Why do you own so many basses?

[jimb213]

I have three, and basically have the "holy trinity" covered. I have a late-90's Fender PJ with flats, a Sire V7 Vintage 5-string jazz bass, and a Sire Z7 5-string that covers the Stingray sound close enough for me.

I do desperately want a fretless bass again, though. So I may go to 4 basses this year. Being a lefty, selection is really limited on currently-available 5 string fretless basses, so I'm playing wait and see on Reverb and Sweetwater.

 

[JC BASS 91]

Because I can

They are all different from string to frets. I don’t have a repetitive instrument, just 5 unique setups.

Too much unexpected discretionary income. Too much indiscretion spending it.

Because they all sound and feel different.

All of the above. I'm sure I could come up with other reasons, but these sum it up nicely for me (except I have 16 unique setups currently).

 

[badinage]

For artistic inspiration.

 

[RandomKaren]

Lockdowns. I went from 3 (fretless 4, fretless 5, matching fretted 5) to I reckon 14 at the silliest point, most of which were traded or sold without ever having been played outside the house. Now down to 5 and I reckon I'd probably just have the original 3 if it hadn't been for all that weirdness.

 

[Levitamin]

As much as I get GAS, I don't do well with too many choices. I've owned dozens of basses and guitars, but right now I'm at one drumset, two electric guitars, one acoustic., and one bass, a new MIJ Hybrid II Jazz. I don't need anything else at the moment. I'm not a collector. The painting is what matters to me, not necessarily the brushes I used to create it, if that makes sense? If I were just a bass player, I might own more than one. But probably two or three at the most.

 

[jim777]

I used to have over a dozen, but with a recent Sire V7 purchase I now have 3: a Squier Affinity short scale my daughter gave me, the Sire, and my forever bass STR LS-648. I could be happy with just the STR though, and pretty much have been for a decade or so now. Still, if a Pentabuzz dropped into my lap I wouldn't be upset

 

[Matt O]

I’ve got a hair trigger and my eject button is broken.

 

[DCErik]

Bears repeating:

Q: How many basses should a normal person have?

A: About five.

Q: Umm, that sounds more like a bass enthausiast to me.

A: No, a bass enthausiast has about fifteen.

Q: That sounds more like someone who is obsessed with basses.

A: Nope. People obsessed with basses can have hundreds.

Q: Hundreds? Yike! That sounds like a psycho!

A: No. Psychos seldom own basses, or at most tend to have just one or two.

Q: Ah, now that sounds like a normal person.

A: No no. A normal person has about five. We already covered that.

 

[KohanMike]

Because I can

Me too, plus being retired, it keeps me occupied designing the mods and finishes done by Eric's Guitar and Pat Wilkins.

 

[RSBBass]

My main bass, my backup, my fret-less, my acoustic bass guitar, My laminate upright and the 1920's German upright I am resurrecting. The only one that could be considered redundant is the backup but it was needed when I gigged more than do now.

 

[MCS4]

I already covered this in detail in a prior post, but my lineup at the moment is:

• Two active j-style basses with rounds, which are my primary gigging instruments, so that I always have a No. 1 and a backup available;
• P bass with flats;
• Five string with Low B, currently strung with flats (soapbars);
• Five string with High C, rounds (PJ);
• Four-string fretless, flats (active j-style).

At the end of the day I only really "need" my No. 1 bass and a backup, but this setup gives me a lot of different options for fun and exploration. It's particularly helpful to have extras for me because I use various different tunings to suit different projects and it is nice to be able to swap instruments rather than changing tunings, as well as to always have something in standard tuning for general practice. This also feels about the limit of the number of basses and the separation of types of basses where I still have an actual, distinct use for each one and can actually spend at least some time playing them to feel like I am getting use and enjoyment out of them.

 

[bearhart74]

the only answer that matters is "because i want to."

 

[Hot Rats]

Alcohol and access to the internet mostly. Others I just wanted.

 

[ScarfFace]

I currently have 5 basses. The first and oldest is a Parts P Bass that I've had for almost 20 years and would have a very hard time giving it up because its got honest wear on it and lots of memories. I have a Danelectro DC bass that I thought I needed because it was light, but I never play it. I have two custom Hammersmith basses that are very nice but I honestly never play any of those 4 basses after I recently made a switch to short scale because it has brought the joy of playing back to me. I would be happy to only have 1-3 basses at this point, but the hassle of boxing them up and shipping them for a pretty minimal sum just doesn't seem worth it to me.

 

[Lo-E]

I think they’re neat.

 

[Fat Bottom Kyle]

they temporarily fill the gaping hole where my soul should reside, also variety!

 

[2thAche]

I only drink one glass of bourbon at a time, but I like many brands. Should I just have one bottle?

 

[J-Bass RMR]

My wife asked me that once. I asked her why she needed so many necklaces as she only has 1 neck (whilst reminding her her birthday was coming up and a new neclace was under consideration). It was like a lightbulb went off.

Not quite the same story, but;
We went to the GB vs. 49'rs game in November on my wife's birthday and stayed overnight in Appleton - conveniently a few blocks down from one of the mom & pop music shops that's been there forever.

The next morning (she knows the routine) we walked down to the music store, and I ask to try out a bass.
She looks out the window and says "hey - I'm going to that Jewelry store across the street". (?!)
She's usually pretty practical, but, well, it was here birthday.......

Lesson; when checking google maps for "guitar stores" - also check the surrounding businesses.
That was just too easy of a setup...

 

[Killing Floor]

More > Less

 

[MVE]

Because every TB’er knows, at the absolute minimum, every bass player absolutely needs the following:
1. P-bass with flats
2. Fretless J with rounds
3. Fretted J with rounds or an MM for slapping.
4. At least one boutique instrument
5. Kala ubass
6. At least one vintage instrument
7. And a PJ, for those times when you’re not exactly sure what bass to bring to a gig.