Man, some of you guys were born with silver spoons! Nice "first" basses...or second or third.
My first bass was a real p.o.s. from some Japanese maker - I cannot remember the brand because they surely do not exist anymore. Hollow body with two pups that had little to do with tone or volume. lol Strings about 1/2 inch off the f/b, neck that consistently needed tweaking (which is how and why I learned to adjust the truss rod), and no matter what amp I played through, it was just noise. However, all that happened in 1967, so I am not naming names nor pointing fingers. I kept that bass for the next four years. When I went to college, I sold everything.
When I graduated, I began teaching public schools and had summers off - so I thought. The first summer I was asked to audition for a bass slot that would be 5 nights a week, all summer long. I borrowed a bass, got the job, and purchased a Moserite Ventures' Signature. Fast forward a few decades and I went through Ric 4001, MIA Fender P, Peavey Foundation fretless, G&L L2500, Alembic Orion, MTD Kingston, and a couple that I probably forgot.
Come visit me today and you'll find a G&L SB-1, a Carvin LB75, and a custom job from Knuckle Guitar Works, one that I will never sell. In all three of these, the craftsmanship is light years beyond what I first owned. The tones are IMHO outstanding, the balance and ergonomics are well advanced. Simply no real comparison between my last few and my first couple. More like comparing real basses with toy basses.
