What was your first bass guitar?

[UpperBout]

Yeah, add me to the Peavey T-40 Starter Bass fan club. I don't know how heavy that bass was, but my shoulder still hurts, 20 years later.

I was listening to some old band tapes, and discovered two things:
1) Tone is in your fingers (tapes of me playing later boutique-style basses sounds nearly indistinguishable from my earlier T-40 recordings)
2) Although I had contempt for it at the time, the T-40 was a very good-sounding and versatile instrument

I'm occasionally tempted to buy one back when I run into them in the music stores. Then I pick one up... maybe if we filled it with helium.

Used Peavey T-40. 17 pounds of sheer awesome

T-40, one of the "Patent Applied For" models with the original RECTANGULAR case. Bought it new when they first came out.

X8

 

[Zeke3elevn]

Washburn Lyon ftw! Sunburst!

 

[Hifiguy]

Fender Precision - sunburst/maple. Bought new in July 1972. It must have been a '71 or '72. Probably cost around $250. Traded it in on a cosmetically-dinged Jazz a couple months later because the J fit my hands better than the P.

 

[JdoubleH]

I got a Lyle Hollow Body around 1965. Here's a pic I pulled off the internet.

View attachment 210994

Beautiful. Looks a bit like the one in my avatar which I learned to play on. It is a 60's Yamaha, and he still has it. The first one he bought me was a 60's EB3 with severe scoliosis. There were no more threads on the truss rod to pull it straignt. Being a set neck, shiming was out. I replaced the bridge with an early Badass, which helped bring the string height at the 12th fret down to maybe just under an inch. The super high action built hand strength quick, though.

 

[klejst]

My first bass was a Squier P-Bass Special which after about four months of use I accidentally dropped it and the headstock snapped off. I then later bought a used '98 Fender Precision Standard which I still use to this day.

 

[Thornton Davis]

This is me with my first real bass back in 1967. Before this I was playing bass on my electric solid body guitar with the high B and E strings removed and the EADG strings repositioned for equal spacing.

The same bass today after its restoration.

TD

 

[sd5]

Thank you VERY much, Mom & Dad! It was a brand spankin' new mid 70's Rickenbacker 4001. As much as I love the Precision Special I traded it for, getting rid of it in the early 80's is way up high on my 'Stupidest Things I've Ever Done' list.

 

[TC424]

Mine was from the JCPenney catalog. A Harmony Marquis. The action was probably a full inch high at the twelth fret. Two years later I bought a 74 Rick 4001 for $250.00 in 1985. I still have the Rick.

 

[PJMiDi]

Ibanez GSR200fm, still have it. Though now its defretted and gets modded a lot.

 

[ProfGumby]

My first bass was a well used "Cortez" P bass copy with the ashtrays and a lipstick pickup. Not a bad bass once I got the neck straightened and had the bass set up.

I traded it for my New T 40 in the early 80's. Don't really miss the Cortez but I do miss the T 40...

 

[LuckyBassPlayer]

My first bass is an '08 Stagg BC-300. Decent sound and neck, useless action though. I still own it.

 

[Shinyflavors7]

My first real bass was an '09 American P-deluxe, and I'm still in love with it. I had a SG300, but I don't really count It I don't know why. I guess I didn't really love playing a bass until started playing the Fender.

 

[Flintc]

Killer B 5-string.

 

[frank0stein2000]

As musicians, we all reminisce about our first instrument. Mine was an all black precision style bass from the brand "Memphis". I got it from a pawn shop at age 16. It was a lesser quality bass, but it held up well and sounded good. I wish I still had it for nostalgic sake...

 

[Ric5]

My first bass was a 6 string guitar with fat flat wound strings and the B and E strings not installed.

My first real bass was a Hofner copy.

My first really good bass was a 60s Rickenbacker 4001.

 

[beebassdude]

yamaha BBN-4 in dark walnut.

to this day i still wish i had this bass. i used to slap so hard on it and dig my fingers into the wood it had two huge canoe holes underneath the strings.

 

[ModulusQ5-122]

Karrera pawn shop special

 

[iamthebassman]

A righty Kay EB-O copy, played upside-down.

 

[Goatee220]

First bass was a red Hondo that was given to me. Then I traded an acoustic guitar I had for an Ibanez Roadstar II. Traded that in when I got my '92 Fender Precision Plus. Still have it.

 

[snyderz]

Harmony P boat anchor.