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sound or comfort

Which is more important?

  • sound

    Votes: 86 58.5%

  • comfort

    Votes: 61 41.5%
  • Total voters
    147
  • Poll closed .
#41
Both are obviously important, but if I'm going to play it I have to BE ABLE to play it. If I can play the bass comfortably then I'm going to sound a whole lot better than if I'm constantly fighting the bass just to play it, hoping I'll eventually get used to it.

Case in point, look at the Lakland in my avatar. That bass was easily my favorite out of the dozen of so I've owned. I tried and tried for about 18 months to get use to the feel, but no amount of build quality, inherently spectacular sound, tonal flexibility, and good looks could have changed the fact that it just wasn't comfortable for me to play. I sold it about six years ago and I STILL haven't changed my avatar, that's how much I miss that bass. :(

To me, if you can't play a bass then you really can't make it sound good, or at least you can't make it sound its best. So, I'd say slight edge to comfort.
 
#45
patlozrox said:
okay, do you have any recomendations that would be best for me. i play bass in a rock band and i have some pretty fast and complex lines i need to finger pick.
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A Peavey Cirrus is always a great choice here. Lightweight, comfortable body, very comfortable fast neck, and great versatile sound, not to mention a great bargain. That being said, the 35" scale can be uncomfortable for some.

I agree with everyone else though. There are way too many choices out there to have to make huge sacrifices one way or another.
 
#46
i say comfort. nobrainer for me. like many say, sound is in your hands and fingers. comfort will make you play good, feel good and longterm get the most out of you skillwise and therefor make you sound good.

just my 2 cents though ...
 
#47
JimmyM said:
Any bass made would work.

BTW, when famous people go do my gigs for me, I will listen to them. Always fun to hear what they have to say, but in the end, YOU have to make the hard choices and go with your gut, and don't just do it because some famous person who plays well did it. Like I'm pretty sure there are things in Marcus' setup I would hate, even though I have a ton of respect for him as a bassist and good person.

Anyway, put me down as a both'er. I have a chronic shoulder problem that gets made worse by heavy basses, and it's so not worth it if a bass sounds great but gives you headaches and shoulder pain like I used to get till I lightened up. Heavy amps I don't mind, but I only carry them for a couple minutes at a time.
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okay, thanks man you seem to really know your stuff, and I DID make a choice. I found a hand built stingray HH copy made by a dude who works in the shop that MusicMan basses are made. It was $142.50 and I could not be any happier. It sounds AMAZING, feels AMAZING, and looks AMAZING!!!!! I'm sure if there were a MusicMan decal on the headstock you could never have guessed that it is a copy. I took your advice and I am glad I did. Stingrays have been my top choice since i started playing and I still think that.
Thanks again for the help :)
 
#48
I don't play bass to look cool. I play to be heard. If no one can hear me or if I can't hear myself, I don't play - I have walked out of gigs before because of this. There is no point to music if no one can hear it and I don't do this to go through the motions. I am a musician first and a stage prop second. I'll put up with an uncomfortable bass that sounds great any day.

So I said Tone is more important. Being heard is the most important and most difficult part about being a bass player. Underpowered backline crap, monitor mixes that are beyond awful, PA systems with ripped speakers or other terrible problems plague bass players all over the world. Discomfort only affects you, bad or no sound affects your whole band, and the audience.
 
#51
CORBS said:
I don't play bass to look cool. I play to be heard. If no one can hear me or if I can't hear myself, I don't play - I have walked out of gigs before because of this. There is no point to music if no one can hear it and I don't do this to go through the motions. I am a musician first and a stage prop second. I'll put up with an uncomfortable bass that sounds great any day.

So I said Tone is more important. Being heard is the most important and most difficult part about being a bass player. Underpowered backline crap, monitor mixes that are beyond awful, PA systems with ripped speakers or other terrible problems plague bass players all over the world. Discomfort only affects you, bad or no sound affects your whole band, and the audience.
Click to expand...
My discomfort affects the entire band. If I start to get a headache, I can't think as well, my singing is affected, my playing is affected, I start to look miserable and like I'm about to die, and it can really put a damper on the night when you're not playing your best because your bass is killing your shoulder. Hey, I used to be able to sling an 11 lb bass with a 2 inch seatbelt strap too, but those days are over.

So if you think that it's worth it to go through that just because you believe that a bass has to be heavy and uncomfortable to sound good, be my guest. I've got much proof to the contrary, though.
 
#52
Too many people miss the point on these forums. The unquestionable answer is sound! Bass is supposed to hurt, if it doesn't you are not putting in enough effort. I always find that if I actually play bass every day for 2 hours a day (I do, do you?) any level of discomfort is not noticeable within a couple days. You can change how you play, but you can't change the way a bass sounds. I love when people comment on instruments that they picked up to play at GC and have never played that style of instrument and say it's the most uncomfortable thing ever, lol I laugh at you! People are going to say that this is my opinion, YMMV, etc. I say suck it up or go cry to your mommy because you are wrong.
 
#54
For me acoustic sound and comfort are neck by neck in my book. I don't ever plug an instrument in the first 4-5 I go to a store to try it. I want to hear how much it sings by itself and just feel it. Comfort is more important to me though.
I am currently selling my Greco Thunderbird because I cannnot cope with the way it hangs on me. The sound is THUNDER, but it doesn't matter when I can't move like I want too. Sad though.
 
#55
I have a Precision Elite II that sounds AWESOME. I also have a MIM P p/j that sounds good but is much more comfortable to play. The MIM P gets the most play time out of all of my basses. That being said, I chose comfort. A decent rig will allow you to get the sound you desire. Playability can be tweaked but not really changed without major renovations, which in turn could change the natural sound aspect anyway.
 

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