What makes it your bass?

[Rip Van Dan]

There are millions of ps, and js and string rays, Rick’s, danos, foderas, wals, Warwick’s, Yamahas, Ibanez, , etc. What makes it yours? A particular dead spot? A rattle? A bit of wear only you could have put there.?

What makes it yours?

First of all the sound. My '82 Jazz has an all-maple white-bound neck and also has the 70's era pickup spacing (4" center to center). That gives it a little brighter sound than my 1965 Jazz (bought it in 1966 was stolen in 1976) and a lot more sustain. It's also distinctive in appearance. It's an Olympic White body with stark white pickguard, pick ups, and strat-type control knobs (numbered). The white body color has mellowed to a light cream color over the last 38-years.

I bought it in mint condition in 1985 and the only thing I could find on it was a small divot in the middle of the back of the neck by the 12th fret. You can't see it, but you can feel it when you're trying to find it.

 

[5StringBlues]

my empty pockets

 

[2saddleslab]

this has always been my favorite collection in all of talkbass.
somehow, somewhere i know keith ferguson is smiling broadly.

Thanks for the kind words. That would make me very happy too.

 

[Jeff Scott]

The most major mod I did was to my former '08 JG 4003, vintagizing it, including a rebuilt early '60s magnetic horseshoe pickup and relocating the neck toaster (I replaced the standard hi-gain pickup with a scatteround toaster) to the vintage 1/2 location along with a Pickguardian pickguard that matched the FWI in the fingerboard and one of his plexi finger rests.

The bass sounded great with the toaster/magnetic HS pickup.

 

[misterCRUSH]

I have had this bass for two years. It was a gift from my amazing wife. I sold all my other basses. It is my voice. My refuge. I have mental illness and am on disability. It is always there for me. In the short time I have had it I have put a lot of hours in, around 4-5 a day. I love it's tones and playability. It's already starting to show some wear. Be well, BASS.

 

[JRA]

...just zoomed in and saw the Tecate logo LOL, maybe this bass is actually drinkin'

it's entirely possible that i was imbibing when i thought to do that....

 

[jimmydean]

While there are many like them , these are mine for the long haul.........I sold my Sadowsky because I found a Squier jazz that sounded better in the passive mode and a Dean Rhapsody that sounded better in active .......they are mine .

 

[klattman]

Mine because with massive mods and upgrades it becomes un-sellable.

 

[Nightsprinter]

By the lack of fret buzz

I dont get the appeal of buzzing and choked out notes when playing - and I see it a lot, especially in jazz and all tha shiznit.

I require a defined piano-like ring to my notes along with a percussive harmonic from the way i finger pluck hard and at an angle a la Geezer in NIB.
Bell-like harmonic on the attack with a bit of mwah, especially with a slight 1/8 bend using my left hand.
So, all the strings and necks are set up to achieve this, and if it can't, its not one of the basses I play.

Towards the end exhibits that percussive attack

Yessssss. It's so frustrating to me to listen to sound demos full of buzz. If it's buzzing, it's not right. If every fret isn't even, I don't want to play it.

 

[BOOG]

My number one was built in 1954 and it tells me stories every time I play it. It is full of vibe, mojo, chops and knowledge.
View attachment 5247902

What strings do you have on here? They look smooth and glassy. I’m a flats and tape’s fan but haven’t tried those.

 

[PDW30]

The black stains on the maple fretboard of the SR4H. Not sure if I should clean it.

Depends on what they are. Have you had your inoculations?

 

[Gervais Cote]

While there are many like them , these are mine for the long haul.........I sold my Sadowsky because I found a Squier jazz that sounded better in the passive mode and a Dean Rhapsody that sounded better in active .......they are mine .

Squier makes complete crap but they also make some extremely well sounding basses. My Squier Afinity jazz is the cheapest bass you can find but it’s a hell of a bass. People don’t believe it but all of the professional musicians that tried it agreed. I declined many offers of buying it………….

 

[GretschWretch]

I built it. I reshaped the headstock, leveled the frets, elevated the nut, did circuit analysis, and then the wiring (there is no other bass on earth with the same circuit), and....this:

View attachment 5247253

Woodchucks and other burrowing creatures must love you.

 

[MisterUbu]

they uh haven't made them in a couple decades. And my #1 has barely any information online about it that hasn't been posted by either me or the previous tb member who owned it lol

 

[Bliff Curton 2]

Yessssss. It's so frustrating to me to listen to sound demos full of buzz. If it's buzzing, it's not right. If every fret isn't even, I don't want to play it.

Right?

I also cant stand demos where its either only slap, or the finger style has the lightest touch and never digs in.
Ive tried a number of basses that sound great in a youtube video with a light touch, but disappoint when I try one and digging in produces noise instead of music.
Thats why I loved my old SR505bm. For as cheap as it was, I recorded and gigged with a lot of approval over the sound because it was designed for aggressive plucking.

 

[ewe2]

Wellll...for example, let me introduce you to Perky. Tribute G&L SB-2 I bought in 2014, he's 12 years old now. When I first got him, he was as advertised, Gloss White, they had just changed the spec from Arctic White. But something began to happen and he was changing:

I've heard of polyurethane colours degrading due to curing errors but usually this is due to UV and that doesn't seem to be the case with Perky. To illustrate, here is Perky today:

You can see the pink colour is more pronounced on his back than the front (note the spot blemish which sticks out even more out of the pink around it), particularly areas that would be in body contact. I suspect this is thermal degradation but I am no expert. I'm wondering if there's a red layer beneath that the white layer is degrading too, only time will tell. But if anything makes a bass mine, this is the sort of thing that would happen. I bought Perky sight unseen, he's my favourite P bass, he's beautifully flawed and I'll never sell him.

 

[JIO]

It's an interesting question. The answer has little to do with its cost - more about how one bonds with an instrument, like developing a relationship. Somewhat personal and hard to pin down. Definitely food for thought.

 

[chadds]

What makes it my bass?
Your girlfriend gave it to me.

 

[Snibborwocky]

Without going into several paragraphs of detailed info, I'd say all the modifications I've done to several of my basses would technically make it "mine". I'm pretty sure there is not another exactly like them in the entire world when it comes to a few of my modded basses.

 

[shadven]

What strings do you have on here? They look smooth and glassy. I’m a flats and tape’s fan but haven’t tried those.

The are Rotosound 77s (it’s actually something like 77LS Jazz Bass strings). Fkatwoylnd, breaking fast and have become my absolute favorite strings.