I gigged for some years with a Peavey TKO80 (old square ones), and SansAmp BDDI (v1). Huge sound. The TNT had the Black Widows, but I know exactly the sound you're describing.
- Jun 6, 2012
- 4,837
- 6,859
- Disclosures
- I don't wait 30 minutes after eating, to go swimming.
I absolutely LOVE never tripping over/unplugging cables!!
- Jun 6, 2012
- 4,837
- 6,859
- Disclosures
- I don't wait 30 minutes after eating, to go swimming.
I like MIDs, so I thought that I needed the newer Ibanez with the 3-band EQ
turns out whatever band they're manipulating with their MIDs knob is not the MID that I like
1,200 Hz is the one that trips my trigger, which I found out when demoing Rumble amps
the newer one also had the quick change battery compartment & quick access truss rod cover
turns out whatever band they're manipulating with their MIDs knob is not the MID that I like
1,200 Hz is the one that trips my trigger, which I found out when demoing Rumble amps
the newer one also had the quick change battery compartment & quick access truss rod cover
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