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What was your first bass guitar?

#3,961
1993 Fender Precision Special “Cowpoke.” I was a guitar player and had never picked up a bass. Was at my local music store, and this was on sale for around $200. Apparently it fell off its hanger during the 1994 Northridge earthquake. It had a tiny crack on the backside. I said that’s the only damage? I’ll take it in a heartbeat! Filled the crack which was maybe 3/4 of an inch with clear epoxy and since it’s white you can barely see it. Love this thing!
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#3,962
Ibanez Axstar. I'd expressed interest for bass (I already played piano) and my father bought it for my 16th birthday.
He got it from a place that rents equipment and then sells it. He got the bass with a Fender Bassman10 combo. (I know the bass had previously been rented to Kid Creole and the Coconuts when they came to Montreal on tour.)
I still own both.
 
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#3,965
Toddcaster64 said:
1993 Fender Precision Special “Cowpoke.” I was a guitar player and had never picked up a bass. Was at my local music store, and this was on sale for around $200. Apparently it fell off its hanger during the 1994 Northridge earthquake. It had a tiny crack on the backside. I said that’s the only damage? I’ll take it in a heartbeat! Filled the crack which was maybe 3/4 of an inch with clear epoxy and since it’s white you can barely see it. Love this thing!View attachment 4228078
Click to expand...

What a steal! Nice.
 
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#3,967
Mine was a white p copy that said "Marina" on the headstock. I bought it used from a store for $100. I paid $50 for down payment, and paid $25 the next two following months.

I don't still have it, I traded it w/ a J copy that I sold later as well.
 
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#3,969
The first bass I ever played and borrowed for an extended period of time was one that a friend of a friend's brother built in woodshop class at school. I remember the bridge was so badly misaligned on it that the g string literally hung off the neck past the 14th fret. It got me started though, so I'll give it that. The first one I actually got for myself was a hofner icon series violin bass. Huge improvement.
 
#3,970
First was an Ibanez SR505. Bought it about 10 years ago. Unfortunately had to sell it. Part of me wants to get another at some point for sentimental reasons, but at the same time, I always hated the brown colour of it so I'll probably just pick up a different 5'er.
 
#3,971
Hop Jam said:
What was your first bass? When did you purchase/receive it and do you still have it?

For me it was a white Peavy Foundation given to me as a Christmas gift from my parents in 1984 or thereabouts. Kept it for about four years before trading it in.
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I got to first bass back at age 13... with a beautiful black maple-necked Harmony P bass copy. I always wondered what happened to that honey of an instrument.
 
#3,972
Hop Jam said:
What was your first bass? When did you purchase/receive it and do you still have it?

For me it was a white Peavy Foundation given to me as a Christmas gift from my parents in 1984 or thereabouts. Kept it for about four years before trading it in.
Click to expand...
Transparent red Gsr200. Bought it for 100 bucks in 2001 with a case, an amp, and a strap. Had it til 2020 when I tried to refret it. Disastrously. Ibanez doesn't sell replacement necks, so I robbed all the hardware, and laid her to rest. She served me very well, for a very long time.
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My son's first bass is the same one too. Only a little smaller.
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#3,973
Mine was a Chevy Jazz. The company later changed their name to Cherry, for obvious reasons.
It was cheap, but playable. Black body, tort guard, rosewood board. I swapped the bridge PU for a DiMarzio.
It went when I bought my first 'real' bass, a Carvin LB75. The Carvin is still with me, but actually up for sale since I have not played it in years (aside from noodling around for a few minutes every other week).
 
#3,974
My first bass was a Kalamazoo kb1 that I traded a 12 string guitar for in 1978. I didn’t play it much and sold it after a few months. Then I joined a band playing guitar for a couple years. Then I quit and joined another band on bass and borrowed a Kingston from my GFs brother. First bass I bought outright was a T40 around 1981.
 
#3,975
Kramer Striker bass, purchased new in 1987, along with a Peavey 115-watt amp. I’d been playing for 10 years, starting in my teen years, but always used borrowed or rented equipment. Modified that bass several times - replaced the original neck (after the truss Rod broke through at the 3rd fret) with a Fender Precision neck; replaced the stock pickups with EMG’s with a preamp, turning a passive bass into an active one and noticeably improving the sound. Finally traded it and an Ibanez Roadstar II for my first truly active bass, an Ibanez SR400.
 
#3,980
Mine was a 78 Rick 4001 - bought new in 1978. Had it about 4 years - when I bought a fretless Kramer with an aluminum neck, I was floored by how much more sustain the Kramer had. So I sold the Rick and bought a fretted Kramer. That was -(aside from a lot of weight and neck dive) a superb instrument.
 

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