What was your first bass guitar?

[pbass64]

Gibson Ripper. First real bass I had. Paid $670 Canadian for it. Wish I still had that axe today.View attachment 3041515

Bought it in 1976.

 

[TolerancEJ]

My first one was a Vantage Flying V bass. While I realize it had its limitations, I still respect that it was the first one I used to develop my fundamentals. I do not have this bass anymore.

I suppose my 1992 Ibanez SR885 was the first good player and others complimented me on the sound & my playing. I still own this bass and I will never sell it.

After moving from East Coast of Canada to the West Coast, I had a huge gap in playing music. When I finally decided to get back into it, the first main bass I bought was a Warwick Thumb BO 6.

 

[pbass64]

My first one was a Vantage Flying V bass. While I realize it had its limitations, I still respect that it was the first one I used to develop my fundamentals. I do not have this bass anymore.

I suppose my 1992 Ibanez SR885 was the first good player and others complimented me on the sound & my playing. I still own this bass and I will never sell it.

After moving from East Coast of Canada to the West Coast, I had a huge gap in playing music. When I finally decided to get back into it, the first main bass I bought was a Warwick Thumb BO 6.

 

[PaulJSmith]

My first bass was a Lotus P-bass I bought with grass cutting money the summer of '82 (along with a Marlboro 220B combo amp). Played it for a few years until a friend saw a Ric 4001 jetglo in a local pawn shop. My dream bass, I bought it the next day. I'd always considered that Ric my first "real" bass. A few years ago, though, I started looking around for another Lotus, just for fun, as I'd traded mine for the Ric. Found a couple of them, but they were now going for $800+. It seems they have been found to be pretty good basses after all. Wish I still had it.

 

[toprekoms]

My first bass was a '58 Fender P-Bass that had been painted with a brush. It wasn't until I took it apart and saw 8/58 in the neck cavity that I knew what I had. But I was 14 years old and didn't know well enough to keep it. Bummer.

 

[PawleeP]

Squier Vintage Modified J was my first and I modified it many times until there was nothing left of it except the body (truss rod blew through the fingerboard at first fret and it also developed a hump near the heel). I tried several different shapes sizes and styles over the years. Now I have four Fender spec Warmoths. I tend to play the J's equally at home and the P gets the most playing time away from home.

Here is a picture of the Squier, fully modified before I sold it and the triple J Warmoth that most resembles it vs the other three in my current lineup.

View attachment 705898

View attachment 705900

do you have a wiring diagram for the modified top one?

 

[Admiral Thrawn]

So I started on a Samick bass that was utter trash.

While in high school jazz band, I got to play the school's MIM Jazz Bass. That was a lot more fun than the Samick.

During the summer between junior and senior year, I bought a Rickenbacker 4003, but the neck was so bowed, no amount of truss rod adjustment could straighten it out enough to be playable, so I returned it and got a Warwick, but didn't like the sound, returned that one, and then got a StingRay.

That was in 1999. I've been playing a StingRay ever since (switched to a StingRay 5 in 2005) and haven't looked back.

Though I will be adding a Rickenbacker 4003S/5 to the 'Ray this winter.

 

[Big Hoss]

First bass, 1984 Ibanez Roadstar 2 PJ copyish...

Current main bass, SX Ursa 1 RN 3TS.

 

[Beersurgeon]

First bass, Ibanez gio start up package. Now, g&l l2500 tribby.

 

[Watchootognbout]

Update on post#44.
My first bass was a "Walnut"pre-Ernie Ball '79 MusicMan Sabre with a maple fingerboard.

39 years later......
These two are my two now.

 

[Smith357]

Back in the early 80s my first was a used Ovation Magnum, 35 years later a medium scale Squire VM Telecaster and Ibanez Talman lay down the low notes.

 

[MMiller28]

2002 - Squier Affinity Precision
2019 - MTD 635

 

[jd56hawk]

Started learning on this. Wouldn't mind finding another one.
This is my number one.
Definitely have to find another.

 

[devnulljp]

First that was actually mine was a Tokai I bought on hire purchase/rent to own some time in the mid 80s -- before that I had a few loaners ... some unnamed Japanese thing and a Peavey T40.
Current #1 is a 62 PBass with #1.5 being a modded 72 with a J in the bridge.
But I mostly play out on the Shen Upright.

Tokai was like this one, but it's long gone

62P in front and 72 behind it at a gig

But like I said, the Shen is my bread and butter

 

[vickerekes]

My first bass, and still my main bass after several decades of epic sessions and great memories, is a ’62 Fender Bass VI bought from roommate for $250 while in college as a theory/comp major in ‘75. The ‘antique’ is my forearm wearing through the sunburst layers over 40+ years.

Original pickups, a drop-in Dan Armstrong hotwire for series/parallel, a drop-in Staytrem bridge, had the neck re-planed once and a couple of re-frets.

Still playing this one 6-10 hours a week. I want to be Pablo Casals “…when Casals (then aged 93) was asked why he continued to practice the cello three hours a day, Casals replied, "I'm beginning to notice some improvement...".

 

[CallMeAl]

I started on an Ibanez soundgear. Don’t remember the model, but it was cheap and felt great.

these days I’m playing a P bass with a J neck. I’ve come to appreciate the simplicity of the Precision pickup, but that tight string spacing is burned into my muscle memory!

 

[chris_b]

I started out in August 1965 on a Framus small body Star Bass and have been playing a Sadowsky Metro RV5 Jazz for the last 3 years.

I've noticed that my playing style is still based around the lines I learnt on that Framus, but I get a much better sound these days.

 

[Hugo Rune]

An Avon EBO copy in '78 that I got from a catalogue. Horrible. Truly horrible. My first proper bass not made by uncaring neanderthals out of plywood and tin was a Shergold Marathon in black. Lovely bass. I would definitely have one again.
I've just switched to short scale and am using a JMJ Mustang. Loads of fun to play and I'm enjoying the old school sound. My P Bass lurking in the corner refuses to be forgotten though.

 

[Staccato]

MIM P Bass.

Gravitated to J style sound. Never should gave sold that MIM.

 

[mongo2]

First instrument I used for bass lines was a Telecaster guitar. I later used a lot of different basses.

Starting about a decade or so ago up until July 4, 2018 I was mostly using my '60s Silvertone Model 1444 and Hofner Ignition Club.

On that date I suffered a minor stroke which messed with my right side and caused some considerable difficulty playing bass but I was lucky enough to be able to continue playing and kept the gig schedule with a lot of practice to start re-teaching my right hand how to play and other adjustments.

One of those adjustments was to find or develop an instrument that was more appropriate to my condition which was itself changing and still is. I'm an engineer/tinkerer and found that no available instrument quite worked and I couldn't afford a custom bass, so I used parts from my previous tinkering to cobble together a few attempts at a more suitable bass for me.

As a result of that very tedious tinkering I now use a my combination of an Ibanez Mikro neck with light guitar tuners cobbled to a Squier Bronco body with a Mikro bridge, Mustang control plate and no name dual rail humbucking pickup for a Strat. It's light at 5 lbs 6 oz, fits me pretty well, plays easily and sounds surprisingly good.

I've gigged with it for the last month, it's working out well enough and I feel extremely lucky.