Poll: Do you have a "beater" bass?

[Kukulkan61]

These are my beaters since they came like that from the factory, my other 2 Pbasses are cherry!

 

[pcake]

most of my basses are cheap basses, but i love them all - when i had a beater back when i was gigging and rehearsing a lot, it was in brand-new condition, and it became my main bass due to its light weight.

 

[higain617]

Yeah, I also have a beater bike. It's currently my only one.

 

[JW56789]

No. My basses have a beater player . . . . . I never can get all the notes out of them, they hold out and drive me crazy !

 

[arbiterusa]

Everything that's not my Steinberger is a beater. And I like them! They're good basses! But if a $250 bass gets stolen I'm not going to cry over it. I'm just going to grab one of the three beaters left and use that.

 

[dkelley]

Every bass I own is my beater bass. No matter how gorgeous it is or expensive it is when I get it, it eventually, if I own it long enough and actually use it, becomes a beater bass.

I'm not hard on my gear particularly, but I don't go out of my way to shelter it from common use wear either.

Update: and I certainly have a habit of taking out furniture and guitarists and cymbal stands with my headstock.... sometimes it's even unintentional.

Speaking of - I'm selling a headless bass... good for meek bassists or for those who like the other on-stage performers.

 

[2cooltoolz]

Well, I'd hardly call it a "beater", but it's a much less expensive bass than my primaries.

An MIM parts bass, assembled from a neck and body I bought probably a year apart, "just in case", because they were such bargains. I've done quite a few parts basses and had most of the hardware in my pull-off bins from other projects. It went out to gigs with me, but was left in the car as a back up. It's actually a great bass; sounds great, plays great and I wouldn't have hesitated to pull it out if needed. I probably have a bit over half in it of what these are selling for now used.

 

[moon-bass]

I simply cannot understand owning a beautiful bass and being afraid to use it for what it was destined to be used for since it was a tree.

I would never buy a bass and not play it, but some gigs are more appropriate for a $500 bass than a $5000 bass, imo.

 

[CoffeeLove]

Couldn't vote, needed a "sort of" option. My beater is around $500 used, so would still hate to lose it. And I still prefer using my Stingray 5 for all gigs.

 

[MichelD]

My Raven J-Bass copy is my beater but because I have right here in my office within an arm's length reach next to the computer and practice amp, it is the one I play most jamming with Bass-less tracks on Youtube, working on reading skills, composing, etc.

I keep my Fender Jazz stashed in a secret location and only unearth it for formal occasions.

 

[lermgalieu]

I do, but not because I’m scared to play my “nice basses,” but rather because I wanted a P to leave at prac space. It’s a 1996 Mexi P and I love it so much I now use it for recording that particular band as well as performances.

 

[Bassist30]

A great beater bass. A used Fender Road Worn. Have you heard any of the Corona basses. Wow. Excellent at a great price. Won't say any of the Marcus Miller designs as a beater bass out of respect.

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

I don't but this guy sure does..... LOL

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[GrooveDaddy]

Yep, an old SX for crappy dive bar gigs. Now mid-COVID, actually bringing back some fond memories!

 

[Tommy V]

every instrument in my collection is a beater.. new stuff, old stuff, if it needs to be handled with care, it won't get played... and that's not an option.

 

[The Bass Clef]

Not exactly a “beater”, but my backup bass is a squire VM Jazz body, with Geddy Lee pickups and an old MIM Std. neck. I only have about $250 into the whole thing, so I don’t worry about it getting stolen, or leaving it in a hot car all day, or if it gets banged around. But it plays and sounds great, so I have no problem playing a 4 hour gig on it.

 

[kevin wells]

No, but all my basses get used onstage which might include minor accidents. I (attempt to) treat them all with kid gloves though.

 

[M.R. Ogle]

If you're a local gigger and you're playing a handful of places and the room is filled with people you know and trust it may be less of an issue. It wasn't for me for a long time, and I could be comfortable leaving my gear amongst friends. Then I found I was just on the road a lot. We were playing locally once every 3 or 4 months and the rest of it was all over the place and in rooms we'd never been or with people we'd never met. There's lots of 'unattended gear' time, what if you're going out for dinner or if you're in the upstairs green room and the gear is downstairs? What if you're using multiple freight elevator trips or there's production crew moving your stuff out of sight? I got tired of taking my bass to the restaurant with me, etc. We're pretty good about taking guitars out of the van at night when you're at a hotel, motel or staying with a host, but that leaves pedalboards, amps, IEM, all sorts of other gear in a van or trailer. Heck, or if you're local it could be your car. It only costs a couple hundred bucks a year to insure.

Even if it's not a bass or whatever, someone walks with your pedalboard case, that could be $3K of hardware or more.

Sounds like the voice of Reason and Experience to me. Stone tablet-worthy.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

I have a p bass that comes w/ me everywhere:

 

[MetalMaximus]

No.
There's no reason to have a bass that I wouldn't treat with the same care as the others.

Hear here!! I baby all of my instruments.