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What do Ur basses say about U?

#121
-Asdfgh- said:
Ur basses? The Sumerians had basses?
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:roflmao:No idea!

But the Romans rocked! (Afaik :D)

Brutus.jpg


Take it easy guys! :laugh:

may the bass be with you

Wise(b)ass
 
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#123
neil|lien said:
Hey Bass players,

First thread i start, ever. And i’m starting it here…

Don’t know if U guys have ever wondered about this specific thing - it’s probably not essential to Ur bass-playing skills or Ur career as a musician - but i’ve been asking myself if the basses we choose reflect in any way who we are inside.

Let me explain: U know how sometimes a person’s personality is reflected by how tidy their room is, or how they drive. For instance, a person who’s insecure might constantly be correcting their trajectory & drive too slowly for example, nervously checking all available mirrors every other second. Geniuses are usually imagined next to a messy blackboard full of white chalk undecypherable scriptures… See where i’m going?

I have this friend who is a FANTASTIC bass player & his playing style & gear reflect, IMO, his personality. His clothes are the right size, his shaving is always perfectly executed, his car is classy, his flat is always well kept & presents no useless items that might get in the way.

His gear? (Keep in mind that i’m no gear-geek so i’m not sure about the names & references i give, but i’m pretty close) Well, it’s the same: three basses (Corvette $$ 4str, Yamaha TRB1005 or superior, and an MTD 636 Walnut or similar - so one four-strings, one five-strings & one six-strings, not a hoarder, just the essentials for his style of playing), a Moog, a Markbass 2x15 (that’s actually the piece of equipment i’m the least sure of) with an amp head (don’t know the brand, & an Ampeg combo for smaller rehearsals.

His playing style? Like his apartment, clean, nothing useless in the way, functional, everything where it’s supposed to be, when it’s supposed to be there.

There’s probably a correlation between the colours people wear & their introspective or outgoing nature, a link between the type & colour of car U drive & Ur character. We’re all humans, we have instincts & behaviours in common, & there are so many of us that eventually, we end up falling under a category or stereotype of people.

MY CASE:

i’m in my thirties, have tattoos everywhere, even used to have a man-bun with the sides & back of my head shaven. To people who i walk past on the streets, i probably belong to the hipster category. i don’t consider myself one, i don’t know what makes a hipster a hipster & i don’t hang out with them, so i assume i’m not one of them. Bassistically, i currently own a TMB30 (short scale, P/J configuration, passive, black nylon strings on, Mint Green finish…), a Cort C6 Plus ZBMH (six strings, active 9V, with factory default strings but want to change, Tobacco Burst Open Pores finish), a Harley Benton BZ-6000 (six strings, active 18V, neck through, Natural High Gloss finish, would like to try flats strings on it - anybody knows anything about the Ibanez IEBS6C by the way???) & a Vintage V74MRPJ (fretless, passive, 4 strings, Jazz bass, road worn finish « à la Jaco »). i only own one combo, a Warwick Blue Cab 15.1, a RC-20XL Looper & GT-1B multi-FX pedal.

Before i got to that particular collection (which still doesn’t satisfy me, but i’m on a very, VERY tight budget), i’ve bought a sold about 15 basses. i almost wrote « i’ve tried everything » but it wouldn’t be true. i’ve never owned any of those metal specific models, the TMB is my firs short scale & green bass ever, never owned expensive instruments… i’m more of a natural satin or mat finish kind of guy too… FYI: i love Soul, Neo-Soul, Jazz & the more sophisticated type of Pop.

I think that that alone is symptomatic of a few things: that i constantly question myself, that i’m searching for something artistically but also as a person. The constant GASsing over gear is also probably symptomatic of a quest for happiness & achieving a better level of musicianship (yeah, i know there is no direct correlation between the quality of Ur playing & the instrument, see Adam Neely’s « Does Gear Matter? » video?).

So here’s my question: What do U feel Ur basses & Ur playing style say about U? Do U think there are correlations?

By the way - and i will end here this lengthy post - my real-life collection is limited by budget, but don’t let money be a parameter to Ur answers: GASsing over instruments U can’t afford is also part of who U are & might also reveal something about who U are!

Thanks for reading through, looking forward to reading Ur opinions & testimonials on this!
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Interesting post. I think my gear, while somewhat dated, reflects a solid dedicated professional who has the tools to get the job done.
 
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#124
neil|lien said:
So in Ur case, it was more circumstances that made U buy the gear that U have. i guess Ur GAS list will probably say more about Ur character then!

& here's a pic of what i own (except the Vintage Fretless that is in my profile picture, couldn't take it with me when i moved but will get it back this summer: can't wait!):

View attachment 3394056
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Circumstances, yes, partially. Say I had €1000,- in my pocket when I went to the store and I tried basses all morning, much to the salesmans frustration. In the end I left with the SBMM. Perhaps not very suitable to look at in a CCR band, but so versatile that I can make the sound just the way I like it. Still looking for a J, a PJ, a viola... Never enough basses lol. Maybe one day go for a real MM...
 
#125
I don't want to derail the thread but, speaking as someone who does not have English as a mother tongue, I can understand the use of "U" as "you" but I have to confess: The use of "Ur" as yours is just something plain weird to my ears.

Well, I guess one can learn something new every day.

That said, I think the way I play tell more about me than the bass I'm using on a particular event although they can say, depending of the beholder, that 1) I don't like Fenders or 2) I didn't have money to buy one... :D
 
#126
zubrycky said:
I don't want to derail the thread but, speaking as someone who does not have English as a mother tongue, I can understand the use of "U" as "you" but I have to confess: The use of "Ur" as yours is just something plain weird to my ears.

Well, I guess one can learn something new every day.

That said, I think the way I play tell more about me than the bass I'm using on a particular event although they can say, depending of the beholder, that 1) I don't like Fenders or 2) I didn't have money to buy one... :D
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Don’t worry, Ur for “yours” sounds weird to native English speakers also, even once you know how people intended it.
 
#128
Mine say that I’m rooted in the late-mid 20th century classics but want things somewhat modernized (but not too much) - SG bass instead of EB-3; Standard P instead of a 50’s spec P, etc. They say that I don’t want cheap stuff but that I also don’t want anything particularly fancy. With my recent acquisitions being on the light side and half of them being short scales (easier on the body) and strings being 100s (no more 105s), they also say I’m a little beat up anymore. They say I’m interested in the history of things, how things got to where they are today. They say I’m pretty simple in a lot of ways. They say I’m a bit of a perfectionist/obsessive as many of them have been tweaked or modded to get them sounding and playing just right and they’re all kept looking good.

They say I like a little variety and having a bit more than the minimum, while still keeping things basic.

MIM Standard P (black)
MIJ Mustang (white)
MiA American Standard J (white)
MiA American Standard P (sunburst)
SG bass (heritage cherry)
ABG
Fretless ABG

They I say I dig music
 

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