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Your first bass vs. what you play now

#502
1st bass was a 3/4 scale Grand Prix P bass copy. Then I went through a BC Rich Phase (hey is was the glam metal days) I had a Warlock, Mockingbird, and Ironbird. I then sold off my BC Rich's and moved to a Washburn MB-8 that I still have. It's a great playing bass and best for slapping. I then bought a 4 string MIM Fender Jazz, sold that and bought a 5 string MIM Fender Jazz (still have it, been playing it for the last 10 years and still love it) and will be moving to a Schecter Stilletto Elite 5 on 12/25/10. Working on getting a MIA Fender Jazz Deluxe V.
 
#503
My first bass was a Godin Freeway 4. Because I started playing in my late 40's I wasn't looking at "starter" basses and in retrospect, the Godin Freeway series remains, to this day, an excellent instrument.

I guess my "go to" bass these days is my Sadowsky Metro RV5PJ with my Lakland 55-01D following behind.
 
#505
My first bass was a Kay Precision copy that I picked up for £30 in 1990, funded by a glass-collecting job in a pub. It was sunburst with a maple neck and had a mangled black scratchplate that the previous owner had modified to cover some nasty routing. I never did find a replacement plate that covered the routing so I left it on there.

I could fit my fingers under the strings at the bottom of the neck and it had two E flatwound strings for the E and A and two heavy-guage roundwound D and G. I remember the blisters well while I was learning! What didn't help the blisters, but helped strengthening my fingers, is that I used to buy heavy guage strings during this period, thinking they would last longer!

I've been through quite a lot of basses in the 20 years since and regret the sale of many of them (especially the '82 Rickenbacker 4001 and '98 American '62 Jazz Reissue). I recently had a clear out for financial reasons and had to regretfully sell my Fender Classic Series 50s P-bass (which is a fantastic bass for the money!), so my sole remaining bass is a sunburst Peavey Zodiac BXP with black scratchplate and maple neck that I picked up for £120 and to console myself, plonked a set of EMG PJ-X pickups in it.

Playability-wise, the Peavey is very comfortable - narrower neck than the Precision, but it's a thicker neck. Soundwise, it sounded pretty decent with the stock pickups but the EMGs have been a more than worthy investment and sound more even from string to string. Bloody silent too, which is rather nice.

(as a side-note, anyone interested in the PJ-X set should definitely give them a try - I'd read that EMGs sound 'sterile' to some folk, but it's not how I would describe the PJ-X set. They have great clarity on the high end, and are not lacking on the low-end without sounding 'boomy')
 
#506
I started on a JC Pennys Sysonics strat copy.

My first bass was a Squier Jazz standard.
It was alright. I liked the look of it most.

I'm currently playing a USA Peavey Foundation 5 and an old Memphis P copy.
I also own a Warwick Corvette $$ 5, Wick Thumb NT 5, and Yamaha Attitude Special (the better version).

All great, but the Foundation is my #1.

I've got a Fender Precision Elite II coming on Monday. :o
 
#508
First wasnt actually mine, crappy Yamaha RBX250, belonged to a friend, we shared same practice space. Played it for 3 years until I saved enough money to get custom made bass from small local luthier (only body left now :/ )

But now my main bass is even crappier then rxb250, 30yo fretless P-copy with banana-like neck and half-inch high action, missing bridge screws, shabby output jack, reliced-like look (but from real wear) all over it, almost 15yo strings and a whoooole lotta mojo. I love it to death and would never part from it. :)
 
#509
My first bass was a early 70's Harmony jazz bass, sounded great, action wasn't too bad and had Black Diamond flat wound strings.
Now I play a Tobias Growler, an 1999 Ibanez BTB1000E, an ESP LTD 154 DX, And my 2 Westones from the 80's.among others .My only Jazz bass now is a Schecter Diamond J but it doesn't get as much playing time as the rest.I just can't get that deep bass sound out of it that I've become used to.
 
#510
My first bass is still my main bass. It's a Peavey Milestone P-bass that I bought used from a store...I don't know what brand the pickup is, but it is extremely high output, and not exactly like a Fender P-bass. It has what many consider high action, but I like it that way...also my guitars, I like their action high too. The Milestone just has a certain "attitude" sound...very aggressive, through most amps.

I also have a Peavey 5 string Jazz style, and I recently aquired a used made in the USA Peavey Fury P-bass. The 5 string I bought new, and it had very low action...I raised it. The Fury has a traditional P-bass tone.
 
#512
my first bass was a secondhand epiphone explorer, sounds alright, but the neck dive killed my left shoulder.

im playing a Traben array attack now, not crazy expensive, but i couldnt care, it looks better, sounds better and its sooo much more comfortable :)
 
#514
First bass: 1959 sunburst Fender Precision, purchased used in 1964 at age 12. Played it through a Zenith tube radio in which that my dad wired a 1/4" input. Got a bass amp about a year later -- Sear 1x15 piggyback, made by Danelectro, then a new Ampeg B-15N in 1966.

Today? German hybrid upright, a '69 Pbass, Guild Pilot 5 string, and Carvin 5 string fretless.
 
#515
1st bass, a squier p-bass special. then i got a fender hot-rod american p-bass, a korean squier, a EBMM SR5, '83 aria pro II SB-700, a '08 fender us p-bass, an ibanez gsr-100, a schecter stilleto studio 5-string, a schecter stilleto elite 5-string.....all left-handed. no longer own the korean squier and the squier p-bass special is in pieces, waiting for me to frankenstein it back together.
 
#517
First bass was an Epiphone ET-280

-27111603749675970.jpg


Short scale, fretted, gawdawful red color. Somewhat better than, say, a Sekova or many other cheapies of the time period (mid-70's) but still not a great bass by any means. No matter what kind of strings I put on the thing it always sounded like a cigar box strung with rubber bands

As much as it hurt at the time, the ******** who stole it probably did me a favor in the long run. Next bass was a 70's Precision fretless, sunburst and rosewood :)

These days I play a MIJ Jazz Special fretless. Black and black, on black
 
#518
The difference is $40.

My first bass was a used Japanese hollow body back in 1972, and it cost $35.00. It was inferior compared to today's quality standards.
The bass I play mostly now is an SX- P bass I bought used last year for $75.00 and I love this bass. In between I've had an Alembic and several MIA P's and J's.
 
#519
My first bass was Yamaha Attitude Special. I've changed many basses over the years. But I always came back to a P or P-style bass. I use Ibanez Blazer for most of the time. So, not much has changed, I think. I like to play with FX, and I find that P is most suitable for my style.
 

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