Poll: Do you have a "beater" bass?

[Marky83dam]

My Frankensquier beater bass, only original part is the body.

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You’ve done a great job putting that together love the anodised contrast against the white I’ve an Olympic white jazzmaster which I’m looking for the right colour gold there’s a few different shades out there plus the prices are really expensive in the uk for the one I seen will get one some day love the look just as cool on a bass

 

[Fresh Eddie]

I was always a Fender guy and started buying beater Japanese BC Riches to play live to protect the Fenders from beer and profane language. Now I am also a BC Rich guy and those beaters are now cherished.

 

[A9X]

Mine is an Ibanez CR620. Basically an ash/maple P with a 2+2 headstock. Got it for about the same $ as a couple of large pizzas. It's in quite good nick, and though low cost, I'd still be sad if it were stolen.

 

[Lesfunk]

Currently I don’t have a specific beater bass. I play my “expensive” basses at any and all gigs without hesitation, but I am tempted to grab a lower priced instrument to use as a “beach” bass, “no worry “ bass, or whatever you’d call it. It’s basically A rationalization for GAS
Ideas include a Paranormal Jazz Bass, Ray 24 classic, oG&L tribute, or Ibanez ATK

 

[JIO]

The first "beater bass" I bought in the mid '90s was a very played '86 Kubicki Ex-Factor. Pretty funny in retrospect...

 

[fretter]

I have an $80 Burning Fire (Gleary) bass but I wouldn't want to miss it.

 

[gigetto]

My Mikro is a reservoir bass and travel bass.

 

[FenderBass71]

I have a Squier Precision for just the reasons described. However. I do still out of my way to keep it in pristine condition. But if I'm playing a rough bar or hot humid outdoor gig, I'd rather risk the Squier over one of the Sadowsky or vintage Fender basses.

 

[P-Boy69]

Funny this thread and timing i just took one bass to the beach the other day to have around and my wife asked why I wasn't taking my new Sandberg California to which I replied, "no , I ll take my beater bass" .
Indonesian made Squier PJ with Geezers .... it actually sounds awesome and has a crazy wide tonal variety and sweet playability , but 300 bucks makes it a beater bass....now that I write this though, I love this bass ☺

 

[BuckyBass]

Question for the collective: do you have a beater bass? One that you would be okay with if it got stolen, lost, or damaged?

When I gigged frequently I had a beater, but I hardly ever used it. I ended up selling it a long time ago. Recently I picked up another beater, but not sure if I'm going to keep it. A good portion of my basses aren't in pristine condition, so a bump here or there won't bother me. I've never had a bass stolen, and my most irreplaceable basses aren't going to be gigged.

So, thoughts? Ever glad you used a beater?

All of them are beaters, except my Steinberger, which never leaves the house. The Steinberger is perfect. I don't need anything even close to that to do a good job. Who needs the stress?

 

[bigtone23]

No particular 'beater' here, but I play quite a few inexpensive basses that can take some abuse and would be relatively easy and cheap to replace. However, they are also really good quality and play and sound great. My beaters are mostly my 6 Peaveys from the 84-94 era, an 84 Ibanez RB630 modded to be a T45 and a stock MIM Dimension Deluxe V. Most of these are modified to some degree (like routed out for other pickups, cool replacement parts, etc...) but I could replicate them if they were ever stolen. Fortunately, these are not fodder for the thieves.

 

[dsteinschneider]

My beater has become my No 1.

A carpenter neighbor came home with a 91 MiK Maui blue Squier and a box of music books. The woman he did a job for got tired of waiting for her now 30 something son to pick up his music stuff so she gave it to my neighbor. It had no strings on it and the kid had rubbed off the word Squier so I wasn't sure it wasn't a knockoff and offered $50 for it. I put Chromes on it and started bringing it to open mics. It's maple/rosewood neck is actually very well setup (I don't think the bass got played much). It started growing on me so I put in an Aquilar 60's and an Emerson pre-wired kit. I recently used it for a recording session, the engineer was very enthusiastic about how it sounded. It's my go to bass now. BTW, when I was expanding the cavity slightly I learned that the body is made from a slab of "music grade" plywood

 

[afireinside]

I just grabbed a black Squier VM jaguar bass for $80. I knew the electronics werent working. I assume either the jack or bass boost circut. Not a fan of actives so going to go all passive CTS/switchcraft jack and stock pickups.

Or a $80 80s Peavey fury bass single super ferrite with a bit more neck relief then i would like after setup

Or a early 90s $100 peavey foundation i grabbed.

 

[Doug P]

All my Basses except one were bought used as I only need for playing ( not collecting ) and just normal wear and tear over shows and rehearsals kinda makes them beaters I guess. I don’t want to loose any and I keep them in good playing condition but dings, “big hits” , or.... will not upset me. So I don’t have any that I would not take out. I don’t want to worry about them in that way.

 

[theBassTender]

Question for the collective: do you have a beater bass?

Absolutely. I have a Danelectro short horn that I have used for many sketchy gigs. It's light, easy-playing and wouldn't be the end of the world if I had to bash somebody over the head with it. It's also nice for long rehearsals - feels like wearing an old shoe.

 

[Doug P]

Heck yeah, insurance.

MusicPro Insurance -- Affordable Insurance for the Music Professional

I've never had to claim. I do know people who have multiple times and it's been solid.

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.

Yup. I as well will just cut and paste your response. Insurance is pretty cheap vs the cost of a loss
Again, I don’t know what I’d add to what you said. It’s worth it !

 

[Fuzzbass]

Question for the collective: do you have a beater bass? One that you would be okay with if it got stolen, lost, or damaged?

When I gigged frequently I had a beater, but I hardly ever used it. I ended up selling it a long time ago. Recently I picked up another beater, but not sure if I'm going to keep it. A good portion of my basses aren't in pristine condition, so a bump here or there won't bother me. I've never had a bass stolen, and my most irreplaceable basses aren't going to be gigged.

So, thoughts? Ever glad you used a beater?

Tough question because of "stolen or lost", but I'll address those later.

Regarding "damaged": if we're talking the usual dings and buckle rash, then absolutely. I've owned a number of frequently-played, well-worn basses over the years. Currently, it's the 2005 Sadowsky P5 in my avatar and below. Once it accumulated a few dings and rash, I stopped worrying about covering my belt buckle. Resale value is irrelevant as I will NEVER sell this bass. It also has some dings and wear on the front, including a mild divot in the pickguard above the pickup that proves that I am not diligent about "floating thumb".

Note: most of my other basses are pristine or close to it, and I try to keep them that way. But the bass above is the one I bring to gigs in cramped conditions (and many other gigs as well).


As for "stolen/lost/damaged beyond repair" -- goes without saying that would be horrible for any bass I own, but I own a couple of basses that I bring to sketchy situations, and if goddess forbid one disappeared or got FUBARed, then I'd say "well that sucks, but I'm relieved that it wasn't one of my favorites".

 

[BurningSkies]

Yup. I as well will just cut and paste your response. Insurance is pretty cheap vs the cost of a loss
Again, I don’t know what I’d add to what you said. It’s worth it !

Of course, no one can replace 'sentimental value' (why I actually put aside my custom for a production bass that's also insured!)...but you can at least get money back in your pocket to be able to have the gear you need to do the gig, etc. I know so many people who have taken the double hit of the loss of a guitar they love AND the cost of re-outfitting. I've had stuff down nice straps, pedals, hardware insured. My 'gigbag' probably has a standing value of a few grand in cables, connectors, extra tubes, microphones, DIs, etc.

 

[BurningSkies]

Tough question because of "stolen or lost", but I'll address those later.

Regarding "damaged": if we're talking the usual dings and buckle rash, then absolutely. I've owned a number of frequently-played, well-worn basses over the years. Currently, it's the 2005 Sadowsky P5 in my avatar and below. Once it accumulated a few dings and rash, I stopped worrying about covering my belt buckle. Resale value is irrelevant as I will NEVER sell this bass. It also has some dings and wear on the front, including a mild divot in the pickguard above the pickup that proves that I am not diligent about "floating thumb".
View attachment 4001944

Note: most of my other basses are pristine or close to it, and I try to keep them that way. But the bass above is the one I bring to gigs in cramped conditions (and many other gigs as well).


As for "stolen/lost/damaged beyond repair" -- goes without saying that would be horrible for any bass I own, but I own a couple of basses that I bring to sketchy situations, and if goddess forbid one disappeared or got FUBARed, then I'd say "well that sucks, but I'm relieved that it wasn't one of my favorites".

At one point, I had a playing situation where I chose which bass I thought would be best as a weapon in a fight. The answer was my 73P, but more in a sense of sturdiness and/or that it already had plenty of wear than in value. I figured it would be the least harmed if I needed to club someone with it.

 

[Doug P]

I just want to let all know that have talked about insurance, the policy I have is $100 deductible and covers everything except fraud of course but states that leaving your car/ truck door unlocked. So, have pic’s , serial numbers, and value. If a police report is filled no issues on coverage. For a little less than $200 I think worth it. Homeowners ins might not cover your loss out of your home. Check it out.