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What bass did you not bond with
- Thread starter Willie5String
- Start date
I demoed a Spector euro deluxe quilted with a teal burst 5er sitting down at a guys house and loved the look and tonal possibilities. Paid the guy $800. (This was apparently before they got discovered) and took it home, loved the quality and workmanship, threw a strap on it and stood up and….WHAAAT! The 'ergonomics' of it tilted the bass away from me and I couldn't see the fretboard! Not that I need to stare at the the fretboard, but geeze, so bummed. Now I know why I see guys playing them sloped way down to their knees! That way the fretboard is visible, well, and I guess they look real cool. I sold it to a guy for $700. because wouldn't pay any more. He said 'why should I pay more than $700. For back up bass! That bass would probably sell for more than $2,500 now, right? Live and learn.
Wow!! how things have changed in 3 short years . Never say never!! Lesson learned. Now all I play is StingRay basses. I love that signature Stingray bounce to the notes. I figured out that I dont like the pre Special 3 band aggressiveness or weight. I dont like the slab bodies but love the sound of the 2band/mutes Leo Fender Era StingRays. I tend to be partial to certain wood combinations, and I mostly prefer 5 strings. One I got all that figured out, I came back to the StingRay Specials and they have pretty much kicked all my others out of the house.
So I humbly eat a little crow here. Taste pretty good going down.
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Lol! I went back and read the entire thread and when I came upon that post I thought it was just a really lame joke I wasn't in on. That's why I didn't comment. We've kind of walked a similar path. Played a few 'Rays over the years. Felt uncomfortable and I just didn't get on with active basses. I took a shot on a nicely priced US SUB around Christmas of 2021 and was all in. I guess my hands and ears have changed over the years.
I really had to mature into them. But it really goes to show that all StingRay basses do not feel or sound the same.
Wow!! how things have changed in 3 short years . Never say never!! Lesson learned. Now all I play is StingRay basses....
So I humbly eat a little crow here. Taste pretty good going down.
Only 3 short years ago I hated on all 5-string basses and would never be caught dead playing one. Now I rarely play anything but. Never has that crow tasted so sweet...
- Jul 7, 2010
- 3,383
- 2,311
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist for: Duncan Pickups; Line6, Hipshot, GHS Strings, Somnium Guitars
I had a PRS Flametop Bass...LOVED the look, I just couldn't put my finger on it, but we just didn't click together.
Bummer too.
Bummer too.
Schecter Diamond Series Studio 4. Neck through.. looked good. That's about as good as it gets.
It had a horrible smell to it.
The bridge was impossible to intonate properly. Replaced that.
The Gold hardware lost all its shine and appeal within weeks. Replaced that.
The EMG preamp died and was replaced numerous times.
The pickups were utter rubbish.
Eventually all electronics were removed, swapped out and nothing worked with it.
No matter how much money I threw at it, it simply would not sit well in any mix, in any band situation. I really wanted to love this bass and gave it every opportunity to be loved...
I believe it was an utter lemon.
Ended up giving it away to a mate to hang in his pool room.
$1200 to buy new. Another $1500+ on various new pickups several preamps, bridge, tuners, strings, turning the bass passive... nothing helped. Glad to see the back of it.
The other was an Ibanez 905AH.
Nice looking but heavy and another tone dud.
This was the last straw with active basses for me.
It had a horrible smell to it.
The bridge was impossible to intonate properly. Replaced that.
The Gold hardware lost all its shine and appeal within weeks. Replaced that.
The EMG preamp died and was replaced numerous times.
The pickups were utter rubbish.
Eventually all electronics were removed, swapped out and nothing worked with it.
No matter how much money I threw at it, it simply would not sit well in any mix, in any band situation. I really wanted to love this bass and gave it every opportunity to be loved...
I believe it was an utter lemon.
Ended up giving it away to a mate to hang in his pool room.
$1200 to buy new. Another $1500+ on various new pickups several preamps, bridge, tuners, strings, turning the bass passive... nothing helped. Glad to see the back of it.
The other was an Ibanez 905AH.
Nice looking but heavy and another tone dud.
This was the last straw with active basses for me.
Haven't liked any of the Schecters I've tried, on paper they seem great though.
Peavey T-40, unfortunately. Went as far as to buy a 2nd beat up body, hollowed out the back Chip Todd style and refinish. Played nice strung EADG, but I never got it to play decently strung BEAD, which was my main intention (playing metal and HC).
I suppose that it just depends on your definition of "bond with". I've gotten rid of 2 or 3 basses because they were duplicates - although I did keep the 2 Danelectro DC59 Pros. Don't know why, really; I just put different strings on them, and I pretend that they're "different" basses. Which, because Danos are chameleons when it comes to strings, isn't as strange as it may seem... And, I gave one bass back to it's original owner, because I just couldn't bring myself to screw up a scarce '71 MIJ Epiphone EA-260 by turning it into a lefty. However...What did I get rid of?
- Eastwood Magnum Bass. The plainer, original one. It was an... "OK" bass; but, when a lefty '88 Tokai TB48 Thunderbird came along, that would fill the Magnum's "Long Scale Bolt-Neck" spot in the herd? Bye bye, Eastwood Magnum. I'm much happier with the Tokai...
- '73 Rick 4001. No, it's not my only Rick; I have a COY '01 4003, too. Much as I like the 4001, it was an "Extra" bass, and never had a spot in my herd. It wasn't a duplicate, either; trust me - 4001's and 4003's are not the same bass. Especially not with a 28 year difference in age... It could have replaced the '06 Carvin LB-20 in the "Long Scale Neck-thru" spot, but... honestly? The Carvin is really a better bass. Especially since the original owner had it built to be a Rick substitute - which it does pretty well, when I split both it's humbucker pickups... Honestly, though; I do miss the 4001 - a bit...
- 2018 Gibson Thunderbird. I still can't explain why I bought the thing; particularly in light of the fact that I had a really, really nice 2013 Gibson T-Bird already. Probably just because it was a lefty - and because I could. I got rid of it - instead of the '13 'Bird - because it wasn't built as well as the '13 was (the '18's control cavity looked like it was wired by a couple of drunken monkeys), and the then-new Babicz bridge was a total POS. Until I took it apart- repeatedly - and spent several hours filing and stoning it, 'til it worked like it should. The thought of that mess inside the control cavity, and the sight of that bridge, just annoyed the bejeezus out of me every time I picked it up - so I sold it. It found a nice home with a Thunderbird Club member, so it turned out for the best... Don't miss it much, TBH...
So, yeah; There have been a handful of basses that I didn't bond all that well with. But, out of the 24 that I kept? Sorry; those basses ain't going anywhere - not in this lifetime, anyway...
- Eastwood Magnum Bass. The plainer, original one. It was an... "OK" bass; but, when a lefty '88 Tokai TB48 Thunderbird came along, that would fill the Magnum's "Long Scale Bolt-Neck" spot in the herd? Bye bye, Eastwood Magnum. I'm much happier with the Tokai...
- '73 Rick 4001. No, it's not my only Rick; I have a COY '01 4003, too. Much as I like the 4001, it was an "Extra" bass, and never had a spot in my herd. It wasn't a duplicate, either; trust me - 4001's and 4003's are not the same bass. Especially not with a 28 year difference in age... It could have replaced the '06 Carvin LB-20 in the "Long Scale Neck-thru" spot, but... honestly? The Carvin is really a better bass. Especially since the original owner had it built to be a Rick substitute - which it does pretty well, when I split both it's humbucker pickups... Honestly, though; I do miss the 4001 - a bit...
- 2018 Gibson Thunderbird. I still can't explain why I bought the thing; particularly in light of the fact that I had a really, really nice 2013 Gibson T-Bird already. Probably just because it was a lefty - and because I could. I got rid of it - instead of the '13 'Bird - because it wasn't built as well as the '13 was (the '18's control cavity looked like it was wired by a couple of drunken monkeys), and the then-new Babicz bridge was a total POS. Until I took it apart- repeatedly - and spent several hours filing and stoning it, 'til it worked like it should. The thought of that mess inside the control cavity, and the sight of that bridge, just annoyed the bejeezus out of me every time I picked it up - so I sold it. It found a nice home with a Thunderbird Club member, so it turned out for the best... Don't miss it much, TBH...
So, yeah; There have been a handful of basses that I didn't bond all that well with. But, out of the 24 that I kept? Sorry; those basses ain't going anywhere - not in this lifetime, anyway...
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The one that comes to mind is a Nordy VJ5. It had a compound radius fretboard (rounder at the nut, flatter toward the bridge), which I just couldn't get used to. It was a very high quality instrument with a gorgeous trans-blue finish, but that neck just didn't work for me.
EBMM Sterling, a 2008 I believe. The only one I've not bonded with, out of the 20 or so basses I owned, including the 7 current ones.
Excellent bass, good sounds, great playability, just not mine, I guess.
Excellent bass, good sounds, great playability, just not mine, I guess.
Overall, I think I've done a decent job vetting basses before I buy them and have had pretty good luck with the few online purchases I wasn't able to try out first. I usually only sell them when my tastes/preferences change or I find something new I like better.
That being said, never really cared for the Ibanez TMB basses. I've tried dozens, just haven't found one that I'd consider buying.
That being said, never really cared for the Ibanez TMB basses. I've tried dozens, just haven't found one that I'd consider buying.
Better get your fire extinguisher ready
