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What's the most sturdy, reliable bass?

Atshen

Atshen

Mar 13, 2003
5,089
4,491
51
Grim Cold Québec
#1
What, in your opinion, are some of the most sturdy and reliable basses on the market? Basses with necks that won't warp and electronics that won't die mysteriously?

To put it differently, if you had to go on tour but could bring only one bass, what would it be?
 
#2
the ombudsman said:
What, in your opinion, are some of the most sturdy and reliable basses on the market? Basses with necks that won't warp and electronics that won't die mysteriously?

To put it differently, if you had to go on tour but could bring only one bass, what would it be?
Click to expand...

Considering the longevity of the Fender P-bass design and the fact that so many of the old ones are still in service, the answer is obvious. Its simplicity contributes to its reliability.
 
#3
I don't know about other brands but I can vouche for Fenders. I have a usa deluxe jazz and on more than several occasions I, like any legitimate rockstar, practiced whipping it around my body and all that, sending my bass on a 20 foot journey onto the concrete. Except for a minor ding on the headstock everything was perfect. Fenders are tanks, but make sure your straplocks are equally as good!
 
#5
About a year or so ago, I started a thread about basses that could take a beating and still keep playing; even playing well.

The bass that got mentioned the most as the sturdiest bass that could survive major abuse and still play well was the MusicMan Stingray.
 
#9
FWIW, My MIM Jazz bass (decked out) has been dropped, consistently left in the car (hot, humid San Antonio weather) and has been generally abused by me....

This bass holds tune and sounds like a million bucks. This neck hasn't warped YET! :D This bass has made me a lot of money.

Once my JO 5 string Lakland USA is finished being built, I won't abuse it, that's for sure....
 
#11
the ombudsman said:
To put it differently, if you had to go on tour but could bring only one bass, what would it be?
Click to expand...

if I had to choose one that would do the job, take a beating, sound good and rely on it not to get ill... Fender P-Bass

i've had mine for 13 years now, it's been played a lot and it hasn't needed so much as a truss-rod tweak or an action adjustment... put it this way, it'd probably survive a full scale rock n roll tour better than me :)
 
#14
My Ibanez SR405 has been dropped three times down stairs(twice by my mom, the other by this guy who plays guitar and was walking around without a strap on trying to play it, and it sortof fell out of his hands) and it has no dings on it. Solid bass, got it defretted recently, and apart from a minor tune-up since then has been perfect.
 
#17
Fury's. Extremely high grade maple bodies and necks. Out of nearly 12,000 instruments built only 1 has come back with a neck problem (in 1972). Huge high mass trussrods and extremely heavy duty hardware keep everything where it should be. Passive electronics with really really high quality components and top notch soldering and shielding mean that electronic problems just don't happen. I've always brought a backup bass on tour. I've never once needed it after 5 years.

Both2.jpg
 

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