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Ready to be ridiculed...

Jason Bonilla

Jason Bonilla

Supporting Member
Mar 15, 2021
1,021
3,013
#1
Ok,
So through out 2021, nearly 10 bass guitars have come in and out of my possession. at this point all of my childhood "dream" basses have been through my hands and I don't own any of them anymore. a few hit the spot but they also left my possession for one reason or another. Im talking Rickenbackers, American Ernie Balls, Euro, and USA Spectors (probably my favorites of all), as well as Status Graphite.

I don't want to be that guy with 20 basses, i would really like to be that guy that bought a certain bass when he was a young man, and that's still what he's playing in his 60s if God allows me to live that long. but for some reason I haven't loved any one bass to where I feel so attached to it that I cant let it go.

Now, a bass that is seemingly the amalgamation of all the good parts of the best basses I have owned has come into the picture, and as a 23 year old with no business doing this, I just bought it through a payment plan. And its expensive, like, VERY expensive. south of $9k but north of $5k. I cant believe I've done it, but I'm just tired of this endless buying and selling cause no bass quite hits the spot. this one IN THEORY, should offer the best of all my favorite basses in the past. As much as I hate to admit it I've really been spoiled rotten by some of the higher end basses I've owned.

Here's the kicker, I SUCK. I am not a good bassist by any stretch. I barely know any theory, I am *alright* in terms of technique but don't have the musical knowledge to put it to any good use. I've been "playing" bass since I was 12, but didn't really take any seriousness and passion to it until recently. I love music and adore bass, I love to listen to the best musicians out there from prog rock to jazz, and marvel at their mastery in technique and tasteful musicality. I just like nice things (though this is a few jumps over "nice"), and to me, few material things are more awesome than a finely crafted instrument, made with amazing dedication and attention to detail. You feel it when you hold them, and it makes you want to play.

Of course this isn't to say that I wont make an effort to become better at the bass. in fact I want this bass to be my trusty tool in the process of learning more than I ever have. It just feels funny, that for a long while, this bass made to the highest caliber of quality will be played by someone who hasn't even scratched the surface yet.

I am selling my other basses save for one beat up Ken Smith copy that I will use when I'm not comfortable taking a multi thousand dollar instrument somewhere.
Of course theres always the chance I get the bass in hand and decide I don't like it, which is why I bought it new from a reputable shop with a return policy. I wouldn't feel very good doing it, but its the only smart thing to do if you buy such an expensive bass and don't like it.

Not sure I want to say what bass it is I bought because maybe someone here was eyeing it and will be angry it went my way haha.
 
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#2
It's all about attitude.
It's even more important than practice, practice, practice.
Don't just play the bass, the bass!
When you plug in, nothing should exist but you and the music.
Think about method acting.
A method actor doesn't just play a character, he the character, sometimes even staying in character off the set.
Attitude!
Once I changed my attitude, everything else fell into place.

I played guitar way back in the seventies. Not too bad on rhythm, just couldn't handle lead. Gave it all up after five years or so.
I started playing bass nine years ago.
It's a much better fit.
Things that helped me?
1) Finding the right bass/basses.
Bonding with your bass is very important. I know people who quit in frustration because they weren't playing the right bass.
2) Finding the right strings.
GHS black tapewounds are my favorites. They feel good and sound even better. No way would I have progressed to the point I am now with regular roundwounds.
3) Putting aside an hour each day to practice.
Don't overdo it, but don't slack off, either.
Practice with purpose. As mentioned above, when you do practice, shut off the outside world.
(By the way, I never took any lessons. I just took an approach that fit me.)
 
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#4
jd56hawk said:
Bonding with your bass is very important. I know people who quit in frustration because they weren't playing the right bass.
Click to expand...

I think bonding is paramount over everything else. It diminishes the importance of prestige, price points, and "snob" factor. You love/hate the bass for itself alone, and not for optics or other side issues.
 
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#6
The bass I play more than any other is an old factory-second Ibanez SR300 purchased 12 or so years ago. Now defretted. I love that thing. But if I had the money ... I'd own a Fodera. That's a lot like sending Charles Manson to nursing school. But I just want one.

Do it! And don't look back.

SR300F.jpg
 
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#9
Yeah, I'm with @Joe Nerve.

This new bass won't satisfy you, either, probably.

You have romanticized this idea that there is a special bass out there that will make you bond with it immediately and make you play better, and make you want to play.


It doesn't exist, my friend.

I know because I searched for mine.

Warwick German Masterbuilt,
Fender USA,
Fender Japan,
Sei England,
Maruszczyk Poland (3 custom builds),
Ibanez Indonesia,
Serek USA,
Sandberg German.

All dream basses, sold them all.

I now play a Yamaha BBPH made in Indonesia.

I doubt I'll stop here. Let's see.

Do you play with a band? Because I notice a difference when I'm playing with a band, or I am just playing at home. Without a band, I tend to just list for the new bass, to search for the unicorn. When I'm with a band, I get much mor practical, and usually stick to one instrument.
 
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#11
I don't get the desire of so many to own a "collection" of basses, especially when they buy cheaper ones. It's a tool, not a pocketbook. I've had my parts Fender for about 36 years (if it wasn't over 11 pounds, it might still be my only instrument) and my Lull P4 for over 20. I bought a used fretless when I got back into jazz. It's more than enough.
 
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#13
I wouldn't criticize someone for spending 5-10K on a bass if it is truly "The One". People spend way more on cars, boats, guns, watches and a myriad of other toys, not to mention most other musical instruments. What I question is buying a very high end bass you haven't played. The odds of this being "The One" based on specs and appearance are not good. I know you said you can return it, but why not instead invest some time and money and travel to a metro where you can get your hands on these beasts?
 
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#14
I don't know squat about anything so let's just so stipulate...but I've been playing bass for a long time (and should be better than I am) and have been through a METRIC F-TON of basses from the same amount of manufacturers. Bought my first Music Man in 1978 and should have just kept that one....but live and learn.

I don't have "The One". I have a couple that I favor over the others and play those most of the time. Most are EBMM. Two Bongo 5hs, a Big Al 5H, a Warwick hollowbody Rockbass (asian model) and maybe that Fender "Flea" Jazz 61RI in faded pink. I could certainly get by with those five. Maybe that seems like too many to some people so I'm not going to mention all the other basses I have. It's my thing. I like basses, don't play golf or need a fancy car. I just buy basses here and there.

I would think that of all those basses you owned, at least a few could have been your The One. But it's all so subjective. We old guys understand how mating a bass with a certain type of string can make all the difference in how we perceive that bass. If you handed me a modern Rick with Rotosounds on it, I'd tell you that it's a terrible bass. Chris Squire had a different opinion. I once let Dave LaRue play one of my Bongos because Sterling Ball kept calling the single H Bongo his "secret weapon". I had a single H Bongo, so I said, "Sure, have at it." He played it for a few minutes, got that look like he smelled something terrible, handed it back and said, "THOSE ARE FLATS." Indeed, they were. Not Dave's thing, to say the least. Funny aside: he also then said, "Well, those are cool for YOUR gig." Dave LaRue knew my gig? I guess he did.

It's all about the synergy, the sum total of things that make you say, "Why, yes!" Strings, adjustments, amplification, all that stuff really really matters. Plus, as someone said above, we tend to obsess over tone when we're sitting in our little home bass spots because there's no stoned drummer to distract us. In a band context, most decent basses are going to be just fine. I hadn't played anything but a EBMM 5 for years and last autumn, I went wild and took that pink Jazz to a gig. It was great. As a former friend of mine once said, when we were obsessing over measurements in the twilight zone, "It's a bass. It goes boom boom boom."

This is pretty much true. But all water under the bridge now as you've spent a boatload of money on a bass you THINK will do it for you.

I certainly hope it does.
 
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#15
J_Bass said:
Yeah, I'm with @Joe Nerve.

This new bass won't satisfy you, either, probably.

You have romanticized this idea that there is a special bass out there that will make you bond with it immediately and make you play better, and make you want to play.


It doesn't exist, my friend.

I know because I searched for mine.

Warwick German Masterbuilt,
Fender USA,
Fender Japan,
Sei England,
Maruszczyk Poland (3 custom builds),
Ibanez Indonesia,
Serek USA,
Sandberg German.

All dream basses, sold them all.

I now play a Yamaha BBPH made in Indonesia.

I doubt I'll stop here. Let's see.

Do you play with a band? Because I notice a difference when I'm playing with a band, or I am just playing at home. Without a band, I tend to just list for the new bass, to search for the unicorn. When I'm with a band, I get much mor practical, and usually stick to one instrument.
Click to expand...

You and @Joe Nerve are likely right, I've kinda caught that about myself sometimes. its like a weird mix of impatience and not being content. I kinda did find the closest thing to "the one" bass when i had gotten my Kramer era Spector NS-5, but I sold it when i was needing money and, no one was buying my other listed basses. sold it for much more than I bought it for and that means to get it back I'd have to buy it for more than i sold it for, and thats still in the $5k range. buying this bass is about the same as buying a US Spector made to my specs so except *on paper* it offers more than i could get with a Spector.

Part of me hopes i don't like it so i can just return it and forget about it. but i did also jus tget rid of a really nice Stingray to help fund it, so that'd be a shame.

and yea i am in a band. and I play at church, sometimes its that fact that will put the nail in the coffin for a bass, I'll love how it sounds at home and then really not like it at church or in the band after messing with eq and every thing.
 
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#17
bovinehost said:
I don't know squat about anything so let's just so stipulate...but I've been playing bass for a long time (and should be better than I am) and have been through a METRIC F-TON of basses from the same amount of manufacturers. Bought my first Music Man in 1978 and should have just kept that one....but live and learn.

I don't have "The One". I have a couple that I favor over the others and play those most of the time. Most are EBMM. Two Bongo 5hs, a Big Al 5H, a Warwick hollowbody Rockbass (asian model) and maybe that Fender "Flea" Jazz 61RI in faded pink. I could certainly get by with those five. Maybe that seems like too many to some people so I'm not going to mention all the other basses I have. It's my thing. I like basses, don't play golf or need a fancy car. I just buy basses here and there.

I would think that of all those basses you owned, at least a few could have been your The One. But it's all so subjective. We old guys understand how mating a bass with a certain type of string can make all the difference in how we perceive that bass. If you handed me a modern Rick with Rotosounds on it, I'd tell you that it's a terrible bass. Chris Squire had a different opinion. I once let Dave LaRue play one of my Bongos because Sterling Ball kept calling the single H Bongo his "secret weapon". I had a single H Bongo, so I said, "Sure, have at it." He played it for a few minutes, got that look like he smelled something terrible, handed it back and said, "THOSE ARE FLATS." Indeed, they were. Not Dave's thing, to say the least. Funny aside: he also then said, "Well, those are cool for YOUR gig." Dave LaRue knew my gig? I guess he did.

It's all about the synergy, the sum total of things that make you say, "Why, yes!" Strings, adjustments, amplification, all that stuff really really matters. Plus, as someone said above, we tend to obsess over tone when we're sitting in our little home bass spots because there's no stoned drummer to distract us. In a band context, most decent basses are going to be just fine. I hadn't played anything but a EBMM 5 for years and last autumn, I went wild and took that pink Jazz to a gig. It was great. As a former friend of mine once said, when we were obsessing over measurements in the twilight zone, "It's a bass. It goes boom boom boom."

This is pretty much true. But all water under the bridge now as you've spent a boatload of money on a bass you THINK will do it for you.

I certainly hope it does.
Click to expand...

yep there were one or two that could have definitely been "the one" my Kramer NS-5 especially.

@gln1955
well technically i haven't spent a cent on it yet as its through a payment plan. first payment is next month. I've got 5 days to play the mess out of the thing and see if it works for me. i tend to not know if i really like a bass until I've actually played to a backing tract or at a rehearsal. 5 days is not a lot to make a $7k decision but I gotta make one.
 
#18
The bass you are seeking is a unicorn. It doesn’t exist. I don’t think you’re ever really gonna find the perfect bass forsaking all others if you’ve gone through so many basses in such a short time. The very fact that you’ve gone through more high-end basses in a year than most bass players get the opportunity to own in a lifetime, to me means that you think you’ve got an idea in your head of what the “perfect” bass is but you really don’t know. You’re guessing and randomly giving in to impulse buys keeping your fingers crossed that it will be the “right one”. This to me means there is no “right one” and you’re going to spend a ton of money and time trying to figure it out.

I have basses that I love and some that I’d be hard pressed to part with, but one thing I’ve realized is that no matter what you think, there will always be some kind of compromise. No bass will have everything you think you want in a bass. People who have owned the same bass for decades and are happy with it is because they’ve learned to compromise with their bass and have focused on their playing instead of the bass itself. I really hope this new super-expensive bass is everything you hope it will be. Just don’t be surprised when it isn’t.
 
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