What is your ideal bass weight?

[MultiScaleMale]

For me:

4 string - 8.25-8.5 lbs
5 string - 8.5-8.75 lbs

Allowances added for awesomeness.

Assume balanced ergonomics. We know that a well balanced 9 pounder can feel lighter than a neck heavy 8 pounder.

 

[matti777]

I agree with the 4 string weight...under 9 lb anyway. I had a Sadowsky that was stupid light. It felt like a toy.

 

[bassdude51]

I'd say you are about right. Although, I think it's difficult for a 5 string to fall into that range. Larger pickups, bridge, extra tuner, big fat and heavy B string, more wood for the wider neck and frets.

IMHO, for a 4 string Fender type P Bass..........8.5 lbs and under.

I am fortunate to have a Warmoth + Allparts P Bass that weighs 7 lbs 3 oz. It's so light that it feels broken!

Music Man Stingrays are a "bear" with most of them pushing close to 10 lbs.

I took my Stingray and did all that I could to get the weight down. Dropped 10 oz off of it and it still weight 9 lbs 2 oz.

 

[ClusterFlux]

5-6 pounds.

I have a short scale bass that is 5 1/2 pounds. I could wear it all day long, but it doesn't quite have the sound I want (awaiting a replacement pickup). So, I'm mostly using a 7 1/2 pound bass right now.

 

[lomo]

If the balance is good, the lighter the better. I have a headless Kiesel 5er at 7.5 lbs that's great. I also just got a 6.5 lb Maruszczyk traditional 5er.....the neck dives a bit when I sit and take my hands off the bass, but the minimal/normal/constant pressure of my fretting 4arm on the body controls it with essentially no effort, and with a thick neoprene strap it's good standing as well. This one is so light, however, that I may actually downgrade the bridge to something heavier, which will make it balance a tad better. Years ago I had a 6 lb Basslab Hollowbody Soul 5 that balanced perfectly and sounded like 10 metric tons.....never should have parted with that one......

 

[DavidEdenAria]

8 lbs is my limit...as for balance, i keep 4" wide straps for anything light (such as my old SG).

 

[Bryan R. Tyler]

I've mostly played 6-string the past couple decades so I don't have the option of crazy light. If it's 10lbs or under I can't complain. My Elrick SLC 6 is about 8lbs 14oz, so it's been wonderful.

 

[JRA]

Allowances added for awesomeness.

absolutely!

i played a 9 1/2 lb. ax for years and thought nothing of it --- and then i turned 60 and played an ax 2 lbs. lighter, and thought: "this is my new direction!" so i've spent the last decade trying to have lighter (more 'manageable') basses. i don't know if i've found an "ideal" --- but the lighter they are = the more awesome i think they are.

of the six axes i'm trying to rotate: the average is 7 lbs, the heaviest is 7.8 lbs, the lightest is 6.2 lbs. they are all more comfortable for these old bones than the one i played long term.

at present, anything over 8 lbs. would not be ideal...i'm sure of that! i agree that balance figures in heavily ( ) when assessing the impact of the weight.

 

[GretschWretch]

Ideal for me would be sub-7 pounds, but reality says 8 to 8.5. There area lot of variables in reality.

 

[brokenstoned]

My 1998 CIJ Fender Geddy Lee bass weighs close to 10 lbs.! It's a heavy bastard. I'm not getting any younger.

 

[stigbeve]

Never thought about it. I guess the max would be about 12 pounds.

 

[Raoul_Duke]

Balance is so important. If the instrument balances well, I'd prefer 7.5lb-8.25lb in a vacuum. I have played/owned basses that felt significantly lighter or heavier than their actual weight. Being that most (ALL!) of my bass purchases happen online, I usually look for a target weight because overall feel is something I can't assess long distance.

 

[Spidey2112]

I like staying right around 210... anymore than that and I might as well be playing pedal steel.

 

[Dincrest]

Ideal is between 8-9 pounds, with good ergonomic balance. I tend to be pretty active on stage when I play so if they're too light I feel like they'll fly away from me, but if they're too heavy they'll weigh me down like a boat anchor.

Although I can live with 9.5 if the balance and ergonomics are ideal. No more than 10, though.

 

[Stevorebob]

Anything under 11.5lbs.

I'm no strongman — neither big nor tall, not young, not in great shape — but instrument weight has never been an issue for me.

 

[jd56hawk]

One weighs 7.3 lbs and the other is over 10 pounds.
I'll play either, but I'm only 64 so weight isn't really an issue.

 

[fretno]

Warmoth Sugar Pine SSB

 

[Naviiin]

Medium sized guy here, so I prefer to keep it ALAP. Never really kept track of weight, so as long at it's not heavy on my lap it should be fine.

 

[bass12]

Around 9 lbs for me.

 

[brianrost]

From whatever a Danelectro weighs to about 8 pounds is my ideal.