I've got a Squier P and am saving for a Fender P, hopefully I won't need to sell the Squier to get it. That will be enough for me. One day I'd love to own a Rickenbacker and a nice semi-hollow like the Epi Jack Casady, but really I know that a good P can make all the sounds I love.
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Why Not Just One Bass?
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
True, but they are also the ones with money. I'm talking about the average full-time but not famous working musician.... they typically have fewer instruments than many of the posters on this board....
I played for 20 years with one bass. A 1979 Music Man Sabre. Didn't really gig much because a) I sucked and didn't practice much and b) I was in college and then grad school after that and didn't have a lot of time to practice or gig.
Today I could EASILY manage what I do with one really good 5-string bass. I have 3 really good 5-string basses and no incentive to get rid of any of them. I also have 3 really good 4-string basses that I'm not getting rid of. So for me, it's want, not need. And since I bought my last two basses ('79 and '80 Music Man Sabres) I am very much GAS-free.
I have significantly thinned out my amplification, though. I had been using rackmount and matching speakers based on where I was playing and how much power I thought I needed. I sold off all my speaker cabs, two power amps, two preamps and a lot of effects stuff. I now have one combo and an extension speaker that I gig with and a 100W combo amp as a practice box at home.
I could EASILY make do with one 5er, a combo, and an extension.
Today I could EASILY manage what I do with one really good 5-string bass. I have 3 really good 5-string basses and no incentive to get rid of any of them. I also have 3 really good 4-string basses that I'm not getting rid of. So for me, it's want, not need. And since I bought my last two basses ('79 and '80 Music Man Sabres) I am very much GAS-free.
I have significantly thinned out my amplification, though. I had been using rackmount and matching speakers based on where I was playing and how much power I thought I needed. I sold off all my speaker cabs, two power amps, two preamps and a lot of effects stuff. I now have one combo and an extension speaker that I gig with and a 100W combo amp as a practice box at home.
I could EASILY make do with one 5er, a combo, and an extension.
dvh said:
That's a pretty big blanket statement, especially considering this is basically an anonymous board and there's no way to know what "level" each of us are. Also, I can afford every instrument I own, so the money argument is moot. One has to be a famous rock star to own as many basses as you desire.
Frankjohnson said:
+1
As I like to remind my students- play what you like!
There has been an occasion when playing a one-time gig when the leader/ songwriter asked if I had something a little more "traditional or vintage-ish". He went as far as to offer one of his basses for me to use. I was playing an EMG- equipped modulus at the time as my one and only bass. The tone was very full and clean but didn't have the raw/growly tone he was hearing.
I did my best to adapt and fit into the mix, but that is one occasion when it would have been nice if I had another option to accommodate the bandleader's wish, even if it was 50% visual...
Now, I play a 6-string passive of my own design that works for all of the gigs I do. On the other hand, if playing was my primary source of income, I would add a Nordy 5, a P-clone and build another 5-er that could serve as a"chameleon", if I could take only one bass on the road.
I used to have this mindset, and in fact the reason I first got more than one bass was to have a backup. Used to bring two on the road for years (I toured in an original band all through the 90s). I have never had a bass "break" on me. Worst is a broken string, and I can usually finish a set even in that case.
audiomitch said:
IME, what famous players do is only a guide. What works for them may or may not work for you. Ultimately, experience is the best teacher.
These threads can be funny, some of us clearly feel a need to justify our choices, when it is really no one else's business. If I had five and it worked for me, why not? One is working well for me now, and I am just happy that I plug up and like what I hear.
I'm simply saying that the working musicians I know - making a living, modest yes, but a living - get by with a few instruments.
No I don't know the situation of everyone on this board but it's clear that MOST are hobbyists and can afford gear because they have other income.
I'm one of those, by the way. But my needs now are simply a fretted 4, a fretless 4, and a DB.... I can afford more, but don't NEED it....
I try/want to use just one bass, and really for my gigs, a Sadowsky MV5 covers it. I do have a 2nd bass - a Rob Allen Mouse - but everyone I play with would hire me if I only had a cheap fretted 4 as well.
That said, I'd also love to have a Geddy Lee as there's just something about that neck and the tone. Hard to justify all that money for 3 gigs a month - on a good month.
The answer to why not just one is that sometimes you just need more, and sometimes you just want more.
That said, I'd also love to have a Geddy Lee as there's just something about that neck and the tone. Hard to justify all that money for 3 gigs a month - on a good month.
The answer to why not just one is that sometimes you just need more, and sometimes you just want more.
Using Vulcan Logic.
You could get by with one bass.
Two is good if you are out gigging.
Two or more nice if you need specific sounds in the studio.
The rest is is plain GAS.
You could get by with one bass.
Two is good if you are out gigging.
Two or more nice if you need specific sounds in the studio.
The rest is is plain GAS.
RaginRog
Last guy you want to see is Employee Relations guy
4 jazzes... 3 fender one squier fender... each sounds different to me... but you are right i could easily survive with 1 bass and 1 set of boxers ... but why
I'm not sure my wife would want me if I only owned one pair of boxers!
I have only one bass now. I have had all manner of mostly American 4s, 5s and 6s, including Fenders, Pedulla, Wal, and Yamahas. I have trimmed back to one absolutely stunning Squier CV 51 P. I play jazz, pop, blues, country, Irish, swing, you name it. It suits me just fine.
RaginRog
Last guy you want to see is Employee Relations guy
Wow...you've owned a Pedulla, and a Wal...and have settled on a Squier. Those basses are highly coveted by many. Goes to show, that a bass doesn't have to be a expensive in order to be loved.
Dr. Cheese said:
I agree. I'm not directing anything at you. But you're taking my quote is a little out of context. The other poster said he didn't know of any "professional" players with a lot of basses. That simply doesn't bear out. That was the meaning of my quote.
I had one bass at a time for 23 years or so. 15 years of that was a MIM Fender Jazz....then I got the trade/buy and sell bug. I went through 8 basses in about 6 months, upgrading and making a decent profit with every trade or sale. With no money out of pocket, I went from the MIM Fender Jazz to a MIA Fender P Deluxe and a Squier Jazz Active V. So, I've got two basses. I really don't need two as the previous 23 years will attest to, but I don't mind it at all.
