I know, I know, plenty of you will say it's ALWAYS been important but I don't remember it being so high up on the priority list, or one of the first questions in a NBD post. I've been flipping local deals online for a while and don't remember being asked this until fairly recently. I have a beautiful 2000 EBMM StingRay 5 H on Reverb and the only question I've had, buy several different people no less, is what's the weight? It's a StingRay, it's heavy! (11 lbs 3 oz if you're curious) Someone on Facebook was asking if Sadowsky made anything under 6.5 lbs. I had a Hagstom Super Swede that was 7 lbs even, it felt like a toy. Maybe I've never picked up on it, it just seems like a weirdly recent phenomenon.
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When did weight become the top priority in a bass?
- Thread starter melarson
- Start date
When the average age of bassists became over 50 (at least on this forum).
I do not care about weight. However, I am still young enough that my back and shoulder do not care. I may care one day.
I do not care about weight. However, I am still young enough that my back and shoulder do not care. I may care one day.
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Get old(er).
It will come to you.
At 67, I can handle a bass up to right at 10 lbs.
Not caring about the weight of a bass is fine. Why it has to be displayed as though it’s a badge of honor be like, whatever, dude.
There’s plenty of Motrin for all of us, now and later…..
It will come to you.
At 67, I can handle a bass up to right at 10 lbs.
Not caring about the weight of a bass is fine. Why it has to be displayed as though it’s a badge of honor be like, whatever, dude.
There’s plenty of Motrin for all of us, now and later…..
I never thought about it until people started bring it up here. I do sympathize with people that have bad backs, I have episodes myself. Heck, I have people at my day job that complain about having to carry anything heavier than a tablet. Playing a bass would kill them 
At 63 I can happily gig my heavier (10 to 11 lbs) basses as long as I use a wide soft strap and maintain a balanced posture. If I stand too much on one leg or don't use the correct strap length, aches and pains will set in pretty quickly. Never gave it a second thought until my 50's.
It's only maybe the last 10 years that it has become more of a thing. I think before, most people didn't think about. Most instruments were heavy, and it was just taken as a given. Now we have options, and people that have experienced how great it is to play with a well balanced and lightweight bass won't go back.
If you have a bad back, or shoulder problems, it's a life saver. Even if you don't, but spend hours standing at band practice, it makes a huge difference.
I see heavy basses and guitars as another "traditional" thing that needs to die. Tonewoods are a myth on electric instruments. Unfortunately, people buying guitars love traditional designs, no matter how inferior they are. For example, Fender's bent plate bridges. They're are a pain to change strings, and about as cheap as can be, and yet they're found on $2,000 basses. Same goes for the giant heavy steel tuners, that weigh down the headstock making the bass balance poorly. We know better!
A heavy bass is something that can be easily avoided, so people that know it's a problem for them are going to ask. More people are asking now simply because more people know there's another option.
If you have a bad back, or shoulder problems, it's a life saver. Even if you don't, but spend hours standing at band practice, it makes a huge difference.
I see heavy basses and guitars as another "traditional" thing that needs to die. Tonewoods are a myth on electric instruments. Unfortunately, people buying guitars love traditional designs, no matter how inferior they are. For example, Fender's bent plate bridges. They're are a pain to change strings, and about as cheap as can be, and yet they're found on $2,000 basses. Same goes for the giant heavy steel tuners, that weigh down the headstock making the bass balance poorly. We know better!
A heavy bass is something that can be easily avoided, so people that know it's a problem for them are going to ask. More people are asking now simply because more people know there's another option.
I’m 60, have a bad back, bad shoulder, bad elbow…and I absolutely do not care about the weight of a bass or guitar. My 1990 Les Paul standard is just a couple ounces under 11 pounds, and I love playing it, sometimes for two or more hours.
When my age and previous medical hx finally caught-up with me. I recently bought two expensive lightweight basses for this very reason.
Riis
Riis
It's always been an issue for me from when I started playing back in the 70's. Never liked a heavy bass.
I played a heavy Fender P as my only gigging bass from the mid-eighties to the mid-nineties and never noticed the weight. Now all I have to do is pick it up to notice the weight. It's the indignities of age; I feel the cold more deeply now that I did then, as well.
When lots of people got fat and lazy and stopped taking care of themselves.
When I discovered heavier doesn't sound better and I started using double gig bags. Plus, I already have a few really heavy ones. I don't want more.
I found myself when age over 40. All the basses i own currently weight < 9lbs or 9lbs sharp.
Meanwhile few basses need swap with lighter machine head to solve neck dive issue too. Heavy neck also bring trouble to my shoulder even the bass light enough for me.
“When did weight become the top priority in a bass?”
Around the same time folks starting debating active/passive basses, 4-string vs 5-strings, flats vs rounds, expensive vs cheap…..
And on and on…..
Around the same time folks starting debating active/passive basses, 4-string vs 5-strings, flats vs rounds, expensive vs cheap…..
And on and on…..
Wait til you're 75, then you'll be asking what's the weight.
I don’t know, however I do prefer a lighter bass. None of my basses now are much over 8.5 pounds. I had a squier classic vibe 50’s precision that weighed in at 10 lbs and let me tell you that was awful. I was in a band playing 3 hour cover gigs, and with that bass I struggled to get through even an hour of playing, thankfully I had my trusty P bass that weighs 7.5 lbs near.
Well, I've hit the age where many have said it starts to matter (50), but a super light bass fells weird to me. My playing outside of the house is at church, so 15 minutes at a time, 3 times a Sunday. It doesn't have a lot of time to weigh me down, but I can see where it could on a legit gig. What are people finding that is in the "light" category? Everything I've got is 9 lbs +
I get what you're saying, but I've never picked up on a weight "debate" at all and only recently have I noticed it's something that's asked about. I've been a lurker here for quite a while, but very casually.
One could argue that the biggest issue with weight is some people having a problem with weight being one of the factors in other people's criteria for selecting a bass.
I have an L-2500 that's close to 11 pounds and my Big All is over 10 pounds, so I can deal with a heavier bass. But I've never felt a need to spend time wondering why any factor in someone else's decision for selecting a bass, whether it's weight, color, number of strings, type of strings, etc., etc... matters to them. It just does.
I have an L-2500 that's close to 11 pounds and my Big All is over 10 pounds, so I can deal with a heavier bass. But I've never felt a need to spend time wondering why any factor in someone else's decision for selecting a bass, whether it's weight, color, number of strings, type of strings, etc., etc... matters to them. It just does.
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