What is the 'old' TalkBass?

[groooooove]

I joined in 2003, and was regularly here as a guest for a few years before that.



I think that’s exactly right. There is more information all over the Internet now, and available in Talkbass threads past as well. I think that somewhat changes the kinds of threads that start and persist.

But, at least for me, the friendly and sharing vibe that I found 20+ years ago is pretty much the same. Given the divisiveness and anger that is pervasive in (at least) the U.S., the generally peaceful and respectful community that exists here is remarkable; a treasure. The mods get a lot of credit for that, but so do all of us for doing our part to keep things on the rails.

The “good old days” on Talkbass are right now.

100% true. there were some very specific things about the old days that may have been more fun, but this community is as good as ever today. i've met several tb members in person to do sales and such, and always had a nice experience.

jeff bollbach, a renowned upright bass luthier here on long island once made a comment about bass players that stuck with me. we were waiting for some glue to dry or something on my repair, and were chatting about his business for a few minutes. he said "well, my customers are bass players - they are supportive people by nature" on the topic of how cool his average customer is.

it's really true. go over to the mandolincafe forum, or violin, or whatever - it's just not the same.

 

[sheesh]

I am so grateful for this thread because some have mentioned "The Bottom Line"!!! I completely forgot that name.
I joined "The Bottom Line" back in the 90's. I posted in this group about the rig that I had at the time and enjoyed the back and forth camaraderie.
I actually did go to a Bottom Line meetup in my local area!
I forgot my user name and password from that time though, and I stubbornly clung to the hope that I could just remember my logon creds....
I have used talk bass for years, for general reading but mostly for excellent information about bass products. I think the advice here is great because generally it comes from people actually using the stuff.
Well finally I got over myself, and a created a new user, and I am glad to rejoin.
I appreciate that TB is still a good forum for bass players.

 

[mikeoso]

Who wants to hang out with me in Gavin's backseat?

I am NOT getting in no backseat with you!

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

This: was the Old TalkBass®

 

[JRA]

reading older threads (mostly by accident ), i'm not convinced that the important stuff has changed. some of the connections i've enjoyed have been lost to death or "inactive," but cool players/members show up regularly.

if things are 'tamer' these days i'd guess that it's a testament to how easily i'm entertained!

 

[Standalone]

I don’t remember things being much more rowdy (as in potentially offensive, I don’t like the PC term) back in the day. More silly and zany for sure.


But then I had the old homerecording.com zoo of an ant farm to compare it to. That place in 2007-2009 was bonkers.

- Obi-Wan zenabI

 

[5StringBlues]

I am NOT getting in no backseat with you!

You always want to drive......

 

[Lava]

Lotsa talk about Tort and Carrots

 

[Wambemando]

I'll guess that it's the PC culture. Mods applying rules to some and not others, money seems to be a driver in some of it. Did I mention PC? All guesses on my part. No idea really.

NO POLITICS BY PROXY
(Except mine.)

 

[bassboysam]

Old TB had a lot less, if any, discussions and complaints about string silk colours...

 

[Jay2U]

Freedom of speech has been reduced to speech only.

 

[bassballs27]

I used to hang at the Dudepit. I think I found it and TB searching for gear. I do miss the days when Tom Bowlus was active here. He was such an excellent resource for evaluating gear. I still enjoy hanging on two or three threads here and getting to know other players and their gear/music/food/pet preferences. TB is my social media. Change is inevitable. Stasis is boring. It's too bad that there are no GTG's anymore. I enjoyed getting together with Chef and a few other local players.

Yeah Tom Bowlus and his amp experience was second to none.

And agree, things evolve and TB definitely has.

 

[Thumper]

TBL>The DudePit>Talkbass, occasional visits to Harmony Central. Fbass, Lakland, Elrick, Warwick, Sadowsky, Fodera, and of course Fender, were must haves, along with tube amps, or at least an amp with a tube preamp. I lived for the latest copy of Guitar Player which had a section dedicated to bass. Then came Bass Player magazine until they never met a bass they didn't love, I suppose because of paid sponsors. No good reviews anywhere IMHO.

Talkbass accepted me, a gigging bassplayer from nowhere (until the Utah Jazz and 2002 Winter Olympics). My opinion was usually respected, and occasionally sought out. Abrasive posters were usually tolerated, the U.S. was a more civil place, and different opinions were not viciously attacked, so I don't remember many suspensions. The classifieds were the place to go to see what a fair used bass price was. I never understood why many business owners were suspended or banned (still don't), or why we don't know why people, some of who I disagreed with but never saw anything egregious, were.

Now, after nearly a quarter century, I still come here nearly everyday. I don't visit individual forums, do look at the new post section to see if I'm missing anything worthwhile (to me). This is the only forum I hangout at, most everywhere else is filled with hate speech IMO. Still love the classifieds, but since you can't question prices, it's becoming more like Reverb (overpriced).

So thank you TalkBass, my old friend for still being here. And to many posters gone throughout the years, I miss you, even those I raised my eyebrows at. Looking forward to the new year with ya'll...

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

NO POLITICS BY PROXY
(Except mine.)

I am truly amazed that I haven't lost my account.

 

[bassboysam]

Stingrays only had 1 pickup.

if you wanted a DI, it was a JDI, Type 85, BDDI or M80.

Let's not forget the endless RPM vs RPI threads...

 

[klokker]

I'm back after a layoff, back in a band. Somethings changed, I just don't have that much to comment on anymore. Back when I first got on, there was a lot of interest in class D, neodymium speakers and comparing them to the older stuff. I was trying this and that, and so I had a way of contributing.

It's probably me, I'm just not that interested in the gear anymore. I practice a lot and an active in a band and happy with what I have.

I'm thankful to Talkbass though. The gear I have, I'm really happy with and without this forum I would never have ended up with what I have.

Now my stuff is getting old and so I can't help many people out with much info.

 

[hrodbert696]

There's been a certain amount of people making pronouncements about moderation here, some positive and some not. I think it might help to correct some misperceptions:

One is that we do mind members' privacy when making decisions. If a member got penalized or banned because they acted outrageously, we're not going to make a public announcement to the whole forum about what a jerk they were. If you don't know what someone did to get banned, that's because it's none of your business. Ask them on another channel, and if you have never bothered to make contact with them outside of TB, ask why you would think you're entitled to know. Similarly, if a thread degenerates into a flame war or other form of mass violation, a mod will have to take time cleaning it up, deleting the posts that are in violation. After the cleanup, non-staff members will not be able to see how it went haywire - which is as it should be.

I periodically see the accusation that mods are selective about enforcing the no-politics rule and have our own agenda. What I've seen (from contact with my fellow mods in other social media) is that the moderation team actually reflects a wide variety of political views, tough decisions get made after discussion among the team, and I can't think of any cases where I saw selective enforcement. We do have a commitment that everyone of whatever background is welcome here to discuss bass and music and to participate in the community. In an age where it seems everything has become more "political," our support of that commitment may seem to be so, but it's just keeping TB functioning as a welcoming community.

"Free speech" is not a relevant issue here. Talkbass is a commercial service to foster communication among bassists.
The rules exist to restrict your speech here so that the site can continue to serve that purpose. By becoming a member you agree to abide by those rules in your posts here. You're as free as a bird to say whatever you want - elsewhere. Set up your own site with your own rules if you like. The late @Chef (RIP) used to ask why we needed an off-topic forum at all on a BASS website.

 

[Thumper]

Ouch, if that was pointed my way, my apologies. I really appreciate the work the moderators do, they're the reason this is the only place I hang out in all of the internet. I've read the rules for being banned or suspended, and understand most of them. Some of the vendors seemed like genuine, great people. So since we usually never see the offending posts or actions, we don't understand what happened and curiosity ensues, even if it's none of our business. Hope you understand. Anyway, great thread

 

[pcake]

i dislike arguments and insults on forums or in person, so i prefer the newer talkbass. when a thread devolved into insults, people vigorously insulting other people's opinions and so on, i wouldn't go back to that thread. i don't find angry, self-justifying drunken rants entertaining in the same way i don't slow down to gawk at accidents or watch realiy TV. i prefer a little civility and respect - even, or maybe especially, when people disagree. if that makes me too PC, so be it. i like to hang out where i feel comfortable.

btw, i really liked KBD, but he never went after my opinions like he did with other people's.

Members are authorized to participate. Every one else is just watching.

Adding one thought: the guests are useful to TB's owner because the site can expose ads to the watchers and doom scrollers and make money off of them. From my perspective, as a member, these guests are useless. They either don't have thoughts to express here on "TalkBass" or don't care enough to register/log in and express them. They can't buy my stuff for sale in Classifieds. To me, those people are dead weight. That's why the important number is members online. And lately, every time I check the numbers, there are more robots logged in than members.

many guests eventually become members.

like me. at first, i'd look for bass, amp or playing info on google, and it always lead to TB. it took me a year or two to decide "hey, i want to take part here". and i'm far from the only one. i routinely see people who say they came here for into and after a while, decided to join.

not everyone comes to a forum once and signs up. without guests who decide to join, most forums would be ghost towns with virtual tumbleweeds blowing by...

 

[Lance Bunyon]

i dislike arguments and insults on forums or in person, so i prefer the newer talkbass. when a thread devolved into insults, people vigorously insulting other people's opinions and so on, i wouldn't go back to that thread. i don't find angry, self-justifying drunken rants entertaining in the same way i don't slow down to gawk at accidents or watch realiy TV. i prefer a little civility and respect - even, or maybe especially, when people disagree. if that makes me too PC, so be it. i like to hang out where i feel comfortable.

btw, i really liked KBD, but he never went after my opinions like he did with other people's.



many guests eventually become members.

like me. at first, i'd look for bass, amp or playing info on google, and it always lead to TB. it took me a year or two to decide "hey, i want to take part here". and i'm far from the only one. i routinely see people who say they came here for into and after a while, decided to join.

not everyone comes to a forum once and signs up. without guests who decide to join, most forums would be ghost towns with virtual tumbleweeds blowing by...

As a younger man I was definitely a "Toxic Forum-er".
These days all it takes for me to move on from a thread or member is at least two negative interactions. I block member and unsubscribe, done!
It's bass guitar. You wanna be a a Richard, do it on your own time