Too much information now.

[bassinplace]

I don't care about gear much. I don't have anything "high end", with the exception of my Am Std J, but I'm happy with it all. For one, I rarely leave my room with my bass and two, I like to think that if I can't get a sound I like with what I've got, then I don't need anything "better".

 

[SirMjac28]

Now the online stores tell you to pound sand, while the mom and pop stores get eaten by big box. Those pawnshop dealers are no longer dealing, goes for firm whatever they see it for online.

True but there are plenty more ready to give you a deal. I agree with you everyone runs to eBay (including myself) to see what something's worth not taking into consideration that most of those are asking prices and not what the item eventually sells for you have to do a search to see what the average price of the item has been over a certain length of time to get a better idea. I have never had a problem getting a deal from a pawn broker they are aware of the competition out there and they have to eat too and the cool thing is I'm the one that can say "go pound sand" and go look online for a better deal. The mom and pops that are still in business are the ones that have excellent customer service and can offer the customer an experience they can't get from a Guitar Center which really isn't hard to do. I remember the old days they weren't so great.

 

[senp5f]

The mom and pops that are still in business are the ones that have excellent customer service and can offer the customer an experience they can't get from a Guitar Center which really isn't hard to do. I remember the old days they weren't so great.

That's the truth. Paying retail is pretty much the last resort for me, but on the rare times that I do, I make a point to go to my favorite local shop. They have pulled my fat out of the fire with emergency acoustic guitar repairs more than once!

 

[Jaredcouture]

I'm not saying it's all bad. I like it in some ways. I would've never bought a squier bass if it weren't for the information I received from all of you. I bought a vintage modified jazz because of information I was able to get from this forum and other sources. Now I have a VM 5 a VM 4 and a VM fretless. I rarely play my fenders anymore. In some ways it's saved me allot of money. On the other hand, I didn't need to know my acoustic b200 was made of particle board and could fall apart "which it hasn't after 2 inches of water in my basement " It's a great combo and I've second guessed it for no reason. Since I read that I've bought a few head cab combinations and some combos that people highly recommend and had problems with the sound, the construction and output level. I guess I should learn to trust my instincts. If it sounds good play it and forget what everyone else thinks.

 

[bolophonic]

In addition to all the real information, you also have all of the phony information that people make up all the time on here ("It was a nice looking bass, but it didn't have that mahogany growl.")

 

[Manichga]

Yes, sounds familiar. One bass, one amp was happy with both. Older now, have some money to spend on me so now I have 4 basses and a different amp. But do you know what? I play almost every day, I'm in 2 bands and I'm more enthusiastic about playing than ever. I'm not dissatisfied with my gear, quite the opposite. It's fun looking at new stuff and trying different gear. It's interesting to see what's new.

 

[SteveC]

My next bass will be bought locally. Actually, I intend to buy everything possible locally. The revolt is on!

 

[Clef_de_fa]

in 14 years I bought 7 basses and I have 3 left. all of them prior to TB.

You did just let yourself caught up by GAS because they know how to say to right thing and you just believe it.

To me you need a worakble bass, enough EQ possibilities to shape the sound like you want and then work on your chop and use that bass in every situation instead of bass X for this situation and bass Y for this and bla bla bla ... you don't need any of those instruments.

but TB is full of very weak consumer who buy buy buy and sell sell sell just to have the tone for that one situation ... or replicate a tone or whatever ... such a huge waste of time and money. Find what works for you and just be done with it.

 

[SteveC]

I agree with you everyone runs to eBay (including myself) to see what something's worth not taking into consideration that most of those are asking prices and not what the item eventually sells for you have to do a search to see what the average price of the item has been over a certain length of time to get a better idea.

Those prices are also inflated because you need to cover all those fees. A $2,000 bass requires you too add $300 to cover the fees and shipping.

 

[10cc]

It has taken me 28 years to figure out for me what it takes to make me happy.
Fender and Ampeg.

 

[Milk]

I've had a cheap bass and amp for all my playing life and have been doing ok. i have a bit of a punk attitude for that stuff i guess, just plug through whatever is there and play.

I would like a better looking bass (soundwise i'm ok) and a slightly better sounding and more powerful amp even though right now i wouldn't really have a use for it.

My problem is, gear bores me. It just does. I like to play. I don't like to fiddle with things. I dont like to look at knobs. I still don't understand the average guitar rig, is all that stuff necessary and what does it DO exactly? Never had an interest in that stuff. Learned some of it because i had to but really i'm still a neophyte 17 years on.

As for basses, well there's about half a dozen i find good looking enough to buy, out of which probably none has a tone i'd want (i havent tried any of them and it's hard to guess from youtube when everyone who reviews basses fingerplays genres i don't play and sets their amps for tones i wouldn't want which always leaves me with the impression i don't like the sound of ANY bass) and only about two i could afford (and might buy eventually)

 

[mpdd]

after all the youtube reviews, talkbass chats, and hard sales tactics;
i'm back where i was 20 years ago, using a vintage bass with hot pickups into a mid wattage tube head turned up all the way

 

[ZhuAnRen]

Forget GAS alone (a whole new level of crazy for the bass world for sure), anyone else remember the pre-internet days when all that was really available for actually learning to play was Bass Player magazine, other bassists, maybe books, and a teacher if you were lucky?

Now, it has even been gameified with RockSmith...maybe I'm too damn old, but looking back, there were very few bad bass players in the pre-internet pre-tech heavy days, the ones that were bad never lasted long...and they were usually guitarists that had a bass laying around. Sure, there are more bassists now, owing to all the tools available. I remember having to actually go to a music store and talk to the bass peoples there to learn about gear...Now you can do it without interacting with other humans for the most part.

Sure, all this tech has made learning songs and understanding our instruments easier, but there are just too many choices in amps, cabs, basses, 57-string custom "Pretencious Range" basses, whatever that you can pay an already overworked guy to build you and force him not only to take pictures of the building process, but send them to you as it is being done. Yes, you can get whatever you want, your custom specs, but what if that changes? I guess you repeat the whole process. I'll still prefer the old "work with what you've got" philosophy. We live in a strange future...ok, done ranting now....