When is your bass "good enough"?

[twinjet]

Hello TB,

A question regarding modifications. Most of us enjoy making our basses our own, whether it's a neck swap or preamp install. Some of us only want one or two things done, some go the whole nine yards and completely renovate their instrument.

What does it take for you to be happy with your bass? Is it tone, playability or aesthetics? Share and explain your bass mods here.

 

[two fingers]

1) Playability. If it plays like crap I won't play like me.
2) Tone. Easy enough to "fix" in most cases. But these days even some really inexpensive basses sound just fine.
3) Reliability. I gotta be able to know that when I turn the tuners they will both turn and stay in place. Same goes for pots, bridge adjustments, etc.

Other than that I can make whatever work.

 

[theduke1]

My G&L s are modified passive with full coil tapping and tape wound strings.
I have been playing G&L since 1986. The fit & finish are excellent. I've never been a effects guy and found Genz Benz to be my amps of choice. They are set mostly flat so what I hear is just my bass and what it sounds like.
But a bass must feel good in my hands the first time I pick it up. When they don't I never go any further with that bass.
And while I have played many fine basses they are not my G&Ls.
I hope I made some sense cause it sounded good in my head.
Duke

 

[Matthew_84]

Firstly, I buy basses with stable necks (multi-laminates/reinforcement bars) that are relatively thin and have a flatter fretboard radius, with the right number of strings to meet the tuning I am looking for.

It is then good enough if:
- the frets are level and I can get low action, cleanly
- I can solo any pickup without any hum

Depending on the bass, there may be extra requirements, such as passive electronics, series/parallel wiring, coil tapping, etc, but these are extra... Good enough is accomplished by the list above.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

I don't do "good enough". It pleases me or it doesn't. Good enough sounds like it barely please so I know I won't be satisfied ... I put more money toward something that I want more instead of going with the less expense be "good enough"

The price must be right for my perceived value of the thing, the shape must please me, number of strings, easy to play, little details like no fret will one day sprout on the edge of the neck,

 

[Michael B]

MIM P Bass. Changed to the 62 pickups, Tusq graphite nut and a Badass II. For me that is much better and good enough. Thought about doing the tuners, hipshot or locking but it doesn't need it so I'm not going to bother.

 

[BassChuck]

Stays in tune.
Has variety of tone.
Nothing to keep me from playing as well as I can (dead spots, neck dive, uncomfortable to hold, poor action)

If my playing improves, I might need to reassess the 3rd one.

 

[Bill Whitehurst]

When it plays well and gives me the sound I am looking for.

 

[NoiseNinja]

I would say playability is the most imporatant factor of weather I am satisfied with my instrument.

In that ragard my Ibanez Mikro fits the bill perfectly.

Personally I like to customize my instruments so they fit me visually as well.

In regards of tone it is important that the tone of the instrument is somewhat in the ball park of what I am looking for too.

In that regard my Mikro comes close enough for it definitely fitting the category "good enough", though I'd like to swap the pickups at some point to get even closer for what I am looking for.

 

[MalcolmAmos]

When is it time to replace? When it does not do what I ask of it. When to replace is really a matter of want and not need. At my skill level any starter bass does what I ask of it. If you like to tinker, tinker away.

Yep I made one of those, and yes it was up graded right away. If you know of anyone that needs a number 3 wash tub with a hole in it let me know.

It was a fun project...

 

[Bunk McNulty]

My Skyline 44-64 Custom is just perfect. Now if I could just get it with a maple fingerboard...

 

[brianrost]

1) Playability.
2) Tone.
3) Reliability.

That says it all for me, too.

 

[sotua]

When it sounds like I want it to sound with minimal effort (both playing and fiddling with settings effort)

 

[shawshank72]

Playability always first!
If it dosent sound right I can fix that.
I just put this parts bass together because the neck was fantastic.
I went the 9 yards because I was bored and the body was empty.
EMG Geezers w/ wiring.
Fender high mass bridge.
Pickguard.
Misc. hardware.
Flats.

 

[DwaynieAD]

case by case basis.

 

[bassbully]

I'm always seeking vintage tones. I have owned mid 70's and up Fender's and got the sound I was looking for pretty much but hated paying the prices to get it.

So one day in a local shop a lowly abused E series Squier P bass was hanging there for $75.00. It needed a setup and strings bad but the neck was great and even in its abused shape sounded great so it was rescued by me.
So I got to work and added a set of SD Antiquity II pups which cost almost double the price of the bass. I added Fender vintage reissue MIA bridge, Fender Gold anodized pickguard, CTS pots, switchcraft jack, orange drop cap and a good ol' broke in set of chromes flats.
I even added a water slide decal I had made here by a TBer on the headstock of my last name, which sounds very much like a famous bass builder who's basses bear his last name ending in Sky. After reworking the neck and aiding the natural relicing it already had it was done.
This bass plays as well if not better then any fender I have ever owned. It sounds amazing with a great old school tone and thumps like a mother. Including the price of the bass I have about $300.00 total in it and it would be lucky to get half that amount if sold used. I have no plans of selling this bass. In fact its my only bass I own today.
I was in the market for a Fender roadworn before I got this one but thru my hands I built one myself, which to me stands above the rest.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Three things. Tone, feel, look. The order of precedence depends on when you ask.

 

[FrenchBassQC]

Playability always first!
If it dosent sound right I can fix that.
I just put this parts bass together because the neck was fantastic.
I went the 9 yards because I was bored and the body was empty.
EMG Geezers w/ wiring.
Fender high mass bridge.
Pickguard.
Misc. hardware.
Flats.
View attachment 900517

That looks awesome, sounds like you have found your good enough bass...

 

[micguy]

All of my basses are, when I step on stage, good enough - They're "in the window" enough that I don't think about the gear, the setup, etc - I just play.

Looked at another way, though, I'm always messing around with one experiment or another (would this look better with black hardware? Would it sound better with an abc pickup or xyz strings?). In that sense, they'll be good enough...when I die.

Actually, part of the point of all the messing around is to convince myself that the instrument I'm playing is the best it can be, so that I can just play.

I played a gig with a string quartet recently, and the cellist had an instrument that cost..as much as a house. Although I think cello is a wonderful instrument, I'd hate to own something 300 years old that (in addition to having a mortgage on the thing) you can't unbolt parts and experiment with.

 

[Malak the Mad]

If you like to tinker, tinker away.

The urge to tinker can be a bit of a curse. Nowadays, when I see an instrument, I immediately start wondering what can be done to "improve" it. "Improvement" may be something visual or perhaps electronic, depending on what passes before me.

Case in point; my local Guitar Center has a used, first-generation Fender Modern Player Jazz. Within seconds of laying eyes upon it, my thoughts immediately ran to, "With a little bit of routing, I could install a pair of Music Man pups, or maybe even a set of those super-slick, Seymour Duncan NYC Bass pickups!" Fortunately, I was able to resist the urge to have a ladder brought over and start inspecting it.

For me, it ultimately comes down to finding that elusive middle-ground that's better than "good enough", but as close as possible to "awesome". The slippery slope is in trying to get so close to "awesome" you end up overshooting it and somehow ending up with a "hot mess". My first parts-bass project evolved into something that was a little too bling-y and turned out to be a bit tacky for my taste. Fortunately, it was an excellent learning experience and has since informed my follow-up project in many, invaluable ways.

To all my fellow tinkerers; "Tastefulness" and "restraint" are just as important tools as "creativity" and "imagination"!