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What do you consider a heavy bass?

I haven't made up my mind about keeping it, so, sorry, no pics yet. It's a Cort GB35J, sunburst with tort. It was fitted with licensed Hipshot tuners at some point so the balance is good. I'm undecided. . . . do I put $300 pickups and preamp in a $200 bass or buy a bass that retains its value??
I wouldn't. I'd just play it the way it came and be grateful if my back didn't ache. Or find somebody who likes tort and has a bad back to buy it from you for good price, and get the better bass, with the great p'ups and pre? That combo is hard to find at that weight.
 
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This:

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Gibson RD Artist Bass. THAT's a heavy bass. ALL maple except for the fingerboard. Bought new in 1977, it weighed 13+ pounds, and with that bass-side no-horn shoulder for the strap button, I fought it every minute I had it on a strap.

Eventually it won, and I traded it for a LIGHTER Peavey T40 that was only 10+ pounds (I think 4 pounds of it was the bridge and tuning keys).
 
I wouldn't. I'd just play it the way it came and be grateful if my back didn't ache. Or find somebody who likes tort and has a bad back to buy it from you for good price, and get the better bass, with the great p'ups and pre? That combo is hard to find at that weight.
I agree. The Cort just sounds too one dimensional and "boxy" and that's a hurdle I'm not getting over. I'm now looking for quality basses at 8.5lb or under. So far I've looked at Sadowsky Metroline, Sandberg SL and Ibanez EHB's. All had pro's and con's. The search continues.
 
I agree. The Cort just sounds too one dimensional and "boxy" and that's a hurdle I'm not getting over. I'm now looking for quality basses at 8.5lb or under. So far I've looked at Sadowsky Metroline, Sandberg SL and Ibanez EHB's. All had pro's and con's. The search continues.
Unfortunately there are a whole slew of basses coming out now from Indonesia that sound very similar, almost seem like different flavors of the same stew. I watched the demo vid from the Japanese shop comparing all the Sire models and thought "they all sound very similar." I think the first model I've seen that really sounds a bit different came from Ibanez in the new Mode series. I'm hoping to see more of that.

I know I'm probably going to get slammed for saying this.
 
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Heavy but fortunately still bearable for me...
1977 Kimbara J-bass 11.7 lb (mahogany apparently)

Medium - a nice weight...
198? Aria LEB PJ 8.9 lb

Light...
Squier Sonic Precision 8.2 lb, Warwick Streamer fretless 8.2 lb.
 
Unfortunately there are a whole slew of basses coming out now from Indonesia that sound very similar, almost seem like different flavors of the same stew. I watched the demo vid from the Japanese shop comparing all the Sire models and thought "they all sound very similar." I think the first model I've seen that really sounds a bit different came from Ibanez in the new Mode series. I'm hoping to see more of that.

I know I'm probably going to get slammed for saying this.
Have they all got the same pickup?
 
Have they all got the same pickup?
No, some do, some don't. They share a lot of similarities in electronics, woods used, bridges, and necks. I don't know why, but they sound very similar to my ears. The player doing the demo comparison does a good job of being consistent with his playing, tone selection, and is playing through the same rig. Watch it, it's posted somewhere in the Sire thread, and see what you think?

He didn't include the P5 models in his demo. Those do sound different, IMO.
 
My cutoff weight is just under 10lb/4.5kg. I've owned two basses that landed somewhere around that point. One of them, a Squier Standard Jazz, was both a bit too heavy, as well as being a bit redundant, so I traded it towards another bass. The other was when I paired a Fender Classic '70s Jazz neck and a Blacktop Jazz body. In it's case, I replaced the chunky-a$$ vintage tuners and Drop-D tuner with a set of Hipshot Ultralites. That lil' twist helped it shed about a pound of weight. :smug:

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Everything else I own falls between 8lb and 9.5lb, all well within my tolerance. :thumbsup:
 
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I haven't made up my mind about keeping it, so, sorry, no pics yet. It's a Cort GB35J, sunburst with tort. It was fitted with licensed Hipshot tuners at some point so the balance is good. I'm undecided. . . . do I put $300 pickups and preamp in a $200 bass or buy a bass that retains its value??
I concluded this was a loosing strategy. You spend as much as the nicer bass costs but you have a mutt that nobody will ever buy for what you spent.
Its still a cheap model (x) bass. The only way this works is if you get exactly keeper the bass you want and have no plan to ever sell it..

Like upgrading a base model Kia.
 
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I wouldn't. I'd just play it the way it came and be grateful if my back didn't ache. Or find somebody who likes tort and has a bad back to buy it from you for good price, and get the better bass, with the great p'ups and pre? That combo is hard to find at that weight.
My budget basses are the ones I learn how to work on basses and screw them up. I have ruined $65 bass necks and consider it experience.