martthebass Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 Well, after the acquisition of my LMIII I thought I was finally GAS free in both the Bass and Rig department. Well, I was for about 2 days, the time between getting the LMIII and a rehearsal session with a new band. Well, the new band is a bit of a departure for me, it's turned into more of an acoustic/female vocal type animal....very different from the 60s/70's and classic rock of the other 2 combos I play with. So, my current bass line up pretty much did every thing I needed; the Status for rock and grit, the Ray 30th for the same should I need it, the Ray fretless for, well, fretless moments and............and there's the problem, the modified Sue Ryder. I was using the Status for the new band and all seemed ok but last week I didn't have time to sort my gear out and grabbed the first bass to hand.....the Sue R. Unexpectedly I found that it worked a treat for the laid back stuff that the new band has gravitated towards (yes, better than the Status and the Ray 30th). So, here's the dilemma, being cashless (and the threat of redundancy being just around the corner) should I: 1. Press the Fretless Ray into service for the new band exclusively, lie back and think of Pino, 2. Sell everything but the Sue R, trick out the Sue R and go on a nice holiday with the difference, 3. Put the Ray 30th up for trade against a nice 70s Fender P bass (hopefully one that doesn't weigh more than 2 fat dogs) Answers on a postcard to.......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I suspect the thread title says it all - you will never be satisfied! Nice dilemma to have (in a way) though. To be pleased with the tone and playability of your least expensive bass. Maybe that says a lot about the nature of GAS/conspicuous consumption? If we could only see past the label. If you choose option 3, be careful - from what I understand there are a lot of very ordinary 70s Fenders around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martthebass Posted June 8, 2011 Author Share Posted June 8, 2011 You're probably right C, GAS is a lifelong condition only managed by (in)discriminate spending. I know what you're saying regarding the Fender too, there are many dogs out there masquerading as 70s Fenders......what to do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 (edited) There may be others who would disagree but out of the dozen or so Stingrays I owned including a 20th anniversary, the 30th anniversary one was by far the best and started my love of mahogany bodies. The fretless Stingray is still by far my favourite fretless bass out of all of the ones I've had As soon as I read the first paragraph I was already thinking Precision. Personally, and this is only personally, they all sound more or less the same when used in a band environment so Fender CS or modified charity shop I would keep a hold of this one too. That leaves the Status but what if you suddenly develop back pain or become an old fart overnight and start complaining about the weight of the other basses? I say f*** it. You have 4 nice basses. Unless you can't find a reasonable amount of use for any one of them then keep them all. Edited June 8, 2011 by Delberthot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 (edited) [quote name='Delberthot' post='1261793' date='Jun 8 2011, 08:39 PM']I say f*** it. You have 4 nice basses. Unless you can't find a reasonable amount of use for any one of them then keep them all.[/quote] As usual, straight to the point and spot on. My own view: Don't sell any of them unless you really have to; the market is absolute pants and you'll be appalled at how little you get. The four you have cover all possible situations with minimum investment, so you've already done a better job than I've managed. Don't judge the Sue Ryder P while it's part of a stable of really nice basses, and surprises you by how well it performs. If you sell the Rays and the Streamline, you'll soon focus on the Ryder's shortcomings and start looking for another higher-quality bass. I really enjoy playing [url="http://tinypic.com/a/2k3ki/3"]http://tinypic.com/a/2k3ki/3[/url] in my garage, despite owning a pair of Alleva-Coppolos and a Status Streamline, but that's partly [i][b]because [/b][/i]I own such nice basses. Every now and then it's great to play a "low-quality" bass (or at least a cheap bass) because if I sound good it's reasonable to assume that it's my playing, not the fabulous bass that's making the difference. One of the reasons I like such nice basses is because, if I screw up or sound bad, I know damned well that there's no point in blaming the bass ... it [i][b]must [/b][/i]be me. If that Maya was the only bass I owned, I'd soon start looking around ... Edited June 8, 2011 by Happy Jack Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 Is it that time again Mart? It's been a while since you last teased me. £500? (and no not for that SR!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martthebass Posted June 9, 2011 Author Share Posted June 9, 2011 (edited) [quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1262128' date='Jun 8 2011, 11:47 PM']Is it that time again Mart? It's been a while since you last teased me. £500? (and no not for that SR!)[/quote] Nah, just I don't have a quality 'passive' and maybe could do with one. The 30th would always be out of the door before the Status but I don't think it's that time just yet. Edited June 9, 2011 by martthebass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted June 9, 2011 Share Posted June 9, 2011 One day............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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