When you upgrade, what do you expect?

[Groove Doctor]

My first few basses after my beginner PJ Copy were:

Ibanez Musician Fretless
Squier JV Jazz
Tobias Classic 5.

There is no ‘upgrade’ after owning those basses, just lighter weight.

 

[fhm555]

Early on in my restart with bass I kept a stack of basses and constantly pitted one against another in a head cutting search for the bass that would take me to the next level. I had access to a trove of all kinds of basses and had a very good relationship with the owner of that stash so i was always trying, buying, comparing, and offing those basses that failed to exceed whichever bass I was currently liking best. One day I realized the pile was growing rather than shrinking but I was still convinced if I kept looking i’d find my unicorn. A couple years into that search I happened to try a new model Fender Jazz bass and within a few minutes of playing it at the shop i was amazed at how it felt and sounded. I was changing jobs and moving to a different state so I decided to wait until I got moved before buying one. When I got one it took less than a day to know I’d found what I was looking for and shortly after that i cleaned out the stack and only had one bass. A few weeks later I ran across a 410XL and 350W head and after trying it with my new bass, took it home as well, but didn’t off my amps like I did basses. Over 30 years later I’ve changed amps to something easier for me to wrangle and branched out to fooling with MIM standard jazz basses but still have the bass that prompted me to whittle down to one.
It was not the magic pill that made me better but it is still the easiest neck i’ve ever played and has an amazing range of sounds in a simple two double stacked knobs and a four way selector switch control group. I’m a better player now than when I got it but that mostly came from ten years of 3~5 nights a week playing out and regular rehearsals. The gear was just a happy accident that put icing on the cake.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

I am at peace with being an eternal gearhead who will always run into another cool bass I’d love to have. As I get older, I do think I have become more clear eyed. When I was young, I loved features like two octave necks with zero appreciation of the skills needed to actually benefit from extended range. For years, I mainly played five string basses with fairly narrow string spacing, but hearing people on TB convinced me of the need for wide spacing. I find I can do both comfortably, but both profiles require adjustments in technique.

At this point, I think I have a well established approach to the bass, and I do not think a change in bass will change what I do unless I have a corresponding breakthrough in skills. Of course, if I have a breakthrough in skills, I can change what I do on what I already have.

I think back to stories I read about Stanley Clarke that he really began to sound like Stanley Clarke once he got an Alembic. What I tended to overlook was that on early albums, like RTF’s Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, Stanley Clarke already had those crazy chops, his tone just was not as clear as it would be with the Alembic. I guess I am saying that I have no shame in lust for gear and my endless quest for perfect tone and playability, but I accept that skill is about what I know and can actually perform, not what I physically own.

I buy parts, and make what I want.

Amps and cabs are my weakness. Pokemon. Gotta catch'em all.

Never had any long standing luck with pedals. But, I keep trying them here and there regardless. And then get rid of them shortly after, when they never get plugged in.

Strings...I am done with strings. There are two kinds of strings I like in existence, Elixir nickels and Fender flats. I will never try another set of anything other than those two...ever. well, unless elixir goes out of business. Then Boomers make a fairly close second.

As far as sounding like other bass players, my fingers do that.

I just like new/different. My wants have absolutely nothing to do with anything, except that I want to play something, or through something, new/different.

 

[Doctor Morbius]

What do I expect? A lighter wallet. I'm not to the point where I can take advantage of nicer gear.

 

[BlueTalon]

It has been a long time since I truly took a shot in the dark at gear too.

As I think about it, I have taken a shot in the dark at a lot of gear, with about a 70-80% hit rate.

Hits:
Fender Super 55 split coil jazz pickups
Warmoth Bubinga neck & wenge fretboard
Turnstyle Switch
Maruszczyk Frog
GK MB500 Fusion
GB Streamliner 900
everything by Phil Jones
Squier Pete Wentz model jazz

Misses:
Rickenbacker 4003 with a fat neck
SX fretless jazz

 

[lomo]

When I "upgrade" a bass I have zero expectations of objectively better tone or better playing. My internal rationalization generally has more to do with "different". Inspiration is often emotional, not logical. The fresh side of the pillow feels good. That is all

 

[CallMeAl]

Whether it’s a bump in quality, or a lateral move (different specs, same quality) i think it boils down to this:

To stop thinking about and fiddling with the gear, and just think about the music.

 

[alack]

I don’t think I ever truly “upgraded.” I started on a mid 70’s maple neck P and, as you can see from my profile pic, circled back around to a similar bass after dozens of parallel moves. Fenders, Rickenbackers, Musicmans, an Ibanez 5, a Peavey Foundation, a Lakland, a few Fender style parts basses and a pair of Kramers. All production basses of similar values and quality.

My current stable consists of two CBS era Fenders, a Hamer 2TEK Cruise, and three Squiers. I recently test drove a Fodera and a Roscoe. But regardless of the instrument in hand, I always sound like me. I didn’t notice a playability difference that warranted such a large investment.

I’m now solely focused on playing the music I choose to or am asked to play the best I can on the basses I have.

 

[truand85]

I get bored easily so it's nice to have variety and switch it up, sparks the interest again and gets me playing more. Ultimately I think I'd be satisfied with maybe half a dozen eclectic basses, but I do like to try new things...

 

[Watchootognbout]

I upgrade a bass to alleviate an ascetic or sonic shortfall.

 

[Fernando Costa]

but I accept that skill is about what I know and can actually perform, not what I physically own.

I agree, but... Any job can be done in any way or with any tools, but... I believe it will always be better done with better tools. Anyway, who doesn't know how to do the job no matter what tool they use, it's going to be a poor job.

Can't "what I know and can actually perform" improve simply because of a better tool?

 

[God's Favorite Bass]

Right now, as much as it shames me to say it...I'm upgrading me. After 30 plus years playing, most of which in bands, I'm finally learning to read. So here I am at this stage taking lessons for the first time. I've never been able to write down what I write?!? Just record it and pass it to bandmates.
I've got all the decent gear I could ever need and more but I'm illiterate musically so I'm upgrading my head. It's paying off but it's frustrating too.

 

[egroeg]

To me upgrade means replace. Otherwise it's just getting another one.
If I upgrade I expect to like it more than what it replaced.
The list of reasons why I might just get another one is long.
My upgrade was to replace a MIM 70s Jazz and a G&L Tribute JB with a Fender American Pro II. I absolutely like this more than what it replaced, not close. This with the Hartke 500HD I got at pretty much the same time give me the sound that's in my head. To me that was mind blowing.
I also have an Ibanez SR 800le that I bought "just because". Love this too. Be a pretty high bar to upgrade this one.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I agree, but... Any job can be done in any way or with any tools, but... I believe it will always be better done with better tools. Anyway, who doesn't know how to do the job no matter what tool they use, it's going to be a poor job.

Can't "what I know and can actually perform" improve simply because of a better tool?

Of course it can.

 

[bucephylus]

Dr. C, my man, I'm on the other side of that hill going back down. He began to speak . . . .

For years, I chased . . . . BETTER . . . . and whatever I thought that was. I thought it was Yamahas instead of Fenders. I thought it was a preamp/rack rig instead of my Peavey stack. I thought it was Alembics, and I had two five-strings, one even custom-built for me to my ideas.

Then two funny things happened.

First. When I had the Alembics, I quit looking at any other basses, as quite obviously, everything ELSE I looked at lacked this or that alongside them. I was (and still am) utterly and completely sure that those were the best built basses this crazy white man will ever own, and the best tone I will ever hear. In other words, I had tracked down BETTER like a big game tracker or heat-seeking missile, found it, owned it, there was no MORE BETTER to be had. Done, dead, and buried. Game Over.

Suddenly, in a way, I felt like the dog chasing the car that actually caught it. Now, what do I do ?

As always, however, life has a way of humbling the foolishly arrogant. The hammer ALWAYS swings back.

My wife had what turned into unsuccessful back surgery, she went into partial disability, and we lost her income as she was through working. My precious wife comes first, and to keep us afloat with the sudden change in income(s), I sold both Alembics. I have no complaints, it paid our mortgage and more for six months and we got everything re-arranged and squared away, and Thank God I still had them to use for that. I broke even or maybe a little better, so I owned both essentially for free. Can't Beat That. So . . . .

Second. I replaced Alembics with Squiers, and I'm happy as a clam. The Alembics were somehow very formal and I could never relax around them, and the Squiers are like my favorite pair of old Wranglers. And ultimately I found out I still sound like ME. Granted, I sounded like a little better me on the Alembics, but I enjoy these little 'cheap basses' as much as any basses I've ever owned, and somehow they just suit me these days.

There's more to playing than just hardware, and I've proven it to myself, that it's head, heart, and hands. After that, just find something you like that's solid buildwise and sounds good to you. THAT part is, I've found, just not price dependent. Believe me, I could stink on an Alembic just as easily as the Squiers !

. . . . then he finished his cigarette and coffee, and walked out into the night.

Amen on several points, and well said all around.

On the topic of Alembic and Stanley Clarke, many bass players at the time were entirely captivated by Mr. Clarke’s incredible bass guitar playing. This is the show I first saw, and I remain amazed by what I hear to this day.


But, as you have also keenly related, time and experiences bring different perspectives. I still consider Ron Wickersham’s Series preamp to be the most finely engineered bass guitar preamp. But, many other preamps, onboard and outboard, have since filled the void, such that many great options are available.

And, more importantly, experience teaches what kinds gigs are available and what bass guitar tones fit best. Most club gigs require knowledge and skill first, and then something somewhere in the “Fender-ish” tone universe; which is thankfully accessible to most.

Hug that wife; best friends are forever.

 

[bassliner50]

After upgrading, I expected more and better gigs, recognition. So far nada.

 

[Thumpin6string]

After I designed and built my 6 string, for me there is no upgrade. It's my forever bass. If I hadn't, the only basses I would have considered to be an upgrade were an Fbass, a Roscoe, or a Smith.

 

[Relsom]

Aside from upgrading pickups or replacing strap buttons with Dunlops, my favored upgrade might seem as a downgrade to some...... I prefer the 9v Kubicki preamp that came on the FCS era ExFactor and Fender Jazz Plus over the "better" 18v package that came on the Philbuilt ones. Simpler, more intuitive, and inherently better sounding to my ears.

 

[Ggaa]

Upgrade now might be weight, but that's not a problem. Better to upgrade me than my basses.

 

[Discount Bassy]

I'm quicker to work on upgrading my skills than to purchase something else, unless there is some sort of mechanical compromise related inherent in the equipment, such as a limitation on my ability to perform a setup appropriate to the technique in question. If the upgrade IS skills, I expect to know more than I did before learning something new.