Your bass has an asymmetrical body typical of most basses. Nothing wrong or unique about it. Try resting the lower cut away on your left leg. That would at least bring it close to where it would hang if you were standing. Another option would be to get a symmetrical body shape and try setting it in the middle. The edges on this one are sharp and would drive me nuts. It would also change your reach on the left hand.
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Uncomfortable right lap - is it normal or am I doing wrong?
- Thread starter gusrb5
- Start date
If you compare your right arm position to McCartney’s left, you’ll see that his elbow is in front of the bass, while yours is behind it. By an unnatural way it’s prone to cause injury in the long term. it’s also likely adding the weight of your arm to the weight of the bass.
Try rotating the bass further under your right arm. The neck should end up pointed more forward and less straight across your body.
lighter bass, foot rest or stool..usually use my forearm as i am playing to readjust it on my right thigh..after a while my hip joint starts to ache with the added weight of my J or P, so i switch to my barely 8lb parts bass
JeezyMcNuggles
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- Feb 23, 2018
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Have you tried proper sitting positioning? As in, your bass is actually supposed to sit on your left leg, and rest between them. This puts you at almost the same positioning as standing up. Brings the top of the neck closer to you. And, allows you to sit more upright rather than slouched.
BurningSkies
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McCartney is also turning his upper body 'into' the bass. While at the waist he's facing forward, above that is angled towards the instrument/camera.
When I play with the bass on my right leg, I use a small footstool like posted earlier. Somedays, it's just more comfortable to play with it on my left leg, usually without the footstool. So I play whichever way is most comfortable at the time 
I practice seated at home, and I do my best to mimic standing 'performance' ergonomics. So, the lower horn rests on my left leg, similar in position to standing. I usually play strapless when seated, but if there's a strap involved, mine have all been adjusted the way Billy Sheehan told me - so that the bass is in the same position whether you're sitting or standing.
In my experience, some basses (and some guitars for that matter) lend themselves better to seated playing.
Some designs are just either uncomfortable on the leg or balanced in such a way that caused it to constantly slip off the leg.
Some designs seemed to ditch balance and ergonomics for " looks cool onstage ".
My Gibson Grabber was a pain to play sittin down.
Some designs are just either uncomfortable on the leg or balanced in such a way that caused it to constantly slip off the leg.
Some designs seemed to ditch balance and ergonomics for " looks cool onstage ".
My Gibson Grabber was a pain to play sittin down.
Maybe his thigh is slimmer than mine! Losing my weight can be an answer
Maybe slip a small sandbag under it.
‘Humm, that isn’t much of a cutaway, is it?
I saw this idea on a thread about neck dive. Might provide a solution. What you need is instead of a shoulder strap, you need a smaller belt type strap that holds from your belt loop.
Some of mine (actually it's a guitar, not a bass) are not super comfortable or as well balanced over my leg. So I wear a strap and sit on a stool/ottoman so my legs are out, below the guitar so I am sitting but the instrument is fully hanging on my shoulder. I do this with my acoustic basses and also a roundback Ovation guitar and a Les Paul. It's not so much a weight issue like you said, it's the shape/balance that just works better on a strap. Try a higher stool if you have one. Just a basic bar stool works for me.
I find in general that basses that have the cutaway more central in the lower body "sit" better. The one you are having issues with has the cutaway very close to the neck.
This may be why you find your Jazz or SR more comfortable.
It's the same reason a Stratocaster guitar is more ergonomically "sitable" than a Les Paul.
This. Play classical style with a strap and it won't slip anywhere. Your body will be in a more natural position too. (See avatar!)
EDIT: I just saw that this has already been covered in the posts above.
This is how I play seated (see first pic). Balancing the horn of the bass over my left leg with the lower bout between my legs addresses the short horn/large lower bout slippage problem, and for me is more comfortable positioning in general than resting the bass on my right leg. That being said, I should note that I haven’t been playing bass that long and am completely self-taught, so there may be a reason I’m not aware of that this isn’t a good idea. Also, that positioning may work better for me than it would for many players because of how a wear basses on a strap (see second pic), which is fairly high on my torso (top strap button at the level of my solar plexus) and at a significant upward angle. That allows me to keep my left wrist very straight in all positions on the neck. Again, there may be a reason that’s not a good idea that I just haven’t learned yet.
This is how I play seated (see first pic). Balancing the horn of the bass over my left leg with the lower bout between my legs addresses the short horn/large lower bout slippage problem, and for me is more comfortable positioning in general than resting the bass on my right leg. That being said, I should note that I haven’t been playing bass that long and am completely self-taught, so there may be a reason I’m not aware of that this isn’t a good idea. Also, that positioning may work better for me than it would for many players because of how a wear basses on a strap (see second pic), which is fairly high on my torso (top strap button at the level of my solar plexus) and at a significant upward angle. That allows me to keep my left wrist very straight in all positions on the neck. Again, there may be a reason that’s not a good idea that I just haven’t learned yet.
I'm afraid I have to agree. Being played while seated was, IMO, simply not a design criteria for a lot of basses. There have been several good suggestions for getting around your problem mentioned already, so I won't re-hash them. I have 23 basses, and yes, some of them work well for seated playing; some of them don't work all that well; and some of them I wouldn't try to play that way on a bet... On the rare occasions when I actually play while sitting down (instead of just messing around), of course I play a bass that will work that way. Some of them have bodies that you wouldn't expect to work, either - like these:
The Dano Longhorn looks odd, but it's actually just a double cutaway body with some of it missing. The Kramer Duke actually has a little rubber pad on the lower "bout" to rest on your leg; it plays quite well that way. So does the Flying V - if you put the crotch of the V around your thigh. And, if I get the strap just right?
Even a Thunderbird can be played sitting down. So, I'd say; experiment some more, and see if you can find something that works for you. Then, do it a lot and get used to it... Or, you could do what almost all of us do sooner or later - just get another bass...
Paul Jackson,Hadrein Feraud and I use the same posture when sitting.Your technique looks pretty good to me. If you were my student I'd say you were on the right track. Two specific tips I would give you:
Here is one of my favorite bass players (Paul Jackson of Herbie Hancock Headhunters fame) demonstrating the "seated with bass between legs" posture:
- Try moving the strap farther out from your neck, more onto your shoulder. Maybe it's a trick of the camera but it looks like the strap is cutting into your carotid artery and restricting the flow of blood to your brain.
- You might try sitting with the bass between your knees instead of on your thigh. This alternative posture seems to work well for a lot of players.
It looks to me like you're slouching down in the chair. Your stomach is actually pushing the bass away from you. Pull your butt in, shoulders back, straighten your spine, and get a proper footrest as pictured earlier.
