Why own SO many basses?

[groucho]

I owned just the same 4 for decades...Then midlife crisis and extra cash sent me off the rails
Now have 14...
BUT - In fairness I only ONCE just went out and bought a big $$$ one. Many of mine I put together
myself which is WAY more fun than just buying them.

 

[hrodbert696]

I''ve got five too, and I think it's the limit of what I can justify by variety of needs. Two fours, two fives, and a fretless acoustic. If I get ny more it would be for curiosity and fun.

 

[SirMjac28]

As I look at all of the basses I have hanging on walls and tucked away in closets I'm not ready to face that question.

 

[bachlover]

The main reason for me is inspiration. One of the main problems I had as a player was losing interest and the bass would sit as a result BTB (before talk bass). As my interest grew in playing again as a result of TB (especially the Basses and Amps categories), my interest also grew in gear both in basses and amps. As a result, I picked up a 5 after years of playing a 4, and have since gone on to purchase 5 fretlesses, 6es fretted and unfretted, neck throughs, bolt ons, etc. I cycle through them, and whenever I feel rutted, picking up either 6 never fails to snap me out of it.

 

[BROCK WOOD]

I'm too poor to collect cars so bass collecting is an affordable vice.

This most closely fits my situation. I have 6 cars - 4 of which are projects that just sit until I can afford to have
a shop. Meanwhile my bass count is in the 20 range & I have a small woodshop to repair the 6 (of those 20ish)
that are projects. Most of why I own so many is due to experimentation. I want to know which body I prefer &
then which wood combination best represents my sound. As a BCR man (I got that decision out of the way long
ago) I still don't have all the shapes; but, due to opportunity I do have 8 Mockingbirds in almost all the various
wood & pickup combinations. I also settled on my electronics package long ago. So, by having some of the
variables being equal (body shape & electronics) in my quest for what is best for me: My focus is the other
variables such as wood selection & pickup location & orientation!

When it began to look like I was becoming a collector, I assured my wife that I would not be keeping them all.
Although I meant it: their value has been rising! We now look at them as investment!!! Not many toys out
there that you can enjoy playing with right up to the time of sale & still make a profit!!!!! Lets see: Cars, land,
buildings, vintage guitars, vintage trains... Yeah, I'll stick to basses for now!

This comparison led to my pickup orientation preference:

I sold the 1 on the left!

The 3 farthest to the left in this pic are projects; so the wood selection is a project in progress.

 

[Deleted member 264575]

"Want one more bass?"

 

[BuffaloBob4343]

Although this is incredibly chauvinistic, I would say it's the same reasons I wish I could have a harem of women! They are all so unique. They all have different voices, different personalities, different traits that make them beautiful in their own way, and they all play differently. Different is exciting to the senses!! And each one provides her own unique form of inspiration.

The biggest differences are that it is WAAAAAYY cheaper to have a harem of beautiful basses, and they never get jealous when you spend more time with one versus another!

 

[KevInDaBassment]

The biggest differences are that it is WAAAAAYY cheaper to have a harem of beautiful basses, and they never get jealous when you spend more time with one versus another!

 

[greenduke]

Currently, I have 11 basses. I actually enjoy setting them up and maintaining them as much as playing them.
You'd be surprised at how many owners don't know how to, or bother to do the proper maintenance/care of their instruments. Show them the love and they will love you back.
Also, they all have different personalities and characteristics, via the builder and materials.
I'm also a composer so, I've found it interesting how different basses helped inspire and contribute to writing different compositions.
It's almost as if the instrument speaks to me...This is who and what "I" am. Let "me" speak though you, the player.
Creativity is magic. Music is the ultimate in that magic!
Besides, how many different women do you think you could slap the hell out of and not go to jail for!
Professional sports figures being the exception!

 

[tmdazed]

Why own SO many basses?

in short , because I can

 

[BuffaloBob4343]

I meant the biggest difference in the ANALOGY of why having more than one, not the items coveted!! I'm weird, but not THAT weird.

 

[KevInDaBassment]

I meant the biggest difference in the ANALOGY of why having more than one, not the items coveted!! I'm weird, but not THAT weird.

LOL, it's all good! I was just ribbing at you, sounded like you had been doing some "comparison shopping" based on price for both types of harems. We all know that isn't true, but I did it for the lolz

 

[BuffaloBob4343]

LOL, it's all good! I was just ribbing at you, sounded like you had been doing some "comparison shopping" based on price for both types of harems. We all know that isn't true, but I did it for the lolz

It's cool. I laughed my ass off when I saw your post. Yes, women are generally not really good for gigging, as I find that most of them lack that low-mid growl I really crave in my bass instruments!

 

[lordradish]

Although I certainly don't begrudge people who own a lot of basses, I've never personally felt the need to. I have a Wal fretted and a Stambaugh fretless, and I can pretty much get any tone that I need out of 'em. Yeah, I'd love to own a P-bass to throw some flats on or a Rick for jamming out on some prog, but it always comes down to the fact that I can think of other things I'd rather spend my money on. Maybe if I was more of a for-hire kinda guy, I'd have more of a need.

 

[Tim1]

Simple pleasure. A year or so ago I downsized to two, a P and a J. I could not last and since then I have built the stable up to eight. I rationalise it by recognising that I am both a player and a collector - some people collect clockwork toys or fishing rods, I collect basses. They give me pleasure, I am fascinated by the different tones of each and every one gets gigged at some time during the year. As I pointed out to my wife, some people have a 30K Harley or boat outside, I have a few basses.

 

[SasquatchDude]

Just one here. To be honest, I've actually come to be grateful that I can't afford to go out and splurge to my GASing heart's desire, because it made me duly explore the full potential of what I have.

I pretty much ended up learning to do my own setup and maintenance out of necessity. Changing strings (well, that's a no brainer), neck relief, saddle height, pickup height, intonation, neck shim, wiring pots and capacitors... Somehow it really makes you appreciate what you have when you have to figure out how it works.

 

[jazzbill]

I have nine, each with a different use.

74 Fender Jazz - First good quality bass purchased new in 1975. My only bass untill...
93 Modulus Graphite Q4Spi - High tech slap pop axe needed for a working originals band.
Applause Acoustic Electric Bass Guitar - To bang on on the couch without an amp.
Pedulla Thunder Buzz - Bought it from a friend when I needed a fretless for a jazz gig.
Big Kydd - Electric upright, bought for a big band gig.
Musicman String Ray HH5 - Bought when I needed a five string for a blues / rock band.
Fender American Precision - Music store bankruptcy bargain to good to pass up. Besides I always wanted one.
1890's Carved European Upright - My current main axe.
2011 Shen SB90 - Laminated upright. Backup for when the carved bass visits the luthier or when a gig is too dangerous for the carved.

 

[ArtechnikA]

I have 3, but I really only play one - the Roscoe fretless 6. At my current skill level, it's a sufficiently demanding instrument that it takes all my attention. And it's sufficiently versatile that I can't see the need for others.

I started with a fretted Synapse 5, then got an opportunity to add an identical-twin fretless.
I'll keep the fretted bass 'cause I might need to slap someday, and I can't see breaking up the set.
I've pulled their batteries and put them back in their cases.

 

[Ortus]

I recently recorded bass on the "playalong" tracks for a semi-famous guitarist friend's instructional video. The video demonstrated a variety of rock guitar styles so I had to closely mimic the signature tones/styles of about a dozen different players in a dozen different rock sub-genres (from Sabbath to Pink Floyd to Green Day to Korn, etc.). Having a bunch of different basses was definitely helpful in this particular case!

 

[Rich Terry]

I'm down to 8 but I think I'm going to take it down further.

Going to move the Godin SD4 and my MIM Jazz

Keep:
MIA Jazz
MIA Hot Rod P/J
Gibson EB
30th Anniversary EBMM Stingray
1970 Ampeg Dan Armstrong
Fender Tele Bass

Of course there are all the 6 stings I have also.

Not to mention the amps and recording gear. That's another thread.